‘Oh, they laugh,’ he said wryly. ‘Every time they laugh.’
‘So try me,’ she said. ‘I promise I won’t laugh. Neither will I tell.’
He was silent for a moment, as if hesitating over whether to tell her or not. It was a misty, autumn morning and to the accompaniment of distant church bells they had tramped for miles across fields damp with dew before entering the splendid silence of the woods where all around the trees were turning to glorious shades of gold, russet and copper.
‘Let me try and guess,’ she said playfully at last, tugging at his hand.
‘Go on, then.’ His eyes were serious but a smile played around the corners of his mouth.
‘Well, I know it begins with H,’ she began slowly.
‘How do you know that?’ He sounded indignant and she laughed.
‘I just do, that’s all. Let me see—is it Horace?’
‘Of course not.’
‘Oh, well.’ She shrugged. That put paid to Elaine’s theory. ‘How about Hannibal?’
‘No!’ He gave a barely disguised shudder.
‘Hamish, then, or Horatio or Hornblower.’
He didn’t answer and she flashed him a quick look. ‘Am I right?’ she demanded. ‘Is it one of those? Hornblower?’
‘Not Hornblower.’ He shook his head. ‘And I have to say I wouldn’t have minded if it was Hamish.’
‘Horatio?’ She raised her eyebrows and he nodded miserably.
‘Oh, but, Casey…’ She stopped, forcing him to do the same. When he turned to face her she took his other hand and looked up at him. ‘There’s nothing wrong with Horatio. It’s a fine, noble name—the name of a hero!’
‘You try explaining that to a classroom full of boys when you have to call out your name,’ he said gloomily.
‘How did it come about?’ she asked.
‘My mother had a thing about Nelson and Lady Hamilton.’
‘I think that’s incredibly romantic.’
‘OK.’ He shrugged, then with a scowl added, ‘Just as long as you carry on calling me Casey.’
‘Of course I will.’ Reaching up, Adele wound her arms around his neck. His kiss as his lips met hers was gentle, full of tenderness, then as passion flared between them, consuming them in a fierce sense of urgency, it grew deeper and more demanding.
That night for the first time they made love. After returning from their walk, Casey cooked supper for them both in his apartment then they lay together on the sofa, listening to music. They had both known all day what was going to happen and when at last, much later, he stood up and, taking her hand, led her to his bedroom it was with a satisfying sense of inevitability. He undressed her slowly in that calm, unhurried way that she had come to associate with him, savouring each moment as if each action and its revelation were precious beyond price. When she was naked he discarded his own clothes, but rapidly this time, letting them fall to the floor before joining her on the bed.
His love-making was passionate and exciting, just as Adele had imagined it might be, arousing her to fever pitch then showing a tender restraint that rendered her almost helpless with impatience.
‘We have all night,’ he murmured once, and she was forced to wait.
Finally he took her to a place she had never been, from a plateau of longing and desire to a pinnacle of unutterable fulfilment before a long, slow, shuddering descent to reality.
She knew she called his name then clung to him in the darkness, almost sobbing with relief before finally drifting into a deep, dreamless sleep.
In the morning when Adele awoke to bright sunlight she couldn’t for a moment think where she was. As memory came flooding back she turned her head, but Casey was no longer beside her. Suddenly she felt bereft, but even as she wondered he came into the bedroom wearing a white towelling robe and bearing two mugs of tea on a tray.
‘Good morning.’ His gaze met hers.
‘Hello,’ she said almost shyly, as she suddenly recalled her uninhibited demands of the night before. She sat up, pushing her hair back from her face.
‘I trust you slept well.’ He sat beside her, passing her one of the mugs.
‘Oh, yes.’ She smiled, sipping her tea. It was hot and sweet, exactly the way she liked it.
‘I just have time for this,’ he said, sipping his own tea, ‘then I have a call-out.’
‘Do you?’ She was disappointed. She’d been hoping he would get back into bed so that they could maybe enjoy another half-hour or so together before going down to the surgery.
‘Yes, Maudie isn’t too well. I just had a call from Flo. I told her I’d go before surgery.’
‘OK.’ She set her mug down on the bedside table and stretched. ‘Do you want me to come with you?’
‘No.’ He grinned then gently touched her cheek. ‘You get yourself sorted out.’
He was gone almost before she knew it. One moment he was there beside her and it seemed the next he was dressed and gone and she was alone in his apartment. But wasn’t that what being a doctor entailed? Wouldn’t it always be like that, with one or the other of them constantly at the beck and call of the public? With a little sigh Adele finished her tea then slipped out of bed and headed for the shower.
She had a busy day ahead of her. Jeanette was due back at work following the news that Lara hadn’t suffered any brain damage, so she would need to go through all the notes of the patients she had seen in Jeanette’s absence. And as if that wasn’t enough, Edward had said he wanted a couple of days off so she would be covering his surgeries as well.
The day proved to be every bit as hectic as she had feared and it seemed to set the pattern for the remainder of that week. She and Casey snatched moments together whenever they could, but their special time continued to be the nights, which they spent in one or the other of their flats.
One evening when briefly she was alone Adele had a call from her sister.
‘Lainey!’ she exclaimed when she heard her sister’s voice. ‘I’ve been meaning to call you, but somehow I just don’t seem to have got round to it. How are you?’
‘I’m fine,’ her sister replied brightly. Too brightly, thought Adele, who knew her very well. ‘More to the point, how are you?’
‘Yes, er, pretty good. What’s wrong, Lainey?’
‘What do you mean, what’s wrong?’ Elaine sounded indignant now, on the defensive.
‘Well, I always know when there’s something wrong, so you might as well get it over and tell me what it is.’
She heard her sister’s sigh. ‘Well, actually…yes, you’re right, there is something. I might as well tell you because you’ll find out sooner or later anyway. There’s not really any easy way of saying this…’
‘Oh, do get on with it, Lainey,’ said Adele impatiently. ‘You’re getting me really worried now. It isn’t Mum, is it?’
‘No, no, it isn’t Mum. Nothing like that,’ said Elaine hastily. ‘It’s just that there’s an announcement in this morning’s Times about Nigel’s marriage. Apparently he and Lucinda were married a week ago.’
‘Nigel?’ Adele said coolly, and she surprised even herself at just how coolly. ‘Nigel who?’
There was silence from the other end of the line and Adele found herself smiling as she imagined her sister’s expression.
‘Well, Nigel.’ Elaine sounded bewildered now. ‘Your Nigel, of course.’
‘He isn’t my Nigel.’
‘Well, no, I know he isn’t now but, well, he was, wasn’t he?’ The indignant note was back in Elaine’s voice.
‘Yes, Lainey, he was,’ agreed Adele. ‘But that’s history now. I wish him well—he and Lucinda were made for each other.’
‘Well.’ Elaine sounded astonished. ‘That’s very generous of you, I’m sure. I don’t think I could have been so charitable under the circumstances…unless…Del, do I detect the presence of another man in your life?’ she demanded suddenly.
‘How did you guess?’ Adele chuckled.
Elaine gave a shri
ek and Adele nearly dropped the phone. ‘Oh, wonderful!’ she cried. ‘Who is it? No, don’t tell me, let me guess. Is it that hunky trainer of yours—the one with the leathers and the motorbike?’
‘Right first time,’ said Adele dryly, but her heart had leapt at even her sister’s description of Casey.
‘Oh, Del, I’m so happy for you!’ Elaine was almost babbling now. ‘So, do you think this is it?’ she asked eagerly.
‘Oh, I hope so, Lainey,’ Adele replied. ‘I do hope so because I’ve never been so happy in all my life.’
It was perfectly true what Adele had told her sister. She had never been so happy before. Casey had added a new dimension to her life, showing her a love of depth and tenderness that she hadn’t even touched on with Nigel. In spite of their agreement to keep their relationship as lowkey as possible in front of the other members of staff, Adele’s radiance must have been only too obvious to those around her. To her delight Penny’s and Toby’s romance also seemed to be flourishing.
‘This love lark must be catching,’ muttered Cheryl one morning in Reception.
‘Oh, I hope so,’ said Lizzie, leaning over the desk and watching as Penny and Toby lingered together in the foyer before he went off to do his house calls. ‘Because whatever it is those two are on—I’d like some.’
Adele and Casey were behind the desk, signing prescriptions, and they both looked up at the comments. As their gazes met, Adele felt the colour flood her cheeks and Casey’s lips twitched.
‘What do you think, Adele?’ Cheryl obviously hadn’t finished.
‘Me?’ Adele’s voice came out in a startled squawk. ‘Oh, I wouldn’t know,’ she said hastily.
‘Yeah, right.’ Cheryl turned to answer the phone and Adele was saved from further embarrassment by the arrival of Ruby.
‘Ruby, hello!’ It was Casey who hailed the social worker, almost as if he was also glad of a diversion in the direction the conversation was taking. ‘What news of Elvira?’
‘Elvira is doing well. She’s still in hospital but she’s responding well to a new drug regime. Oh, and you’ll be pleased to know I’ve sorted out new housing arrangements for her in sheltered accommodation. There will be someone on hand to make sure she takes her medication but she’ll still retain a good level of independence.’
‘Well, that’s a relief,’ said Lizzie, ‘and I’m sure Adele will agree with that.’
‘Absolutely.’ Adele nodded.
‘Keep us posted on Elvira, Ruby,’ said Casey. ‘When she comes out of hospital one of us will visit, either myself or Jeanette.’
A few moments later they moved out of Reception and Casey threw a sidelong glance at Adele. ‘Does that suit you?’ he asked.
‘Oh, yes,’ she said. ‘I don’t want to bring any charges against Elvira but, on the other hand, if it can be avoided I’d rather not have any further dealings with her.’
‘That sounds sensible to me.’ He paused as they reached his consulting room. ‘I have a surgery to do now—how about you?’
‘I’m going to grab a quick coffee then I’m doing a couple of house calls for Jeanette. She has a meeting with Ruby about counselling for Lara.’
‘OK.’ He nodded, and as she would have moved away he lightly touched her arm. ‘I’ll see you later.’ He spoke softly so that only she would hear.
‘Yes,’ she whispered, with a thrill of anticipation. ‘Of course.’
She felt as if she were walking on air as she made her way to the staffroom—she could still hardly believe what was happening to her. This heady feeling, this lurching of her heart whenever she caught sight of Casey, the torment when they were apart and the way he filled her thoughts in every waking moment were so unlike anything she had ever known before that sometimes she found herself dreading that it might all come to an end.
Pushing open the staffroom door, she almost ran into the room then she stopped in surprise because Celia Fletcher was sitting in the big chair by the window. With her long, slender legs crossed, she was flicking through the pages of a glossy magazine. It was so unusual to see the senior partner’s wife at Woolverton House that for a moment Adele found herself lost for words.
Celia looked up. ‘Adele, my dear!’ she exclaimed. ‘How are you?’
‘I’m well, thank you, Celia.’ She paused. ‘This is a surprise, seeing you here.’
Celia smiled. ‘I know. I have to confess I don’t come here very much. I’m just waiting for Edward to finish his surgery. He’s promised to take me to lunch.’
‘Well, that’s nice…’
‘Actually, Adele…’ Swiftly Celia interrupted her. ‘I’m glad I’ve seen you. There was something I wanted to talk to you about.’
‘Really?’ Adele wondered what on earth the senior partner’s wife and herself could possibly have in common.
‘Edward tells me that you and Casey have been seeing each other lately.’ Celia came straight to the point.
‘Yes, that’s true, we have,’ Adele agreed. Guessing what might be coming next, she rushed on, ‘It’s all right. Edward didn’t seem to think there would be a problem with Casey being my trainer, provided we’re discreet and don’t let anything interfere with our work…’
‘Oh, I’m not worried about that,’ said Celia with a dismissive little wave of her hand.
‘No?’
‘Not at all, and under normal circumstances I would be delighted for the pair of you. I love it when friends of ours get together. No, my worry is something else altogether. I became concerned when I first saw you, the night you came to dinner, but then I thought that you and Toby had something going and I stopped worrying. Later, however, Edward told me about you and Casey and it was then that I made up my mind I should warn you.’
‘Warn me?’ Adele frowned. ‘Whatever do you mean?’ A niggle of fear had started somewhere at the back of her mind, a fear that looked as if it could threaten her newly found happiness with Casey.
‘You know that Casey was married before, don’t you?’ said Celia.
‘Yes, of course,’ Adele replied, ‘and that his wife died—and his baby daughter.’
‘I knew Casey at the time. I also knew his wife, Trisha—we all worked at the same hospital. Casey was devastated when it happened.’
‘Yes, I’m sure he was.’ Adele nodded in agreement, wondering just where this could be leading.
‘The thing is, Adele, he hasn’t been able to commit to anyone since. You see, he adored Trisha. Oh, there have been others since, one in particular, a lovely girl, another nurse, but Casey couldn’t commit himself. He moved on—she was heartbroken.’
‘Yes, but—’
‘No, hear me out, Adele.’ Celia raised her hand. ‘This other girl was tall and dark-haired, just like Trisha…’
‘Maybe that’s simply the type Casey is attracted to.’
‘Yes, probably so,’ Celia agreed, ‘but the thing is, Adele, not only are you that same type but you also happen to be the image of Trisha as well.’
‘What?’ Adele stared at Celia. ‘It struck me the moment I met you. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I thought I was seeing a ghost. Even your mannerisms are the same and the sound of your voice. Like I say, I feared for the situation then but when you appeared to be so taken with Toby I thought my fears were unfounded. But now I know the truth I really feel I should warn you before you get too attached to Casey. I would hate you to get hurt and, believe me, that’s what will happen when Casey moves on again—because he will, make no mistake about that.’
‘Before you get too attached to Casey,’ Celia had said. If only she knew. Already it was too late. Adele was in as deep as it was possible to be. She loved him and she’d hoped he felt the same way about her. Celia’s revelations had come as a shock and Adele knew she needed time to think. Pleading a headache that evening, she told Casey she intended having an early night. He seemed disappointed but so concerned about her that she ended up feeling guilty about lying to him.
In the time that she had kn
own him Casey hadn’t given the slightest indication that she resembled his late wife, but what Celia had told her offered a possible explanation for the strange expression on Casey’s face when they’d first met and on other numerous occasions when she’d found him watching her. It also explained Celia’s strange reaction on meeting her. But more worrying than that was that Celia had said Casey would use her as he had used others in some desperate quest to reconstruct the past then, when that failed, he would leave her and move on.
If that was how it was going to be, Adele knew deep in her heart that she should end the relationship now. After Nigel, she had vowed never to allow herself to become so involved with a man again unless the relationship carried some promise of commitment.
And had there been any such promise from Casey? With a little jolt she was forced to admit there hadn’t. Caught up in the thrill of the affair, it had been easy to imagine a glorious future ahead of them, but when she really thought about it she had to accept the stark truth, and that was that Casey hadn’t as much as mentioned the future.
Could it really be, as Celia had suggested, that he was living purely for the moment? Since his wife’s death did he really find it impossible to love anyone else and was this why he’d wanted to keep their relationship as low-key as possible—because he knew it wasn’t going to last?
He’d told her he loved her. Mostly, deep in the night as he made wonderful love to her, as they soared together or afterwards when he tenderly held her, he would tell her he loved her. But when he did so, was it her he was talking to or was it Trisha? Because she looked so like his dead wife, did he imagine it was Trisha he was making love to once more? The thought made her blood run cold and by the end of a sleepless night spent tossing and turning Adele knew she would have to confront Casey. If her fears proved to be true, she knew she would have no other choice but to end the relationship even though it would break her heart to do so.
The following day was extremely busy and she saw Casey only once in passing when he asked briefly if she was feeling better. Later, just as she was finishing her late afternoon surgery, her phone rang.
‘Adele, it’s me.’ There was no need for him to explain—she would have known that voice anywhere. ‘I have a police call-out. Care to come along?’
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