Page 87 of The Knitting Club at Wagtail Ridge

‘It’s come up rather well, hasn’t it.’ Rose had been part of the team who’d spent the past few days sanding back the ageing timber and polishing it. Jake had found the table in someone’s shed, disused and covered with cobwebs. Purchased for a few dollars, it would be the perfect centrepiece for meetings of the knitting club, which, from now on, would be held here rather than at the hall. In her role as store manager, Rose would also be taking bookings for alpaca walks and directing people to the farm if they got lost and ended up in town. Bree had plans to improve her web sales of yarn and patterns over time, and that too would all be centred here, leaving the farm for her and the animals.

‘It’s wonderful.’ Bree’s eyes felt decidedly misty. ‘Nan, I can’t thank you enough for joining in with me on this. It’s not just the money …’

‘Pah. I should be thanking you for letting me get involved. For a while there, especially during lockdown, I really felt that my life was over. The best part of it. Now I know I was wrong.’

Bree put her arms around her grandmother and hugged her.

As they moved apart, the front door opened.

‘I hope we’re not late for the party.’ One by one, the women of the knitting club came in, oohing and aahing over the place.

Party was the right word. Soon the big table was overflowing with more food and wine, which had materialised from the bags carried by the newcomers. Bree thought she couldn’t feel any happier. But then the door opened and proved her wrong, as Matt and Vicki walked in.

Vicki was looking up at her father and giggling as they came through the door. The look on Matt’s face as he spoke to her was one of absolute joy. Then he glanced up and his eyes locked onto Bree’s. The joy remained on his face, but something else joined it. A deeper, stronger emotion that sent a quiver through Bree’s stomach.

Vicki spotted her and bounced across the room. ‘Look at all the pretty—’ The words cut off in mid-sentence, replaced by a squeal. ‘Look, Daddy! That’s me and Sky.’ She darted over to the wall with the photos.

Matt leaned towards Bree. ‘Thank you for that,’ he whispered. ‘It’s made her day.’

Bree could feel his breath warm on her skin. ‘Well, thank you for letting me use it.’ She turned away from the smiling child to the man at her side and the room seemed to go quiet.

Did he feel it too? He didn’t move, or even look, away. For a long moment, it seemed as if there were only two people in the room. Two people who were startled to discover that was exactly what they wanted.

‘Bree! Speech! Speech!’ The cry was taken up by the knitting club ladies, and everyone in the room. Bree turned away from Matt, hoping that her blush would be interpreted as a response to the request for a speech.

‘As most of you know, in my previous life I was not unaccustomed to public speaking—’ A ripple of laughter wafted through the room. ‘Standing here in a room full of friends makes it so much easier than standing in front of a judge and jury.’

She paused. ‘I want to say one thing. Thank you. Thank you, Matt, for finding The Gums and this shop. Thank you, everyone, for joining the knitting club. Thank you, Jake and Mike, for helping get the shop into shape. Nan—Rose—thank you for being exactly who you are. And last of all, thank you, everyone, for welcoming me to Wagtail Ridge.’

A loud cheer and a round of applause followed.

‘Enough of that—there’s wine for those who want it. Or tea and coffee. Plenty of cake too. Please, enjoy.’

Bree tried to merge into the small crowd, but that wasn’t to be. Almost everyone in the room wanted to spend some time talking to her, so that at first it seemed the only person she really wanted to talk to was always with someone else. She looked across the room at Matt and saw something of her own frustration in his eyes. She sighed, much more loudly than she had wanted, and the atmosphere in the room seemed to change. Knitting clubbers began to say goodbye and wander out the door. For some strange reason, Val winked broadly as she left.

As the crowd thinned, Matt appeared at her side, without his daughter.

‘Where’s Vicki?’

‘Kelly has taken her back for a sleepover with her kids.’

‘That’s nice.’

‘Yes … Do you get the feeling something is going on here?’

Before Bree could answer, Jake and his wife Lou approached. ‘We’re off. Thanks for the cake and wine.’

‘No. No. Thank you. Both of you,’ Bree said.

Lou shook her head. ‘It’s nice to see a bit more life coming to the town.’

As they walked away, Lou spoke softly and Jake laughed, put his arm around her and smiled at her in a way Bree had always hoped someone would look at her one day.

It was time she tidied up; the store had to open for business tomorrow. She started gathering glasses, but Mike stepped to her side and put his hand on her arm to stop her.

‘Rose and I have this.’

‘Thanks, Mike. But I—’

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