Reclaiming Her Army Doc Husband

by Sue MacKay

  ‘Just like that. Thanks.’ Amelia was gone, no doubt eager to get back to that article.

  Vicki checked her phone. Lots of texts. Nothing from Cole. Eight forty-five. He wouldn’t be at the medical centre yet. Was he nervous? Cole? He hadn’t changed that much. Would he get in touch after the interview? She had to talk to him, to hear his voice, to know what was going on.

  After filling in notes on Amelia’s file, she clicked on the appointments screen. Next was thirty-three-year-old Mandy Stanaway, requiring external sutures removed post-mastectomy. Ouch. That was young. The patient file showed the results had come back and that Mandy had been referred for chemo and radiotherapy.

  In the waiting room sat a woman in a wheelchair who looked Vicki’s way the moment she entered. ‘Mandy?’

  ‘That’s me.’ She began wheeling towards her. ‘I haven’t met you before.’

  Vicki put her hand out to shake. ‘Vicki Halliday. I’m a temp nurse while Sarah’s on maternity leave.’

  Returning the handshake, Mandy smiled. ‘Her daughter’s gorgeous. I bumped into them in the supermarket yesterday.’

  Crikey, the woman might look wan and worried but she wasn’t sitting at home, fretting about her future.

  I could learn something from her.

  ‘Come on, let’s get you sorted.’

  It didn’t take long to remove the stitches. ‘All done.’ Vicki pulled her gloves off while Mandy awkwardly pulled her top back on. ‘Want a hand?’

  ‘No, I’m fine. The stretching just gives me a nudge, that’s all.’

  ‘Any concerns about anything? You all right for pain meds?’ One of the GP’s would write a script if needed.

  ‘Meds are good, got more than enough. And the stuff worrying me you can’t help with. The chemo is the unknown factor: how I’ll react to it and how long it’ll take to get over the effects. Only time will tell.’

  ‘I’m afraid you’re right. Though we can arrange an appointment with a counsellor if you’d like.’

  ‘The hospital offered the same, but I’d rather talk to family and friends first.’

  ‘Fair enough, but know help is there if it gets too much. Is your partner supportive?’ The notes said Mandy lived with a truck driver who was away a lot.

  ‘He’s brilliant.’ Then Mandy’s face fell. ‘When he’s at home. His work takes him all over Northern Australia for days at a time. We talk at least twice a day but sometimes it’s not enough, you know?’

  All too well. ‘Will he be able to get time off when you’re having treatment?’

  Please tell me yes.

  ‘The company’s promised to juggle the roster as soon as I have a date to start chemo so that he can be with me for a few days around each treatment.’ Mandy pulled herself up and fixed a smile on her face.

  Like I would’ve for Cole, given half a chance.

  * * *

  Excellent coffee in hand, Cole sat with the three partners of the medical centre in the cramped office of one of the doctors, and waited for the opening gambit. It seemed odd having a third interview, which had him wondering if there was more to this.

  ‘You picked the wrong weekend to visit Northern Queensland,’ Jill said with a welcoming smile. ‘We half expected to hear that you hadn’t made it back.’

  ‘The airport was open on and off Saturday, and all day yesterday. Vicki and I were kept busy helping the emergency services a lot of the time I was in Cairns.’

  David asked, ‘She’s a nurse, isn’t she?’

  They knew that from a previous meeting, and from what he’d seen with these people they would not forget. Cole nodded, and waited.

  ‘Where’s Vicki working at the moment?’

  ‘Temping at a family medical centre in Cairns.’ What was this about?

  Jill looked at the other two men and nodded.

  Jason sat forward and clasped his hands under his chin. ‘Here’s the thing, Cole. We’re impressed with your medical record, and more importantly we believe you’ll fit in well with our patients.’

  Unsure where this was going, Cole merely said, ‘Thank you,’ and sipped his coffee while he waited.

  Jason continued. ‘We have decided to bring in a fourth partner. We’d like to offer the opportunity to you. Obviously, the terms and conditions would be different and entail an initial financial cost to you, but the benefits would make that worthwhile.’

  Just as well he’d swallowed the mouthful of coffee. Spluttering it across the desk would not look good. ‘Thank you.’ A partnership had been in his plans but he’d believed that would be well into the future. ‘I’m interested.’

  ‘You never discuss things with me.’

  Vicki’s accusation echoed around his skull. He hadn’t said he’d take the partnership. There was a lot to find out about what was on offer before anything else. Couldn’t deny his pulse was racing with excitement, though. Who’d have thought he’d get an offer like this so soon after quitting the army? When he hadn’t experienced general practice work? It could be perfect. If Vicki went with the idea. ‘You’d better fill me in on the details.’ First things first.

  * * *

  An hour later Cole stepped out into brilliant sunshine and stood on the steps leading to the centre’s parking area, taking deep breaths as the offer he’d just been made buzzed around his head. It was a very good proposal. He could afford to buy into the business, and the returns would be way beyond what he’d have earned if he signed on simply as a GP with the practice. The amount of leave available was more than he’d have expected for a partner, which could be beneficial if he and Vicki had children. The location fitted his idea of a good family suburb. He liked the partners, and the other staff he’d met at the end of the meeting. It had even been suggested Vicki could work there. What was there not to be thrilled about?

  What would Vicki think? Would she jump on board, or say she wasn’t prepared to move back to Sydney? One thing he was certain about. She wasn’t about to forego her agency.

  Anguish filled him. It was a hurdle to overcome. Admiration nudged at his anguish. She wasn’t going along with his needs without fighting for her own. She’d not done that before, and it was probably gnawing away at her determination to keep focused. She needed his support, not his selfishness.

  There was one way to find out. Staring at his phone, he debated with himself. Ring her with the news? Or fly back up there to tell her face to face? Gauge her reactions and try to answer any negatives she came up with? He wasn’t accepting the position without talking to her first. He had learned that much.

  Striding out along the steaming street, he headed for the town centre, looking around at the homes he passed, then the stores where people stopped and chatted to each other. A good sign of a friendly neighbourhood.

  With a takeout coffee and a salad roll in hand, he headed for the beach to sit on a damp bench and enjoy the view of Sydney Harbour. Ferries plied between many of the bays and downtown Sydney, churning up the water as they zipped back and forth. Above, seagulls squawked as they swooped for any scraps lying around. Adults walked their dogs on the beach. Picture perfect. And he’d had a very tempting offer to become a part of the scene. To establish himself as a GP in a lovely neighbourhood was something he’d been dreaming about for a while.

  Yet now it so close to happening, he felt uncomfortable. As though something wasn’t right. Something was missing. Vicki. Yes, absolutely. But there something else itching at his excitement and he didn’t know what it was. Tossing the paper cup and paper bag into a rubbish bin, Cole strolled along the beach, nodding to those who said hello, patting dogs that came to sniff him. It was easy to feel he might belong here. But...

  Vicki.

  The woman he loved, had sworn to love for the rest of their lives. The woman he’d fallen for the moment he’d set eyes upon her. She’d been there for him every time he’d returned fro
m an overseas posting, had listened as he’d poured out his grief and anguish about the sights he’d witnessed, the desolate people he’d tried to help. Basically, she’d backed him all the way, all the time, until she couldn’t take it any more. And look how he’d repaid her. Badly.

  The warm sun on his back loosened some of the tightness in his muscles, but it didn’t help the sense he was making a mistake. There was something else going on here. If only it would stand up and let him identify what it was.

  Go to Camperdown.

  With no idea why that had popped into his head, Cole turned around and headed back to town and the car, sensing that a visit where his time in Sydney had begun might help solve his dilemma.

  The old stone brick building of the medical school Cole had trained at loomed large when he strolled up to the front. Memories of the first time he’d ever walked through the main entrance filled his head. He’d been nervous, excited, and glad to be starting there. He was starting afresh. In a large city where most people remained anonymous, where he could hide in plain daylight, and not be approached regularly to be asked how he was getting on now his name had been cleared, or told it was so sad what had happened and how he had to let it go and forgive every one for thinking he could ever commit such a crime.

  Cole jammed his hands in his pockets and stood staring around, his legs splayed, his head spinning, and his heart beating slowly as he absorbed the familiar surroundings.

  I chose this medical school because of its location in a large city where I was a stranger.

  It helped that it was one of the best in the country, too, but that had come second to the need to just be a medical student learning his trade. It had worked. He’d made friends, met Nathan who had eventually became his closest mate. And he’d finally put everything on the line by telling Nathan what had gone down back in Adelaide when he’d been a teen. Nathan, being the guy he was, had clapped him on the back and dragged him down to the pub for a beer. No criticism, no unctuous comments about how he was sure Cole wouldn’t have stolen the money, just a bloke’s way of saying You’re fine, mate.

  It had felt good and it had been the last time he’d felt the need to explain himself to anyone as a test of friendship.

  Sorry, Vicki. I made a mistake there.

  Driving along the streets towards the rundown house he’d shared with four other students, he stared around. So familiar, so different. He wouldn’t like to live here again. He was a doctor now, didn’t need the shambolic lifestyle of a student. Neither did he need to hide any more. Now he could walk down any street anywhere, head held high.

  Cole pulled to the side of the street and pulled on the handbrake, leaving the motor idling. He was getting closer to whatever had begun to irk him as he’d walked on the beach. It took time to make friends in a neighbourhood where everyone was intent on their families and careers and getting ahead. Especially in a huge city. Not like Cairns. Bet if he bumped into Merv or one of the other rescue crew members he’d worked alongside during the weekend, they’d stop and chat, probably suggest a beer at the pub or to go round for a barbecue. They’d certainly acknowledge him.

  Am I ready for that?

  More than ready, he realised. He wanted it, for himself and Vicki. For their children. To be comfortable, relaxed, and happy. The army hadn’t given him that picture. It hadn’t been bad, just not what he’d been looking for. It hadn’t included Vicki, for one. And there wasn’t anyone more important to him.

  No one.

  * * *

  ‘Jack, the crutch is not a bat,’ Vicki admonished as her patient flicked a large stone down the medical centre’s drive.

  ‘Not a very good one, anyway.’ Jack laughed. ‘I couldn’t get the dog’s bowl up the steps this morning.’ He’d been in to get his dressings changed.

  Rolling her eyes, she grinned. ‘You’re hopeless.’

  ‘I hear you and your man were busy Friday night, rescuing that family from their ruined house. Everyone’s been singing your praises at the station.’

  ‘We did no more than the fire crew did. It was a joint effort, with good results.’

  We. As in her and Cole. We.

  A sigh slid across her lips, and her mood dipped. Again. Still not a word from him. She’d given up checking her phone for messages last night, tried to accept he wasn’t rushing to tell her how the interview had gone. Except every time the phone pinged her heart would leap and she snatch it up only to be disappointed. Everyone but Cole seemed to be in touch. This morning she’d left the phone in her bag and refused to take it out all day. There could be a message from Cole by now, for all she knew, but she wasn’t looking until she walked out of here in half an hour’s time to go home.

  Did his silence indicate she’d got what she’d asked for? What if she was wrong to demand he sort himself out before they went any further? What if he never called her again?

  Jack was still talking. ‘So the guys are wondering if you’d be interested.’

  ‘In what?’

  Now it was Jack’s turn to do the eye-roll thing. ‘Sorry if I’m boring you.’ His smile told her he wasn’t cross. ‘Would you like to join our station as a voluntary medic?’

  Become a part of the fire crews? Sounded exciting. Bit like working in an emergency department without all the modern equipment and a whole hospital to back the medics. It would fill in some more hours. ‘Yes, I think I would.’

  ‘Right, let Damon know. We’re having a meeting on Wednesday. I’ll put a word in for you.’

  Guilt reared. ‘Um...slow down. I would like to help, but I’m not sure how long I’m here for. I might be returning to Sydney soon.’

  Might. Probably won’t, because Cole has given up on me.

  ‘Come on board anyway. We’ll put you through the training, and if you leave town your time, and ours, won’t have been wasted. We need people like you, Vicki. We really do.’

  Pride swelled in her chest. ‘Thanks. Okay, count me in for as long as I’m here.’

  ‘Need a doctor as well?’

  Vicki spun around, lost her balance, would’ve fallen if Cole hadn’t caught her.

  ‘Steady, sweetheart.’ He gazed down at her with an intensity that tightened every muscle in her body.

  ‘You didn’t call me once.’

  ‘Thought it better to come in person. Far more intimate.’ He leaned closer, brushed his lips over hers.

  She had to fight not to press back, to devour him with a kiss. Every cell ached with the need to touch him, feel his tenderness, to believe he really was here, holding her. ‘Cole?’

  ‘Yes, Vicki, I’m here, hopefully for good.’ His gaze remained on her. ‘If you’ll have me.’

  ‘Yes.’ Just like that? Well, she wasn’t carrying on feeling lonely and sad when this was the one person who made her happy. And he was here. ‘With some changes,’ she added through a smile.

  Cole’s return smile filled her with gladness. They would make this work.

  ‘I can see I’m in the way here,’ Jack interrupted them. ‘I’ll get in touch tomorrow. And, yes, we can always use a doctor. Now, where’s Barbara got to?’

  ‘She went next door to the pharmacy,’ Vicki told him, and instinctively headed out to help him get into the car, feeling a loss as Cole’s hands slid away from her arms.

  Cole followed. ‘I’m Cole Halliday, Vicki’s husband,’ he told Jack.

  Jack grunted with pain as he lifted his cast leg inside the car. ‘Jack Henderson. I’ve heard about you. Talk later when you’ve got a spare moment.’ He grinned at her, then nodded to Cole. ‘Go on. Seems you’ve got things to sort out.’

  ‘You stay off those quad bikes, and bend down to pick up the dog bowl. There’s nothing wrong with your waist.’ She closed the door on Jack and turned to face the love of her life. Had she given in too quickly? When she shouldn’t be giving in at all?

 
‘Relax. I’m not here to demand we do everything my way. What time do you finish for the day?’

  Joe was walking up the drive with a pharmacy pack in his hand. ‘You can go now, Vicki. I’ll cover for you if anyone needs a plaster put on a cut. Good to see you, Cole.’

  ‘There’s no one else booked in for me,’ she said in a wobbly voice. ‘So thanks, I’ll grab my bag and get out of here.’ She didn’t look at Cole, just headed inside as quickly as possible, her head spinning at his sudden appearance. She’d said yes, she’d have him back, without thinking it through. She’d acted on her love for him. It was right. Now she still had to make sure he understood she wasn’t backing down from her plans.

  When she returned Joe and Cole were talking.

  Joe held out his hand to shake Cole’s ‘Talk again.’

  ‘Sure.’

  ‘What was that about?’ Vicki asked as they walked to her car.

  ‘Work.’

  ‘Right.’ Back to not telling her what was going on? A timely reminder they hadn’t resolved everything. But...she breathed out hard... Cole was here, with her, and he wanted to fix what was keeping them apart.

  Clasping her hand, he said, ‘It’s okay, I promise. I just want to start at the beginning.’

  ‘Then jump in and I’ll drive as fast as I can because I need to hear this.’

  ‘How about we find a quiet corner in a bar along the waterfront instead?’

  ‘Sounds like a plan.’ She knew exactly where to take them. As long as she wasn’t getting her hopes up too high. Sneaking a sideways glance, she saw that Cole appeared relaxed yet edgy at the same time, giving no clues about what had gone down in Sydney so she hung onto his words back at the medical centre and tried to relax. Yeah, right.

  * * *

  Cole sat beside Vicki at a table on the pavement and looked at her. There were deep shadows staining her cheeks, and her mouth drooped. Equally, her eyes gleamed with what he could only recognise as love.