The Village Nurse's Happy-Ever-After by Abigail Gordon Page A

roost. ‘Phoebe is the district nurseI told you about, who is based at the surgery,’ he explained.
    â€˜Ah!’ she said, and he thought she had only to hear someone refer to the practice and she was tuned in.
    â€˜And so where do you live?’ she asked, and listened with raised brows as Phoebe told her, ‘I live in the opposite apartment to Harry.’
    â€˜And do you have family?’ was the next question.
    â€˜I have a child, yes.’
    â€˜Are you married?’
    â€˜No. I’m divorced.’
    Phoebe would have been annoyed at the woman’s impertinence if it hadn’t been for Harry’s desperate expression. He was listening tight-lipped, eyes rolling heavenwards, and taking her arm, was ready to move on to the dance floor with a brief goodbye to his relations.
    â€˜I’m so sorry about that,’ he said as he took her in his arms. ‘I’d forgotten just how much my aunt thinks she owns Bluebell Cove.’
    â€˜Don’t be,’ she said. ‘She is only looking after your interests, protecting you from the husband-hunting part of the local community—clearly she thinks I might be one of them!’
    â€˜And are you?’ he asked quizzically, with his good humour restored.
    â€˜That’s for me to know and you to find out,’ she said laughingly, and with the heady excitement of being dressed up and out for the evening with the man that she so easily could fall in love with making her heart beat faster, she gave herself up to the moment.
    There was a buffet in the interval decorated with redhearts and ribbons and a red rose for every lady present. As they were about to eat, Ian Enderby said he had an announcement to make.
    When they heard what it was there was much cheering and laughter among those assembled there. It seemed that a young man at the ball had taken the opportunity on such an appropriate occasion to propose to his girlfriend, and she’d accepted. Soon waiters were bringing round glasses of champagne, courtesy of their host, for those present to drink a toast to them.
    Phoebe was smiling as she raised her glass, but Harry’s expression was sombre and she wondered what was in his mind.
    The rest of the evening passed pleasantly enough. They spent some time chatting to Maria, the youngest of the practice nurses, and her boyfriend, and shared a table with Jenna, and her husband Lucas, who was clearly head over heels in love with his bubbly blonde wife. But Phoebe couldn’t help feeling that the magic had gone ever since they’d toasted the St Valentine’s Day lovers.
    â€˜What’s wrong?’ she asked, as Harry drove them home in the dark night. ‘You were enjoying yourself until we drank the toast to the young couple.’
    He nodded. ‘Yes, I know. I’m sorry for being such poor company. It just hit me that they were so sure, so ready to commit to each other, with no idea of what fate might have in store for them.
    â€˜That was how it was with my parents—fate had something dreadful in store for them that they never came to terms with, and I suffered greatly as a result.
    â€˜We were all happy and content until they lost my baby brother to a serious illness, and after that I was left out in the cold while they grieved for him evermore.
    â€˜So you can see why I’m wary of playing at happy families. I would never do that to a child of mine, and one way of making sure is to stay clear of that kind of thing,’ he concluded flatly, gazing straight ahead with his hands tight on the steering-wheel.
    â€˜You are wrong to think like that,’ she said gravely. ‘You would make a wonderful father if you would put those sorts of thoughts out of your mind. Don’t let your parents’ inability to cope with their grief blight your life, Harry.’
    He gave a dry laugh. ‘Thanks for the vote of confidence, but I’m not ready for playing mothers and fathers