Life Begins at 40- Jersey Jaunt

by Bethan Lewis

  ‘Feeling a little delicate today are you?’ Kath said sympathetically. ‘You’re not the only one. I don’t think I have been that bad since my teenage years.’

  ‘Me either, but it was fun,’ Erin said and the couple nodded in agreement. ‘Enjoy your day, you two. Catch you later.’

  Erin headed down the promenade towards the town centre. It was Sunday afternoon, but the roads were still busy with sightseers milling about. The day was overcast, threatening rain and a few degrees cooler than previous days, and Erin wished she had remembered to bring a jacket.

  As she strolled down the high street, she happened upon a café and went inside, eager to warm up. By the window, an empty table covered with a red and white checked tablecloth beckoned her, and she sat down and scanned the menu.

  ‘What can I get you?’ asked a young girl wearing a yellow apron and holding a notebook in her hand. .

  ‘A mug of tea and a bacon and egg sandwich please.’ Hangover food. Just what the doctor ordered.

  While she waited, Erin picked up a newspaper discarded by a previous customer and absently skimmed through the pages. Wait a minute. Turning back to the previous page, Erin examined the photograph which had caught her eye. A group of well-dressed people were standing either side of the Lord Mayor. The mayor was shaking the hand of a dark-haired man. Erin recognised the face instantly. Dan. Why was Dan in the paper shaking hands with the mayor? Curious she started reading the article.

  Lord Mayor opens new burns unit at general hospital Jersey.

  Lord Mayor, John Castle has carried out the official opening of a new burns and plastic surgery unit at the general hospital in Jersey.

  Construction on the unit started in late August 2017 and was completed on time and under budget. The opening of the unit is the result of hard work and dedication, and marks the beginning of a new phase for the hospital as it seeks to become one of the worlds renowned hospitals for burns, accident and cancer victims.

  The new unit consists of twelve beds, and will be run by two specialist consultants and twenty-two nurses. It will cater for both in-patients and out-patients.

  Consultant Daniel Edbridge, a renowned expert in the field of plastic surgery, and the driving force behind the development is one of the chief benefactors.

  ‘Today is a special day, not just for me, but for the whole of the island. Having this unit will make a lot of difference to the patients who currently have to be transferred across the channel. I am proud of everyone who gave up their valuable time to make this achievable. This is a dream come true.’ Mr Edbridge said.

  Elizabeth Jones head of the hospital trust said, ‘This is a turning point for the citizens of Jersey. Our aim has always been to provide excellent care for our patients, and I am delighted that we now have the opportunity to go further and can offer more facilities. I wish everyone involved success for the future.’

  Erin sat back completely stunned. She had got him wrong. So wrong. She was ashamed of her behaviour and what she had said to him. Now she had two options: 1. Play dumb and carry on as if she knew nothing, or 2. Apologise. She wasn’t a fan of option two, but it was the right thing to do. He was a decent guy after all, and had dedicated his life to helping others, and to do that he had to be commended. Re-reading the article Erin didn’t notice the approach of the waitress.

  ‘Excuse me?’ a voice said impatiently at her side.

  Erin stared blankly at the waitress, who indicated the plate then the table. Coming to, Erin moved the newspaper, and as the girl put down the plate the whiff of bacon wafted up and Erin’s mouth watered.

  ‘Thank you,’ Erin said as the girl walked away.

  Erin bit into the sandwich with vigour. The smoky tang of the bacon accosted her taste-buds, and she moaned in delight. This was, without a doubt the best sandwich she had ever eaten.

  With her lunch devoured, she contemplated whether it would be greedy to order another, but deciding against it, Erin drained her mug of tea and got to her feet. She tucked the folded newspaper into her bag, paid the bill and hurried back to the hotel. She had to find Dan and apologise.

  Smartly dressed in a dark blue uniform, a young man who she hadn’t seen before, sat behind the reception desk. His lips lifted a little as she approached, but the smile didn’t quite reach his eyes, and his manner was stiff and formal.

  ‘Good afternoon madam. Can I be of assistance?’ he said.

  Madam? Was she old enough to be classed as a madam? ‘I was wondering if Mr Edbridge is in his room. I am not sure what number he is staying in.’

  ‘Sorry, but I cannot disclose any information about our guests,’ he said stiffly

  ‘I am an acquaintance of his,’ Erin pleaded.

  ‘Yes, I am sure you are,’ the receptionist looked her up and down, ‘just like all the others.’

  ‘Please, it is important,’ Erin begged as her mind went into overdrive. Others? What others? Did women come to the hotel on a regular basis looking for Dan? A pang of jealousy shot through her.

  ‘Sorry madam, but I cannot give you his room number.’

  ‘Can you ring his room for me then? Tell him to come and meet me here.’

  ‘Okay, I can do that.’

  The young man picked up the phone, but not before Erin had seen him roll his eyes. He dialled and waited for Dan to pick up. Erin drummed her fingers on the desk impatiently until the receptionist turned and shot her a look that said, ‘If you don’t stop I will hurt you.’

  ‘There is no answer in his room. If you want to leave a message, I will be sure to pass it on.’

  Erin shook her head, doubting that any message she left would make it to Dan. ‘No, thanks for trying. I will catch him later.’

  Erin went up to her room, still wondering who these other women were that called for Dan.

  Why shouldn’t he have admirers, he was handsome and according to the newspaper article, extremely wealthy. She didn’t blame any woman for trying their luck with him. She’d had her chance and blown it, but it didn’t stop her being jealous though, the thought of him being with another woman bothered her more than it should.

  ‘Oh this is silly,’ Erin said aloud to the empty room. ‘We went on one date, and that didn’t last a whole evening. Forget about him.’

  But for all she tried, she couldn’t erase him from her mind. Erin sighed, she needed to talk this through with her friend, Megan always knew what to say and do. She turned on the laptop and put through the call. The dial tone rung and rung until eventually Erin gave up trying, obviously no one was home.

  A glimmer of white on the desk caught her eye. Dan’s business card. Erin picked it up, should she call him? Nervously twirling the card she reached for her phone, started dialling, then lost her nerve and pressed the reject button. A brief memory came flooding back from the previous night; she had her mobile in her hand, and she was texting. Who had she messaged? Her stomach knotted in dread as she scrolled through the phone. Staring back at her was a message to Dan.

  “I am sorry. Let’s be friends again (or more than friends if you want).”

  Erin covered her face with her hands, this was worse than anything she had ever done before. How was she ever going to face him again? Alcohol was pure evil.

  ‘I am never drinking again,’ she vowed.

  A jingling sound penetrated the silent room, startling her. Leaping on top of the bed she hit the connect button on the laptop.

  ‘Hey Meg. How’s everything back home?’

  ‘Hi, all okay here. How are things with Doctor Dan? You never did ring and tell me about your date.’

  ‘Oh God Meg. I am so stupid,’ Erin wailed dramatically.

  Megan laughed, ‘Come on, things can’t be that bad.’

  ‘They are worse than bad. All he did was try to help me, and I treated him appallingly. He is never going to forgive me.’

  ‘I think you had better start from the beginning.’

  ‘We went out for dinner the other night, all was going well unti
l I asked him about his job. He’s a plastic surgeon. All I could think about was boob jobs, liposuction and botox. I ridiculed what he did. He retaliated by saying I needed work doing, I lost my temper and stormed out of the restaurant.’

  Megan struggled to keep a straight face, but it was too much, she burst out laughing.

  ‘It is not funny Meg! How would you react if someone told you that you needed your wrinkles and cellulite sorting out?’

  Meg doubled over and laughed harder. ‘Oh come on, where is your sense of humour? It’s funny, maybe not at the time, but even you have to laugh about it now.’

  Meg’s laughter was infectious and Erin relaxed and started laughing too. Holding her stomach, she laughed until tears were streaming down her face. She hated to admit it, but once again Meg was right, perhaps she had overreacted a tad.

  ‘So, have you seen or spoken to him since that night?’

  ‘Yes, a few times. The conversation is polite “Hello, how are you, goodbye” that sort of thing. He keeps saying I am wrong about him, and after what I found out today I think he might be right.’

  ‘Ooh, sounds intriguing. What did you find out?’

  Erin held the newspaper up to the screen. ‘Can you make the article out?’

  ‘Yes I can see it clearly. What am I supposed to be looking at?’

  ‘The picture with the mayor; the man shaking the mayor’s hand is Dan.’

  ‘Wow! He is gorgeous,’ Meg exclaimed, her eyes widening in admiration. ‘If I was single and a man like him showed some interest in me, I wouldn’t push him away.’

  ‘The article states he is a top consultant, specialising in treating burns and accident victims. He partially funded the new unit in the local hospital.’

  ‘So he is rich as well as handsome.’

  ‘I am not interested in his money,’ Erin stated firmly. ‘How do I fix this? Help me please.’

  ‘Money is an important factor,’ Meg carried on oblivious to the Erin’s last question.

  ‘Meg please! Focus. I don’t know what to do. I am only here for another week and will probably never see him again, but I don’t want to leave with him thinking badly of me.’

  ‘Can’t you go and apologise?’ Meg said. ‘There are two possible outcomes. One, he forgives you, and two he doesn’t. And if he doesn’t accept your apology then more fool him, forget him and move on, there are plenty more fish in the sea as the saying goes.’

  ‘You think it is that simple? Just seek him out and say sorry?’ Erin asked and Meg nodded. ‘I don’t know if I can after last night.’

  ‘What happened?’

  ‘I got a little tipsy…okay I was drunk, very drunk. I text him saying sorry and said we could be friends… or more if he wanted.’

  ‘What did he say?’

  ‘Nothing. That’s the most humiliating part, he didn’t respond at all.’

  ‘He probably guessed you were inebriated. You need to swallow your pride and make the first move, apologise in person.’ Meg smiled. ‘Come on, I can tell you like him. For all you know, he might be “the one”. And who says you will never meet him again, Britain isn’t that big. Plenty of people make situations like this work.’

  Erin sighed, ‘You are right again. How did you become so smart? You should be a counsellor.’

  Meg laughed, ‘Oh good heavens no! Can’t think of anything worse than sitting around all day listening to other people’s problems. I can do it with you because you are my friend, and I care about you and want you to be happy.’

  ‘I appreciate you more than you know,’ Erin smiled. ‘So enough about me, what is going on with you? How is the job hunting going?’

  They spent the next half hour catching up on gossip until Meg announced she had to go. Long after Meg’s face had disappeared, Erin sat gazing at the blank screen. Thoughts were whirling around her head. She wouldn’t seek Dan out, but the next time she bumped into him she would set the record straight. Admitting she was wrong about something was not an easy thing to do, but she would swallow her pride and find the courage to apologise.

  Coming back to the present she pulled out her notebook; what was next on her bucket list?

  Chapter 13

  ‘I would like to hire a car please,’ Erin announced to the man at the car rental place.

  It had been a while since she had last driven, but Erin was certain that it was just like riding a bicycle; it wasn’t something you forgot once you learnt how to do it. Or so she hoped anyway.

  The man, dressed in a blue shirt and black trousers, brushed a hand through his grey-streaked blonde hair and sighed as he put down the newspaper he was reading.

  ‘Of course. What kind of vehicle do you require?’ he asked in a gruff voice.

  Erin stared blankly at him. What sort of vehicle? One with four wheels and a steering wheel, she thought, not voicing her thoughts aloud.

  ‘Um, I am not sure. Something small,’ Erin said, remembering what Bob and Kath had told her about the roads.

  ‘How many days do you want to rent it for?’

  ‘Three days,’ Erin had planned out her week in detail, and there were only a few places she wanted to visit.

  ‘Manual or automatic?’ Stanley asked. Erin had spotted a name tag on his shirt.

  Erin pondered on the question and decided that as it had been so long since she had driven, an automatic would be easier to drive. She wanted to enjoy her day trips, not get overly stressed out.

  ‘Automatic please.’

  ‘I need your driving license and passport, if you have them with you.’

  They finished filling out the paperwork, and then Stanley, carrying his clipboard, escorted her out to the car lot. He walked around a small, red hatchback, and marked down on the diagram any scratches or dents which marred the bodywork. Then he opened the door and explained the controls to her.

  ‘Right, all done,’ Stan said as he handed her the keys. ‘Enjoy. Any problems then give us a ring. Breakdown details are in the folder in the glove compartment, but I don’t foresee any glitches, the car has recently been serviced.’

  He closed the door and patted the top of the car, then walked back to the office. Probably going to finish his paper, Erin thought as she inserted the key in the ignition. The engine fired up and after putting on her seat belt, Erin dug out the leaflet for the war tunnels and entered the postcode into the sat nav. She familiarised herself with the interior, then took the handbrake off and touched her foot to the accelerator. The car surged forward at such speed it startled her. Easing off the peddle she pressed down on the brake. The vehicle stopped suddenly, throwing her against the steering wheel, and the seat belt dug painfully into her abdomen.

  ‘This is going to take some practice,’ she said aloud. ‘Come on Erin, you can do this.’

  Tapping the accelerator lightly the car juddered forward, and she pulled out of the lot, relieved the rental place was situated on a quiet back road. The car jerked forward and back, shaking her about inside, but by the time she reached the end of the road she was driving a bit more smoothly.

  ‘Take the next right.’ A female voice instructed from the sat nav, and Erin turned on to the main road which ran parallel to the coastline. Ten minutes later, Erin was more relaxed and quite enjoying her little jaunt. She had been right, driving wasn’t something you forgot.

  It was another fine day, the sky was blue with not a cloud in sight. The sun was high and shone brightly through the glass. Temperatures were already in the mid-twenties, and the air inside the car was stifling. Erin wound down the windows and a fresh breeze floated in, cooling the oppressive air. Reaching into her bag which was placed on the passenger seat, she plucked out her sunglasses and as she perched them on her nose she sighed with relief, as they instantly blocked the sun’s glare.

  ‘Go round the roundabout and take the second exit.’

  Erin followed the directions and turned off the coastal road on to a smaller, quieter one that ran through the countryside. Trees and hedgerows
replaced the sea-view. The enormous expensive seaside houses faded away and quaint, stone-clad cottages and farms took their place.

  So far so good, she thought, continuing to obey the navigation systems instructions, until it occurred to her that she had been driving for far longer than she needed to. Google had said the tunnels were a fifteen-minute drive, but she had been on the road for almost half an hour. Shouldn’t she be there by now?

  ‘Turn left’ the sat nav dictated.

  Erin complied then stared dubiously out of the windscreen. The road, if you could call it that, was extremely narrow. She persevered slowly, hoping that nothing was going to come in the opposite direction. The road narrowed further and Erin held her breath, then giggled at the absurdness; the car was not going to shrink in size if she breathed in. Bang. Erin jumped in shock as the wing mirror caught the wall. ‘Crap, that was going to cost her,’ she thought in dismay.

  The smooth tarmac gradually disappeared and was replaced by a bumpy track. Weeds, over a foot in height, lined the sides of the lane and grass grew up the middle of the tarmac. Erin continued at a snail’s pace, still reliant on the sat navs directions, but the further she drove the worse the track got and eventually she was crawling along at five miles an hour. By now the lane was completely overgrown and Erin decided to stop the car. This had to be the wrong way, even though the navigation system was still telling her to drive straight ahead. It had obviously gotten confused and sent her up a wrong turning.

  ‘Stupid modern technology,’ she said aloud, as she put the car in reverse and stepped on the accelerator. Loose chippings and clumps of mud flew into the air as the wheels spun, but the car didn’t budge. ‘Oh for goodness sake!’

  Panicked, Erin tried again, this time the car inched backwards. The process was slow and unnerving as she realised a ditch ran parallel to the lane on one side. Brambles scraped the side of the car, and the high-pitched squeal was deafening inside the vehicle. Erin winced, this was going to affect her damage claim.