How much had she given up, he wondered, in caring for her brother over the years? There were no rings on her fingers, wedding, engagement or otherwise, he’d been relieved to see. But was he getting carried away by her sense of duty to a parentless youngster, or was it the attraction of the sexes that he had avoided ever since the nightmare of Katrina that was out to snare him?
The phone rang again and there was good news. The pleasure steamer had arrived safely in the harbour and after some repairs would soon be on its way again. Relieved, he went slowly up the stairs to bed but not before he’d glanced to where not so far away there was still a light on in Darcey’s apartment.
He wondered if she, like him, was going to put the evening down to a one-off, not to be repeated. There was still the memory of the hurt that a broken marriage brought with it as a warning and with that thought in mind he lifted the bedcovers and sought sleep.
* * *
In her own small abode Darcey was cringing at the thought of how she’d been so over-enthusiastic in her comments about the occasion that she’d found herself in, but it had been true. It had been heavenly to be wining and dining with a man for whom she had much respect for his work at Oceans House, and who was extremely attractive too, as that kind of situation had been almost non-existent before she’d changed her job for the delights of Seahaven.
Her position of ward sister in a local hospital had been just as demanding as the present one, and the rest of the time she’d spent trying to make up to Alexander for the loss of his parents, so that wining and dining with members of the opposite sex had been a rarity, hence her enthusiasm when she’d replied to Daniel’s invitation.
But now she was wishing she hadn’t been so forthcoming in her enjoyment of the occasion. It had made her sound naïve and had caused his lapse into silence that had continued until he had wished her goodnight on her doorstep and gone on his way.
The next time they met would be on the ward and she decided that when that happened she would show a restraint in her manner that couldn’t possibly offend.
She was on duty tomorrow but Daniel Osbourne was only on call on Sundays for emergencies that only he could deal with, so it would be Monday before they met again and the job would come before anything else as they nursed and healed the young ones in their care.
* * *
On his way to his usual Sunday meeting at the boathouse, Daniel halted as Oceans House came into sight, and with sudden determination he pointed himself towards its main entrance, knowing that he was about to act totally out of character, but he had to see his dining companion of the previous evening, if only for a few moments in which to tell her that he had enjoyed her company.
His assurance might sound trite after he’d ignored her pleasure on the occasion but, sweet and vulnerable, she was hurting from the lack of her brother’s company and he hadn’t helped by withdrawing into his shell to combat her enthusiasm, which had brought him onto the defensive.
Darcey was with a trainee nurse when he arrived at the ward, showing her the facilities available for the care of the young with orthopaedic problems and as the two of them moved to the bed nearest to the door she saw him standing there and her eyes widened in surprised dismay.
She appeared to be waiting for him to speak first and, taking the hint, Daniel said, ‘Just a word before I go to the Young Sailors’ Club, Sister Howard,’ and with a glance at the trainee nurse at her side, added, ‘It will only take a moment.’ Beckoning Darcey to follow, he went into the ward office and waited for her to come in.
When she’d closed the door behind her and was observing him warily he said, ‘I’ve stopped by for a moment to thank you for your company last night. I requested it without giving you any warning and have since felt that I could have been more sociable, so I do apologise. I feel sure that you would have been much happier in the company of my colleague, who is due back amongst us in a week’s time.’
Darcey wasn’t ready to present her new personality of restraint in his presence. He was a day too soon, and the vows that she’d made the night before when he’d gone on his way after their silent walk home from the restaurant were not going to see the light of day, she thought, not after that comment. She told him, ‘I am here to work, Mr Osbourne, not to find myself a man friend or lover, and if I were, the person you just mentioned would not be of my choosing. So now, if I may be excused, I am spending some time this morning with a trainee while the rest of the staff carry on as usual.’
Daniel stared at her, then nodded. ‘Fine,’ he said. ‘Proceed, by all means.’ As he watched her return to where she had been occupied he was aware of what he was missing in his determination never to be hurt again by a woman, and added to that Darcey Howard must think him an interfering bossyboots into the bargain.
But he had other matters to deal with in the next few hours that were separate from everything else in his life. They were different from any other thing he had ever done before and were in memory of his father, who had perished while saving the lives of others in a terrible storm.
He had lost his mother some time previously and he and his father had been very close, with both of them having a love of the sea, and he was getting used to the idea that the lighthouse just a mile up the coast and no longer in use, having served its purpose in bygone years, now belonged to him for whatever purpose he had in mind. It stood on a clifftop like a lonely guardian angel and there was the desire in him to bring it back to life in some way, which he hadn’t yet decided upon, that would be a tribute to his father.
Up to the previous night he’d thought that a woman’s perspective might be worth seeking with regard to his plans for the derelict building, but the opportunity hadn’t materialised so far, and now that he and Darcey were at odds with each other, he felt it would be better to avoid the issue and stick to their doctor-nurse relationship. But it wasn’t going to prevent him from being curious with regard to her fully booked-up Christmas if she wasn’t chummy with Brendan Stokes after all.
CHAPTER FOUR
IT WAS OLD and neglected, Daniel thought as he surveyed the lighthouse keenly, but in a beautiful position. It had promise, and with some thought and expense could be transformed into a few things in its position high up on the cliffs.
He was going to rename it after his father Mark Osbourne, who had put the safety of others before his own, and he took detailed notes regarding the repairs needed as he walked slowly back along the top of the cliffs deep in thought, until he came to where the Sunday afternoon meeting of the Young Sailors’ Club was in progress and put the challenge of the lighthouse out of his mind for the time being.
* * *
As the day progressed Darcey was finding it hard to forget their brief exchange of words in the ward office but she was not repentant. She’d had very few friendships with the opposite sex because of her responsibilities to Alexander and had never been bowled over by anyone she’d met.
But from the moment of their meeting on the train she’d been so aware of Daniel Osbourne it was like a bright light in the midst of darkness, and that he should have coupled her with someone like Brendan Stokes had been mortifying, to say the least.
Maybe she’d been expecting too much in her new-found freedom from caring for Alex, she thought. Daniel was the top orthopaedic surgeon in the hospital, she was a ward sister, and they lived very different lives. But as the last few moments of a busy day presented themselves she thought rebelliously that she didn’t need to have someone to take her to a nice restaurant if she wanted to dine there.
She decided she would go to the place where they’d dined the previous night on her own and if by any chance the man on her mind turned up, she would give him a Mona Lisa smile and continue to enjoy the food brought to her in all its excellence.
That thought died a death when a friendly waiter stopped by her table and commented, ‘Your friend the doctor won’t be joining you ton
ight, will he? We’ve been told that the lifeboat is out there and it’s mighty rough.’
‘And Daniel Osbourne is on it?’ she questioned with her mouth dry and the food on her plate losing its appeal.
‘Well, yes,’ she was told. ‘He’s taken his father’s place and in spite of all the demands of his work at Oceans House he never hesitates when he’s asked to turn out with it. He is highly respected in these parts.’
‘Yes, he must be,’ she murmured, and asked for the bill with the urge to be some place where she could be alone while it registered how much she cared about him. Their skirmish earlier in the day was as nothing when she faced up to how much he was always in her thoughts.
She’d never been in love before and wasn’t sure she really was in love now, or so she told herself as she went out into the cold night and pointed herself towards her small residence.
But once inside she couldn’t settle and within moments was out again and was battling against strong winds towards the harbour, where relatives of the lifeboat crew and interested spectators were gathered with their gazes on the distant skyline for a glimpse of any sign of activity, but as yet there was none, and a group of Daniel’s young trainees were huddled together in silent apprehension.
An elderly woman, with a calm that spoke of many such occasions, was passing round hot drinks that were being gratefully accepted by the watchers, and when she stopped beside Darcey she said, ‘You have the look of somebody who has not seen this kind of thing before. Am I right?’
‘Yes,’ she said slowly. ‘I’m a nurse from Oceans House and it is terrifying.
‘What kind of situation has the lifeboat been called out to?’
‘A couple of yachts with inexperienced crews have been caught unawares. If they manage to bring them back you might find some of them brought to the hospital if Daniel sees the need.’
At that moment a crew member who had stayed behind to keep in touch with the coastguard called, ‘They’ve been spotted! Our crew have found them. One of the yachts has sunk and two of its crew were in the water when they got there, but they’ve hauled them aboard the lifeboat and are towing the one that’s left. If they have no further problems they should be here soon.’
A couple of ambulances had arrived with their crews at the ready for possible casualties, and there were agonising moments that followed with Darcey not wanting Daniel to see her amongst those waiting for their return, but neither did she want to leave the scene until she had seen for herself that he was safely back on dry land.
So she waited until a cheer went up and as the rescue vessel came into sight, towing the remaining yacht behind it, with Daniel in full view she went, walking fast along the promenade where some of the restaurants and bars were still serving customers, unaware of the drama that had been unfolding at the end where the harbour was situated.
Darcey hadn’t wanted to leave the scene there, yet neither had she wanted Daniel to see her amongst the crowd after their early morning exchange of words that had still been rankling. But as she went inside and locked the door behind her there was a great well of thankfulness inside her that was wiping out every thought except relief.
* * *
The ambulances had gone, taking both crews of the yachts to the town’s main hospital to be checked over, and their arrival hadn’t caused a great deal of surprise as the bay where Oceans House was situated was the source of a popular yachting competition every spring and those intending to enter were out in all weathers, practising before the event.
Back at the harbour there was the relief for the lifeboat crew of returning safely to hot soup, specially made by Bridget, to take away the chill of the last few hours, and on Daniel’s part amazement to hear from her that one of the nurses from Oceans House had been there tense and concerned for their safety and his in particular.
‘What was she like?’ he asked. ‘Did she say who she was?’
‘Er...no, and I didn’t think to ask,’ Bridget told him. ‘She was blonde with blue eyes that were filled with horror at the seriousness of what was happening, yet she went as soon as she knew that you were all safe.’
‘I see,’ he commented thoughtfully and asked himself if it was wishful thinking on his part that the first name that came to mind was that of Darcey Howard, though he had been so abrupt with her earlier that morning it was highly unlikely that she would have been concerning herself about him.
Unlike the night before, there was no pleasure to be had in knocking on her door. Neither was there any at the thought of returning to the peace of his apartment with its quiet comforts, as along with his verbal trespasses in her life he was tired.
It had been rough and dangerous out there in the bay, and on their return he’d been the only one of the crew who hadn’t had an anxious relative waiting to welcome them back to safety, as he kept his lifeboat excursions as private as possible from Cordelia and her husband. Having lost the father she loved, he had no wish to cause his sister any further grief.
The only happy occasion that the day had brought had been his visit to the lighthouse that now belonged to him, and Daniel’s last thought before he slept was that if she would let him, Darcey would be the first person to know about his recent purchase and it would be interesting to see her reaction.
* * *
On Monday morning Darcey gave Daniel a tentative smile that was tinged with the relief she was experiencing on seeing him his usual businesslike self when he was on the wards. She could cope with that where waiting for his return from the turbulent sea had been torture, especially so as she’d had no experience of that sort of thing before.
She’d gone before he had actually stepped on dry land because the last thing she’d wanted had been for him to think that she was making a nuisance of herself, and all the way back to her flat Darcey had been questioning silently how the families of the lifeboat crew coped on such occasions. The elderly lady stoically handing out refreshments to those who waited anxiously for their return had been very welcome.
* * *
There had been two fresh admissions to the children’s ward that morning, a small boy with a fracture of his elbow and a teenage girl who had become unseated while horse riding, and as Daniel examined them Darcey felt that her world was righting itself after the traumas of the day before.
‘Looking at the X-Rays that have been taken, it is plain to see that young Harry’s elbow is fractured so I’ll get that sorted first as he has more damage to contend with than Ruby. Hopefully her neck will react to massage and heat to take away the pain. And, Sister, if we manage to get a lunch hour there is something I’d like to show you.’ And off he went, leaving her to wonder what on earth he had meant by that.
She was more nervous in his company now than at any time since their meeting on the train that first day. She was so aware of him when he was near that she could hardly breathe and she had no idea what he could possibly want to show her.
It was a busy Monday morning for them both with regard to the children’s ward, with Daniel setting Harry’s elbow and then stabilising it in a cast, and afterwards instructing the nursing staff with Darcey in charge regarding the treatment for Ruby.
She had given up on finding time for a lunch hour, even though everything was in control on the ward, and was not expecting to see Daniel again, but he surprised her by appearing at the ward door and beckoning her across.
‘Have you eaten?’ he asked.
‘Er...no, not yet,’ she told him. ‘I was just going to have a sandwich that I brought with me.’
‘Would you be happy to eat it in the car?’ was his next question.
‘We need only be gone for a short time and after such a busy morning the staff will expect you to take a break.’
‘Yes, all right,’ she said, mystified, and went to get her coat.
* * *
They had driven past the harbour and the You
ng Sailors’ Club and were now moving along the road at the top of the cliffs, with Darcey completely bewildered by what was happening, until Daniel stopped the car outside a disused lighthouse that incredibly had a sign outside that said ‘Sold’. As she turned to face him in complete disbelief he said, ‘You are looking at the new owner,’ and glancing at his watch he added, ‘There is just time for me to show you round before we return to Oceans House.’
As she walked slowly around the derelict building Darcey was speechless as she observed its condition, until finally, on the point of leaving, she gasped, ‘Why?’
Daniel smiled. ‘I can understand why you ask me that. A lot of other folk will be doing the same thing and the answer is that I’m going to have the whole place renovated in memory of my dad.’
‘Ah, yes. I see,’ she said gently. ‘That I can understand. I think it’s a lovely idea. If I can help in any way you have only to ask.’
‘You were the one whose comments I wanted to hear,’ he told her, ‘as from what you’ve told me of your life so far it would seem that it has been one of giving rather than taking. And now I’m going to drive you back to where we belong.’
He wanted to ask if she had been amongst the crowd awaiting the return of the lifeboat the night before, but felt that today’s gesture had been enough.
There was no way he wanted to give Darcey any wrong impressions.
But Darcey had a question to ask as they drove the short distance back to the hospital, and it was to be expected. ‘Do your sister and her husband know about your plans for the lighthouse?’ she asked.
‘No,’ he said firmly. ‘I will tell Cordelia and Lawrence when it is done and ready for viewing. She wouldn’t approve of its present condition one bit, but when she sees that it is named the Mark Osbourne Lighthouse she will be pleased, so I’d be obliged if you don’t mention what I’m up to if you should happen to be in conversation with her again.’
The Shy Nurse's Christmas Wish Page 5