Reign A Romance Anthology - Nina Levine Page 0,282

shade of red, knowing I caught her staring at my package.

“What?”

“Dusty,” Mum says sharply. “Get dressed.”

I chuckle lightly. “I dunno, Mum. Does Tori want me to get dressed?” I raise my eyebrows.

Tori’s lips part, only the joy of teasing my prudish sister-in-law ends when her husband yanks open the sieve wire door and lets it clang shut. By the look on his face, he heard some of the conversation.

“You might be taller than me, not so much I won’t kick your arse. Do what Mum says.”

“Merry Christmas,” I say dryly.

Rhett strides toward me and hugs me. “It’s good to have you home. We’re not having any further conversation before you get some fucking clothes on.”

“Tell him, Tori,” I shoot over my shoulder. “Do I win?”

“Piss off,” Rhett yells.

Now this feels more like home.

After I finish breakfast, we all sit around the large wooden table discussing the plans for the next few days. I’m arguing with Mum about chores, wanting her to do less and us boys cook more.

Rhett is going over the day’s plans with Tori, including driving into town tonight.

“We can all drive into town later for a Christmas drink,” Mum says. “If you help Rhett with the last of the pickings, we can finish up early.”

“Sure,” I say.

“I’ll drive,” Tori pipes up. “I won’t drink.”

We all know how much Tori wants to fall pregnant, and if there’s a tiny chance she is, then she won’t risk drinking alcohol after all the problems they have both been through.

“Okay, then. Where do we start?” I push up from the table. “I haven’t seen the orchard in years, so I’m excited to see the progress you’ve made.”

“I’ll get morning tea ready for you,” Mum says as though fattening us up gives her so much pleasure.

“I’m glad you didn’t ask me if I’m pregnant yet,” Tori whispers when we’re finally outside. “I’m learning to say no to your mum. People assume I’m already pregnant,” she says with a smile and touches a hint of roundness near her stomach.

I laugh once. “Yeah. My dietician would scream if she knew what I was eating here.”

Football divided our lives. Yet we have an understanding. Tori is the closest thing I have to a sister, and I know she’d have my back. There was a time I considered opening up to her. Tell her about my demons. Only she had her own battles, and I’m not prepared to offload mine onto anyone else.

8

After lunch, I stand on the back verandah looking out to the rows of apricots, orange and plum trees.

The fields beyond the orchard are ploughed.

Mum comes and stands beside me, her gaze forward to where I am staring.

“We have come a long way. Since your father’s death, we’ve all contributed in some way, and I stand here now a proud woman. A proud mother. A proud wife. Nothing will take away my love for any of you, and I hope if you need anything, you will come to me because that’s what mother’s do.”

Without looking at her, I place a hand on her shoulder. “I haven’t been here to help, but I hope the money was useful.”

“You’ve helped plenty.” She looks up at me, and I lower my gaze to meet hers. The same blue eyes I inherited are full of emotion. “Especially in those early years when I needed you most.”

“I was just a boy. I did little. Not like I can now. Tori and Rhett are making a difference. You should be proud. This place is amazing.” I take in the farm from one corner to the other, and pride swells within me. A sense of belonging that I have shut out over the years because deep down, the realisation hurts. The one place I want to be, I can never stay because I’m reminded of what I did.

“Come with me.” Mum loops her arm through mine, mainly to support her as she takes each step until she is on level ground. Keeping her arm linked with mine, we meander among the rows of the apricot trees. “When I lost some of these in the fires, I was heartbroken. We had the best apricots in the country.” She winks at me. “It didn’t break me because they are replaceable. And as it turned out, the damage wasn’t as extensive as we first thought.”

I nod and swallow hard wondering where she is going with this conversation. She leads me along a path of the farm where I haven’t been in years.

“There was a