Page 70 of Jillaroo from Jacaranda

Ty came to her side and, putting his arm around her, helped her to the chair on the verandah. Once she was settled, he took her hands into his. ‘Are you okay?’

She nodded.

‘I’m so sorry you’re hurting so badly.’ His voice cracked, and he sucked in a breath.

She shook her head. ‘Don’t apologise. It’s not your fault.’

‘Even so, I wish I could take your pain on, so you don’t have to bear the brunt of it.’ Ty’s soft tone was filled with compassion.

‘You have enough to deal with, Ty.’ She placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. ‘This is exactly what I’ve been talking about. I still need time to heal, as do you.’

He dropped his head and nodded ever so slightly. She allowed him time to gather himself, but when he lifted his gaze to hers again, his eyes were the saddest she’d ever seen. ‘So you’re just going to drive away tomorrow, and never look back?’ His voice was as broken as he looked.

It took every bit of her self-control to not tell him how she really felt – now wasn’t the time. But would she ever get a second chance to tell him?

Regardless of the outcome, she had to take the risk so she could fully heal. Just how long it was going to take to get over what Finley had put her through, she hadn’t a clue. And Ty deserved to be loved wholeheartedly. So with a heavy heart, she gave him a cold, stern nod. ‘In a sense, yes.’

He blinked, then squinted as if seeing double. ‘I don’t believe you when you say you don’t feel this.’ He placed a hand over his heart.

She watched wheels turning behind his sad eyes, her heart splitting completely down the middle. ‘I’m not going to try and make you believe me.’ The strain on his face stabbed her repeatedly. ‘All I can do is tell you how it is right now for me. I need time to try and get my life sorted out.’

Pain flashed in his eyes, and she instantly wished she could take her words back. She did want him. She truly did. But she also wanted to feel whole, so she could love him as much as he deserved to be loved.

He straightened and, turning away from her, looked to the horizon.

She held her breath for a few heartbeats. He looked so damn heartbroken, it almost killed her. So much so that she very nearly caved.

But then, heaving a weighty breath, he rose and took steps away from her, creating a distance that felt irreversible. Her eyes stung and she squeezed them shut against the tears.

What had she gone and done?

* * *

The following day, an ironically cheery sunrise greeted Ty when he stepped onto the back verandah, coffee in hand. Sinking down into the settee, he tried to sigh away the overwhelming heartache that had kept him awake. No matter what he did, he couldn’t stop thinking about how close he and Rose had come. And today, she would drive away, and their chapter in this story would end. Tomorrow, she’d be back at Jacaranda Farm, getting on with her life, and he’d be here, missing her like crazy, not getting on with his. And that infuriated him.

He gazed towards the few wispy clouds cobwebbing the sky. Surely, she could feel how drawn and connected they were to one another. How could she not? As the days had flown past and they’d grown closer, he’d fooled himself into believing he could somehow make her see her home was here, with him. He couldn’t help but wonder if she’d ever stopped and thought about staying, or had her plan always been to leave, no matter what?

Getting to know Rose Jones had been like unwrapping a never-ending gift. Each layer he’d carefully peeled away had revealed more things to love about her. And touching her … wow, it had instantly sparked a fire in the embers already burning in his heart. And as she’d lost herself to him, he’d quickly forgotten all the warnings he’d first given himself when she’d agreed to come here. Caution might have been the right way to go, way back when, but now, as he freefell, it was too late to try to apply the brakes.

But was it love? Because surely true love would keep them together?

Having barricaded his heart after Kelly, he wasn’t accustomed to making himself so vulnerable. He was feeling way out of his depth, but he didn’t care – he was going to fight tooth and nail for the very mesmerising Rose Jones, even if it damn near tore him to pieces. He loved her, goddammit, and she needed to know that. He didn’t want to be her Prince Charming, or her knight in shining armour; he knew that would be the last thing she wanted, but he did want to be her now, always and forever, a man who would always stand by her side and have her back, a man who would love her as deeply as she damn well deserved to be, a man who’d never turn away when the going got tough.

So, with a renewed urgency, Ty shot to his feet. He wasn’t going to spend tomorrow regretting the fact he didn’t make the most of today. She was here now, within his reach, and he’d be damned if he let the chance slip through his fingers. He’d thought it over all night long. He’d played every sigh, every word, every precious moment over and over. And he’d still come to the same conclusion. They were meant for each other. Made for each other. In love with each other.

Sucking in a deep breath, he forced himself to move forward. Taking the steps of the homestead two at a time, he’d reached the front door of the cottage in what felt like the blink of an eye. Stamping his boots on the welcome mat, he knocked before he chickened out. Then waited. And waited. And waited. There was no answer, but when he honed his hearing, he swore he heard a slight shuffle inside. So he knocked again, louder this time, more persistently. He knew she was home – her boots and thongs, the only footwear she wore, were right beside the door, where she always left them.

‘Rose, are you in there?’ He wanted to cradle her beautiful face with his hands and tell her just how much he wanted her to stay, and more.

Baffled at her reluctance to come to the door, he retraced his steps and went around the side of the house. Maybe she was around the back, and couldn’t hear him? He followed the stone pathway, but his rap at the back door was also met with silence. But then, he heard the water bubbling down the drain; she was in the shower. He breathed a massive sigh of relief – she wasn’t ignoring him. He’d give her half an hour then come back, hopefully before his fear of a rebuff gained any more ground.

He had to do this; he had to lay his heart on the line or forever live with regret.

But was Rose going to come to the table, and lay her heart on the line too? If she didn’t, he was fighting a losing battle, and he knew all too well what that felt like.

No matter how hard or how much that hurt, he’d have to accept the cold, hard conclusion that he needed to walk away forever. And never look back.

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