Page 104 of Possession Under the Southern Stars

“You’re very welcome.” Whina releases her, then comes over to me. She smiles up at me. “I’m proud of you for what you’ve achieved, and so is your father. I’m sure you’re going to go on and do marvelous things, Fraser.”

I bend and kiss her cheek. “Thank you.”

“I’ll be in touch.” She gives us both a smile and leaves the office.

We listen to her footsteps disappearing down the corridor, then turn to each other.

Hallie looks up at me, wonder in her big brown eyes. “I can’t believe it,” she whispers. “Did that really just happen?”

My throat tightens, and I feel suddenly choked up. Her brow creases as she spots my surge of emotion, and she slides her arms around my waist.

I hug her, wondering if I should close the door, but then I see Louise standing in the doorway. She smiles at me over the top of Hallie’s head, then pulls the door to.

I kiss Hallie’s hair. “Thank you,” I say, my voice hoarse. “For everything.”

She moves back a little and wipes her eyes. “I’m glad I could help.”

“I can’t believe you went to see Isabel. She wasn’t hostile?”

“Not really. She’d had time to think. Like Whina said, despite making a few mistakes, you impressed her. I promised that we would treat the displays sensitively, and that she could have an input in the text we used to explain their background.”

“Maybe you’d liaise with her over that. She obviously trusts you.”

“Of course.”

I tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Earlier I thought that if Whina fired me, I’d ask you whether you wanted to come with me and the others to Europe. Go traveling. See the world. Would you rather do that?”

She thinks about it. Then she shakes her head and smiles. “No. I’d rather stay here and see what we can make of the museum. You’ve already made it so special, and I’d love to see what else you do with it, and to have a hand in it, if I can. I don’t really want to travel. I need some time to breathe and recover both from my previous relationship and from my father contacting me, which frightened me. I don’t want to give him that power over me. Isabel and I discussed how we both bear the wounds of the past, and how we need to accept that our family’s actions don’t reflect on us personally. We don’t have to bear thatburden anymore.” She looks into my eyes. “And I want to get to know you better.”

I cup her face. “We’ll take our time,” I say gently, “and go on some proper dates first. You can take as much time as you need to heal.”

She nods, clearly moved.

“I thought I was in love with you yesterday,” I say, “but I’m even more in love with you now.”

She gives a shy smile. “I’m in love with you, too. I can’t believe we’re able to date for real. And that the museum is going to be all right.”

“Five million dollars,” I say, breathless with wonder. “That will more than cover the cost of the west wing renovations.” I brush my thumbs across her cheeks. “That’s all down to you. You saved the museum. And you saved me.”

Her face warms beneath my hands. “I just wanted to help you.”

In reply, I lower my lips to hers. I’ll take on board what Whina said about no snatched kisses in the stationery cupboard. But after the news we’ve had today, I think one, small, celebratory kiss isn’t too much to ask.

Epilogue

Hallie

Valentine’s Day

“Oh my God,” Elora whispers. “I can’t believe it. Look at them all!”

She, Zoe, and I are standing in the gallery looking down at the room housing the new Valentine’s Day exhibit, and it’s absolutely packed with visitors and the press.

We’re all knackered. It’s been a punishing week. Not only have Elora and Zoe had to start preparing for their travels, but with the announcement of the letters and paintings coming to the museum, we’ve been in a mad panic to get the Valentine’s Day exhibition ready.

Alongside this, Elora has prepared a display for the Bell Ring, her family’s heirloom that she recovered from a woman in Milford Sound. The ring is displayed in a glass cabinet, and around it she’s organized display boards that tell the love story of her ancestors, a journey that began in the Gold Rush of the 1860s.

Zoe has also had to prepare her display, which is a replica of the Mair Necklace, a famous piece of jewelry lost beneath the waves after a shipwreck. Joel found the ship in the Bay of Islands, and the display includes many artifacts recovered from there, including a pair of spectacles that Zoe herself found. Her display boards show wonderful photos of her and the team excavating the wreck, as well as explaining the journey of the Relentless from Sydney to the Bay, and pictures of Captain Mair and his crew.

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