by Lucy Clark
Will leaned over and kissed her mouth. ‘You taste so sweet, so perfect,’ he murmured against her mouth, breaking away for a second so both of them could drag in a breath.
‘It’s always like this when I’m with you. So powerful. So perfect,’ she added, her words breathless as she leaned towards him, eager to have his mouth on hers once more. He didn’t disappoint her but he did manage to slow it down a little, to ease the frenzy of the kisses both of them seemed to need so desperately.
She was close. His mouth was on hers, his tongue tracing the edge of her lips, tasting her, tantalising her to distraction. She moaned a little sigh against him and sank deeper into his arms. He held her close, thrilled at the way she was responding to him, elated that he could still affect her in such a way and delighted that he’d been handed a second chance to do so.
‘You can’t always kiss me into submission every time I’m saying something you don’t agree with,’ she murmured, trying not to disturb Sarah, who was almost asleep as she finished feeding.
‘Why not? Don’t you enjoy it?’ He waggled his eyebrows up and down suggestively, and she smiled at him and shook her head.
‘Put your arrogance away and be serious. What if I—?’
A loud, ear-splitting scream filled the air, piercing their quiet solitude, cutting off what Sheena had been about to say. After the scream came an almighty crash, as though a car had just driven through the front of the house.
Will sprang to his feet, heading in the direction of the noise. Sarah jumped, then pulled away, spluttering and crying at being disturbed. Sheena quickly buttoned her top and by the time she’d shifted Sarah to her shoulder and then stood, Mary was by her side, arms opened wide to receive the babe.
‘Ellie’s still asleep. I’ve put her in the pram,’ the experienced grandmother said.
‘Jesse? Jesse?’ They could hear Anna calling throughout the house and a moment later Lester’s cries filled the air as the baby woke from his sleep because of the commotion.
‘Give me Sarah and go and see if Will needs help. Stephen will look after Lester.’
Sheena nodded and handed her grizzling daughter to Mary. Will was moving through the four-bedroomed house like lightning, opening and closing doors to check that everything was all right … until he came to Stephen’s study.
‘The door’s jammed shut,’ he said when he saw Sheena in the hallway.
‘Jesse?’ Anna came into the hallway from one of the rooms where she’d put Lester down for a nap. ‘Where’s Jesse?’ She was as white as a sheet. ‘He fell asleep with me on the bed but he’s not there. Will?’ Anna was starting to panic as Will and Sheena tried to push open the door to Stephen’s study.
‘It’s jammed,’ Will said. ‘Something is blocking the way.’
‘We’ll have to get in through the window,’ Sheena said. She could hear Sarah still crying in the front room and Mary singing to her. Lester was crying in one of the nearby bedrooms and Stephen was attempting to calm his grandson down. Anna looked so pale that Will quickly helped her to sit on the floor.
‘We’ll find him. We’ll sort everything out,’ he reassured his little sister, before heading outside to get a ladder. Sheena stood in the hallway, and the noise surrounding her started subsiding. She heard a small whimper coming from Stephen’s study.
‘Jesse?’ she called with calm authority. ‘Jesse? Can you hear me?’
Another whimper was her only reply but it was proof that he was in there and as they were unable to open the door, it was logical to surmise that something had fallen down, pinning Jesse and blocking the doorway.
‘Jesse, I want you to stay very still. OK? Just like a statue. Uncle Will and I are coming to get you.’
‘Jesse? Jesse?’ Anna was panicking and there was the hint of mild hysteria in her tone. Sheena instantly turned to face the young mother.
‘Anna.’ She placed her hands reassuringly on Anna’s shoulders, trying to calm her down. If Jesse heard the panic in his mother’s voice, it might make him more upset and he could do things that could cause him further damage, especially if he was pinned under something heavy. ‘He’s in there. I can hear him. My guess is that he’s trapped beneath whatever is blocking the door but it’s of the utmost importance that we keep him calm and still until Will can get to him. You can speak to him but you must remain calm and controlled.’
‘Yes. Yes.’ Anna tried to breathe in and out more slowly. Stephen appeared in the hallway a moment later, a pink-cheeked, wet-eyed Lester in his arms.
‘Sheena!’ Will called from the front of the house. ‘Sheena, I need you out here.’
‘Coming,’ she called, then turned to look from Stephen to Anna. ‘Jesse needs to stay calm and still. Just talk to him, let him hear your voices. Reassure him.’
‘Right you are, Sheena,’ Stephen replied, nodding wisely. Sheena quickly headed out the front door, where she found Will positioning a small stepladder near the partially open front window, which was situated a metre and a half from the ground.
‘I can’t get it open too far due to the locks on the window but it should be wide enough for you to squeeze through,’
Will said.
‘OK.’ She instantly climbed the ladder, glad she’d decided to wear trousers instead of a skirt, and shifted sideways, putting her foot up on the window ledge. Pushing aside the curtains, she shimmied and squeezed her way through the small gap, almost getting stuck a few times and knocking over something that had been positioned near the window, but within a few minutes she was through.
‘The bookshelf has come down,’ she called as she turned and unlocked the window from the inside so that Will could push it open the rest of the way and climb through to help her. ‘Jesse? It’s Sheena. Uncle Will’s friend. Just stay still, sweetheart,’ she called calmly, still unsure exactly where the little boy was.
‘Good heavens!’ Will said as he climbed through the window, almost tripping over a mountain of books on the floor. ‘Dad. I’m going to need your help in lifting this bookshelf.’ Will spoke in a tone that was calm and controlled yet the hint of urgency was evident in what needed to be done.
‘Right you are, son,’ came Stephen’s calm voice.
‘What’s happening?’ Anna said from the other side of the door. ‘Is he all right? Jesse?’
At the sound of his mother’s voice, another whimper sounded from beneath the pile of rubble and Sheena quickly scrambled in that direction. Within several seconds Stephen was through the window and into the room, both he and Will shifting around to position themselves on either side of the large wooden bookcase.
‘Can you see him?’ Will asked, almost ready to lift.
‘I think I can see his foot. See? Just there.’ She pointed to an area in the middle of the room where she’d managed to shift a few of the books out of the way but couldn’t do any more until the bookcase had been lifted away.
‘Yes. Good. It’s all right, Anna. We’ll have him out in a jiffy,’ Will called reassuringly to his sister. Sheena could hear the love and reassurance in his tone and her heart swelled with pride for this man. He was so good, so caring, so loving to those around him. He was her Will. She didn’t want to let him go, not ever, but … could they work things out? Would he be happy with only Ellie and Sarah? Two girls who weren’t biologically his children?
Will looked over at his father and nodded once, the two men not needing any other words to communicate what had to happen next. Together they hefted the large bookcase out of the way and instantly Sheena scrambled to where Jesse lay buried beneath the books and papers that had been in the bookcase, pushing them out of the way in order to get to the little boy.
‘There you are. Keep still. You’re all right,’ she murmured, desperate to reassure the little boy as her hands felt over his limbs, checking his body. Once the bookcase was upright and out of the way, Stephen opened the door to let Anna in while Will came and knelt down on the other side of his nephew.
‘How is he?’
‘Check his right leg for me,’ she instructed as she pressed her fingers to Jesse’s carotid pulse. ‘Hey, there, Jesse. Can you hear me?’
Her answer was a whimper but the little boy didn’t open his eyes. ‘Pulse is strong. Breathing is good. Bit of a lump on his head where it connected with the shelf.’ She lifted his eyelids to check his pupils and he whimpered and turned his head away, moaning, more in annoyance than in pain. ‘Ahh … we have cognitive function.’
‘Oh, Jesse. Jesse. You scared Mummy,’ Anna said as she rushed into the room, almost tripping over the paraphernalia that was littered about the place, but Stephen was by her side, steadying his pregnant daughter. Mary stood in the doorway with a quiet Sarah securely in her arms, Lester clinging to her leg.
‘Don’t touch him just yet,’ Will said when it appeared Anna was ready to scoop her boy up into her arms. ‘Just let Sheena and I make sure he’s OK. Almost done.’
‘I’m so glad the two of you were here,’ Mary murmured. ‘See, Anna? No one better than two trained doctors and one of them your big brother to help out and take care of Jesse. It’ll all be fine.’
‘Although it does appear he may have broken his leg,’ Will told his sister. ‘I’ll need to see an X-ray to confirm it but—’
‘What? An X-ray? Is it that bad? Will he need to go to hospital?’ Anna started to breathe more heavily and Sheena instantly looked at the expectant mother, concern for Anna’s blood pressure now starting to worry her. ‘I need to call Jeff. He needs to know what’s happened. Oh, my poor Jesse. A broken leg. X-rays. Hospitals.’
‘He’s fine, Anna. Fine. Just a broken leg and as I’m an orthopaedic paediatrician, I’m the perfect person to look after him. He’ll be just fine,’ Will reiterated. ‘Mum, do you have any children’s paracetamol? Or ibuprofen?’
‘Can you give ibuprofen to a child his age?’ Anna asked.
‘You can if you’re an orthopaedic paediatrician and know the correct dosage,’ he returned, and winked at his sister. ‘I’m here, Anna-banana.’ At the use of the childhood nickname, his sister gave him a watery smile. It was the most perfect thing he could have done. ‘I’m not going to let anything happen to my precious nephew.’
‘Come on, love,’ Stephen said, helping his daughter to her feet. ‘Let’s give Will and Sheena some room. Come and sit down and put your feet up. We don’t want your blood pressure rising too far.’ Stephen looked at his son before he left, mouthed the word ‘Ambulance’ and received a nod from Will.
A moment later Mary returned, minus Sarah and Lester, who were apparently now with Stephen, bringing not only medication but some bandages as well. Jesse had opened his eyes but was more than content to lie still and have everyone make a fuss of him. Sheena took the bandages and searched around for something stable to act as a splint.
‘What were you doing in Grandpa’s study?’ Mary asked him softly as she bent over him and kissed his cheeks. Will administered the medicine, knowing it wouldn’t take too long to take effect.
‘I wanted da big book. Da one with all the pictures of the horsies.’ Jesse told his grandma. ‘It was berry high up and I climbed and I climbed and then it was stuck.’
‘You should have come and asked a grown-up to get it for you,’ Mary scolded lightly, and Jesse’s eyes began to tear up.
‘I sorry, Grandma,’ he said, and within a moment was crying, although Sheena had the feeling it was more because he was upset at having disappointed his grandmother than because of any pain. Carefully, Sheena and Will applied the splint and bandage to Jesse’s right leg.
‘How are you feeling now, little man?’ Will asked his nephew.
‘Am I still in trouble?’ he asked softly, reaching for Sheena’s hand and holding it tight. She smiled at his words as Will lovingly shook his head.
‘No, matey. You’re not.’
‘Then I feel better,’ he confessed, and Sheena couldn’t help but laugh, the action helping to release her concern. It also made her wonder what the rest of her life was going to be like, being a mother to two small girls.
‘One day Ellie and Sarah are going to be three years old, just like Jesse,’ Sheena mused out loud, shaking her head as though she couldn’t quite believe that day would come. ‘How am I ever going to cope?’
Mary chuckled. ‘You’ll do fine. You simply take each day at a time and deal with whatever life throws at you. Never borrow trouble.’
Will was pleased with his mother’s sensible advice but he could hear the depth of Sheena’s words. ‘You do realise that where Jesse is one little boy trying to get a book down from a bookshelf, you’ll have two little monkeys getting into mischief. Double the trouble.’
‘And from what I’ve seen, Sarah will be the one to lead the charge,’ Mary added as she headed out of the room to check on everyone else.
Sheena shook her head in bemusement. ‘It’s so hard to imagine. Both of them running around, doing their own thing.’
‘Living their lives like normal little girls.’ Will smiled and reached over, taking her free hand in his and giving it a squeeze.
‘Normal and filled with mischief.’ Uncertainty gripped Sheena’s heart and she bit her lip, unsure what her future held. ‘What have I got myself into?’
Will chuckled before brushing a kiss to her lips. ‘A whole world of love and laughter.’ Which he was determined to share with her.
They stayed beside Jesse, making sure he didn’t move until the ambulance arrived.
‘Hey, Sheena. Hey, Will,’ Dieter, one of the paramedics from Adelaide Mercy, greeted them. ‘What are you two doing here?’
‘This is my nephew,’ Will explained, and as he and Sheena went to stand to give the paramedics some room, Sheena found her hand gripped firmly by Jesse.
‘Stay,’ he whimpered, and she could hear the panic behind his words.
‘Of course I’ll stay with you, sweetie,’ she reassured him, and helped the paramedics transfer Jesse to the stretcher. Even when he was secure in the ambulance, Jesse still refused to let go of her hand and Sheena knew she’d have to stay with him. Her mind raced ahead, thinking of Sarah and Ellie.
‘You’ll need to go in the ambulance if he’s not going to let go of your hand,’ Will pointed out as he came and sat beside her in the rear of the vehicle.
‘I realise that because it’s important to keep Jesse as calm as possible. Would you mind taking care of the girls? Driving them back to the hospital? I can meet you there.’
Will tried not to let his jaw drop at her words. ‘You … trust me that much? You’ll entrust your girls to my care?’
Sheena leaned over and kissed him. ‘Of course I trust you. You love my girls. That much is quite clear to anyone who watches the three of you together. You honestly love them, Will, with all your heart, and I know you’ll always protect them and keep them safe.’
He swallowed once, twice before answering. ‘I will.’ His tone was husky but it was also laced with determination. ‘Right, then. I guess I’ll see you back at the hospital.’ He kissed her once more before saying goodbye to his nephew and climbed from the ambulance so that Dieter could shut the rear doors.
As Will watched the ambulance depart, he couldn’t believe the gift Sheena had just given him. Complete and utter trust for her daughters. Sheena could see how much he loved Ellie and Sarah. She could see that he wanted to protect those little girls for ever and she was willing to let him do it. She was willing to let him into her life and that was the biggest gift of all.
He’d let her down in the past. He realised that now. He hadn’t spent the time to really get to know her, to understand the upbringing she’d endured, how sad and lonely she’d been. He’d been so wrapped up in finding the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, so happy that he’d get to have his picture-perfect fairy-tale life that he hadn’t seen Sheena for who she was deep down inside.
Since he’d returned to Australia and spent more time with Sheena, and her girls, he’d come to discover
how sad and lonely she’d been all her life. He understood now why she’d never talked about her past or her endometriosis, but back then he’d only considered his own happiness and had blamed her when she’d turned his proposal down.
He’d let her down in the past but as he headed into the house to care for her beautiful daughters, he vowed that he wouldn’t let her down again.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
WHEN they arrived back at Adelaide Mercy, Sheena handled Jesse’s care, requesting X-rays to see if the little boy had sustained a greenstick fracture. Anna arrived just as Jesse was being wheeled to Radiology and finally the little boy was more than eager to let go of Sheena’s hand when he had his mother right beside him.
‘Hi, Sheena,’ the triage sister said with surprise as she walked into the nurses’ station where Sheena was writing up Jesse’s notes. ‘I didn’t know you were scheduled for a stint in A and E today.’
‘I’m not.’ Sheena smiled and quickly explained about Will’s nephew Jesse.
‘So … where are the girls?’ Sister was clearly puzzled.
‘Will’s bringing them back to the hospital.’ Sheena looked at the clock on the wall. ‘In fact, they should be back by now. Perhaps he’s getting them settled in their room. It’s been a big day. Do you mind if I use the phone to ring the ward and check?’
‘Go ahead,’ Sister remarked, a secret smile touching her lips. ‘You and Will seem to be very close. At least, that’s the impression we all have from the photo in today’s paper.’
‘Paper?’ Sheena turned with the receiver to her ear and accepted the cut-out picture Sister offered. It was one of the photographs from the other day in the park when the photojournalist had caught them out, although it wasn’t one of the ones they’d posed for. Instead, the paper had decided to go with the photograph of the babies in the pram, Sheena and Will sitting on the blanket, Will raising her hand to his lips. She read the caption below.
Sheena Woodcombe, mother of Adelaide’s newly separated conjoined twins Ellie and Sarah, finds a quiet moment for romance with lead orthopaedic surgeon Will Beckman in the botanical gardens.
