Outback Dreams by Rachael Johns Page A

her glass high in the air. ‘I’d like to make a toast to my best mate, Daniel Montgomery, soon to be farmer extraordinaire. Watch out sheep. If I know my mate, he won’t take any crap. To Monty.’
    She downed some wine and although she tried to hide it, he noticed her grimace at the taste.
    â€˜To Monty!’ The rest of his friends lifted their drinks, cheered, and roared their support. Monty couldn’t help but get caught up in their merriment. He nodded his thanks and took a satisfying swig of his own beer.
    Just when he thought life couldn’t get any better, the door of the pub opened again.

Chapter Seven
    At the sight of Ruby Jones walking through the door of the pub, Faith almost choked on her wine. Granted it wasn’t good wine—and she rarely drank quality stuff, never mind the house wine—but this wasn’t the reason for her brush with death. She coughed and thrust her glass at Ryan, seriously surprised that Ruby had come. She knew Monty had invited her, but she’d never expected her to show up.
    Monty had harboured a crush on Ruby since she’d moved to town late the previous year. She’d technically been affiliated with the place for over a decade, but she’d been at boarding school when the Joneses moved to Bunyip Bay, and had lived elsewhere since. Rumours abounded around the reason for Ruby moving back in with her parents after ten years on her own, but neither she nor her parents appeared to have shared the truth with anyone.
    Local gossip said she’d split from a long-time love and lost her job in the bargain, that coming home was a last resort kind of thing, but as far as Faith knew, that was all it was—gossip. However, the facts spoke for themselves; since her arrival, many men had tried to ask her out, but she’d turned every one of them down. She worked at The Ag Store, made only enough small talk to appear polite, and spent every spare moment with her two horses.
    Ruby had made no effort to involve herself in any local activities, although she’d recently started giving riding lessons, and Faith had lost some of her netball players because of it. Horses, it seemed, had greater appeal than chasing a ball up and down a court.
    Most of the guys had given up trying to woo Ruby, but Monty never gave up at anything. Faith understood what he saw in her. What red-blooded male wouldn’t like a tall, leggy, pretty girl who not only had the body but knew how to dress it? Ruby was everything Faith wasn’t—feminine, sweet and altogether too perfect for words.
    While Faith tried to appear unaffected by Ruby’s presence, Monty rushed forward to welcome her. Although she flinched slightly at his effusive greeting, she smiled, and Faith heard her words as if they were tiny light bulbs going off inside her head.
    â€˜Congratulations on the loan, Daniel.’ Ruby twisted a chunk of long black hair around her index finger. ‘You must be so excited to be buying your own farm. I really admire all the hard work you’ve put in to get where you are now.’
    Faith had to take a sip of her ghastly wine before she screamed. If she’d had any doubts about her opinion of Ruby before, they evaporated now. She’d dressed up—although that wasn’t unusual in itself; Ruby always looked mannequin-perfect and always had a silly flower stuck in her hair—and was settling on the stool next to Monty as if she had one goal in mind. This was exactly what she’d been scared of—Ruby suddenly deciding to recognise Monty’s advances now that he had more to offer than a rented house, a sunny smile and a hardworking attitude. But she’d die before she let Ruby take advantage of him.
    Of course Monty beamed, Ruby’s words like fuel for his silly crush. ‘Thanks. Can I get you a drink?’
    While Ruby scrutinized the selection of drinks behind the bar, Faith narrowed her eyes.
    â€˜I’ll just have