The Next Season (novella) Read Online Free Page B

one of them they accepted her without question. Although she enjoyed the subsequent chatter and pitched in with the clean up as if she still lived here, she couldn’t help her happiness when all the children were finally in bed and she could sit down with Sandee and a glass of wine in the cosy lounge room.
    Sandee sighed happily as she sunk down into a pile of brightly coloured zany cushions on one end of the couch. ‘It’s unbelievably good to see you.’
    Zoe’s thoughts were almost identical as she plonked herself down on the other end. ‘You already said that, but… Ditto.’ She grinned and then took a sip of the locally produced sauv blanc. Being back in this house made her problems seem light years away.
    Comfortable silence reigned for all of ten seconds before Sandra said, ‘Something tells me you don’t have a happy reason for coming. When we spoke last you sounded a little down. Has something happened with Jasper?’
    That was Sandee all over. She never pressured anyone into spilling their guts, but somehow they always did. Although telling Sandee her woes would be mortifying, keeping it all cooped up inside would send her to the loony bin. She needed to get it off her chest.
    â€˜I’ve lost everything.’ That seemed as good a place to start as any. For the next half hour she shared all the gory details about what had happened with Jasper and confessed her utter financial desperation. Between them, they finished one bottle of wine and started on another.
    â€˜If I don’t get a job soon, I could be in serious strife,’ Zoe admitted.
    â€˜Oh honey.’ Sandee reached out and squeezed her hand and Zoe thanked the Lord she didn’t ask how she could have been so stupid. That question had sat heavily on her mind ever since it all went down. ‘You know you can stay here as long as you like. I’ll move Daniel out of the single room and put him in with Jax and Mark. We’ll get through this.’
    â€˜Thanks.’ Zoe guessed she might not be very popular with Daniel, but short of volunteering to sleep on the couch, she didn’t have a lot of options. ‘First thing tomorrow I’m heading out to look for some work.’
    â€˜Good for you.’
    Zoe’s eyes caught on a copy of The Wildwood Whisperer lying on the coffee table. Keen to change the subject, she picked it up. She half-heartedly flicked through the pages, not really taking anything in. And then, before she could stop herself she said, in what was meant to be a casual tone, ‘I hear Hannah Elliot is pregnant and getting married?’
    Sandee put down her glass and raised her eyebrows. ‘News travels fast. You’ve barely been back five minutes. Who told you that?’
    Zoe swallowed and then confessed. ‘I may have run out of petrol just outside of town and Shaun may have rescued me.’ She looked down at her now empty glass and spun it round between her fingers. ‘He told me all about it.’
    â€˜Did he now?’ Sandee’s eyes bored into Zoe as if they were actual drills. ‘And how did you feel running into Shaun?’
    Zoe attempted a nonchalant shrug. ‘Okay. Why?’
    Sandee snorted. ‘No one forgets their first love. You were smitten with that boy once.’
    â€˜That was years ago. We’ve grown up.’ Which didn’t account for the way her belly quivered at the mention of him.
    â€˜That’s good, because I wouldn’t want you getting hurt again. Shaun’s a changed man since what happened with Melissa and—’
    Having been about to remind Sandee that it was she who’d hurt Shaun by turning down his proposal of marriage and not the other way around, Zoe’s heart slammed into her ribcage at the mention of another woman’s name.
    â€˜Who’s Melissa?’ she demanded, hating her jealous tone but unable to control it.
    â€˜ Oh .’ Sandee put her wine glass down