The Woman He's Been Waiting For

by Jennifer Taylor

  He removed Grace’s coat from Jill Arnold and helped the boy spread a blanket over her then sat him down beside her. ‘Now I want you to hold her hand so she knows you’re here.’

  ‘She’s not going to die, is she?’ Steven asked haltingly.

  ‘No, she’s not.’ Harry crouched down beside him. ‘Listen—can you hear her breathing?’ He smiled when the boy nodded. ‘Good. Now put your fingers on her wrist just here—that’s it. Can you feel her pulse beating? Well, that means her heart is working as well and that she isn’t in any immediate danger.’

  ‘Why won’t she wake up, then?’ the boy asked, his fingers still firmly clamped around his mother’s wrist.

  ‘I don’t know, Steven, because I don’t really know what happened to her,’ Harry admitted truthfully. ‘We can’t find any burn marks on her so it doesn’t look as though she came into contact with the electric current, but we won’t know for sure until we get her to hospital.’ He ruffled the boy’s hair. ‘If you can sit there and make sure you can hear her breathing, though, it will be a big help.’

  He left the child and went back to Grace. She was still kneeling beside Ben and he saw her shiver as a flurry of snow blew off the shed roof and landed on top of her.

  ‘Here’s your coat,’ he said, quickly handing it to her.

  ‘Thanks.’ She stood up and shrugged it on then crouched down again.

  ‘How’s he doing?’ Harry asked, kneeling beside her and trying not to think about what he had just seen. Getting hung up on the thought of Grace’s delectable body was the last thing he needed. He had to keep a clear head so he could concentrate on what he was doin, yet it was hard to ignore the images that were flickering across his mind’s eye: the lushness of her breasts; the narrowness of her waist; the enticing curve of her hips…

  ‘Not too good. I don’t like the sound of his breathing and his pulse is all over the place…’ She broke off and pressed her fingers against Ben’s neck. ‘He’s arrested.’

  ‘Damn,’ Harry rolled the man over onto his back. He glanced at Grace. ‘Check again that there’s no output, will you?’

  Grace placed her fingers on the man’s neck once more, positioning them in the hollow between his larynx and the adjoining muscle so she could check his carotid artery. She waited for a moment then shook her head. ‘No. There’s definitely no pulse.’

  ‘Right. I’ll do the compressions while you do the breathing.’

  ‘Fine.’

  She quickly positioned the man’s head so that his airway was open, using her hand to support the back of his neck while she tilted his head back. Once he was positioned correctly, she gave four sharp inflations then checked to see if there was a pulse. ‘Still nothing,’ she told Harry tersely.

  Harry placed his hands on the man’s chest and pushed down five times, adjusting the rhythm to equal sixty compressions per minute. He paused after a minute while Grace checked again for any output then carried on when she shook her head. They must have completed several dozen cycles before she suddenly ordered him to stop.

  Harry sank back onto his heels as she checked Ben’s pulse once more. He could feel sweat trickling down his neck and running between his shoulder blades. It was hard work resuscitating a patient and despite the cold weather he’d built up a real sweat.

  ‘Yes!’ Grace looked up and grinned at him. ‘We’ve got a pulse.’

  ‘Hallelujah,’ Harry muttered, almost too exhausted to speak.

  She laughed. ‘You must be going soft in your old age, Harry. A couple of years ago you’d have been able to keep going for a lot longer than that.’

  ‘If you’re trying to say that I’m getting old, I would have to agree with you.’ He staggered to his feet, exaggerating his fatigue because it was just so good to know that she could share a joke with him. Normally, she laughed at him not with him, and he couldn’t deny how wonderful it felt to have crossed the line and feel like a friend instead of an enemy.

  ‘None of us is getting any younger,’ he said, clutching his back and hamming it up for all he was worth. ‘You might feel that you’re on top of the game at the moment but you’ll soon discover what it’s like, young lady.’

  ‘That might be true, but I’ll always be younger than you, Harry,’ she retorted sweetly.

  Harry rolled his eyes. ‘You call six months being younger? Oh, please!’

  ‘Now, now, don’t get snippy.’ She picked up a blanket and tucked it around the farmer. ‘Just because you’ll be drawing your pension before me isn’t an excuse to throw a tantrum.’

  ‘I give up.’ Harry shook his head in mock despair. ‘Obviously, I’m not going to win this argument so I may as well save my breath.’

  ‘It’s always best to know when you’re beaten, Harry.’

  ‘Is that a fact?’

  He grinned wolfishly back at her, scarcely able to believe that they were having this conversation. Why, if he didn’t know better he’d think that Grace was actually flirting with him.

  The thought sent a buzz of heat through his body. He was already hot from his recent exertions and maybe the extra surge of heat forced his brain into overload because he didn’t even pause to consider the wisdom of what he was doing. If Grace was flirting with him then there was no way that he was going to let the occasion pass him by.

  ‘The one thing I never do is accept that I’m beaten. You might have won this particular round, Dr Kennedy, but I’ll get even at some point. You can be sure of that.’

  Grace felt a little thrill of excitement course through her. There had been something in Harry’s voice when he had issued that threat that made her feel all warm and tingly inside…

  She turned away, realising how stupid it was to lower her guard like that. Opening her case, she took out a bag of saline, steadfastly ignoring Harry as she set up a drip. She needed to get herself back onto an even keel, although it wasn’t going to be easy. She had never flirted with a man before today, and had never wanted to either. Although she still went out on the occasional date, she always made it clear that she wasn’t interested in anything more than friendship. Few men asked her out a second time. Most were put off by her attitude, but it didn’t worry her.

  She had her career and her friends and they’d been more than enough to fill her life up till now, so why had she behaved that way with Harry, of all people? Harry was the master when it came to sexual shenanigans—what he didn’t know about seducing a woman would fit on a postage stamp. And she had just declared herself fair game.

  Grace forced down her groan of dismay. There was no way that she was going to let Harry know how much she regretted her actions. ‘Ben’s stable now so we’d better check on Ian.’

  ‘We’d better check where that ambulance has got to as well.’ Harry checked his watch. ‘It should have been here by now.’

  ‘I just hope it hasn’t got stuck somewhere along the way,’ Grace replied, relieved to hear him sounding so normal, although what had she expected? That he would try and hit on her right here in the middle of the farmyard? No, that wasn’t Harry’s style, he was far too skilled in the art of seduction to make such a basic error. He would wait for a more appropriate opportunity to present itself.

  The thought wasn’t exactly soothing but there was nothing she could do about it right then. She would just have to deal with the situation if and when it arose. ‘Why don’t you get onto Ambulance Control and ask them for an update?’ she suggested, making her way across to Ian.

  ‘That’s what I was going to do.’ Harry took his mobile phone out of his pocket then groaned. ‘Damn, there’s no signal here. I’ll have to walk back up to the farmhouse and use the phone in there.’

  ‘It’s in the kitchen near the back door,’ Grace told him.

  ‘Thanks. I’ll find it.’

  She knelt down beside Ian as Harry hurried away, relieved to see that he had started to regain consciousness. ‘Hi, Ian. How are you feeling?’ she asked as she checked his pulse.

  ‘I dunno…W
hat’s happened?’ He lifted his head and gazed around in confusion. ‘Why am I lying outside in the yard?’

  ‘You’ve had an accident. We think you must have suffered an electric shock,’ she explained, removing the dressing she had put on earlier so she could check his right thigh. From the burn marks, it appeared that the current had entered Ian’s body through his thigh and passed out through his foot. Although he wasn’t as badly burned as his father, she knew that he could have suffered quite substantial damage to the limb.

  ‘An electric shock,’ Ian repeated blankly.

  ‘Hmm. Steven said there was a power cable attached to the top of the garage. We think that must have been the cause of the accident.’

  Ian gasped. ‘I remember now. Dad was working on the tractor—the engine kept cutting out—but he managed to fix it. I was just taking the tools he’d used back to the shed when I noticed the cable had come loose. I turned round to warn Dad to be careful when he put the tractor away and there was this massive bang and all the lights went out.’

  ‘Ben must have hit the power cable somehow,’ Grace said, trying to hide her dismay when she saw how swollen Ian’s leg looked.

  ‘He must have done, although I didn’t think of that at the time. I just saw him lying on the ground and I suppose I panicked,’ Ian admitted. ‘I remember running towards him, then there was this blinding flash of light and I don’t remember anything else after that.’

  ‘The current must have arced and struck you as well,’ she said, checking his ankle to see if she could detect a pulse.

  ‘It must have done…’ He broke off and groaned. ‘My leg really hurts. It feels like it does when you get a cramp when you’re swimming, only ten times worse.’

  ‘I think you might be suffering from something called compartment syndrome,’ Grace explained calmly, trying not to alarm him. There was no pulse in his ankle, which meant that his circulation had been severely compromised.

  ‘What’s that when it’s at home?’ Ian asked, grimacing.

  ‘It means that the muscles in your leg have swollen so much that the arteries are being compressed and the blood can’t pass through them.’

  ‘Well, whatever’s causing it, it bloody well hurts…’

  ‘I know,’ she soothed lightly. She stood up when Harry appeared and nodded towards the shed to indicate that she needed a word with him. He looked very grim after she finished telling him about her concerns.

  ‘If it is compartment syndrome, we need to get him to hospital a.s.a.p. or he could lose the leg.’

  ‘He could lose it anyway if there’s been sufficient necrosis,’ she pointed out. ‘What’s happening about that ambulance? Is it on its way?’

  ‘Yes, but there’s a problem, apparently. It can’t get up the hill because of the snow so it’s had to turn back. Ambulance Control wants us to ferry the injured down to the road and meet the paramedics there. They’re going to despatch a second ambulance because of the number of casualties.’

  ‘It’s all very well for them to suggest that but we have no idea how severe their injuries are. We can’t just stuff everyone into the car and hope for the best.’

  ‘I understand what you’re saying, Grace, but, realistically, what choice do we have? We can keep them here and hope the weather improves, which seems highly unlikely, or we can get them to the ambulances so they can be taken to hospital.’

  ‘It’s hardly ideal, though,’ she muttered, although she knew he was right. The longer treatment was delayed, the more danger Ben and his family would be in.

  ‘No, it isn’t ideal. And if I had a magic wand, I would conjure up a whole fleet of ambulances with snow-ploughs attached to their fronts and chains on their tyres, but I’m not that talented.’ He placed his hands on her shoulders and gave her a gentle shake. ‘We can’t perform magic, Grace, but we can do our level best to help these people. So are you willing to work with me and give it your very best shot?’

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  HARRY held his breath. It was vital that Grace saw the sense of what he was suggesting, although he knew it wasn’t the only reason he wanted her to agree. If she accepted that he was right about this, it could mean that she was willing to trust him. And that would mark a turning point in their relationship.

  ‘All right. As you say, I don’t think we have much choice.’

  It was hardly the most gracious capitulation but he was too buoyed up to argue about it. He smiled at her, unable to hide his delight. ‘Great.’

  He gave her shoulders a quick squeeze then stepped back before he got too carried away. She may have conceded that he was right to ferry the casualties to the ambulances, but it would be madness to make the mistake of thinking that she was ready to fall into his arms.

  ‘Can you fetch your car round here?’ he questioned, deeming it wiser to focus on the logistics of the exercise. ‘It will be easier than trying to move everyone over to where it’s parked.’

  ‘Of course.’ Grace turned away then paused. ‘We won’t be able to fit all three of them in at once so we need to decide who is the most seriously injured.’

  ‘It’s a tough call but I think Ian should be the first to go.’ Harry glanced at the young farmer. ‘The sooner something is done about that leg of his, the better.’

  ‘I agree. How about we take Ian and Jill, then? I doubt if we’ll be able to fit both the men in—they’re too big. We should be able to get Jill in as well as Ian, though.’

  ‘Sounds fine to me.’

  Harry didn’t waste time debating the issue. Someone would have to be left behind for now and it looked as though it was going to have to be Ben. He went over to young Steven as Grace hurried away, and crouched down beside him.

  ‘Dr Kennedy’s going to drive your mum and dad down to the main road. The ambulance can’t get up here because of the snow so we’re going to take them down in her car to meet it. I’ll stay here with your granddad and we’ll move him later.’

  ‘Can I go with them?’ Steven asked anxiously.

  ‘I can’t see why not. We should be able to squeeze you in somehow or other.’

  Harry stood up when Grace returned with the car. She parked beside them then jumped out and ran round to the back to open the tailgate.

  ‘I’ll drop the rear seats so we can lay Ian and Jill down flat in the back. They’ll be more comfortable that way.’

  ‘Good idea,’ Harry agreed, going over to help her.

  As soon as they had cleared enough space, they made their way to where Ian was lying. ‘Ian, we’re going to take you and Jill down to the main road,’ he explained. ‘The ambulance can’t get up here because of the snow so it’s the fastest way we can think of to get you both to hospital.’

  ‘Take my dad first,’ Ian protested, although it was obvious that he was in a great deal of pain.

  ‘It’s better if you go first,’ Grace said gently. ‘Your dad is quite badly injured, but he’s stable at the moment. Harry and I both feel that you need to get that leg seen to as soon as possible or you could lose it.’

  Ian blanched. ‘I didn’t realise it was that serious.’

  ‘It is, which is why we need you to work with us,’ Harry said firmly.

  He stood up and helped the younger man upright. With Grace’s help they managed to get Ian into the car. Harry sorted out some pain relief for him then they went to fetch Jill. She had recovered consciousness and looked very shaken when he explained what had happened.

  ‘Did you get an electric shock?’ he asked, once he was sure she understood what was going on.

  ‘No. I realised what had happened as soon as the lights went out so I switched the power off at the mains.’ She raised a tentative hand to her head. ‘I slipped on the ice as I was running across the yard and must have knocked myself out.’

  ‘Well, it must have been a hefty blow because you’ve been unconscious for a while. That means it’s very important that we get you to hospital so the doctors can check you over.’ He glanced at Steven and smil
ed. ‘Your son’s been a big help. He phoned the surgery and he’s been keeping an eye on you while we’ve been looking after the others. You should be really proud of him.’

  Jill’s eyes filled with tears as she squeezed her son’s hand. ‘I am.’

  ‘He’s done wonders,’ Grace concurred, taking a cervical collar out of her case and fitting it around Jill’s neck. ‘A lot of children would have panicked but Steven’s been really brave. He’s going to have a lot to tell his older brother.’

  Jill gasped. ‘Simon…I was supposed to pick him up from the swimming baths at four o’clock.’

  Harry glanced at his watch. ‘It’s gone four already. Is there anyone else who could collect him?’

  ‘My mother-in-law. She’s gone into the village to have her hair done. Could you phone the hairdresser’s and tell her what’s happened? I can’t remember the number but it should be in the phone book.’

  ‘Don’t worry. We’ll sort it all out,’ Grace assured her. She glanced at Harry. ‘How do you want to do this?’

  ‘I’d feel happier if Jill remained lying flat to minimise the risk in case there’s any spinal damage. Unfortunately, it means we’re going to have to carry her to the car.’ He turned to Steven. ‘What we need is some kind of a board to put under your mum. Is there anything in the sheds we could use?’

  ‘Yes. Dad made me a toy garage for Christmas and there was a big piece of wood left over.’ The boy jumped up. ‘I’ll show you where it is.’

  The piece of fibreboard was ideal for their purposes. With Steven’s help they managed to carry Jill to the car and place her alongside her husband. Harry helped the boy into the passenger seat then opened the driver’s door so Grace could get in.

  ‘Take your time going down that hill. It was bad enough when we drove up here, and it will be ten times worse now with all this snow.’