Snippets of Downshire Life – The Ides of March

The Dulcets were a collection of villages and hamlets comprising of Dulcet Meadow, Dulcet St Mary, Dulcet Green and Dulcet-on-Brooke, to name but a few, and of course Dulcet-on-Willow which was a large sprawling village beside the gentle shallow River Willow, which ran unhurriedly from the Pepperstock Hills to the more vibrant River Brooke.

David Harding lived alone in the village, in a Victorian cottage, and he also ran his own Antiques business, called Buy Gone Daze. 

He was a bit of a fitness freak and had always prided himself on the fact that he had never had a day off work through illness, but one day in January he woke up with a thumping headache, a raging temperature, a scratchy throat and he ached all over, and although he got up and went into the bathroom to shower, all he actually did was have a drink of water and then returned to his bed, from where he phoned Lisa Peinado.

Lisa had worked for him at the shop since she left college, and she had loved him for almost as long.

“Hi David, is everything OK?”

“No, I’m not coming in today” he croaked

“Oh dear, Really?”

“It’s the flu I’m afraid” he said, “Could I ask a favour?”

“Of course,” she replied

“Can you open up and run the shop without me?”

“Yes, yes” she replied enthusiastically

 

She knocked on the cottage door about twenty minutes later, and he opened the door to her knock.

“Hi David” she said brightly “oh dear you look dreadful”   

“I don’t feel at all well” she replied

Lisa tested his forehead with the back of her hand and he was burning, and then she fished in her pocket and brought out a box of max strength cold capsules.

“Take these,” she said “Then go back to bed”

“Thanks Lisa” he said “I’d kiss you, but I don’t want to give you my flu”

“Well I’ll take an IOU in the meantime” she said, mainly to herself, as she left the cottage.

 

As it turned out she not only ran the shop that day but for a week and a half, as Flu gave way to a chest infection, so she was a regular visitor to the cottage keeping him supplied with medications, hearty soups and stews, and during the period of his incarceration he had plenty of time on his hands and he used that time to good effect, firstly by reflecting on his life, past and present, and his eyes were finally opened to something that had been right under his nose for years, or perhaps someone would be more accurate, and the fact that was now staring him in the face was that he was in love with Lisa.

 

The other thing he did was to read, anything and everything, and one of the things he read about were the Ides of March, which was a day on the Roman calendar that corresponds to March 15th, it was marked by several religious observances and was notable for the Romans as a deadline for settling debts

“I have a debt to settle” he said out loud.

He remembered that when he was first struck down by the Flu he had said

“I’d kiss you, but I don’t want to give you my flu”

And her barely audible response was

“Well I’ll take an IOU in the meantime”

“I owe her a kiss” he exclaimed “And I intend to settle my debt”

But he had to get rid of the flu and the chest infection first, it wouldn’t make the impression he wanted if he was to cough in her mouth, so it had to be after he was fit and well, so he consulted the calendar and he thought March 15^th, the ides of march, was a definite target, as he thought that that date would be quite appropriate.

 

He returned to work on Monday of the week of the Ides and he found he had more than the one debt to settle, as she had not just kept the shop running in his absence but had increased sales for the duration.

“Are you sure you’re well enough to be back?” she asked “You haven’t come back too soon”

“I’m fine” he said “But I’m going to ease back into it, so you carry on doing what you’ve been doing as if I was still in my sick bed”

As the week progressed he kept barely half an eye on the business as he found it difficult not to spend every second watching Lisa and wondering why he had been so blind, but as the week progresses his general blindness had been replaced by awe.

When Friday arrived, he had to pull himself together and make his move, and he chose the moment they were beginning to close up shop for the day.

“Well Miss Peinado I am so pleased with how you’ve kept the business going, and more, I’ll treat you to dinner”

“Oh lovely” Lisa said

“You’ll probably want to go and change”     

“I don’t need to change for the Ruddy Duck” she retorted

“I know but we’re going to the Willow Tree” he said

“The Willow Tree?” she gasped

“Yes”

“But that’s really expensive” she said

“You deserve it” David assured her “the table is booked for 8 o’clock, “Will that give you enough time?”

“Oh yes plenty” she lied “If I leave now”

“You’d better get off then”

 

The Willow Tree was a very good restaurant and not the kind of place you can just walk in off the street, it attracted a good many, discerning diners, and had a waiting list that ran into months, but because the owner was a friend of his he pulled a few strings and managed to jump the queue and calling in a favour proved to be worth it when he saw Lisa walk towards him as he waited outside the Willow Tree.

The restaurant was every bit as good as its reputation, but he would have been equally happy sitting on a park bench eating fish and chips out of the paper if his dining companion was Lisa.

 

After a first-class meal with first class company, a liberal quantity of wine, the long and intimate dinner came to an end, and David offered to walk Lisa the short distance to the house she lived in with her parents.

“That was a lovely meal, thank you” she said as they walked

“As I said before it’s no more than you deserve, I just hope it goes some way to paying the huge debt I owe you”

“You don’t owe me anything” she said

“Oh, I do, I owe you for looking after me while I was ill, then for running the shop for me, and running it better than I do, I might add” he said “but more important that even that, I owe you a kiss”

“What?” she gasped

“I remember offering you the reward of a kiss, as a thank you, but I didn’t wish to infect you with my malady”

“Yes, I remember” she said expectantly

“And do you also remember saying you would accept an IOU?” he said

“Yes, I do, but I didn’t think that you heard me” Lisa said and looked down at her feet

“Well I did, and I think that its about time that I repaid my dept” he said as he turned to face her

“Oh… yes… I agree” Lisa said and lifted her eyes to meet his, and then by the light of a lamp post, he paid his debt.

 

WE WERE ONCE INSEPARABLE # 2

 

We were once inseparable

Tied with the bonds of love

But when the day came 

When bonds become restraints

Love melted into the ether

And the ties that bound

Turned inexorably to dust

WE WERE ONCE INSEPARABLE # 1

 

We were once inseparable

Soul mates incarnate

Held by an eternal bond

As strong as tungsten

Yet soft as pure silk

I thought our union

Would last for ever

Even to the end of eternity

But the bonds that held us

Have disappeared

Like tears in the rain

The Clerembeax Palace Hotel and Spa – Mothering Sunday

 

The beautiful Downshire village of Clerembeax St Giles was situated to the west of Abbeyvale located between Grace Hill and Bushy Down and on the outskirts was the Clerembeax Palace Hotel and Spa and when Yvonne Labuschagne inherited it from her cousin, the last remaining Clerembeax, she undertook the task of modernizing the Palace and opening a Hotel and Spa offering, fitness classes, gym, rock sauna, infra-red sauna, aroma steam room, ice fountain, drench showers, Jacuzzi, a Romanesque pool, Reflexology, Raki, facials, scalp massage, hand massage, Manicure and Pedicure, while also providing accommodation, meeting and function rooms, a superior restaurant and whatever temptation might attract potential visitors.

 

Ray Morrison was a trained Physiotherapist and Masseur, who had worked with Yvonne at the Dancingdean Spa, when her husband was still alive, but his role at the Palace also involved training some of the younger ancillary staff as well as using his skills on the guests, but he enjoyed being in Clerembeax, and he had made many friends among the staff, and he also enjoyed taking long walks in the surrounding countryside, when he wasn’t working, which is what he was doing early on Sunday Morning.

 

All the weather forecasters had been talking about the latest incarnation of the Beast from the East for more than a week and as he left the hotel for his walk around the village it arrived.

 

When he reached the farther point of his loop it was snowing heavily, and he decided to keep to the firmer ground of bridle paths and roads that would get him back to the Palace as quick as possible.

When he reached the center of the village the road was barely discernable, but as he reached the Village Green a car drove gingerly into view, and it was a car he recognized, and it belonged to the Hotel Manager, Hannah Morgan.

She came to a halt beside him and wound down the window

“Do you want a lift?”

“Yes please” he said and got in the passenger seat

“I thought you were picking up your sister” he said

“I was, but she phoned me before I reached Abbeyvale, to say that all the trains had been cancelled”

“Already?”

“Yes, it’s really bad in Abbottsford, and its headed our way” Hannah said as she drove off “Also we’re going to be short staffed today, as there are no buses or taxi’s”

“I guess that means Mother’s Day lunch is going to be a quiet affair” Ray said

“Good point, I hadn’t thought of that”

 

They went through the front door to the reception before Ray thanked her and then they separated and as Ray stood and chatted to the receptionist a small figure, wrapped up against the cold, stepped out of the lift and made a bee line for him.

She said something, but her voice was muffled by her scarf so when she got no response she loosened it and spoke again

“Ray”

“Is that Cheryl under all that?” he asked, and she nodded in response.

Cheryl was one of the younger members of staff at 17 years old, and Ray had taken her under his wing. 

“You’re not going out there are you?” he queried

“Yes, I’ve got to get home,” she said

“There aren’t any buses” he told her

“What? To Tollington?” she asked urgently

“To anywhere” he replied

“And there are no taxis either”

“Oh God” Cheryl exclaimed “But I have to try”

“Ok honey” Ray said “But please be careful”

And then he watched as she disappeared out into the snowy morning before headed to the staff room.

 

About half an hour later he was back in reception when Cheryl reappeared through the front doors, still wrapped up against the weather, with melting snow on her shoulders.

Only her eyes and nose were visible between her woollen hat and matching scarf, and her eyes bore the evidence of crying.

“Are you ok Honey?” he said and the moment he reached her she buried her cold face in his chest and began to cry.

“I…”

“Can’t…”

“Get…”

“Home…” she said between sobs

Ray didn’t point out that he told her that he just made sympathetic noises

“All the buses are cancelled,” she said

“And I couldn’t find a cab, so I had to come back”

“What’s at home that you are so desperate to get back to?” he asked

“My mum” she answered

“Oh?”

“She has a broken leg, and I’m her looking after her, so I had to try and get home” Cheryl said “but when I couldn’t I tried to phone her, but I couldn’t get through, so I tried to ring the neighbours to ask them to check on her”

“And?” he asked sympathetically

“No luck” she said ‘Not yet”

Ray stood holding her for about five minutes, then he asked

“Is she in Tollington?”

“Yes”

Tollington was only about two miles from the Hotel as the crow flies and as he drove a Landrover Discover, he said

“Let me get my coat and I’ll drive you”

“Really?”

“I can’t promise we’ll get out of Clerembeax, but we’ll give it a go” 

 

Even in the hour he had been inside the weather had deteriorated, however the road through the village was still drivable.

“If it’s like this all the way we’ll be fine” he said and looked across at Cheryl who was nervously biting her lip in the passenger seat.

However, when out into the country lanes he was driving on drifting virgin snow.

The roads were barely visible, and he drove very gingerly along the first stretch, which ended, at a crossroads, which was where he was joined by another four-wheel drive which turned onto the road ahead of him and he followed it for about half a mile before it turned left onto the Kiddingstone Road while he needed to turn right for Tollington.

As luck would have it the road was not as bad as the previous one as it was quite exposed, and the wind had blown a lot of the snow off the road and there were even visible signs of Tarmac in patches.

So, he pressed on with caution, but when he was less than a mile from the village the snow fell even faster, and it was in the poor visibility of a blizzard that Ray took a right-hand bend slightly too vigorously and lost the back end and went off the road back end first into a ditch.

“Are you ok?” he asked her

“Yes” she replied and then he tried to drive out of the ditch, to no avail.

“Ok stay here” he said and opened the door and got out of the car and pulled his collar up against the wind, before walking to the front of the Landrover.

 

He pulled the winch cable out and crossed the lane and looped it around a tree before running back and getting behind the wheel.

“Ok here goes” he said and started the winch, which slowly but surely pulled them back onto the road.

“You did it” she said and hugged him   

 

Fortunately, there was no obvious damage to the car, so twenty minutes later he pulled up outside Cheryl’s house.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you” she squealed and hugged him again before saying “come on” and got out the car.

Ray followed and watched her run up the path and then fall in a heap about three paces from the front door.

In his concern he rushed to her aid

“Are you ok?” he asked but when he reached her she was giggling so much she couldn’t speak.

 

Once he got her to her feet and she’d regained her ability to speak they walked gingerly to the porch and she unlocked the front door.

“Mum! Mum!” she called as she walked inside “it’s me”

“Cheryl?” a call came back in reply

She shed her coat and accessories in the hall as Ray closed the front door and then Cheryl went into the cozy lounge where her mum was.

“Happy Mother’s Day!” she said as she burst into the room

“I wasn’t expecting to see today” her mum said with tears in her eyes, and there was a prolonged teary hug.

 

“How did you get here?” Her Mum asked as she wiped her eyes

“Ray drove me”

“Ray?” she asked

“Yes, Ray from work” she replied “You know the one I’m always talking about”

“Oh yes, well that was kind” she said and then hurriedly added “I hope you haven’t let him drive back to Clerembeax again”

“No, he’s in the hall” Cheryl replied

“Well bring him in then, so I can thank him”

So, she went back out to the hall and said

“Come in and say hello”

“Ok”

“Mum this is Ray, Ray this is…”

“Sarah Daniels?” Ray said

“I used to be” she said with a confused look on her face

“You used to go out with my brother Ben” he explained

“Ray Morrison” she exclaimed “But I’m surprised you remember me though, we only met a few times because you were away at University most of the time”

“You obviously made an impression on me” he said

 

Snippets of Downshire Life – Mother’s Day

 

The Finchbottom Vale is nestled comfortably between the Ancient Dancingdean Forest to the south and the rolling Pepperstock Hills in the north, those who are lucky enough to live there think of it as the rose between two thorns.

The Vale was once a great wetland that centuries earlier stretched from Mornington in the East to Childean in the west and from Shallowfield in the south to Purplemere in the north.

But over the many centuries the vast majority had been drained for agriculture, a feat achieved largely by the efforts of famous Mornington Mills, of which only three had survived to the present day and even those were no longer functional and were in various states of repair.  

There were only three small bodies of water left in the Vale now one in Mornington, one in Childean and third of course was Purplemere which was to the north of the Vale, where in the lee of Pepperstock Hills, lay the modest town, of the same name.

On the western side of the town was the residential area known as Hill Side, and in one of its many quiet roads, was the home of Vera Williams, an ED doctor at the Royal Downshire Hospital, and just a few streets away George Harris.

 

53-year-old George Harris was retired, and he had been since he turned 50, he was up until then a Quantity Surveyor for Barraclough Ventures, but after his wife died he decided on a life change.

His wife was gone, his children were all grown up and all living independent lives and his work had lost its appeal so that was why he retired.

In the three years of retirement he led a largely solitary existence and spent his time enjoying the simple pleasures, and the two thing that gave him the most pleasure, were birdwatching and fishing.

The only anchor he had to the real world was his elderly mother who was in the Oak Dale Retirement Village and Nursing home in Dulcets Green, which was run by a marvellous woman, Alexandra   Barrileau, who was a tour de force, and it was through her that he was reacquainted with an old flame, Vera Williams.

 

He was at Oak Dale to visit his Mum, for Mother’s Day, not that she knew what day it was, or indeed who he was, but he did and so he went, as he did on all the other special days and sat in her room reading to her.  

 

Alexandra and Vera were old friends and the latter was a regular Sunday afternoon visitor, when she was off duty, where they would sit in what she called her drawing room, where they would have tea.

She only drank tea on a Sunday afternoon, because it reminded her of her mother, and it became a bit of a ritual, and Vera was more than happy to share in that ceremony.

 

After the ritual was complete Vera and Alexander left her private rooms on the second floor and walked towards the stairs.

“I’m working the next three weekends, so I won’t be over until next mon…” she began but stopped when she saw George Harris approaching the stairs from the opposite direction, and when he saw her he stopped in his tracks.

 

It had been on another Sunday afternoon when they had their first providential meeting, although that time it was a collision, it happened quite by chance on one damp miserable Sunday in a car park where they had a minor fender bender.

He was stunned that someone had driven into him, but when they both got out of their respective cars and he saw her he was stunned again.

She was a very beautiful young woman, tall and willowy with long light ginger hair, and a smiling freckled face.

She was a year or two younger than him and considerably more attractive than the girls he had been involved with up till that date, and to be honest he thought she was way out of his league, but  looking at her merely as a casual observer, he thought she was perfect, beautiful, shapely and had a gorgeous smile, and she was dressed in such a way that did nothing to hide her assets.

After inspecting the damage they shared a laugh and a joke and while they spoke, she flicked at her hair flirtatiously and he was staggered, because he thought that him and her was a nonstarter, but her body language told a different tale, so he thought he would chance his arm and ask her out, it was worth a shot, so he did and she said yes.

The two of them had a very special year together but then came University, him in Portsmouth and her in Edinburgh, and it inevitably fell apart.

 

That first meeting was thirty plus years earlier but he recognised her instantly even though all those years had passed.

She was still tall and willowy and her light ginger hair was streaked with grey, and her face was a little more freckled.

But when she smiled in recognition he knew without a doubt that it was her.

“Vera Coleman?”

“Used to be” she replied “Its Williams now”

“Ah married then”

“Divorced” she corrected him “and you?”

“Widowed”

“I take it you two know each other then?” Alex said and they both nodded in affirmation without averting their gaze.

“Ok then back to my drawing room” she said, sensing the rekindling of an old flame “I’ll make another pot of tea and you can both tell me all about it”

 

 

Snippets of Downshire Life – Mothering Sunday

 

The traditional seaside resort of Sharpington-by-Sea with its Victorian Pier, seafront hotels, crazy golf, The Palladium ballroom, well maintained gardens, promenade, theatre and illuminations, has all the usual things to have a great time by the seaside, as well as amusement arcades and of course the Sharpington Fun Park but in addition to those attractions the town obviously benefitted from all the normal amenities, such as the Jubilee Primary School which was where Ruth Andrews worked as a Teacher after making a home for herself in Sharpington following her divorce three years earlier.

In those three years she had made herself part of the community, as a well-respected teacher, a volunteer at the Library and as an enthusiastic member of an amateur dramatics group, but all her busyness was merely to fill the lonely hours of her life. 

 

However, one day in March something occurred that set her on a different path.

It was after morning break when the children were making their way back to their classrooms when one of the children, Evie Daniels, tripped and fell down the last three stairs and banged her head.

Although Evie didn’t lose consciousness, she did cut her head badly and the sight of the blood upset the onlooking children, which in turn upset Evie.

 

Ruth knew Evie outside of school as she and the child’s mother, Helen, did am dram together, and she therefore was also aware that she worked in Finchbottom and would not be able to get back to Sharpington in time, so as the first aider stemmed the flow of blood, but it was decided that an ambulance should be called.

Also, Ruth phoned Helen and said that she would go to the Hospital with Evie and meet her there. 

 

When the ambulance arrived, the paramedics were very cool, calm and efficient and they were soon on their way to Purplemere, and Ruth was in the back-holding Evie’s hand while Paramedic Gary Dixon looked after the patient and spoke reassuringly to her.

 

When the ambulance arrived at the Royal Downshire Hospital in Purplemere, Helen was already there waiting for them and she took over the hand holding duties and the paramedics took Evie straight into the emergency department and she was immediately attended to by Doctor Vera Williams and Nurse Amanda Turner, and Ruth sat down heavily on the nearest chair.

 

Ruth sat in reception watching the comings and goings for a couple of hours, flicking through old magazines to amuse herself, then she needed to spend a penny and decided she needed a drink and a sandwich, so she went to find the shop.

 

It was at the shop that she bumped into Gary Dixon, the Paramedic, who had had the same idea as she had.

“Hello” he said

“Oh hi”

“How’s Evie doing?” he asked

“Not sure, her mum hasn’t come out yet”

“I’m going in now, so I’ll find out for you” he offered

“Thank you, that’s very kind”

The remainder of the conversation on the way back to reception was fairly banal, but she did find that by the time they got there the conversation had definitely got a bit flirty, particularly on her side, and then she saw Helen appear, so she said good bye to Gary and went and hugged her friend.

 

They were sitting down while Helen filled her in on what had happened, scans, x-rays and sutures, and what was happening, namely that she was being admitted.

“I got you a sandwich and a drink” Ruth said

“Oh, bless you, I am hungry”

 

As they sat and ate Ruth suddenly said

“I’m sorry”

“What for?”

“For flirting with the Paramedic, very inappropriate behavior, I don’t know what came over me” she said

“Did you get his number?” Helen asked

“No”

“Well then you need to try harder” she retorted and laughed

Ruth wasn’t sure it was funny, after all it was something of a moral dilemma on whether it was appropriate for her to “hit on” a man while she was representing the school during a medical emergency.

“It’s not funny, it was unprofessional” Ruth said

“It’s no wonder you’re still single” Helen said

“What do you mean?”

“If you like him, which you obviously do, just go for it, before someone else does” she replied

“Really?”

“Really” she said “Especially as he likes you”

“Do you think he does?”

“Well put it this way, you weren’t the only one flirting”

 

As Evie was being admitted, Helen was going to stay at the hospital, so she persuaded Ruth to take her car and go home.

“Are you sure?” Ruth said as they stood by the entrance

“Yes” she insisted

“Ok, I’ll come back tomorrow, text me with a list of things you want me to bring from the house”

“That would be great, thanks”

“Everything is going to be fine” Ruth said as they had one final hug.

 

Evie made good progress over the following few days, but she was still in hospital on Sunday, so Helen was with her daughter all day on Mother’s Day.

 

Ruth had also visited on Mothering Sunday before going to spend the rest of the day with her mum, she was in the lift ready to go down and was just waiting for the doors to close when Gary Dixon stepped into the lift, he wasn’t wearing his green uniform, but it was definitely him.

 “Mrs. Andrews?” he said

“Oh hello” she said feigning surprise

“Have you been visiting Evie?” he asked

“Yes, she’s on the mend” She replied

“Yes, I know I popped in to see her myself yesterday”

“Oh?”

“Yes” he confirmed “I like to look in on my former passengers”

“Is that normal?” she asked knowing full well that it was not

“It’s just something I like to do” he replied

“That’s a good thing that you do” Ruth said genuinely impressed

“Not really” he said modestly

“Is that why you’re here today?” she asked

“No, I’ve been visiting my sister, she’s just had a baby” he replied proudly as the lift came to a halt and the doors opened.

“Well it was nice to see you again Mrs., Andrews”

“Please call me Ruth” she insisted “I only stick to formality in the classroom”

“Ok then, it was nice seeing you again, Ruth” he said

“Do you have time for a coffee Gary?” she asked hopefully

“Absolutely” he replied and led the way to the Hospital Café

It was one of those awful cold and sterile, impersonal self-service places, selling everything pre-packed, that have sprung up all over the Health Service, which had squeezed out the old WVS Cafes that offered homemade cakes and a friendly smile along with your cup of tea.

Gary suggested that Ruth find them a table while he got the drinks and a brief discussion about who should pay followed, Ruth was adamant that it should be her, but Gary insisted.

 

They were sitting at a table, drinking coffee and chatting when they were interrupted.

“Well hello stranger” said a man in surgical scrubs.

“Oh” she said, and her face hardened

“Well fancy finding you here, I thought you’d run off to the seaside” he continued “Does this mean you’re back?”

“Not really” she said uncomfortably which Gary picked up on.

“Perhaps introductions would be in order” the doctor said

“This is Ian, my Ex-husband” she said “and this is Gary...”

“Her next husband” Gary said and stood up to shake his hand.

Ian was not a tall man but even standing less than six-foot-tall Gary still towered above the diminutive Doctor, who quickly took his leave of them.

“That was kind of you” she said relieved to see her ex go.

“Not at all” he said “I had an ulterior motive as it happens”

“Which was?” she asked suspiciously

“Simply to have you in my debt so that you would be obliged to say yes when I ask you out” he said

“Well that’s very calculating” she retorted

“So, has it worked?”

“You’ll have to ask for a date to find that out” Ruth said with a grin.

 

 

 

Snippets of Downshire Life – Angling

 

Downshire is a relatively small English county but that didn’t bother its inhabitants, the may not have been the biggest but they were in no doubt that it was the best, and that belief was no truer than in the southern town off Abbottsford which was Downshire’s administrative capital and the seat of the Downshire government.

It was also a place of learning thanks to the Downshire University, it could also boast that it was a Cathedral City, was home to Abbottsford Town football club and benefitted from the renowned Winston Churchill Hospital.

 

Of all the many amenities and attractions the town had to offer, it was the hospital that had brought Mark Weston to town, in order to visit his sister who was waiting to undergo major heart surgery, in fact it had brought back to the country, from sunnier climes where he had been filming his TV Show.

But when he got to the hospital he went straight upstairs to the private room he had arranged for her, he not only found her lying in bed with wires and tubes coming out of her, he also found someone who would figure in both their futures, in the form of Elaine’s Doctor, Rita.

 

Because later that night they met for the first time outside the hospital and spent a pleasant couple of hours in the Hotel bar of the Abbottsford Regents and they made an unlikely connection, considering that she was a Doctor and he was a TV Fisherman.

The next day however they were unable to build on that connection as it was a busy shift for Rita and Elaine went into surgery, the following day however was a different matter, although when they were on the ward they maintained their roles, conscious and sensitive to their surroundings, but when they met downstairs it was different.  

 

“Hello Mark” she said as he stepped out of the lift

“Hello yourself Doctor Rita”

“Very funny” she said laughing “have you got time for a coffee?”

“I do” he replied so they went to the coffee shop where they spent a pleasant hour, helping him to escape his worries.

Because she knew that although he put on a brave face for his sister and her husband that he was worried sick, and she also knew that no matter how she tried to reassure him as a Doctor she wasn’t going succeed but as Rita she could divert him, even if only for the briefest time.

 

The following day they repeated the process, twice, and the day after, and when Elaine was out of the woods and on the road to recovery the day after that, and she improved with each day that passed they went out for dinner.

Elaine had made such a good recovery that Doctor Gardner was happy to allow Elaine to be transferred to a nursing home to complete her convalescence.

As they loaded Elaine into an ambulance Rita said

“You know what this means”

“Yes, I have to take you fishing” He said

“So it’s my day off on Thursday” she replied

“Ok text me the address and I’ll pick you up at nine”

“Great” she said “what should I wear?”

“You’ll look great in whatever you wear” he replied “But I would recommend no heels”

 

There were only three small bodies of water left in the Finchbottom Vale by the 21^st Century, one in Mornington, one in Childean and third of course was in Purplemere.

But as Rita lived in Shallowfield he had booked a room at the Shallowfield Lodge Hotel which meant they could fish in Teardrop Lake, which was actually somewhere he had never fished before.

 

It was an unseasonably warm sunny March day when he picked her up and drove her up to the Lake and he set up the folding chairs on the jetty and once they had set up he showed her the basic principle of casting and then he said

“Come and stand in front of me and look towards the water”

Rita did as she was told and he was stood behind her holding the rod in his right hand but before he could show her any more she turned around and kissed him and after a full minute he said

“You didn’t come for the fishing did you?”

“Not really” she admitted and they kissed again.

 

An early lunch was settled on so after he’d packed his tackle away they walked back to the car and he stowed it in the boot and as they walked up the steps to the Hotel she announced

“I like fishing, I think we should do it again soon”

“I’m afraid that today is the last day of the season” he retorted

“When does it start again?”

“The middle of June”

“Oh dear, what are we going to do until June?”

“I’m sure we’ll think of something” he said and kissed her