Chapter Sixteen
Saturday, 17 th June
S tacy crept out of the flat and turned the key quietly in the lock. Emily was still asleep, but working in a shop was like working in a hospital as far as weekends off were concerned. Sometimes you had them, sometimes you didn’t, and today she didn’t. It didn’t matter, though she could have done without it today. Pen ’n’ Paper closed at four on Saturdays, so she’d just have time to rush home for a shower before David arrived at five. Alan was due at half five. It would be interesting to see what the two guys made of each other.
She hurried on through the park and along the main road. Going out for a meal all together would be good in more ways than one – she’d be able to see Alan and Emmy together again, and she could maybe help things on a bit for Alan. Why Em wasn’t grabbing him with both hands was a mystery; he was such a great guy and anyone could see he was nuts about her. Taking her out twice on a short trip over was as good as yelling ‘I love you’ from every rooftop in town, wasn’t it? Stacy was crossing every digit she had that this last stage of Emmy’s recovery would let her trust men again. Scumbag Sam had done a huge amount of damage, but it was definitely time for Emmy to put him right behind her. Kick him right behind her, even. According to the grapevine, he’d moved to Derby, so the chances of confronting him on a night out were miniscule to absent. Go, Emily.
Her positive mood faltered when she went into the shop and heard thuds coming from the back room. ‘Hello?’
Janie Townsend stuck her head out. ‘Only me. I’m counting pencils.’
Stacy stood still. Mum was more of a cuppa and a book in bed person on Saturday mornings, what was she doing down here before eight o’clock? And ‘counting pencils’ was family jargon for stocktaking. They usually did that right at the end of June, not halfway through. Heck – that was alarm bells she was hearing.
‘Why so early?’
Janie emerged with a frown on her face and a mug of tea in her hand. ‘I barely slept a wink, worrying about this place. I’m trying to get an idea of where we stand, so that I can be ready with some ideas immediately after the official stocktake. It’s not good, Stacy. I knew we weren’t shifting much, but I thought we might have sold more than we have.’
Stacy went to put the kettle on. ‘That sounds ominous. What can we do?’
Janie’s shoulders sagged. ‘That’s where we need ideas. The new shopping centre has been bad news for us, I’m afraid, and so has the gift shop further along the main road. Get your thinking cap on, Stacy, love. It’s about as bad as it can get.’
Stacy poured water over her teabag. ‘You’ll find a way, Mum. Worst case, you’ll limp along for another five years until Dad retires, and then you can sell up if you need to.’ Oh, dear, that hadn’t sounded as encouraging as she’d meant it to, but – what else could they do?
Janie pursed her lips. ‘When you go back to nursing after the summer, we’ll reduce our opening hours so that your dad and I can run it by ourselves.’
Stacy was silent. That was it. Definite confirmation that a permanent job in the shop wasn’t going to happen, so she’d better start applying for nursing jobs. As if she had spoken aloud, Janie swung round, her face thoughtful.
‘Why don’t you see if the Centre for the Elderly in Barnsend has any vacant posts? Mary Cameron’s mother is there and it seems a lovely place. They have trained staff as well as helpers and carers. You might enjoy that more than all the drama of a big hospital.’
Stacy tapped her fingers on the counter. It was certainly an idea; she’d be well away from the cut and thrust and agony at Barnsend, working with people in one of the homes, keeping her patients happy, listening to their stories. ‘I’ll do that. Thanks, Mum. I’d only be ten minutes by train away from Manchester, too.’
‘Yes. Are you seeing David today?’
‘He’s coming here tonight. We’re going out for a meal with Emily and Alan.’
Stacy flipped the ‘open/closed’ sign on the door, and unlocked the till. All they needed was a stream of wealthy customers. And oh, glory, if she’d needed confirmation that family finances were as bad as they could get, she had it. Mum hadn’t mentioned the wedding date for days.
***
Stacy gazed appreciatively round The Golden Dragon, Elton Abbey’s newest eatery and only Chinese restaurant. At long last they were having a lovely romantic meal out, even if there were four of them. Housed in what had once been a dry cleaner’s, the restaurant was opposite Pen ’n’ Paper on the main road, and several people who’d come into the shop that week had raved about the extensive menu and exotic oriental ambience. The décor was red and gold, with bamboo screens between the tables, and jangly music playing softly in the background.
‘This looks brilliant, doesn’t it?’ Stacy beamed across the table to Emily and Alan opposite.
David accepted a menu from the waiter. ‘If the food’s as good as the décor we’re in for a treat.’
‘Why don’t we order one of the set meals for four?’ said Stacy. ‘That way, we can try out lots of different dishes. Sue from the bank had a set meal with her family last week, and she said it was fabulous.’
The others agreed, and Stacy leaned back as Alan gave the order. It was lovely to be out with her friends, and amazing to think that David was staying until tomorrow night. It was ages since they’d been able to spend a weekend together, but they’d have all day tomorrow to make their plans. The forecast was good, too, so she was planning a leisurely Sunday breakfast, then a walk through the woods to the old abbey and a picnic lunch there, and, of course, the much-postponed talk about the wedding. They wouldn’t have interruptions on a picnic at the abbey.
Alan inched his chair a fraction closer to Emily, and Stacy couldn’t help noticing how often he glanced across at her, a little smile tugging at his lips. This was a man in love… She thought back nostalgically to the days when she and David had first been in love. They’d been teenagers, quite a different situation and possibly even more of a heady feeling. Who’d have guessed they’d still be together all these years later ?
‘What kind of food do they serve in Switzerland, then?’ said David, gazing across at Alan.
‘Cheese, of course, and they have a lot of meat dishes – veal is popular, and…’ Alan began, glancing at Emily yet again as he spoke.
Stacy’s happy feeling dimmed. She’d already told David all about the food they’d had on their holiday. Had he forgotten? You wouldn’t think it was such a fascinating subject that he’d feel the need to talk about it twice. Was he trying to be polite? He was nodding and asking questions about Alan’s work in the hotel now. Stacy sighed inwardly. What she and David needed was a fortnight away to concentrate on each other, and that was exactly what they weren’t going to get.
‘…but I think they might be putting the hotel up for sale,’ said Alan, and Stacy jerked back to the conversation.
‘Oh no – I’m sure Rico was hoping his dad would keep it on, somehow,’ she said, trying to remember what he’d said.
Alan grimaced. ‘That’s what I thought too, but they had some business people come to see the place last week. And Rico was looking totally fed up when I left.’
David shifted in his chair. ‘Here are our starters.’
To Stacy’s relief, the conversation picked up after that. Emily gave them a funny account of her last clinic appointment, when the doctor had dropped his pen then banged heads with the nurse when they both dived to pick it up. David carried on with a few more similar stories, and Stacy could barely use her chopsticks, she was laughing so much. This was fun, more fun than she’d had with David for ages. See? They were still laughing together.
‘That was yummy,’ said Emily, scraping up the last smear of honey-drizzled banana fritters and licking her spoon .
Alan gave her hand on the table a quick pat. ‘How about going on to that nightclub you told me about for a drink or a coffee or whatever? We don’t need to dance.’
Stacy held her breath. Pre-accident, Emily had loved clubbing.
Emily looked thoughtful. ‘O – kay. But I don’t promise not to want to leave early if it gets too much for me and my wonky knee. Are you two coming along?’
Her expression was saying ‘please come too’, and Stacy opened her mouth to say ‘why not?’ when David got in first.
‘Mind if we just go back to yours, Stace? I’ve been rushing around all day.’ He raised his eyebrows at her.
‘Sure.’ Anticipation buzzed through Stacy. Wow – bad luck for Emily, and no dancing for her, but how fab was this? David wanted to have the flat to themselves for a while, and that was what she wanted too – quality time alone together at long last. When they weren’t with David’s friends in Manchester, they were with Emily, or Mum and Dad or – and now she thought about it, when was the last time she and David had spent a whole evening alone together? Weeks, if not months. No wonder they hadn’t been communicating, but they’d put that right before the night was over. And Emily going clubbing was a huge step forward too. Neither of them needed a flatmate tagging along tonight.
They waved the other two off in the direction of their nightclub and set off home through almost-deserted streets. Stacy took David’s hand.
‘It’s good to have some me and you time at last. It’s been in short supply recently, what with your exams and me working in the shop.’
‘Not to mention your holiday. Have you started applying for nursing jobs yet?’ David strode on along the pavement.
‘It’s on my to-do list for next week. I’m still thinking about where I’d like to work.’
‘That’s a no-brainer. You need general experience in a big hospital. It was mad enough taking a break so soon after qualifying. You want to get a job in town, don’t you?’
Stacy unlocked the flat door. ‘That would be ideal.’ It would, too. The small fact of her not wanting to work in a big city hospital didn’t seem to have stuck around in David’s brain, but they would put that right soon. She hung up her jacket and smiled at him. There were plenty of jobs going in Manchester. Time enough to talk to David about a change of direction when she knew where she was applying.
‘How about a liqueur cocktail?’ she suggested, turning into the kitchen. ‘Em and I splashed out on a bottle of Tia Maria to remind us of our holiday, and Alan gave us some brilliant recipes.’
David, however, went straight into the bedroom. ‘Good idea. I’ll shower while you’re making it, shall I?’
Oh, this was going to be good. Stacy put the cocktail together carefully, mixing the Tia Maria with vodka and a shot of espresso then straining it from the shaker into chilled glasses. There! A lovely exotic drink to start out what would hopefully be a lovely exotic evening. She carried the tray with the glasses and some little cocktail biscuits through to the bedroom, and–
Hell on earth, this was as bad as his visit immediately after her return from Switzerland. David hadn’t even made it to the shower. He was sprawled across the bed, still fully dressed, fast asleep and snoring. Almost crying, Stacy put her tray down and gave his shoulder a shake.
‘David!’
‘Wha–? Oh. Did I fall asleep?’ He rolled upright and rubbed his face.
Stacy passed him a glass. ‘Let’s drink to us, David – to happy times together.’
They clinked and sipped, then Stacy took his glass and put it beside hers on the bedside table. She leaned in and started to unbutton his shirt, nuzzling his neck and sliding the shirt off his shoulders. He pulled her top over her head, and Stacy leaned back to slip out of it before pushing him down on the bed. This was better, oh yes, this was what they needed, wasn’t it?
His body jerked, then he grasped her wrist. ‘Stace. I – I’m sorry. I’m bushed, that’s all. How about we just go to sleep now, and I’ll make it up to you in the morning, huh?’
Half a minute later he was snoring again.
Stacy lay still, her heartbeat thundering in her ears, and it was nothing to do with sleeping with David. She gave him a little shake, but he was dead to the world.
She grabbed her bathrobe and took the drinks back to the living room, where she sat sipping and sniffing, tears hot in her eyes. David had never rejected her advances before – he loved it when she took charge. And he hadn’t seemed tired in the restaurant, laughing and joking with Alan and Emily. What did it say about their relationship that every time they were alone together, her fiancé fell asleep with barely as much as a cuddle? Okay, he’d had a lot of night work recently, but…
A shiver ran right through her. Night work? Actually, what did that even mean? Medical students might have to observe at night as part of their training, but they weren’t let loose alone yet, were they? Had David been exaggerating his workload and his tiredness to – to get out of seeing her?
Choking fear chilled its way through Stacy. The last time they’ d slept together was… weeks ago. They used to be so close, even after David started his gruelling schedule as a final year medical student, even when she’d been on night duty. When had that changed? Thinking back, she began to feel sick. The change had come when she’d moved here to Elton Abbey, hadn’t it, and she’d been so keen to get away from the blood and guts part of acute nursing she hadn’t noticed what was happening. She hadn’t wanted to lose the closeness with David, but neither of them had done anything to keep it going. And why hadn’t he said anything? Didn’t he care? Because she did. Her head full of unanswerable questions, Stacy drank her cocktail. It tasted like dishwater.