Wedding Bells for the Village Nurse

by Abigail Gordon

  ‘So call in the first patient, then, and show me how good you are.’

  As the afternoon progressed Lucas was impressed with Jenna’s knowledge and patience with those who were afraid, in pain and bewildered by what was happening to them.

  Like the thirty-year-old fisherman who’d never had a day’s illness in his life and was suddenly discovering that his heart wasn’t working properly and he might need surgery.

  ‘I have to work,’ he’d said raggedly. ‘What I catch in the nets is what pays the bills and feeds my family.’

  ‘So we’re going to sort you out,’ Lucas told him with the assumed calm that he’d displayed since he was attacked. ‘I’m going to pass you over to Hunters Hill Coronary Unit for tests and will urge upon them that there should be no delay in getting you sorted. If surgery is needed I will do it, so go home and wait until they phone you. It won’t be long and we’ll take it from there.’

  He was on the phone to the hospital the moment the fisherman had gone and Jenna wondered chokingly how anyone could have hurt him as badly as the two people who could have blighted his life if he’d been a lesser mortal.

  She wondered sometimes if they had when he was in one of his brooding, non-communicative moods, though he seemed relaxed enough today. As for him offering her the use of the car, it was heart-warming and mind-blowing rolled into one, considering that most of the time she felt that she was merely being tolerated.

  As far as she was concerned, if for some reason he should disappear out of her life as swiftly as he’d entered it, she would be devastated.

  When the clinic was over and she was tidying away she caught Lucas staring into space, and risking a rebuke said, ‘What’s wrong?’

  ‘Er, nothing.’

  ‘But you look miserable,’ she protested.

  ‘I was thinking about how confident I sounded with the man who has just left. I will operate on you myself, I said, but supposing he has a friend or relative waiting to carve me up if something goes wrong?’

  She was observing him, aghast at his train of thought. ‘That would never happen twice in a lifetime,’ she said gently. ‘It shouldn’t have happened once, yet sadly it did, but please don’t let the memory of it take the purpose out of your work, Lucas. If you do that it will be a double blow. You were left with a scarred body. Don’t end up with a scarred mind too.’

  ‘I guess you’re right,’ he said flatly. ‘I’ll bear in mind what you’ve said the next time I see some guy reach inside his jacket.’

  ‘And come out with his wallet or a handkerchief?’

  ‘You’re not going to give up on me, are you?’ he said quizzically. ‘Getting back to the car on my drive, it’s insured for any driver, so if you want to go home in it and leave your bike here, I’ll ride it down to your place this evening, and then perhaps we could go for a drink while you tell me how you come to know so much about coronary care.’

  ‘Yes, all right,’ she agreed, concealing her amazement.

  When she arrived home in the red sports car her father came out onto the drive and observed it in amazement. ’So where has this come from?’ he wanted to know.

  ‘It’s on loan,’ she told him breezily.

  ‘On loan?’

  ‘Yes. I had a puncture on the way to the surgery and was on the last minute for the heart clinic, which didn’t please Lucas Devereux. So as this was standing on his drive doing nothing, he suggested I use it for as long as I want.’

  ‘And what have you done with the bicycle?’

  ‘He’s bringing it round this evening.’

  She didn’t mention what Lucas had suggested they do afterwards, as although her father would approve, her mother’s approval of anything was never to be taken for granted.

  Barbara had been forced into retirement before Lucas had become involved with the practice, and it went without saying that she would have made it her business to get to know him at the first opportunity that had presented itself. She would almost certainly have approved of his manner, appearance and most of all his reputation at Hunters Hill, so him turning up on her daughter’s bicycle might be something of a let-down.

  As she was changing into one of her most attractive dresses that evening, Jenna glanced through her bedroom window and saw Lucas, dressed in shorts and an open-necked shirt, cycling down the slope from the village on the old bike in question, and wondered what her mother would think of him now.

  She considered whether she should invite him in for a drink, and at the same time introduce him to her father, whose interest in the red sports car was not dwindling.

  But did she want Lucas to feel that she was making too much of his offer to return the bike and take her for a drink afterwards? Cringing at the idea, she flicked a brush through her hair and hurried down to greet him as he swerved onto the drive.

  She was spared having to decide whether to introduce him to her parents as at that moment her father came strolling casually from round the back of the house and as she introduced them it became inevitable that her mother must not be denied the pleasure of a chat, so she invited Lucas inside to lighten up her day a little.

  While he was bringing a rapidly brightening Barbara up to date with what was going on at the practice, Keith went into the kitchen to make coffee, and Jenna went upstairs to finish getting ready, unaware that Lucas was tuned in to her discomfiture at having to parade him in front of her parents, and even more unaware of how much he wished that he was part of a close family.

  During his ill-fated relationship with Philippa he’d had visions of her presenting him with the children he longed for, but had discovered to his cost that her cravings were very different to his.

  When Jenna came downstairs and glanced at him warily, he flashed her a reassuring smile and saw some of the tension leave her expression. When they were outside he said, ‘You’re fortunate to have a family who care for you, and that you care about in return.’

  She was smiling now that the ordeal was over. ‘I love my dad totally,’ she told him, ‘but he and I have always come second in my mother’s life.’

  ‘I take it that you’re referring to the practice?’

  ‘Yes. She has always been ready to go the extra mile for her patients and is revered and respected by them all. I understood Mildred Waterson’s comments the other day even though they were hurtful, but apart from Lucy, who is a dear, not many people know anything about our home lives. In fact, you are the only person I’ve ever discussed it with—which is strange, you being a dedicated doctor yourself.’

  Not so dedicated that he would neglect his family if he had one, Lucas thought. His expression was sombre. How could anyone not put a child first, especially one that was their own flesh and blood? But it happened, and from what he’d learnt about his ex-fiancée when they had been splitting up, prestige would have come first with Philippa.

  But it was a glorious summer night, the duplicity of one woman and an over-zealous approach to her career of another should not be allowed to put clouds in the sky and he said, ‘How about a stroll along the beach before we have that drink?’

  ‘Yes,’ Jenna said immediately, and he thought how uncomplicated and lacking in guile she was. He could visualise her golden fairness accentuated by some sort of mermaid outfit at the Harvest of the Sea, and knew it was something he was not going to miss, even though he kept telling himself that no way was he going to get too close to her.

  His judgement had been wrong once and he wasn’t going to make a habit of it. He’d mistaken Philippa’s sense of purpose for integrity and it had been anything but. If he let himself become entranced by the girl walking barefoot beside him on the sand he would need his head examined.

  Yet he’d opened up to her that afternoon as he hadn’t done to anyone else, even Ethan, and that had to mean something.

  The shoes she’d taken off were dangling from her hand by their straps and looking down to the fingers grasping them the memory surfaced of the large solitaire diamond that had graced
the hand of his ex-fiancée and he asked, ‘Does no rings mean no relationships?’

  He’d asked the question in a detached sort of way but it brought Jenna to a halt, and when she turned to face him it was as if their roles were reversed, that she was the older and wiser of the two of them as she said coolly, ‘A ring on one’s finger means nothing if the right kind of love isn’t there, but since you ask, no, I’m not attracted to anyone at the present time.’

  It was far from the truth, but the man beside her could be on the rebound from what must have been a disastrous relationship and there was no way that she wanted him to get the idea that she would be available if he should beckon.

  The sand beneath her feet was moist and as she began to move forward at a faster pace the imprint of them was there to indicate that she’d passed that way, but not for long. It would disappear with the next incoming tide and there was nothing to say that Lucas Devereux’s entrance into her life wouldn’t be the same, leaving her in a lovelorn state of limbo.

  He was groaning inwardly. The set of her shoulders told him he hadn’t handled that very well. He must be insane to have upset this beautiful, uncomplicated woman by a thoughtless chance remark.

  Yet the fact remained he had wanted to know if he was butting into another man’s territory by spending time with her. She’d made it clear he wasn’t doing that, but he’d put his foot in it by asking.

  ‘So are we still going for a drink?’ he asked when he caught up with her.

  ‘If you insist,’ was the reply.

  ‘I’m not insisting. I’m just asking,’ he said abruptly, and Jenna felt that maybe she was making a big thing out of a little one.

  ‘Yes, why not?’ she agreed. ‘But unless you want us both to be recognised by half of Bluebell Cove maybe we should try somewhere further along the coast, or drive into the country.’

  ‘Why? Don’t you want to be seen with me?’

  ‘It’s your reputation I’m thinking of,’ she said laughingly, her good humour returning. ‘Your arrival in this place has caused quite a stir, and for you to be seen with the black sheep of the community won’t do it any good.’

  ‘I think you might be exaggerating somewhat,’ he told her, dark eyes glinting with amusement. ‘The only people in Bluebell Cove who are getting a buzz from me being there are those with heart problems.

  ‘To the rest I’m just another doctor at the practice, and if we’re going to drive out into the country we need to go as the sun is setting and there isn’t a moon as yet. Owls will soon be hooting and all the little creatures of the night will come scuttling out of their hidey holes.

  ‘The Red Peril is parked on your parents’ drive so we might as well use it. I’m sure there must be some nice places not too far away where we can relax for an hour or so. If it had been earlier in the day we could have had a cream tea.’

  ‘That is what Mum and Dad were having somewhere out in the countryside when I arrived back home that first day. It was rather an anticlimax as I’d been expecting her to be virtually housebound, but when they arrived home and I saw her get out of the car, I knew the score.

  ‘Dad had phoned to say where they were and that it could be a couple of hours before they got back, so if you remember I decided to go down to the beach which was surprisingly empty except for Ronnie the lifeguard…and you casting a dubious glance in my direction.’

  She was waiting for him to say something, but he just pursed his lips into an enigmatic smile and let the comment pass. Seconds later a lazy moon was coming into view from behind a cloud and they were driving between hedges laden with summer flowers, and behind them in sweeping green fields was the gorse.

  It could have been a magical occasion, the two of them close in the low-slung car beneath a summer moon, Jenna thought, but they were both wary of each other, hadn’t known each other long enough to be comfortable in the situation they found themselves in.

  Down on the beach it had been all right. Strolling along the sand without any particular closeness hadn’t created any chemistry that they couldn’t cope with. But now it was different, with her wanting the friendly camaraderie that was establishing itself to continue without any undercurrents, and Lucas vowing that if he drove himself crazy in the attempt he wasn’t going to give her cause for thinking he was on the rebound.

  All of which contributed to a rather stilted atmosphere when they stopped at a country pub with a thatched roof and horse brasses gleaming everywhere. ‘You’re thinking this is a mistake, aren’t you?’ he said as they took their drinks into a pleasant beer garden at the side of the building. ‘That we have little in common to discuss but medicine.’

  She shrugged her smooth golden shoulders, but didn’t reply because there were a thousand things she would like to talk to him about, instead of what they did for a living.

  It was only days since she’d first seen him on the beach and every time she thought about it she felt as if she’d been waiting all her life for him to appear. Yet every time she’d been near him since, the pleasure had always been tempered with the feeling that maybe Lucas was seeking some kind of temporary solace and was singling her out to fill the gap. She still sensed bitterness in him.

  They drank in silence and the moment their glasses were empty he asked if she would like a refill. When she shook her head he got to his feet and held out his hand for her to do likewise.

  It was the first time they’d touched and if the atmosphere had been less grim Jenna would have thought of it as a moment to cherish rather than an act of brief courtesy on his part.

  They drove back to the headland and when he stopped the car on the drive of her parents’ house Lucas said, ‘I’ll see you at Monday’s clinic if not before. Ethan has some stressful days ahead and I want to give him all the help I can, so we might meet at the surgery before then. He tells me he and Francine are getting divorced, which is an absolute catastrophe. They were always so happy, I just can’t believe it.’

  Forgetting her forebodings and uncertainties, she reached across, kissed him swiftly on the cheek, and told him as he observed her in surprise, ‘You are clearly a good friend to him, and it seems to me that anyone who has you for a friend is blessed.’

  Already regretting her impulsiveness, she was moving swiftly towards the front door of the house, leaving him to switch off the engine and ease himself slowly out of the car.

  As it closed behind her he began to walk slowly up the slope to the village.

  Ethan was sitting outside on his patio, having a last drink of the day, and he shouted across for Lucas to join him.

  ‘What has happened to the sports car?’ was the first thing he said when they were seated side by side.

  ‘I’ve lent it to my assistant. Jenna had a puncture on her way to the clinic this afternoon and was on the last minute. As her bike is the only transport she’s got at the moment I told her she could use the car for as long as she needs to.’

  ‘How did she do with the heart patients?’ Ethan asked.

  ‘Great. She’s pleasant, has lots of patience, and is very knowledgeable considering it isn’t long since she graduated.’

  ‘Her mother would be pleased to know that. It has always been her wish that Jenna should join the practice, but Barbara doesn’t always go about those kinds of things in the right way.’

  ‘Did she leave her mother in the state she’s in now and go off to do her own thing?’ Lucas questioned once again.

  ‘No, I told you. Some of the old die-hards like to feel she did, but Barbara was concealing her worsening condition to a great extent—she has a dread of being an object of pity. So, determined to throw off her bonds once and for all, Jenna packed her bags and went, but you can rest assured that she wouldn’t have done if her mother had come clean about her worsening health.’

  There was surprise in his expression as he went on to say, ‘I wouldn’t have expected you to be in touch with the comings and goings of the locals. Do I take it that someone has been getting at Jenna?’r />
  Lucas nodded. ‘Yes, someone called Mildred Waterson gave her a hard time.’

  ‘Surprise! Surprise! Mildred Waterson would have Barbara canonised if it was possible, but why all the interest in Jenna? Do I detect the healing of a broken heart?’

  ‘It wasn’t broken,’ he protested. ‘I consider myself to have had a lucky escape, and any further ventures into romance will be a long time coming.’

  CHAPTER FOUR

  LUCAS was nowhere around on the Friday after their drive into the countryside the previous night, and when Ethan explained that he was in the process of transferring his belongings from a luxury apartment near the hospital to The Old Chart House, Jenna understood his absence.

  Ethan had called the staff together before surgery started and told them that he too would be unavailable during the coming week as he was flying to France on Monday to see his children.

  ‘Lucas will take charge while I’m gone,’ he told them, ‘and we have a new doctor starting first thing Monday morning to help ease the workload. His name is Leo Fenchurch and he’s really keen to gain some experience in general practice, having previously been hospital based.’

  ‘Is he to replace Francine?’ Lucy asked, and Jenna saw Ethan’s jaw tighten.

  ‘Possibly,’ he replied.

  With that the morning had got under way and with the nurses’ room as busy as always Jenna didn’t have time to dwell on the comings and goings of staff at the practice, except to be relieved that Lucas was still going to be with them.

  Francine had been a G.P. there alongside her husband before she’d inherited the house in France, but when the overwhelming urge to go and live there had overtaken her she’d gone against her husband’s wishes and taken the children with her, leaving a vacancy at the surgery that needed to be filled.

  The split had occurred while Jenna had been abroad and she’d known nothing about it until her first day there as a part-time nurse. She’d been appalled to hear that a marriage that she would have expected to last for ever had foundered.