Chapter 185

The Drovers dining room was full. Regan, Dylan, Grace, Jaz, Ben, Kelly, Stevie, and Xander had all joined the rest of the family at Drovers.

"So what's the big news?" asked Jodi.

"Well, we have actually come to say goodbye. We have to leave for Fisher in just about thirty minutes." Regan explained.

"I thought you were staying the rest of the week before heading back to Canberra?" asked Kate.

"Yeah, Dylan, aren't you in the middle of your case with the mine? Can you just up and leave?" asked Russell.

"Yes. I'm leaving it for another detective who should be arriving in Gungellan shortly. I have something more important to do, and we're not headed to Canberra yet," explained Dylan.

"We're headed to Brisbane, to meet her." Regan took out her phone and showed the picture of the baby. "This is our daughter. We were officially matched with her this morning. She's four weeks old and she needs a family. We get to be her family!" Regan said tearfully. "We have a daughter! We need to go to Brisbane to meet her and sign the paperwork, and then we get to bring her home. Our little girl."

Jaz, Ben and Grace were already smiling at Regan and Dylan. The love they had for this tiny baby they hadn't even met yet was flowing out of them. Everyone else crowded the new parents with hugs and kind words.

"I'm just sorry we didn't get to have a baby shower for them. Do they even have a nursery set up yet? Tess asked Grace.

"Nope, they were afraid to prepare in case it didn't happen for them," replied Grace.

"Well maybe we can put something together for them in the next couple weeks and ship things out to Canberra or something." said Tess.

"Well, I actually have some news too, although it isn't as big as theirs. I'm quitting my job in Perth. I'm going to move to Wilgul and expand Jaz's business into a horse training center as well. Jaz will train the riders, and I'll train the horses. I'm staying here, in Gungellan. I want to be with my family right now," explained Grace.

"Grace, that is big news! And wonderful news!" said Tess. "I'm glad you're coming back. I think it will be really good for you, and for Jaz. She loves her big sister. Let her be there for you," Tess advised.

"That's why I'm moving back. You said family will get me through, so I'm going where my family is. I'm going to go out to Canberra for a bit first, though. I'll drive Regan and Dill's car back for them, and stay to help them set up the nursery and get settled with their daughter for a week or so. Then I'll fly to Perth, pack up my ute, and make the drive with my things back here, back home."

"I think Regan and Dylan will be lucky to have you around, helping. A new baby is not an easy thing to manage," said Tess.

"I think it will be good for me too, but I'm not leaving for a few days. They have to spend several days in Brisbane anyway, dealing with the attorneys and such and bonding with their daughter. I'm driving them to Fisher now, but I'll be back tonight, late. I figured I'd see if I can give Stevie a hand over at Killarney when I get back here, before I get going on the new project at MEETC. I heard manual labor can help with insomnia," said Grace.

"I hope it helps you like it helped me. I'm here for you as well. If you can't sleep in the middle of the night, you can call me. My mind went to some dark places in the first few months after my divorce, and if you find yourself doing the same thing, please, just call. I don't care if you wake me up, I will talk to you or come over if you need it. Don't be embarrassed," said Tess. "I went through all of it too."

"I will Tess. Thank you for all that you have done, for all of us. Wilgul wouldn't be anything if it weren't for you. None of us have forgotten that," Grace replied.

"So I told James I would come out to visit him," Stevie said to Jodi. "I told him I was getting a hotel for the visit, though."

"It's best to be upfront I think. Was he fine with that? When is this visit happening?" asked Jodi.

"Yeah, he said I could stay in his guest room and save the money and that there was no pressure, but I want to have a place booked anyway. He understood and didn't push the point. I'm going down there in a couple weeks, just for one night. It's an awfully long way to go just for a date," said Stevie.

"Worth it, if the date is with the right guy, though," said Jodi.

"I guess I'll find out soon. It's nice having something planned to look forward to," said Stevie, realizing how much she really was looking forward to the visit.

"Do you want us to watch Xander while you're gone? We'd be happy to." said Jodi.

"He is going to stay with the Turners. He doesn't see his Uncle Marcus enough. They are going to take him the whole weekend, so I don't have to stress about getting back late at night. I'm starting to really like James. Am I crazy? Driving ten hours each way just to see a guy?" asked Stevie.

"Not if it's the right guy, Stevie. I hope he is for you," said Jodi, recognizing the early signs of love beginning to grow in her friend.

"So that's our big news, but we actually have to go. We have a flight out of Fisher this evening, and we certainly don't want to miss it! We will come back once we have our daughter and things are settled and everyone will be able to meet her, but in the meantime we have to go! We will get to meet her first thing tomorrow morning!" Regan exclaimed.

"We can't wait to meet her! We love you all, bye guys!" said Dylan as he and Regan walked out the door. Grace followed right behind them.

"Well this is a day of good news." exclaimed Jaz! "I'm officially Auntie Jaz!" she smiled, "We have more big news at Wilgul. I would have let Grace announce it, but she is driving them to the airport, so I'll do it. We are expanding MEETC! Grace is going to move to Wilgul and open a new branch of the business. I have been training elite riders for years now, and I will continue to do so, but we will start offering horse training and stud services for elite equestrian horses as well. Grace will be spearheading that part of the business and we will be partners in the Training Center. It seemed like the obvious next step, and I'm thrilled to have my sister close by," announced Jaz.

"Jaz, that's big news! It could really put MEETC on the map. It's a wonderful business opportunity for you, and we're all thrilled to have Grace around more. Congratulations!" declared Stevie.

"Yeah, it will take some time for it all to start progressing, and Grace will be funding it personally. She signed a prenup that has left her with a sizable investment since Gavin couldn't keep it in his pants. I'm glad I don't have to pretend to like him anymore. At least some good will come from that tosser's cheating ways. She will have to wait for the divorce to settle, and that could take some time, even with a prenup in place. She is going to live at Wilgul in the meantime, well, once she gets back from Canberra and Regan and Dill. Stevie, I think she was looking for heavy farm work in the meantime. She said she thought heavy physical labor would help her sleep better. I told her you could probably use the hand at Killarney." said Jaz.

"I will happily take Grace's help. Ben and Bobby are great, and Xander does a full share of the work when he can, but he still has school, which needs to be his priority until he graduates, and I want him to continue to follow his passion for rodeo as long as he wants to. You and Ben have a young daughter, and I want Ben to have more time with you and Kelly. I reckon Grace, Bobby, and I will be able to get a lot done, freeing Ben up for a little more family time." said Stevie to Jaz.

"Well since it's a day of good news, we have some of our own too" shared Kate. "We were able to do a pretty thorough inspection of the exteriors of the buildings on Kinsella's and I feel highly optimistic that Higgins will find it to be a suitable property for my teaching program. It won't be official until we can get the full site inspection done, but I feel really good about the suitability of the property."

"I'll love having you right next door!" Jaz said happily to Kate. "Our children can be friends too. It'll be really great for all of us to have you here."

"Well I guess we can share our good news too!" said Jodi. "Charlotte, would you please?"

"I'm moving to Drovers in a few months," Charlotte announced. "I want to be with my family here. I'll stay for a year and then hopefully move over to Kate's teaching program at Kinsella's. I'm excited to get to know all of you better, and I want to really understand what being a McLeod means and feels like."

Jodi, Tess and Jaz looked at each other and smiled. They knew how they wanted to respond to that. "You messed with the wrong family, asshole!" They all shouted simultaneously, then broke down into a fit of laughter.

"Honey, you definitely understand what being a McLeod means," Jodi said as she hugged her niece.

The End

Thank you for reading. I hope you enjoyed where I took all of the characters we love.

The Drovers Empire Sequel is coming soon!