The Girl in the Yellow Vest (10 page)

Barnes Inc was there to build the fourth berth to accommodate yet another ship. This included installing a third giant shiploader crane to load it. Mark drove to the start of the Barnes Inc operation. It was a mess of little cranes and pieces of uninstalled steel sitting on a partially painted concrete deck that was many, many metres above water. There was a very poorly constructed guardrail made out of scaffolding tubing. To fall off the edge and into the water could kill a man. From this height, hitting the water would be like hitting rock.

As if to echo the thought, they put their hats on before they got out of the vehicle.

‘So, William, show me what you want to tackle first.’ Mark surveyed the lay of the land, trying not to notice as some of his men quickly stopped chatting and focused completely on their jobs as though being nice to one another would incur his censure.

Would it?
Am I such a miserable bastard?

As they walked past the donga toilets and lattice of scaffolding hanging precariously over the edge, William began to talk about the job ahead. He was actually taking care of two areas, one on land and one on the wharf. On land they were building a new driver tower – basically a multistorey steel and concrete structure that would house the conveyor drive motors for the new section of the wharf. Out at sea, he was constructing an access stairwell. The conveyors climbed to five metres above the deck so there needed to be a way to reach them.

When he began to speak, Mark realised two things:

a. The boy was smart. Extremely smart. Smarter than any other graduate he’d had the pleasure to meet. Probably smarter than he had been when he was the kid’s age. He had an eye for detail and a skill for finding the simplest way to work through a problem. This little engineer was going to go far.

b. The kid was right. There was more work here than could feasibly be done by just one engineer. He needed help.

The second point Mark had known all along. He just hadn’t wanted to admit it. The thing was, he didn’t want another graduate under foot. They generally needed more guidance than the output they provided. He could easily get one of the older guys to lend this kid a hand. That way the work would get done quickly and efficiently and without any of the usual mistakes first-timers make. But, damn it, he found himself liking Will.

Perhaps it was because the boy reminded him of himself or who he used to be before he’d realised that life didn’t always hand you second chances – or even that you were likely to need one. He liked the boy’s passion and the fact that he had a plan. Not just an engineering plan either . . .

He knew that look. Seen it in the mirror in years long gone.

The boy had it bad.

And so what? Was that such a terrible thing?

It is if she bloody messes up your job. He hasn’t thought this through well enough.

He shoved his hands in the pockets of his pants as he gazed out to sea. Involuntarily, his fingers grasped ‘the list’. The list he now knew off by heart.

Item 2. Do someone a favour.

‘William.’

‘S-sorry, sir?’ William blinked and Mark realised he’d just interrupted him mid-sentence.

‘Never mind about that.’ He waved an impatient hand. ‘You know that girlfriend of yours? I’ve changed my mind. Get her over here, will you?’

William’s face lit up like a bulb. ‘Of course, sir. But, er . . . she’s not my girlfriend, sir.’

‘Whatever. She’s in. It looks like you’ve got a lot of work to do. You better go sort out the schedule with the supervisor. I trust you’ll be able to get a ride back with someone else?’

William nodded eagerly. ‘Of course, sir.’

He had been turning away but at this response he spun back. ‘And,
William
,’ he purred.

‘Yes, sir?’

‘Stop calling me “sir” in that irritating fashion of yours. Apart from being entirely unnecessary, I’m not your bloody schoolmaster.’

‘No, s– Er . . . what should I call you then?’

A ghost of a smile lifted the corners of Mark’s mouth as he walked away, throwing casually over his shoulder: ‘Why not call me Caesar, like everybody else?’

It all seemed like great news, until reality dawned.
I’ve quit my job. There’s no safety net. If this doesn’t work out, I’ll be left with nothing.

‘Not nothing precisely,’ Will told her over the phone. ‘You got a free trip to Queensland at the very least.’

‘Yes, but doesn’t it seem just a little drastic to you?’ She chewed on her lower lip. ‘I mean, I could quit my job and just stay in Perth to find another one.’

‘Where’s the fun in that?’

‘True,’ she acknowledged. ‘But it would be a lot less risky.’

‘Have a little faith, Em.’ Will chuckled. ‘You’re a good engineer. You just need to give yourself a chance.’

‘Easy for you to say, Mr God’s Gift to Construction,’ she snorted. ‘Is there anything I can study, read or memorise to prepare? Perhaps some paper on wharves or piling at sea? What’s the name of the geotech professor who wrote that book on deep foundations?’

Will laughed. ‘Whoa, Em, relax. You’re not going to need that. This will be a learn-as-you-go experience.’

‘I was afraid you were going to say that.’

‘Don’t worry. You’ve already got one big advantage over everyone else here.’

‘What’s that?’

‘You’re not insane.’

Her brow wrinkled. ‘Will, don’t joke about this.’

‘No, I’m serious! I think it’s the whole FIFO syndrome. Being stuck in isolation and worked like a dog for long periods of time tends to bring out the crazies.’

‘
Oh-kay
,’ she drawled. ‘That doesn’t exactly make me feel a whole lot better.’

‘Trust me. It will when you get here. Are you all packed?’

‘Mostly.’ She paused, her fingers flexing around the cordless. ‘I went round to our – I mean Trent’s – house yesterday and picked up the last of my things.’ She lowered her voice. ‘He had a girl there.’

‘Why are you whispering?’

‘Sorry.’ She screwed up her nose as she realised she had been. ‘You probably know all this already.’ Then she closed her eyes and prayed that he didn’t. He soon rewarded her.

‘Actually, I had no idea he was seeing someone new.’

‘Oh, okay.’ Her eyes flew open and she brightened. ‘So it’s probably not serious then.’

‘Do you care?’ he asked carefully.

She recognised the sympathetic tone in his voice and hardened her own. ‘No.’

Only I do! Very, very much
.

She could hardly confide that in Trent’s best friend though, even if he was her best friend too. Emily had lost a lot in the last few weeks but luckily the one thing she still had was her pride.

‘I mean,’ she said with deliberate airiness, ‘I wish him all the best. I certainly wouldn’t hold back if I met someone new that I took a fancy to.’

She could almost hear Will’s grin on the other end of the phone. ‘Would you like me to tell him that?’

‘Would you?’ she whispered.

He laughed. ‘Oh for goodness’ sake, Em. Forget about Trent and focus on you. The world is your playground.’

That brought a smile to her face and she wondered absentmindedly how Will always knew exactly what to say to make her feel better. Here she was, standing on the brink of a fantastic opportunity – why did Trent rate a mention?

‘Thanks, Will. You’re absolutely right. It’s time for a change. A big change.’

‘Definitely. You were with Trent for five long years and –’

‘Long?’ she repeated, surprised at his choice of words. ‘I didn’t think they were long
per se
. I mean, they seemed to go by in a flash for me. One minute we were the next couple picked for marriage, then we were –’

‘Long, short, what’s the difference?’ Will interrupted with a short, self-conscious laugh.

‘Actually –’

‘
The point is
, it’s over now. And you can do whatever you like.’

‘Whatever I like . . .’ She pronounced the words slowly and succinctly before her voice gave out.

‘Exactly.’

That was the other great thing about Will: he loved to give advice but he never tried to tell her what to do. Trent had always been very clear on his position. When she’d been living through it, she had always thought he was being helpful or protective. She had never thought anything of simply following his lead.

Now standing at this fork in the road, with all her freedom back in her pocket, she realised how much of herself she had lost in that relationship. Her head jerked up as clarity hit her like a stream of light.

I really can do anything I like. Anything at all. I’m not tied to anyone or any place
.

‘You’re awfully silent,’ said Will.

‘Am I?’ she muttered. ‘I’m thinking.’

‘About what?’

‘About who I am and what I want out of life.’

For the past five years, she’d been Trent’s girlfriend. Every decision she’d made had been based on what he would like her to do and what his plans for the future were, from her bank balance to her wardrobe. She’d turned herself into the perfect lawyer’s wife – mild-mannered, well dressed and smart but not too smart. Intelligent enough for him to be proud of her but not so accomplished that she over-shadowed him.

She never complained.

Not about the long hours he did at work.

Or the lack of time they spent together because of it.

She had hated all his friends because they were snobby, judgemental and completely focused on money, but she’d mingled with them more than her own university set because it was good for his career.

‘Got an answer yet?’ Will asked, breaking her thoughts once more with a joking tone.

‘No.’ She bit her lip. ‘But, damn it, I’m going to find out.’

‘Huh?’

‘I’m going to try new things, eat new food, buy new clothes,’ she said firmly. ‘Eat, love, pray,
carpe diem
, the whole nine yards.’

‘Sounds like another shopping spree to me,’ Will yawned. ‘I’m out.’

She ignored his lack of enthusiasm as new plans began to take shape. ‘No, this will be fun! “Emily’s Year of New Things”. New job, new home, new everything. I’m going to reinvent myself and Queensland is the perfect place to do it.’

Will seemed to perk up at that. ‘If you want to try something new, we could go sailing. You’ve never done that before.’

Emily smiled. ‘That’s exactly what I mean. I’m dying to visit those islands.’

‘Of course.’

‘I mean,’ she rolled her eyes as her confidence grew, ‘I’m definitely not going to be sitting around moping about who Trent is taking out.’

‘Definitely not.’

‘I won’t have time for it.’

‘No time.’

‘I’ve got better things to do.’

‘Better things to do!’

‘I mean, I’m going to tropical island central, right? The most romantic place in Australia. I’ll probably fall in love myself.’

‘Bound to.’

‘So do you know any cute guys you can set me up with?’

‘Huh?’

She sighed. ‘Will, you haven’t been listening to what I’ve been saying again, have you? Are you playing with your Xbox?’

‘
No.
’ His tone sounded affronted.

‘Well then answer the question.’

‘I . . . just . . . think,’ he dragged the words out one by one, ‘that maybe . . . perhaps I’m not the best judge of male cuteness.’

‘True,’ she assented. ‘I’ll judge the cuteness. You can tell me if they’ve got a good personality.’

‘Just out of curiosity, what do you think is cute? I mean, on a guy?’

She cocked her head to one side. ‘I don’t know. Nice face, nice smile, nice eyes.’

‘Your key word here seems to be nice. That doesn’t really give me much to go on. Arnott’s biscuits are nice.’

She sighed in frustration. ‘I haven’t got a
specific
definition.’

‘Okay, for example, do you think I’m cute?’

Um. What?
She’d never really thought about that in any great detail.
Do I think Will is cute?

‘Er . . .’ She shut her eyes. ‘Wii-ill,’ it was her turn to drag out the words, ‘you’re my best friend and –’

‘Somehow, I don’t like where this is going.’

‘Look,’ she changed tack, ‘don’t worry about the whole cuteness thing. I’ll know when I see him. I’ll get that instant spark of attraction. You know what I’m talking about.’