AllFreeNovel
Share Us
‘Jordan was using it to run beef cattle. He hasn’t done much since his accident, but he was saying he hoped to purchase a few head in the spring.’
Grace hurried to her feet. ‘Look at the time. I’ll have to put the kettle on again.’
She bustled about and the conversation turned to family connections and cattle. Morgan focused hard on listening, but his mind was elsewhere.
He should be angry with his mother but it was hard to blame her totally when he considered Becca’s history. Both women would have been fearful of precipitating the kind of disaster they’d witnessed before. Especially with his own fragility at the time. He’d like to think he wouldn’t have taken that way out. Becca couldn’t have known about his illness. Grace wouldn’t exactly want to spread that minor detail around about her perfect son.
His mother was right about their age. They’d both been too young for marriage. Who knows what would have happened if they had. Probably divorced after a couple of years and splitting their time with the children. So not much different, except Becca had borne the brunt of the burden and he hadn’t got to know his daughter.
His father walked him out after the meal and stood at the fence. Morgan leaned beside him, looking across the paddocks to the road and the river lit by the full moon, and beyond, the lights of the town showing through the trees. In the stillness, he could hear the sound of cattle on the Durand place on the far side of his own acreage. His home. For the first time he was able to acknowledge how much he’d missed this place.
‘Grace told me you’d asked her about Becca and the children this afternoon. About why we never told you.’
Morgan tensed, his hand gripping the post. ‘I would have thought you’d have more sense, Dad.’
‘I always thought you’d be home before long and it would all come out. The resemblance is so obvious. I never expected it to take twelve years for you to come home.’
Guilt stirred bile in his throat. He swallowed the bitterness. The regret. ‘It should never have been kept a secret.’
‘You’ll get no argument from me. Grace and Becca had it all sorted out before I realised what was going on. I left them to it.’
Unspoken was the reproach at his distance. He could have come home any time over the last twelve years. It was his own fault. None of the conspirators would have expected it to last this long. His mother’s aim had been merely to keep him from marrying before gaining his qualifications.
Becca’s motivations were harder to establish. He needed to understand her point of view. He needed to understand exactly what was going on between her and Dan before the accident. He needed to know where she stood in terms of relationships. There was no way he was going to miss out on the rest of his daughter’s life. She could be his only child if circumstances didn’t change.
He was supposed to be good at diagnostics. It was a pity he hadn’t applied himself to this problem years ago. At least now he could start working on a plan.
***
Karen wandered into the staff room and helped herself to coffee from the machine. She cast an eye over the grocery list Becca was working on. ‘Can we have something apart from Digestives in the bickie barrel?’
‘I think so. Morgan’s approved a larger budget for incidentals.’
‘He’s in a good mood this week. Do you think he had a successful weekend?’
Becca frowned up at her colleague. ‘What do you mean?’
Karen leaned on the bench and sipped at her coffee. ‘Maybe he got laid.’
An image of him with the lovely Sabine seared the back of Becca’s eyes. Maybe he had. She had no idea what the result of his lunch with the teacher might have been. Maybe they’d made a day of it. Maybe a night. He’d certainly been less sombre the last few days. More relaxed.
She forced her attention back to the job at hand. ‘It’s not our business.’
‘If he marries a local, he’s more likely to stick around.’
Becca wasn’t sure which scenario was more painful. Either way the children were going to be hurt. Especially if Morgan started his own family and the twins were sidelined. It was the most likely scenario if he didn’t leave town at the end of his three years. She wasn’t sure if she should be relieved Karen obviously hadn’t heard the gossip about Morgan and Gabby at the school working bee. For some reason it hadn’t gone viral like she’d expected. Perhaps for some people it was old news and not worth discussing.
Karen suddenly straightened, a flush brightening her cheeks. ‘Doctor Cavanaugh.’
‘Morgan, please. I thought we’d established that much.’ His eyes narrowed at the pair of them as if he’d overheard part of the conversation.
‘I better get back to work.’ Karen slid past him with a grimace at Becca to indicate she was thinking the same thing.
Becca glanced down at the notepad, keeping her pen hovering, hoping Morgan would take the hint and leave. He didn’t, going over to the sink and running himself a glass of water.
‘I need to talk to you.’
Trying not to reveal the anxiety his words triggered, Becca put down the pen. ‘How can I help?’
