“It can’t be time already,” Bliss said with despair, longing to slide down under the covers and hide there until Jamie forgot that he’d ever wanted to send her to Australia.

“Sorry, Duchess. Today’s the day.” Jamie’s voice was hoarse.

“I don’t want to go!” Bliss wailed. “Why won’t you listen to me?”

Jamie sighed. “I’ve listened to you until me ears are ringin’. Get out of bed, Duchess. The train leaves in a couple of hours.”

Bliss nestled into the linen sheets for a few more precious seconds, letting memories of the night just past glide over her. When Jamie had gone downstairs, she dragged herself out of bed.

Reeve, Jamie, and Peony were all in the kitchen when she reached it, sipping coffee and talking among themselves.

“I’ll fix breakfast,” Bliss said brightly.

“No!” chorused the three people seated at the table.

At Bliss’s expression, Jamie was quick to smile and get to his feet. He gave her a kiss on the forehead and said, “What we meant was, there’s no need to worry about food now. You can eat on the train.”

Bliss glanced suspiciously at Reeve and Peony, but they were looking away and she could tell nothing from their expressions. “Well,” she finally began uncertainly, “if none of you are hungry—”

Too soon, Jamie and Reeve were loading Bliss’s trunks, which she’d never bothered to unpack after her return from Auckland, into the wagon. She and Peony would travel with Jamie, while Reeve would ride the horse he’d hired in town.

In daylight, Bliss could see that the railroad station was flanked by one hotel and a few houses and shops, by means of which the place generously dubbed itself a town. This, then, was where Jamie had bought the cookbook, and the chocolates, and the golden band for her finger.

Bliss looked down at that wedding band through a blur of tears. There was no point in pleading with Jamie not to make her go, for he’d already made up his mind, but he couldn’t stop her heart from breaking.

Reeve lifted Peony down from the wagon seat, and the two of them wandered discreetly into the ramshackle station house. In the distance, the train whistle howled plaintively, as though it shared Bliss’s grief.

Jamie’s hand cupped her chin and raised it, so that her eyes met his. “Don’t make it ’arder than it is, Duchess,” he said. “It’s nearly more than I can bear now.”

Bliss didn’t trust herself to speak. She bit down on her lower lip and nodded, and a tear tickled her cheek.

Jamie brushed it away with his thumb. “You’ll like Australia,” he promised.

Bliss let her forehead rest against his shoulder, drawing in the scent of him, memorizing his substance and his strength. The train whistle grew louder and louder, and she had to fight against more tears and a rising sense of panic. “Don’t let it be a long time, Jamie,” she finally managed to say. “Please, don’t let it be a long time until you come and get me.”