The Healing Time

by Lucilla Andrews

  ‘I am thinking it over.’

  He stiffened. ‘You are?’

  ‘Yes,’ I said vaguely, ‘yes. It might work ‒ until our first row when you’ll sling the rent and groceries at me and whatever I sling back won’t hurt you nearly as much as the thought that I married you as a meal ticket for Marcy and me.’

  ‘You’d do that?’

  ‘Joel, now you’re being infantile! Maybe I am too. Be sound economics to marry you, but economics have never been my strong point, which no doubt explains why I have these problems now. But I’m still stuck in the groove. No love, No marriage, for this girl.’ I sighed. ‘I wish I knew what to do.’

  ‘I can tell you!’ he retorted abruptly. ‘For a start, stop working yourself up into a second anxiety-state since there is even less cause this time. You don’t love me, so you can’t marry me. Being a persistent bastard, I’ll ask you again ‒’

  ‘Joel, dear, belt up! Your medical advice is splendid, but superfluous, as I know perfectly well why I’m feeling so emotionally battered. After the shocks you’ve dealt me in this last hour, it would be odd if I wasn’t.’ I stared at him without really seeing him. ‘I can’t remember the name of the man who gave us our psychiatric lectures, but I remember most of what he said. He said after any traumatic experience, total recall,’ I snapped my fingers, ‘and also, total recognition. I know he was right about the first. What’s bugging me now is how about the second?’ I rested my head against his shoulder. ‘You can’t help me out, as you’re a physician not a psychiatrist, and in any event you’re too emotionally involved for a balanced judgement. I remember him saying the bit about never seeking emotional advice from those … so on and so forth. So I’ll have to sort out for myself if I suddenly think I want to marry you because you love me and I believe will be good to and for Marcy, and when we’ve not been fighting, I’ve always liked you so much. Or because I now think I not only love you, but have for some time, even if it’s only dawned on me this last hour.’ His expression almost stopped my heart, but I kept on. ‘If I’m wrong ‒ if I’m just kidding myself since marrying you will solve so much, in the end it won’t solve anything. It’ll badly hurt all three of us.’

  Suddenly, he lifted my feet off the floor. I was lying in his arms and his face was very close to mine. ‘I’m sorry you don’t think I can help you out, darling,’ he muttered urgently. ‘Don’t let it bug you. Just let me kiss you, or I’ll need a psychiatrist.’

  I was still smiling when he kissed me as I had forgotten I could be kissed. Then as he went on kissing me, I discovered I had not forgotten anything as this was a wholly new experience. It was then I kissed him back.

  A little later and still holding me, he tilted his head against the sofa-back and closed his eyes. ‘No!’ His hold tightened. ‘Don’t try and move as I’m not letting you go.’

  ‘I just want to get a better look at you. Thanks.’ I got a hand free and stroked his face. ‘Are you all right? You’re nearly as green as the night you passed out.’

  He blinked, smiling. ‘Darling, if my vaso-motor system wasn’t playing up after the shocks you’ve just dealt me, I’d be a bloody medical curiosity. Let me get my breath. That’s it ‒ or near enough.’ He rested his face against mine. ‘Pip, when I kissed you before ‒ it was nothing like this.’

  ‘I know.’

  ‘What happened to your bones just now? Now!’ He kissed my face, my neck, my closed eyes, and again, my mouth. ‘You haven’t got any bones. You used to have some, but soon as I took you in my arms I felt ’em go. After what that’s done to me, it’s a wonder you haven’t had to pick me off the floor again.’ His expression and his voice were two other things I had never known from him before. ‘Still afraid you may be kidding yourself you love me?’

  ‘No ‒ and yet ‒ could I? Just like that?’

  ‘Perhaps this needs more research ‒’ He kissed me some more. ‘Well?’ he asked breathlessly.

  I said as breathlessly, ‘Apparently, just like that.’ I slid my arms round his neck. ‘Joel, dear Joel, don’t get me wrong, as I’m now sure I love you, but it’s all happened so quickly ‒’ I smiled widely. ‘I have to say it ‒ this is so sudden!’

  ‘Rush ’em off their feet, Kirby! That’s me! Only takes me nine years to get my girl!’ He turned serious. ‘My darling, darling, darling, if you want more time to do your sorting out and to get Marcy accustomed to having me around, you take it. If you want to thrash things out with your cousins, with me ‒ like what I earn ‒ how much longer I’ve got at Martha’s ‒ my next move ‒ whether after we’re first married I should move in here for the agonisingly few nights each month I’ll be able to spend with you so as not to move Marcy too soon from the environment that suits her so well ‒ you do that. I’m holding no gun to your head. So you choose the time and I’ll be there.’

  ‘My darling man, you are being quite wonderful! Thank you so much.’

  ‘My darling girl, you look at me like that’ ‒ his voice shook ‒ ‘and I’ll begin to believe that myself.’ He stood up, drew me to my feet and back in his arms. ‘I do love you very, very much. It’ll work out all right, Pip. It’ll work out so all bloody right!’

  We looked in at Marcy. She was fast asleep and her flush already fading. Dusty was asleep on the mat by her bed. Dusty opened one eye, decided Joel was safe near Marcy, and shut it again.

  I closed Marcy’s door. ‘I think,’ I said, ‘it’s time I made you that tea I offered.’

  ‘What’s the hurry, darling?’ He held out his arms. ‘I’m staying to supper. Remember?’

  Also by Lucilla Andrews

  If you enjoyed The Healing Time, you will also want to read these other stories by Lucilla Andrews.

  The Print Petticoat

  A moving story of heartache and hope in the Maternity Unit of a busy 1950s teaching hospital.

  Joanna Anthony is a dedicated Nursery staff nurse at St Gregory’s Hospital. The nurses and doctors share laughter and tears as they tend to the mothers and babies in their care.

  There is time for romance, too. After five years together, is ambitious Dr Richard Everley finally ready to settle down with Joanna? And what of the two other young doctors who have more than a professional interest in her?

  It takes a serious illness for Joanna to understand where, and with whom, her future really lies.

  Read The Print Petticoat from Amazon UK

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  The Secret Armour

  There’s romance for Nurse Maggie on the wards of a 1950s teaching hospital. But is she in love with the wrong man?

  Nineteen-year-old nurse Maggie Howard is completing her training at St Benedict’s Hospital. Life on the ward is hard and the Sisters are strict, but Maggie and her set mates, Alice and Rose, love their work. That’s not all that Maggie loves, when against all advice she falls for a dashing patient, David Corford.

  Maggie will experience happiness, heartache and misunderstandings. And throughout the emotional ups and downs, young houseman George Hartigan is always there to provide a shoulder to cry on.

  Will Maggie risk her career and future happiness over her love for a handsome patient?

  Read The Secret Armour from Amazon UK

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  Read The Secret Armour from Amazon AUS

  The Quiet Wards

  Young nurse Gillian Snow is blamed when a dangerous drug goes missing during her shift on the ward of a 1950s teaching hospital. But who took it?

  Twenty-one-year-old Nurse Gillian Snow finds her career in jeopardy when a dangerous drug disappears from the drug cupboard under her care. The situation also affects her romance with dashing house-surgeon Peter Kier.

  Moved from her ward to do other duties, Gillian experiences the happiness and heartache that comes from nursing both children and accident victims.

  As she struggles to understand who took the drug,
and why, Gillian finds support and truth from some unexpected quarters.

  Read The Quiet Wards from Amazon UK

  Read The Quiet Wards from Amazon.com

  Read The Quiet Wards from Amazon AUS

  The First Year

  Rose Standing has a lot to learn about hospital life, patients ‒ and romance, during her first year as a probationer nurse at St Martin’s Hospital in 1950s London.

  Twenty-year-old Rose has a reputation for being accident-prone and absent-minded. Does she really have what it takes to make a good nurse?

  The biggest question on Rose’s mind is whether the Senior Surgical Officer, Jake Waring, will even notice her existence. Are her daydreams about a romance between them destined to remain a fantasy?

  Rose discovers that each department has its own heartaches and joys as she gains experience on the men’s surgical, women’s medical, and Casualty wards.

  Meanwhile, handsome student doctor Bill Martin shows a keen interest in Rose. But she has her suspicions about his motives.

  A moving and heart-warming story of a young nurse, and the challenges she faces on the hospital wards and in her personal life.

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  Read The First Year from Amazon AUS

  A Hospital Summer

  In the summer of 1940, Clare Dillon is a V.A.D. in an English military hospital, nursing the wounded as the bombs fall.

  Twenty-year-old Clare must rise to the challenge of nursing in wartime. Whether giving comfort to a dying soldier, or assisting in a birth during an air raid, she has to remain clear-headed and professional.

  Clare is not only dealing with problems at the hospital. She is also worried for the safety of her brothers, who are both in the forces. Then the Dunkirk evacuation changes her world forever.

  With the medical emergencies and bombings, it’s no wonder Clare doesn’t have time to think about the attention she’s getting from young medical officer Joe Slaney. But she surprises herself when news about Joe makes her face up to what she really wants for the future.

  A gripping, bittersweet story about the courage and determination of young V.A.D. nurses in the Second World War.

  Read A Hospital Summer from Amazon UK

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  Read A Hospital Summer from Amazon AUS

  My Friend the Professor

  Young probationer nurse, Frances Dorland, is dealing with the ups and downs of 1960s hospital life when she meets an understanding older man ‒ the Professor.

  Frances’s nursing friends joke about the identity of the Professor, but the truth is that none of them know anything about him, except that he proves to be a loyal and kind friend to Frances.

  As Frances starts to realise she feels more than friendship for the Professor, she is also trying to help the course of true love run smoothly for her best friend Estelle Dexter. And handsome student doctor Bart More is sending mixed signals to both young women.

  It is only when one of the hospital staff becomes dangerously ill that Frances and her friends come to realise home truths that will change their lives forever.

  Read My Friend the Professor from Amazon UK

  Read My Friend the Professor from Amazon.com

  Read My Friend the Professor from Amazon AUS

  Discover all of the available novels by Lucilla Andrews, and be the first to know when the next ebook is released, by going to www.lucillaandrews.com

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  A Nurse’s Life by Jane Grant

  Heart-warming and humorous tales from a 1950s student nurse

  In this warm and witty book, Jane Grant recounts her life as a trainee nurse in a busy 1950s London teaching hospital.

  Jane, and her friends Mary and Phyllis, discover that both happiness and heartache can be found on the wards of St. Bernard’s Hospital. Before long they realise it takes determination and a sense of humour to deal with the colourful characters of hospital life – and that goes for the staff as well as the patients.

  The young nurses gain their medical training under the watchful eyes of strict, but generally fair, sisters and matrons. They meet patients who are facing the biggest challenges of their lives, and share with them moments of bravery and fear. There are times of laughter, but also of tears.

  There is romance too, as Jane and her fellow student nurses enjoy the attentions of the hospital’s handsome young doctors, falling in and out of love for the first time.

  A Nurse’s Life is a moving and amusing account of a bygone era, brought vividly to life. Also available in this series, there is more from Jane and her friends and family in More From a Nurse’s Life, A Sister’s Life and A Country Life.

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  Read A Nurse’s Life now from Amazon Australia

  Doctors and Nurses: 3-in-1 box set by Sheila Burns

  Three medical romances from the 1960s in one box set. Romance and drama in medical settings.

  Doctor Called David ‒ Can Valerie escape her past, or is history destined to repeat itself?

  1966. After nurse Valerie Scott is found innocent of a terrible crime and released from jail, she turns to prison doctor David Graves for support. The offer of a new position as a private nurse to a kind and elderly couple seems the ideal chance to rebuild her life. But are the Goddards and their adopted son Gregory all that they seem? And can a doctor called David protect Valerie from a cruel twist of fate?

  Dr Irresistible M.D. ‒ Sharon wins a beauty competition but can she win a handsome stranger’s heart?

  1962. Sharon’s life takes an unexpected turn when she wins a beauty competition. Then she crashes the prize car of her dreams, and is rescued by a mysterious, good-looking man. He is Glynn Rodwell ‒ Dr Irresistible. The chance of a Mediterranean cruise offers Sharon excitement and opportunity ‒ but if she takes it, will she ever see Dr Irresistible again?

  The Eyes of Doctor Karl ‒ Will Cherrie discover the truth behind the hypnotic eyes of a handsome doctor?

  1962. While sitting in a traffic jam, Cherrie locks eyes with a dark and handsome man. That evening she reads about the strange case of Dr Karl Heineman whose patients have died in mysterious circumstances. Cherrie accompanies a newspaper reporter friend who is investigating the story. When they call on the doctor, she is surprised to find he is the man whose eyes she hasn’t been able to forget. As Cherrie is drawn closer into his world, will she discover the truth, and love, behind the eyes of Dr Karl?

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  The Country Doctor by Jean McConnell

  Captivating tales from a young GP’s case notes

  Young doctor Linda Ford swaps a busy London teaching hospital for a six month post at a small West Country General Practice. She soon discovers that countryside life is far from uneventful.

  John Cooper, the senior doctor, warns Linda not to get emotionally involved in her cases. But Linda can’t help taking a personal interest in her patients, particularly when their problems seem to be more than medical. And as this is the late 1970s, Linda also faces some misgivings about a female doctor. Especially a young and pretty one.

  Linda clashes over medical matters with Dr Peter Cooper, the older doctor’s son. But there is an undeniable attraction too. Where will it lead? And as Linda is keeping Peter’s place until he joins the practice as his father’s partner, what will her future hold?<
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  This slice of rural life uncovers the dramas, family secrets and dilemmas which confront patients young and old. Their stories are in turn intriguing, poignant, and heart-warming.

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  A Doctor’s Life by Dr Robert Clifford

  A heart-warming, nostalgic look at life for a doctor in the 1940s and 1950s, perfect for fans of Call The Midwife and classics such as Dr Finlay’s Casebook and the Richard Gordon Doctor series.

  This charming and amusing story follows young doctor Bob Ramsden from his training at a busy 1940s London teaching hospital to life in general practice as a Somerset GP in the 1950s. It is also the tale of his love for the beautiful, clever Priscilla, the medical colleague he falls for at first sight, despite feeling sure that she is out of his league.

  Once at medical school, he soon discovers that both laughter and tears are to be found on a hospital ward.

  During his medical career, Dr Bob meets patients who can be brave, funny or a challenge. His fellow doctors provide moments of entertainment, as well as support. There are many tales of happiness and heartache in this nostalgic look at a doctor’s life in post-war Britain.

  Bonus Short Story: The Bevin Boy. Bob spends time as a Bevin Boy, working in a Yorkshire coal mine. There he enjoys the camaraderie of his fellow miners, but also experiences great tragedy.