“Not for another few days. The nurse will come and deal with it and make sure everything is healing nicely. After that, it’sjust a matter of time and physiotherapy and getting my strength back.”
Gaby eyed Jill’s bulky, bandaged knee and tried not to wince at the thought of the gruesome operation. “It sounds like there’s a long road to recovery ahead.”
“According to the surgeon, I should be moving around more easily within three or four weeks, and able to abandon the crutches by six weeks. It will take many months of healing for the joint and soft tissues to recover fully, but for now I’m focusing on one day at a time.”
“That sounds like a good plan. One day at a time is more than enough for now. I’m just sorry you had to go through this in the first place.”
Jill waved this off. “It is what it is. I’ve been blessed with excellent health so far in my life. I’d rather endure weeks of discomfort if it means no longer putting up with a painful knee that was affecting my quality life. It’s been too long since I was able to enjoy my regular hikes and country walks without feeling ghastly. If this surgery has been successful, which I have no reason to think it hasn’t been, then I can get back to doing the things I love and being fully mobile again without huffing and grunting all the time like some silly old woman.”
“You’re not a silly old woman, Aunt Jill. You’re too magnificent for that.”
Jill smiled. “You’re a tonic for my spirits, Gaby. I’m so glad you’re here. But I’m also worried that you’ve disrupted your life to rush to my aid.”
“I would’ve disrupted my life and ditched my last job to get here sooner, but you told me you’d disown me if I did.”
“And I meant it, too,” Jill replied with a firm nod. “While I was in hospital, I was being well looked after and there would’ve been nothing for you to do. I only got home yesterday evening and less than twenty-four hours later, here you are. If waitinga few days meant you were able to honour your commitments to your last employer, then that makes me feel much better.” Jill frowned and looked thoughtful. “Forgive me, but remind me where your last job was. These painkillers have turned my brain to mush.”
“I was in Madrid working as a corporate functions manager in one of the big chain hotels there.”
Gaby had landed the three-month contract to cover an unexpected staff absence due to illness. Many of her jobs were like that, temporary contracts to plug staffing gaps and her ability to be flexible allowed her to negotiate excellent pay packages. Her hospitality management skillset stretched from corporate functions and conferences to weddings and general tourism, and she loved all aspects of the work she took on.
While studying hospitality at university, she’d also mastered Spanish and Italian, and her language abilities had opened up many exciting career opportunities over the years. Spain and Italy were amongst her favourite countries to work and she spent several months each year there. Over the past five years, she’d also worked contracts in hotels and resorts in Australia, New Zealand, the United States and Canada, as well as Sweden, Croatia and Greece. She was grateful for the career she loved and which gave her the opportunity to travel the world.
The downside was that time with friends and family wasn’t easy to find and she was rarely back in England for more than a few weeks at a time. When she did return, she prioritised catching up with those she loved. Aunt Jill was always eager to travel to London when Gaby was passing through in order to spend time together, and she appreciated her generosity in travelling from Hamblehurst, which saved Gaby the time commitment required for the journey west to the Hampshire South Downs.
Gaby’s parents had divorced many years ago—it was their imploding marriage and the dreadful arguments that accompanied it that had caused Gaby to escape to her Aunt Jill’s house in Hamblehurst that summer when she was seventeen—and the traumatic breakdown had left a scar on her relationship with her parents that had never truly healed. She loved them, naturally, but she wasn’t especially close to either her mother or her father, and the time she spent with them during her visits back to England was done out of duty rather than desire.
With no siblings and a strained relationship with her parents, Gaby treasured the comfortable affection she shared with her Aunt Jill, who had no children of her own. Jill was her mother’s cousin, so not a full aunt in the strict sense of the word, but she was the most important member of Gaby’s family when it came to matters of the heart.
“And did you enjoy your time in Madrid?” Jill asked, her genuine interest obvious. “Tell me about the work you were doing there. Was it fulfilling?”
“Madrid was wonderful. I’ve worked there before and it was great to go back. It’s an exciting city with fantastic museums. I spent a lot of my free time, what I had of it, prowling around the art museums and galleries. The Prado is astonishing, Aunt Jill. So much amazing art to see there. And the hotel I was working at was huge, with conferences and corporate events happening almost every day. I was in charge of managing all the large events, organising the staff and working the timetables and catering and room bookings to make sure we fulfilled the contract requirements. The time flew by.”
Jill smiled fondly. “It sounds wonderful. I’m proud of you and how hard you work.”
“It doesn’t feel like hard work when you enjoy it.”
“Never a truer word spoken. And tell me about…” Jill suddenly frowned, a look of dismay clouding her expression.“Listen to me blabbering on and launching into chitchat when you’ve only just walked through the door and must be exhausted from your travels.”
“I’m fine, Aunt Jill.”
“But you flew all the way from Madrid and then had to catch the train here from London. Travelling is tiring, even when someone does as much of it as you do. You haven’t even had time to take off your coat and I haven’t even offered you a cup of tea.”
Jill reached for her crutches but Gaby rose to her feet first.
“I won’t have you fussing over me, Aunt Jill,” Gaby said, shrugging out of her coat and tossing it over the back of the sofa. “And while I’m here,I’llbe the one to offer you tea and make it for you, too. Don’t you dare get up.”
“It’s important for me to move around.”
“I don’t doubt it. But you only just sat back down after opening the door to let me in, so you can stay there for the time being while I make our tea. Deal?”
Jill let out a resigned laugh. “Deal. My goodness, Gaby, it issogood to see you.”
“It’s good to see you too, Aunt Jill. I’ve missed you.”
Because their greeting at the door had been half-hashed as she hadn’t wanted to jolt her aunt’s healing knee, Gaby now leaned over the armchair and planted a kiss on Jill’s cheek and squeezed her hand.
“I’ve missed you too,” Jill said. “I love seeing you in London, and I love my occasional jaunts to the continent for a flying visit at whatever amazing hotel you happen to be working at when we can both spare the time. But knowing you’ll be here for a few weeks is a gift, even if I did have to undergo this horrible surgery in order to enjoy it.”
