Page 29 of Lessons in Love at the Cornish Country Hospital

‘I’m not sure.’ Danni was shaking and Esther hugged her so tightly that for a moment it was hard to breathe, but then she stepped back.

‘Did he hurt you?’ Fire flashed in Esther’s eyes and she looked ready to launch herself in Lucas’s direction.

‘No, but I think he wanted to, and he knew he was scaring me.’

‘Bastard.’ Esther took hold of her hand. ‘I heard you tell him to let you go, but I didn’t hear what happened before that.’

‘He said…’ Danni hesitated for a moment, bile rising in her throat. ‘He said he’d give me what I’ve always wanted. It felt like a threat, and I told him the thought disgusted me, but I’m scared of what he might have tried if you hadn’t turned up.’

‘Oh Dan, it’ll be okay, I promise. I’m never going to let him hurt you.’

Tears stung Danni’s eyes as she looked at Esther, she had no idea how she’d got lucky enough to find a friend who was so loyal, but she knew she didn’t deserve it. ‘I was such an idiot to ever let myself get close to him. I’d give anything to take that back. I’m so sorry.’

As Danni repeated her apology, Esther shook her head, still clutching her hand. ‘I’d never allow that idiot to come between us, and this has got to stop. Right now. Lucas has always been a nasty piece of work, but what he’s done tonight has crossed a line and we’ve got to report it.’

‘Who to?’ Danni was still shaking, part of her wanting to just forget what had happened, but a bigger part of her knowing that Esther was right. Lucas was never going to stop unless someone made him, that much was obvious now.

‘I don’t know. To the hospital first, the HR department, and then to the police if we have to. But we need to do something.’

‘You’re right.’ Danni nodded, placing a hand on her bump. This wasn’t just about her any more, or even Esther. She had achild to think of, and she wouldn’t let Lucas Newman spoil that. It was time to close the chapter on the past, once and for all, and if Lucas wasn’t prepared to let it go, they’d have to make him.

‘We’ll do it once I’m back at work.’

‘No.’ Danni’s response was resolute, and the shock on Esther’s face was obvious.

‘I thought you said?—’

Danni cut her off. ‘I just meant there’s no need to wait. I’ll do it on Monday. It’s time I stood up to him and took away the last bit of power he thinks he’s got over me.’

‘He’s never had anything over you, you’re far too brilliant for that.’ Esther planted a kiss on Danni’s cheek and hugged her again. Only letting go when her new husband called out.

‘Come on you two, you’re missing all the fun.’ Joe strode over towards them. ‘Amy is leading a rendition of Lijah Byrne’s latest number one: “That Woman’s My World”. She stormed the stage when the band started the song, and she grabbed the mic to tell everyone he wrote the song for her when they were still at school. I think she might regret all of this in the morning!’

‘She’s actually got a great voice.’ Charlie arrived behind Joe, moving forward to put his arm around Danni, and all the horror of Lucas’s sudden appearance began to fade away.

‘She has and an even bigger benefit is that it got our mother off her chair and onto the dancefloor. She actually looks like she’s enjoying herself.’ Joe smiled, and if it hurt him to think Nicola might be anything but happy at her son’s wedding, he didn’t show it, but Danni couldn’t help asking.

‘Does it ever bother you the way she is? It’s your wedding after all and your family should be making it special for you.’

‘You have.’ Joe dropped a kiss on her forehead and the feeling of belonging got even stronger. ‘As long as I’ve got you, I’ve got all the family that matters. Now let’s get back in therebefore we miss the finale of Amy’s performance; the sentiment of the song sits right for today.’

It was Danni’s turn to smile as Joe kissed his new wife on the lips. ‘That woman really is your world, big brother, and I couldn’t be happier for the two of you.’

‘And you’re mine.’ Charlie held her closer still, as they made their way into the marquee, just as Amy attempted to hit the highest note of the song. Danni had found her place in the world and there was no one she’d rather share her life with than the people she was surrounded by. Not even Lucas had been able to spoil that feeling, and she couldn’t imagine anything ever could.

Danni had barely seen her mother in hours, except from a distance. She’d spent a lot of the evening after Amy’s song on the dance floor with Paul, flailing her arms around and seeming not to care that she’d made herself the centre of attention. Yet when the toastmaster had asked, earlier in the day, when the main speeches were over, whether anyone else had something they wanted to share about the bride and groom, she’d been as quiet as a mouse. And, when Danni had looked over, her mother seemed to sink deeper into her chair, like a school kid desperately trying to avoid eye contact with the teacher. It had been left to Danni to represent their side of the family, and she hadn’t been able to stop herself from crying when she’d spoken about just how much Joe and Esther meant to her. Even then her mother had seemed unmoved and, when Danni had looked in her direction again, her face had been masklike. Even a casual observer would probably have reacted more to the speeches than Nicola had, but Danni hadn’t really expected anything else. So, when her mother grabbed hold of her elbow and pulled her intoa quiet corner of the marquee, to tell her that she and Paul were heading off, the last thing Danni had envisaged was any kind of meaningful goodbye.

‘I’m glad you made it; I know it meant a lot to Joe.’ Danni gave her mother a perfunctory peck on the cheek. It was the kind of polite parting she might have had with a friend of a friend.

‘It was good to see you both.’

‘Was it?’ Danni hadn’t been able to stop herself from asking the question. Her mother hadn’t chosen to spend her time at the wedding with her children, but then it would probably have felt more uncomfortable if she had. This was their normal, after all.

‘Of course it was. You’ve both grown up to be people your father would have been very proud of.’ Nicola’s expression was still blank, like a very bad actor reading from a script she didn’t really understand.

‘But we don’t make you proud, do we?’

Nicola shook her head, although for the first time her masklike expression slipped, and she frowned. ‘I’ve got no right to claim any pride in you. None of what you’ve achieved is down to me. Any parental input came from your dad; he was always the nurturer when you were little, and you’re both far more like him than you are me. It’s only because of him that you got the education you had. He put money aside for it before we were even married. Having kids was one of the first things we talked about, and he was already planning for it.’

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