Bryce didn’t sleep particularly well.
By the time morning properly arrived, the cabin had been reduced to the evidence of the night before. Empty glasses on the veranda. Chairs scattered around the fire pit. Bottles beside the esky. The smell of cold ash hanging in the air.
Tessa’s car was gone.
Bryce stood at the kitchen bench with a coffee, looking at the mess through the window.
He ran a hand over his face, the stubble rough against his palm, and tried to remember the last thing she’d said to him. It hadn’t been words. It had been a sound—something between a sob and a gasp—and then the slam of the door and the engine turning over and disappearing down the driveway.
Mauve. Elara. Tessa.
“Fuck.”
He finished the coffee, found his boots and started cleaning up.
It gave him something to do.
Bottles into a box. Chairs stacked. Rubbish collected from around the fire. He found one of Tessa’s earrings beside the bed and stood looking at it in his palm for a moment before putting it on the kitchen bench.
By mid-morning, he’d run out of excuses.
He grabbed his keys.
Tessa’s ute was parked outside her cottage.
Bryce knocked.
Nothing.
He waited, then knocked again.
“It’s me.”
Footsteps moved inside.
The door opened.
Tessa stood there in shorts and an old T-shirt, her strawberry-blonde hair pulled into a loose knot.
Her eyes were tired.
“Hey.”
“Hey.”
Bryce held up the earring.
“You left this.”
Tessa looked at it.
“You drove all the way over here to return an earring?”
“No.”
A faint smile touched her mouth.
“Thought not.”
Bryce put it into her hand.
“I wanted to make sure you were alright.”
Tessa looked past him toward his ute.
“I’m alright.”
“Are you?”
She let out a breath.
“I don’t know.”
Then she stepped aside.
“Come in.”
Bryce followed her into the kitchen.
Tessa had already made coffee. She poured another and pushed it across the bench toward him.
“I’m sorry,” she said finally. “For running out like that.”
“You don’t have to apologise.”
“I know.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, a gesture he’d come to recognise as her thinking. “But I wanted to. I should have—” She stopped, shook her head. “I should have said something. To you. Before I left.”
“You were upset.”
“That’s not an excuse.”
“How are you now?” he asked.
Tessa let out a breath. “I don’t know. Confused. Angry. A bit embarrassed.” She looked at him. “Elara texted me this morning. She said she was sorry. That she misread the situation.”
“She said the same to me.”
“Do you believe her?”
Bryce considered the question. “I think she believes it. I don’t think she meant to hurt you. But that doesn’t change what happened.”
Tessa nodded slowly, and for a moment she looked like she might cry again. But she didn’t.
“I need to talk to you about us.”
The words hung in the air between them. Bryce felt his stomach tighten, but he didn’t look away.
“Okay.”
“I’ve been thinking about it all night,” she said. “About what I want. About what I thought we were building.” She paused. “And I need to be honest with you, Bryce. I had hoped—” She stopped, started again. “I had hoped that this was going somewhere. That eventually, maybe, it would become something more permanent.”
He nodded slowly, letting the words land.
“And I need to know if that’s something you want too. Because I can’t keep doing this if it’s not. I can’t keep falling for someone who’s not going to fall back.”
The silence stretched between them.
“I care about you,” he said slowly. “You know that.”
She nodded, waiting.
“But I’m not there, Tessa.”
Her hands tightened slightly around the mug.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean commitment. The kind you’re talking about. Something permanent.” He shook his head. “I don’t know if that’s what I want.”
Tessa’s face didn’t change.
Then she gave a small laugh.
“What?”
“Last night.”
Bryce waited.
“Mauve practically climbed inside your pants.”
Bryce laughed despite himself.
“She had a fair crack.”
“And you enjoyed it.”
“Yeah.”
“I know.”
There was no accusation in it.
“And Grant spent half the night flirting with me.”
“Yeah.”
“You noticed?”
“Hard not to.”
“And I liked it.”
Bryce shrugged slightly. “Okay.”
Tessa looked at him.
“That’s what I mean.”
“What?”
“I’ve spent all this time wondering whether you wanted this to become something more.” She paused. “Last night I realised I’m not even completely sure what more looks like for me.”
Tessa took another drink.
“I liked Grant flirting with me. More than I expected to.”
“He’s good at it.”
“Unfortunately.”
Bryce smiled.
“And then everything happened with Elara.” She shook her head. “I’m not angry with Elara. Not really. She thought I was okay with something I wasn’t okay with.”
Bryce nodded.
“She should’ve asked.”
“Probably. We’d all been drinking and the night was kind of giving that vibe.”
“But that’s not why I left.”
Bryce looked at her.
Tessa gave a small, humourless laugh.
“I spent most of the drive home trying to convince myself it was.”
She put her cup down.
“It would’ve been easier.”
“So what are you saying?”
Tessa looked at him for a long moment.
“That maybe we’ve both been having something good and expecting different things from it.”
Bryce nodded.
“That sounds about right.”
The words sat between them, heavy and honest.
“Thank you,” she said quietly.
He blinked. “For what?”
“For telling me. For not letting me keep hoping. For not dragging it out until I resented you for it.”
“I couldn’t do that to you.”
“I know.” She smiled, just a little. “That’s why I’m not angry. I’m disappointed. But I’m not angry.”
They stood there in the quiet of the kitchen, the morning light growing stronger through the window.
“So where does this leave us?” he asked.
Tessa thought about it.
“I think we can still be friends. I think we can still be part of each other’s lives. We run in the same circles—that’s not going to change.” She paused. “But I need some time. To get my head straight. To stop seeing you as something you’re not.”
“That’s fair.”
“And I need you to promise me something.”
“What?”
“If you ever change your mind. If you ever find yourself wanting what I wanted—you tell me first. Before anyone else. Before you’ve decided it’s too late.”
He looked at her and nodded.
“I can’t promise anything. But I’ll try.”
Tessa smiled, and this time it reached her eyes.
“Good.”
She stepped forward and wrapped her arms around him, and he held her, feeling the warmth of her body against his.
“You’ve shown me some seriously fucked-up things,” she murmured against his chest.
Bryce laughed into her hair.
“You suggested some of them.”
“Not all of them.”
“No.”
She pulled back enough to look at him.
“I don’t regret any of it.”
“Neither do I.”
“Even last night?”
Bryce considered that.
“Most of last night.”
Tessa laughed.
“Fair.”
She kissed his cheek.
“Thank you.”
“For what?”
“Seriously.” She smiled. “For showing me things I didn’t know I’d like. For being patient when I didn’t know what the fuck I was doing. For never making me feel stupid about any of it.”
“You weren’t stupid.”
Tessa looked at him for a moment, then hugged him again.
She pulled back, and there was something settled in her expression. Not happy, exactly. But at peace.
“You should go.”
“You kicking me out?”
“Yes.”
“Bit rude.”
“I’ve got horses to feed.”
“And before this turns into something we just agreed not to do.”
Bryce picked up his keys.
At the door he looked back.
“Tess.”
“Yeah?”
“We’re alright?”
She thought about it.
“We will be.”
That was probably the most honest answer either of them could give.
“I meant what I said. About still wanting to be in your life.” She smiled. “You’re a good man. You’re just not my man. And that’s okay.”
Bryce nodded.
Then stepped out into the morning light.
It wasn’t the ending he’d expected. But it was an ending he could live with.
Life went on.
Tessa was still at Ironstone. Still at fires, rides and dinners. At first there was a little more space between them, then less.
She still came around now and then. They’d shared a few meals, a couple of quiet evenings on his veranda that had felt almost like before, but something had shifted between them. She didn’t stay the night anymore, and when she left, she kissed his cheek instead of his mouth.
Neither of them made a thing of it.
It was just the way it was now—friendly, easy, a little sad if you looked at it too long.
He didn’t look at it too long.
Wayne disappeared just as quietly.
Bryce heard from Grant that he and Mauve had called it quits after the muster. Wayne had enjoyed the people well enough. The rest of it, apparently, was more than he wanted.
Mauve seemed entirely unsurprised.
Months later, the cabin was finished.
Bryce stood on the veranda with a cup of coffee in his hand, looking out over his land. The fences were repaired, the yards were sound, and the place was starting to feel like something.
Like a home.
He’d been spending a lot of time at Ironstone too. The rhythm of the place had become familiar—the morning feed, the afternoon rides, the evenings around the fire. He helped Grant with the hay shed, fixed a gate for Elara, and had become as much a part of the furniture as the worn leather saddles in the tack room.
It was a good life.
And today, there was a birthday.
He’d seen the signs of it all week—the stack of folding chairs cleaned off in the barn, the extra meat in the fridge, Elara’s careful lists pinned to the kitchen wall. Saige was turning eighteen, and the place was gearing up for a proper celebration.
“You coming?” Grant had asked him two days ago, leaning against the fence with a hammer in his hand. “Saige has been asking about you.”
“Has she?”
“Wanted to make sure you’d be there. Said it wouldn’t be the same without you.”
Bryce had felt something warm in his chest at that. “I’ll be there.”
“Good.” Grant had clapped him on the shoulder. “Bring your appetite.”
Now, standing in the late afternoon sun, Bryce pulled on a clean shirt and ran a hand through his hair.
He drove over in the ute, the dust rising behind him in a golden cloud, and parked beside the row of cars already lined up by the house. The place was alive with people—kids running between the tables, adults clustered around the barbecue, laughter and music drifting across the yard.
He found Grant by the barbecue, tongs in hand, a beer sweating on the table beside him.
“There he is.” Grant grinned. “Thought you might’ve got lost.”
“Traffic was hell.”
Grant laughed and handed him a beer.
Bryce spotted Elara by the table with Adele. Mauve was nearby with a glass of wine, already laughing at something Ethan had said.
Tessa was there too.
She caught Bryce looking and raised her drink.
He walked over.
“Still talking to me?” he asked.
“Depends.”
“On?”
Tessa looked at his beer.
“Whether you brought anything better than that.”
Bryce laughed.
“Good to see you too.”
She bumped his shoulder with hers.
“Go find the birthday girl.”
Easy.
Normal.
They were alright.
Saige was standing with a group of her friends, a glass in her hand.
She caught his eye across the yard and smiled, then said something to her friends and started walking toward him.
“Bryce. You made it.”
“Wouldn’t miss it.” He raised his beer. “Happy birthday, Saige.”
“Thanks.” She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I’m glad you’re here. I was worried you’d be busy.”
“Grant threatened me.”
“He did not.”
“Basically.”
Saige laughed.
“Come on. Let me introduce you to some people. There’s someone here who wants to meet you.”
She took his arm, light and natural, and led him across the yard.
She was being friendly.
Just being Saige.
As the afternoon wore on, she kept finding him.
She joined conversations he was already in, appeared beside him when he went for another beer, and asked him questions about Black Cattle Co.—what he was planning next, what he wanted to do with the back paddocks, what his long-term plans were for the place.
“You’ve got a lot of questions today,” he said, half-teasing, as she refilled his beer.
She shrugged, a smile playing at the corner of her mouth. “I’m curious. You’ve been around for years, but I realised I don’t actually know that much about you.”
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything.”
Bryce laughed.
“That might take a while.”
“I’ve got time.”
She asked what made him buy Black Cattle Co., why he had chosen the area, what he wanted the place to look like in ten years.
Bryce found himself answering.
He told her about the property, his plans for the yards and paddocks, and the breeding program he’d been turning over in his head.
Saige listened.
“You’ve thought a lot about this.”
“I’ve had time.”
“It shows.” She smiled. “I like that. A man with a plan.”
Bryce laughed.
“You’ve been talking to Grant too much.”
Saige rolled her eyes.
“Don’t insult me.”
“Sorry.”
Someone called her from across the yard.
Saige glanced over.
“I’ll be back.”
She headed off toward her friends.
Elara found Bryce a little later near the drinks.
“What did you do to Tessa?”
Bryce looked at her.
“Nothing.”
Elara raised an eyebrow.
“Nothing?”
“Why?”
She glanced across the yard.
Tessa was standing beside Mauve, laughing about something.
Elara looked back at Bryce.
“Because she just kissed me.”
Bryce stared at her.
“What?”
Elara’s mouth twitched.
“Properly.”
Bryce laughed.
“Seriously?”
“Seriously.”
“And?”
“She asked if I’d experiment with her.”
Bryce looked across at Tessa again.
She caught him looking and raised her glass.
Bryce shook his head.
“What?”
“Nothing.”
Elara laughed.
“That seems to be going around.”
“So what did you say?”
“That’s none of your business.”
“You came over here asking what I did.”
“I was investigating.”
“And?”
“And apparently you’ve corrupted her.”
Bryce laughed.
“She thanked me for it.”
Elara stared at him for a second.
Then laughed harder.
“Of course she did.”
Saige appeared beside them.
“Come on, Mum. It’s about time for the cake.”
Elara looked at her.
“Impatient?”
“Yes.”
“Fair enough.”
She headed toward the house.
A little later, Elara came out carrying a large chocolate cake with eighteen candles flickering across the top.
The crowd gathered around, singing off-key, Grant louder and worse than everyone else.
Saige closed her eyes and made a wish before blowing out the candles in one breath.
Everyone cheered.
Bryce clapped along with the rest as she laughed and reached for the knife.
Mauve appeared beside him.
“You’re getting cake.”
“I assumed.”
“No. You’re getting cake.”
“That sounds threatening.”
“It should.”
Saige handed him a slice large enough for two people.
Bryce looked at it.
“You did that deliberately.”
She smiled innocently.
“Thought you’d be hungry.”
“Always.”
“Exactly.”
Mauve laughed and wandered off with her own piece.
Later, as the sun began to set and the party wound down, Bryce found himself standing by the fence, looking out over the paddocks.
The horses grazed in the golden light.
“You’re not leaving, are you?”
He turned.
Saige was walking toward him, a plate with a half-eaten slice of cake in her hand.
“Was thinking about it. It’s getting late.”
“Stay a bit longer.” She stopped beside him and leaned against the fence. “The stars are good tonight. You can see them properly from here.”
Bryce looked upward.
The first stars were beginning to appear.
“Alright. A bit longer.”
Saige smiled.
They stood together in comfortable silence, watching the light fade.
“You have a good birthday?” Bryce asked.
“Yeah.”
“Good.”
Saige looked at him.
“That’s it?”
“What else do you want?”
“I don’t know. Something profound.”
Bryce considered it.
“You’re eighteen now.”
“Very profound.”
“Best I’ve got.”
She laughed.
Behind them the party carried on.
Tessa and Mauve were talking near the veranda. Elara joined them, and whatever she said made Tessa turn red before all three started laughing.
Bryce glanced over.
“Do I want to know?”
Saige followed his gaze.
“Probably not.”
“Good.”
He finished his beer.
When he finally left, Saige walked him as far as the veranda.
“Thanks for staying.”
“No worries.”
“And for coming.”
“Told you. Wouldn’t miss it.”
She smiled.
“Drive safe.”
Bryce lifted a hand and headed toward his ute.
The drive home was quiet, headlights cutting through the darkness.
It had been a good day.
A good party.
Tessa was doing alright. Mauve seemed completely unaffected by Wayne disappearing. Grant had overcooked at least three steaks despite insisting otherwise, and Saige had spent most of her eighteenth birthday talking enough to make up for all the years she’d accused Grant of doing it.
Bryce smiled to himself.
Then turned into home.