From Orchards to Outback - Tracey Friday

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done, and it was kind of you to think that Emily would like some company on the verandah. She’s still recovering as you know and if truth be told she’s beginning to grow a little bored. We’ll set up a tea tray and if you would carry it around, I will let her know where you are. Okay by you?”

      “Thank you, Mrs Heppler, I would like that,” he said grinning like the cat that got the cream. The women smiled in admiration as he left the kitchen. Here was this mountain of a man who had cleaned himself up in the middle of the day, carrying a tea tray and warm scones out towards the verandah. They thought it was very sweet.

      “Can sense romance in the air,” smiled Elsa, as she poured the ladies a fresh cup of tea.

      “Think we agree,” said Mrs McKinnley. “How do you feel about that Mrs Heppler?”

      “I feel fine about it and that’s the truth. Emily has been bored lately and when she’s fully recovered I half expect her to bend my ear about getting back to the city. But the danger with Slimeball makes my blood run cold to think what could happen if he were to get control over her again. At this current time, I think old Mellow here could be the answer to both our prayers. He is more than strong enough to take care of Slimeball, also he is happy here at the Station. And if Emily likes him too then she may change her mind about going back to the city. How perfect for me that would be?”

      “Perfect for everyone Mrs Heppler,” said Elsa.

      “Totally agree,” said Mrs McKinnley, “we’ll keep an unobtrusive eye on those two.”

      And not just those two, thought Mrs Heppler, keeping that thought well and truly under her hat.

      “Talking of romance,” said Mrs McKinnley as both women looked at her, “I must speak to Jack. I am on tenderhooks wondering when he will propose to Kara. We think it may be at the rodeo only a couple of months away and there will be plenty of organising to do. I have been radioing Mrs Sampson and they are very keen to get things moving and hopefully there will be a wedding by the end of the year. It’s very exciting.”

      From the look Jack gave Maggie when they were introduced and over dinner the other evening, Mrs Heppler thought that she had more chance of giving birth to quads than Jack marrying Kara Sampson. But, she also kept this under her hat. If this keeps up, she thought, there won’t be enough room for my own head under my hat!

      “It will take months to prepare and plan the cooking,” said Elsa excitedly. She always liked to spend time in the library looking through Mrs McKinnley’s magazines for new recipe ideas. Elsa was in wedding mode; she loved the joyous occasion and the organising. It would be a welcome change from cooking the usual hearty meals for hungry men who didn’t care what the food looked like as long as it was filling and edible.

      Elsa was in her forties, average height with a full-bodied figure and proud of her aboriginal ancestry. She had started helping out in the kitchen during the shearing season then she had stayed on to look after Jack and Sylvia when they were small children as Mrs McKinnley had found it hard to cope in the early years.

      Elsa had visited her family as often as she was able and more so when Jack and Sylvia were old enough to take care of themselves. When her husband suddenly passed away, Mrs McKinnley had asked her to stay on at the homestead on a permanent basis helping out in the kitchen. Elsa and her husband hadn’t had any children, so with the elders’ approval she decided to stay.

      Elsa loved Jack and Sylvia as if they were her own children as she tried her best to fill the gap left by Mrs McKinnley. She never held any ill feeling toward Mrs McKinnley as she knew that she was having a hard time adjusting to two small children as well as running a busy homestead.

      Equally, Jack and Sylvia knew no different and never questioned why Elsa did so much more with them than their own mother. It was just the way it was. Jack and Sylvia enjoyed learning about aboriginal life and were enthralled by Elsa’s stories of her ancestors as well as learning a great deal about how to survive out in the bush with little or no provisions.

      It was also in the early years when an almost unspoken arrangement was formed allowing Elsa and Mr and Mrs McKinnley to work together amicably without anyone being aware. Or, so they thought.

      Chapter Ten

      At dusk, Jack was out in the yard near the stables, sitting on the corral fence with his faithful kelpie, Blue, at his feet. He had been in a quandary ever since Maggie had arrived. Well, he thought to himself, that wasn’t quite true. He had been in a quandary for a while regarding his true feelings towards Kara. Maggie’s arrival had only highlighted the problem. He was feeling pressure from all sides: Kara, her parents, his mother… Jack knew that during the forthcoming rodeo everyone expected an announcement.

      There was no denying he had felt an instant spark and chemistry with Maggie and he knew Mrs Heppler had noticed it too, but he could trust her to be discreet. Through one thing or another, Jack and Maggie hadn’t yet had the opportunity to be alone, but in the morning he and Sylvia were due to take her down to the far paddocks to show her more of the Station. His stomach was doing flips just thinking about it and he couldn’t recall ever having the flips when he thought about Kara.

      They had been stepping out for nearly a year, but they had known each other for a couple of years, ever since her family moved to the neighbouring Station. Due to the distance between the Stations, they saw each other as frequently as they could, work permitting, on special occasions, rodeos and whenever they visited Burston. Kara had been the instigator in the relationship from day one. She was quite beautiful, petite with long blonde hair and blue eyes and at thirty-two she was five years older than Jack. He had often wondered why such a beautiful woman was still unmarried. He knew that she had a string of failed relationships, including three previous engagements, behind her. Not that he was into gossip, but the grapevine hinted that although she was desperate to walk down the aisle she was difficult to get along with.

      Kara had told Jack early on that they being together made perfect business sense as one day, both neighbouring Stations would merge.

      Perfect business sense? That statement bothered him, and he couldn’t let it go. What happened to love? She had said she loved him, but the bottom line was that he didn’t truly believe that she really was in love with him. And how did he feel about her? She had made it perfectly clear that she wanted to settle down and have children straight away. She was very persuasive, with ample charms… but he wasn’t ready for a family just yet. Even though he was twenty seven, there was still so much he wanted to do with his life prior to having a family.

      Jack realised that there was a fundamental difference between them and that bothered him. Kara wasn’t passionate about the Station and she had mentioned that she would be happier living in the city whereas for Jack, McKinnley Station was his destiny. He had even thought about going back to agricultural school, but Kara had told him on a number of occasions that it was absurd to contemplate such a ridiculous thing.

      He slapped his thigh, his mind was made up. Life with Kara was not what he was looking for. “Thanks, Blue,” he said, as he climbed down from the corral and ruffled Blue’s ears, “appreciate your help buddy,” as they made their way back to the homestead.

      Chapter Eleven

      After an early breakfast, Maggie, Sylvia and Jack walked down to the stables carrying enough provisions to last them all day. Sylvia continually mumbled under her breath that she could be doing something more useful for the day instead of being a ‘tour guide’.

      “It’ll be good to get back in the saddle again,” said Maggie excitedly, “haven’t ridden in months.”

      “You’ll enjoy the ride, Maggie,” smiled Jack, “it’s lovely down at the far paddocks but it can be draining in the heat. We know a good spot to rest up for smoko and lunch, right Sylvia?”

      “Right,” she sighed.

      “Blue will come along too,” he said, as his faithful kelpie bounded up beside him.

      “Blue?” smiled Maggie, as she looked questionably

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