Coming Home to Wishington Bay

‘I know! I can qualify as a doctor, but I can’t boil an egg.’

‘What happened exactly?’

‘It got left on for a little bit too long, I think. A colleague rang me and we got stuck into discussing a case. By the time I remembered the egg, you could have used it to play cricket with.’

‘Oh dear!’ I said again, laughing.

‘Pathetic, eh?’

‘No! Not at all. It happens to the best of us. And it wasn’t like you got distracted by something inane.’ Like watching videos of cute puppies on YouTube. Yep. I definitely wasn’t ready to share that deeply yet. I smiled up at him. He returned it and then shoved himself away from the banister.

‘I’d better get a move on.’

‘Hot date?’ Please, please tell me I didn’t say that out loud.

‘Something like that.’ He grinned.

Oh God. It was out loud.

Avoiding his eyes and glancing down at my phone, I jumped up. ‘Is that the time?’ I said, quickly grabbing my stuff off the lounger. ‘Sorry. I’m running a bit late.’

‘Hot date?’ He returned the question and I felt myself blush from my bare feet upwards.

I paused and turned back briefly, rolling my eyes. ‘Oh, I really hope not,’ I said, before dashing back into the house and running upstairs to the shower.

Chapter 3

In the past, my brother and his wife had made a variety of attempts to set me up on dates. Clearly, they considered my ability to choose men with about the same level of disillusionment as I did myself. Unfortunately, their choices for me also often left something to be desired, so perhaps it was a family trait. Although, thinking about it, Gigi had managed to choose a pretty wonderful man for herself, and Mum couldn’t have picked anyone who would have worshipped her more. Then there was Ned, my brother, who had a gorgeous, funny and very loving wife whom I adored. OK then, so it was just me with the crappy taste. Good to know.

They hadn’t specifically said they were setting me up with anyone this time. They never did. A friend just always ‘happened’ to be free so they’d ‘invited him along’. I’m pretty sure they knew I didn’t believe a word of it but they continued to try. Which was sweet of them but I really had no interest in meeting anyone. By now I was completely fed up with my inability to find a decent man so it just seemed like the best plan was not to bother even attempting it.

I’d come to this decision when my last relationship had ended spectacularly badly around eighteen months ago after I’d found out my boyfriend was ‘technically’ still seeing someone else. This revelation came about when his ‘technical’ other girlfriend walked in to the restaurant where the company Christmas do was being held. It wasn’t pretty. I’d walked out, head held high, and hadn’t crumpled until I was safe within the walls of my own flat.

But the whole thing had hurt like hell because he’d been so wonderfully handsome and charming, and I’d really, really liked him. I’d trusted him and let him into my heart. It was something I’d been so careful about before but Paul had said all the right words, done all the right things, and I’d believed him. The error of that particular judgement had been painful in its proving and I had absolutely no intention of making a similar mistake ever again.

‘Four place settings,’ I said, unable to keep the sigh out of my voice as I picked up a fork from the table and began twirling it in my fingers.

‘Yeah. We’ve got a friend coming. I hope that’s all right,’ Ned said, concentrating on the deliciousness in the pan in front of him on the stove.

‘A friend,’ I said, putting the fork back and wandering over to where my brother was adding a touch more seasoning to the food.

‘Try that,’ he said, handing me the spoon. I did. It was, as always, beyond yummy. I made noises to this effect and Ned smiled. Glancing at me, he caught something in my expression. ‘Oh! No! No, I promise this time, it’s most definitely not a set-up. I’m pretty sure you’re not his type anyway. His last girlfriend was an absolute stunner.’ My brother was, as always, the epitome of tact. I whacked the spoon on his forearm.

‘Oww! What was that for?’

‘I imagine it was because you just insinuated that your sister isn’t beautiful.’ Carrie came into the kitchen, smiling, and gave me a big hug, her posture a little awkward as the large bump that was my niece or nephew came between us. ‘Which she totally is,’ she finished.

Ned shrugged his shoulders and went back to stirring the food.

‘But he’s right on the other part. This isn’t a set-up. We had this planned before we knew you were coming down. It really is just four people having dinner. We kind of decided that maybe we weren’t so great at matchmaking after the last incident.’

‘Whatever gave you that idea?’ I asked, an innocent look on my face.

Carrie grinned. ‘Oh God, I know it was bad. But he seemed so normal and nice!’

‘He was. Sort of,’ I conceded. ‘He just was very, very … enthusiastic about his farm,’ I said, trying to find the right words. ‘More specifically the recipe for the manure that went into the muck spreader.’

Carrie and Ned’s last attempt to set me up had been with a local farmer they’d met through the restaurant when he became one of their new organic suppliers. He was, as Carrie said, very nice but he had also, apparently, spent a long time perfecting the perfect recipe for poop and then spent what felt like an even longer time telling me about it – over dinner.

Unfortunately, I did such a good job of being polite that he seemed to believe I was genuinely interested and insisted on driving me over to the farm to show me first hand. I really, really didn’t want to go but, apart from the manure obsession, he was a sweet man, and I didn’t want to hurt his feelings or sour the working relationship between him and my brother’s restaurant. Ned and Carrie had looked at me helplessly as I’d searched for an excuse in my momentarily blank brain. None of us had come up with one.

It had taken me over a fortnight to get the smell out of my nostrils and had at the same time proved to everyone for future information that I most definitely wasn’t cut out to be a farmer’s wife. It was at least a week before I could even look at chocolate cake again but, as I wasn’t a quitter, I’d forced myself to beat that particular problem.

The experience, however, had at last apparently confirmed to my brother and sister-in-law that they weren’t natural matchmakers. So at least something good had come of it. Even though they still owed me for a once-beautiful and hideously expensive pair of shoes that didn’t survive the ordeal.

Carrie and I sat for a few minutes chatting, as we flicked through a fashion magazine and Carrie sighed at all the tiny waists.

‘Look at them!’ she cried.

‘Hon, they’re not home to a small human at the moment. You are.’

Carrie gave another sigh. ‘There is that. Good point.’ She stroked her bump and smiled. I couldn’t help smiling along with her. For all her griping about the models, Carrie was exactly where she wanted to be. She and Ned had been trying for a baby for a while before it had actually happened, and they were incredibly excited about this new addition to the family. As was I. I couldn’t wait to be an auntie, and already had a tonne of boxes and bags of stuff that I just hadn’t been able to resist when I’d mooched around in town or on holidays. It was all stored back at the flat for now. I’d drive back up and get it when the baby arrived later this summer.

Talking of new additions … I looked down at the small dog who had just wandered into the kitchen. His walk was a little wonky but his face was adorably cute in a mishmash of breeds way. From the looks of him, he was mostly sausage dog but clearly someone wanted to mix it up a bit and his legs were slightly overlong for the breed as was his tail.

‘You got a dog?’ I asked.

‘No, it’s our friend’s. He’s collecting him tonight. We doggysit for him sometimes so that Bryan isn’t on his own too long.’

‘Bryan.’

‘Yes, with a Y.’

‘Of course. Is he drunk?’

‘What?’

‘He’s kind of wobbly.’

‘Oh! No, he had a little operation today, so he’s still a bit dozy from the anaesthetic. It’ll wear off soon and he’ll be back to normal.’

‘He’s all right though?’ I said, bending down and stroking the dog who was now sat slightly haphazardly in front of me.

‘Yes, he’s fine. Just a bit tired. He’ll be right as rain tomorrow.’

Carrie had been head veterinary nurse at the local practice for years now. It had an excellent reputation and people travelled miles to bring their animals to the village practice, thanks to the expertise and care it offered. I knelt on the floor and tickled the dog’s chin and he wobbled up closer, put his front paws on my knee and looked up at me, expectantly. I took the bait and lifted him gently onto my lap where he curled up and promptly fell asleep. Ned looked over from where he was preparing dessert and laughed.

‘You’re such a sucker.’

My brother’s compliments were almost as big a draw for my visits as his incredible cooking.

‘To be fair, he’s pretty good at emotional manipulation.’ A deep, accented voice drifted in from the back door to the kitchen.

‘Gabe!’ Carrie waddled over and got swept up in a big hug.

‘How are you both?’ he asked, gently touching the bump. I watched from the corner of my eye, seeing immediately how at ease he would put his patients. Yes, OK. So maybe he was a doctor after all.

‘We’re fine. Really good actually.’ Carrie beamed. Being pregnant suited her. She looked all glowy and serene. I was pretty sure that wasn’t a look I could pull off. I’d probably just end up sweaty and agitated.

‘I’m fine too!’ Ned called in a mock huff from the other side of the kitchen. Gabe did that way-too-good laugh again and walked across to where my brother was now opening two bottles of beer. Gabe wrapped an arm around his shoulders and gave a big squeeze.

‘Aww, no need to get jealous, mate. I still love you too!’

Ned pulled a face and thrust a beer at his mate. They clinked bottles and downed a good proportion each.

Gabe put his bottle on the worktop and walked over to where I was sat. Crouching down, he smiled at me. ‘Hello again.’

‘Oh, you’ve met then?’ Carrie asked. ‘We weren’t sure if you’d have bumped into one another yet or not.’

‘Yeah. There was definitely some bumping going on.’ Gabe laughed. Then stopped as three pairs of eyes looked at him, mine wider than the rest, and he suddenly realised how his statement had sounded. ‘Not like that! I fell off a ladder when Holly pulled the blind of the window I was painting. We … kind of made each other jump. And then she spent the rest of the day accusing me of being a burglar.’ He grinned at me and I pulled a face.

‘Oh God, Holly. You’re not still freaking about that break-in, are you?’ Ned asked.

I looked up at my brother and opened my mouth to respond, glancing at Carrie as I did so. She just rolled her eyes and shook her head. I took her advice, not wanting to sour the evening by bickering with him. I knew it was hard for him to understand the feeling of violation and insecurity the burglary had left me with. Something that Gabe had seemed to understand straight away. Ned had always been the most laid-back of the two of us. He’d made his life down here, rather than up in London as I had, and sometimes I wondered if that hadn’t been a major factor in the way we dealt with things.

I turned my attention back to Gabe. ‘Hot date fall through?’ I teased.

‘Unfortunately. Luckily, I had this as backup.’ He grinned.

‘If that’s true, and we are merely “backup” I will be hiding whole chillies in your pudding,’ Carrie informed him, the sweetest of smiles on her face. ‘Just so you know.’

Gabe laughed and leant over to stroke the little dog with the back of his hand. As he did, I got a waft of an aftershave that smelled delicious.

‘Is the little bloke all right, then?’ he asked, his brow creasing slightly as he studied the sleeping dog.

Carrie took a seat at the table and watched us. ‘Yes. Everything went well. Probably best if he doesn’t go charging through any meadows for a bit though.’

‘What was it? In his ear, I mean?’

‘Oh, just a grass seed. Not huge but enough to cause him discomfort. He’s fine now. He was a bit wobbly from the sedation before he found a new bed on Holly’s lap, so he just needs to sleep it off.’

‘Thanks for taking care of it all, Carrie. I really appreciate it.’

‘You’re welcome.’

‘Dinner will be ready in a minute,’ Ned called.

‘Can I bring his bed in here?’ Gabe looked at Carrie.

‘Of course, it’s just in the living room.’

He quickly rose and hurried out, returning a moment later with a soft bed in one hand and an oversized stuffed toy prawn sporting a slightly surprised expression in the other. He put the bed down against the wall, in sight of the table, and then crouched down in front of me.

‘Do you mind if I …’

‘No, of course not.’ As awkward as I suddenly felt at Gabe’s hands brushing my thighs during the action of scooping up the little pup, I was as disinclined as he was to wake the patient. I quickly dismissed what else I felt at the touch and concentrated instead on watching as Gabe moved and laid Bryan gently in the bed. The dog dozily opened his eyes and looked at his master. A tired little tongue poked out of the side of his mouth and gave a lick to Gabe’s hand before the dog drifted off again. Gabe rubbed his pet’s head gently before tucking the prawn in next to his paws.

‘Here’s Petey, mate,’ he said quietly.

Bryan stretched and put one paw over the toy, dragging it closer. I smiled at the scene.

‘He loves that prawn.’

‘So I see.’

‘My parents sent it over from home when I first showed them a picture of Bryan.’

‘Gabe rescued Bryan last winter,’ Carrie said, waddling over. ‘He found him wandering the streets in the city, shivering with cold, and brought him back to the practice for us to check him over. He wasn’t in good shape but Gabe said if we could save him, he’d give him a home.’

I glanced over to where Gabe was now intent on not looking at us.

‘Need any help over there, Ned?’ he asked and headed off, his long legs crossing the room in a few strides. Within moments, the expression that had clouded his face cleared as he laughed with my brother.

Carrie lowered her voice. ‘We didn’t have a lot of hope for Bryan when he was brought in. He’d obviously been out on the streets for some time, fending for himself. We don’t know his history but he had a nasty wound on his neck that wasn’t healing, possibly from a collar or rope that had cut in. He’s the sweetest-natured dog too, poor little thing. It was difficult to know what to do for the best. His fur was gone in places with a skin infection and he had an abscess in his mouth. He was only young and in such a state, it was heartbreaking.’

I looked at the dog sleeping peacefully with his cuddle companion, surrounded by love and comfort, and my eyes filled with tears.

Carrie saw and gave me a squeeze.

‘Stupid,’ I said, quietly.

‘Not at all,’ she reassured me. ‘Believe me, we were all in tears.’ She surreptitiously nodded at the big, macho guy now lounging against her worktop.

‘Really?’ I whispered.

‘Really. He walked in with this mangy little dog wrapped in a jumper and stuffed down the front of his bike suit and begged us to save him. We told him that even if we could, it might be expensive, depending on what we found, but he just waved it away. I mean, I know he’s a doctor so he’s not short of a few bob, but still. He’d just picked this dog off the street and he was prepared to do anything to save him.’

‘I’m glad he found him.’

‘Me too. I don’t think the poor little thing would have lasted many more days to be honest.’

I looked at the puppy and got another wash of tears.

‘Will you stop doing that?’ I hissed at her.

She grinned.

‘OK, everybody ready?’ Ned asked.

We both looked up ready to acknowledge him when Ned spoke again. ‘Why are you crying?’

Not content with finishing top of his class in ‘Tact’, my brother had also majored in ‘Subtlety’.

‘I am not crying!’ I said. ‘It’s the onions.’

‘The onions went in two hours ago. You weren’t even here.’

‘She was upset about Bryan’s history,’ Carrie stated.

I looked at her.

‘What?’ she whispered. ‘You were!’

‘I don’t need them to know that!’ I whispered back.

‘Why not?’

‘You know we can still hear you, right?’ Ned asked, a puzzled look on his face.

I risked a quick look at Gabe, but he had his head down.

‘Didn’t you say something about dinner?’ I asked, changing the subject.

* * *

Dinner was, as always when my brother cooked, delicious. Chicken that melted in your mouth, Dauphinoise potatoes that were so creamy and light – I’d definitely be asking him for his secret – accompanied by vegetables plucked from their own garden a couple of hours previously. It smelled heavenly and tasted even better.

‘Fantastic, mate. As always. Thanks,’ Gabe said, sitting back in his seat.

‘You’re very welcome. Anything to keep our own private obstetrician happy.’

‘Oh, Ned, stop fussing.’ Carrie laughed, taking her husband’s hand. ‘Everything’s fine. We just saw the nurse this morning!’

‘I know. I’m just saying. It helps to know people. That’s all.’

‘I feel so used.’ Gabe affected a mock-distressed look, but laughter danced in his eyes.

‘What? You didn’t think we actually liked you, did you?’

Gabe crossed his arms, both hands resting on his heart. ‘I could only hope.’

Ned grinned around his glass and shook his head before taking a sip of his beer. I sat listening, and watching, the interaction – the easy friendship between them all – and felt a tug inside me. Was this something they did regularly? From the look and feel of the laid-back atmosphere, I guessed it was. As they carried on with their teasing, my mind wandered to what I would have been doing right now had I been at home in London. The kitchen clock above the door showed nearly 9 p.m. and I felt the tug again. I knew exactly what I’d be doing. I’d have been sat at my desk, a half-finished ready meal beside me, had I remembered to eat at all, with my head buried in paperwork as the office sat quiet around me.

‘Is that your speciality? Obstetrics?’ I asked as I took the plates Gabe handed me, having insisted on clearing the table and letting Carrie rest. She’d objected, of course, but not for too long. To be honest, I didn’t know a whole lot about being pregnant or babies but I did know from Ned that she was finding things more tiring than she’d hoped.

My brother had fallen head over heels for Carrie the moment he’d seen her and had been known to fuss over her – which although sometimes a little nauseating, depending on my mood, was mostly adorable. And they’d been trying for a baby for nearly two years before this little one appeared, so I totally understood his anxiety.

‘No. I’m actually a little further along that particular road. I’m a paediatrician.’

‘Oh wow. That’s got to be …’

He tilted his head at me as he waited for me to tell him what his career must be. Ned glanced over.

‘She’s amazing with figures but words are not her strong suit. If she cocks up here, take it with a pinch of salt.’

‘Do you mind?’ I said, feeling the blush touch my cheeks. Partly because I suspected Ned was right. While the actual meat of a presentation at work was something I could do with my eyes closed, the presentation itself, that whole speaking in front of people bit, was most definitely not my happy place. The pain in my chest would burn, my limbs would tingle and I’d have to concentrate on remembering to take enough breaths in between the words so as to not start turning blue. I may even have been known to bribe another colleague with a very expensive dinner to take my place on more than one occasion.

‘I’m not that bad,’ I said, turning back to Gabe.

He shrugged. ‘It’s a brother’s job to wind his siblings up. Ned’s a wizard at cooking but it’s nice for him to work on some other skills too.’

Ned wobbled his head in ironic amusement, causing us both to grin.

‘Believe me. He doesn’t really need too much practice at that particular skill. I think he spent the four years before I came along building on that.’

‘Just as well! Right nightmare she turned out to be,’ Ned huffed as he opened the oven to release the most mouth-watering, sweet smell of home-made treacle tart. I moved to take a closer look at the golden, bubbling deliciousness.

‘Luckily, I’m very forgiving.’

‘Actually, she’s not. But she does love food.’ Ned gave me a raised brow as he handed me the plate he’d now transferred the tart to. ‘Although you wouldn’t know it by her diet.’

I gave him a look. ‘I have a very busy schedule!’

‘You have a very unhealthy schedule that results in you barely eating, and when you do it’s rubbish and you’re suffering panic attacks.’ His expression had lost the joviality now. ‘The only time you ever ate properly was when Gigi came up to visit you or you came here.’

‘Oh, pfft,’ I said, trying to laugh it all off and not be mortified that my brother was bringing all of this up right now in front of someone who was, to me at least, pretty much a total stranger.

That someone was now looking at me with what I could immediately see what his ‘concerned doctor’s face’.

‘Panic attacks?’

‘They’re not panic attacks,’ I said, airily, as I put the dish down on the table, and handed the cake slice to Carrie, pleading with my eyes for her to help me out of this conversation. ‘Ned’s exaggerating again. You clearly know what he’s like. It’s nothing.’

‘Well, we were worried when you mentioned this last one. It must have been bad for you to take this sabbatical,’ Carrie added.

Please, ground, open up now.

‘Tell me about them.’ It didn’t sound like a request but there was still no way that was happening.

‘Tart?’ I said, putting a slice in front of Gabe, desperate to change the subject.

A smirk tempted the sides of his mouth. ‘I date but I think that particular label’s a little harsh.’

Ned snorted as he put down the jug of crème Anglaise. ‘And you say I’m tactless.’

I shook my head. ‘You two are as bad as one another,’ I said, drowning my slice of pudding in sauce and forking up a large piece.

Carrie pushed the small jug of cream towards me. I added some to my coffee – a little more than I usually did feeling, with more relief than I’d expected, that I didn’t have to get up at five o’clock tomorrow morning. Years ago, I’d loved my coffee milky, but as I’d worked harder and longer and climbed the financial services corporate ladder, I’d gradually taken my coffee darker and stronger, relying more and more on the kick it gave to help me last through the day. I was only on my first full day in Wishington Bay and I realised I was already two coffees down. Considering how many I’d get through in a day, that wasn’t a great reduction but it also said quite a lot.

I passed the cream to Gabe. ‘So, how long have you been at St Andrew’s Hospital?’

He closed his eyes for a moment, savouring the smell of the freshly roasted coffee before taking a taste. ‘A little over three years now.’

‘Did you come from somewhere else in the country, or straight over from Australia?’

‘Straight from Sydney.’

‘Gosh. That’s quite a leap, isn’t it? I mean from living in a busy city in Australia to a quiet little English seaside village?’

He grinned and I tried not to notice. At least not in all the places my body was trying to get me to notice.

‘It was kind of a culture shock, that’s for sure. I stayed with a mate for a few weeks when I got here and had been looking at places in the city when I heard from one of the guys I’d been surfing with that there was a place for rent right on the beach. I wasn’t sure if that might be a bit quiet for me, but the thought of waking up and hearing the sea each morning did kind of have an appeal. Anyway, I decided I could take a look and then at least I’d know.’