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“Yes, of course.” Pushing thoughts of Finn to the back of her mind, she stepped the rest of the way out of the car and squared her shoulders to walk up the steps.
“Steve and Aaron send their apologies; they’ve had to take the helicopter out to check a broken fence. But they’ll be home soon,” Dale said, as he trailed her up the staircase.
There were a few people missing from the crowd that Indy would’ve liked to have seen one more time. She was sad shehadn’t had a chance to say her goodbyes to the rest of the muster crew. Once they found out she and Finn were safe, Dale told her that Dave and Carrot had quickly moved on to a job on another station farther west, bemoaning the fact they were down to two again, and joking that perhaps they could lure Finn away from detective work. He’d made a damn good stock hand, and once he realized that he’d missed his true calling, he’d come crawling back to them, Dave had said. The Scanlon family had spent a few days resting and recuperating at Stormcloud, but they, too, had moved on. Sue, the eldest Scanlon sister, was pregnant and due to give birth in a few weeks, so they were heading south to make sure they were there in time for the happy event. Indy hoped they sent her a photo of the new baby. Brian had been released on bail, awaiting a trial date, and their truck had been impounded. She was sad for Brian and Rosie; they’d destroyed something wonderful. They could’ve had a large, wonderful life on a property of their own if they’d waited a few more years. Now they would be confined to a small life, where Brian spent at least the next few years in jail. Indy wondered if their marriage would survive.
Bindi was the first to greet Indy, wrapping her up in a bearhug. “God, we were so worried about you.”
“Yes,” Julie echoed, joining in the hug. Indy wasn’t normally much of a hugger, but she relaxed into them, liked the feel of it, the way they embraced her, made her feel like part of the circle. Then everyone was talking at once, everyone wanting to touch her, talk to her, wish her well.
Until Daniella clapped her hands. “Let’s take this inside, everyone. Give the poor girl some room to breathe,” she said.
It was coming on to mid-afternoon, smoko time at the lodge, Daniella ushered the guests back to their tables, which Indy could see had been set up a bit like a high tea, with piles of small, delicate cakes, silver cutlery, teapots, and matching teacups.
As they made their way through the dining room, she quirked an inquiring eyebrow at Bindi, who rolled her eyes and said quietly into Indy’s ear, “Daniella’s idea. She wanted us all to be here when you arrived home, and she needed something to entertain the guests this afternoon. So, Skylar and I have been run off our feet, getting it ready.”
“It looks amazing,” Indy said admiringly.
“Yeah, it tastes amazing, too,” Mack confirmed.
“Really?” Dale turned greedy eyes toward the feast. He was always hungry, and he’d do just about anything for Skylar’s cooking.
“Don’t worry, bro, I saved some for you.” Skylar punched her brother on the shoulder.
Alex pulled out a stool from beneath the long countertop in the kitchen for her with a gallant sweep of his arm, while everyone else clustered into the kitchen, taking up positions leaning against the wall, or snagging one of the other stools, all talking loudly.
Skylar placed a plate of cupcakes in front of Indy and a large mug of tea, then looked at her expectantly. The kitchen went quiet. “Well, go on,” Skylar prompted. “Tell us all the gory details. We need to hear everything.”
Indy glanced around the kitchen. This was what it meant to be part of a family. The give-and-take. The expectation, but also the support. She’d never felt anything like this before. Dale’s words from earlier came back to her. She was part of the Stormcloud family now. Without any brothers or sisters of her own, Indy hadn’t really known what she’d been missing, until now.
It suddenly made her want to have a family of her own. Something she’d never really had while growing up. A way to re-frame her future, so it was completely different from her past. It was the first time she’d really dissected the idea of havinga family. For the short time she’d been pregnant with Patrick’s baby, she’d quickly come to terms with the idea of having an infant. But that wasn’t the same thing as having family, she realized that now.
And she wanted a family with Finn.
But did he want the same thing? He knew she didn’t have any family left, but they’d only discussed it briefly, so there was no way he could realize just how important it was to her. And even if he did, how were they going to make it work? He already had a daughter. Gorgeous, little, four-year-old Kayleigh. How would she fit into this picture of the perfect family? He might not even want any more kids. It was getting harder to see a way out of this maze of complications. She knew Finn was worth holding onto, but she really needed to talk to him, to find out what was going on in his heart.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
FINN DROVE AS fast as he dared on the gravel roads.Slow down, he told himself. It wouldn’t do to crash the rental car when he was this close. He was nearly at Stormcloud, and his heart beat a little faster with every kilometer. It’d been four days since he’d last seen Indy. Four interminably long days, where he’d spent most of the time strategizing, planning, ignoring the pain of the myriad of tiny cuts all over his body, and finally executing their plan. But always at the back of his mind was Indy.
It was getting close to dusk, and Finn knew the wildlife would be coming out soon, and the roads would get dangerous. He flipped on his headlights just in time to see the sign announcing the Stormcloud entrance one kilometer up the road. He wasn’t sure what to expect. Even though he’d spent time with the muster crew, he’d never been to the lodge itself. He’d heard lots of good things, but he wondered if it would live up to the hype.
Turning into the driveway, he was surprised to find it wound deep into the scrubland, taking him almost into the foothills of the escarpment. After ten minutes, over a small rise, the lodge appeared through a copse of trees, and Finn’s breath caught. Itwaseverything people had said it was. Reclining back into the side of the shallow hillside, it was made of local timber, using sustainable architecture, and it almost looked as if it’d emerged fully formed from the bush. As if it belonged there. Understated, but classy. It oozed natural charm and hinted at the luxury to be found inside.
The lights were on inside the lodge, casting a soft glow out onto a grassy slope that led down to a picturesque billabong. Indy had been right. This place was stunning. People moved around inside the building, and Finn decided it must be mealtime. As he found a spot in the parking lot, a couple drifted past him, holding hands, heading up the stairs and inside. Probably guests going in for dinner. Damn, had he chosen a bad time to arrive? Indy would probably be busy helping to serve or in the kitchen. It was all-hands-on-deck when they were fully booked, or so she’d liked to tell him. He should’ve called ahead, but he wanted to surprise her.
Finn got out and stood beside his car, trying to figure out his next move. Should he go in the front door? Or be more discreet and find a rear entrance?
He decided the back door would be preferable. Skirting the bottom of the stairs, he made his way around the corner of the building. He was just reaching for the handle of a door that looked like it might lead inside when he heard a loud gasp behind him.
“Finn? Is that you?”
He turned to see Indy coming down the steps from a separate, smaller building. The staff quarters, perhaps. She opened and closed her mouth a few times, as if trying to speak, but no words would come.
“Hiya, gorgeous.” He turned and was relieved to see her look of confusion morph into one of pure joy.
She leaped down the stairs and bounded into his arms, clinging to him for all she was worth. A couple of his wounds twinged, but he managed to swallow his grimace as her hungry mouth found his, and she raised up on her toes to press herself more fully against him. The hollow ache that’d existed in his gut when he’d said goodbye to Indy in Cairns was replaced by a growing drumbeat of warmth and desire. Replaced by her. Shewas what he’d been missing. She was the missing part that made him whole.
“I hardly recognized you with that suit on,” she finally murmured, releasing his mouth, and drawing back to look at him.
