Libby leaned on the kitchen bench, staring out on her vegetable garden flattened by the rain while she waited for the kettle to boil. She wouldn’t be pushed away from the best chance at the life she had for her family. He could rant and rave all he liked; it wasn’t going to sway her. They belonged here. She knew it, and so did Tom and Aaron. Nathan would just take a little bit more convincing. That was all.
She poured her coffee and walked outside, the damp grass cool on her feet. Wandering over to her garden, she ehaviour at the way the rain made everything feel so much fresher, the air clearer than it’d been for days. It was just a fact of life that every now and then, they got too much, and it flooded. They were resilient, these country people, they pull together and help those who were affected more than others.
Libby stood at the back fence and looked out over the flooded paddocks. The raging water still rushing past in what was once a small creek shocked her. The trickle had changed to a dirty, gushing torrent covering most of the paddock in a matter of hours. Her heart thudded. Her baby had crossed this.
She felt sick to her stomach as the visions of what might have been raced through her mind. Her skin became clammy, and she felt like throwing up. They were lucky they still had Tom and Holly alive and well. It could have been so much worse.
She drained her mug and headed back indoors. Going to the boy’s’ room, she knocked gently before opening the door. Two heads were tucked under blankets in the bunk beds and didn’t move when she approached. She shook Josh on the shoulder.
“Josh, wake up.”
“Mmmm, what?” He tried to pull the blankets back over his head.
“I’m just going out for a bit. Keep an ear out for Holly, please.”
Libby grabbed the truck keys from the hook. She had no reason for what she was doing, but she couldn’t stop herself.
She pulled up at Nathan’s house and looked for signs of life. The back door was open, and the smell of coffee hit her nostrils as she walked on shaking legs to the door.
“Nathan.” Her voice broke as she caught sight of him sitting at the old, grey Formica table in the middle of the kitchen, a paper and a mug of coffee in his hands.
“What the...?” He swore as he jumped to his feet and with three long strides, grabbed her just before she fell in a heap on his doorstep.
Libby finally gave in to the tears. She clung to his shirt, making it damp against his chest as he sat on the floor with her wrapped in his arms until her sobs subsided to mild hiccups. He continued to stroke her hair until she pulled away from him with a big sigh.
“God, I am so sorry about that.”
“What do you have to be sorry for, Libby?” He itched to tuck the loose strand of hair behind her ear and he wanted to kiss the pale skin on the nape of her neck. But he cupped her chin and lifted her face so he could see her eyes instead.
“I went and looked at the creek.” Her shoulders slumped. “I can’t believe Holly rode through that to get to Tom.”
He watched her without speaking, let her get it out.
“And that water. There’s so much of it. That little creek is now a raging river that almost comes up to our back door. What if she hadn’t made it across? We would be searching for a body by now. I don’t know if I can stand this.” Her eyes welled up again.
“Hush.” He pulled her to his chest and kissed her hair. It would be so easy to take her here and now. God knows this woman had managed to get under his skin no matter how hard he’d tried to push her away. But even he wasn’t the total asshole she thought he was. He was having trouble trusting his own feelings since Libby had moved in next door and almost gave into his heart. He’d been burnt before by a city girl and didn’t trust himself to go there again.
Instead, he pulled her to her feet and guided her to the table. He pulled out a chair with his foot, pushed her gently into it and crouched down to look her in the eye.
“It didn’t happen, Libby. They’re okay. If you spend your whole life saying what if, you’ll drive yourself insane.” He stood to pour her a cup of coffee before he changed his mind and dragged her down the hall to his bedroom.
“Thanks.” He slid the mug into her hands. “I’m sorry. I don’t know why I came to you. My feet just headed this way, and I couldn’t stop myself.”
Nathan watched as Libby grabbed the tendril of hair and wound it around the knot on the top of her head, but
