Page 23 of Lime Tree Hill

“And you to him. What’s the story about him saving your life?”

“That was what started our friendship. I fell off my bike down by the mailbox and split my head open on a rock. Norman found me at the end of the drive, lying in a ditch and soaked in blood. He told me later that you’d made him get a cell phone, and the only thing he could remember was green for go and red for stop.”

“It was a Motorola flip phone. I only added three people to his contacts—Ken, me, and your parents, but he refused to use it.”

“Until that day. He called an ambulance, then Dad. I was in an induced coma for a while, with swelling to the brain. When I woke up, they’d shaved half my hair off. I was devastated.”

“And here was me thinking that hairstyle was part of your goth fashion statement.”

Tayla felt the heat creep into her cheeks. Not because she was embarrassed about her goth phase, but because he remembered what she’d looked like. “After the accident, that whole morbid obsession thing took hold for a while. I kept that hairstyle for ages.” She reached for the door handle. “Anyway, thanks for the ride.”

Mitch jumped out and rounded the truck to open her door, offering a rain-soaked goodbye. For a split second, she thought he might lean forward and kiss her, but he didn’t. And as she navigated the slippery steps and stood on the veranda to watch him pull away,she’d wished he’d stayed. Followed her inside. Turned on the lights. Made conversation over the noise in her head.

She opened the front door and had just flicked on the hall light switch when a power outage plunged the house back into darkness. While she didn’t usually feel uneasy when home alone, it wastimes like these that she mentally thanked her mother for having a house full of candles.

A few minutes later, with the kitchen shadowed in muted light, Tayla opened the fridge and pulled out a four-pack of cream donuts, a treat from Maisie’s Bakery on Seaview Road. She dipped her finger into the jam and cream filling, then licked it off the tip with an enthusiastic “yum.” Within a couple of minutes, the pack was two donuts down. Why did beer always make her hungry?

She reached for her phone when it dinged and took a bite out of donut number three as she glanced at the screen.

Mitch:You okay over there?

Tayla:Fine thanks. I have donuts. Or I did a minute ago. Oops.

Mitch:Yum! Donuts.Do you want company?

Tayla:Thanks, but the candles are glowing and door’s locked. I’m used to being alone.

Mitch:How come? Didn’t you have someone to keep you warm in Sydney?

She thought back to the nights she’d slept in Hayden’s arms, and equally, how she’d ached for him when he didn’t show. Those many nights when she’d craved human touch.

Tayla:Goodnight Mitch. Thanks again for the ride.

Mitch:Sorry I accidentally pushed you over BTW.

Tayla:Accidentally? Not sure I believe you.

Mitch:It’s true. Goodnight *babe*

Tayla:Nite *sweetie*

Still feeling a little drunk, she wished she and Mitch didn’t have that history Tim talked about.

11

HUMBLE PIE

Tayla pulledher car into a parking space outside Harper Realty ten minutes late for her appointment. As she took a seat opposite Andrew Harper’s desk, her heart was still racing.

“Thanks for coming,” he said as he sat in his chair.

“Sorry I’m late. I’m doing a locum stint at the hospital, and I couldn’t get away.”

Andrew’s smile was warm and wide. “It’s fine. What do you do there?”

“I’m a physiotherapist. I specialize in sports injuries. Anyway, Ruby said you might have a backup contract for Cherry Grove.”

“I do. It was floating around a while back through another agent, but your father wasn’t interested.”

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