‘You were fine.’ He reached behind him for a pebble and threw it carelessly into the darkness. There was a faint splash as it hit the water.
‘Conner, I wasn’t fine.’ She’d been thinking about it all evening and becoming more and more upset. ‘You always imagine that you’ll know what to do in an emergency, but I didn’t. I didn’t know! I mean, I suppose I knew the theory but nothing prepares you for seeing a little girl you know well, covered in blood and not breathing. I—I just couldn’t concentrate.’
‘That happens to the best of us.’
She was willing to bet it had never happened to him. ‘I’ve never even tied a tourniquet before.’
‘Join the army,’ he suggested, and reached for another stone. ‘You get to tie quite a few. Believe me, it’s a talent I’d willingly not have to use ever again. You were fine. Stop worrying.’
‘There was so much blood.’
‘Yeah—it has a habit of spreading itself around when you hit an artery.’
‘It didn’t worry you.’
‘Blood?’ He shrugged. ‘No, blood doesn’t worry me—but emotion…’ He gave a hollow laugh and threw the stone. ‘Now that’s a different story. When they discharge her from hospital, you’re the one that’s visiting.’
She curled her toes into the soft sand. ‘I remember Jayne from school.’
‘Me, too. I think I might have kissed her once.’
‘You kissed everyone.’ Except her. She turned to look at him. Fresh stubble darkened his jaw and in the dim light he looked more dangerous than ever.
He flung another stone and then leaned back on his elbows, watching her through narrowed eyes. ‘What the hell are you doing out here at this hour, Flora Harris? You should be tucked up in bed, having exhausted yourself with a fat book.’
Flora drew a circle in the sand with her finger. ‘You think I’m so boring, don’t you?’
‘Trust me, you don’t want to know what I think.’
‘I already know.’ Her heart thumping, she looked at him. ‘I’m probably the only girl on Glenmore that you haven’t kissed, so that says quite a lot.’
‘It says that I still had some decency, despite what the locals thought of me. You weren’t exactly the kind of girl to indulge in adolescent groping.’ Conner glanced towards the crowd on the beach, barely visible in the darkness. ‘You didn’t do late-night beach orgies. I suppose you were studying.’
‘Yes, I probably was.’ Flora thought of the life she’d led. ‘Dad hated me being out too late. He always worried about me.’
‘You were a good daughter. You never once slipped off the rails, not even for a moment. That’s good. Be proud of it.’
‘It was easy to stay on the rails because my rails were smooth and consistent. I lost Mum but I still had Dad.’ She glanced at him, hesitant about saying something that would upset him. ‘It must be very stressful for you, coming back here after so long. You had such a difficult childhood and all the memories are here.’
‘Actually, I think I probably had an easier childhood than you. Everyone expected you to do well, so you had to work hard and deliver or risk disappointing them. No one expected anything but trouble when I was around, so I could create havoc and meet their expectations at the same time.’ He sat up and flung another stone. ‘Your father expected you to be home before dark because he loved you and worried about you, so you didn’t dare go out and paint the town red in case you upset him. My father didn’t give a damn what I did as long as it didn’t involve him.’
‘You must be very upset and angry with your mother for leaving.’
‘Not at all.’ His tone was cool. ‘He beat her every day of their marriage. She had no choice but to get out. She should have done it sooner. Probably would have done if it hadn’t been for me.’
Flora was so shocked by his unexpected confession th
at it took her a moment to respond. ‘Oh, Conner…’ She’d heard rumours, of course, but no one had ever known for sure. ‘But she left you there. With him.’
‘She had no choice about that. If she’d taken me, he would have followed. Her only chance was to go before he killed her.’
Flora sat for a moment, trying to imagine what it must have been like, and failing. She’d only ever known love. ‘Did he ever…?’ Her voice trailed off and she shook her head and looked away. ‘Sorry, it’s none of my business and I know you hate talking about personal stuff.’
‘Did he ever hit me? Is that what you were about to ask?’ He lay back on the sand and stared into the darkness. ‘Just once. And I was so angry I stabbed a hole in his leg with a kitchen knife. I was six years old at the time. After that he left me alone. I think he was always a bit worried I’d empty the contents of the science lab into his tea. Did you know that science was the only subject I never skipped? I went through a phase of making bombs—blowing everything up. You probably remember that phase. Everyone on Glenmore does.’
Flora hesitated and then reached out and touched his arm, because it seemed like the right thing to do. ‘I can’t imagine what it must have been like for you.’
‘It was amazing fun. I was causing explosions all over the place and no one could stop me.’ He showed no emotion but she wasn’t fooled.