Page 91 of The Knitting Club at Wagtail Ridge

‘No. That would mean a blood test for Vicki too. I won’t put her through that.’

‘I understand, but you need to be aware that if Mrs Holden gets a court order and you refuse, the court is likely to rule against you.’

‘What? No! They can’t take my daughter off me.’

‘Let’s not jump ahead of ourselves here. Do you know the man Kim was with before you?’

‘No. I guess she mentioned his name back then, but I don’t remember.’

‘And he’s never been involved with Vicki?’

‘No.’

There was silence down the line.

Just when Matt was ready to explode, Margaret spoke again.

‘This threat has a little more substance. I would suggest we push the idea of mediation in an attempt to keep it out of court. Let me work on that.’

‘They can’t take Vicki away from me, can they?’ His voice shook as he confessed his deepest fear.

‘I think that’s unlikely, but if a paternity test showed that you were not Vicki’s biological father, that would certainly impact any court hearing.’

Matt couldn’t speak as his whole world began crumbling around him.

‘In the meantime,’ Margaret spoke into the silence, ‘make sure neither you nor Vicki has any contact with Kim’s parents. We don’t want anything else to muddy the waters.’

Matt put the phone back on his desk and dropped his face into his hands.

CHAPTER

36

Rose swung the door open, ready for the first real day’s trading. She glanced up the road towards Matt’s office. She could have sworn she’d heard the familiar sound of Bree’s car driving past while she was still in bed, heading away from town and back to the farm. That’s what she hoped she’d heard. She would find out later today, when Bree came to the shop. Not that she’d pry into her granddaughter’s personal life. Well, not too much.

‘Here’s your tea.’ Mike came through the door connecting the shopfront to her cottage. He’d just stepped out of the shower, his hair was ruffled and his T-shirt clung to his body where he hadn’t fully dried himself.

Rose gave a little shiver. ‘Thank you.’

‘You are very welcome.’ Mike kissed her, a lingering kiss that felt marvellous.

When the kiss ended, Mike propped his hips against the centre table, now featuring a big cane basket of wool rather than wine and cake. ‘Are you all set for the day?’

‘I am.’ The confidence in her voice was a true reflection of her feelings. ‘There’s a family of walkers due at the farm in about an hour from now. I’ll be here in case they get lost. Then this afternoon, there’s another wool delivery coming—more of this year’s fleeces spun and ready to sell. Bree’s already put that on the website, so there may be some orders for me to fill.’

Mike tilted his head and smiled that slow smile that had first captured her interest. ‘A busy day. You really are some kind of businesswoman, aren’t you?’

‘I hope that doesn’t put you off.’ Rose fluttered her eyelids and feigned a swoon. ‘I still like to have a big strong man about the place.’

Mike laughed. ‘That sounds pretty good to me. I’ll take the job, if you’re offering.’

‘You’ve got work today?’

‘I sure do. The gang will be picking me up in—’ he glanced at his watch, ‘—about five minutes. Enough time to finish my coffee. We’re heading south today, so I’ll call you later. I guess I should probably spend the night at my place. Make sure it hasn’t burned down or anything.’

Rose nodded. Mike had spent all of this week at her little cottage. It had made sense while he was helping her with the store. The first night, he had slept in the spare room, but only the first night. That had been something of a revelation. It felt so good to have a man in her bed again. Not just because … Well, that was exciting and wonderful. But it was also wonderful not to wake up alone.

‘Of course. When will I see you next?’ She almost held her breath.

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