Page 7 of Lessons in Love at the Cornish Country Hospital

‘I don’t think either Beth or Drew will ever want to spend Christmas with their mum. And even though you’re right that Beth and Tom will want to go to his family for Christmas Day some years, Christmas isn’t just one day. We can have our family celebration on Boxing Day, or any other day in December, and still make it every bit as special.’

‘Do you really think so?’ Wendy wanted to believe him. ‘It’s just that the magic of Christmas is about little children, isn’t it? When Mike and Chloe have their son, they’ll have all that magic to come again. I missed it so much when the girls outgrew it, and I don’t think Christmas was ever the same again for them either.Albert brought it back for all of us last year and I loved every minute of it, but we can’t offer that when he’s not here. Mike can, though.’

‘We can start our own Christmas traditions. Zara will be eighteen soon, so a lie-in, followed by Buck’s Fizz and a slap-up breakfast, and then Christmas lunch in the pub later on, might appeal more than you think. I know it does for me.’

‘And what if it’s just the two of us?’ Wendy looked at Gary, knowing she was enough for him, but still needing to hear it.

‘That will be perfect too. We can have our family day on another day in December, and base all the celebrations around Albie, but I get the best present of all on Christmas Day. You to myself. We can still have the Buck’s Fizz, a big breakfast, and even a walk with Stan, because let’s face it, he’s not going to let us off the hook.’ Stan was Gary’s Border Terrier, who’d come as a package deal with his master, but he never left Wendy’s side whenever she was around. She and Gary had only been living together full time for three months, but she couldn’t imagine life without him, or the little dog, and the house wouldn’t have felt like a home without Stan. The girls were besotted with him too, having lobbied for a dog all their lives, but Mike had always been adamant that he didn’t want a ‘filthy creature’ in his house. Wendy just wished she’d stood up to him years before, but it was too late now.

‘So there’s nothing you’d do differently if it was just the two of us?’ Wendy gave him a mischievous smile.

‘Nothing except skip lunch in the pub, so that I can spend all afternoon in bed with the love of my life.’

‘I thought Stan wasn’t allowed on the bed.’ She laughed as he pulled her even closer, kissing her in way that left her in no doubt who the love of his life really was.

‘Get a room!’ The shout made Wendy step back, just in time to see a man race past on his bike laughing uproariously. Theywere halfway down the steepest hill in the village, and the cyclist had flashed past them so quickly she shouldn’t really have been embarrassed, but she was.

‘Oh my God.’ Wendy’s face was flushed with heat, but Gary was smiling.

‘Maybe we should take his advice. Have a weekend away, next time Zara is with Mike and Chloe, and we’re both off. Beth will look after Stan, or we can get a pet-friendly Airbnb. Make the most of our freedom.’

‘That sounds lovely, but only if it’s my treat, to thank you for putting up with me.’

‘Don’t be daft, I thank my lucky—’ Gary’s response was cut off by the sound of shouting and a high-pitched scream which made Wendy’s stomach drop. It sounded like terror, rather than excitement.

‘Just brake, Mia, for God’s sake BRAKE!’ The terror in the man’s voice was every bit as obvious, as it carried down the lane. And, as Wendy turned, she saw the little girl on the bicycle careering towards them, her face a picture of fear.

‘Daddy!’ She screamed the single word. Before Wendy could even respond, Gary leapt into the path of the bike, stopping it hurtling out of control but knocking him backwards. He hit the road with a sickening thud, the little girl and her bike falling on to the ground next to him, just as Mia’s father caught up with them and dropped to his haunches beside his daughter.

‘Gary!’ As she rushed towards him, Wendy’s heart thudded in her ears. He’d hit his head and there was a chance he could have been seriously injured, but even before she reached him, he was struggling to his feet.

‘I’m fine.’ There was a gash on his cheek that was pouring with blood, and an egg-shaped lump had already appeared on his forehead, but in the split second that he’d hit the ground, she’d feared the worst and the relief flooding her body madeher skin prickle. She just hoped the little girl was okay too, and that was clearly the only thing on Gary’s mind, despite his own injuries.

‘Oww, Daddy, it hurts.’ Mia was holding one hand in the other, her words punctuated by shuddering sobs.

‘I’m know, darling, and I’m so sorry, I should never have let go of the bike so close to the top of the hill. If someone hadn’t been here to stop you…’ All the colour seemed to drain out of the man’s face as he looked at Gary. ‘Thank you.’

‘It’s okay.’ He might have made it sound like nothing, but Gary grimaced as he knelt down to look more closely at Mia and there was no doubt he was in pain. ‘Do both of your hands hurt, sweetheart, or just one of them?’

‘Just this one.’ Mia was still crying and her father didn’t seem to know what to do with himself.

‘I want you to see if you can move your fingers on that hand and make a fist.’

‘Oww, howoww.’ Mia’s face twisted in pain as she tried to follow Gary’s instructions.

‘Okay, sweetheart. I think you might have broken a bone in your wrist, but we need to get you to the hospital so they can take an X-ray to make sure. Then we can give you some medicine to make you feel better and put a special kind of bandage on it so it doesn’t hurt any more.’

‘Are you a doctor?’ Mia’s father finally found his voice again.

‘A nurse. I’m Gary. And this is Wendy, who I’m going to ask to do us a big favour and go and get my car, to take us all to the hospital. It’ll be much quicker than waiting for an ambulance, and I’ve got a first-aid kit in there that I can use to stabilise Mia’s wrist, and ease some of the pain until we can get her injuries looked at.’

‘I’m just so thankful you were here. I can’t bear to think…’ Mia’s father couldn’t finish the sentence. ‘I’m Matt, by the way, and this is Mia.’

‘I heard you calling out her name, otherwise I might not have seen her in time to stop the bike. You did all you could in the circumstances; it was an accident and they happen to the best of us.’ Gary’s attempt at a smile turned into another grimace, and the relief that Wendy had felt about his injuries began to ebb away.

‘I’m getting the car now.’ Wendy didn’t even wait for Gary to reply and she broke into a run as she headed back towards their house. She had a horrible feeling that Mia might not be the only one who needed medical attention and she wasn’t going to waste a second making sure that Gary got it too. He meant the world to her, and suddenly she was more aware of that than she ever had been before.

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