Page 12 of The Dairy Farmer's Daughter

She pulled Nutmeg up at the boundary gate and stretched to unlock it before manoeuvring the horse through and closing it again behind her. Boyd's property, although not as big as Emerald Hills, had a lovely little creek on it that she enjoyed riding along. Boyd had always let her come and go as she likedas long as she followed country ethics and kept gates shut and didn't scare the cows.

She patted Nutmeg's silky brown neck. Nutmeg had seen her through her angsty teenage years, her crushes and first loves. Her passion for animals had never wavered. That's why living in the city had been so hard. No animals to stroke and confide in.

As she approached the house, she spotted two men sitting on the deck—the butterflies of blossoming attraction returned. She waved at Fred, who she had known all her whole life, but it was his companion she was really interested in seeing again.

Justin was dressed like a farmer in thick woollen socks, baggy denims and a fleecy sweater. He stood and walked over to her.

"Morning," she called brightly.

He put his hands on his hips, and she drank him in, all long and lean and man. "Did you ride all this way?"

She nodded. “It's not that far really and Nutmeg needed the exercise." She dismounted gracefully and held the reins.

He looked warily at the animal.

"You can pat her. She won't bite."

He extended a careful hand and gently rubbed the horse’s forelock. Nutmeg snorted in appreciation.

"Nice outfit." Freya gestured at his clothes.

"I was helping out in the milking shed this morning."

She smiled widely. "Say no more. Been there, done that." She caught his gaze for a heart-stopping second before he looked away and motioned to the house.

"Can I offer you a coffee? I have fresh milk this morning."

If she wasn't mistaken, his chest might have puffed out just a little. "If it's fresh then I can't turn it down." She tired Nutmeg to a fence post then they walked over to Fred.

She gave the old manager a brief hug. "I didn't get a chance to talk to you yesterday. I saw you at the service and wanted to come and say hi."

Fred looked away, his cheeks pink. "I couldn't stay long. Lots to do here." Emotion thickened his voice.

Justin shuffled behind her, and she moved slightly to include him in the conversation. "Fred's been here for what, twenty-something years?" She patted Fred's hand.

"That's right. In fact, I even remember you." Fred nodded at Justin. "I started working here when you had just learned to walk."

"I bet you have some stories to tell about this one," Freya said and gently bumped against Justin.

Fred gave a throaty laugh.

"I'll get you that coffee." Justin smiled at her.

"I'll help you."

He opened the door for Freya to walk past him.

As they waited for the kettle to boil, Freya leaned on the kitchen table and spoke in a quiet voice, "You know, it was Fred who found Boyd."

Justin paused, hand halfway to the cupboard. "I hadn't even realised. Is he okay?"

Freya shrugged. "Seems to be. He's always been a pretty resilient fellow."

Justin seemed to consider his next words carefully. "If Fred and Boyd were such good friends, why didn't Fred do the eulogy?"

Freya glanced over her shoulder to make sure the manager didn't hear them gossiping about him. "Fred is very reserved; he likes to keep to himself. I saw him at the back of the church during the service, and then he left as soon as it was over."

Justin nodded in reply but didn't ask anything else about him. When the coffee was ready, they went back outside andchatted easily. Fred explained the day-to-day goings on at the farm as well as stock numbers, employees' roles, and what maintenance was required.

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