Page 43 of The Dairy Farmer's Daughter

He swallowed. Hard. "Just a little bit."

She wrapped her arms around him. "I'll be right here beside you, I promise. It's really not that high, and we'll get a great view of town."

He looked back at her and felt the fear dissolve.

She cupped her hands around his face and kissed him before turning and climbing into the waiting carriage. He followed her and sat beside her as the gate was closed behind them.

She placed a reassuring hand on his leg as they started the gentle circle up into the sky. He let his gaze wander out across the field and over the crowds milling around below them. Instead of fear, wonder filled him. The community, the people below, were his father's friends and neighbours. Freya's friends and neighbours. Perhaps they could be his too.

He shuffled back in his seat so he could fully see Freya beside him. Happiness radiated from her like she didn't have a care in the world.

He curled his fingers around the line of her chin. Her mouth parted, her eyes widening, then he registered nothing more except the exquisite heart-walloping sensation of her soft mouth on his.

The kiss was intense, brief and laden with meaning. Exactly the way he wanted.

They made out like teenagers as the Ferris wheel circled slowly several times. It was undeniable; there was something real between them, and even if Justin didn’t have all the answers yet, he couldn’t hide from the truth.

Her body was soft and pliant against his, and he drew a shuddering breath as he lifted his head. He wanted to promise her he would never hurt her, that he would always be there for her, but he couldn't. Not when things were still so unsure. Not when she could change her mind about him if he accepted the sale.

If he had to, he knew that walking away from her would be the hardest thing he would ever do.

CHAPTER 17

Justin spent the next day working on his laptop at Meredith's café. It was quieter than usual, with most of her clientele spending the day at the show. She paused to ask how he’d found the show, and he told her emphatically how much he’d enjoyed himself.

Then, as the night fell and the air grew crisp, he drove to the showgrounds and found Freya waiting for him at the gate, her hands full with blankets. She kissed him and led the way through the crowds that gathered on the hills surrounding the grassy arena, until they finally spotted Greer and set up their blankets next to her so they could all watch the rodeo and fireworks.

“Is it just me, or is it colder than usual?” Justin turned up the collar of his sweatshirt, wishing he had brought another jacket.

Greer smiled at him. “Show weekend always marks the start of the cold season.” She threw him a blanket, which he pulled around his shoulders, offering an arm to Freya who readily snuggled in against him.

"Aww, look at you two." Greer pulled a face at her sister.

The riders rode into the arena and were introduced. One by one, they participated in events such as calf-roping, barrel-racing and camp-drafting.

Greer, Justin, and Freya took turns buying food and drinks, and chatted to friends who wandered over. After the rodeo, they lay back on their blankets as the fireworks shot into the dark, wintry night, while country music blared from the speakers, barely audible over the cracks of the display.

Freya nuzzled in closer to Justin, who tightened his arm around her.

"Pretty cool, huh?" she asked as it finished.

"This town just keeps on impressing me."

"We aim to please." She raised her head for a kiss, which he happily gave her. "Thank you for an amazing week," she said as he cradled her in his arms.

"No, thank you. I wouldn't have known any of this existed if it wasn't for you."

Hope, trepidation, and plain desire pounded through him, and as he kissed her again he wished the night could last forever.

After breakfast the next morning, Freya set up her laptop opposite Justin's, and they both attempted to get some work done. He opened his emails and frowned when he saw one from his lawyer that he had missed on Friday afternoon. He clicked on it and read the lawyer’s note advising an official offer had been made on the property.

He glanced at Freya who was concentrating hard while uploading videos from the weekend.

As the documents downloaded, he read over the terms and conditions before coming upon the amount offered.

Holy shit.

It was a lot of money. More than he had expected, even in his wildest imagination. It was enough to pay off his student loan,his sister’s student loan, his parents' house, and still buy himself a new one. Hell, he could buy himself a house in Sydney with that amount of money.

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