Brides of Penhally Bay - Vol 3 (55 page)

‘Grief affects people in different ways.’ Realising that his tone of voice had revealed more than he had intended and had roused Oliver’s interest, Gabriel cleared his throat and changed the subject, unwilling to think of home and family. ‘Don’t worry about anything here. I’ll see to Ms Stanbury’s flu vaccination tomorrow. And I know Lauren will take care of the cats for Chloe while you are gone.’

A knowing gleam shone in Oliver’s dark eyes. ‘Somehow I doubt that you and Lauren will be sorry to have us out of the way for a while. We’ve cramped your style a bit, having to move into Gatehouse Cottage after the flood.’

‘It’s fine.’

‘You look much more relaxed than when you first arrived,’ Oliver continued after a moment.

Gabriel nodded. ‘I feel it. It’s been enjoyable and I’ve learned a great deal. I’m glad I came here.’

‘Moving to Penhally Bay certainly changed
my
life.’

‘How so?’ he prompted, interested to know more about the man who had become a close friend in such a short time.

‘I was dissatisfied with my life in London and knew I wanted something different. I’d planned to take time to settle in and establish myself before I started thinking about the future and a family. But then I met Chloe. I knew from the
first moment that she was the one for me.’ He glanced across with a smile that was both reminiscent and wicked. ‘It took me a while to acknowledge the truth of it to myself—and a bit longer to persuade Chloe I was serious. She’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’ve never been this contented.’

‘I’m pleased for you. Anyone can see how great you are as a couple.’

‘I hope Penhally will bring you the same contentment.’

Gabriel hesitated a moment, finding it surprisingly easy to share confidences with Oliver—something that was uncharacteristic for him. ‘I have issues to work out from home…things to consider about my future. And a year here in which to decide on the direction of my life.’

‘Penhally is a good place to think. If you want to talk, I’m here. And there’s Lauren,’ he added, a teasing glint in his eyes. ‘The sparks between you are obvious. I hope you’ll find your time in Cornwall brings you the same happiness and direction it gave to me.’

‘Thank you,
mon ami
.’

Gabriel wondered the same thing. Would his time in Penhally not only lead him to some answers about his family dilemma but also open up a whole new world of opportunity with Lauren? Their friendship had established and deepened from the first moment. It had happened quickly, but there was no denying the connection between them. The heightened awareness and desire fizzing through him whenever he so much as thought of Lauren could not be ignored.

He was looking forward to finding out what the next weeks and months held in store for him.

‘W
E JUST
have Gertrude Stanbury left to visit,’ Lauren informed Gabriel as she steered the car away from the Mitchell family’s home and headed towards Trelissa Road.

Despite hearing good things from others, this morning was the first time she had seen Gabriel in action as a doctor for herself. She was even more impressed than she had anticipated. He had an innate warmth that set people at their ease and evoked their trust. He was interested and genuine, compassionate without being patronising. Combined with everything else she knew about him, it made her admire and care about him even more.

‘Paul Mitchell is an inspiring youngster,’ Gabriel said, and Lauren smiled.

‘He is. I always feel humbled by his bravery,’ she admitted, shaking her head at the way the eleven-year-old coped with the limits Duchenne muscular dystrophy placed on his life. ‘Paul’s faced each new challenge and stage of the disease with good humour and fortitude, although he hates having to use the wheelchair now. He loves school but doesn’t attend full time because of the difficulties, so has some lessons at home, like today. Thankfully he’s a genius with a computer…it’s his pride and joy. The family don’t have much materially but they do all they can to meet Paul’s needs with home adapta
tions and equipment. They are very close and wonderfully supportive of each other, not to mention grateful for whatever back-up we can give them.’

Gabriel nodded, his admiration evident. ‘They are certainly devoted to Paul and take his exercise regime seriously.’

‘Paul’s willingness to keep trying, to do the stretching exercises for his muscles and the breathing ones to keep his lungs clear, expel the mucus and reduce the risk of infections, makes my job much easier. He’s determined not to let it beat him. And we are all determined to work as a team to ensure that Paul has the fullest and most enjoyable life possible.’

‘I think you are amazing.’ Gabriel’s compliment warmed her inside. ‘I’ve seen you today helping a variety of people—Harry Biscombe with his osteoporosis, Edith Jones with her minor stroke, the after-effects of her broken knee and assorted health problems, Stella Chamberlain with her onset of Parkinson’s disease, the Morrisons with young baby Timmy’s cystic fibrosis, and now Paul.’ He paused and she could feel his gaze on her. ‘You have a special rapport with your patients, Lauren. You give so much of yourself. It’s not just a job to you.’

His praise touched her, his opinion mattering a great deal. But his own dedication and giftedness as a doctor was unsurpassed. ‘You’re the same. Medicine—caring for people in need—is part of the very fabric of who you are.’

‘Yes.’

There was a thread of sadness and confusion in his voice, along with a weary sigh. She glanced at him, wondering what lay behind his change of tone. Did it have something to do with why he had been so keen to leave France? There was so much she wanted to discover about this man.

‘Gabriel—’

‘Tell me about Gertrude Stanbury,’ he suggested, interrupting her. ‘Oliver tells me she is something of a character.’

Reluctantly, Lauren allowed the change of subject…for
now. ‘You can say that again. Gertrude is retired now but she was an institution as long-time headmistress at the secondary school here in Penhally. She has a bungalow in Gull Close and suffers badly from arthritis, especially in the knees and hands, although other joints are becoming affected more seriously. She had her first knee replacement recently but is still not very mobile. Her recovery wasn’t helped by the flood, but at least she was safe. Thankfully one of the young local girls, Tassie Lovelace, was visiting her at the time, and as the water started coming in she was able to encourage Gertrude into the attic, from where they were rescued by one of the helicopter crews.’

‘How on earth did Gertrude manage to get up there?’

‘I’ve no idea, but it didn’t do her joints much good.’ Lauren shook her head, pausing a moment as she parked in Trelissa Road, taking extra care to make sure she didn’t have a repeat of reversing into anything…not with Gabriel as a witness. ‘Until her home is fit to live in again, Dr Tom Cornish has insisted she live in this house—it used to belong to his father and Tom inherited it. A former Penhally resident, he happened to be here, dealing with the house, when the flood hit. He’s head of Deltaron, the international rescue agency, and his team were marvellous during the emergency.’

Gabriel unclipped his seat belt and glanced at the house. ‘Why would Dr Cornish loan Gertrude his house?’

‘Apparently Tom was a bit wild when he was young and, although a formidable adversary, Gertrude always believed in him. Tom was glad to help her now and repay her faith in him.’ She chuckled at her own memories of the feisty woman who had watched over the school and its pupils with an all-seeing eye. ‘She scared the life out of most of us!’

‘I shall look forward to hearing all about your misspent youth!’

Lauren laughed. ‘The trouble is, Gertrude will be all too keen to tell you.’

‘Now I’m even more intrigued.’ He smiled back at her, and she felt the faint wash of pink that tinged her cheeks.

‘Just don’t believe everything you hear.’

‘Maybe that depends what
everything
is.’

His teasing deepened her blush. She was aware of him following close behind as she walked towards the house and opened the front door with the spare key they kept at the surgery. Rotund, white-haired Gertrude was propped up on pillows in a comfortable recliner in the living room. Age and crippling arthritis had brought an end to her working life, but had done nothing to dim the sharp expression in her steely grey gaze or take the edge off her shrewd watchfulness. A sense of humour and keen interest still lurked behind her outward bark and bluster.

‘Oh, it’s you, Lauren. Come in, then, if I have to be poked and prodded,’ she grumbled, a sparkle dancing in her eyes as she took her first look at Gabriel. ‘Who is this handsome creature?’

‘I’ve brought Dr Devereux to meet you, Ms Stanbury.’

Lauren introduced them and watched with amusement as the elderly lady regally extended her hand, a pink glow washing pale, papery cheeks at Gabriel’s gallant greeting. She was surprised, however, when Gertrude began speaking rapidly to him in his own language.

‘I’d forgotten that you used to teach French, Ms Stanbury.’

‘I did have a life before becoming a headmistress, you know,’ she barked in response.

Lauren saw the laughter in Gabriel’s eyes and struggled to contain a giggle. ‘How have you been since I last saw you? Have you been managing the exercises I gave you?’

‘Pure torture, they are.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that.’ Lauren smiled, not fooled for a moment by Gertrude’s mock complaints. As she carried out a gentle examination and encouraged her to try a few more movements and exercises, both standing and sitting, she could
see the improvement in the knee that had been replaced. ‘You are doing so well, Ms Stanbury. Once your other knee is done, you’ll find your mobility will be much better. How are your hands? Are you finding the new combination of pills Dr Oliver put you on helping at all?’

An affectionate expression crossed the elderly lady’s face at the mention of Oliver, for whom it was well-known she had a soft spot. ‘These pills are an improvement.’

‘I’m so glad. We’ll run through a few more gentle exercises to keep you moving, then Dr Devereux is going to see to your flu jab.’

A groan greeted the news and Lauren shared another smile with Gabriel. When she had finished, she sat back on her heels and packed away her things while Gabriel dealt with the vaccination and chatted with Gertrude in French. Lauren didn’t catch much of the conversation, but hearing the names of Martin and her parents mentioned, she smothered a groan of her own. Maybe it was a good thing she couldn’t remember much of her schoolgirl French or she would likely be mortified at whatever Gertrude was telling Gabriel. The former headmistress possessed an encyclopaedic knowledge about her past students and embarrassing moments were recounted with glee. Feeling Gabriel watching her, she looked up. The interested speculation evident in his mocha-brown eyes made her wonder what questions she would face once they were alone.

‘You didn’t understand much of that, did you, Lauren? You would remember your French had
I
been your teacher,’ Ms Stanbury rebuked, reverting to English, mischief in her eyes. ‘As I recall, it was always art and sport with you. When you weren’t tripping over and dropping things. Still,’ her tormentor continued, her knowing gaze moving from Lauren to Gabriel and back again, ‘it seems to me that your interest in things French has increased considerably of late.’

As Gabriel chuckled, Lauren fought another blush. The
woman was a menace! Fortunately, they were soon able to escape. Unfortunately, her time with Gabriel was over for today and she dropped him back at the Manor House.

‘Gertrude Stanbury was everything I expected and more,’ he teased, silencing her grunt of disgust with a parting kiss that left her breathless. He drew back and stroked the fingers of one hand down her cheek. ‘Thank you for this morning,
chérie
. I learned a lot.’ Lauren feared he had learned rather more than she had intended, thanks to Gertrude’s runaway tongue. ‘We’ll talk at the weekend.’

With his enigmatic promise ringing in her ears, Lauren returned to the surgery for her afternoon list of appointments, wondering what the weekend held in store and if, once finally alone, they would succumb to the charge of desire that hummed between them.

Today had been his most enjoyable day in Cornwall so far, Gabriel reflected, lingering over coffee after the meal he had cooked and shared with Lauren in the kitchen at the Manor House on Saturday evening.

The weather had continued to be kind and they had spent the day exploring, Lauren showing him Bodmin Moor and parts of the coast. They had also indulged in a number of increasingly heated kisses that had whetted his appetite for more. From the look in her eyes and the responses of her body, he was pretty sure Lauren felt the same. Foxy had accompanied them on their walks, growing in confidence all the time, and the sleek greyhound now lay asleep in the basket Lauren had brought up for him. Returning from their outing as dusk had descended, they had stopped off at Gatehouse Cottage to check on and feed Chloe’s cats.

He had noticed once again Lauren’s nervousness and caution in the dark, the care she took, the way she sometimes counted to herself as if she was measuring her steps because
she couldn’t see. He wasn’t even sure she was aware of the habit. Once the lights went on, she reverted to her usual self. Again, her actions puzzled and concerned him, but he was wary of mentioning anything to her until he had a clearer idea if there was, indeed, anything wrong…and until she knew him well enough to trust him. Was he making something out of nothing? Maybe, if everyone else accepted her as clumsy and she had always been this way, he was seeing something that wasn’t there and Lauren just had bad night vision. Gertrude Stanbury had confirmed Lauren had been renowned for being accident prone even in her schooldays. He planned to keep a watch on her until he was more certain of the facts.

Looking at Lauren now, Gabriel marvelled again at her natural beauty. Her skin glowed with freshness, her hair, left loose around her shoulders, shone with life—myriad shades of light browns and golds—and her womanly figure was shown off to perfection in dark jeans and a lilac button-through top that hugged the fullness of her breasts. Long, sooty lashes rose and beautiful grey eyes stared into his own.

‘What?’ she asked, her voice husky, rosy lips parting slightly as her tongue-tip peeped out to moisten them, tightening his gut with need.

He edged his chair closer and reached out to take one of her hands in both of his, holding her palm up in one hand and stroking her soft skin with the fingers of the other, feeling the way her flesh quivered in response to his touch.

‘I had a great time today, Lauren.’

‘Me, too.’

He forced himself to look away from the temptation of her mouth for the moment. They had talked about so much today but had not touched on any of the things that were contentious or difficult, like family and past relationships. Gabriel thought of all the well-meaning but meddling gossip Gertrude had told him on Thursday. Knowing how he felt about having his own
privacy invaded, he didn’t want to pressure Lauren, yet he knew they had reached a point where an exchange of confidences was needed if they were to take the simmering passion that only grew hotter and more intense between them to its logical conclusion.

‘Will you tell me about Martin?’ he asked after a long moment of silence. He watched Lauren carefully but saw nothing in her reaction to worry him, no sign she was still in love with the man Gertrude had mentioned.

‘Martin and I had an on-off relationship for a long time,’ she explained, no inflection in her voice. ‘We grew up together, went out as teenagers, then broke up when I went away to do my physiotherapy training. I had a couple of casual boyfriends while we were apart and I know Martin dated other people. He stayed in Penhally, apprenticed to his father’s construction business, but he was never happy there.’ Gabriel waited when she paused again, welcoming the way she twined her fingers with his. ‘When I moved back here to work, neither of us were involved with anyone and we started seeing each other again. I suppose we drifted into it for lack of other options. That sounds bad, but we were good friends first and foremost. We just became comfortable with each other, like an old habit. Things were wrong for a long time but neither of us faced up to what was happening.’

‘And what did happen?’

‘Martin became increasingly restless and withdrawn. He felt stifled by a job he hated, a town he wanted to escape from and a relationship I’m sure he knew deep down was going nowhere. I was settled—I love my job, my friends, my hobbies. But he needed to go off and explore new things and places. And to find someone he could share more than friendship with.’

She sounded understanding and not too sorry that things had ended, Gabriel thought. ‘So he left.’