‘Where have you been? I’ve been panicking.’
‘I’m sorry. I went home to write a letter to the agency – I’ve resigned.’
‘I know. Carole said so. What happened? I’ve been trying to get hold of you.’ I’m crying. ‘I thought you were having second thoughts.’
‘I resigned so I’d be free to be with you. I want our relationship to be out in the open, not have to keep it secret.’
‘What will you do for a job?’
‘I’ll find another one. I feel bad letting Carole down, but that’s how it is. Penny, I thought you’d be pleased.’
‘I am. Really, I am.’
‘And then I thought, I have an hour or so – I’ll go and hand my CV in to the care home in Talymouth in case there are any shifts going there. On the way back my car got stuck in a massive puddle and I dropped my mobile in the water when I tried to push it out. I had a go at calling from a phone box, but the landlines are down. I kind of assumed you’d be all right at the cottage.’
‘The water’s coming in – everyone’s been evacuated.’
‘Where’s Sally?’
‘She took an instant dislike to the policeman who was afraid she’d bite him. It’s all right. Maz is going to get her. She’ll talk her round.’
‘Let’s hope they’re both okay. The river Taly has burst its banks. There’s water everywhere.’ He pulls up a chair and sits beside me, holding my hand as we wait for news. ‘I feel I should be out there doing something. I was helping direct traffic on the main road, but the police sent me here, saying it wasn’t safe. They said I could make myself useful here, making tea, but the WI seem to have got everything under control.’
‘How’s your mum?’ I ask.
‘She’s fine. Our home is on a hill.’ He forces a smile. ‘I wonder where Maz has got to with Sally.’
It’s another couple of hours before Sally is reunited with us by one of the local farmers who brings her back in his tractor. She is wet and cold, and wrapped like a Christmas turkey in a foil blanket, but she’s over the moon to see us.
I thank the farmer for bringing her back, but he’s too keen to share his news to really listen.
‘That’s one lucky dog,’ he says, wiping his ruddy face with the towel that one of the WI ladies has given him. ‘I’m Stewart, by the way.’ He shakes mine and Declan’s hands. ‘I was out with Alex, Maz’s other half, searching for her and the dog. If it hadn’t been for Sally, we’d never have found them.’
‘What happened?’ I ask.
‘Maz was driving down from Talyford when her car got swept away. She got out and started to walk along the old railway line, but the water cut her off. It was dark, pouring with rain and blowing a gale, so you could hardly see or hear a thing. I was on the bridge with Alex, calling for her when we heard a dog barking.’
‘I’m so glad you found them,’ I say, relieved, but Stewart hasn’t finished his story yet.
‘It gets worse. It turns out that Maz was in labour. Alex delivered their baby while I swam back to the bridge with the dog. Can you believe it?’
‘Oh my God! I didn’t even know she was pregnant!’
‘It’s been a while since we last saw her,’ Declan points out.
‘Are they okay?’ I say.
‘The last I heard they were on their way to hospital,’ Stewart says. ‘I’d better be on my way – the tractor’s the only vehicle left that can ferry people in and out of town.’
Declan and I watch him go, grabbing a mug of tea and half a packet of biscuits from one of the WI ladies, before striding out of the hall.
‘I hope Maz and her baby will be all right,’ I say. ‘I feel responsible.’
‘Don’t worry. They’re in safe hands,’ Declan says, reassuring me.
Sally wriggles her way between us, ending up with her bottom on Declan’s feet and her nose on my lap. I can feel the weight of Declan’s arm around my shoulder and the hard muscle of his thigh as I rest my hand on his leg. I notice how people are looking at us, the odd couple, but I don’t care. I might be temporarily homeless as well as wheelchair-bound, but so what? I have the people who matter to me the most right beside me.
‘We are going to be all right, aren’t we, Pen?’ Declan asks.
‘That’s an odd question.’ I gaze at him, my heart in my mouth. ‘You aren’t having second thoughts? About us?’
‘Not me. Once I’ve made my mind up about something, that’s it. I just want you to be sure. I mean, I’m not that much of a catch, am I?’
‘What brought this on?’ I say, surprised.
‘Well, I don’t think I’m ever going to rock the world, or make a fortune. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I don’t get what you see in me.’
‘I’ll tell you what I see. I see you, Declan, my best friend, lover and the most gorgeous, kind and caring man in the world.’ My voice catches in my throat as I continue, ‘I see the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, if he’ll have me.’
‘Of course I’ll have you. I love you.’ He leans closer and plants a row of soft kisses from my cheek to the side of my mouth. ‘You mean everything to me.’
Penny’s experience in getting over a life-changing event is a huge help to vet nurse Shannon as she faces her own crisis in Cathy’s new book:
Otter House has a new vet…
Motorbike-riding, leather-clad Ross looks like a bad boy, but underneath the leathers, he’s a good-looking charmer and he soon worms his way into the hearts of everyone in Talyton St George.
Even vet nurse Shannon warms to him. So when she needs a place to live, it makes sense to move in with Ross. Just as a friend, of course.
As they grapple with escaped snakes and feral cats, their friendship deepens, until they can’t deny their feelings for each other any longer.
But when a terrible accident leaves Shannon’s life in tatters, it changes their relationship forever.
Because how will she ever know whether Ross is staying with her out of love or pity?
In Must be Love, Alex delivers Maz’s baby on a tiny patch of ground in the middle of a flood. You can read all about it in Cathy’s second Talyton St George novel:
It must be love. What other reason could there be for city vet Maz’s contentment with her new country life? The vet’s practice where she’s a partner with her best friend Emma is thriving, and so is her relationship with the gorgeous Alex Fox-Gifford.
But then circumstances force Emma to take a break from the practice, and Maz’s life suddenly spirals out of control. What with working all hours trying to keep things going, fending off insults from Alex’s parents, keeping one eye on the lusty locum – who’s causing havoc amongst the village girls – and dealing with Emma’s precarious mental state, it won’t take much to upset the apple cart. So when she gets some unwelcome news, only time will tell whether Maz and Alex’s love can withstand the fall-out.
TALYTON ST GEORGE:
The Story so far…
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Version 1.0
Epub ISBN 9781473535381
Published by Cornerstone Digital, 2015
24681097531
Copyright © Cathy Woodman, 2015
Cathy Woodman has asserted her right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988 to be identified as the author of this work.
This book is a work of fiction. Names and characters are the product of the author’s imagination and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
First published in Great Brita
in in 2015 by Cornerstone Digital
The Penguin Random House Group Limited
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Give a Little Love Page 4
