Disclaimer: Do not own anything McLeod's Daughters belongs to channel 9, and the writers and creators apart from Abby, Lily and Charlie.

Abby stood at the door pausing before deciding what to do. She waited for a few moments before she knocked on the door and entered.

Tess looked up as she heard a knock at the door. To say that she was more then a little surprise was an understatement.

'Hey.' A nervous Abby spoke.

'Hey.' Tess whispered back.

There was a brief but uncomfortable silence between the two, both unsure of what to say. Tess sat uncomfortably, fidgeting in her seat at her father desk while Abby stood in front of her, shoulders slightly hunched, nervously fiddling with the thread at the end of her shirt. Tess taped her fingers on the desk.

Tess finally spoke up. 'Where did you go last night?.'

'I uh, I stayed with Alex and Nick.'

'Oh.'

'My car broke down and Nick found by the side of the road so.' Abby explained.

'Right.' Tess nodded unsure of how she was to move forward in this conversation.

So excited? Abby asked.

'Huh.' Tess looked at her cousin in surprise, unsure of what she was on about.

'Charlotte.' Abby stated.

'Oh.' Tess smiled slightly remembering her nieces visit. 'Yeah.'

There was another silence.

'Tess.'

'Yes.'

'I uh I just wanted to say that I was sorry for what I said yesterday, I was out of line and I had no right saying what I did, it was cruel and unfair and I didn't mean it. I don't know what came over me, something just snapped and I....'

'lashed out.' Tess finished for her.

'Yeah.' Abby agreed thinking Tess was still upset with her.

'Me too.'

Abby looked at her cousin a puzzled expression on her face.

'About yesterday. I didn't mean what I said either, it like you said something inside of me just snapped and lashed out and you just happen to be the easiest target for my anger. I can't explain it, I just.'

'It's ok I understand.' Abby reassured her cousin. Tess smiled. 'I think we both regret what happened yesterday.'

'Maybe we should agree to forget about it, leave it in the past and move on.' Tess offered.

Abby smiled, 'I think that would be a good idea.' Abby told her.

'So uh where do we go from here.' Asked Tess.

'I think that we should start again, get to know each other, take everything slowly.' Abby proposed.

'That sounds good.' Tess replied, 'When will you be moving back in?'

Abby thought for a moment before answering, she bit her bottom lip. 'I think that I'm gonna stay will Alex and Nick for a little while.'

'Oh.' Tess tried in vain to hide her surprise and hurt at Abby's decision.

'I think it's best for the moment, you know It just I think that we should take some time greet to know each other before I think about moving back in.' Abby told her.

'Right, sure, it's your decision.'

'Thanks.'

There was another brief period of silence.

'I can still help out here, sometimes.' Abby offered, 'If you want ?'

'Sure, that would be good, could always do with the extra help.'

'Right.'

Before there was another silence could come between them the sound of a car pulling up drew the attention of both women.

'Charlotte.' Tess thought out loud, jumping from her seat to go an greet her niece. Just as she was about she turned to find Abby still standing in the office. 'Are you coming?'

'Yeah, sure.'

'I can't wait for you to meet BOM, your love her.' Tess exactly told her cousin.

'Yeah.' Abby smiled. 'You go ahead, I'll be there in a minute.'

'Are you sure.'

'Yeah, sure you go ahead.'

'Are you alright?' Tess asked suddenly rowing concerned about Abby.

'I'm fine.' Abby told Tess smiling, 'Will you just go on ahead.' She laughed.

Tess turned and left hurriedly to greet Charlotte and Abby was left alone with her thoughts. Abby noticed what Tess had been looking at on the desk, picking up the piece of paper, she smiled remembering when she had made the collage of photos. She reached out and gently touched a photo of her mother and Claire in the middle of the collage. She heard someone approach her from behind, it was Nick. He came and stood beside her, saying nothing.

'I remember when I had to make this.' She told Nick. 'It was a project for school, I was five and mum had just died, it was just after your accident. It was all about families and family trees. We were asked to present something on our families.'

'And this was yours.' Nick spoke up, gently taking the piece of paper away from Abby.

'Everyone else did their family tree and I, well I wasn't like everyone else. Mum was gone, Charlie was hardly ever about. I had kind of made up my own little family apart from Jack and Claire there was Meg an Jodi and you an Alex and Harry.' Abby trailed off.

'And Tess.' Nick asked noticing the small picture in the corner of the collage.

'She was important to Jack and Claire, so she was important to me.' Abby told him.

'Have you told her that.'

Abby scrunched up her nose. 'Nope.'

'You should.' Nick told her.

'And perhaps you should tell Tess how you feel about her.' Abby pointed out.

Nick looked surprise at Abby's comment, startled he found himself speechless.

'Come on Nick, I've seen the way you look at her, have you learnt nothing from the whole Alex and Claire 'dance'. It took them fifteen years to get together, don't tell me you and Tess are gonna be the same.'

'It complicated.' Nick told her.

'That's a lousy excuse.'

'You just avoiding the matter at hand.'

'Ditto.'

'Abby.'

'Sorry.'

'How did thing go with you and Tess.'

'Good, good, we uh both apologised, it turns out she didn't mean what she said either. We gonna try and work on our relationship, get to know each other a bit.'

Nick smiled, happy that Tess and Abby seemed to of made up.

'So I was wondering if I could stay with you and Alex for a little while?'

'I thought you said you ad Tess had made up.'

'We have, kind of, we're just gonna take thing slow, we don't want to have another incident like yesterday.'

Nick contemplated what Abby was saying.

'So can I stay?' Nick thought that Abby sounded slightly worried, as if he was going to turn her down.

He smiled, 'Sure.' He put one arm round Abby and brought he into his embrace and kissed the top of her head. Abby breathed a sigh of relief.

'Do you think Alex will mind.' Abby asked suddenly worried about what Alex might say.

Nick smiled. 'Not if your cooking breakfast every morning.' Abby laughed. They broke apart.

'Come on, lets go see Charlotte.'

'Ok.'

Abby and Nick walked out of the door to the font of Drovers where everyone had accumulated.

'You alright.' Alex asked as they approached him.

'Fine.' Abby smiled.

The gang crowed round as Peter got out of the car and collected BOM from her car seat.

'Bom.' Tess shrieked in excitement, happy to see her niece.

Peter passed Charlotte over to a happy Tess.

'Oh I've missed you.' Tess told her niece as she gave her kiss on the cheek.

'I think she's missed you to Tess.' Peter told Tess hoping to make her feel better. After everything that they had been through and especially now there was Charlotte to think about Peter decided that he should try and make an effort with Tess and everyone at Drover's, maybe even Alex although that might take some time. Peter loved his daughter and wanted her to be happy and if that meant being civil with Alex then perhaps that was a choice he would have to make, despite what Alex and other may of thought Peter had truly loved Claire and the last time he seen her they had reached an understanding. As Peter got some of stuff from the boot of his car he noticed an unfamiliar figure standing among the regular Drovers lot. He thought for a moment trying to place the face, he knew he recognised it from somewhere.

'Abigail right.' he said.

Abby looked up slightly startled at someone saying her name.

'Abby. No one calls me Abigail unless there mad with me.' Abby told him as she approached Peter holding out her hand for him to shake.

Peter reached forward and shook Abby hand, smiling at Abby's comment. 'Abby, I'll have to remember that.' He smiled at Abby, Abby smiled back.

'I've heard a lot about you.'

'Really.'

'From Claire, she talked about you a lot, she obviously loved you very much.'

'Well I heard a lot about you.' Abby told him.

Peter grimaced slightly. ' Bet that was interesting.'

'Well there was a range of comments used to describe you.' Abby told him jokingly.

'I bet.'

'Wasn't so bad last time we talked. It was pretty complementary.' Abby told him in all sincerity.

'Thanks.' Peter smiled at Abby.

'So have you met Charlotte.' Peter said motioning to the child in Tess's arms. Tess looked over to Peter and Abby.

'Look Charlotte, who's this, it Abby.' Tess told Charlotte. To Tess and everyone else's surprise Charlotte reached outwards Abby. Abby gently took the child from a mystified Tess.

'She's taken a real shine to you.' Peter told Abby as he watched Charlotte in Abby's arms. She seemed content and happy and was playing slightly with Abby's hair, it was like she'd known her all this time. Abby was marvelling at the child she was holding and couldn't stop herself from making an observation that was bound to have a lot of question tied to it.

'She's gotten so big.'

Peter looked at Abby, 'So you've seen her before then?

'Once.' Abby told Peter, this didn't come to much off a shook to Peter but the rest of the crowd who were gathered around, Tess, Alex, Nick Meg, Stevie and Jodi this announcement came as quite a surprise and none seemed able to hide there shock, but Abby didn't seem to notice.

'It was a long time ago.' Abby told Peter. 'Claire was in the city I was in the city and we arranged to met and she brought Charlotte along and we had a little day out, just the three of us.' Abby smiled at the memory, it was a good one.

'Maybe she remembers you.' Peter told Abby.

'I don't know, it was long time ago, she was still a baby.'

'Maybe it's just a McLeod thing then.'

'Maybe.' Abby said a hint of sadness in her voice.

'So that everything.' Peter said as he took the last of Charlotte's stuff from the boot. ' I'll be off.' Peter gave his daughter and kiss and a cuddle.

'It was nice to meet you Abby.' he said shaking her hand goodbye.

'It was nice to meet you to.' Abby told him.

'I'll see you around. I'll be back on Wednesday to pick her up.' Peter told Tess.

'Ok, I'll see you then.'

They watched as Peter drove out of Drovers Run, Abby was holding Charlotte who was waving goodbye to her father. Once he was out of sight Abby turned and was now facing everyone else, they had been standing behind her. The looks on their face said it all. Abby knew she'd have some explaining to do.

'Abigail McLeod, I think you have some explaining to do.'

Abby sighed and bit her lip this was not good.