‘You could have killed us both,’ she said.
‘I know. And I gave myself one hell of a fright. You woke me up, Laura. To coin a phrase of Jess’s, you forced me to take my head out of my arse long enough to see what was really happening around me. And seeing how you’d picked yourself up, dusted yourself off and got on with it after what had happened, it left me speechless.’
‘I still have my moments, but I know I’m all right.’
The fridge rattled to life. It was stuffy in the house after being shut up for three days. Laura licked her lips.
‘I need a drink of water,’ she said. He tightened his grip on her hands, stopping her from getting up.
‘I need to know, Laura. Where does this leave us? Was I right to hope?’
She glanced down to where their hands were intertwined, just how she’d wanted them to be. She looked into his eyes. ‘I love you, Jake, but you hurt me when you walked out like you did.’
She stood up and this time he let her fingers slip out of his.
‘Laura, please forgive me. I know how much you’ve already lost,’ he said, his voice ragged. ‘You were the last person I ever wanted to hurt.’
She took two bottles of water out of the fridge, handed him one, cracked the lid on hers.
‘Tell me, what exactly were you hoping for? For us?’
He fiddled with the bottle in his hand. ‘You and me, here,’ he said and gave the house an encompassing scan. ‘I’d help Jess with the farm, you’d work, and if you wanted me to I could help you finish the renovations. I want to make it work, Laura.’
‘I’m not sure how long I’ll stay in Potters Junction. Milt Burns isn’t well and I’ve promised him I’ll stay for three months. I don’t know what I’ll do after that. There’s my job in Adelaide, my house.’
‘Laura, I love you. I know we’ll be able to make this work, no matter what happens. And I promise, no more secrets.’
She regarded him for several long moments.
‘Please don’t ever stop talking to me, Jake. I do love you, and I want what’s between us to work, more than anything. But now? Well, I’m hot, thirsty and so tired.’ She swallowed down half the bottle of water, wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. Then she studied him through narrowed eyes.
‘Do you think it’s too early to go to bed?’ she said and raised her eyebrows. A slow grin spread over his face.
‘No, not at all, I’m feeling a bit tired myself,’ he said and faked a yawn. He carefully placed his bottle of water on the table, took hers and put it down beside his. He opened his arms and she willingly went into them.
Thank you again, Ali Watts and Clementine Edwards at Penguin Random House, for your ongoing guidance and advice. A special thank you to Dr Alison Edwards for taking time out of your busy schedule to read and provide feedback. To my family for believing in me, especially my sister, Sandra Watson, who’s been there beside me every step of the way. To my friends and writing colleagues, life is far richer because of you. And to my readers, thank you all from the bottom of my heart!
MICHAEL JOSEPH
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Penguin Books is part of the Penguin Random House group of companies
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First published by Penguin Group (Australia), 2016
Text copyright © Meredith Appleyard 2016
The moral right of the author has been asserted.
All rights reserved. Without limiting the rights under copyright reserved above, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise), without the prior written permission of both the copyright owner and the above publisher of this book.
Design by Grace West © Penguin Group (Australia)
Cover photographs: female by Roger Richter/Corbis; hospital background by lenetstan/Shutterstock; rural landscape by robertharding/Corbis; male by Dean Pictures/Corbis;
sky by vichie81/Shutterstock; stethoscope by piotr_pabijan/Shutterstock.
penguin.com.au
ISBN: 978-1-76014-207-0
THE BEGINNING
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The Doctor Calling Page 32