Chapter 24
Cath woke feeling S-H-I-T. She had the aches, a runny nose, sore throat. She knew she needed paracetamol, but hadn’t the energy to get out of bed and get herself down the stairs to take it. The glass of water she’d had by the bed was almost empty, too. Drat.
It was the morning after the planning session, and this was no hangover.
She’d actually been quite measured last night, what with Will and the to-do list. There was enough on her plate without feeling jaded.
Argh, this was the last thing she needed.
She had sooo much to do. With only a little over two weeks to go until the Tinsel and Turkey bash.
Damn it, what if this was flu or something?
How could she even cook or host a lunch for a group of fragile OAPs?
She’d bloody well end up giving them a dose of flu as well as a Christmas dinner. No, no, no, no, no …
Even her eyeballs ached. She lay back on the sweaty pillows, with a sense of impending doom. She needed to rally, to get up, get on. But she was just so tired, so very tired. If she just closed her eyes for a bit …
The ‘bit’ was actually well over two and a half hours, and when she came to it was almost eleven a.m. She was meant to be finalising the event shopping list, she thought, and had two tutorials to prepare for this evening, but instead all she managed to do was to stagger to the bathroom, then creep downstairs, clinging on to the handrail like a ninety-year-old, find the paracetamol packet, fill her water glass, guzzle down two of the tablets and head back upstairs.
She lay back on her pillows in relief, and thought to send a short message on the supper club WhatsApp.
Her head was so damn fuzzy, she wasn’t sure which jobs she had promised to do next from the to-do, or if she was indeed meant to be helping someone, somewhere with something.
Also, she mused, if it was a touch of flu, and she was missing for too long, someone might possibly pop to check if she was all right.
Then, she gave in to the heady fuzz and shut her eyes again. There was no way her body could do anything else.
With her online tuition, the stress of the hall renovations, the impending festive event, her ongoing concerns about her relationship or not with Will, and a host of winter bugs doing the rounds, she’d been well and truly floored.
The sky, from the square of her window, was a watery grey-gold when she woke again, having missed lunchtime and the whole afternoon.
She couldn’t function properly, she knew, so managed to reach for her phone on the bedside table and message the two tutorials she had booked in for this evening.
She hated to let her students down, but she’d reschedule as soon as she could.
She also saw there was a message from Nikki:
Get well soon and shout if you need anything x
And from Andreas and Dan:
Let us know if we can help at all. Take care, honey xx
Feeling marginally better after that big dose of sleep, she put on her dressing gown and wandered downstairs to make a cup of tea, and perhaps try a small bowl of porridge, which was all she felt she might stomach.
On her way to the kitchen something caught her eye on the doormat. She bent down to collect the post.
There was an envelope which might well be a Christmas card, but also, a pack of paracetamol, a box of Lemsip, four sachets of hot chocolate, and a message written on the back of a business card.
The card was for The Cycle Man repair shop, and the note read, Hope you’re okay?
Couldn’t get an answer, so posted these. Get well soon. Call me. W x
Aw, whatever was going on with Will, he did care.
Cath’s snotty snuffle might well have been the head cold hitting, or something more emotional.
All her energy was used up getting to and from the kitchen. It was time to sleep it off again. To get back to the haven of her bed, now with a soothing mug of Lemsip by her side. And though she felt damned rotten physically, knowing Will was thinking of her gave her soul a much-needed boost.
*
Cath sent a thank-you message to Will the next morning. And after giving herself a quiet day, later that evening, feeling a bit wiped but generally much better, chanced a further text to him: Do you fancy a short walk tomorrow? I think some fresh air might do me good.
What she really wanted to do was to try and restore some of their closeness. This relationship was taking more than a little working on. Trying to seam together two separate lives after gutsful of heartbreak was never going to be easy, after all.
Yeah, okay, if you’re sure. x came back soon afterwards.
Cath was more than sure. They needed to find a way back, and this might be a good place to start.
They’d agreed to take a stroll down by the river, the next day, squeezing in a quick half-hour after Will finished work and before it got dark.
*
Cath felt a little dizzy as he arrived at her door. She blamed it on the virus that was no doubt still in her system. But her emotions were all whizzed up like they’d been put in a blender.
‘Hey, how are you?’ He was there all handsome in his jeans, boots and a thick red-and-black-checked winter jacket. Even the bobble hat he had on looked sexy on him. ‘You sure this isn’t too soon? Should I be tucking you back up in bed?’
I wish … ran through her mind. ‘Hmm,’ was all she actually responded, but she couldn’t help the quirk of her eyebrow, which resulted in a cheeky smile from Will, as he realised what he’d just said.
Hah, she wasn’t even sure she could cope with the physicality of sex, right now.
This walk might prove testing enough. There was still the echo of a viral ache throughout her system.
‘Just a short walk will be fine,’ she followed up.
Wrapped up warmly in her black winter woollen coat, pink-and-grey tartan scarf and pale-grey knitted woollen hat, with her walking boots on, they set off.
‘Sounds like you’ve been floored by this bug.’
‘Yeah, it was a nasty one. Like a forty-eight-hour thing. Thanks so much for your thoughtful gifts, too. They were great. The Lemsip was a godsend. Honestly, the first day, I couldn’t keep awake, and I was aching all over.’
‘Well, let’s take it easy, hey. We needn’t go far. You need to make sure you’ve got your strength back.’
‘Yeah, and once I do, the Big Bash to-do list is waiting for me.’
‘Remember we’re all here to help, too.’ Will gave her a serious look with his dark toffee eyes.
They walked slowly, taking it steady, which was just what Cath needed.
Wisps of smoke were coming from the cottage chimneys they passed.
Lights on, and as daylight began to dim, the coloured strands of festive lights and Christmas tree lights were twinkling at some windows.
A sparkly reminder that time was racing on.
Less than two weeks to go … The monkey reminder system was back on her shoulder.
But there’d be no racing today, just a steady stroll.
As they reached the grass pastures down beside the river the ground was a little uneven, Will took her hand, and she leaned in to him.
She was a bit weaker than she’d realised, the virus taking it out of her; but feeling him close like this was all she’d been wanting to do for the past few weeks, if she were honest. They watched a pair of mallard ducks paddling through the chilly swirling winter waters.
The willows and silver birch trees on the banks were now bare.
The hoot of a cock pheasant echoed through the valley.
‘How are the girls?’ Cath asked, hitting his soft spot unwittingly.
‘Ah, fine. Sophie’s coming home again this weekend, actually.’
‘Ah, that’ll be nice.’
Will puffed out a small sigh. ‘Things have been a bit tricky, to be honest. And I’m sorry if I was a bit off-hand there in the hall, on the painting day.
It’s just … as we’d been getting on so well before that, me and you, I got the courage up to mention to Sophie that I’d been seeing someone.
I made it clear that it was early days, but that we were becoming good friends.
I tried to explain that it wasn’t about replacing her mum.
It didn’t go down too well – put it that way. ’
‘Oh, crikey, Will. That must have been a tricky conversation.’
‘God, Cath, sometimes I feel like I’m navigating a minefield.
I don’t want to hurt them, the girls. They’ve been through enough already but …
ah, I don’t know. I thought maybe it was time to let them know …
about you. But it’s just upset them. Of course, Sophie’s now told Maddie.
I had wanted to tell her myself, but it got out before I ever had the chance.
So, she’s being off with me now too. And I can see you getting caught up in it all, and that’s not right, either.
Sorry, I shouldn’t be worrying you with all this stuff. ’
‘Yes, you should. It’s fine. I want to help, Will.
Even if it’s just a matter of letting you air some things, that’s okay.
’ She was pleased he was finally opening up, that he felt comfortable and safe enough to tell her the truth about his daughters.
It meant that they were slowly but surely building that trust together.
‘And, hey, it was bound to be a bit of a shock for Sophie.’
‘I guess. I messaged once she’d got back to uni, saying I understood that she needed time and that I’m always there for her. Then, last night she finally called saying she wanted to come home again this weekend.’
‘Well, that’s good. She’s probably been thinking things over. Hearing that must have been difficult for her.’
‘Yeah, it must have been. Anyway, we’ll see what this weekend holds …’