Australian Affairs: Wed. Barbara Hannay

was taking the high moral ground or simply being stubborn. But he was sticking to his decision.

      She held out her hand. ‘In that case, I’d love to add this puppy to the Santa bag. Jacko will adore it. He’ll be stoked.’

      ‘You want to keep it in this box?’

      ‘No. It looks more true-to-life out of the box.’ Ellie hugged the puppy to her stomach. ‘Joe, you haven’t bought a Christmas present for me, have you?’

      The hard look in his eyes lightened. ‘There might be a little something. Why? Does that bother you?’

      ‘Yes. I don’t have anything for you. I never dreamed—’

      He smiled crookedly. ‘Chill, Ellie. It’s no big deal. I know you haven’t been anywhere near shops.’

      Just the same, she was going to worry about this and it would probably keep her awake.

      * * *

      This is damn hard, Joe thought as Ellie left with the dog. Coming home was so hard. So much harder than he’d expected.

      Of course, he’d always known he would have to make big adjustments. Soldiers heard plenty of talk about the challenges they would face as they transitioned from the huge responsibilities and constant danger of military life to the relative monotony and possible boredom of civilian life.

      But Joe had been convinced that his adjustments would be different, easier than the other men’s. To begin with, he wasn’t coming home to a wife and family.

      Or at least he hadn’t planned to come home to a wife and family.

      And yet here he was—on Christmas Eve—divorced on paper, but up to his ears in family life and getting in deeper by the minute.

      He had to face up to the inescapable truth. No matter how much distance he put between himself and his family, there would always be ties to Ellie and Jacko.

      It was so obvious now. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t seen it before.

      And here was another thing. By coming back to Karinya, he was forced to see his absence in Afghanistan from Ellie’s point of view, and he didn’t like the picture he discovered.

      While he’d played the war hero, earning his fellow soldiers’ high regard, his wife—she’d still been his wife, after all—had slogged for long, hard days on this property, and she’d done it alone for the most part. As well, with no support whatsoever from him, she’d weathered the long awaited pregnancy and birth of their son.

      On her own.

      After the years of heartbreak and invasive procedures that had eroded their marriage, Joe knew damn well that the nine months of pregnancy must have been a huge emotional roller coaster for Ellie.

      And what had he done? He’d tried to block out all thoughts of her pregnancy. And he’d let her soldier on. Yes, Ellie had most definitely soldiered on. Alone. Courageously.

      Just thinking about it made Joe tremble now. During that whole time, Ellie must have believed he didn’t care.

      Hell. No wonder she had trouble trusting his motives today. No wonder she’d expected him to escape in Steve’s chopper as soon as he had the chance.

      And yet, strangely, escape had been the last thing on his mind. Shouldn’t he be worried about that?