“I’m sorry. Why don’t you go down to Rowena’s and spend the night there? We’re just about to leave but it could take us till tomorrow morning to get home.”

“I’ll cool off in the shower.” Tempting as the thought of aircon was she couldn’t be bothered. “Drive safely and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Will do. I’ll see you soon.”

Paula was about to hang up when she heard him call her name. She pulled the phone back to her ear. “Yes, I’m here.”

“Keep the radio on the ABC, it will be most up to date, but keep an eye on the CFS website too. That fire has flared up again down south. Evidently it’s travelling south so there’s no danger to our place but keep an ear on what’s happening.”

“Okay.”

Paula looked at the clock. It was late afternoon, Dan was on his way home. She was pleased but nervous as his return meant they could have their much needed talk. The thing was she still didn’t know where to begin. Yesterday after he’d gone she’d tidied the house and dealt with the last of the leftovers from the wedding. Then she’d had a cool shower and lain down on the bed under the fan intending to have a quick rest, only to wake up several hours later to total darkness.

This morning she’d had a visit from Olive and Bill Williams. They had some accounting questions and Olive had brought some apples from her tree. Then Jane and the boys had come for lunch. After they left she couldn’t find Spud. Tarzan had eventually sniffed him out in the side garden under a bush, curled up in a little hollow he’d made for himself. Back inside she’d sat on the couch to rest for a minute, only to be woken by Dan’s call.

It was time for some action or Dan would be home and she wouldn’t have anything prepared. She switched on the radio and, with a determined step, she went through to the bathroom, hoping a shower would cool her off enough to think straight.

Still damp from the shower and dressed only in her knickers and a loose sleeveless shirt, Paula entered the office. The louvre windows rattled, buffeted by the wind. This was possibly the hottest part of the house but she thought she could brave the heat long enough to go through all the drawers. If she found anything of interest, she could take it into the kitchen where it was marginally cooler.

She wasn’t really sure what she was looking for anyway. When Rowena had handed over the accounting to Paula she had gone through nearly everything in the filing cabinet. There were a few files of old papers that Paula hadn’t taken much notice of at the time, so that was where she started.