‘What’s taking so long with those darn drinks, hey?’ Trevor burst into the kitchen.

Danny practically jumped back, and Nicole turned and busied herself with the glasses by the sink that all of a sudden needed rinsing.

‘Hold your horses, mate.’ Danny bent down and picked up the esky. ‘Good things come …’

‘Good things are in that there blue box,’ Trevor said.

The men headed outside.

Nicole stayed back for a moment to collect herself. She had to put the brakes on this. They couldn’t take things any further until she told him the truth about her past.

The sun shone warmly down on the motley crew gathered on Nicole’s front lawn. There was enough food to feed the entire cove. It was laid out across the two trestle tables Trevor and Mandy had brought. The sweet aroma wafting off the mini pork and pumpkin sausage rolls filled Nicole’s nose, and she couldn’t wait to try them. The tuna salad was an explosion of fresh pink fish and green spinach and yellow capsicum. But the dish Nicole really wanted to try was the fluffy white coconut cream cake that sat in the middle of the spread.

The painting bee volunteers sat around the tables on a mix of wooden fold-up chairs and plastic moulded stools, chattering in between munches. Everyone except Nicole.

She looked at the happy, animated faces around her. She caught snippets of tales and idle gossip, heard giggles and guffaws. She felt a sense of warmth and contentment unlike anything she’d ever known.

A light breeze rustled the gum leaves overhead. Cheryl served everyone a second helping of her famous spinach and pine nut salad as she continued to discuss with Danny the trip she was planning to Paris later in the year. Danny recommended a few smaller, boutique museums Cheryl might be interested in, and his favourite gallery.

Beneath the table Danny’s hand found Nicole’s and he squeezed it gently.

Jacqui cradled a sleeping Amy in her arms as she talked tactics with Jack for the upcoming match against Woodville. Jason and Mandy compared notes on the previous evening’s episode of Let’s Cook, both lamenting not only the producers’ need to insert ad breaks at the most inopportune times, but also their penchant for spending the first five minutes back from commercial breaks recapping what they had just seen.

Nicole took a sip of water and sighed.

Mandy, sitting beside her, leaned in.

‘Are you okay?’ she whispered and Nicole realised a tear was running down her cheek.

She nodded. She was okay. For the moment.

She was beginning to realise how lucky she was to have ended up here, knowing what loneliness could do; lucky she had this lot to care for her. And it seemed they really did care. It was almost like a family.