Page 48 of Only for Christmas

‘Sorry I’m late; I took my nephews out for pancakes and then I had to stop off to buy provisions.’

She raised an eyebrow at the bulging carrier bags. ‘You planning some kind of dinner party up there?’

‘Provisions for you, not me.’ He carried the bags through to the kitchen.

He noticed red polish on Diana’s nails and took that as a good sign. She was taking better care of herself.

She waved a hand when he started unloading bags. ‘I can’t afford all that! You think I’m made of money?’

‘Call it an early Christmas present,’ he said, showing her the items. ‘Ready meals for the freezer. Tinned soup and fruit. Yoghurts, milk and bread. I also got you chocolates and some cheesy biscuits as a treat. All easy stuff that doesn’t need any preparation. Even you can manage to prepare a meal out of this lot.’ He handed her a box of Celebrations.

‘Cheeky blighter. I’m not incapable.’ She carried the chocolates over to the coffee table. Her breathing was definitely less wheezy.

‘You’re looking better,’ he said, switching on the oven and unwrapping one of the ready meals. ‘Are you feeling any better?’

‘Hard to tell. Me knees are aching, I can tell you that.’

‘Do you have any medication for your arthritis?’

‘Just the cream the pharmacist gave me.’

He picked up the tube lying on the side and read the label. ‘This contains an anti-inflammatory. I wouldn’t recommend using that with your COPD issues. I’ll prescribe you an acetaminophen instead. It’s still an analgesic, but it won’t interfere with your breathing.’

‘You could be talking Spanish for all I know. I just know me knees hurt.’

He popped the meal in the oven and found homes for the other items. ‘Apart from your knees, are you okay?’

‘No different to when you asked me yesterday. Or the day before that. It’s not like anything happens in my life. I watched a rerun of Heartbeat this afternoon. Is that exciting enough for you?’

He came into the lounge and searched for his stethoscope in his medical bag. ‘I’ve no idea what that is, but if you enjoyed it, then great.’ He listened to her chest. ‘Take a deep breath for me.’

‘It was edge-of-the-seat stuff,’ she said, with an eyeroll.

‘I’m sensing sarcasm.’

‘Clever boy.’

‘Your chest is sounding better. Less crackle.’ He took her temperature. ‘I picked you up a couple of puzzle books and a jigsaw, and I got you this leaflet on social prescribing.’

‘What’s that when it’s at home?’

‘They provide complementary support to GPs for people like yourself who might need extra help. I mentioned it before, remember?’

‘No.’ She frowned at the leaflet.

‘Someone from the organisation would visit and carry out an assessment. Then they’d match you with local services that could help. Whether it’s a befriending service, physical activities, education or home help, they offer all sorts of things. I wish we had a scheme like this back home.’ He checked the thermometer. ‘Your temperature’s normal. That’s a good sign.’

‘I don’t like the idea of people interfering,’ she said, rolling up the sleeve of her green kaftan so he could take her blood pressure.

‘I get that, but why don’t you let me refer you and then you can find out more. Seems crazy to say no to something before you’ve heard what they’ve got to say.’ He made a note of her blood pressure reading. ‘If you decide against it, no harm done. It might be good to hear what’s out there. Did you know they run a games afternoon at the local church hall on Wednesday afternoons?’

‘Games? In my state,’ she scoffed. ‘You’re having a laugh.’

‘Board games, not sports. Puzzles, quizzes, bingo, that kind of thing.’ He packed away his bag. ‘Sound good?’

She pouted like a small child. ‘How would I get there?’

‘A volunteer driver would take you and bring you home afterwards.’

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