Remember to read the first part.
*****
I stand at the airport waiting for my grandma to come to pick me up. I look around and sigh. This isn't the start I wanted. "You must be Mona. I'm sorry I'm late, I've never been to this airport before. I'm Max. Your grandma, Julie, sent me to come to pick you up. Well, Technically Daniel because he can't make it. I'm just one of his friends," a random guy comes rambling of. I just look at him and smile. "I should probably stop or else you will take a cab. Even my girlfriend says I talk too much." I stare at him while we walk. "I'm doing it again, right?" I nod and giggle. He's too nice.
We arrive at his car and he puts my luggage in the trunk. We climb in and head off to my grandma's farm. She has been so lonely after my grandpa died 8 years ago. The 'Daniel' guy he talked about earlier must probably be her new lover. "Why are you so quiet?" Max asks while concentrating on the road.
"I'm just overwhelmed to be back," I say and he nods.
"I can hear your Aussie accent but it isn't that strong though. When was your last time here?"
"When my mom died 7 years ago. We then moved to Italy and never came back."
"You look fine, luckily. Did you miss it here?" He asks like I have the most amazing stories to tell. My grandpa and mom died in 2 years, why does anyone expect me to be fine?
"Yeah. A lot. I didn't realize how much I missed until I landed here and saw Australian beauty."
The whole ride we just talked and got to know each other. He talks a lot but he is a really nice dude and I see him as one of my friends. We drive into the small town I've missed so much. The place where everyone knew everyone. Nothing big has changed. Only a few new shops and a little bit more houses. I see the banners hanging above the streets. The Country Jam Festival. It's on the first weekend of December, which happens to be next week.
I remembered when I was younger we will steal cheese from the tables and learn line dances. I really miss those days. It's a tradition to find a partner and do all the activities. The pair who wins will get a prize and there is, of course, different age groups. My grandma and grandpa always won but she stopped doing it.
We stop in front of the house and my grandma opens the front door. I climb out, putting on my sunglasses. I give my grandma a kiss on her cheek and hug her. It's been so long. "I've missed you, dear," she says starting to sob. She pulls back and rubs her tears away. Max put my luggage bags next to me.
"I wish I can stay longer but I have to go to Dilara. She is busy with the decoration of the Country Jam." He hugs grandma and walks back to the car.
"Isn't he the kindest? He said yes to help even if he has other things to do. Daniel was in a hurry to find one of our horses that got away," she says while we walk towards the house.
"Is Daniel your new boyfriend, Gran?" I ask with a teasing smirk. She stops in her tracks with wide eyes and then she bursts out laughing. I try to laugh with her but I don't understand what the joke is about.
"Daniel? Ha! Never," she says and starts to walk again.
"What's wrong with him?" I ask confused while struggling to get my luggage up the stairs.
"You'll see," she says. Is he ugly or what? I don't even know what to expect but this Daniel guy is making me curious.
"Go put your bags in the guestroom. I'll be in the kitchen preparing dinner," she says and I smile at her. On my way up the many stairs, with a struggle, I see all the family pictures. I walk into the room. I change into something more comfortable. A pair of jean shorts with a tank top. I walk back down and hear my gran's voice and a guy's voice talking. That must be Daniel.
I jaw drops to the floor when I see a young man in front of me. He's not a guy... he's a man. A very attractive man. "Howdy. You must be Mona, I heard so much of you. I'm Daniel," he says and we shake hands. Daniel who?
"I heard a little bit of you," I reply and he goes back to cutting the potatoes. While he talks to gran, I look at him carefully. His shirt is hugging his arms perfectly and his short black pants. I should stop or else I'm going to start drooling and embarrass myself.
"Mona." My head turns to my grandma who is smirking. Oh, she knows exactly what I was thinking. "Can you go with Daniel to the market to drop off the milk, cheese and eggs? Anne called me to go to her.
"Of course. At what time?" I ask admiring my grandma's painting she's busy working on.
"8 o'clock." That's so early. "And after that, you must feed the animals. Don't worry we'll tell you what to do." This is going to be a long few weeks.
My alarm clock goes off and I sit up straight. That was one of the best sleep I have ever had. I stretch and get out of bed. I open the curtains and the sun shines brightly through the window. It's 6:30, I take a shower and put on jeans once again but this time with a flower pattern loose shirt and sandals.
I smell bacon and scrambled eggs on my way to the kitchen. I see Daniel without a shirt standing in front of the stove. His back flex when he takes the pan off the stove with the bacon in and put it in a bowl. That's when he notices me. "Goodmorning. Did you sleep well?" Is this what my grandma see every morning?
"Yea, you?"
"I did yes. I must apologize for my appearance. The oil splashed and made my shirt dirty so I took it off." Looks like I'll be splashing him with oil every morning. "Your grandma already left because Anne told her that it is important." He shrugs turning back to the eggs. Mona, don't get your hopes up. First of all, you met him yesterday and secondly, he is way out of your league. "And done," he says putting the bacon, toasted bread and eggs on the table. He sits down and we start eating.
"Not to be rude but what is your purpose here?" I ask taking a sip of the juice. Mmm, it's apple juice.
"Anne is my dad's sister. I've always wanted to work on a farm and your grandma needed someone to take care of the farm and animals. So, Anne got me to work here. I live in a small cottage near the house. You will see it when we get into the truck.
"Oh, for how long?"
"It has been 4 years. After high school, I immediately started working here permanently. During high school, I only came on weekends to come to ride the horses." I nod and I take my last bite. That means he is 22. Not too old for me. (Just imagine a young Danny Ric standing in your kitchen without a shirt.)
"Thank you so much. It was really nice. The best scrambled eggs ever," I say and he smiles.
"When you're ready we can go," he says looking directly into my eyes. He takes a sip of his juice still staring at me and I see his jaw clenching. I nod and he quickly stands up. "We should go then. We must first get the milk and stuff." We put our dishes in the sink and walk out.
"That's a lot of cheese," I say seeing the cheese.
"What did you expect? These people love cheese," he says taking 2 cans of milk and walk over to his truck. "Up." He points his finger to the load bin of the truck. I jump up and he gives the cans to me to pack. We continue until everything is on. "Well, that went fast. You should be here more...because it makes work easier." For a moment I felt my heart flutter but it quickly fades.
"You must enjoy it while it lasts," I say stepping forward to get off but instead, I feel my foot slipping underneath me. I wait for the pain but it doesn't come. Instead, I see Daniel's face close to mine. He caught me.
*****
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