Page 109 of Loving Wild

“You’re not paying for my daughter’s new clothes.”

“No, you are. You’re coming with us. We’ll shop, go somewhere nice for lunch, then take her to the hospital.”

He lets out a long breath and his shoulders visibly slump in front of me.

“Really? Do I have to?”

“Yeah, today you do. Today, just in case your little girlisfeeling even a tiny bit insecure by the arrival of this new baby, you can spend the day shopping and spoiling her.”

He sits up straighter and smiles.

“I really wanna kiss you right now,” he narrows his eyes and tells me. “I fucking love the way you love my kid.”

“Babe, you think your mouth is coming anywhere near mine after eating that shit, you can think on. Go clean your teeth and use the extra strong mouthwash and I might consider it.”

Gabe looks down at the corner of Vegemite covered toast on his plate before looking back up at me.

“I think we need to revoke your Aussie card.”

“I’m a citizen, got a certificate to prove it, along with a blue passport.”

“Was eating Vegemite not part of the process of allowing you that privilege?”

“No idea. My mum and dad did what they needed to do to make it happen, and we got the nod just for being their kids.”

He shakes his head.

“I can’t believe declaring your love of Vegemite isn’t compulsory to becoming an Aussie,” he looks down at his plate and says.

“Good job it’s not. You’d only end up with about ten people in the country.”

“I love you, Lauren, but right now, I’m seriously reconsidering our relationship. This might be one of those deal-breakers you talked about the other night.”

“Whatever,” I call out as I head towards the bedroom to shower and get ready for our shopping trip. “Just put your plate and shit in the dishwasher when you’re done.”

* * *

It’stwo weeks since the arrival of the new baby, and Ava is still with us. Lena had a few complications after an emergency C-section and had to stay in the hospital a few extra days, then was readmitted just a day after being released. She obviously can’t drive anywhere at the moment, and Dean has his hands full juggling work and his and Lena’s eighteen-month-old, Mason.

After I discussed it with Gabe, he asked Ava if she wanted to stay here, and she jumped at the chance.

The school run is a bit of a pain, but we’ve got into a routine where Gabe takes her in the morning, and I pick her up in the afternoon, although, a couple of times she’s gone to a mate’s house, and Gabe has picked her up when he’s finished work.

Ava seems fine with the arrangement, and so far, we’re all getting along.

I’ve just spent almost two hours sitting in traffic after dropping her off this morning, and now, I’m pulling up at the Red Hill job to take some measurements when I find the driveway blocked by a truck delivering bricks.

Although my car has a four-wheel drive function, it’s more of an SUV than an off-roader, but I bounce across the nature strip and over the already churned up lawn, parking as close to the house as I can get.

It’s a grey, wet, and cold early September morning, and I’m glad I chose to wear a hoodie, jeans, and an old pair of biker boots as I trudge across the grass.

The rain that was falling on my drive up here has eased off, but the cloud is low, or we’re high up, and the air hangs heavy with moisture, making me grateful I put my hair up this morning, so it doesn’t matter if it starts to curl and frizz.

There’s an excavator parked on the drive, as well as a number of UTEs and vans. The noise as I approach the house is loud, construction and renovations well underway.

My phone vibrates in the pocket of my hoodie, and I pull it out to see Gabe’s name displayed on the screen.

He left early to catch a flight for a meeting in Adelaide, and I’d asked him to call and let me know he’s arrived safely.