‘Needed some space to sort yourself out, I know. Don’t worry, I forgive you, but only because I know how badly you were affected. I’m glad you found someone you could eventually share your problems with.’
‘Yeah.’ He laughed ironically. ‘Not any more.’
‘That bad, hey?’
‘That bad,’ he confirmed, causing Emily’s heart to fracture. ‘It’s the kids I’m really worried about. Millie’s at that age, you know, where she’s pushing boundaries. Ben’s … I don’t know. I’d hoped we might have a better relationship than Tom and I had, but the older he gets, the less it seems we have in common.’
‘He’s probably just a bit shy,’ Sally suggested. ‘Like his dad.’
‘Probably,’ Jake reflected thoughtfully.
‘Not so shy lately, though,’ she added, a playful edge to her voice. ‘I’m liking the authoritative doctor-in-charge thing you have going on. Very hot.’
He sighed ruefully. ‘Yeah, I’m not sure my wife’s that impressed.’
‘She’ll come around. You’re a catch, Dr Merriden. I doubt she’ll want to throw you back.’
‘I wouldn’t be too sure about that.’
‘I would. She won’t let you go easily, Jake, trust me.’ Sally paused. ‘I’d better get on. I have someone due in shortly. Talk later.’
‘Will do. Oh, and Sally …’ Jake stopped her. ‘You haven’t mentioned anything to Emily, have you? About us?’
‘No. Don’t worry, your secret’s safe,’ she assured him. ‘It’s not the sort of thing that’s easy to drop casually into conversation.’
Moving swiftly away from his office as she heard Sally nearing the door, Emily felt a surge of pure rage.Shy?He’d sounded anything but from where she was standing, pouring his heart out to a woman he’d had a relationship with – and hadn’ttoldher about. Someone he’d ‘cared for’. Now that her eyes had been opened, it was obvious, blindingly obvious to Emily, that Sally cared for him too, which explained her draping herself over him at every opportunity. Her dressing to impress him. Her anger quadrupled as she recalled the tight jeans, leather boots and abundant make-up Sally had been wearing in order to come to her house for nothing more than a girls’ chat. She had thought the woman was simply flirty by nature. She’d even joked about it to Jake, to her utter humiliation. She couldn’t believe that he’d been sharing details abouttheirrelationship with her. That he’d just told her that Emily wasn’t there for him any more.
He was twisting everything, blaming her. And now she had absolutely no one to confide in. Not her best friend. Not her GP. Not her husband.
Safely ensconced in a cubicle in the toilets, Emily wondered if it was truly possible to die from a broken heart.
Seventeen
Jake
Watching Sally leave, Jake had never felt so guilty. He’d meant to mention to Emily that he and Sally had once gone out together. It seemed like aeons ago now, but they had been fairly serious, until his mother died and his life had fallen apart.He’dfallen apart, wondered what the point was: of taking his exams, doing all the normal stuff that people did; having relationships. He’d begun to see people in a different light, speculating about what they were really like under the exterior they presented to the world, what secrets they kept. Or didn’t. His father had certainly made no secret of his numerous affairs. Jake would never understand that, not until the day he died. It was some kind of ego trip, he supposed, a way of proving his masculinity.
Whyhadn’the told her? He thought back to the first time he and Emily had run into Sally when they’d moved into the village. Edward and Joyce Simpson had organised a welcome-back party. Sally had been all over him. Drinking more than was healthy, she’d been openly flirting with him. Emily had been put out, understandably, and Jake had decided not to say anything then, rightly or wrongly. When Emily and Sally had struck up a friendship despite that shaky first meeting, he could see Sally working to gain Emily’s trust after her ‘deplorable behaviour’, as she called it, and he’d again declined to say anything, so as not to destroy a potential friendship. He’d supposed Sally would mention it to Emily somewhere along the line. Apparently, she hadn’t.
Given how their marriage was at the moment, he was bloody glad now that Emily didn’t know. He was growing more worried about her state of mind. It hadn’t helped when he’d practically accused her of sending the letter to Michael out of some sense of vengeance. Now he didn’t know what to think. Who would have alerted Dean Miller to the fact that his wife had decided to terminate her pregnancy? Why would they? There was no blackmail involved, nothing to be gained as far as Jake could see, other than some twisted satisfaction from watching people’s relationships fall apart. He needed to talk to the whole team, including his father, and make sure that everyone knew that patient confidentiality was crucial. He also wanted to see their reactions when he told them he suspected one of them was accessing private medical data and using it unethically – as well as illegally. If it was someone on the team, then perhaps they would betray themselves.
Deciding to ring through to reception and ask Nicky or Emily to organise a meeting before close of play, he reached for his phone and then grabbed it up when it rang.
‘I have Dean Miller on the line,’ Nicky said, sounding wary. ‘He’s insisting on speaking to you.’
Jake drew in a breath. He guessed this wasn’t going to be an easy conversation. ‘Thanks, Nicky. Could you put him through?
‘Dean?’ He braced himself as the call connected. ‘What can I—’
‘It’s Zoe,’ Dean cut in, his voice terrified. ‘I didn’t do it, Jake. You have to believe me.’
Eighteen
Emily
Sitting in the waiting area along with the rest of the team, Emily glanced towards Jake as he emerged from his office. He’d asked her to let everyone know he needed to call an urgent meeting once all the patients had left. Emily hadn’t been surprised he would want to talk to them all, after receiving the terrible news about Dean Miller and poor Zoe. Picturing her, a petite, pretty girl who’d looked pale and drawn the last time she’d been to the surgery to see Jake, Emily’s heart broke for her. For her parents, too. What must they be going through, not knowing the extent of her injuries? If it were Millie … A cold shudder running through her, she tried to clamp her mind down on that thought, but couldn’t. Where was Millie going when she disappeared in the evenings? Emily hadn’t yet told her daughter that she’d rung Anna’s mother; that she knew it wasn’t Anna’s house she was staying at. She’d hoped that Millie might confide in her, before she was forced to confront her. Why would she be so secretive unless she had something to hide? Emily could only think it was because she was afraid that she and Jake would disapprove of the person she was seeing.
Might he be controlling or aggressive in some way? Going through all the stomach-wrenching scenarios, her mind returned to Zoe. What had happened? Since he was being questioned by the police, gossip had it that Dean had been responsible for her fall from the balcony. Emily tried to imagine what could have possessed him to push her, or else terrified her so much she’d climbed up there and fallen. He’d been on the point of losing his temper at the practice today, but he was normally such a gentle, caring young man. Emily didn’t consider herself the best judge of character at the moment, but she couldn’t imagine him ever wanting to hurt Zoe. He’d obviously worshipped her. That much had been obvious from watching them together at their wedding. The expression on Dean’s face when he’d turned to see Zoe walking down the aisle had almost reduced Emily to tears. He’d been bursting with pride, his love for his new bride shining bright in his eyes. Their first dance together had been magical. He hadn’t been able to take his eyes off her as he’d led her around the dance floor to ‘The Way You Look Tonight’. It truly had been the stuff of romance.
