Because She Could: The unputdownable debut novel that spans the globe (The Osprey Series Book 1)

by Kaylie Kay

  Jeremy Holland, or Jez to everyone who knew him, sat in the front seat of the cab and watched his two children gently dozing in the back, under the watchful eye of his mother. He honestly didn’t know how he’d have coped without her since Vanessa’s death, unsure if he would actually have coped at all.

  Three years ago when they had first arrived in Hong Kong, they had been so excited at all the opportunities they would have. With six-month-old Tilly in tow, the future had looked so bright.

  It was the long hours that had finally prompted them to look at Jez moving overseas. As a junior doctor in the busy London hospital where he worked, they had been seeing less and less of each other, and when Tilly had arrived, all helpless and dependent, Jez had found it too hard to be away from them both. So when an old friend of his from uni had told him about the position at Mount Pleasant here in Hong Kong, it had seemed like a no-brainer. A forty-hour week, that was the deal breaker. Yes, of course the money and package were great, but a forty-hour week was what made him apply for the position immediately.

  Six weeks later they had boarded the flight from Heathrow to Hong Kong with barely a second thought. They had packed their lives into four suitcases, putting anything they couldn’t bring into storage for their return, whenever that might be. The initial contract was for twelve months but Jez hoped they would stay much longer.

  They had settled in almost overnight.

  The job came with accommodation, and theirs was a bright and airy apartment overlooking Victoria Park on Hong Kong Island. It was similar in size to the one they had left in Hampstead, but with its marble floors and modern fittings it had felt so much more luxurious. Three bedrooms, one was the guest room for now, but they both hoped for a brother or sister for little Tilly one day.

  Perfect, life was perfect. The job at Mount Pleasant was awesome, so much more time to spend with his patients and he felt he could finally give the care he had trained to do, without the pressure that came from working in the underfunded NHS hospitals. Mount Pleasant was purely a private hospital, so most of the workers and patients were expats or tourists, and the language barrier hadn’t been as much of a problem as he had worried.

  Ness had settled quickly, joining the expat mother and baby groups, and soon formed a close group of friends bonded by their lives here. She had loved the convenience of Hong Kong. All the shops opened so late, and everything she could need, from baby milk to Chanel was on her doorstep. They had employed a maid, a lovely lady called Arinya from Thailand. At home a maid was a real luxury but here everyone seemed to have one. Ness was like a young girl again; not only was her husband around so much more but she didn’t have the stress of mundane things like cooking and cleaning! She was happy with life, just another baby would make it even more perfect, and they were enjoying trying!

  Jacob arrived almost exactly two years after Tilly, one day after her birthday on 31st July to be exact. It had been such a hot and humid summer in Hong Kong, and Ness had really struggled through her last trimester.

  As she laid in her hospital bed in the maternity department of Mount Pleasant she had cradled her beautiful boy with his thick black hair. He looked exactly like Jez; now there were two gorgeous men in her life.

  ‘Mummy!’

  Tilly had hurtled into the room clutching a white polar bear teddy and climbed straight onto the bed.

  ‘This is for the baby,’ she exclaimed, all overexcited and giggling.

  She thrust the teddy at Jacob.

  ‘Here,’ she said, expecting him to take it and probably say thank you too. Manners were very important to her!

  ‘Let’s lay him in the cot with it,’ suggested Ness kindly. ‘I’m sure he loves it, darling, but it will be a while before he can tell you.’

  Tilly looked confused and disappointed; this baby was clearly not what she had hoped for at all!

  Ness smiled at Jez, who was leaning against the doorway, beaming at them.

  ‘I love you, Ness.’

  ‘I should hope so,’ she teased as she tucked Jacob and his bear into their cot and squeezed Tilly tight.

  If only they had known then that Ness was already ill.

  She had tried over the next week to breastfeed Jacob but it was just so painful. Mastitis, the doctor had presumed, and it seemed a logical explanation. But it wouldn’t clear up, even after two courses of antibiotics, like it should have done, yet still they hadn’t worried.

  Further tests had ensued, and then they had received the devastating news.

  ‘I’m very sorry to tell you that you have inflammatory breast cancer, Mrs Holland.’ The words didn’t seem to make sense.

  Cancer? No, she just had an infection in her milk ducts.

  She looked up at Jez for help, to tell the doctor he was wrong, but he just looked back at her, helpless.

  ‘We will start your treatment tomorrow, we have no time to waste.’

  As they had sat there in that room after the doctor left, Jez holding Ness so close she could barely breathe, they both tried to process what they had just been told.

  Why hadn’t he known? He was a doctor, for God’s sake, he should have seen it. Had she not just had the baby he might have known it was something more sinister, but mastitis was so common he too had presumed that was what it was.

  ‘Presumption is the mother of all fuck-ups,’ someone had once said to him, and this echoed loudly in his head.

  Even the best doctors in Hong Kong and London couldn’t save his beautiful Ness – the cancer had been too advanced. To watch his beautiful wife struggle to cope with the treatment, battling so bravely, had torn him to pieces inside. He should have been able to help her, but he couldn’t. Less than a year after having Jacob she passed away in his arms. She had lost her fight and he had lost his soulmate.

  Over twelve months had passed now though, and while the pain was still there Jez was finally beginning to put back together the pieces of his life. He had to, for the sake of the children. The tears that had come every night came less frequently, and he even managed to smile when he remembered her now. He had had to forgive himself for not being able to save her, as the guilt had eaten away at him and he had found himself in a very dark place.

  It was his mother Linda’s gentle guidance that had pulled them all through. He was quite awestruck by her strength and wisdom, realising that he had never truly appreciated her until now. For years since his father had passed away he had wished she would find someone else to share her life with, but she had always insisted that she couldn’t replace him. Only since he had lost Ness could he truly understand how she felt.

  Chapter 4

  Room 2301 at the Park Lane Hotel, Olivia’s home for the next two days.

  She propped her door open with her suitcase and quickly swept the room for hidden attackers. Whilst it was highly unlikely that anyone was hiding under the bed, in the wardrobe or behind the curtains, she always checked just as they had told her to in her training.

  Fabulous. No rapists or murderers, she thought, half mocking herself. She closed the door now that her checks were done and gave a sigh of relief as she stepped out of her heels.

  Her room on the twenty-third floor was luxurious, with its huge bed and its crisp white sheets. She walked towards the floor-to-ceiling windows and gazed in awe at the lights of Hong Kong. It was dark now and the city was lit up in all of its wonderful glory. Lights as far and as high as she could see, the colours and displays never failing to impress her. She opened the minibar and took out the small bottle of white wine. Pouring it into the wine glass she had just taken from the shelf above, she took out her phone and called Tom. It was almost midday at home, Hong Kong was eight hours ahead.

  No answer.

  Must be busy, she thought.

  Tom was always busy lately. In the early days he was never too busy to take her calls. He ran his own building business so he worked long hours, but he would always drop everything to talk to her. Now she was lucky if she could get hold of him at all when s
he was away.

  ‘Sorry babe, the business has gone crazy,’ he said when she had complained. ‘Anyway, we get plenty of time to talk when you are home.’

  He was right, they had lived together for three years now and were together every evening, when she was home. But it was those days that she was away that she really missed him. He may have become so comfortable in their relationship that he didn’t need to talk every day, but she hadn’t yet. He was her best friend and she needed to tell him everything!

  Must be a woman thing, she resigned herself. Oh well.

  19:15, the clock said. Forty-five minutes until she had to meet the rest of the crew in the bar, better start getting ready!

  Chapter 5

  Ouch, ouch, OUCH!

  Olivia’s head throbbed as she opened one eye to see the light streaming through the gap in her curtains.

  The night out had gone off in typical Hong Kong fashion. A few drinks in the hotel bar and then off to Lan Kwai Fong. Olivia loved it down there, with its cobbled hills lined with bars buzzing with people from all over the world. She vaguely recalled that they had ended up in Dusk Til Dawn, singing loudly along to the rock band on stage. Out of the corner of her eye she could see a pair of flashing bunny ears on the pillow next to her and she giggled to herself. A night in Hong Kong wouldn’t be complete if you didn’t buy something that flashed from one of the numerous vendors that sold their wares around the bars.

  Sitting herself up slowly, she looked around for her handbag. Finding it by the side of her bed, she rummaged through for some painkillers.

  Sorry I missed your call babe, hope you had a good flight. A message from Tom on her mobile.

  Fine thanks, night out was better! Awful hangover now though, she replied, and she wasn’t lying.

  Coffee, that’s what she needed now.

  She threw on some clothes and headed out. It was nearly 4pm and the city was starting to cool down. Olivia liked to stay partially on UK time whilst she was here, it helped with the jet lag when she got home, and so sleeping in until the afternoon wasn’t unusual for her. It was too hot to go out in the day at this time of year anyway; the humidity could be unbearable.

  As she walked back from the coffee shop to the hotel she glanced across the road to the park. A nice walk will clear my head, she thought as she crossed over.

  Victoria Park was like a calm oasis in the middle of the skyscrapers and the craziness of the city around it. A statue of Queen Victoria greeted her as she entered and Olivia gave her a cursory nod as she passed. She walked along the path that snaked around its perimeter, drinking in the smells and noises that scratched away at her senses, watching the people go about their lives around her. The children playing, the cute little old Chinese couples walking hand-in-hand, the man on the bench with his bird in a beautiful wicker cage, the small fluffy dogs that barked excitedly at each other.

  Eventually she stopped at a bench underneath a huge old fir tree, sitting down to finish her coffee. There was a children’s play area just opposite and their happy voices hung in the air around her like beautiful wind chimes. Olivia really did love her job for giving her moments like this.

  ‘Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you.’ English voices.

  ‘Happy birthday dear Tilly and Jacob, happy birthday to you.’

  Aww, a children’s birthday party, how sweet.

  She stood up to make a move back to the hotel, glancing over to where the singing was coming from. About a dozen children were all sat in a circle on a red blanket, the remains of a tea party scattered around them. The two birthday children were both leaning over a big chocolate cake at the far end, blowing out the candles.

  ‘Smile, you two.’

  A man with a camera was standing just in front of Olivia. He looked vaguely familiar but she could only see his back so it was hard to tell.

  ‘Over here, look at Daddy,’ he called, waving his hand in the air.

  Click went the camera.

  ‘Get in the photo, Mother.’

  A blonde lady walked over and smiled at the camera, an arm around each child.

  Oh!

  Suddenly Olivia realised who it was. Of all the places in Hong Kong they were here, the family from the plane! That meant the man with the camera…

  Ping. A text message on her phone. She pulled it out of her bag.

  Call me when you get a minute. Love Mum xxx

  She looked back up, and he was looking straight at her.

  ‘Hi.’ He sounded unsure.

  ‘Oh, hi,’ she replied. Why did she feel embarrassed suddenly? Perhaps because he was even more attractive now than he had been on the plane, and she worried that the admiration may show on her face?

  ‘It is you! I thought it was! Fancy seeing you here!’ The penny had obviously dropped and he looked genuinely pleased to see her.

  ‘My hotel is just there.’ She gestured in the direction of The Park Lane, unable to think of anything more poignant to say.

  ‘Well what a small world, I live just next to you,’ he replied, and pointed to a high-rise building not far from her hotel.

  ‘Oh,’ Olivia replied, still struggling with what to say.

  ‘Daddy, Daddy,’ a small voice called, and Tilly bounded over, grabbing hold of her father’s trousers, ‘we are going to start the games.’ She looked at Olivia.

  ‘Do you remember the nice lady from the airplane, darling?’ he asked his daughter.

  The little girl looked at Olivia and studied her for a moment.

  ‘I think so,’ she said sweetly.

  To be fair, thought Olivia, I do look quite different onboard than I do right now. For a moment she wished she had made a little bit of an effort before leaving her room, but she really hadn’t expected to run into anyone she knew or might have to talk to!

  ‘I’m sorry, please forgive me, I don’t even know your name.’

  ‘Olivia.’

  ‘Jez, and this is Tilly, and that little terror over there is Jacob.’ He gestured over to his son, who had just smothered his whole face in chocolate cake.

  ‘Will you come and play games with us?’ asked Tilly.

  Olivia opened her mouth to excuse herself.

  ‘Pleeeeeeease.’

  She looked at the sweet little girl pleading with her and then at Jez.

  ‘Olivia, we would love you to join us.’ How could she refuse?

  Five minutes later Olivia found herself blindfolded and surrounded by giggling children. Tilly had obviously known that Olivia, as the new arrival, would have to do her beckoning, and was taking full advantage. She felt slightly ridiculous as she reached out around her, trying to grab hold of absolutely anyone, so that she could end her turn as quickly as possible. Where were they?!

  At last, a body!

  She grabbed the arm tight, but it wasn’t a child’s arm, it was muscular and warm. She held on probably a moment more than she should have done.

  ‘You got me!’ Jez said softly.

  Olivia jumped and let go as if she had been burned. Her cheeks flushed and her heart raced. Of all the people to catch! She hoped he wouldn’t notice her blushing.

  ‘Sorry,’ she said, taking off her blindfold hastily and handing it to him. ‘Your turn.’

  The games continued for at least the next hour. Piñata, pass the parcel, all the classics. Olivia genuinely loved children and found Tilly and Jacob absolutely adorable. They clearly loved Olivia too, both vying for her attention and Tilly insisting that she take part in everything!

  Chapter 6

  ‘Champagne?’

  It was Linda, standing there with a bottle of Bollinger and a stack of plastic cups. She smiled at Olivia and offered her a cup, filling it with champagne.

  ‘Sorry about the cups but we couldn’t risk glass out here.’

  ‘No, of course not,’ agreed Olivia.

  ‘It’s so lovely of you to join us, Olivia, it’s really made Tilly’s day,’ said Linda warmly. ‘It was meant to be that we bumped into yo
u today.’

  ‘Thank you, you’re too kind,’ replied Olivia. ‘Thank you for letting me join you, I’ve loved it so much.’ She really had.

  The sun was beginning to set and slowly the parents started to gather up their children and say their goodbyes. Olivia probably should have left then too but she didn’t really want to; she was loving the ease of being with Jez and his family. Tilly had a wisdom as if she had been here before in another life, and entertained Olivia with her observations and analogies. Jacob was just a bundle of cuteness, and Linda was the perfect host, mother and grandmother. She was intrigued by Olivia’s job and lifestyle, quizzing her on destinations and layovers. In return she opened up to her about how she had come to be in Hong Kong with her family, and Olivia warmed to them all even more.

  ‘I really must get these two babies home,’ she said suddenly, realising it was now dark and Jacob was slumbering already in his stroller.

  Olivia was just about to say her goodbyes when Jez looked at her and held up a bottle of champagne he had just opened.

  ‘Will you stay here and finish this with me, Olivia?’ he asked, tilting his head and raising his eyebrows.

  How could she refuse? Not only was she an absolute sucker for champagne but she was enjoying his company, maybe a little bit too much.

  They sat on the bench talking for another hour, not about Ness, this wasn’t the time, and Olivia inexplicably couldn’t bring herself to mention Tom. They talked about their jobs, their childhoods, and their mutual love of Hong Kong.

  The champagne had given her a warm and contented feeling and she closed her eyes briefly to take in the sounds and smells around her. As she did so Jez leaned in and kissed her so gently on the lips that she barely felt it, but it was definitely there. She opened her eyes and stared straight into his, losing herself in the moment.

  She should have pushed him away, or told him to stop, but instead she received him willingly as he leaned back in towards her and their lips met again, lingering this time, gently caressing. He stroked her long dark hair, running his fingers gently down her face and along her neck, giving her goosebumps despite the heat of the night. Afterwards they sat on the bench in silence, him holding her tightly in his strong arms. Olivia felt the warmth of his body and his heart beating, it was racing just like hers was.