Faith smiled, charmed.
“I’m worried.” The catch in Darcy’s voice pulled at her heart.
She switched off the light and slid under the covers, giving Darcy her complete attention. “What about?”
“Both that Lara won’t want to meet with her, and that she will. She’ll get her hopes up that it will be wonderful.” He paused. “She’s had so much to deal with over my parents’ deaths. What if this is too much? What if Sofia wants custody of her? What if Lara wants to go? She’s kept every single stuffed toy Sofia has ever sent her, and just today Lara asked if Sofia loved her.”
Faith had studied family law as part of her degree. “The courts are unlikely to grant Sofia custody after all this time. At best she’d get visitation rights.” She paused. “Where does Sofia live?”
“Melbourne.”
The diagonally opposite side of the country, almost the furthest you could get from Retribution Bay and still be on the mainland. “Did she tell you much about her life?”
“She’s remarried, has two step-sons.” He cursed quietly. “Lara’s always wanted brothers.”
“Don’t work yourself up, Darcy. They might be horrible little brats whom she hates.”
He chuckled. “Thanks.”
“Will you take anyone with you for support?”
“I don’t know. Brandon and Matt will be busy on the Ridge.”
“I can be there.” What was she saying? “If you want me to be. I mean, I can be a friendly face.” Ugh. Had she put her foot in it?
“We’re meeting at Ningaloo Cafe at three-thirty.” He sighed. “A friendly face would be welcome.”
Relief filled her that he wasn’t annoyed by her offer. “I’ll be there.”
“Thanks, Faith.”
She liked the sound of her name on his lips.
“There was something else I wanted to ask you,” he said. “Were you lonely on that farm when you were a kid? Is there anything you would have liked to make it easier?”
It took her a second to make the connection. He was asking for Lara, always considering his girl. “I was lucky. The farm wasn’t far out of town and I could walk from school to activities and Mum would pick me up when they were over. I’d have regular sleepovers, and I loved horse-riding so I spent most of my spare time out with the horses. I remember those years fondly.” She’d been devastated when they’d moved.
He sighed. “I worry about Lara.”
“She seems happy to me, especially considering her grandparents just died. I suspect she’d tell you if she wanted something.”
“Maybe. She knows too much about our financial status.” He cleared his throat. “Listen, I’ve called Ed, and he’s emailed me the information he has on Stonefish. I can forward it to you if you give me your email.”
She told him.
A keyboard clacked in the background. “Done. There’s something else you should probably know.” He paused. “The parent company has been harassing us to sell the Ridge for the past six months. We suspect they’re behind the dead sheep we discovered the other day.”
She sat up. “That’s a serious allegation. Why do they want to buy the Ridge?”
“We can’t figure it out, but their actions are why you can’t be on their radar. After you’ve reviewed everything, send me the draft letter and I’ll forward it to them.”
“It would have more authority coming from a lawyer.”
“These people don’t play fair, Faith. I don’t want you to get hurt.”
She was invested now but telling him that would only make him worry. “We can discuss the next steps after I’ve reviewed the documents.”
Darcy growled. “That’s not a promise.”
