Ten
Lara and Tom sat in silence for a while, but not for long. The nurse brought Tom a cup of tea and also one for Lara.
‘I thought you might like one too,’ he said. ‘The doctor sends his apologies, but there’s been a slight delay. One of the machines has broken down and he won’t have your test results until a little later. But don’t you worry. He says he’ll come and see you before the end of his shift, and I’ll make sure he does.’ The nurse winked at Tom. ‘Enjoy your tea. Don’t forget, if you need anything, I’m just a push of that button away.’ He pointed to the call button.
‘Thanks,’ Tom said, and he took a gulp of his tea. ‘Ah. That’s nice.’
Lara couldn’t argue with that. It was a lovely cup of tea. She hadn’t realised how thirsty she was, and clearly so was Tom. He emptied his cup in just a few long gulps. Lara took the empty cup from him and placed it on the overbed table.
‘You’re an angel,’ he said.
She looked at him and smiled, but as his eyes were closed again, she wasn’t sure if he was talking to her, or having an hallucination. He had taken a bang to his head, after all.
‘I’m no angel,’ she said, and was pleased to see him grin. He had been talking to her. That was a relief.
Lara still could not believe that Tom could possibly own a painting by her mum. Especially one that must’ve been painted while Lara and her parents were on holiday in Bluewater Bay.
And how did Tom acquire it? He said he had purchased it for his wife, Bonnie, but where had he purchased it from? Had her mum left the painting for sale in a local gallery or shop?
Tom’s eyes were still closed and he might be having his own memories of his beloved wife. Lara wanted to ask him questions, but she didn’t want to disturb him, especially as he needed his rest after his fall.
Instead she sat pondering. She could get out her phone and search for a list of all her mum’s paintings, but she couldn’t do that in the A and E department of Poppleton District General. She would have to wait until she got home.
Home.
Was she already thinking of the cottage as home?
It had certainly felt like home when she had walked over the threshold yesterday.
Would she seriously consider moving from Woking to Bluewater Bay? She could imagine Jenny would have something to say about that. But Jenny would want whatever she thought was best for Lara, and if Lara believed she could be happy living in Bluewater Bay, Jenny would probably help her move.
No. She was being ridiculous. Fanciful. Totally unrealistic. She loved her flat and her life in Woking. She loved her job with Pliny Software. Although as she worked from home, she wouldn’t have to leave her job if she did decide to move to the cottage in Old Oak Lane. It would mean a longer trip on the days she wentto the office, but the drive down here hadn’t been too bad, and there must be a train service that would get her from somewhere close to Bluewater Bay to Woking.
She was getting ahead of herself. She had only been in the cottage for a day and a half. Far too short a period of time to make such a life changing decision. She could rethink the situation when she had lived there for a month.
Or she could stay in the cottage for longer. And Jenny could come and stay with her in the cottage for a weekend or two. Perhaps even for a week. It wasn’t as if Lara had to rush back to her flat in Woking. There was nothing that depended on her being there. No pets, no plants, no … Oh my God! Pets! She had completely forgotten about her cat.
She looked at her watch. It was almost five-thirty. Ula and Greg would be leaving soon. Thanks to Greg, who had three cats, she now knew Nicodemus was a boy. She also knew that as much as he liked chicken, cat food was something he needed as an important part of his diet. She had fed him at lunchtime, with chicken once again, but she had nothing for him for tonight or for the morning.
‘Tom,’ she whispered.
Tom opened his eyes and smiled at her.
‘I’m really sorry, but I need to go. I’m sure your grandson will be here very soon. He’s probably been held up by the weather and the traffic.’ She sincerely hoped those were the reasons that he had not arrived yet. She had spoken to him around three or three-thirty and he had said that the journey would only take him an hour or so. That meant he was already an hour later than expected. But it had taken her longer than expected to get here and she only had to drive ten miles. ‘Will you be okay.’
‘I’ll be fine. You go. Don’t worry about me.’
‘Thanks. You won’t believe this, but I’ve been adopted by a cat. Unless he’s yours?’
‘No. I don’t have a cat. You’ve been adopted, you say?’
‘It would seem so. He was in my kitchen last night, although I have no idea how he got in. I opened the back door to let him out but he had no intention of going anywhere. Other than to sleep on my bed, that is.’
Tom chuckled. ‘Cheeky blighter.’
‘He certainly is. I’ve called him Nicodemus. He’s black and rather handsome, and I think he knows it. The thing is, I need to go and buy him some cat food. And other bits and bobs. Like a cat bed, for example. Not that I expect him to use it. But I can live in hope.’
‘There’s a pet shop in the village. It’s not particularly big, but it should have everything you need.’
