‘I have a spare room at my place. You can have it and the main bathroom for as long as you need.’

  ‘Thanks, but I’ll pass. Connie has everything I need.’ Her tone was defiant, just how it used to be when they were kids and Carter was trying to explain why she couldn’t tag along with them.

  ‘You can’t stay here in a van. Packing and setting up every day. What are you going to do when you’re on an evening shift? Set up in the dark?’

  ‘I’ve managed so far and I’ll continue to manage for as long as I need to.’

  ‘What about in the rain? Or the thunder and lightning? I’m telling you, storms this far north spring up out of nowhere and hit with a force that’s brutal enough to roll you over faster than you can blink, or wash you and your Kombi clean down the creek, leaving no trace. And we’re in cyclone season. We may not be on the coast, but they hit us just the same. You can’t stay out here. It’s unsafe.’

  Her eyes flared with anger. ‘What makes you think you have the right to tell me what I can and can’t do? I didn’t drive two thousand kilometres, alone, just to be bossed around by a man I haven’t seen in ten years.’

  His eyes narrowed and he folded his arms across his chest. ‘Why did you move so far away?’

  ‘None of your business.’ She copied his posture, crossing her arms, and Emmett couldn’t help but notice the way it shifted her breasts up in her low-cut singlet. His irritation mounted. He shouldn’t be noticing those things about her.

  ‘Be realistic, Piper. You can’t camp forever.’

  ‘Says who? I’m not some ten-year-old kid you can just boss around, Emmett. You haven’t changed at all.’

  Frustration ate at the restraint keeping his impulse to throw her over his shoulder and carry her to his house in check. He knew how stubborn she could be and the tiny part of his brain that wasn’t angry recognised her point. She wasn’t a kid anymore.

  He swiped her phone from the camping table and put his number in it before hitting save. ‘I’m not happy about this. You keep that door locked at night and if you have any trouble at all, big or small, day or night, you call me, and I’ll be here.’

  ‘Like I’d call your grumpy arse.’

  ‘Don’t call me and you’ll see how much grumpier I can get.’

  She pressed her mouth shut and inclined her head as if he’d issued a challenge she was rising to.

  He cursed silently and put her phone back on the table. ‘I’ll see you later. Come on, Major.’

  The German Shepherd was at his side immediately and they stalked away from Piper’s campsite.

  ‘Bye, grumpy arse.’

  He rolled his eyes and refused to look back. She always had to get the last word in. That hadn’t changed.

  Emmett opened the passenger door, letting Major curl up in the footwell, his favourite place, and headed around to the driver’s seat. Before sticking the key in the ignition, he pulled out his phone and scrolled through the list. Thankfully, Carter had protected his phone number and still had the same one since he left Euronga.

  He pressed call and waited.

  ‘Emmett? Mate, it’s been ages! How’s it going?’

  Emmett grinned at his oldest friend’s voice. ‘Life was a hell of a lot quieter before today.’

  ‘What’s happened today?’

  ‘Went to drop a patient off at the hospital and who should be the new nurse on shift?’

  Silence came through the line, raising Emmett’s suspicion.

  ‘Piper. It was Piper.’

  ‘Piper’s in Rush Creek?’

  ‘You didn’t know?’

  Carter’s frustrated groan held a hint of relief. ‘Not specifically. We knew she was travelling to Queensland for a new job, but we didn’t think it’d be that far over the border.’

  ‘She didn’t tell you?’ He went for the door handle but was stopped from opening it by Carter’s voice.

  ‘All we know is that something happened that led her to quit her job, break up with her boyfriend, buy a refurbished Kombi and move interstate. When Mum and Jonathan demanded specifics, she plastered a fake smile on her face and told them she wasn’t in any trouble, she just needed a fresh start.’

  ‘And you believe her?’

  ‘Piper’s never lied to us. Omitted things, yes, but never outright lied, so I don’t think she’s in trouble, but I don’t know what she’s trying to get away from.’

  Concern replaced Emmett’s anger. What could’ve been so bad that she’d moved so far away and was camping in a Kombi? Who hurt her? It had to have been the ex.

  Emmett ran a hand across his jaw. He shouldn’t have pushed her to live with him. She was right. Why should she listen to a man she hadn’t seen in ten years? He may as well be a stranger to her.

  ‘Have you tried talking to her ex?’

  ‘Heath’s not answering calls from any of us so Jonathan went around to the apartment he and Piper were living in, but it’s been cleaned out. We haven’t been able to catch him at the hospital either. Maybe I should fly up.’

  Emmett thought back to the stubborn streak in Piper’s eyes. ‘To be honest, Carter, I don’t think she’d appreciate it. Stubborn Piper struck when I offered her the spare room at my place so she wouldn’t be camping on the banks of the creek. I might’ve pushed her a little too hard but she’s pretty adamant about doing things her way.’

  ‘Of course she is,’ Carter said dryly. ‘I hate to ask this, given how long it’s been since we caught up in person, but would you mind keeping an eye out for her?’

  ‘Consider it done,’ Emmett said without hesitation. The Hendrixes’ house had been a second home to him, and he owed them for everything they did for him and his mum. All the precious years they gave them together, not caring when they couldn’t make rent, helping out with appointment transport and visiting her in the hospital. The Christmases. Making sure Piper was both safe and happy was the least he could do.

  ‘Thanks, Emmett. I knew I could count on you. Piper always used to complain that it was like having two older brothers when we lived in Euronga.’

  Emmett’s stomach twisted. Yeah, he really shouldn’t have been checking her out. ‘No problem, mate. I’ll let you know if I find out any more about what’s going on for her.’

  ‘Appreciate it, Emmett. She’s too young for a midlife crisis.’

  After hanging up, Emmett threw his phone up on the dash and looked at Major as he twisted the key. ‘Guess we’re going camping.’

  Chapter 3

  Piper spat her toothpaste out at the base of the tree behind Connie the Kombi, then glanced around as she took a mouthful of water from her cup and rinsed her mouth. There were only two lots of campers tonight. She was thankful the rowdy group of young blokes had moved on. They’d hit the beers hard and when they’d been still singing loudly to Neil Diamond at one in the morning, Piper had nearly relented in her refusal to take the spare room at Emmett’s house. Stubbornness and her AirPods were the only things that held her firm.

  She was more than ready for bed tonight after a bigger than expected day in the ED. A badly burnt baker and an elderly couple with dehydration thanks to a nasty bout of gastro kept her mind on her job and not the grumpy paramedic who’d stormed out of her campsite yesterday. She hadn’t seen him at the hospital and was glad he hadn’t been waiting in her camp chair when she’d gotten back this evening from chatting with the young couple staying a couple of sites over. They were still early in their honeymoon adventure of road tripping around Australia and had lots of questions about Connie. Piper had enjoyed chatting with them over the middle-aged man in a swag camped next to his motorbike behind her. His stare still gave her chills.

  Heading back around her home on wheels, Piper packed away her dinner dishes from the airing rack and made sure her chair was in the middle of the awning, safe from dew, before she climbed into her van. Sliding the door shut, she hesitated, eyeing the lock. You keep that door locked at night. She hadn’t locked it last night until the third rendition of ‘The Gambler’, but the thought of the middleaged man’s chilling stare made her flick it tonight. Screw Emmett. She was making the choices in her life, not him. If she wanted to camp in her Kombi while she worked at the hospital, then she could. She was only responsible for herself. That way, she couldn’t let anyone else down.

  Don’t think of Heath, she commanded herself. He made his choices, I made mine.

  She snuggled under the sheets. I’m living my life, my way.

  She just wasn’t used to it yet.

  Piper jerked awake and lifted her head off the pillow. What had woken her? She peered around Connie’s interior, straining her eyes in the dim light of the fairy lights. Nothing was amiss. Was it a dream? She tried to think through the haze of being woken from a deep sleep.

  The snap of a twig under a foot made her heart leap into her throat. It was so loud. Right outside. The empty stare of the man with the motorbike jumped to mind. Piper was suddenly conscious of how loudly she was breathing.

  It was just an animal. A goanna or a possum or something. Anything. She was panicking for nothing.

  A footstep on hard dirt.

  Shit. Should she call out? Threaten them with her boyfriend joining her? It was pretty clear she didn’t have one. Was staying silent the better option? Shit, shit, shit.

  If you have any trouble at all, big or small, day or night, you call me, and I’ll be here. Emmett. No, she wouldn’t call him. She didn’t need him. She was a strong, independent woman who wasn’t afraid of an animal.

  Swallowing the adrenaline racing around her veins, she slowly sat up enough to peer out the sliver between the end of the curtain and the back corner of the van. When she made out the dark outline of a person at the edge of the awning, she jerked away, instantly reaching for her phone where it was charging on the end of the bench. She wanted to cry, but that wouldn’t help her now.

  Dimming the light, she smacked a few buttons before pressing the phone to her ear. The ringing was so loud. Her thumb found the volume button.

  ‘Hello?’

  Piper wanted to cry at his familiar voice, not caring that she’d clearly woken him. She didn’t even care that this moment proved him right.

  ‘Emmett …’ she breathed as quietly as she could.

  ‘Piper?’ His tone turned alert. ‘Are you okay? What’s wrong?’

  ‘No.’

  ‘I’m coming.’

  There was a rustling on the other end of the line, but Piper’s relief was short-lived as a louder noise came from outside. Whoever it was out there had just walked into her camping chair. She slid the phone down her neck, clutching the screen to her chest. Her eyes had adjusted to the dark and were fixed on the Kombi’s sliding door. She’d locked it, hadn’t she? Oh God, she couldn’t remember. How long was it going to take Emmett to drive from wherever he lived to here? Surely it was longer than it would take for whoever was outside to break in and kill her. She folded her knees up to her chest, gripping them with one arm while the other hand stayed clenched around her phone. She was going to die. This was it. The moment her life ended and—

  There was a click. The door remained where it was. She had locked it. Damn. She became dizzy. That meant someone really did want to come in here. More dull thudding and scuffling came from outside. Were they going to break a window? There wasn’t a shortage of them in this vehicle. How thick was the glass? Would the windows hold up enough to give Emmett time to get here? She glanced down at her phone. It was still connected to Emmett’s.

  A bouncing light caught her attention through the curtain. Hurried footsteps hit her ears. What fresh hell was this? A running leap at the window?

  ‘Piper!’

  Her body sagged. ‘There’s someone out there.’

  ‘Stay inside.’

  She was too relieved he was here to say duh. The light moved with Emmett as he rounded the Kombi. A low growl raised her eyebrow.

  ‘What do you smell, Major? Hey, boy?’

  Oh, the dog. Piper covered her mouth with her hand at the impulse to giggle hysterically. She cursed the adrenaline that came with thinking she was going to be ruthlessly murdered.

  ‘There’s no one out here, Piper.’

  She threw the covers back and pulled the door open, flicking on her outside light as Emmett came back to the vehicle. Her mouth went dry as she took in the dark T-shirt pulled tight across his broad shoulders, loose running shorts hanging from his hips.

  ‘There was a man out here. Sneaking around. I saw him out the window.’ Why was she getting so defensive over it?

  Emmett stepped closer. ‘I believe you, Piper. I could hear the fear in your voice on the phone, okay? You don’t have to convince me. You just need to tell me who it was.’

  She slid down to sit on the floor, her feet touching the grass, and buried her face in her hands. ‘I don’t know. I only saw the shape. But there’s two other men camping here, and I don’t think it would be the married guy in the caravan. It had to be the one in the swag behind me.’

  A hand cupped the back of her head briefly before taking her hand. She looked up, directly into Emmett’s eyes.

  ‘He was unzipping his swag and sitting up when I ran down the hill. It wasn’t him.’

  ‘The married guy? He seemed so lovely.’

  Emmett tilted his head. ‘You do know there’s three other occupied campsites further up the track?’

  Piper deflated like a tyre with a nail in it. ‘No, I forget how far back the campgrounds go.’ She studied her phone. The call list was up and Emmett’s name at the top. ‘You must live pretty close if it only took you a little over two minutes to get here.’ The longest hundred and twenty seconds of her life.

  ‘Ah …’ He let go of her hand and ran a hand over his jaw. ‘I live on the eastern side of town, probably about twenty minutes from here.’

  Her eyes narrowed. Had he been at his girlfriend’s house? Shit, could this get more awkward? ‘Then how?’

  ‘Major and I were camping closer to the entry in the back of my ute. We were there last night as well.’

  At least he had the decency to look ashamed. Anger flooded Piper and she opened her mouth to remind him that she didn’t need looking after, but the words fell flat at the sight of his bare feet. The man had leapt out of his bed and come running to her aid without even stopping to put shoes on. He didn’t deserve her anger. She could admit defeat if it was on her terms.

  ‘Guess I’ll head into the real estate office after my shift tomorrow and see what rentals they have available. Put in an application for one.’

  Major shoved his head onto her lap, his long tongue licking her hand. She stroked the soft fur between his ears, happy to have something to do with her hands.

  Emmett dragged her camp chair over and sat in it. ‘That might be a bit hard, given Tobias, the guy who owns and manages the only real estate in town, has shut up shop and gone away for the holiday period. He does it every year. People refer to him as the town Grinch because he hates Christmas.’

  ‘But Christmas isn’t for another five and a half weeks.’

  He grinned. ‘Not in Rush Creek.’

  ‘That’s the second time I’ve heard that.’ It didn’t sound like this was the right town in which to have the low-key Christmas she’d planned.

  ‘What’s going on with you, Piper? You love Christmas. Your whole family does. Why are you here, so far away from them?’

  Piper opened her mouth. Shut it again. She wanted to tell him; the open concern in his eyes kept the words on the tip of her tongue. But she couldn’t. She needed to leave the past in the city with Heath. Not bring it here. ‘I’m here to work and get some rural experience. Something I can put on my resume.’

  She held Emmett’s stare before he slowly nodded. ‘Acknowledging that the offer might make you angry again, my spare room’s still available. For as long as you need it.’

  ‘You sure your girlfriend won’t mind?’

  ‘No girlfriend,’ he replied.

  Piper was mildly surprised. She couldn’t remember Emmett without a girl on his arm or running after him.

  ‘Even if I did have one, she’d just have to deal with it. You’re too important.’

  Her heart leapt then crashed back down. He meant as Carter’s sister. Defeat curled her shoulders forward. So much for her independent era. ‘I guess I’m running out of excuses to say no.’

  Emmett squeezed her hand. ‘With both of us working shifts, I doubt we’ll even see that much of one another.’ He checked his phone. ‘It’s just past one; how ’bout I bring my swag down here and camp under your awning with Major? You can cook a bacon and egg breakfast to thank me.’

  Piper rolled her eyes and stood up. His hand dropped away and she missed its warmth. ‘You can sleep here if you want, but there’ll be no breakfast cooked by me.’

  His slight chuckle stopped her from turning for her bed.

  Emmett stepped out into the night. ‘Stay here, Major. I’ll be back.’

  The giant German Shepherd tilted his head at Piper. He really was cute. Living with him might not be too bad, but existing under the same room as Emmett? The guy she’d secretly referred to as hers for the entirety of her childhood? While she was trying to rebuild her existence into something less miserable than the one she’d shared with Heath? Fan-freaking-tastic.

  ‘Emmett?’ she called into the darkness. He spun around at the edge of the light. ‘Thank you.’

  She was Maree Taylor’s daughter; she knew when to use her manners. Now all she had to do was forget about the giant Emmett crush she’d nursed for all of those years.

  Easy, right?

  Chapter 4

  Emmett peeled back an eyelid at the warble of a country music artist sounding like the ugly cawing of a crow who’d pecked into a brick of cocaine. He growled when a harmonica was given space for a solo. It was the fifth morning in a row that ridiculous ruckus had woken him. She’d promised to keep it down. He looked at the screen of his phone. Damn the early risers! If he’d known Piper had this habit, he might’ve thought twice about demanding she move in with him.