From Single Mum to Lady (14 page)

Jandy grimaced. ‘Poor Mum! So the fibula and tibia are both broken?’

He nodded. ‘The fibula is broken just above the ankle and the tibia’s also fractured, resulting in dislocation. I’ve had to insert metal screws to hold the bone fragments in place.’ Then he grinned. ‘But don’t worry! Your mother will eventually be back wearing the very high heels she was wearing when she was rescued!’

Trust her mother to be wearing high heels on a trip up a mountainside, thought Jandy. Not that she would have contemplated going for a walk when they’d reached the lookout spot—it would have been a cigarette stop!

‘I shall hold you to that promise, Mr Landers,’ whispered Leony from the bed. ‘I wish you’d let me have just one teeny cigarette, though—it would be so good for my nerves!’

‘Certainly not, Mrs Marshall,’ he growled mock-severely. ‘I want you to eat good food and perhaps have the odd glass of wine—but not one cigarette!’ He turned to Jandy. ‘The contusions on your mother’s face look bad, but they’re relatively minor and she’s had a scan which shows that there’s no bleeding or broken facial bones.’

‘And how is Bertie, Doctor? Is he still in Intensive Care?’ asked Jandy.

The doctor’s expression turned more serious. ‘Mr Muir is the neurosurgeon looking after your friend but he’s in Theatre at the moment. He’s asked me to tell you that Bertie has an open skull fracture with some inter-cranial bleeding—that’s why he’s in the Intensive Care department.’

‘What does that mean?’ asked Jandy’s mother helplessly. ‘Oh, I’m so stupid. I don’t even know what “cranial” means…’

‘It means that there could be a build-up of blood around the skull and into the brain,’ explained Jandy. ‘Will they be doing anything to alleviate that?’

‘Mr Muir intends to do a craniotomy to drain the blood and repair any damaged blood vessels.’ He looked at Leony’s horrified face, and put his hand up soothingly. ‘There is every possibility that he will be all right—it is serious, yes, but not desperate. His condition is stable at the moment and we feel he can be operated on soon. I assure you that the patient will be in very good hands.’

‘You’ll tell me if…if his condition changes, won’t you, Doctor?’ asked Leony.

‘Of course…but I want you to rest now, Mrs Marshall, and build up your strength. Sleep is a great healer.’

Leony sighed and said huskily, ‘I shall never, never be able to sleep while my precious Bertie is in such danger.’

‘Mr Landers is right, Mum,’ said Jandy firmly. ‘Bertie’s obviously being closely monitored and you must try not to worry. I’ll come back early tomorrow—but I’ll be at the end of the phone if I’m needed.’

‘Of course, darling—you must be shattered yourself.’ Her mother brightened a little. ‘Perhaps you’ll bring me some better nighties than this awful hospital one and some face cream—and a little toilet water to freshen me up.’

Mr Landers’s twinkling eyes met Jandy’s. ‘I think your mother feels a little better!’

‘Of course, Mum. I should have thought of them myself, but I came straight here.’ Jandy bent down to kiss her mother. ‘I’ll keep my fingers crossed for Bertie—but it sounds like he’s having the best of attention. Would it be possible to see him soon?’

‘At the moment he’s sedated,’ said Mr Landers. ‘But I think tomorrow we’ll see the picture more clearly and I’m sure you’ll be able to see him then.’

Jandy went back to the car park relieved that her mother was not in danger but worried about the long-term arrangements for both Leony’s and Bertie’s convalescent care.

Patrick was standing by the hire car and waved to her. ‘How are things?’ he asked.

Jandy gave him a quick résumé of the situation then rubbed her eyes wearily. ‘Lord, I feel like I’ve run a marathon,’ she remarked with a sigh. ‘Let’s go to Mum’s house—it’s a good half hour away from here and up in the hills. I could do with a shower.’

‘And something to eat?’ put in Patrick with a grin. ‘We never did get round to my picnic earlier today.’

‘Was it only a few hours ago?’ said Jandy in wonder. ‘It seems a lifetime since we were in the garden…’

She caught his eye and blushed with a sudden giggle, remembering just what they had been doing when they’d been interrupted.

‘We were getting to know each other quite well, weren’t we?’ Patrick murmured as he held the car door open for her. ‘Now, get in and tell me the way to get to your mother’s house.’

Jandy relaxed back against the car seat—she felt desperately tired, but the tension of the past few hours had disappeared. She flicked a look across at Patrick, concentrating on driving on the narrow country roads. It was incredibly comforting to have him with her, taking the burden off her shoulders of driving her to different places, and knowing he was there to unload her worries and discuss them with him.

Patrick felt her eyes on him. ‘You worried about my driving?’ He grinned.

‘Not at all. I…I just want you to know how grateful I am, Patrick, you coming with me. It’s a great help.’

‘It’s no hardship, Jandy. It’s a beautiful area, and if it weren’t for your mother’s terrible accident I could imagine we were on holiday. It’s been too long since I’ve had a few days to myself.’ He glanced at her mischievously. ‘And with a beautiful woman I intend to get to know very, very well. And don’t forget we’ve some unfinished business to complete…’

Jandy laughed, suddenly feeling light-hearted after the strain of the past hours. The circumstances that had brought her up to Scotland were awful, but there was definitely a silver lining to the cloud. Her heart skipped a beat—alone with the sexiest man she’d ever seen! A tremor of nervous excitement ran through her. Being thrown together with a man she didn’t really know for a few days could make or break a friendship. And everything seemed to have happened so quickly. Only a short while ago she’d been furious with him and his supposed snobbery, and now, only that morning, a few hours ago, he’d apologised for his rudeness and made it very clear that the attraction she felt wasn’t all one-sided! She flicked a look at his strong profile—she didn’t know what would happen between them over the next few days, but one thing was for sure, she fancied him even more than ever!

Lost in her thoughts, she nearly missed the crossroads where the little filling station stood at the side of the road, overlooking the valley they just driven from.

‘We’re here, Patrick—this is it!’ she sang out.

Patrick drew into the drive and got out, stretching his long limbs and looking around him. ‘Wow! This is a little piece of paradise,’ he murmured. ‘What a backdrop. It…it doesn’t seem real, more like a scene from a romantic film.’

They were fairly high up in the hills, the garage the last stop for petrol before motorists headed over the tops. Flower tubs filled with geraniums had been placed along the front and the garage was painted a fresh white, with a little coffee shop to one side. There was the faintest smell of honey permeating the stillwarm air from the heather creeping across the moorland and right up to the garden of the house. Tumbling over the little walls that bounded a small terrace round the front of the property were fading morning glory blooms and more pink geraniums.

‘Idyllic—what a lovely place. I’ve never seen a filling station like it!’ Patrick remarked appreciatively, turning to look down across the countryside, where in the distance beyond was the sea, glinting and sparkling in the late afternoon sun.

‘It’s beautiful, isn’t it?’ Jandy said.

He looked at her silently for a moment, standing with her back to the dying sun, a slender silhouette, her hair highlighted a mellow honey gold in the light, little tendrils that had escaped from her chignon framing her face.

‘Yes,’ he said quietly. ‘Quite beautiful.’

‘But it’s miles away from anywhere, or any help for that matter, so Mum and Bertie can’t stay here until they’re fit.’ Jandy bit her lip, her forehead creased with worry. ‘What on earth can we do? They have someone to help them with the garage and car servicing side—I’ll have to have a word with him now before he goes.’

She went round to the garage where there was much hammering and a pair of legs protruding from under a jacked-up car.

‘Ian?’ she shouted. ‘Can I have a word?’

A young man slid out from under the car, his face smeared liberally with black grease. He wiped his hands on a piece of rag and shook Jandy’s hand.

‘Och, I’m sorry about your mother and Bertie—it’s a bad do!’ he exclaimed. ‘How are they?’

‘Not so bad, Ian, but it’s going to take some time for them to recover enough to get back to work.’ Jandy introduced him to Patrick and then added, ‘Do you think you can manage for a while by yourself? It would be awful to have to shut the place down.’

He grinned, teeth white against his oily face. ‘No trouble, Jandy. I was wondering, though—would it be all right if I brought my girlfriend Netta to do the coffees and teas? She could do with the extra money and she’d be a help with the pumps too.’

‘Sounds a great idea,’ said Jandy, her spirits lifting slightly. ‘And perhaps Netta might stay on for a bit while my mother and Bertie convalesce?’

‘I think she’d be happy to do that,’ agreed Ian.

‘Let’s talk about that later,’ suggested Patrick, looking at Jandy’s weary face. ‘We’ll sit out here while there’s still some warmth in the air and have a glass of wine.’ He put his hands on her shoulders and looked down at her. ‘You need to unwind a bit after the shock you’ve had, and you’ve done all you can for one day.’

‘Aye,’ agreed Ian kindly. ‘You get yourselves sorted. I’ll see to the work out here. No need for you to worry yourselves. I’ll be off soon, but I’ll see you tomorrow.’

Jandy nodded. ‘Thanks, Ian. I’m really grateful for your support.’

She went up the path towards the house and Patrick followed with their luggage. She stood for a moment looking down the valley, trying to push the worries about her mother to the back of her mind. Tiredly she leant against Patrick for a second, drawing comfort from his physical presence. He wrapped his arms around her and pressed her to him so that she could feel the thud of his heart against hers.

‘It’s all right, sweetheart, relax…give yourself some time off from worrying.’

His voice rumbled over her head, calming, soothing. He looked down at her, locking his eyes with hers, and she felt that crackle of attraction flash between them. There was nothing to stop them doing anything they wanted, she thought. It should be so idyllic, alone together with the damp scent of a Highland evening drifting over to them—and yet she pulled back from him. How easy it would be to enjoy the moment and take up again where they’d started just that morning in the garden of the little house—make love with no inhibitions, just pure physical fulfilment. Wasn’t that what she longed for?

But that had been that morning, and so much had happened since then and she’d had time to reflect on her impetuosity. There was this nagging thought that to her it would mean much more than it would to Patrick. Yes, she wanted him like crazy, but she needed stability too.

‘What is it, Jandy?’ he asked, sensing her reluctance and putting his hand under her chin to force her to look at him. He searched the expression on her face and smiled wryly. ‘It’s not the right time, is it? I’m not completely insensitive. If you think I’m going to take advantage of you in this heavenly place, however much I want to, I assure you I won’t. I won’t do anything you don’t want me to. I respect you too much for that.’

Respect, thought Jandy bleakly. Hardly the most romantic thought. She needed love as well.

She drew back from him and wandered down the small garden, sitting on the little wall by the road. ‘Tell you what—let’s have that glass of wine.’

They didn’t sit too near each other as they sipped their wine. It was almost as if they were playing a waiting game, incredibly conscious of each other. They’d crossed over some sort of threshold that morning and now Jandy felt suddenly self-conscious, unsure where the next move would take them. She took another large slurp of the crisp white wine and began to feel a little less stressed, the tensions of the day slipping away.

Patrick glanced across at Jandy. He could see her profile as she leant her head back against the wall, her eyes closed and the sweep of her eyelashes fanned against her cheek. He longed to touch her, take her in his arms and make love to her, but some inner instinct told him to take it slowly. Don’t rush her, Patrick, he told himself. One step at a time.

After a few minutes he said softly, ‘Tell me how your mother came to find this place.’

Jandy smiled. ‘She’s been a star really—bringing up the two of us by herself. Dad died when we were in our early teens. Mum worked in a little dress shop in Delford and did some of their buying for them. She was sent to look at some clothes in a small factory in Inverness—and she met Bertie when her car broke down. He was the mechanic who mended it. He’s about twelve years younger than her, but they fell in love and have been together ever since! This was his little house.’

‘What a romantic tale,’ murmured Patrick. ‘And do you like him?’

‘He’s a lovely guy—and he’s made Mum so happy. Just the right man for her. The age difference doesn’t seem to matter in the least.’

‘If you find the right person, that sweeps all other considerations aside, doesn’t it?’

Jandy looked at him wryly. ‘I don’t think your father would agree with that!’

Patrick got up and came over to her, sitting on the wall beside her and taking her hands, an amused expression on his face.

‘You’ve got a thing about my father,’ he said. ‘He’s not the dinosaur you think he is. The thing is, circumstances have made him wary about choosing a partner for life.’

‘I’m with him there,’ sighed Jandy.

‘Like you, I lost a parent when I was young,’ Patrick said. ‘My mother died when I was three, and then my brother and I had a nanny, a lovely person. She’s still alive, bless her.’

‘I’m sorry about your mother,’ murmured Jandy, reflecting what different experiences she and Patrick had had when they were children. There had been no such things as nannies for her sister and herself when they’d been young! Her mother had scraped a living and they had never been hungry or without a roof over their heads, but a childhood in a place like Easterleigh was a world away from the council estate she’d been brought up in.