Chapter 82
Kate woke up to the feeling of bile rising up her throat. She sat straight up and grabbed the bucket she had taken to leaving beside the bed at night. Her heaving woke up Russell, who had been asleep beside her.
"I hate that this is becoming routine." muttered Kate to herself.
"I'm sorry, baby. You are still the most beautiful woman in the world, even when you wretch into a bucket."
"I'm glad we're having twins. I never want to do this again. Two will be enough for me," moaned Kate.
"I brought some biscuits from the house last night if you want them. They are right here," offered Russell.
"Thanks."
When Kate was finished, she went to clean up, and brush her teeth.
Kate was excited. She knew the plan was to muster two hundred fifty sheep today. She hadn't mustered sheep in a few years. She was excited to get back into the swing of farm life.
"How long do you reckon it'll take to get the muster done? I'd love to do some more work on the drone this afternoon," said Russell.
"If everything goes smoothly, with all of us working, I reckon we could get it done with some daylight left."
"Yeah, but how often does something like this go off without any issues?"
"Um, rarely, but we have got a big crew with us. We've got Tess, Jodi, Matt, Terry, Claire, Meggie on her first ever muster, plus you and me. Meg is staying with Katie who is not ready for mustering yet."
"Okay. So we have Tess, Jodi, Matt, 60 year old retired Grandpa Terry, a fourteen year old girl, a ten year old girl, a puking pregnant lady, and an almost forty bloke who took an eighteen year hiatus from horse riding and is still sore in the groin from riding days ago. Sure. What could go wrong?" joked Russell. He knew they actually had a formidable team to complete the work.
"Aw, Baby, I thought my groin massage last night made everything all better? You sure seemed to like it at the time," Kate flirted with her husband. Until her expression changed. "Oh shit!"
Kate grabbed the bucket and was sick again.
She washed up again and they headed to breakfast.
Breakfast was a busy affair. With ten people all up and ready to go, they moved the meal into the dining room so everyone could get a seat.
"Mommy, I want to muster too!" cried Katie, who generally wanted to do everything her older sister did.
"Katie, we have a rule in the house. You may not muster sheep until you are riding a full sized horse, not a pony, and have demonstrated to your father and I that you have complete control of the horse in many different scenarios. Meggie has worked hard with Sunny to get ready for this. You will have your chance someday too, but today you get some one-on-one time with your Nana instead."
"Katie, I'm really excited for that time with you today. I know it's hot, but I thought we could bake lamingtons together today. I'll share my secret recipe with you," said Meg.
"Okay, Nana. I like lamingtons and I love you!" Katie was always interested in getting a little individual attention. Plus, she loved baked goods.
Tess and Claire walked into the kitchen. Claire went straight for the mountain of toast. Jodi flashed Tess a look as she poured herself some coffee. Tess responded with a quick nod and a smile. Jodi was happy to know Claire was okay with her mom dating Finn.
"Mom, why can't I have coffee? I'll be doing an adult's level of work on the muster. If I'm working like an adult, I should get to drink what they do. Coffee in the morning and a beer after the work is finished," argued Claire.
"Well, there is a law in Australia that says you must be eighteen to drink alcohol, so you are wasting your breath there. Your mom won't become a criminal so her daughter can have a beer after work. As for coffee, you can have it when you're sixteen. That's my rule. Not the law. I just don't like the idea of you having a constant supply of caffeine while you are still young and growing," said Tess.
"Okay, Mom, Orange juice it is, then." Claire accepted defeat.
"G'day everyone! I hope we aren't too late!" Kate greeted the room. "We had to keep turning back because, well, let's just say I'm very hungry now," she joked.
Thinking it would be the safe thing, Kate grabbed some toast and poured some tea. She was super hungry, and the pile of sausages looked wonderful, but she was worried about keeping it down. Toast would have to do.
"So, what is the plan for mustering? Where is everyone gonna be? Who is handling what?" Kate asked Jodi and anyone in particular.
"Matt is going to have Meggie with him. They'll take the near side flank. Claire and Tess will lead the way and take the fast group. I'll have Russell take the far side with Terry. That leaves you and I bringing up the rear. Oh, and Phantom will be doing what he does best," said Tess.
"I haven't seen Phantom in action yet. He was just a little pup the last time I visited. Bringing up the rear with you sounds-" Kate ran out of the room to the toilet.
"She has been hit super hard this morning. I just want her to be able to keep some food down. The doctor said that, oftentimes, morning sickness is worse with twins, but I wish she could just have some relief. Kate is strong, but constantly being sick like this will wear anyone down. I'll go check on her," Russell said and walked over to check on his wife.
"Tess, do you want to take a quick second to look at the schedule for the next couple days?" Jodi asked her sister.
"Yes. Let's do that. I'll eat while we look." said Tess as she brought a plate with eggs, sausages, and some fruit with her into the office with Jodi.
"So, everything went well, I take it? Claire is okay?" asked Jodi.
"Yeah. She was super proud of the fact she had tried to set us up in the first place. She was right about Finn after all. I asked her to respect my privacy and not talk about it with other people and she said she would keep it to herself. She also asked me if I had kissed him. I told her I had, but that I wouldn't be giving her play by play of what we do on dates. She accepted that," said Tess.
"Okay, so, let's see what we have here." Jodi looked at the planner. "Tess, you weren't kidding when you said we were booked up. We have the mustering today, water delivery this afternoon, plus Dave is coming for the sheep check before they get loaded tomorrow, plus we still need to decorate the demo car. Then, Friday, we have Xander's rodeo and the demo derby. Saturday evening we have Charlotte's party and Ben's and Jaz's thing in the morning."
"Sunday is date night I guess," said Tess. "I'll call Finn. Wait. No. Sunday won't work. We have the Farmer's Council emergency meeting to discuss the water issues. We asked for the meeting, so I can't miss it. I guess I won't see him until Tuesday," said Tess, sounding disappointed.
"Oh. Matt agrees with us that it's best to pull out of the running for the Blue Apron contracts. He is happy for you though," said Jodi.
"I hate to lose good business, but if I'm going to try this with Finn, I don't want any business obligations between us." Tess took out her phone to make the call to Finn but it started ringing before she could dial. "Oh, it's Dave." said Tess as she stepped aside to take the call.
After she hung up, she related the information back to Jodi. "So, Dave has a horse down at McIntire's. He said it's a real touch and go case and he will probably be there all day. Ingrid is booked solid doing vet checks for other farmers with so many sales happening. He said he can come extra early tomorrow and do our vet checks as they get loaded." Tess explained to Jodi.
"Well, that does open up this afternoon for us. Go see Finn tonight. It's your only free evening for the week," encouraged Jodi.
"Back to back nights? I wanted to slow down. Not accelerate things," Tess replied.
"You saw the schedule. You make the call when you see him. He's your boyfriend," said Jodi.
"He isn't my boyfriend. We haven't had that type of talk, and I'm not ready to call him that."
"Whatever. You have tonight free, and no other nights for a week. You decide how to spend your time," said Jodi.
"You know, Jodi, when we first met, you were kind of a whiny, entitled, boy crazy, teenager. When did you get so cool?"
"Well, Tess, I grew up and, you know, learned my entire life as I knew it had been a lie, gained a sister, lost her when she moved abroad, fell in love, faked my own death, joined the witness protection program, got married, traveled the world, got pregnant, got my own life back, became a mother and ran a farm. You know, just the usual life experiences." Jodi winked at Tess. "Call Finn, see him tonight. Then, let's go, we've got sheep to move," said Jodi.