She was walking off into the distance with a spring in her step, her arms swinging by her sides, the late spring sunshine all around her like a spotlight. She looked like she didn't have a worry in the world and part of him envied her. Dan tried to remember how long it had been since he'd felt like that. Too long. So long that he'd begun to distrust the memories of his other life, figuring they were coming back to him through a distorted lens.
There would always, from now on, be the time before the accident. And everything after. And the stuff that came after, the reality he was living now was, for the most part, shit. The only bright spots in the past three months, besides getting out of hospital, had been leaving his old life behind and buying the beach house. Just as he'd hoped, it had given him a place to escape. A place to hide.
When he took a final glance at Elizabeth and realised she was empty-handed, he shook his head. She'd left the damn food. His spine stiffened and he scratched his jaw. Since when did Ry and Julia – or Elizabeth for that matter – think of him as a charity case?
When he'd moved down to Middle Point, he'd flat-out told his best friend that all he wanted was time and space. He hadn't wanted Ry or his fiancée hovering around him waiting for some miraculous recovery. He knew he would need time to get his head around what had happened on that dark winter's night. Or rather, what had almost happened, when his car was slammed by a truck on the winding road back to Adelaide.
In the days and weeks after the accident, Ry had done the best friend thing and taken care of business. He'd said afterwards that it was no biggie, that it was what best mates did for each other. Ry had been at the hospital every day; he and Julia had taken charge, flown Dan's parents thousands of kilometres from Queensland and fed and watered them while he recovered. He'd managed to convince his mum and dad that he was okay. They had returned to their caravan and were grey-nomading around the country, which suited Dan just fine. Last time he heard from them they were in Broome, in the far north of Western Australia. Which was about the right distance away, he figured. Having his mother around fussing over him would drive him bat-shit crazy.
And now everyone else was starting to drive him bat-shit crazy. Ry and Julia were still trying to take care of everything and that included trying to run his life. Ry had refused to let Dan go back to work as the Director of Special Projects at Ry's company, Blackburn and Son Developments, even though he was still paying him his regular salary. That just didn't sit right with Dan, considering he'd been sitting around on his arse for the past three months. And the happy couple had tried to pop around every chance they got which, considering they lived in the glass palace next door, was way too often. He hated seeing the worry in their eyes when he turned them back at the front door, pleading whatever the hell lame excuse he could come up with to be left alone. He didn't want company. Liked it better on his own, with music cranked up so loud that he didn't have to listen to what was flying around in his head. Ry and Julia had persisted longer than he thought they would, but had given up in the past month.
Funnily enough, the only person who hadn't come knocking on his door was Elizabeth. She hadn't once visited him while he was in hospital either. He hadn't seen her in all the months he'd been back in Middle Point. Until today. So why now?
And what did he care anyway?
Dan was simply going to have to tell Ry to fuck off and leave him alone. Mates could say that to each another, he knew, and it would be taken in the spirit with which it was intended. Which was, 'fuck off and leave me alone'.
Dan turned from the window and wondered where the hell his phone was. He wanted to make sure Ry got the message, loud and clear.
Lizzie squinted against the scorching wind and the burning hot sun. It felt like a bushfire day, the air was tinder dry and ready to snap, the low-lying hills behind the Point already transformed from their winter patchwork of green fields to parched brown fire hazards. It wasn't unusual to see such a hot day in November, with the northerlies blowing, gathering up every molecule of desert heat from central Australia and dumping it in great gusty draughts on Australia's southern coast.
She looked both ways along the road for cars and then crossed it, stepping onto the wooden path that cut through the shrubbed dunes, covered with grey-green bushes, bright white seaside daisies and coastal grasses. The tide was on its way in but there was still enough beach for walkers, roaming dogs, beach cricket champions and joggers. Out in the distance, committed surfers were waiting for the final wave of the day.
Lizzie gazed out at the expanse of white beach that she loved so much. The early evening sun shone so brightly on the water that the waves looked like mirrors in the distance, too bright to look at without squinting. Miles and miles of deep, sapphire blue water before her and a brilliant shimmering southern Australian sky above her. Home was very sweet, she thought with a satisfaction that she felt all the way to her bones.
Slipping off her sandals, Lizzie jumped on tiptoes over the hot white sand until she reached the water line, splashing her feet in the deliciously cool waves. In the distance, the majestic stone pub she'd worked in for years sat dramatically atop the rise of Middle Point, its walls proud and determined, its windows casting their gaze over the best view in the world. She was on her way back there to break the news about Dan to Ry and Julia.
Although she'd actually laid eyes on the man that half of the Middle Point population was beginning to doubt actually existed, her story would be pretty threadbare. When Dan moved to the Point, locals were buzzing. The news that the hot guy helping Ry Blackburn build the Windswept Development was moving into town swept through town like a cool change on a hot day. The fact that he was single and six foot, four inches tall made that news even more interesting to a number of the women of the Fleurieu Peninsula.
The rumble of curiosity and interest in Middle Point's newest citizen, however, had faded in the past couple of months. Dan hadn't been seen at the pub. He was never spotted walking along the beach, just a few dozen steps from his front door. No one had seen him at the local supermarket or newsagent. It was as if he'd moved in and disappeared.
Lizzie climbed the fifty stairs from the sand to the top of the Point, where the pub lights had already begun to glisten like stars in the twilight, and tried to figure out where to start. She pushed open the heavy front door of the pub and was relieved at the rush of cool air that hit her. Surveying the crowd, she did a quick estimate of bums on seats. She saw a few regulars, some people she didn't recognise.
'Lizzie!'
She turned at the urgent whisper of her name and walked over to the dining area to the table where Julia sat with Ry. They both stared at her with wide-eyed anticipation.
'How'd it go?' Julia asked. Her hands were tightly clasped together, resting in front of her on the white linen tablecloth. Ry leaned in to Julia, an arm around the back of her chair.
'Well,' Lizzie pulled out a chair and joined them. 'That was mission not accomplished.'
'What happened?' Ry demanded.
'Do you mean before or after he slammed the door in my face?'
'You're joking.'
Lizzie shook her head. 'It was totally uncalled for. I was perfectly polite. Oh and, Ry, you'll be getting a phone call if you haven't had one already.'
'Hell.' Ry pulled his phone from the pocket of his tan-coloured shorts. After a tap on the screen, he shook his head. 'No missed calls. I'll get us a drink.'
When he was out of earshot, Julia leaned over to Lizzie. 'How did he look?'
Lizzie took a moment to get the description exactly right. 'Like the wild man of Borneo. And distinctly like someone who doesn't want visitors.'
Julia exhaled a frustrated breath. 'We just want him back, you know? Especially Ry. It's killing him to see Dan go through this. It's been months now and we haven't seen any change. And there's no way we can think about getting married when we can't be sure Dan will want to be there. There's only one person Ry wants to be his best man.'
Ry returned to the table with a chilled bottle of white wine.
'I don't know about you two, but I definitely need one of these.' Ry poured the pale liquid into their glasses. They sipped while they pondered what to do.
'I warned you it was a terrible idea to send me,' Lizzie said.
There was a none-too-subtle exchange of glances between Julia and Ry.
'I still don't agree with you on that,' Ry said.
'I told you this morning. He's your friend, not mine. You're his best mate Ry, and Julia, you spent all that time with him when he was in hospital. I don't know why you think he'd want an almost complete stranger turning up on his doorstep.'