Chapter Nine

Ed walked into the bar and something hit him hard, knocking the breath right out of him. Helen was waiting for him and she looked … she looked …

‘Hi, Ed.' She smiled at him, tossing her hair, and he was history.

‘You look … just great.' The words were totally inadequate, but the way she suddenly glanced away, then back told him his words had struck home. Those kingfisher blue eyes looked up at him with shy pleasure, and he felt absurdly proud that he was the one she looked at like that.

‘So, are you ready to go?' he asked.

She slid off the stool and nodded. Ed almost took her hand, but at the last minute he caught himself. It was too soon for that. Wasn't it? Instead he stepped back and allowed her to walk ahead of him through the door.

His car was waiting at the kerb. It was just an old Holden station wagon, but it was looking as good as it was ever going to. Instead of fixing the radiator on a paying customer's truck, Ed had spent a large part of the afternoon washing the Holden and wielding a vacuum cleaner. The old car was something of a classic, but a lot of people wouldn't see it that way. He'd still much rather be escorting Helen into something shiny and flash and new. Something more worthy of her.

‘I remember these old Holdens.' Helen's face broke into a wide smile. ‘When I was just a teenager, a boy who lived in my street had one. A white one, just like this. I had a terrible crush on him.' Helen ducked her head and blushed.

Suddenly the old station wagon seemed like the best car in the world. Ed opened the door for Helen to get in.

‘So, tell me about the puppies,' Helen said, when they were both settled inside.

‘They're Golden Labradors,' Ed said, pulling away from the kerb. ‘Years ago, my son Scott adopted a stray Lab. When he ran away from home, he left her behind with me. I kind of got used to having her around. She was very old when Scott finally came back. I think maybe she was just waiting for him. Then she died.'

‘Oh, Ed. I'm sorry.'

‘Don't be. She had been failing for a while. It was as if she was happy to see him again, and then she just went to sleep and never woke up.'

‘You must miss her.'

‘I do. The funny thing was, I adopted a stray cat. A tabby called Bill. He and I rub along all right together. But I think I'd like another dog.'

‘What will Bill think?'

‘Bill's tough as old boot leather. He'll get the puppy trained pretty quickly.'

Beside him, Helen laughed. She seemed more able to do that now. Even a few days had changed her.

‘I'm glad things are going better for you and Tia now.'

Beside him, he heard her take a deep slow breath. ‘Thank you. It's … well … it's wonderful. We've spent hours and hours just talking. Saying things we should have said a long time ago. It's even better than I had ever hoped, seeing her again. She's become such a wonderful young woman, despite …' her voice broke just a little ‘… despite everything that happened. Despite my failure.'

‘No.' The vehemence in his voice surprised both of them. ‘You didn't fail her. You did the best you could. It's all any of us can do. And you loved her. That's what matters. She knows that now, I hope.'

‘I think she does.'

‘Good.'

Ed slowed for a corner, and risked a quick glance across at Helen. She looked pensive, but not sad. ‘I guess you're getting caught up in wedding preparations.'

‘Oh yes. It's exciting. Every mother dreams of planning her daughter's wedding. Even after she left, I used to fantasise that I'd be doing this. And now I am and you know what … it's nothing like I imagined. I certainly never thought we'd be doing it in a place like this. But this is so much better that I ever dreamed. It really is.'

The excitement in her voice reached deep inside Ed sparking emotions that he had long since thought were dead.

‘That's good,' he said gruffly.

‘We're even talking about taking a few days to go dress shopping in the city.'

‘I guess that will be fun.' Ed knew nothing at all about dress shopping, but even a bloke could figure out that a wedding dress needed the sort of shop that just didn't exist in a place like Coorah Creek. Probably not even in Mount Isa. It probably meant a major expedition down to Toowoomba, or even Brisbane. Ed didn't like the city. Never had. He hadn't been back east in … years. But anything that made Helen sound so happy was a good move in Ed's mind. Just as long as she came back.

He pulled into the driveway outside a well-kept home. ‘Here we are.'

The puppies were just seven weeks old. Along with their mother, they occupied the laundry at the back of the house. There were five of them, all fat and healthy and full of life. They wriggled and squirmed and climbed on top of each other, eager for attention.

‘Oh. They are so cute!' Helen sounded like a young girl in her excitement. ‘May I pick one up?'

‘Of course.'

By the time the owner had explained that the puppies were ‘mostly' Labrador and would be ready to go to their new homes very soon, Helen was sitting on the floor, with puppies crawling all over her lap.

‘You are the first,' the owner told Ed. ‘So you can pick whichever one you like.'

Ed barely heard what she was saying, as Helen turned and looked up at him, her face shining.

‘Aren't they just lovely?'

Lovely was a good word. But it wasn't the puppies Ed was thinking of. One particularly adventurous puppy scrambled onto Helen's lap, then climbed and wiggled his way into her arms. As she picked him up, the puppy lunged forward and began licking her face. Ed was almost jealous.

‘That's the one,' he said quickly.

‘He's a treat, that one,' said his owner. ‘Bold as brass. Here, tie this around his neck so you don't lose him in the crowd.'

Helen took the offered ribbon. It was pink. ‘He might not like a pink ribbon,' she joked as she carefully tied it around the puppy's neck.

‘I'll get him a collar right away,' Ed promised. ‘Something more masculine.'

‘What are you going to call him?'

Ed was stumped. ‘I honestly hadn't thought about that. Have you got any ideas?'

‘Well,' Helen said thoughtfully as the puppy rolled over offering her his tummy to tickle. ‘Your son, Scott. What sort of car is he restoring over there in England?'

‘He's working on an old Bentley.'

‘There you are – call him Bentley.' Helen held the puppy up close and looked him in the face. ‘What do you think? Are you Bentley?'

In response the puppy licked her nose.

‘That's it then,' Ed said. ‘Bentley he is.'

They left without the puppy. Helen was disappointed, but understood that he needed to be properly weaned before he left his mother. Secretly Ed was a little pleased. There would be another trip to collect the puppy. That was another excuse to spend time with Helen. And when they brought the puppy home, maybe he could ask her to stay and help Bentley settle. He could even cook her dinner. And …

‘Thanks for taking me to meet the puppies,' Helen said as they drove back to the pub. ‘I really enjoyed that.'

‘It was my pleasure,' Ed said, meaning every word of it.

‘Ed, I was wondering … Well, Tia is working tonight. And Max is on his way back from a visit to some outlying station. I'm all alone. So … well … if it's not too … Would you have dinner with me?' The last words came out in a rush, betraying her nervousness.

Ed could only hope she was nervous for the same reason he was.

‘I'd love to,' he said, hoping he didn't sound too eager. ‘I have to Skype Scott and Katie in England soon. That usually takes the best part of an hour. I could meet you at the pub afterwards, if you like.'

Ed pulled up outside the pub as he was speaking. At last he was able to take his eyes off the road to look at the woman beside him. Sitting there, in the front of his old car, with those blue eyes shining at him, he felt like he was eighteen again.

She nodded and before he could move, she had opened the door and vanished inside the pub.

Ed was still smiling fifteen minutes later when, showered and changed ready for his first date in what seemed life half his lifetime, he answered the Skype call on his computer.

‘Hi, Scott!'

Technology was a wonderful thing. He could see his son and Katie all the way over there in England. And it didn't even cost him anything. Amazing.

‘How's everything, Dad. Did you go and look at the puppies you were talking about last week?'

Ed nodded. ‘I just got back. The pups aren't weaned yet, so it will be a week or two before I can bring him home. I called him Bentley.'

Scott chuckled. ‘Good name.'

He couldn't delay it any longer. ‘Son. There's something I have to tell you.'

‘You sent the divorce papers in?' Scott said eagerly. ‘That's great, Dad. It's well past time.'

‘I did. But there's something else I have to tell you. It's nothing to do with the divorce … or at least not directly.'

‘There's nothing wrong is there?'

‘No. There's nothing wrong at all.'

Helen was ready far too early. She hadn't brought many clothes with her, and none of them were right for dinner with a man. However, when she brushed her new hair, she was very pleased with the result. After glancing at her watch for the umpteenth time, she decided to sit outside on the veranda for a while.

When she walked out there, she was not alone. There were small wicker tables, with chairs, at each end of the veranda. The one furthest from Helen's room was occupied. ‘Hello. Nice to see you again …' she searched for the woman's name ‘… Mrs—'

‘Stephanie. Hello.'

Helen wasn't sure what to do. Stephanie hadn't invited Helen to join her so she sat at her own table, but felt almost as if she was being rude.

‘How are you enjoying your stay?' Helen asked.

‘Fine, thanks.'

‘Is this your first time here in Coorah Creek?' Helen surprised herself. She wasn't normally a chatty person. Quite the reverse. But then she didn't normally go on dates either. Perhaps the two were linked.

‘No, but it's been a few years.'

‘This is my first time here. It seems like a nice town.'

‘I guess it has its good points.'

Stephanie was staring out over the wrought iron railing down towards the street. Helen followed her gaze. She saw Ed's garage and found herself agreeing.

‘Are you staying long?' Helen asked.

‘I honestly don't know,' Stephanie said. ‘I guess it depends on … a few things.'

Helen smiled. ‘I know what you mean. I came here … well, it's a long story. I came to visit my daughter. Now she's getting married and I'm going to stay for the wedding, I guess. And who knows …' Helen let her voice trail off. For the first time, she was thinking of a future in Coorah Creek. Thinking of a home here. It was partly to be near Tia, of course. But, she wondered, did Ed have something to do with this unexpected desire to stay?

She looked across to the garage, just in time to see a tall figure cross the road. It was Ed. Trying hard to contain her excitement, Helen got to her feet. ‘I'm meeting someone for dinner, so I had better go. It was nice talking to you.'

‘Yes. Nice to talk.' Stephanie was staring back out across the street. She seemed to have lost interest in their conversation. Helen didn't really care. Her thoughts were already five steps ahead of her as she headed downstairs, doing her best to stop her feet from running.

Ed was leaning against the bar, talking to Jack, who was still in charge of the pub while the Warrens were away. She was far too old for the mere sight of a man to give her butterflies. Too old and she had seen too much of life. But Ed was a good looking man. And when he turned to smile at her, Helen gave in to the butterflies. As she walked across the bar, he held out one hand. It seemed so right to slip her hand into his. He leaned forward to kiss her gently on the cheek. He smelled of soap and something else. Perhaps all those years working in the garage had left a scent on his skin. Or perhaps that was just the way he smelled. It didn't matter which. She liked it.

She stepped back from the kiss and, for a long moment, the two of them just stood there, smiling at each other.

‘Um … I have a nice quiet table in the lounge, if the two of you want dinner?' Jack's voice brought Helen back to the present.

‘Thanks, Jack. That would be great.'

Ed was still holding her hand as they moved towards the door.

Someone appeared in the doorway, and beside her, Ed stopped. He dropped her hand. Helen looked up at his face. It was frozen and hard. All the light that had been there just a few moments ago was gone. He was staring at Stephanie. And she was staring right back. She was about to introduce them when she suddenly realised that wasn't necessary.

‘Ed? Do you know Stephanie?'

In the long silence that followed, Helen felt her heart begin to break. Suddenly fearful again, she wanted nothing more than to stop time before Ed could say the words that would change everything.

‘Helen. Stephanie is my wife.'