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‘Maybe—probably. I recognise all the other cars.’ He shook his head. The creek? Camping? He wouldn’t call Piper a city girl—she’d grown up in the same quintessential country town that he did—but her social media said she’d enjoyed all the comforts city living offered. Then he registered what Stef had actually said.

‘She’s not my girl.’

But the knowing laugh Stef gave him told him that this time, he’d been too late.

Later that afternoon, Emmett leaned forward in the camp chair, resting his elbows on his knees. He’d wrapped up his shift with no more emergencies requiring the hospital and had gone home to shower and unwind. But the idea of Piper camping out here in a Kombi had kept his shoulders tight. After everything Maree Hendrix had done for him and his mum, he owed it to her to make sure her daughter was okay.

At his feet, Major whined before lying in the dirt. Emmett hadn’t hesitated to order the German Shepherd into the tray of his ute before he took off for the free campgrounds just outside the town limits. Just as Stef had said, the Kombi was parked in a shady spot beside the creek. It hadn’t taken long to establish that it was Piper’s.

Piper’s campsite. Why did his brain struggle with that concept?

Regardless, he had to hand it to her—she’d picked a good spot.

The soft babbling of the creek over rocks, the birds calling to each other more jovially as the late afternoon heat faded and a breeze started to trickle in. There was only one other group of campers in the grounds and Emmett kept an eye on the maybe nineteenyear-olds who were already cracking open the beers. This was the problem with free campgrounds; there was no policing who used them. And this one in particular was pretty isolated. Unease clawed at him. Piper couldn’t stay here.

Major’s ears pricked up and Emmett noticed Piper’s slim figure coming out of the bush where he knew the walking path along the creek was located. Her colouring was the same as it had been when they were children—that long dark hair—but there was a lot about her that was new, including the curves he couldn’t stop his eyes from straying to. She strolled at a leisurely pace, seemingly unaware that she had an audience. Emmett’s mouth dropped into a scowl when one of the young men in the other campsite smacked his mate on the shoulder before gesturing towards Piper. Emmett could smell trouble.

When she was metres away from the Kombi, her face split into a giant grin. Emmett had been sighted.

‘Stay,’ he commanded Major before standing to greet Piper.

‘How’d you know I was here?’ she asked, stepping in to give him a hug. He wrapped his arms around her, breathing in her cherryvanilla scent. A pang for home made him pause, something he hadn’t felt since he first arrived in Rush Creek.

‘Rush Creek isn’t that big and no one else drives a bright orange Kombi.’

She pulled back and gestured for him to sit in the camping chair while she perched herself in the open Kombi doorway. ‘Isn’t she great? I named her Connie.’

‘Connie the Kombi?’ The corners of his mouth twitched. Typical Piper, naming a car.

‘Yep.’ Her grin was wickedly wide. ‘I got her for a bargain too. Jonathan installed a new head unit for me and made sure the mechanic checked everything before I left, but she made the distance and is still going strong.’

Emmett peered inside at the bed and the fairy lights she’d strung up. ‘Looks cosy.’

‘She’s pretty comfy.’ Piper held his eye for a few seconds before ducking her head. ‘I can’t believe you’re living in Rush Creek. I was so surprised to recognise you today.’

‘I felt the exact same when I saw you.’

‘How did you end up here?’

Emmett blew out a long breath as his mind glazed over the last several years of his life. ‘The short version is that, after Mum passed, I went back to uni and finished off my paramedic degree but couldn’t figure out where I really wanted to work. So I signed up with a national temp agency and literally travelled all across Australia, filling positions and gaining a world of experience. Rush Creek was the first place that I couldn’t leave.’

‘How long ago was that?’

‘Two years.’ Contentment settled over him, something that’d been missing when advanced lung disease had finally claimed his mum and which he’d only found again in Rush Creek. He shook his head. ‘I still can’t believe you’re here and that your family didn’t insist on driving with you.’

Piper gave a laugh. ‘Well, Jonathan’s back in the coaching seat, developing a training program to make the Scorpions backto-back champions, and Mum’s got a foal expected any day. Not sure if you saw the announcement on socials, but Carter’s now got himself a fiancée and I’m fairly sure they’re still celebrating.’

‘Yeah, I messaged to congratulate him. You’ll finally get the sis-ter you always wanted.’

‘Indy’s pretty cool.’

‘How’d he meet her?’ Emmett asked. ‘She doesn’t seem like the sporty kind.’

‘She’s not, but theirs is a much longer story that you should really hear from them.’

Emmett nodded before standing and taking a few steps towards the end of the awning. ‘So how long are you in Rush Creek for?’

‘Six-month contract with the possibility of permanency,’ she said more hesitantly than anything else she’d already divulged.