Page 32 of Wedding Bells By the Creek

Helen was tempted, but she shook her head. That would be like running away, and she’d done that too many times.

‘No. I’m fine,’ she said. ‘And besides, we need to stash your dress and everything here at the hotel. It wouldn’t do for Max to see them before the wedding.’

Tia parked the car outside the pub and the two of them gathered up armloads of shopping, and a huge bag containing a wedding dress. Helen kept her eyes peeled for Stephanie as they made their way inside and up the staircase to her room. She glanced down the hallway, but the door to Stephanie’s room was firmly shut. At least Helen knew that Ed wasn’t in that room with her. That would have been too hard to take.

But maybe he soon would be …

Chapter Fifteen

Helen had a restless night. All she could think about was Ed in his garage across the road and Stephanie in the room along the corridor. After the wedding, she’d go back to Brisbane. She had her tiny flat. And her work at the shelter. She’d still come to visit Tia and Max, of course, and talk to them often, but she’d let them get on with their lives, while she tried to get on with hers. Now that she had found Tia again, perhaps it was time she started thinking of herself.

Right now it was time to go down to breakfast. Keeping her head low, she hurried through to the kitchen. Ellen was in there, a pile of freshly made sandwiches on the bench in front of her.

‘Oh, Helen. I’m sorry. I haven’t have had time to cook breakfast yet. I’ve been busy trying to sort out packed lunches for twenty hard working men.’

‘That’s fine. What’s going on?’

‘We’re getting a new building for the school. It’s arriving today on the transport from Mount Isa.’

‘A school building is arriving? On a truck?’

Ellen smiled. ‘It’s one of those kits. Sort of like a kit house. It’s going next to the sports oval and it’s going to be locker rooms and for storing sports equipment … that sort of thing.’

‘That sounds great.’

‘The mine manager, Chris Powell, arranged it. All the men currently waiting in the bar are going to help put it up. It’ll take a day, maybe a day and a half. My job is to provide food. That many men get pretty hungry when they’re working.’

‘Do you need some help?’ As soon as she had spoken the words, Helen wanted to call them back. This was a community thing. And she wasn’t part of this community. ‘Sorry, I don’t want to intrude. I’d probably only get in the way. Don’t—’

‘No. No. I’d really appreciate the help. Thank you.’ Ellen glanced at her watch. ‘I hope Pete – the truck driver – isn’t too far away. Trish and Syd are due back in a couple of days. We want to get this done before then. They’re great people, but Trish does like to be in charge and sometimes it’s easier without her.’ Ellen grinned.

Helen opened a loaf of bread and reached for the butter.

Ellen handed her a pack of sliced meat and a block of cheese. ‘I’ll make some coffee.’

The two women worked side by side for a short time, chatting easily about the plans for the new school building. The sound of a truck horn from the road outside interrupted them.

‘That’ll be Pete,’ Ellen said, starting to wrap the sandwiches and pack them into cardboard boxes.

‘Ellen.’ A man’s head appeared in the doorway. ‘We are all heading down to the school now. Do you want us to take anything?’

Ellen shook her head. ‘It’s not ready yet. Helen and I will bring it down soon.’

The man looked at Helen. She smiled tentatively and he smiled back. ‘That would be great,’ he said. Then he winked at Helen. ‘Nice to meet you, I have to run, but maybe we’ll catch up again when you bring the sandwiches.’

The man vanished leaving Helen slightly open-mouthed.

Beside her, Ellen laughed. ‘In case you’re wondering, yes, he was flirting with you, and no, he doesn’t do that with everyone.’

‘But …’ Helen didn’t quite know how to react.

‘It’s all right,’ Ellen said. ‘He’s a good guy.’

‘I guess I’m just not used to it. Men don’t … I don’t … flirt.’

‘Why not? You’re a nice person. An attractive woman. I should warn you, with the mine and everything, this town has more than its fair share of single men. Of all ages. When we go down to the school I suspect there’ll be quite a few trying to flirt with you.’

‘But … what should I do?’ Even when she was young, Helen hadn’t been comfortable flirting. And a lot of years had passed since then.

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