Page 42 of Where the Heart Is

But he couldn’t tell her any of that, so he settled for, ‘It’s like Sydney. Glamorous to look at, fun to play with for a while, but after a few weeks you crave the peace of home.’

She nodded, thoughtful. ‘Yeah, I get that. I love my annual weekend in Sydney with Gran. The social stuff around the harbour is amazing, and Bondi has a distinct vibe, so we do a bunch of touristy stuff, but nothing beats coming back here.’

She sounded content with her life, and he wondered what it would be like to be so enraptured with a place you’d sacrifice your own happiness—namely, marrying someone you didn’t love—to save it.

‘I ran into your grandfather in town this morning. Did he have regrets moving away from the farm?’

Worry flickered in her eyes. ‘Did he say something?’

‘No, I just wondered. Hasn’t this place been in his family for generations? I just assumed it must’ve been hard for him to relinquish control.’

‘Not really. He made up his mind to move and that was that. He didn’t want to sell to me because of the debt I’d be in, but I convinced him, and he finally agreed. I thought he’d still spend a lot of time here, to be honest, but he doesn’t, apart from checking in with me occasionally. It’s like once he made a clean break he didn’t want to look back.’

‘Do you think your grandmother leaving him had anything to do with that? Wanting to forget?’

She shrugged. ‘Maybe, though he seemed determined to build the sandstone cottage and threw himself into it so wholeheartedly that I don’t think he missed the farm at all.’ She rolled her eyes.‘Not that he’d tell me. No prizes for guessing where I get my independence from.’

He smiled, buoyed by the intimacy of their conversation. They’d been friends growing up but had never confided in each other about the deeper stuff. Lucky, because he had a lot to hide back then.

‘I think you get some of that from your gran too. Have you ever visited her besides catching up in Sydney?’

Mila shook her head. ‘Tally Bay sounds amazing and the pics I’ve seen from Gran and online are gorgeous. But I can’t afford to leave the farm for too long, so I’ve never made the trek to Northern New South Wales.’

‘How did she end up there?’

‘Honestly? I think she just drove until she didn’t feel like driving anymore. Plus there’s a thriving art community there and she loves to paint. Makes a living from it too. I’ve got three small canvases of hers I want to frame and hang in the cottages once they’re done.’

‘I don’t remember seeing her paint when I was around?’

‘That’s because she rarely did. I think she sketched a bit during the night and in the mornings before we got up, but I never saw her paint.’

‘I guess farm life is time-consuming.’

Mila nodded, lost in thought. ‘It is. And it’s not for everyone. I love it and it’s still tough, so imagine how hard it would be for someone who didn’t have their heart and soul invested.’

‘Is that why she left?’

‘I think so. Gramps isn’t the easiest person to live with because he rarely says more than two words on any subject, and Gran’s outgoing, so it must’ve been tough for her, stuck here as a farmer’s wife. She came from money too and left it all behind when she married Gramps.’

‘That’s romantic.’

‘Considering how they ended, not so much.’ The mouth he’d happily kiss again curved into a cheeky smile. ‘Which is why I think it’s great Gran’s staying in Gramps’s bungalow.’

Sawyer’s eyebrows rose. ‘How did that happen?’

‘She wanted to stay in the first farm-stay cottage, but it’s conveniently not ready, so I gave her a gentle nudge back to Gramps’s, where she happened to stay last night.’

‘Are you playing matchmaker? Because it might blow up in your face and then they’ll blame you.’

Mila pressed a hand to her heart, all wide-eyed innocence. ‘I can’t help it if my cottage isn’t ready, and Gran chooses to stay at Gramps’s place rather than the motel.’

He laughed and waggled his finger at her. ‘You’re playing with fire.’

‘I’d rather be playing with you,’ she whispered, so softly he thought he’d misheard.

Their gazes locked across the flickering flames and Sawyer knew he’d walk across hot coals for this woman.

She’d been the only person in his entire life who’d seen beneath his joker exterior, who’d given a damn about him. Even Cheraline, who set him on the correct path to manage his condition, had viewed him as something to fix. They may have been in a relationship, but she had a compulsion to rescue things—from cats to birds to kids—and he’d known deep down she saw him as another thing to save.

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