The Bush Doctor's Challenge Page 15

  But even as they drifted towards the bedroom, even as he laid her down and kissed her as only Kell could, as their bodies mingled with the infinite desire they ignited, the tears still sparkled in her eyes.

  The weight of his body as he lay on top of her, the silhouette of his shoulders as he moved inside her, the feel of that dark tousled hair beneath her fingers, the scratchy maleness of his thighs as they moved against her were all captured in the glistening pools of her eyes, as something deep inside told her to treasure this memory.

  And later, as he held her, snuggled into her and slipped one arm under her then cupped his other hand over her breast as he drifted off to sleep, the tears that had threatened all day fell, sliding into her hair as she recalled the bitter-sweet memory of their love-making.

  Sweet in its perfection.

  Bitter in its finality.

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  ‘COME on, lazybones!’

  Peering around her front door, Abby blinked a few times at Shelly, running a sleepy hand through her tousled hair. ‘What time is it?’

  ‘Ten a.m.,’ Shelly said in a matter-of-fact voice, pushing open the door and marching inside leaving Abby to wince at the bright sunlight, close the door and follow her through to the kitchen.

  ‘Is there a problem at the clinic?’ Abby asked, perching on a barstool and trying desperately to wake up properly. ‘Only Kell left at the crack of dawn, so if you’re looking for him…’

  ‘No,’ Shelly answered cheerfully, depositing a large bag and simultaneously filling the kettle. ‘It’s you I’m after. In fact, I’ve even got a bit of gossip, but it’s the ball tonight that I’m really here about. We’ve got to go to the hairdresser’s.’

  ‘Now?’ Abby protested. ‘But it’s the crack of dawn.’

  ‘Hardly!’

  ‘Believe me,’ Abby mumbled, ‘on my day off, ten a.m.’s the crack of dawn.’

  ‘Well, we were lucky to get in. There are about one hundred and fifty women all wanting their hair done today. It took a hell of a lot of sweet-talking to get an appointment. She’s even going to do your nails.’

  Abby glanced down at her hand, weakening at the thought of a manicure. The French polish she had arrived with had long since depleted.

  ‘So how did you get her to agree?’ Abby asked, half yawning and wishing the kettle would hurry up.

  ‘Never you mind,’ she said lightly as Abby’s eyebrows furrowed. Shelly was up to mischief, Abby just knew it. ‘Let’s just say I’ve got contacts. Now all we have to worry about is looking beautiful. I just wish I’d taken my diet a bit more seriously.’

  ‘Don’t be ridiculous,’ Abby admonished. ‘You look great.’

  ‘Exactly,’ Shelly sighed.

  ‘I meant you look wonderful.’ Abby grinned. ‘For someone who had a baby ten weeks ago you’re looking amazing.’

  ‘Amazing’s the word,’ Shelly moaned, depositing a steaming mug in front of Abby. ‘Did you know you can actually get stretch marks on top of your old stretch marks? My rear end looks like a map of Australia.’

  ‘And we all know how patriotic Ross is.’ Abby winked, perking up as she took a few sips of coffee. ‘So, what’s the gossip?’

  ‘Your replacement’s arrived!’

  ‘My replacement?’ Suddenly Abby didn’t feel so perky any more. Instead, she felt twitchy and threatened, but she kept her smile in place as Shelly continued.

  ‘He’s two weeks early. Apparently he ran out of money in Coober Pedey, though how anyone can break the bank there beats me! You’re supposed to make your fortune there fossicking for opals. Heaven only knows what he spent it on.’

  ‘What’s he like?’

  Shelly gave a small sigh. ‘English, very English. His name’s Timothy, not Tim or Timmy but Timothy, and even though I’m an exceptionally happily married woman, I have to admit he’s gorgeous.’ Shelly let out a shriek of laughter. ‘And the best bit is, I’m not the only one who thinks so.’

  ‘You’ve lost me,’ Abby admitted.

  ‘You should have seen Clara blushing. I’m serious!’ she exclaimed as Abby gave her a disbelieving look. ‘Ross can’t believe it either. I mean, Clara’s just Clara, salt of the earth, never in a flap, but she was blushing to her roots and dropping things all over the place when Ross showed Tim around this morning.’

  ‘Timothy,’ Abby corrected, standing up and draining the last of her coffee. ‘So who’s going to look after the clinic tonight? Bill’s still hanging in there, I assume.’

  Shelly nodded, but again Abby found herself frowning, sure she had seen a tiny blush grace Shelly’s cheeks. ‘Ross really thought you’d hit home with your pep talk but I’m afraid he’s still staring at the curtains and sinking further and further downhill. Anyway, Ross has asked Noelene Barton to fill in for tonight. I doubt you’ll have met her, she’s not exactly sociable, but she’s a registered nurse and every now and then, at Christmas and the like, she does a couple of shifts to keep her registration up. She’s going to babysit the clinic.’

  ‘And who have you got lined up—for Matthew and Kate, I mean?’

  ‘No one.’ Shelly grinned. ‘That’s the best bit about this place. I’ll bring the kids and I probably won’t see them all night, there’ll be a million and one women clucking over them like broody hens. And the best bit of all…’ She gave a cheeky wink. ‘By the time we get home, they’ll both be so exhausted they’ll sleep the entire night through.’

  ‘You scarlet woman, you.’ Abby grinned.

  Whatever clout Shelly had by being Tennengarrah’s loyal doctor’s wife, she’d certainly used it today. June’s house was a hive of activity but all the grey roller-haired ladies parted as Abby and Shelly walked in, and instead of protests they smiled affectionately as Abby’s hair was curled around yellow and pink foams. Not even the slightest murmur of disapproval went up as Abby was privy to the one and only manicure of the day.

  ‘I can’t fit you in again this afternoon so you’ll have to do the rest yourself. I need you to take the curlers out an hour before the ball,’ Anna the hairdresser instructed in such a serious voice Abby wondered if she was about to be asked to sign a consent form! ‘But you mustn’t brush your hair, that will make it all go frizzy. Just put a dash of the serum I gave onto your hands, work it through your fingers and run it through the curls. They should fall beautifully.’

  ‘Th-thank you,’ Abby stammered as the whole room looked on.

  ‘And try and let your nails dry for at least an hour before you do anything. You don’t want any dints in your varnish.’

  ‘Of course not.’

  Only then did it dawn on her, looking around the smiling faces, the nudging going on behind the occasional magazine, that her preferential treatment had nothing to do with being the locum doctor, nothing to do with Shelly and her ‘contacts’.

  It had everything to do with Kell.

  His early morning dash with Bruce was starting to make sense now, and as they paid and left Abby couldn’t wait to get Shelly alone and confront her.

  ‘Where’s Kell gone today, Shelly?’

  ‘How should I know?’ Shelly strode on, the blush on her cheeks only confirming Abby’s suspicions.

  ‘Because the whole of Tennengarrah does,’ Abby snapped, as Shelly finally slowed down. ‘That’s what this is all about, isn’t it—the hair, the nails, Kell disappearing to “pick up supplies”? What on earth was he thinking?’

  ‘It’s not Kell’s fault.’ Shelly swung around, a sight for sore eyes in massive rollers. ‘He hasn’t said a word. It was Bruce who mentioned…’ Her voice trailed off but Abby wasn’t going to let her leave things there.

  ‘What exactly did Bruce mention? Come on, Shelly, I need to know.’

  ‘Kell went into town a couple of weeks ago. Bruce saw him in the jeweller’s, that’s all, and Kell asked to go back today. Bruce thinks it’s to pick up a ring. It’s all hearsay, Abby, but it doesn’t take much for word to get around here.’

  ‘He
’s going to ask me to marry him.’ The shiver in her voice was one of pure amazement. Even though she had suspected it, saying it felt completely different.

  ‘He loves you, Abby.’ Shelly took a couple of anxious breaths, ‘This surely can’t come as that much of a surprise,’ she said. ‘Please, please, don’t let on I’ve said anything.’

  ‘Just so long as you don’t say anything else.’ Abby’s mind was whirring, the need to be alone, to think things through overriding politeness for now. ‘I mean it, Shelly, don’t say a single word to anyone.’

  Anna had been right. Her hair did fall beautifully, but as Abby stared into the mirror, her snaky dark ringlets hanging over her shoulders, the white ruffles of her dress accentuating her tan, Abby barely recognised herself.

  But it wasn’t the coiffed woman staring back at her that was so unrecognisable, it was the very fact she was actually seriously considering staying, breaking her promise to David, throwing every professional dream she had held dear for so long now away in the name of love.

  A whole afternoon wrestling with her soul had made the picture no clearer, and as Abby walked past the clinic the weight of indecision made her linger a moment, peering into the windows and trying to picture herself there. The sight of Ross, dressed to the nines in a dinner suit, though, wasn’t one Abby was expecting!

  Pushing the clinic door open, Abby made her way to the small ward, a questioning look on her face as she walked over. ‘What are you doing here?’

  ‘I could ask you the same.’

  Abby gave a small shrug. ‘Kell rang. He got held up with Bruce, but he’s on his way back. He said he’d meet me there. What’s your excuse?’

  ‘Your pep talk with Bill worked. He’s decided to have the operation, so I called the hospital and they want him there tonight—there’s been a cancellation and there’s space on the theatre list on Monday. We’ve been waiting all day for the flying doctors but they just rang through and should be here within the hour.’

  So Shelly had been lying! ‘Can’t Noelene deal with it? I thought she was looking after the place tonight.’

  Ross gave a tight smile. ‘She’s making a cuppa. And Bill needs to be handed over properly. It’s not fair to land it all on Noelene.’

  ‘Or Shelly,’ Abby exclaimed. ‘Shouldn’t you be over there admiring her new dress, telling her how fabulous she looks?’

  ‘Don’t make me feel worse,’ Ross groaned. ‘Hopefully they should be here soon. Shelly’s putting on a brave face but I know she’s been looking forward to tonight.’

  ‘Go,’ Abby said as Ross gave her a wide-eyed look. ‘I mean it, Ross. Shelly’s been looking forward to to-night for ages. I can take care of Bill.’

  ‘But what about you? What about Kell’s…’

  Abby shook her head as Ross’s voice trailed off.

  ‘Kell’s plans for tonight,’ Abby ventured as Ross winced in embarrassment. ‘Don’t worry, Ross, I had already worked it out for myself.’

  ‘So why are you putting your hand up for an extra shift?’ Ross asked perceptively, his grin disappearing as Shelly answered, her voice was thick with emotion, black, mascara-laced tears slipping down her cheeks as she rummaged in her bag for a tissue.

  ‘Here.’ Ross pulled a wad from the box on the desk, a startled note in his voice as he watched his crisp, efficient colleague dissolve into a mass of tears. ‘I’m sorry, Abby. I was only joking, I didn’t realise there was a problem.’

  ‘There shouldn’t be,’ Abby sniffed. ‘We love each other, I know that more than I know anything.’

  ‘So what are you so scared of?’

  Abby took a deep breath, her eyes finally dragging up to Ross’s, who waited patiently as she struggled to answer. ‘I’m scared that when Kell asks me to marry him, I’m going to let my heart rule my head and say yes.’ Ross looked at her bemused as Abby cried harder. ‘It could never work, Ross, it’s just all too hard. Kell’s not going to leave here, he told me the first night we met he couldn’t even consider it, that Tennengarrah’s in his blood…’

  ‘But not yours,’ Ross finished for her gently.

  ‘Not mine,’ Abby said sadly. ‘Oh, I’ve grown to love it. I love the people, the work. If anything, I’ve enjoyed practising medicine here more than I ever have in the past, but I just can’t stay here for ever. I’ve got commitments in the city, promises that need to be kept, and if I agree to marry Kell I’ll be letting so many people down.’

  ‘Yourself included?’ Ross asked gently.

  ‘Myself included.’ Abby nodded. ‘Look, I know the work I do in the city isn’t everyone’s cup of tea but, Ross, it’s something I really feel I have to do. If I let it go now, some time in the future I know I’m going to regret it.’

  Ross looked at her thoughtfully for a moment before speaking, his knowing eyes surprisingly understanding. ‘Which is no way to start a marriage.’

  Abby nodded glumly as Ross continued gently. ‘Sometimes you can think about things too much, Abby. Shelly had a home, a life, a family in Melbourne, a special needs child and an ex-husband to boot. If we’d really sat down and thought about the logistics of packing up and moving here, we’d probably never have made it.’

  ‘So why did you?’ Abby asked. ‘What made you do it in the end?’

  ‘I loved her,’ Ross said simply. ‘And I loved Matthew and I loved Tennengarrah, so I really hit the jackpot when I got all three wishes granted.’

  ‘You did,’ Abby said softly. ‘But, then, you knew what you wanted, Ross. If a genie popped out of a lamp now, I don’t know what my three wishes would be.’

  ‘Some space,’ Ross suggested gently, and after a moment’s deep thought Abby nodded slowly, scarcely able to believe her ears as Ross offered her an out. ‘There’s a plane landing soon and it’s heading for Adelaide. Maybe they can make room for a doctor on board, a doctor heading for home.’ As Abby swallowed hard, Ross continued, passing endless reams of tissues as he did so. ‘You can get a connection to Sydney when you’re there, even if you have to sleep on the airport sofas for a while. Look, I’m not one for goodbyes, either, Abby, and with the whole town watching you two tonight, waiting and watching Kell’s every move, I can imagine the pressure you’re under. If you want to go now, I’ll understand.’

  ‘But my contract—’

  ‘Timothy’s here now, and he’s more than happy to start working.’

  ‘What will you tell Kell?’

  ‘That Bill needed a doctor escort. I’ll tell him the truth when the ball’s over.’

  ‘Shelly will kill you,’ Abby warned, but Ross begged to differ.

  ‘Shelly will understand.’

  But still Abby didn’t get it. ‘Why would you do this for me, Ross? Why would you take all this on?’

  ‘You delivered my daughter, Abby,’ Ross said slowly. ‘A breech birth in the middle of nowhere. We both know how awful that could have been. You’re an amazing doctor and, given the chance, you’d have been an amazing friend to Shelly and me. I reckon I owe you at least this.’

  It didn’t take long to pack, Tennengarrah wasn’t exactly lined with shops and Shelly had lightened her of every last scrap of make-up. Abby’s case snapped closed with surprising ease. The only extra thing she took was the rather battered dusty old hat Kell had given her, and as she pulled it on her head, Abby heard the buzz of the plane, the lights filling her empty living room for a second and as it swooped in for landing, she screwed her eyes closed and mentally begged for Kell’s understanding, for him to know that even if she was taking the supposedly easy way out, every last step was loaded with agony.

  ‘All ready?’ Ross met her outside the clinic, took her computer and wheeled the suitcase the last few steps as Abby struggled to hold back the tears.

  ‘Where’s Martha?’ Abby gulped, looking around through tear-laden eyes as they loaded Bill onto the plane.

  ‘She can’t go, that’s one of the reasons Bill found it so hard to make the decision. It’s a long, lonely day in
hospital when you know you’re not going to get any visitors. But Martha needs to stay and look after the farm and in the long run that will give Bill more peace of mind. They were both getting too upset saying goodbye, so Dr Hall suggested that she race home and put on all the lights. They’re going to fly low over his property so he can see it again.’

  Any chance of a controlled goodbye dissolved there and then as a new batch of tears burst forth, and for a moment or two Abby struggled to catch her breath.

  ‘Come on, Abby.’ Dr Hall’s voice was kind but firm. ‘Ross has got a ball to get to.’

  ‘You’ve got your first wish.’ Ross gave her a quick hug and as she stepped onto the plane Abby turned.

  ‘When I’ve worked out what my second one is, I’ll let you know.’

  ‘You can do a ward round when we get to Adelaide,’ Dr Hall grinned as he sat down next to her and clipped on his seat belt. ‘There are a couple of patients doing very nicely there, thanks to you.’

  ‘Jessica?’ Abby asked, and Hall nodded warmly.

  ‘She’ll be going home in a couple of days. Well, not to England, but her parents have flown over to be with her and they’re going to have a nice gentle family holiday before they all head back. And the little tacker with the epiglottitis is doing well. He’s off the ventilator and they’re trying to wean him off his tracheostomy.

  ‘You’ve been an asset,’ he added warmly. ‘We’re sorry to lose you.’ He busied himself then, politely not noticing her tears as he concentrated on his notes in front of him as they flew out of Tennengarrah, the plane flying even lower as they passed over Bill’s property. Abby held his thin hand tightly as he leant back on the stretcher gazing out of the window into the darkness, the lights blazing their goodbyes down below. Holding back her tears was the hardest feat Abby had ever undertaken, but this was Bill’s goodbye, not hers. And when the last light had disappeared, when just the endless night sky surrounded the windows, he leant back further on his pillow, his scared, sad eyes meeting Abby’s.

  ‘I’ll see it again, won’t I?’ His weak voice was barely audible over the engine, the oxygen mask over his face forcing Abby to lean forward to catch his words. ‘This isn’t the last time, is it?’