Chapter 1 

 

Jasmine

 

Rose crossed her arms and dropped onto the couch. Nine years of stubbornness flashed in her blue eyes. “I’m not sharing a room with him.” She threw a piercing glare at her brother.

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Bailey’s head whipped in her direction, his mouth opening to offer a retort.

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I sighed, cutting him off. “You have no choice. The new ranger, Ethan, is arriving in two days.”

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Being a mum was hard sometimes, and this was one of those times. How many repetitions of this same conversation did we need to have?

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“Why does he have to live here?” Rose’s arms tightened across her chest.

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Bailey rolled his eyes skyward. If they lifted any higher, they’d hit the ceiling. My lips quirked. Rose stilled them with a pointed stare.

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“The house Ethan was moving into is being renovated and isn’t ready yet.”

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Rose could be as stubborn as she wanted, but it wouldn’t change the fact that the new part-time ranger would soon be sharing our house. I didn’t like it either. I liked our peaceful life and the easy routine we’d built over the last five years since we’d moved here.

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“Why can’t he live somewhere else?” Rose said.

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“It’s tourist season. All the other houses are taken.”

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The only movement from either child came from Bailey, whose glare switched from his sister to me. I wasn’t going to be ambushed by an eleven-year-old and a nine-year-old.

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“You either help me move your stuff or I’ll do it myself.” I walked off towards Bailey’s bedroom. “If you don’t like where I put everything, that’s your problem.” Five metres out from the bedroom, and there was no movement behind me. Two metres. Nothing. I reached the doorway and stepped inside. As I tied my long brown hair into a ponytail, Bailey arrived at my side. I smiled to myself. I knew calling their bluff would work. There was no way he’d want me to mess up his stuff.

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“I know it will be squishy, but hopefully Ethan won’t have to stay long,” I said.

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I turned back to the couch. Rose was still there, not willing to admit defeat yet. She would. As soon as we started moving things into her room.

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“We’ll need to move your bookcase and books into the living room,” I said to Bailey. “And Rose’s too,” I added loud enough for her to hear, “so your bed will fit.”

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Rose ran to her room. “I’ll move my books. They have to go in the exact same order.”

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I left them with that task and started to move Bailey’s clothes. I knew exactly how they felt about Ethan moving in. Head office thought Ethan moving in with us, rather than living in Somewhere Bay thirty minutes away, was ideal. I didn’t think having our space invaded by a stranger was ideal. They wanted him close so he could learn and have easy access to the sea lions for his research. They never explained exactly what that research would be. But according to them, I needed to help him in any way I could.

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There was no point arguing. We lived in a government-provided house rent-free as part of my employment package. The house next door would be part of Ethan’s package. Him living with us would save them on unnecessary rental fees and travel expenses until the renovations on his house were complete.

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They were adamant the renovations would be finished soon. They wouldn’t listen when I told them they’d hardly been started. It looked like I was going to need to project manage it if it was going to happen at all.

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They may have been completely disorganised on that front, but I knew that their hiring protocols were strict. They were a government department, after all. They wouldn’t hire anyone with a criminal record. In fact, you couldn’t even get into Australia if you had a criminal record, so at least we were safe on that front. They’d emailed me his name this morning so I would do some more research before he arrived; just to make sure. You can’t hide on the internet. If he was sketchy, I would find it.

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“Finished, Mummy,” Rose said. She’d lined her books up on her bed.

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“Go get the beach cart. It will be easier to move the books.”

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She ran off.

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“Bailey, can you help me move the bookcase, please?”

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Within seconds, he was there.

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Rose supervised as we moved her bookcase. “I want my books closer to the door so the mermaids can get to the books easier when they want to read.”

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“Because an extra metre is really going to hurt them,” Bailey said.

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Rose huffed. “They don’t have legs, you know.”

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“They—”

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I pushed Bailey in the direction of his room. “Your bookcase, now.” We did not need a discussion about mermaids and their anatomy or their ability to read.

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Once the bookcases were in place, they started to put their books away talking with each other the whole time.

“Finished, Mummy,” Rose said, appearing in her doorway.

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“Bailey, too?”

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“Yes.”

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“Good job. Go play on the beach while I go to the store to ask Jack for help with the bigger furniture.”

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I walked along the beach to the general store. The sea breeze played at the tendrils of hair that had escaped from my ponytail. It was unusually warm for October, hinting at the hot summer that was soon to come. I made a mental note to check the fire trails over the next week.

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The holiday homes to my right overlooked the sandy beach and the bay to my left. Some were big, others small. The larger houses were double-storey, with large windows taking in the view. They were modern and rendered in natural colours to blend in with the bush behind.

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They were interspersed with smaller houses, almost like fisherman shacks. These timber houses had paint peeling from years of exposure to the sea. Although they weren’t as grand, they were no less popular with tourists.

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Only a one-lane dirt road separated the buildings from the bush behind. The lane allowed access when the road out the front flooded in a king tide.

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The campground that straddled the beach was no less popular. Grey nomads in their caravans and motorhomes inhabited it, even in the cold winter months. The younger travellers used tents while families often packed into camper trailers.

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The water was calm, tiny waves lapping at the shore.

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The one-kilometre walk did me good. Bailey and Rose had hardly stopped bickering all afternoon. Even Timmy, their four-month-old ginger kitten, had left them, seeking solace on my bed.

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This had better not be a sign of things to come. Our peace had already been shattered before Ethan even arrived. Living with Ethan would be nothing like living with Max, Rose and Bailey’s father. I’d make sure of that. There was no way my children would feel uncomfortable in their own home. That’s one reason I’d moved Bailey into Rose’s room. It was closer to me, and it would give Ethan space to himself at the other end of the house.

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I made my way up the steps to the front door of the store. Soft sand had accumulated under the stairs. Jack would need to clear it out before the treads were overcome with a carpet of the small particles.

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The bell clinked as I entered. Jack’s weathered face turned toward me and broke into a smile. “What brings you here on this fine afternoon?”

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“I was wondering if you could help me move Bailey’s bed into Rose’s room, please? And some furniture from the house next door into the new ranger’s room.”

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Lily popped out from one of the aisles. Her greying, curly hair framed her face. “Preparing for your American co-worker?”

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I leant against the counter. “He arrives in two days. I thought it would be a good idea for the kids to get used to their new living arrangements before then.”

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Jack’s blue eyes twinkled. “And how is that going?”

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I looked out the window to the beach where the kids were playing. “Well, they haven’t killed each other yet.”

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Lily laughed. “I hope it doesn’t come to that. Do you have a name for your new co-worker?”

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I pulled out my phone and scrolled to the email. “They emailed it this morning. Ethan Shaw. Marine biologist. Splits his time between Monterey Bay Aquarium and the university.”

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Lily came to stand beside her husband. “Ooh, high level. Do you have a picture?”

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I shook my head. “If you’ve seen one middle-aged man, you’ve seen them all.”

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Jack puffed out his chest. “Some of us are finer specimens than others.”

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I laughed.

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Lily took out her phone and tapped away. A cheeky smile lit up her face. She showed her husband whatever was on her phone.

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He slapped his leg, chuckled and gave her a nudge. “That is no ordinary middle-aged white man.”

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“Not ordinary.” She waggled her eyebrows. “And not middle-aged.”

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What were they talking about? I hadn’t had time to google him yet. Were we about to get stuck with some grumpy old guy? Lily handed her phone to me. I sucked in a breath. Oh, shit. The person staring into the camera was mid-thirties and had a smile as captivating as his hazel eyes. They seemed to see right through the centre of me in every photo I flipped through. He wasn’t even here in person yet and already I found it hard to tear my eyes away. My mouth went dry. I scrolled. He looked as good in a dress shirt as he did in a wetsuit peeled off to his waist.

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“You’re shitting me.” My eyes went to the search bar: Ethan Shaw, Marine Biologist. I shoved the phone back into Lily’s hand.

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“Too hot to handle, huh?” Jack asked, chortling.

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“Have fun knowing that fine specimen, or should we call him Sex on Legs, is sleeping only metres away.” Lily gave me a wink.

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“Co-worker, housemate, that’s it.”

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I wiped the images from my mind. Or at least I tried to.

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Two more days until Ethan arrived. I didn’t know if I wanted his charm to match his good looks or the opposite. Which would be better?