by Lucy Clark
She wanted him to hold her, to kiss her, to tell her that everything would be all right. She wanted him to comfort her, to tell her she was important to him and that he loved her. She wanted—she wanted things he couldn’t give.
George nodded and stepped back. ‘I’ll make your apologies.’
‘I’d appreciate it.’ Melody forced her legs to work as she walked past him.
‘Can we still meet for breakfast tomorrow morning?’ He spread his hands wide, indicating the decision was hers.
‘Yes.’
‘Good. I want a chance to say a proper goodbye.’
She opened her mouth to speak but closed it again, unsure what she should say. Goodbye? Why did everything seem so final with that word?
‘Sleep sweet, Melody.’ As much as he wanted to scoop her up and kiss her senseless, George knew he couldn’t. He clamped down on the feeling, knowing it wouldn’t do him any good. He’d just have to cool his heels until tomorrow. He watched the way she walked, head held high, purse clutched tightly in her hand. Her hips swayed slightly, her shoulders back, and he felt a tightening in his gut. She was dazzling and she’d dazzled him all week long.
Even as he allowed himself to acknowledge these feelings, hard on their heels came ones of guilt and remorse. He knew he was legally a free man, but mentally and emotionally George wasn’t sure if he was ready to move on. No matter what he did, he would end up hurting Melody. He cared about her so much that the thought of causing her pain made him feel physically ill.
If—and it was a big if—there was going to be anything permanent between Melody and himself, he owed it to both of them to deal with his past first, before moving on to the future. For the present? He raked a hand through his hair. For the present he was going to enjoy her company one last time. The consequences, for both of them, would come later. Of that he had little doubt.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
ON SATURDAY MORNING he met her at the front of the hotel. Carmel would be taking his luggage to the airport so he wouldn’t need to worry about it. Instead, he could focus on enjoying Melody’s company as she drove them to her favourite café.
‘What did you tell Carmel?’ she asked him as they sat opposite each other and perused the menus.
‘I told her you and I were going out for breakfast.’
‘Really? What did she say?’
‘She said, “‘Good.”’ He shrugged one shoulder. ‘She thinks it’s good for me to move forward with my life.’
Melody silently thanked Carmel for encouraging George. ‘If breakfast is a step forward, then I’m glad to share it with you.’ She grinned and reached for his hand.
‘This is our last opportunity to be together.’ He took her hand in his and raised it to his lips. ‘Let’s enjoy it.’ They ordered food and enjoyed a leisurely meal. ‘It’s great not having to rush anywhere,’ George remarked as he eased back in his chair and sipped his coffee. ‘It’s great just being with you.’
‘I know what you mean.’ Melody smiled, holding her coffee cup out to him. He clinked it and they both laughed. She didn’t want to talk about their impending separation, about what might happen tomorrow or the next day or the day after that. She needed to savour, memorise, absorb every detail about George.
However, when they could delay their departure no longer, Melody concentrated on the road as she navigated her way towards the frantic Sydney airport, the soothing strains of Mozart filling the car.
George rested his head, eyes closed as the music surrounded them. His internal thoughts were turbulent, his emotions jumbled up and out of control. Meeting Melody had thrown his neatly ordered world into disarray and he wasn’t sure how to put it back. He didn’t want to leave her but he knew he had to go. He wanted to kiss her, to hold her close, but every time he did so he was later visited by guilt for moving on from his memories of Veronique.
He wanted to tell Melody that she meant a lot to him, that he wanted to be with her, to investigate this attraction, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t because he wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure he wanted to be involved in another serious relationship. He’d loved deeply once before and his world had been blown apart when Veronique had died. Was he ready to put himself out there again? To risk loving another woman?
When Melody pulled into the airport car park she didn’t turn the engine off. Instead, she swivelled in her chair and looked at him. His heart skipped a beat as he stared into her gorgeous green eyes. How was it possible she could have such a dramatic effect on him? When he saw tears beginning to gather in her eyes, his heart almost broke at the thought of leaving her.
‘Uh—are you OK to go from here?’
‘You’re not going to walk me in?’
She shook her head. ‘I don’t know if I can.’ Melody gazed into his eyes, her stomach churning with butterflies while her lower lip trembled.
He unbuckled his seat belt then reached out and cupped her face in his hands. ‘Melody.’ Her name was a caress on his lips before his mouth met hers in a hungry, fiery and consuming kiss. He never wanted it to end. He wanted to take her with him, for her to be with him for ever. Melody moaned in delight, giving everything she had to him, and, being greedy, he took it.
His phone beeped, indicating he’d received a text message. ‘It’s Carmel. She says they’re calling our flight.’ He opened the car door and climbed out, pleased when Melody climbed from the driver’s seat and came around to him.
‘Will you walk me in?’ He just couldn’t leave her—not yet. But why? Why was he finding it so difficult to say goodbye?
‘I’ll walk you to the door but I just—I can’t…’ She stopped and took his hand in hers. ‘I can’t watch you walk away from me.’
George shook his head and gathered her close once more. ‘I know. I finally understand Shakespeare’s “Parting is such sweet sorrow.”’ He kissed Melody again but when another text message came through, he knew if he didn’t hustle, he’d miss the plane. ‘I’ve got to go.’
She held his hand for a moment longer and shook her head, not bothering to choke back the tears. ‘George…’ She shook her head. ‘I—I don’t want you to go.’ Her words were broken as the emotion burst forth. He clenched his jaw and shook his head before gathering her close and kissing her deeply one last time. ‘I—I love you, George.’
He leaned back and looked at her in utter astonishment. She loved him? Before he could process her words, his name was called over the PA system.
‘I have to go.’
She hiccupped a few times, letting him go and covering her mouth with her hand. He forced himself to turn, to walk away from her, and with each step he felt as though he was walking through a quagmire. He told himself not to look back but just before he was rushed through security he gave in to the impulse and what he saw almost broke his own heart.
There she was. The woman who had just offered him her love, standing alone near the doorway, hands covering her face as she sobbed. She loved him. Melody loved him—and he was leaving. He had to. He had to return to Melbourne to find out what his life was all about because right at this moment he really had no clue.
Who was he? How could he let go of the past? What was he supposed to do when the tour ended? He shook his head sadly as he continued through the process of boarding the plane, barely hearing a word Carmel or anyone else said. How had he reached a point in his life where he had no earthly idea what he was doing? Could he ever hope to be happy again, or was he doomed to the loneliness that stretched before him?
Lonely widower George Wilmont. Was that all?
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
WHEN THE DOORBELL RANG, George walked through his house, a slight spring in his step. He opened the door with anticipation and smiled at Carmel. ‘I never thought I’d be happy to see you at my door,’ he stated, and Carmel laughed. ‘Come in.’ He beckoned.
‘Would it be crazy to say I’ve missed you?’ she asked as she followed him through to the dining room, which was strewn with papers. ‘I can’t be
lieve it’s almost two whole weeks since we finished the tour.’
‘I can’t believe I’ve written so many reports and papers in those two weeks.’
‘Are they all finished?’
‘Ah…there’s that Miss Efficient Organiser tone I haven’t missed at all.’ They both laughed and sat down to chat.
‘How are you doing, George?’ She gestured to the sparse room. ‘I mean, Christmas is two days away and not a decoration in sight.’
He shrugged. ‘Not really in the Christmas spirit this year.’
‘Are you doing anything on Christmas Day? Seeing Veronique’s family?’
He shook his head. ‘I’m rostered on at the hospital.’
‘I didn’t think you were back there until the New Year.’
‘I’m just doing a few shifts over the Christmas and New Year period. The acting head of department needs to spend some time with his family.’ Even as he said the words ‘acting head of department’ his thoughts immediately went to a different acting department head, a beautiful redhead with mesmerising green eyes who had captured his heart.
Ever since leaving Sydney to complete the visiting orthopaedic specialist tour, George had been hard pressed to get Melody out of his head. Two days after they’d left he’d received an official email from her, on behalf of the rest of the department, thanking him and his staff for choosing St Aloysius as part of the VOS tour. It had been formal, official and he’d been miserable on reading it. Melody. He couldn’t go to sleep without thinking of her smile, without dreaming of being with her, laughing with her, kissing her.
‘You’re like a bear with a sore head,’ Carmel had accused him five days later. ‘For heaven’s sake, email Melody, call Melody, text her with a plethora of emojis if you’re unsure what to say, but do something, George. You’re making the rest of us miserable.’
And so he’d emailed her, an equally polite message, stating that he and his team had enjoyed their stay. He’d signed off the email asking her what her favourite part had been. He’d received a one-word reply—You. Clearly that hadn’t been an official email but the reply had made his heart soar with delight, and along with the delight had come the guilt, the guilt that he was moving on from his marriage, that he was moving away from Veronique and everything they’d shared together.
Since then, he’d taken Carmel’s advice on board and had sent Melody a text message with emojis. His usual one had been the exhausted or sleeping emoji. She would often reply with emojis of her own, all of them upbeat and encouraging, as though she was eager for him to finish this tour.
Carmel waved a hand in front of his face. ‘I know that blank look. You were thinking about Melody, weren’t you?’
George sighed, not bothering to deny it. ‘She’s constantly on my mind. I don’t know what to do.’
‘Do you love her?’
‘I…’ He shrugged his shoulders and closed his eyes. ‘I don’t know. Sometimes I think yes, sometimes I think no. Sometimes I think we had such an intense time together, it must all have been an illusion. Perhaps there’s nothing more between us than infatuation?’
‘That doesn’t sound like fun.’
‘It isn’t. That’s why I was more than happy to pick up a few shifts at the hospital. Work will help.’
‘That’s what you told me after Veronique’s death. Work would help.’
‘And it did. It always does.’
‘But you also run the risk of working too much, of burying your life in work and then having nothing else to exist for.’ Carmel’s words held a hint of sadness and nothingness. It helped snap George out of his own self-pity.
‘Are you and Diana OK?’
‘We’re more than OK.’ Carmel held up her hand to reveal a lovely engagement ring.
‘Wow!’ George inspected the ring. ‘That’s beautiful.’
‘Diana chose it. I chose hers. We’re very happy, George, but I was so caught up in my work for so long that I didn’t see how happy I could be if I just let myself.’
‘Are you telling me to let myself be happy? Because if you are, I’m not sure I know how to do that.’
Carmel thought for a moment then changed the subject. ‘How’s Veronique’s family?’
‘They’re good. Great even. Her parents have travel plans, her sister’s pregnant.’
‘Good for them.’
‘Everybody’s moving on.’ He shook his head. ‘In some ways it’s as though we’re forgetting Veronique altogether.’
‘No.’ Carmel shook her head. ‘Not forgetting, George, but honouring her by not weeping or covering yourself with sackcloth and ashes for the rest of your life. You know she wouldn’t have wanted that. She would have wanted you to be happy.’
‘That’s what her mother told me.’
‘It’s good advice.’
‘But how do I do that?’ He spread his arms wide, indicating the house. ‘Even this place feels like it belongs to someone else.’
‘It did. You’re a different man now, George. You’re not Veronique’s husband any more.’
‘No. I’m not that man.’
‘You’re a new man, with a new world at your command. So the big question is, what do you want? Where do you want to live? Do you want to work at Melbourne General? Who do you choose to share your life with?’
They were definite questions to think on, and after Carmel had collected all the reports and papers and said her farewells, George walked back into his quiet house and sat staring at his phone. Every question he asked himself seemed to lead to one person—and one person only. Melody. He should call her. He should—
His phone beeped. It was a message from Melody. Three emojis—a happy face, a Christmas tree and a heart. He raised his eyebrows at the heart. That was one she’d never sent him before. A heart? Did that mean she still loved him? He hadn’t quashed it by not professing his own feelings?
Was it possible that he could be twice blessed in love? First with Veronique and now with the vivacious, intelligent and heart-melting Melody Janeway?
Love? Was he in love with Melody? Even as the question crossed his mind, he couldn’t help the large smile that spread across his lips.
*
Melody put her phone on the table and closed her eyes. She shouldn’t have sent him the heart emoji. It was too much. They hadn’t even spoken since he’d left, just the initial emails and then text messages consisting of emojis. It was silly but it was better than nothing, and if that’s what George needed to do while he figured out what he wanted then she would wait.
It was a decision she’d come to about three days after he’d left Sydney. Her brother Ethan had come to Sydney with a patient and had insisted on having a frank discussion with his little sister.
‘You’re clearly in love with the man,’ Ethan had stated after she’d told him everything.
‘I know.’
Ethan had chuckled. ‘And yet you don’t sound too happy about it.’
‘There’s nothing I can do, Ethan, but wait. George has a lot to sort out, more emotional baggage than I have, I think. The death of his wife is a far greater loss to deal with than a broken engagement by some jerk I’m better off without.’
‘So you’re just going to wait?’
‘I’m going to hope.’
‘Hope is good but it’ll only get you so far, Mel. One day you’ll need to act because if you don’t, you risk losing everything. Believe me, I know. I was almost too stubborn to let go of my past so that I could move forward with CJ and now…’ he’d grinned ‘… I’m the happiest man on earth.’
‘That’s what I want. I want to be happy—with George.’
‘Does this mean you’re thinking about moving to Melbourne?’
She’d sighed and nodded. ‘If I have to, yes.’
‘Huh. Surprising but good. Or would you prefer George to move to Sydney?’
‘I don’t care if we both move and end up in Far North Queensland or overseas, I just want to be with him, Ethan. I love him.’ Her
job was to wait and hope and pray and love George from afar, giving him the space he needed so he could sort out what he wanted. Melody hoped it was her.
*
Melody spent her Christmas working at the hospital and even though there weren’t too many patients in the wards and all the hospital administrative meetings had been cancelled until the new year, she was glad of the opportunity to lose herself. Thinking about George every hour she was awake and then dreaming about him all night was almost becoming exhausting. Almost…
Two days after Christmas, though, the CEO had told her to take time off work. ‘Go home, Melody. See your family. Go and see your new niece and spend some time with Ethan in the wine district. You’re starting to look as ashen as he used to.’
‘But there’s so much to do,’ she’d protested, but had been overruled.
‘And there will be plenty of time to do it,’ she’d been told in return. ‘This request is not negotiable.’
And so Melody had headed to see Ethan and CJ for the New Year, delighting in spending time with Lizzie-Jean, who was crawling all over the place and starting to pull herself up on furniture. She watched her brother and CJ together, amazed at just how happy Ethan really was, and she yearned to be equally as happy.
She’d received the usual text message emojis from George, the exhausted or sleepy one and—on Christmas Day—a Christmas tree with a smiley face. Had she been wrong to send him the heart emoji? Had she scared him off?
It was only two days into the new year when her phone rang and she quickly checked the caller identification—her heart plummeting when she realised it was only the hospital’s CEO.
‘Melody, I’m sorry to call you but we actually need you to come back to the hospital.’
‘What’s wrong?’
‘Nothing’s wrong,’ the CEO told her. ‘We’ve found the perfect candidate to take over from you as head of department. Isn’t that great news?’
