Page 68 of Outback Reunion

‘Thank you,’ she managed. ‘Has Luna introduced you to everyone?’

‘Oh, we’ve been introduced, haven’t we, Mark?’ purred Amina, leaning in close and squeezing his biceps as if they were old friends.

Gabi wanted to throttle her but luckily Muriel interrupted, her hands perched on her hips as she barked, ‘What happened to your car?’

Gabi swallowed. If anyone could see through her lies it was Dante’s grandmother, but what she was about to say wasn’t a total lie. ‘Um... it broke down near Mark’s place when I was driving back from dropping Luna at her friend’s house last night.’

‘I thought you said you went to visit him on your way home,’ Luna said, perching her hands on her hips exactly like her grandmother and narrowing her eyes.

Oh shit.Gabi was too exhausted to keep up with her lies. ‘I meant it broke down at Mark’s.’

Muriel raised her wiry, white-grey eyebrows and opened her mouth again, but Mark rode right over the top of her. ‘I’ve already picked up the new battery from the local mechanic, but if now’s not a good time... I can come back later.’

‘No, now’s the perfect time,’ Gabi said, desperate to get him away from the circus. She didn’t like her worlds colliding.

His smile didn’t quite meet his eyes as it had the day before when she’d showed up at his place. ‘Okay. Great.’

‘Don’t you want to have a look around the lot first?’ Luna asked.

Mark’s brow creased. ‘What’s the lot?’

Luna giggled and waved her hand around them like a model on a game show. ‘This. It’s what we call wherever we’re staying—you know, where we pitch the tents and park our caravans.’

‘I’m sure Mark doesn’t have time to waste. Farmers are very busy,’ Gabi said at the same time as he replied, ‘That sounds awesome. Lead the way.’

Gabi’s chest tightened as she watched Luna take his hand and lead him towards their caravan, her four dogs trotting along behind them. She couldn’t remember the last time her daughter had willingly takenherhand.

Eve raised her eyebrows and smirked at Gabi. ‘Guess you took my advice?’

Heat rushed to her cheeks.

‘What advice?’ asked Muriel, her eyes narrowing as she watched Luna and Mark disappear inside the caravan.

‘Nothing for you to worry about,’ Eve said, then looked back to Gabi. ‘Hope you got what you needed before Little Miss put a stop to it.’

Gabi couldn’t bring herself to reply, instead jogging away to catch up with Luna and Mark, praying she hadn’t left anything embarrassing lying around inside.

‘Let me out, let me out, let me out,’ screeched Loud Mouth as she stepped past his cage and into the caravan.

‘And this is where we eat dinner. And that’s where we sleep. The couch also turns into a single bed but...’ Luna paused a moment and blinked—Gabi knew she was fighting tears. ‘Since Dad died, I’ve mostly slept with Mum.’

‘I’m really sorry for your loss.’ Mark looked large and awkward in their tiny home, even smaller because all four of Luna’s dogs had joined them, sniffing around his legs, no doubt smelling Rookie on him.

Luna sniffed. ‘Thanks. We miss him so much, don’t we, Mummy?’

Gabi nodded, guilt stabbing her right in the heart.

After the tour of the caravan, Luna led them back outside and left no stone unturned as she showed Mark the other trailers with their bunk rooms, the fenced-off area where the camels were grazing, the dog cages, and then led them inside the Big Top, where the Saad sisters had just begun practising their contortion routine. She described every last piece of equipment in the tent as if she were a mini real estate agent trying to sell Mark the circus, but he appeared to be hanging on her every word.

‘How long does it take you to put the tent up and down?’ he asked.

‘That depends what time we get to our new place. But usually about two days; isn’t that right, Mum?’

Gabi nodded.

‘First the tent boys have to dig the holes for the king poles,’ Luna said, pointing to the two massive poles that held up the skins in the middle. ‘And the pegs for the outside of the tent. Putting up of the Big Top takes alongtime and then the next day we do all the inside stuff, like the seating and flooring. It’s my job to help make the ring look pretty.’

‘Sounds like a lot of hard work,’ Mark said.

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