Emily's Cowboy by Donna Gallagher Page B

hospitals he’d visited, and now faced with this little girl standing in front of her, she had definitely finished feeling sorry for herself.
    She had all but forgotten Gareth was standing behind her, so was surprised when he spoke to Elaina. “Hey, sweet-pea. So you’ve met my friend Emily, then?”
    “Hi, Uncle Gawef. Is she your friend? She’s pretty. Are you going to get married like Uncle Mitch and Aunty Pippa? She got burned on her face just like me on my finger, did you know that?”
    Emily’s head was swimming at the way Elaina had just pumped out the questions one after the other, but she loved the fact the child had called Gareth ‘uncle’—it was so sweet. She listened with amused curiosity for how Gareth would answer.
    “Yep, sweet-pea, my Emily is the prettiest girl around. Well, maybe next to you, that is. And just between you and me, I hope she will marry me one day.”
    Elaina’s giggles and shy smile at Gareth’s saying she was pretty was too cute for words, especially when Gareth ruffled Elaina’s riotous brown curls. Emily was enjoying watching the interaction between them—Gareth was so easy-going, a natural when dealing with children, and Emily could see that Elaina was enjoying the attention.
    “Do you want to know how my Emily got hurt by the bushfire, sweet-pea?”
    “It won’t make me a nosy parker, will it, Uncle Gawef?” It was such a serious little voice that both Emily and Gareth started laughing. Considering Gareth was about to talk about the bushfire that had almost destroyed her life, Emily was surprised at her own reaction.
    “No, sweet-pea, it won’t. My Emily is so brave. When the bushfire was burning close to her farm—she comes from the country just like me, in fact her farm is right next to mine—anyway, the fire was big and mean, burning all the trees and grass for miles…”
    Everyone around Emily had gone quiet, all listening to the story Gareth was narrating. He looked like the Pied Piper, she thought, as she watched all the children gather around her man. By her quick count, ten sets of eyes, opened wide on little faces, gazed up at Gareth as though he was about to tell some fantastical tale. It looked so surreal. Emily had locked away all visions of Gareth and children, but seeing him surrounded and so at ease with the small folk, about to tell her sorry tale, was quite unbelievable—a place and time she’d never thought she would experience. She felt goosebumps on her arms as she awaited the response from those around her.
     “Emily and I have lots of animals on our farms. Cows, dogs and cats and chickens and horses—big, beautiful brown horses that have long manes that flow in the wind when we ride them at full gallop. When our parents heard about the bushfire, they told Emily to put her horses in one of the paddocks away from the fire, thinking it would be safe. Emily did what she was told and moved her horses. Two of Emily’s horses had just had babies. Baby horses are called foals. Emily put both foals into the paddock as well so they could be with their mummies.”
    As Gareth spoke Emily lived the day again in her mind, remembered every move she had made. Everyone else around their table, it seemed, was listening.
    “Well, sweet-pea, a little while later the wind changed direction, started blowing the fire another way, towards the horses.”
    The little gasps from the children as they imagined what was about to happen caused Emily to worry. She didn’t want Gareth to upset their tender little minds, worried how the children’s parents would react. Caitlin and Mandy might not want their children traumatised by the events of that day. But when Emily looked at the women to judge their reactions to the story, they both smiled at her—smiles that told Emily that it was okay, not to worry. Before she could speak up and ask Gareth to stop, Elaina spoke.
    “What happened to the horses, Uncle Gawef? Did the fire burn them too?”
    “No, sweet-pea,