Page 27 of Where the Heart Is

They laughed and Mila tugged her grandmother closer through their linked elbows. ‘I’m glad you’re here, Gran.’

‘Me too, sweetheart.’

As they fell into step and headed for the homestead Mila wondered how she could broach the touchy subject of her gran’s ride to the farm without the mention of Jack causing her to clam up.

‘You’re wondering why your grandfather dropped me off.’

‘You’ve always been able to read my mind.’

Except that time Addy left Hills Homestead behind and never returned, leaving Mila bereft. Bad enough her parents abandoned her when she was ten, her beloved Gran followed suit. For a long time, it made her wonder what was so unlovable about her that the most important people in her life walked away.

‘To cut a long story short, my car broke down yesterday on the way to your wedding. I walked to the nearest place, a sandstone cottage on the outskirts of town—’

‘You broke down near Gramps?’ Mila whistled. ‘How’s that for serendipity? Or the best meet-cute ever?’

Addy blushed and that’s when Mila realised her gran had said she broke down yesterday. Meaning she’d spent the night somewhere. Probably at the motel and Gramps had picked her up this morning, but what if …

‘Did Gramps drive you into town?’

‘Uh … my car got towed and Jack was kind enough to offer me a place to stay.’

Shocked to her core, Mila muttered, ‘Way to go, Gramps.’

‘It’s not like that,’ Addy said, her blush intensifying. ‘He has a small bungalow out the back of his cottage and I was there for the night.’

Mila held up her hands. ‘Hey, you two are still married so it’s got nothing to do with me if you waltz back into town after fourteen years for a booty call.’

‘You are incorrigible,’ Addy said, slipping her arm out from Mila’s elbow and rushing up the stairs and into the house. ‘Just for that, I’m not going to bake your favourite brownies.’

‘Harsh,’ Mila said, her smile teasing. ‘Seriously, Gran, I can’t mention Gramps to you usually and vice versa, which is why I never told you I bought the farm, so excuse me for being shocked when I see him drop you off. I mean, the fact you were in the same car for more than a few minutes is a big deal, right?’

‘I can’t believe you never told me you bought the farm.’ The oddest expression flickered across her grandmother’s face—regret tinged with hope—as she nodded. ‘But yes, Jack has been surprisingly magnanimous since I fronted up at his door yesterday. His generosity has been more than I deserve.’

Addy blinked rapidly again, staving off tears, and Mila slipped an arm around her waist and guided her into the house. ‘I think it’s great you’re on speaking terms. I had wondered how I’d keep you apart at the wedding.’

‘Speaking of the wedding, tell me everything while I make tea. Peppermint?’

‘Sure.’ Mila allowed her gran’s diversion for now, choking up as she remembered that was the tea they’d always shared in the evenings while sitting around the fire.

Addy entered the kitchen and Mila followed, watching her gran move around with ease. Mila hadn’t changed much when she’d bought the farm, deriving comfort from the familiarity when everything—or everyone—in her life seemed to be in flux.

She’d never expected her grandfather to move away from Hills Homestead. Even after he sold it to her, she thought he’d live in the main house. Or at worst, move into the small self-contained barn where temporary workers occasionally stayed.

But he’d been determined to leave, and she couldn’t begrudge him his freedom, not after he’d been tied to this place for so long. Taking on a family legacy was a big deal—she felt the burden every day. How much harder must it have been for him when his parents died and he was forced to take over at twenty?

She’d chosen this life, knowing it would be hard, but also aware she wouldn’t have it any other way. Not that Gramps had abandoned her completely. He imparted wisdom on lentil farming in this region whenever she asked for his advice. It had been extremely tough to hide her financial predicament from him, but she didn’t need to hear‘I told you so’—which is why she hadn’t approached him for help. She had to do this on her own.

As the water boiled, Gran opened the cupboard where tea and coffee were stored, grabbed a tin, and spooned peppermint leaves into a teapot. Mila savoured the moment, watching her grandmother move around this kitchen as she once had.

‘You’re staring,’ Addy said, folding her arms and resting against the benchtop.

‘I’m just glad to have you here,’ Mila said, clearing her throat when it tightened with emotion.

She hoped Addy would say, ‘It’s good to be back,’ but her grandmother forced a tight smile and spun around when the kettle whistled.

For someone who didn’t have a romantic bone in her body, and who’d viewed marriage as a financial means to an end, a small part of her hoped her grandmother’s presence here meant she might be ready to return home. But Mila had given up believing in fairytales around the time her folks had dumped her here and taken off without looking back, so she knew it was wishful thinking.

Addy poured boiling water into the teapot and brought it across to the table along with two mugs. She sat opposite Mila and fixed her with a stare that Mila knew well: she’d have to ’fess up or else.

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