Still Falling (8 page)

“Let’s get going then or we’ll miss it.”

They took a slow stroll skirting the gardens, Serena still waking slowly
and getting some life back into her body.
 
They remained silent, each in their own little world.
 

When they arrived Serena sat heavily on the sand breathing the sea air in
deep and feeling content.
 
Tony wondered
down to the waters’ edge.
  
She closed
her eye to listen to the waves.
 
She felt
her world sway just for a second and quickly opened her eyes again.
 
Heat crept over her body and she placed two
hands firmly on the sand to steady herself as the ground beneath her seamed to
move.
 

“Tony!”
 
She managed to call out
just before darkness crept in from the edges of her vision and blacked
out.
 

Tony ran over to her and loosed the top button of her blouse.
 
She was still breathing normally and her
pulse was strong.
 
He looked around
wondering if he should stay here with her or try to get her back to the
cottage.
 
From experience and
conversations with Jo, he knew this could last anything from a few minutes to
almost an hour.
 
He was not strong enough
to carry her up the stairs of the small cliff and in an hour it would be too
dark to see the rocky path back to the cottage anyway.
 
Worse still there was no moon tonight.
 

Reluctant to leave her here alone to look for help, he took off his shirt
and wet it in the sea to wipe her neck and face while contemplating what to
do.
 
Idly he wondered why his brother
Nico had no interest in her.
 
She was
beautiful.
 
Her skin reminded him of
crème liquor and her neck was long and graceful.
 

Perhaps he would drop a few hints here and there.
 
Play cupid to the two lonely hearts.
 
He was just running his shirt down the length
of her breast bone when two massive hands pulled him to his feet and before he
could react, a fist from nowhere, turned out the lights.

       
Tony hadn’t been out more than a two
seconds and his jaw ached like he had been hit by a train.
 
Marco was still standing over him, urging him
to stand up and take some more.
 

“What the hell was that for?”

“That is for taking advantage of a vulnerable woman.”

“I’m not taking advantage of anyone.”

“No?
 
You’ve half undressed
yourself.
 
You’ve half undressed her. And
you looked mighty cosy there just now.”

“You don’t understand.
 
Serena is
unconscious.”

“Yes and how perfect for you. First you make her pregnant.
 
Then you abandon her and now you try sneaking
back and have to wait until she’s in a coma to take advantage.
 
You sleazy bastard!”

“Marco
stop
.
 
You’re making a fool of yourself.”
Said Serena
quietly.

Marco stopped and turned to where Serena was now sitting up dusting the
beach sand from her hair.
 
His deep eyes
burned.

“It’s your life.” He grunted and stormed off.

“What the hell was that all about?”
 
Said Tony, rubbing his jaw.

“He’s just an idiot”

“Sounds to me like an idiot who might have something for you.
 
Did you know he thinks you’re pregnant?”

“Like I said, he’s an idiot.”

“Well your idiot thinks I’m the father!”

“Oh Tony I’m so sorry.
 
I promise
I’ll clear this up with him in the morning.
 
I didn’t mean to drag you into this.”

“What? Are you kidding?
 
This is
great for my reputation in town.
 
Honestly Serena leave him in idiot heaven as long as you want.”
 
Said Tony grinning and
clutching his painful jaw at the same time.

“In the meantime let’s get you back to the cottage while we can still
see.”

“Um....Tony...?”

“You okay?”

“Si, but where is your shirt?
 
On
second thoughts, perhaps I shouldn’t ask.”

Tony just
grinned wider.

Serena’s mother was waiting for them when they returned.

“Marco called for you earlier.
 
He
said he wanted to walk with you to the beach.
 
He didn’t seem too happy when I said you had already gone with a
friend.”

“Marco should just mind his own business.”

“Serena, Marco is a good boy.
 
He
is just looking out for you.” She scolded.
 
The older woman then noticed Tony standing sheepishly outside the door.

“Santa Maria.
 
What have you done to your face Tony?
 
Come,
come let’s get
some ice on that.”

Tony was about to object but he noticed Marco staring at them from a
window balcony in the big house.
 
With a
smirk he entered the cottage, one arm draped loosely around Serena’s
shoulder.
 
While her mother busied
herself making an ice pack, Tony & Serena briefly discussed her past with
Marco.

“So let me get this straight.
 
You
never actually dated Marco.
 
No dinners,
no
holding hands, nothing?”

“That’s about right.”

“Man, you guys have one weird relationship.”

“We don’t have a relationship and never had.
 
That’s what I’m trying to tell you!” Serena
grumbled.

“If you say so.”
 
Teased Tony, holding up his hands in surrender.
 

Worried about
how late it was, Serena’s mother invited Tony to spend the night on the
sofa.
 
Tony had no intention of
objecting.

Over the next few days, Serena spent much of her time with Tony, always
stopping at the Bistro for a bite with Nico and Micky before taking the ferry
back to the island for Serena’s sunset walk. There were no further
interruptions from Marco and only a few small incidences with nausea and black
outs, but nothing Tony or her mother couldn’t handle.
 

Serena was beginning to think that perhaps Tony was trying to set her up
with Nico but as much as she enjoyed his company, she didn’t think it was a
likely match.
 
Their worlds were miles
apart and she couldn’t see Nico as anything more than a big brother.
 
Serena needed a degree of independence and
Nico needed a housewife and mother for poor Micky.
 

Sitting in the Bistro waiting for Tony to take her to chemo, Serena
suddenly realised that somewhere along the line, since starting work with Jo
four years ago she had inherited an extended family.
 
Her whole life it had been her and her
mother.
 
Now she had Tony and Nico who
were like brothers to her, Jo who was like a meddling big sister that she
couldn’t say no to and the gorgeous Micky who would make any aunt proud.
 
Best of all they had accepted her as part of
the family.
 
Even her mother seemed to be
getting in on the action having long telephone discussions with the new
extended family about Serena, and what was good for her.
 
She hugged herself unconsciously.
 

What better support could she ask
for?

“Hey Serena!
 
How do I smell?” asked Tony bringing his face close to hers.

“Mmm, nice.
 
I hope that’s not for me?” she asked batting her eyelids and looking
coy.

“I dunno.
 
You gonna put on a cute
little nurses outfit at the clinic and play doctors?”

“Naughty!” laughed Serena.

“Tony, have you finished my aftershave again?
 
Those nurses are gonna kick you out for
contaminating the air!”
Yelled Nico from inside.

“Let’s go before
Nico really gets started,” said Tony, guiding Serena out the Bistro court yard
to the car.

Her mood dropped as the car drew ever closer to the clinic.
 
Tony must have picked up on this and left her
alone to her thoughts.
 
Inside and set up
on the drip, Serena drifted off to sleep on the adjustable medical chair while
Tony went on the hunt for available nurses.
 

When she was done her mood had gone really low.
 
All she wanted was to crawl into a hole in
her bed and ignore the world.
 
Tony
quietly drove her over to the island and parked up outside the cottage.

“I know it’s early but do you want to go over to the beach?”

She sat there for a moment.
 
“I’ll
give it a miss today and tonight, but thanks for asking.”

“Can I bring anything around later?
 
Flowers, a book, some magazines?”

“You’re sweet Tony, but I’ll be alright.
 
I’ll ring you when I need something, alright?”

“Alright.”
Tony got out the car and opened the
door for her taking some of her weight as she climbed out.
 

I’ll be alright now, thanks Tony.”
 
She gave him a hug and let him walk back around her little red car and
climb in before driving carefully off.
 

“What no walk tonight?”
 

Serena thought she was going to have a coronary right there.
 
Sitting on the cottages veranda in the deep
shadows of a neatly trimmed Bougainvillea was Marco.
 

“Marco.”

“Don’t worry I’m not here to give you a hard time.
 
I’m waiting for your mother.
 
She wanted some help carrying something and
Jose, the Groundkeeper is away for a few days.”

“Oh. Well if you’ll excuse me I’m really tired.”

“I’m not surprised. You are far too thin and your boyfriend has you on a
very busy schedule.
 
In your condition
you should be getting more rest.”

“Firstly, you said you weren’t here to give me a hard time.
 
Secondly I think I know what I ......”
 
Serena didn’t finish the sentence.
 

He watched in slow motion, unable to do anything until it was too
late.
 
First her hand opened and her keys
started to fall, then her eyes rolled back slightly before closing.
 
Before they had closed completely, she
crumpled, her legs caving in beneath her.
 
Her head hit the flagstone floor with a crack and Marco winced at the
sound.
 

Damn this woman was frustrating!
 
He rescued her keys from where they had fallen, opened the door and
carried her slender frame inside.
 
Laying
her down on the sofa he felt her head for obvious signs of serious damage.
 
Only a small lump.
 

He sourced a bag of crushed ice in the freezer and wrapped it in a
tea-towel, wedging it behind her head.
 
He gently moved a lock of hair from her forehead.
 
She was still beautiful.
 
Thin, but beautiful.
 
Her skin was smooth and silky and she wore
her smattering of freckles over the bridge of nose with pride.
 
Beautiful and natural.
 
His finger gently traced the soft curve of
her jaw from the base of her small left ear to the point of her chin.
 
He paused here to take in the fullness of her
naturally dark lips.
 

He smiled as he remembered her mother regularly teasing that Serena had
stolen lipstick from her purse again when Serena was still a small child.
 
Briefly his thumb brushed over the soft dark
skin.
 
He continued his exploration down
her neck to pause in the hollow where her pulse visibly drummed out a rhythm of
its own.
 
How he would love to feel that
flutter against his lips again.
 
He shook
himself mentally and rose up to find some cushions to pack under her feet, and
then went to check out side for signs of her mother.

“Damn where is she!” he muttered to himself going back inside.
 
Marco stood in the middle of the cottage and
tried to focus on the decor.
 
Nice.
 
Comfortable.
 

“I must commend the decorator.” He muttered.
 
Having taken in as much as he felt able with
the room’s decor, his attention returned to the body lying on the sofa.
 
He felt his forced composure begin to
crumble.
 
These feelings were foreign to
him.
 
He needed to get back in
control.
 
Just in time his housekeeper’s
hard soled shoes ticked up the stone steps to the door.