The Sunburnt Country by Fiona Palmer Page A

handy having a bed close by. It was also walking distance from the pub. Renae went straight to the old square air-conditioning unit and held her hand against the vents. ‘I swear this thing is useless,’ she said, ‘but it beats eating in the workshop. Here,’ she said, opening the bag and taking out two salad rolls. They sat at the little four-seater table with its mismatched wooden chairs. The room was barely five-by-five but it could fit a double bed in one corner, which also doubled as the couch when Jonny watched TV. In the other corner was a tiny kitchenette. Large cream lino tiles covered the cement flooring. Coot had laid the lino himself before Jonny moved in. He’d told her she was too good for a cement floor. He’d even painted the walls, which were now filled with photos of her family and old metal farm parts that her brother JB had welded together into artworks. At the opposite end of the room was another door, which led to the shower and toilet.
    Renae pulled out two Cokes from the bag and cracked hers open. ‘Man, Mrs Dardanup took way longer than I thought. I had to hear all about her new grandson. I swear I could spot that baby in a line-up now.’
    Jonny nodded absent-mindedly as she picked at her lunch.
    Renae studied her. ‘Hey, you were supposed to crack a smile. I know that look. What’s going on inside your head?’
    Jonny poked some lettuce back into her roll. ‘You know when you meet someone and you instantly click and the sparks are flying and the moment seems so perfect, but then fate throws a curve ball? Your mind fills with the possibilities and then reality comes crashing down?’
    Chewing her mouthful quickly, Renae swallowed. ‘I’m guessing we’re not talking about Ryan. So what are you saying? You found a potential suitor and then didn’t?’
    ‘Something like that. Maybe it just wasn’t meant to be.’ Jonny took a huge bite from her roll, hoping that was the end of this talk. ‘So how was your weekend? Please tell me that it was more exciting than mine.’
    ‘No changing the subject. Come on, you can’t leave me hanging. You actually liked a guy. He must have been something – tell me more.’
    Jonny shrugged. ‘There’s no point, he’s not staying. Nothing could come of it.’
    Renae studied her expression and figured it was a dead end.
    ‘Hmm, damn shame. Well, I can cheer you up. My news – Friday night at the pub, a very hot guy booked in. He has this cheeky smile and a butt so hard you could bounce coins off it. Thank God, too. It’s about time we had something fresh around here. I’ll never have kids at this rate.’
    ‘So did you hit it off or scare him outta town?’ Jonny joked.
    Her friend screwed up her face. ‘I tried my “you can have me” smile but he didn’t bite. I must be losing my touch. Daniel wasn’t even interested. In the end he spent most of the night chatting to Zac.’
    Jonny choked on her mouthful of Coke. Coughing and spluttering, she wiped her face on her overalls. ‘Daniel is the guy you’re talking about? Good-looking, tall bloke from the city?’
    Renae’s forehead creased. ‘Yeah, how did you . . . ? Oh my God. Is Daniel the guy you were talking about?’
    Jonny could only nod as she wiped soft drink from her nose.
    Renae held her hands up. ‘You mentioned him first, so you get first dibs.’
    ‘No, really . . . I don’t think . . .’
    ‘Come on, as if I’m going to try for a guy that you’ve said is hot. Do you know the last time you found a guy attractive? Yeah, it’s been a while. I was starting to have doubts about you, Jonelle Baxter.’
    Jonny rolled her eyes at Renae’s exaggeration. ‘No, seriously. I’m backing off – he’s all yours. But he wasn’t even interested in me, so maybe he’s gay.’
    Jonny smiled, trying to hold back a chuckle. Renae had never had a knock-back her whole life. ‘I don’t think so, Nae. He was giving me some signals and for me to notice, that’s saying