31 Days of Summer (31 Days #2) (47 page)

‘He’s doing better, he won’t have to stay with us
too long, don’t worry.’

‘What about … about …’

‘Your wife? The doctor will be down to talk to you
shortly.’

‘She’s not … she’s ok?’ I asked, stopping myself
from correcting her. Why wouldn’t people think she was my wife? We had a child
and another one on the way.

‘The doctor will be down shortly,’ she smiled,
evading my question. ‘Can I recheck your stitches.’

‘Stitches?’ My mother gasped.

‘It’s nothing, just a cut,’ I muttered,
embarrassed at the fuss.

‘I still need to see,’ ordered the nurse as she
pulled on a fresh pair of gloves. I rolled my eyes and twisted in the chair to
let her see through the gap in my ripped jeans. ‘Do I look like Superman? I
don’t have the ability to see through walls or material. Drop them please.’

‘Be thankful you didn’t break your penis,’ Mother
nodded as I glared at the nurse, stood and did as I was told.

‘Luiza,’ warned my father.

‘Well, it is a serious situation, I don’t cope
well with serious. A little humour is what is needed. We should have picked up
Brooke, she would have got my humour.’

‘Damn it,’ I groaned. ‘Brooke and Molly. I didn’t
think. Has anyone spoken to them?’

‘No,’ came the chorus from my parents.

‘Shit, I’d better ring Phillip to fuel the plane
and fly them up from London. Are we done here?’ I asked the nurse crouching at
my feet examining my leg, as I pulled my phone out.

‘This is a hospital, not your private office,’ she
chastised, as she stood up and grabbed my hand that had some stitches as well.
‘Make your calls outside or I’ll confiscate your phone.’

‘Give it to me son, I’ll go and call her.’ I threw
it over and shook my head, as my hand was inspected as if I’d just lost some
fingers to frost bite and had major reattachment surgery.

‘Is this fuss necessary? I’m fine, I’m more
interested in knowing what’s happened to Ellie.’

‘Patience is a virtue, Mr. Davenport, one I get
the feeling you don’t have much of. I understand that this is a trying and
stressful time for you, but your son and wife need you to be at full fitness to
look after them. I’m only doing my job.’

‘I’m sorry, I’m more than a little stressed.’

‘Apology accepted, now I’ll see if I can chase up
the doctor with some news for you.’

I paced the room as I waited for an update, biting
my thumb nail. What the hell was taking so long? Surely it couldn’t be Moira
all over again? I wasn’t sure how I’d cope with that, I’d want to give up, but
Oliver still needed me. I looked over at him, dwarfed in the big single bed,
protected by the rails on each side and pillows around him, his favourite teddy
by his side. He may be a big boy for his age, but right now he looked so tiny
and defenceless, he needed me, even more if we lost Ellie. I’d have to go on,
to be everything he needed. I just wasn’t sure how I was going to do it.

‘Carino, please sit down, you’re making me so dizzy
with the pacing.’

‘It’s been hours, what the hell’s taking so long.
If it was good news they’d have been down straight away.’

‘That applies if it was bad news too. No news
means that they are doing what they can, so there’s still hope,’ reassured my
father.

‘I can’t lose her, I just … can’t.’ No one said
anything. There was nothing they could say. No platitudes were going to take
away the gnawing pain in my chest. Nothing would take that away until Ellie was
awake again, holding my hand and smiling as she talked to me. I spun around as
the door opened and covered my mouth with my hands as my fear got the better of
me and I steeled myself for the worst possible outcome.

‘Mr. Davenport? Can I talk freely with company?’
she asked. I nodded. ‘She’s stable and the baby’s fine,’ she smiled. I heard
the sigh of relief from my parents, but I was still holding my breath. ‘She had
a nasty concussion and some minor swelling to her right temporal lobe. We’re
monitoring it with regular scans and we’re prepared to drill a hole to relieve
any intracranial pressure if it increases. There’s no bleeding or fracture
which is an excellent sign and hopefully we won’t need to take further measures.
We need to keep her in ICU to monitor her, but we hope that she’ll wake up in
her own time.’

‘Is there any risk of permanent damage?’ asked my
father, slipping easily into his preferred role of interrogator as a QC.

‘We won’t know until she wakes up and we run some neurological
tests. We’ve stitched up a nasty laceration on her temple and she’s also
developing some severe bruising, all over her body. It’s likely that she’ll
have whiplash from her fall as well. I’m sorry I can’t give you more news at
the moment. I’m afraid it’s down to Ellie now.’

‘Can my son see her? I think it would make him
feel better if he could spend some time with her.’

‘Just for a short while and I’m afraid we can’t
let anyone else in. If you’d like to follow me?’

I looked at my parents and they nodded as father
put his arm around mother and she gave me a reassuring smile.

‘We’ll be here with Oliver, waiting for you to get
back.’

I sat by Ellie’s bedside holding her good hand,
trying to block out the similarity to my visits to see Moira with the machines
beeping. She looked so pale and had a seriously nasty bruise around the cut on
her head. She’d be left with another scar. Two from being with me, her arm from
the loch and now this. Was I really cursed?

‘I don’t know if you can hear me, baby, but … I
need you to know that you can’t give up. You’ve got to fight, fight and wake
up. Oliver’s ok, he’s on a drip to rehydrate him, this baby’s ok too,’ I nodded,
as I placed a hand on her stomach. ‘The only one not ok is me. I can’t do this
without you, Ellie. You helped me to wake up and live again, now I need you to
do it for me. Come back to me, I’m not above begging. I’ve never begged anyone
in my life, but I’ll beg you on my knees if that’s what it takes. You’re my
heart Ellie, my home. Losing you would leave me empty. Don’t leave me,
please.
’
I watched her for any sign she could hear me, but there was nothing. I felt
tears rolling down my face again, I was like a blubbing baby today, I was
convinced I’d shed more tears than Oliver. I wished I had the strength to fight
my emotions, I usually could, but today they were out of control. I just couldn’t
lose her. I buried my face in her lap and sobbed until I had no more tears left
inside me.

Thursday 15
^th
July ~ Year Three

Dan

I looked at her still
sleeping, her blonde hair spread across the pillow. She looked so peaceful. I leaned
over and gently kissed her forehead, avoiding her bruise and stitches.

‘Have you been watching me sleeping again?’ came
her voice.

‘Yes,’ I laughed. ‘I can’t help it, you look
amazing.’

‘I should do after nearly two weeks bed rest,’ she
smiled. I was lying on top of the bed on my side watching her and reached out
to clutch her chin and ran my thumb over her bottom lip.

‘And if I had my way you’d have another two weeks
bed rest, I nearly lost you.’

‘I’m so sorry you had to go through that all,’ she
whispered. ‘But I’m ok now. They did another scan before they released me, you
heard what they said, there was no residual swelling and my neurological tests
were all fine. I’d still be in the hospital if they had any concerns.’

‘How’s the baby?’ I asked as I placed a hand on
her stomach.

‘I don’t know, they don’t really do anything but
grow at that age. You were there for the scan, she’s fine too.’

‘She?’ I questioned with a smile.

‘I’d love a little girl, someone for Oliver to
look out for, someone I can spend ages brushing her hair and making her look
pretty, like my mum used to do to me. I suppose you want another boy?’

‘If I had a choice, yes,’ I grinned. ‘But whatever
we have I’ll love it as much as I do you and Oliver.’

‘Is he still asleep?’ she looked at me surprised.
She wasn’t allowed painkillers for her wrist, which was still in a cast, in
case it masked any re-emergence of brain injury symptoms. Even so, when she did
sleep, she did so heavily. We were warned that she’d experience fatigue for
quite a long time, so I’d been tending to Oliver, as his cries when he woke up
no longer roused her. My father had left not long after Ellie woke up in
hospital, the day after her fall. While he was prepared to put off his cases,
there was only so much help we could have. Mother had stayed for a week, Brooke
and Molly too and they’d lived in the house with us, helping tend to Oliver and
Ellie.

‘He is still asleep. Since he’s been home he’s
been racing around causing havoc and totally worn himself out, like last night
when he emptied the whole of the saucepan cupboard. Hey, no tears.’

‘I’ve missed playing with him,’ she sighed as I
wiped them away. We’d only allowed him up here for an hour at a time a few
times a day, to cuddle and snooze with her. She’d been bruised that badly that
she’d only been able to move without wincing yesterday.

‘So how about you come downstairs today for a
change of scene and a gentle walk around. Mrs. McAdams will come down while I’m
out to chase after him, if needs be.’

‘No way,’ she gasped. ‘If you think you’re going
without me today, you need to think again.’

‘Ellie,’ I sighed. ‘You’ve been through enough.’

‘So have you. I want to be with you, don’t leave
me again.’

‘You really want to come?’ I sighed as I gently
caressed her face. I’d hated going without her on Tuesday, the thought of
something happening again when I wasn’t here to protect her, had gnawed at me
all afternoon. Mrs. McAdams had stayed with her for me until I got back, but my
anxiety levels had risen the longer I was away. It was all the more important
that I went today though.

‘We’re a couple Dan, we support each other through
the good and the bad. I need to be with you.’

‘Fine,’ I sighed again, not overly happy about
taking her out. ‘It’s on the condition that Oliver doesn’t come and you do as
you’re told at all times. If I tell you to sit down you will, lie down you will,
drink water you will. You
will
obey me with every command. Understood?’

‘Wow, you’re kind of extra hot when you’re all
dominant,’ she smiled as she grabbed my hand and kissed it. I shuddered as I
felt the effects of that kiss all the way down to my rapidly swelling cock.
We’d obviously not had sex, she insisted she was ready, I disagreed. Her health
came before my continuous factory line of ready-made erections. Thank God my
stitches had been on my left hand and not my right one, which had been
receiving quite the work out since I got her home and relaxed a little. ‘I love
you so much, I hate that I’ve made you worry about me.’

‘I worry
because
I love you so much too,
that will never change. Come on then, we’d better get you ready. I’ve already
run you a nice bubble bath, keep your head out of the water, no going under
until that cut is fully healed. I’ll help wash your hair.’

Ellie

We arrived at the house, Conn was driving our
Range Rover for us, I’d insisted on it. I didn’t want Dan driving home after
his ordeal. We pulled up in the drive to find a few extra cars and I looked
over at him sitting next to me, his hands gripping the seat either side of his
hips, just looking at the front door. He looked pale and anxious, which was
understandable.

‘You don’t have to do this for me, I told you that
I’d live with it,’ I said softly as I picked up one of his hands and smothered
it with my own.

‘No,’ he replied with a sad look on his face. ‘I
can’t go through the last few weeks again. I could have lost you both, all
because of the time I spend regretting a past mistake. You were right, I’m
missing out on my present and future, as well as holding Theo and Florie back.
I’ve been selfish, only thinking about how it affects me. It’s not just about
me anymore. It’s time.’

Conn offered to stay in the car, he didn’t want to
intrude, so we left him with a paper and a flask of coffee. Dan insisted on
carrying me out of the car, like I’d lost use of my legs. He’d helped me when I
had a slight panic about going down our staircase, logic told me that I only
fell because I’d dripped water all up the stairs with that wet facecloth and
I’d been upset and rushing, but standing at the top looking down was a seriously
scary experience. He’d gone down backwards, holding one of my hands as I
clutched the glass balustrade and took them one at a time. He’d had the floor
fitters come in and replace some of the floorboards at the foot of the stairs.
The blood from the wound on my head had seeped into the cracks and no matter
how hard Mrs. McAdams and our new cleaner scrubbed, they couldn’t get out those
red lines.

It had been so nice to leave the house and get
some fresh air, even if it was just to be carried down to the boat. He always
made me feel so safe, loved and protected when he carried me in his arms like
that, now it was my turn to do the same for him. I could hardly believe he’d
thought that I wouldn’t want to be here for him today. I don’t know what I
expected when Theo answered the door, maybe a face stricken with grief, tears
of sadness, all I knew was that I hadn’t prepared myself for the look of relief
on his face. Sometimes I was so wrapped up in how this affected Dan, I forgot
how hard this was for them after so many years.

‘Good morning. Ellie, how are you doing?’

‘She’s improving, though I don’t want her on her
feet for long. Thanks for visiting us on Monday, it was really good of you to
come up,’ Dan replied answering for me. I fought the urge to raise my eyebrows
and make some snarky remark, he wasn’t himself. Today was about him, not me.

‘It was good of you,’ I smiled. ‘I’m definitely
feeling a lot better, though it will be nice to get this cast off in a few weeks.
It makes holding Oliver rather difficult.’

‘Come on in, Doctor Strachan’s arrived, he’s just
going over the charts with Sheila, Ruth and Jess and doing some last tests. We
can have a coffee while we wait for his confirmation.’

‘Ok,’ Dan nodded, his voice so quiet today for
such a big man. He let me walk inside, supporting me with one of his strong
arms around my waist, holding me against his side, his other hand holding onto
mine tightly. Florie came over and gave me a hug and a kiss and I held both of her
hands and squeezed them tightly. She just nodded, there wasn’t any need for
words. We all knew why we were here. The conversation was all about Oliver as
we had our drinks, until Theo put his coffee down and coughed as he looked at
Florie.

‘Daniel, I hope you don’t mind, but we’d like to
put the house on the market. We only moved here for ease with her care and now
… well now we don’t need to be here. We’d like to return to Loch Airdre, to be
closer to our friends, to be able to come and visit you both from time to time,
if you’ll have us? I know I speak for Florie too, when I say that we’ve come to
look upon you as family.’

‘Theo of course I don’t mind,’ Dan replied, then
hesitated with a swallow as I squeezed his hand and nodded my consent. ‘We
think of you as family too and I can’t imagine not seeing you both on a regular
basis even with ... well …’ he blew out a breath and covered his eyes. ‘That’s
why we’d … we’d really like …’

‘What he’s trying to say is that we’d like you to
be godparents to our new baby,’ I smiled, speaking for him this time. ‘You’ve
been such a large part of Dan’s life, mine too in the short time that I’ve
known you, we’d love to keep in touch and you moving back to the loch will just
make that so much easier.’

‘You really mean that?’ Florie asked as her eyes
filled with tears. I nodded and squeezed Dan’s hand and he looked up at her and
nodded too. It was our way of trying to give them something in exchange for
what was being taken from them.

‘We can’t think of anyone else better suited,’ he
replied. Theo put his arm around his wife and kissed the top of her head, as he
nodded.

‘Thank you, that means a lot, to us both. You’ve
gone above and beyond all these years. Of course we’ll give you back the extra
money we make on the sale, we’ve seen a small cottage that will suit us both,
there’ll be plenty left over.’

‘No need, use it for holidays, or a proper 4x4,
that estate car you have now will be no good in winter, you’ve forgotten what
it’s like up there.’

‘Daniel, that’s too generous of you,’ Theo
objected.

‘I thought we just agreed we were family, there
shouldn’t be any money issues between family.’ Theo nodded his thanks just as
there was a knock on the lounge door. He went to get it and introduced us to
Doctor Strachan. I’d never met him before, but he knew Dan and remained in a
handshake with him, another on his shoulder as they had a few words. I looked
down at the carpet, not wanting to intrude on this seriously personal moment
and realised that it was no longer cream with a large coal stain by the
fireplace, but a soft pink. My eyes drifted over to the curtains which were
done in fresh stripes of pink, cream and green, to match the new cushions. It
was my wedding theme, well Brooke’s wedding theme. I really needed to get on
top of where we were at with that. I’d ordered the cake and flowers, but hadn’t
been well enough to chase up progress, or check on any of the other arrangements
and it was only in three weeks.

‘Daniel, do you want a moment alone?’ asked Theo.

‘After you,’ he nodded.

‘We’ve already said our goodbyes this morning,
we’ve been saying them for a long time now,’ he confirmed, as he held Florie’s
hand and she gave us a half-smile to confirm her approval. Dan slowly stood up
and held out his hand to me and I looked up at him surprised. I’d wanted to be
here for him, but I hadn’t expected him to want me in the room. He didn’t say a
word, but the look in his eyes told me he was pleading with me, he needed me
there. I laced my fingers in between his and he held on tightly as we headed
out to her room. He hesitated as he gripped the door handle.

‘If you’re not ready you don’t have to do this,’ I
stated again. Ironic given that I’d been one of the people saying this was
exactly what he should be doing, whenever he asked for my opinion. He just gave
me a sad smile and opened the door. I felt my eyes fill with tears as I looked
at her lying there. She was no longer dressed in one of the hospital gowns they’d
kept her in, for ease of washing and shifting her to prevent bedsores. Instead
she was wearing a black dress and her hair and make-up had been done. It felt
slightly macabre, she looked more alive today than I’d ever seen her, yet today
was the day she was officially going to die. Dan dragged a chair next to her
bedside and sat me down, before pulling up his own. He reached out with a shaky
breath and took her left hand in his, as his right one grabbed mine. I rubbed it
with my thumb as he tried to compose himself, I didn’t often see him cry, he
was a strong man, but today he looked fragile and tears were swimming,
threatening to flood his face, which only made me the same.