Outback Surgeon

by Leah Martyn

  About eleven o'clock, Nick called through on her intercom. 'I thought you'd like to know, Jim Ferguson just called,' he said crisply. 'Stuart's surgery went well. He's in Recovery.'

  Abbey felt relief rush through her. 'That's wonderful news. Thanks,' she added after a second, but he'd already hung up.

  Somehow they managed to avoid each other for most of the day. Only once did she encounter Nick, when she'd gone out to Reception and he'd been seeing off a young couple with their toddler. A cute little boy with a thatch of dark curls.

  The young mother was smiling disarmingly at Nick. 'Keiran was so good today. You must have a way with kids, Dr Tonnelli. Could we book to see you for his next shot?'

  His mouth a tight line, Nick shook his head. 'Dr Jones will look after you, Mrs O'Connor.' He looked up and stared mockingly at Abbey. 'I won't be here.'

  Abbey turned on her heel and almost ran back to her room, the drum-heavy thud in her chest almost suffocating her. Damn! Sick with hurt and disillusionment, she stabbed the computer off and shaded her eyes.

  All day long, she'd allowed herself to nurture the faintest hope that somehow she and Nick could put things back together. But he couldn't have made it more clear that it was over. Over. She blinked through a blur of tears. Oh, Nick, what have I done?

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  How on earth were they to go on from here? How?

  Abbey stretched her time in the surgery for as long as she could and then went across to the hospital. Pinning a bright smile on her face, she went through the motions, doing a ward round slowly and methodically.

  Anything to delay going home. Except how could she think of it as home any longer? She and Nick would be stepping round each other like strangers. She bit her lips tightly together, smothering a bitter smile. The only time she'd fallen headlong in love in the whole of her life—and it had ended in disaster and heartbreak.

  There was no feeling of warmth in the house when she opened the back door. No comforting aroma of a meal being lovingly prepared. But the lights were on so Nick must be home. Perhaps there was still hope...

  Her breath caught and shuddered in her throat and her lips parted softly as she called, 'Nick?'

  'In here.'

  Abbey took a breath so deep it hurt, then on rubbery legs she made her way through the archway into the lounge. Nick was there, standing by the fireplace, his bags packed and set neatly against the wall beside him. Staring at him, the tight set to his mouth and jaw,- Abbey felt her heart was splitting in two. She closed her eyes briefly and then forced herself to look at him. 'You're leaving.'

  'There's no point in me staying.'

  'But you came for a month!'

  He made a rough sound of scorn. 'Just gives weight to your perception of my unreliability, then, doesn't it?'

  'That wasn't what I meant to say!' She defended herself raggedly. 'It just came out that way...'

  'The hell it did.' Pretending not to see the raw look of hurt on her face, he hardened his gaze even further. 'I wish I could say it's been worth it, Abbey, but we both know I'd be lying. I was an arrogant fool to have come here at all.' Their gazes locked for a long time, before he stooped and picked up his bags. 'I won't ask you to think of me sometimes,' he stated bitterly, and then he was gone, leaving her alone.

  Except she wasn't alone.

  The house was full of reminders of him. From the stoneware he'd bought to make his special lasagne to the bottles of wine he'd chosen so carefully and which they'd never opened.

  Dull depression settled on her like a cloud, but resolutely she went through to her bedroom, stripping off the sheets and pillowcases and stuffing them into the washing machine.

  And she'd be darned if she'd use this particular bed linen ever again—not with the scent of him still clinging to it and swathing her in a heartbreaking mist of remembering...

  'Nick not coming in today?' It was the next morning and Meri had just put a mug of coffee on Abbey's desk.

  'No...' Abbey sighed, daunted by the need for explanation. 'Actually, Meri...he's left Wingara.'

  The two women stared awkwardly at each other, and then Meri took the initiative. 'I'm really sorry to hear that, Abbey. But I've been around the traps long enough to know neither of you would have made the decision lightly.'

  Except the decision for him to leave hadn't been hers at all. 'Thanks, Meri.' Abbey's voice shook fractionally. 'We'll just have to soldier on, won't we?'

  Meri looked wry. 'Women have been doing it since time began.'

  The next month brought no relief to Abbey's pain and deep sense of loss. On the lighter side, the Frasers were home and quietly optimistic that Stuart would have no residual effects from his surgery.

  'I'm just so happy to have him beside me at night,' Andrea confessed during a flying visit to Abbey for a pap smear. 'Just to hold each other. And if that's all we can have...' Her eyes misted over.

  'Andi, it's early days yet.' Abbey swabbed the specimen onto a slide. 'And you said the specialist's last report was very encouraging. Let's just concentrate on things working out wonderfully for you and Stuart.'

  'Amen to that.' Andrea settled herself back in the chair. 'Do you want to talk about what happened between you and Nick?' she asked with the easy frankness of friendship. 'You were so right for each other, Abbey.'

  'Oh, please...' Abbey went to wash her hands. 'It didn't work out, Andi,' she said wearily. 'Can we leave it at that?'

  Andrea bit her lip. 'You look awful, Abbey—so strained. Couldn't you...?' Andi waved her hands about helplessly.

  'No.' Abbey's answer was unequivocal. 'I should have the results of your test back in a week,' she sidetracked professionally. 'I'll ring if there's anything untoward.'

  Another month went by.

  'Meri, I have to go to Hopeton next week.' Abbey pushed the desk diary aside and pocketed her ballpoint. 'Could you call Wolf and see if he's available to provide cover? I'll need Wednesday and Thursday.'

  'Sure.' Meri made a note on her pad. 'Regional meetings again?'

  'Mmm.' Amongst other things, Abbey thought sombrely.

  'You have a visitor.' Meri was all smiles when Abbey arrived back during the late afternoon from her trip to Hopeton.

  Abbey came to a halt, her lungs fighting for air. Was it Nick? Had he come back?

  'Go on,' Meri insisted in her best managing voice. 'He's waiting in your office.' She reached out a hand and swept up the post. 'I'm just off. See you both in the morning.'

  Afterwards, Abbey had no clear idea how her legs had carried her along the corridor to her office. Heart trampolining, she turned the knob and pushed the door slowly open. And gave a tiny gasp, as the tall male figure turned from the window.

  'Steve!' She dropped her bag and ran into her brother's outstretched arms. And promptly burst into tears.

  'Have you missed me that much, little sis?' Steve seemed amused.

  'Must have, mustn't I?' With a watery smile, Abbey eased herself away.

  He gave her an astute brotherly glance. 'Don't think so, Abbey. You look like you've just come from Heartbreak Hotel.'

  Abbey sniffed and gave a funny little grimace. 'Very droll. Are you writing an agony column these days?'

  'Not me.' He shook his fair head. 'But I know the signs, kiddo, and my doctoring instincts tell me my little sister is in need of some TLC. Come on.' He looped an arm around her shoulders. 'Let's get you home and fed.'

  It was lovely to be cosseted. Tucked up on the sofa in the lounge room, Abbey sipped gratefully at the big mug of scalding tea, replete from the helping of fluffy scrambled eggs Steve had magically produced in record time.

  Watching her fork up the meal hungrily, he'd demanded, 'Why aren't you eating properly?'

  'I am.'

  'Not from what I saw in the fridge.'

  Abbey had shrugged uninterestedly. 'There's stuff in the freezer.'

  She looked up now as he sauntered back into the room and asked, 'All squared away?'

  'Yep.' He
looked at her narrowly. 'More tea?'

  'No, thanks. But that was lovely, Steve.' She leaned over to place her empty mug on the side table.

  Steve Seemed to hesitate and then, as if coming to a decision, bounded across to the sofa. 'Shove up a bit, hmm?' Obediently, Abbey drew her knees up and he plonked down beside her, his head resting on the cushioned back, his legs outstretched and crossed at the ankles. He glanced across at her. 'OK, let's have it, Abbey.'

  Abbey sighed and closed her eyes. 'Do you have all night?'

  'If necessary. Come on.' His hand covered hers, hard and strong. 'Roll it out. It's probably not half as bad as you think.'

  Abbey swallowed and swallowed again and made a tentative beginning. 'There's a man...'

  'Does this man have a name?'

  'Nicholas Tonnelli.'

  'Hell. How did you get hooked up with him?'

  So she told her brother the whole sad story.

  When she'd finished, Steve rolled his head across the cushioned back to look at her. 'So you're going to contact him, right?'

  'How can I?' she said bleakly. 'He hates me.'

  'Rats! How could he hate you? You've both got your wires crossed, that's all.'

  If only it was that simple.

  'You have to see. Nick and talk to him, Abbey,' Steve repeated. 'Or I will.'

  She snatched her hand back. 'Don't you dare! Keep out of it, Steve.'

  'No, I won't. These are lives we're talking about here, Abbey, yours and—'

  She let out a wail and he stopped and hugged her close. 'Come on, kid. You can do it. Remember the courage you found when Mum and Dad died? Through all the stuff we had to do?'

  She met his eyes, her own troubled. 'It's not the same.'

  'Yes, it is. Trust me, I'm a doctor.'

  That old cliché brought a wobbly smile to her mouth. 'Will you come with me?'

  'Uh-uh. But I'll hold the fort while you're gone.'

  'How long are you down for?'

  He lifted a shoulder. 'As long as I need. My contract's finished.'

  Abbey perked up. 'So you're going to settle back in Australia?'

  'Eventually. Actually...' He looked at the floor, faintly embarrassed. 'I've met a girl, Catherine. She's a surgeon.'

  'And?' Abbey prodded him with her toe.

  He looked sheepish. 'We, uh, got married.'

  'Oh, my God! That's fantastic!' She took both his hands in hers, for the first time noticing his gold wedding band. 'So, what are you doing here? Why aren't you with your wife?'

  'I came down to see you. To tell you about the marriage and take you back for a holiday with us. But I guess there's no chance of that now, is there?'

  Abbey shook her head slowly, pushing a strand of hair back from her face. 'How long had you and Catherine known each other?'

  'Couple of months. But we just knew it was right between us, Abbey. As right as it will be for you and Nick.'

  If only she could believe that.

  Steve insisted she take a few days off work and rest. 'I'll muddle along with Meri's help. And I promise I won't kill off any of your patients. Well, not intentionally.' He grinned.

  She gave him a shaky smile. 'Thanks, Steve. I owe you one.'

  He reached out and cuffed her chin. 'Just be nice to Catherine when you meet her.'

  'Of course I'll be nice to Catherine. When is she coming down?'

  Steve made a face. 'As soon as she can. Her contract still has another few weeks to run. Hopefully, there'll be a suitable practice somewhere we can invest in. We've managed to save a bit. But back to you,' he said softly. 'When are you going to see Nick?'

  Abbey's stomach heaved alarmingly. 'You're not going to give up, are you?'

  'Nope.'

  'Day after tomorrow, then. I'll drive to Hopeton and get a flight to Sydney from there.' And pray to heaven Nick would see her.

  Abbey had travelled barely thirty minutes from Wingara when her mobile phone rang. She rolled her eyes. It was probably Steve again, checking on her. He'd already rung once. Automatically, she reduced her speed and pulled her car to a stop. Activating the speak button, she put the phone to her ear. 'Hello.'

  'Abbey, don't hang up!'

  Abbey felt as though her heart had flown into her mouth. Her lungs, starved for air, felt crushed. For a second she feared she was about to pass out. 'Nick?'

  'Yes. I'm on my way to Wingara to see you.'

  'But I'm on my way to see you!' She heard his swift intake of breath. 'I've only just left town.'

  'All right...' He seemed to be thinking. 'I'm about an hour away. Turn round and head back, Abbey. I'll meet you at home.'

  Home. Abbey swallowed. Had she heard right?

  'Abbey, did you get that?'

  'Yes.' Silly tears clumped on her lashes and she swiped them away. 'I'll be waiting for you...'

  Abbey leaned back on the headrest until she felt calm enough to restart the Range Rover. But first she should call Steve, she supposed, and tell him what had happened.

  'So, I'll steer clear for the next day and a half, then, shall I?'

  'Idiot brother.' But she was smiling.

  Abbey had steeled herself for a great deal of awkwardness when they met, running over little speeches in her head. But the reality turned out to be very different from what she'd imagined.

  Nick drove in slowly and parked around the back of the house. His heart was clamouring. Switching off the engine, he sat for a moment looking into space. Suddenly his hand clenched on the wheel, the sharp edge of need ripping through him. He swallowed against the sudden constriction in his throat. Just don't mess this up, Tonnelli, he cautioned himself silently. Or you'll lose her for ever.

  And why was he still hanging about here? He threw open the door of the Jag and swung out.

  And Abbey was standing there. Waiting.

  'Hello,' she croaked.

  'Hello, yourself.' Nick's gaze snapped over her. 'You've lost weight.'

  'And you need a shave,' she told him candidly.

  He smiled slightly, lifting a hand and scrubbing it over his jaw. 'I've been on the road since four o'clock this morning.'

  'You've driven all the way from Sydney?'

  'Yes, Abbey.' His eyes burned like emeralds. 'To ask you to marry me.'

  'Oh.' Abbey thought she might have fallen in a heap if his arms had not gone around her, holding her as if he'd never let her go.

  After a long time he pulled back, lifting his hands to bracket her face, his entire heart in his gaze. 'This feels so right, doesn't it? You and me?'

  Abbey nodded, tears welling up and overflowing.

  'Don't cry, sweetheart!' Nick took her hands and curled them over his heart. 'I love you!'

  'Now he tells me...' Abbey hiccuped a laugh. 'After I've spent the loneliest weeks of my life.'

  'It's been hell for me, too.' His voice shook. 'You should never have allowed me to walk out the way I did, Abbey.'

  'How was I supposed to stop you?' flashed Abbey, dazed by the brush of his lips against hers. 'Let the air out of your tyres?'

  'Might have worked.' Smiling, Nick felt the knot in his chest begin to unravel. It was going to be all right. His arms went around her again, wrapping her against him, his mouth claiming hers as if he was dying of thirst.

  A whimper rose in her throat and, breaking the kiss, Nick scooped her into his arms and carried her inside to the lounge room, making a beeline for the sofa. He sat down, settling her on his knee. 'So, what's your answer, Abbey?' he asked softly, his throat working. 'Will you marry me?'

  'Of course I'll marry you.' Shakily, she stretched out a hand, touching his hair, the outside edge of his ear, the soft hollow in his throat. 'But I don't want to put any pressure on you.'

  He lifted his head and looked at her in puzzlement. 'How could you possibly do that?'

  She looked into his eyes, reading the sincerity and, unmistakably, the love. Joy, clear and pure, streamed through her. She dropped her gaze shyly. 'I have to tell you something, Ni
ck.'

  'That you love me?' His voice was gentle.

  'Of course that.' She burrowed closer. 'I— That is:—we...' She hesitated and blinked rapidly.

  'You've got me worried now, Abbey.' Nick gave her a little shake. 'Just tell me.'

  'I'm pregnant.'

  A beat of absolute silence.

  'Pregnant!' Nick sat back hard in the sofa. 'You mean you didn't take the—?'

  'No.' Abbey shook her head. 'It was such a terrible day and the patient list was endless.' She stopped and took a long shuddering breath. 'And by the time I realised I hadn't had the script filled, it was late and we'd had that awful fight. Well, I just wanted to die and—'

  'Oh, Abbey. My poor sweet darling.' His arms went around her and he was rocking her. 'You should've thumped me. I behaved so selfishly, so ego- driven. But a baby?' His gaze clouded and he turned her head and looked into her eyes. 'Are you sure?'

  'Yes.' She choked on a laugh. 'I've had it confirmed.'

  'Whew!' Nick let the air out of his lungs in a long hiss. 'We're having a baby.'

  'Are you pleased?' Abbey's voice was suddenly thin with unshed tears.

  'Oh, God, yes!' His hand smoothed over her tummy, as though already he hoped to find there might be changes. 'Oh, this is something, isn't it? But how have you managed on your own?' A frown touched his eyes. 'Have you been sick?'

  'A bit queasy,' she confessed with a grimace. 'But something wonderful happened.' Excitedly, she told him about her brother's unexpected arrival and the support he'd offered.

  'Then thank heaven for Steve.' Nick held her more closely. 'I'd better buy him a beer.'

  Abbey chuckled. 'He'll want several, I should think. And he's recently married.' She filled Nick in about Catherine.

  'Good grief,' he grumbled. 'I leave the place for five minutes and all this happens.'

  'Then you'd better stick close to me in future, hadn't you?' Abbey pressed her forehead against his.

  'Depend on that.' Nick caught her hand and began kissing her fingers one by one. 'Will you mind living in Sydney?' His mouth twisted with faint irony. 'I don't think it would be practical for me to relocate here.'