Man Drought by Rachael Johns Page A

Elsie on the farm and it just felt right. Like what I was born to do. Her sisters married other local farmers, her dad died of his broken heart and we worked together as partners. She didn’t even slow down when she got pregnant with Harry.’
    He paused for a moment and Imogen saw him swallow.
    ‘I never imagined childbirth would take her. Losing her was the biggest shock of my life.’
    Imogen closed her eyes and sucked in a breath. ‘I know,’ she whispered, without meaning to.
    When she opened her eyes, Charlie was staring at her, a hundred questions lingering in his eyes. ‘Who did you lose?’
    Her turn to swallow, but no amount of swallowing would eliminate the golf ball in her throat. ‘My husband, Jamie,’ she said eventually. ‘The love of my life, too.’ Maybe it sounded dramatic but it was the truth. She knew Charlie understood.
    ‘When?’
    ‘Two and half years ago.’ She didn’t offer the exact calculations, even though she still ticked each day off in her mind. ‘He was a firefighter. He died rescuing a young girl during a bushfire.’ She shuddered – there was no way she’d ever get over the horror. ‘But I don’t want anyone here to know,’ she added, emerging from her reverie. ‘Please don’t tell anyone, not even Gibson.’
    Especially
not Gibson. She couldn’t bear him changing his grumpy tune and forcing niceties just because he felt sorry for her.
    ‘Coming here was my fresh start,’ she explained. ‘I need to be my own person and I don’t want everyone thinking they already know me. It may sound crazy, but it’s the way I want it to be.’
    Charlie nodded. ‘Your secret’s safe with me.’
    A slightly awkward silence reigned between them for a few moments – as if they were both unsure whether they should have shared so much – then Imogen remembered why she’d sought Charlie out in the first place.
    ‘Cal and Pauli had an idea and I wanted your thoughts.’
    Charlie adjusted his hat and cocked his head to one side, waiting.
    ‘Themed food nights,’ she announced. When his expression remained blank, she elaborated, explaining everything her staff had proposed.
    He pondered the idea a while, then leaned forward and clasped his hands together. ‘I think it could work. Lord knows the blokes round here like a good meal. But how about we do a trial run?’
    She hoped he wasn’t about to suggest Gibson as one of the taste-testers.
    ‘Have you thought any more about my idea of a slab party?’
    Imogen bit her lower lip. ‘Yes, I just don’t feel very comfortable asking people. And I do have money, it’ll just take time to organise and schedule tradesmen.’
    Charlie dismissed her reasoning with a wave of his hand. ‘This is the country, woman. People in the bush like lending a hand. And if you offer free food and booze to a select group – I can help you sort out the riffraff – then you don’t need to feel guilty. You’re giving them something in return.’
    She glanced around the pub, cataloguing all the jobs that needed to be done – jobs that could be done quite easily and quickly with a few tools and willing bodies. Then she could leave her funds for the bigger renovations. ‘You think people would go for that?’
    ‘Honey, the boys round here will be running each other down in their utes to help you.’ Charlie grinned and his eyes almost twinkled. ‘You just say the word and I’ll get the ball rolling.’
    It was a win-win situation. Pauli and Cal could test out the new food, and once the work was done, it’d be free drinks for everyone.‘The word,’ Imogen said, thinking this was something she didn’t need to think about at all.
    She and Charlie chose a weekend – two weeks away, to give everyone plenty of notice – and started planning which VIP handymen to invite. Charlie rattled off names, most of which were unfamiliar, telling her who would be useful to have around and to whom they’d need to give the easy jobs. Apparently Gibson was very