He shrugged. ‘Then lucky I’m not here to win any popularity contests.’

  Her eyes narrowed but not before he’d seen fury deepening the blue to midnight. ‘You have no idea what you’re up against here. We’re a tight-knit community doing our best for our kids and the last thing we need is some clueless know-it-all bustling in and throwing his weight around.’

  She almost choked on the last word and a flicker of pity made him want to reach out to her. Instead, he held up his hands in surrender. ‘I’m not the bad guy you’ve built me up to be. And for the record, I don’t want to be here any more than you want me here, but I had no choice.’

  ‘What did you do to get exiled here?’

  He couldn’t have put it better himself but no way in hell he’d be giving away that much information to a woman he barely knew, a woman who was technically the enemy.

  ‘The Education Department has set me a task. I intend on completing it to the best of my ability.’ Damn it, he did sound like the pompous ass she’d accused him of being, so he tempered his response with, ‘Things will go a lot smoother if you cooperate and we all get along.’

  ‘Cooperate? With you?’ She took a step back and swept him from head to foot with an imperious glance and a jab of unexpected lust shot through him. ‘I’d rather eat meat.’

  A burst of laughter escaped. He couldn’t help it. ‘Let me guess. You frequent the Vegan Vault.’

  ‘My eating habits are none of your business,’ she said, but he glimpsed a slight twitching at the corners of her mouth. ‘Now, if you don’t mind, why don’t you come back later when the kids are at lunch and I’ll introduce you to Jill and Hugo.’

  He had no intention of going anywhere but the kids were starting to cast curious glances their way and he didn’t want to disrupt their learning. By those reports he’d read, they needed all the help they could get.

  ‘You weren’t mentioned as a teacher in any preliminary reading I did regarding the region?’

  He saw he’d inadvertently touched a sore spot as she drew herself up to her impressive height and folded her arms again. ‘Come back later and we’ll discuss my role, among other things.’

  ‘Like?’

  ‘How you better shelve any preconceived ideas you have of Acacia Haven and this school, because no-one in this town is going to let some upstart bureaucrat like you barrel in here and tear down a vital part of this community.’

  With one last scathing glare, Summer turned on her heel and stomped away, her long paisley skirt swishing around her ankles. Only then did he notice the brash, mouthy teacher was barefoot. Combined with the juggling, the fire starting and the essential oil bottles, it merely reinforced what he already knew.

  He didn’t fit in here and the next four weeks would be hell.

  CHAPTER

  3

  ‘Was that the big bad wolf?’ Jill snickered, standing alongside Summer as Jy strode away.

  Summer waited until Jy bloody Atherton disappeared from view before turning to face her friend. ‘Yeah, and he’s an arrogant jerk, as expected.’

  ‘You played nice, right? Because we need him onside, not to alienate him on his first day.’

  Summer grimaced. ‘I may have called him a pompous ass.’

  Jill chuckled and shook her head, patting Summer’s shoulder. ‘I love your passion for these kids and this school, honey, but no good can come of antagonising the big wig. He can shut us down.’

  ‘I know …’ Summer wished for a do-over with the handsome principal.

  That was another thing that had her riled up. She’d noticed how attractive Jy was, from his casually mussed dark brown hair to eyes the colour of hot chocolate, from the slightest hint of a dimple in his right cheek when he smiled to his broad shoulders despite his impressive height. Not many men towered over her but he did and that added to his overall air of superiority.

  Though that could be her overreacting. He hadn’t lorded his position over her. In fact, he’d been coolly polite for most of their interaction; she’d been the one who’d been defensive and rude, despite Jill and Hugo’s pep talk first thing this morning.

  ‘It gets worse,’ Summer said. ‘I may have also called him an upstart bureaucrat.’

  Jill let out a loud guffaw that had Hugo turning his head their way. Jill held up an ‘all good’ hand before saying, ‘What’s done is done. Where did he go, though?’

  ‘I told him to come back at lunch to meet you two.’

  ‘Good idea. We can introduce ourselves inside, away from prying eyes.’ Jill jerked her head towards the students clustered in small groups, surprisingly focussed on the tasks they’d been set. Then again, Summer shouldn’t be surprised. These kids loved learning practical stuff, like fire starting and blending essential oils to help with exam stress, but give them a maths or English assignment and their attention wandered.

  She’d been like them once, preferring to be anywhere but here, despite Jill and Hugo being the best teachers she’d ever had. Then she’d been banished to boarding school in Melbourne for her final three years of schooling and discovered exactly how good she’d had it at Acacia Haven College.

  ‘Do you think the kids have any idea what’s going on?’

  A tiny frown dented Jill’s brow. ‘Hugo and I haven’t said anything to anyone. Have you?’

  ‘Only to Mum, and she won’t tell.’

  ‘Good. We need to keep it that way.’ Jill’s wistful gaze drifted back to the kids. ‘If this lot find out we’re at risk of closing down, they’ll stay away even more.’

  ‘It’s normal for truancy rates to escalate at the end of a school year. Kids are focussed on summer, not prepping for the next year.’

  ‘Agreed. But this is the first day of a new school year and at least twenty kids are missing.’

  Jill’s eyes misted and Summer lay a comforting hand on her forearm. ‘You know what this place is like; you’ve been teaching here for forty-five years. The families in Serenity don’t rate a good education in comparison to life experience.’

  ‘And that’s exactly why that big wig will close us down.’ Jill squared her shoulders, as if preparing for battle. ‘We can’t let that happen.’

  Summer didn’t want to verbalise her thoughts: that Hugo and Jill had already let slip they wanted to retire and hit the road to become grey nomads, and what were the chances of finding replacements all the way out here?

  The kids who did finish school and flee Acacia Haven didn’t return. Not everybody was cut out for the laid-back intentional community lifestyle. She hated that the town still bore the stigma of being a ‘commune’ or ‘hippy’, when being part of an intentional community—like-minded folks who focussed on self-sustainability and leading a simple life—was nothing like that. She loved it. Better than the rat race of Melbourne. She’d hated her time there, abhorred being an outsider in a cluster of uppity bullies who made her life hell.

  ‘Then let’s focus on showing Jy Atherton exactly what we’re made of,’ Summer said, forcing a confident grin when she was feeling anything but.

  ‘That’s my girl.’ Jill’s smile faded as her gaze focussed on Hugo. ‘My darling husband wants to leave at the end of second term.’

  Summer’s heart sank. It would be hard enough finding teachers to replace these icons by the conclusion of the school year but if Hugo and Jill retired mid-year, there’d be no hope. Acacia Haven College would shut down for good. Jy would get his wish and discovering the impending retirement of her coworkers would make his job too easy and seal the school’s fate.

  She couldn’t let that happen.

  ‘While the ophthalmologist said my cataract hadn’t grown at my last check-up, from what I saw, that Jy Atherton is rather easy on the eyes,’ Jill said, trying to sound blasé and failing.

  Summer ignored her sly glance. ‘So what? Just because he’s good-looking doesn’t make him less of a monster for wanting to tear down what you’ve created here for almost half a century.’

  Jill’s eyebrows shot up at Summer’s vehemence, so she tempered it with, ‘Okay, so he’s not a monster; he’s doing his job. I get it. Doesn’t mean I have to like it.’

  ‘None of us like this hand we’ve been dealt, but what can we do?’

  ‘We fight.’

  If only Summer could think of ways to do just that.

  CHAPTER

  4

  Rayne loved the first day back at school. It meant Main Street was flooded with parents who’d finally escaped from eight weeks of holidays and having their kids at home. Parents who spent the morning having coffees and window shopping. Parents who’d lost the frazzled expression and were actually beaming. She hadn’t had this many customers in The Knick-Knack Shop in a long time. It gave her a buzz.

  But it wouldn’t last and soon she’d be back to scouring Melbourne hotspots online, wishing she could stroll the laneways checking out the latest graffiti murals and eating at the newest Asian hawker stall. Not that anybody knew about her yearning to escape Acacia Haven. She’d hidden it well because she owed Summer that much. How would it look if she’d instilled a grand love of intentional living into her daughter, effectively binding her to this town, when Rayne couldn’t wait to escape?

  She’d hidden a lot over the years and at fifty, was wondering if it had all been worth it. She didn’t believe in midlife crises so maybe her wavering emotions, maudlin one minute, giggly the next, were signs of perimenopause. Whatever the cause, she was over it.

  Sighing, she started arranging some locally tie-dyed scarves into a colourful display near the front counter, as a couple strolled in. They weren’t locals. She knew everybody within a fifty-kilometre radius. Besides, they wore designer jeans and polo tops, artfully ripped denim that shouldn’t be worn by anyone over the age of twenty and these two had to be around her age. However, their outfits didn’t grab her attention as much as the way they practically fawned over each other. Their mutual adoration in shared glances, the hand-holding, the bumping of their shoulders and hips, reeked of an intimacy she’d give anything to have.

  When was the last time a man looked at her like that? Too long ago to remember. As much as she hated to admit it, Rayne was lonely, an emptiness that had increasingly plagued her over the last few months. Dating and sex in Acacia Haven weren’t a priority. She knew every available man in her age range, even a few younger, and none were viable prospects.

  It had been sixteen years since she’d escaped Noel’s clutches. It had taken eighteen months after he’d moved away for her to stop jumping at the slightest noise, to stop looking over her shoulder, to stop bracing for a blow. Nobody knew what she’d endured in her marriage to that monster. A few suspected, but she’d been too terrified to tell anyone. Besides, she’d been hell-bent on protecting Summer, and her child had been her number one priority.

  Summer hitting puberty had ultimately given Rayne the courage to escape. Noel didn’t deserve to live for what he’d subjected Rayne to, so when he lost it with Summer and she’d seen her daughter cowering in fear in the face of her father’s shocking temper, she had to act. Their divorce, handled through lawyers, had been expedited a year after he left. She hadn’t expected anything else, considering the evidence she had on him, and no way would the narcissistic prick want his precious police career tarnished.

  Her chest tightened as it inevitably did when thoughts of her ex snuck into her head like an insidious evil, and she absentmindedly rubbed it, her focus returning to the couple. They shared a kiss and the sight of them pressing against each other made the hollow ache in Rayne’s chest spread. Protecting herself for the last sixteen years had resulted in this … yearning.

  Everyone thought she was an extrovert. An image she’d honed from years of pretending everything was fine on the outside while she fragmented and fell apart on the inside. None of her friends could understand why she didn’t date. Then again, they didn’t understand what it would cost her to let down her guard and trust a man.

  Shaking herself out of her funk, she approached the couple, feeling like an intruder.

  ‘Can I help you?’

  The woman jumped and in that moment Rayne had a flashback.

  ‘That’s the best pav I’ve ever tasted,’ a deep voice murmured near Rayne’s ear and she spun around to find Noel Horne, the young policeman who’d just transferred to Acacia Haven, grinning at her. He had a wide, open smile and she liked how friendly he’d been towards the locals since he’d arrived in town last week. He’d even popped into her shop to introduce himself personally and she’d been impressed. It didn’t hurt that his dark brown eyes had a perpetual twinkle, like he knew a secret she didn’t, and his impressive six-three height made her feel petite.

  ‘Thanks, though I’m always conflicted what to serve at the Australia Day picnic. Passionfruit pav or the favourite of many, mint choc.’

  ‘I’m a passionfruit guy myself so this is perfect.’ He brandished his empty paper plate. ‘Do you think I could sneak seconds?’

  ‘Go for it,’ she said, stepping aside to let him serve himself. He hesitated, like he didn’t want to be impolite, so she chuckled and reached for his plate. ‘Don’t be shy. I’m renowned for my pavs, so this won’t last long.’

  She picked up the server and sliced a big wedge before plopping it onto the plate and handing it back to him. As he reached for it, their fingers brushed and a skitter of excitement made her smile. He must’ve felt it too, because one of his eyebrows arched, as if questioning what the hell had just happened.

  ‘Would you like to go out with me?’

  Rayne shouldn’t. She still hoped Leo would call after their memorable weekend in Melbourne a few days ago. But if the city boy had been keen he would’ve called by now. She’d given him her number. Besides, their lives were worlds apart, so she accepted she’d never see the guy she’d fallen for. Considering she didn’t have his number, or a surname for that matter, she’d chalked up their incredible weekend to a brief passionate interlude, a moment of madness in her otherwise staid world.

  ‘If it’s taking you this long to answer, I’m guessing your answer is no?’

  Yearning for some guy she’d never see again despite how well they connected on so many levels was beyond stupid, so Rayne met Noel’s gaze.

  ‘I’d love to go out with you.’

  Seven simple words that would ruin her life.

  This customer’s reaction was nothing like Rayne’s jumpiness whenever anyone got too close, and her partner’s eyes were clear and guileless, nothing like the furtive shiftiness she’d soon come to recognise in Noel’s proprietorial stares, but she took a step back regardless, hating that she’d alarmed the other woman.

  ‘We’re just browsing, but thanks.’ The woman smiled and turned away, already leaning into her partner for support as they murmured in low tones over the beautiful colours of a hand-painted scarf.

  Rayne headed back to the counter. She had a lot of work to do. Inventory for the new autumn stock on order; organising an end-of-summer sale. But the funk plaguing her wouldn’t quit and, to her horror, tears filled her eyes.

  She needed to set the past to rest. Needed to break free of the invisible shackles still binding her to an abusive man she loathed with every battered bone in her body.

  What better way than to open herself up to the possibility of a new relationship?

  CHAPTER

  5

  Jy needed sustenance before heading back to the school so he popped into the Vegan Vault. While he’d teased the bohemian teacher about it, deliberately baiting her, he predominantly ate vegetables these days, with the occasional piece of chicken or fish thrown in. He’d changed his diet out of spite initially, forgoing his love of bacon and rib eyes because it’s all Agatha had wanted to eat in the last few months of their marriage when she’d become obsessed with some kind of carnivore diet.

  He’d always thought his voluptuous wife looked gorgeous no matter her weight but he hadn’t a clue she’d already been sneaking around with Chester Quigley and that had been the motivation for her to lose weight. As far as he was concerned, those two could stuff their faces with as much turkey, lamb and beef as they wanted. He was done and the day his divorce came through was the day he started living again.

  After scoffing a particularly delicious Indian burrito—flatbread stuffed with curried mashed potatoes, roasted spiced cauliflower, chickpeas and a yoghurt dressing infused with coriander—he grabbed a coffee to go and headed back to the school. Going on the offensive with Summer hadn’t been his smartest move. He should be trying to get the teachers onside, help them see reason for what he now knew would be inevitable: Acacia Haven College needed to close down.

  From what he’d seen it was no surprise they had the lowest leaving school pass rates in the state. Learning to start fires and juggle weren’t high priority in the end of year twelve exams. While he was all for progressive teaching and learning, if kids didn’t have the basics of English and maths down pat, they struggled.

  But how to get his message across without alienating the teachers and every person in this town for the long four weeks he was stuck here? He knew the kids’ motivation would go down the toilet once they heard rumours of the school closing down. Truancy would skyrocket, grades would plummet. And travel time to get to school in nearby Inverloch and beyond would play a part in whether some kids continued. He should know. When he’d gained a scholarship to attend a private school for the last two years of his education, he’d had to catch a train and a tram to get there and more often than not he’d end up not making it. He didn’t play hooky all the time because he’d already known by then the only way out of the awful, cloying atmosphere at home was to score a high enough ATAR to get into uni and move out, but those days he’d get off the tram a few stops early, sneak into Maccas and change out of his school uniform before heading to a park to read under a tree for the day were the best of his schooldays.

  That’s what his stand against the Education Department had been about: ensuring quality learning within a classroom while taking a child’s mental health into account. Striving for a balance. But the new curriculum guidelines were heavily skewed towards the former with too much focus on humanities while disregarding the latter, so he’d voiced his opinion within the teaching fraternity at his school and beyond. He’d known it would get back to the board once he shared his views at a regional meeting of principals; he’d counted on it. What he hadn’t banked on was getting sent to the arse end of the earth to close down a school.