Page 34 of A Chance to Believe

‘I think you should talk to your dad. Tell him you are thinking about having a sexual relationship and that you’re taking precautions. He’d want to know. Otherwise, he’ll worry.’

‘Would you tell your dad if you were having sex?’

‘You don’t have to tell him that part. Only that you’re at the point of thinking about it and that you are organising protection, so you won’t be taking risks.’

Cassie watched her anxiously. She didn’t want to push too hard.

Finally, Kimberley nodded. ‘I’ll think about it. He would worry. Especially because of me and everything.’ She waved vaguely in Cassie’s direction. ‘It would be bad if I did the same thing he and my mum did, having a baby when they were too young and wrecking everything.’ She tactfully didn’t mention his later transgression.

‘I don’t think your father feels that way.’

Leaning against the door frame, Kimberly wrinkled her brow. ‘He wouldn’t say anything to me, but I overheard my grandparents talking about it ages ago. He had this agricultural scholarship to go overseas for a year to do research on wool varieties. He had to give it up when Mum got pregnant.’

Cassie couldn’t help asking, ‘Wasn’t he able to postpone it?’

‘Nah. It had to go to someone else, seeing he couldn’t do it straight away.’

‘He would have been disappointed.’

‘I know he went later, for a couple of months, paying his own way, but it wouldn’t have been the same. He had Mum with him because she wanted to go to a big rodeo in Texas that was on at the same time. That was when Mum decided to stay in the US and he came home alone.’

‘How old were you?’

‘Two. I don’t really remember much about when she was living at Maidens Hill. We lived here in the annex and Grandma used to babysit. I had my own room upstairs for when my mum was away on the circuit. When she left, I moved into the main part of the house permanently.’ She looked around. ‘This was all different. Mum liked modern stuff, so Dad set it up with stuff she chose from the big furniture place in Bialga. After Mum left, Grandma redid it with stuff from the house, so it was all historical again.’

‘What happened to your mother’s things?’

‘She didn’t want them. Dad put them into one of the cabins for the workers. He doesn’t like wasting things.’ She grinned. ‘He must have been pretty annoyed about wasting all those condoms.’

Cassie started at the sudden return to the original topic. ‘He didn’t say.’

‘Probably in too much shock. It takes a bit of getting used to. I expect he’ll be happy to have a couple of boys. Do you think you’ll stay in Maiden’s Landing?’

‘It will depend on how the next couple of months turn out.’

‘Well, don’t worry about me. I don’t mind having kid brothers around. Next year I won’t even be here. I’ll be in Brisbane at university if I don’t mess up at school.’

‘Have you always wanted to be a lawyer?’

‘I was planning to be a rally car driver like … someone I know.’ She grimaced. ‘For a while I thought about going into the rodeo like Mum, but that was so needy. I figured I didn’t need to get her attention that way. My teacher thought I would be good at law.’

‘Because you’re good at arguing your case?’

Kimberley darted a suspicious glance at her. ‘Maybe. Are you teasing?’

‘Sorry.’

‘Don’t be. It makes it feel like we’re family if we aren’t super polite.’

Cassie laughed. ‘I’ll make a point of it in that case.’

‘Don’t try too hard. I wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself.’

They grinned at each other and for the first time, Cassie had the feeling that maybe things would work out with the girl, whatever might eventuate with her father.

Straightening, Kimberley glanced at her watch. ‘I better go put these away. I’ll probably talk to Dad. I need to wait until he’s in a good mood.’

‘Is he in a bad mood?’

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