Festive Fling with the Single Dad

by Annie Claydon

  ‘That’s Aksel Olsen. He’s from the canine therapy centre at the castle. They’re talking about setting up a dog visiting scheme.’

  ‘To help train the dogs? I could help with that, but I’m not sure that many of the others could.’

  ‘Well, those who can’t help might benefit from having the companionship of an animal. Don’t you think?’

  Helen thought for a moment and nodded. ‘Yes, I think they will. Where’s he from? His name isn’t Scottish.’

  ‘He’s Norwegian. The dog understands Norwegian, too. He’s trained Kari as an assistance dog for his daughter.’

  ‘He has a daughter? Then he has a wife, too?’ Helen was clearly trying to make the question sound innocent.

  ‘No. No wife.’

  ‘Really?’ Helen beamed. ‘Well, he might be looking for one. And it’s about time you found yourself someone nice and had some bairns of your own.’

  ‘I’m happy as I am, Helen. I have everything I want.’ The assertion sounded old and tired, as if she was trying to convince herself of something. Flora wondered how many times she’d have to tell herself that before she really believed that Aksel was no exception to the rule she lived by. That there was no exception to the rule. Fear of rejection made the practicalities of falling in love and having a family impossible.

  Helen brushed her words aside. ‘He’s very good looking. And tall. And such a mane of hair, it makes him look rather dashing. I dare say that he’d be able to sweep someone off to lots of exciting places.’

  ‘He’s actually better looking close up. Blue eyes.’ Flora gave in to the weight of the inevitable, and Helen clapped her hands together gleefully.

  ‘I like blue eyes. Mountain blue or ocean blue?’

  Flora considered the question. ‘I’d say mountain blue. Like ice.’

  ‘Oh, very nice. And is he kind?’

  * * *

  Flora had worked through her list of patients, and when she arrived back in the communal sitting room, she found that Helen had decided to take part in the exercise class today. It was a first, and Flora wondered whether it was an attempt to get a closer look at Aksel’s blue eyes and broad shoulders, and make a better assessment of both his kindness and his capacity to sweep a girl off her feet.

  ‘Right, ladies and gentlemen.’ Everyone was here and seated in a semi-circle around her, ready for the gentle mobility exercises. ‘I brought along a new CD, ballads from the sixties.’

  A rumble of approval went round, and Flora slipped the CD into the player. Carefully chosen songs that reflected the right rhythm for the exercises.

  ‘We’ll start with our arms. Everyone, apart from Helen, raise your arms. Reach up as high as you can...’ Flora demonstrated by raising her own arms in time to the music.

  The response was polite rather than enthusiastic, but the music and a little encouragement would warm things up. ‘That’s lovely, Ella, try the other arm now. Helen, you’re sitting this one out... Now gently lower your arms. And up again...’

  This time there was a murmur of laughter and the response was a lot more energetic. ‘Very good. Once more.’

  A sudden movement from Helen caught her eye, and Flora turned, following the direction of her pointing finger. Everyone was laughing now.

  Aksel was leaning in the wide doorway, smiling, looking far more delicious than he had any right to. And in front of him Kari had obligingly raised one paw, lowering it again and raising the other.

  Flora put her hands on her hips and walked over to him. Behind her she could hear chatter over the strains of the music.

  ‘You know what this means, don’t you?’

  Aksel shook his head, flashing her an innocent look.

  ‘There’s a spare chair right there, next to Helen.’ She may as well give Helen the chance to look him over in greater detail. ‘Go and sit in it.’

  ‘Yes, ma’am.’ His eyes flashed with the ice-blue warmth that she’d told Helen about, and Aksel went to sit down. Kari trotted to her side, obviously having decided that she was the star of the show.

  ‘Right. Let’s do one more arm raise.’ Flora raised her arms again and Kari followed suit, raising one paw. There was more laughter, and everyone reached for the sky.

  ‘Well done, everyone. Aksel, I think you can do a bit better than that next time...’

  Flora always kept a careful eye on everyone during her exercise classes to gauge how well they were moving and that no one was overdoing things. And this time Aksel was included in that. His left arm was fully mobile but he wasn’t extending his right arm fully upwards, and she guessed that it was still hurting him. His neck seemed a little stiff as well.

  Kari was loving all the attention, and when the exercise session was finished she trotted forward, eager to get to know everyone. Flora started to pack up her things, leaving Aksel to lead Kari around the semi-circle and introduce her.

  She’d expected that Eileen would be keeping her eye on things, and saw her standing quietly at the doorway.

  ‘What do you think?’ Suddenly it mattered to her that the dog visiting scheme was a success. That Aksel should feel useful and accepted here, rather than dwelling on all the things that he felt he’d done wrong.

  Eileen nodded. ‘The written plan for the scheme was very thorough and I liked the thought behind it. This is the acid test.’

  Flora looked around. Kari was in off-duty mode, which meant that she was free to respond to someone other than her handler. She was greeting everyone with an outstretched paw, and receiving smiles and pats in return.

  ‘It looks good to me. Kari certainly made everyone a bit more enthusiastic about the exercises.’ Aksel had done his part in that, too. He’d joined in without a murmur, smiling and joking with everyone. His charm had contributed almost as much as Kari’s accomplishments.

  ‘It looks very good.’ Eileen seemed to have already made her decision. ‘It might be a while before he’s allowed to leave.’

  It was a while, and by the time Aksel had torn himself away, promising everyone that he’d return, Flora was looking at her watch. She needed to be back at the clinic for her afternoon sessions.

  As soon as he was out of the sitting room, Aksel called Kari to heel, picking up her bag and making purposefully for the reception area. He signalled a hurried goodbye to the receptionist, telling Eileen that he’d be in touch, and managed to insinuate himself between Flora and the front door so that she had no choice but to allow him to open it for her.

  ‘How was your morning?’ He gave her a broad smile. ‘Did you manage to get to the bottom of Mr King’s crawling leg?’

  ‘Uh? Oh...yes, the carers keep telling him that the elastic on his favourite socks is too tight, but he won’t listen. I changed them and gave his leg a rub and that fixed the crawling. You seem to have enjoyed yourself.’

  ‘Yes, I did.’

  ‘I see that your shoulder’s still bothering you.’

  ‘It’s fine. It doesn’t hurt.’

  Pull the other one. There was a clear imbalance between the way that he was using his right and left arms, and Aksel seemed determined to ignore it. Just as he was determined to ignore everything else he wanted or needed. But she shouldn’t push it. The clinic was full of therapists and movement specialists, and if he wanted help he could easily ask for it.

  ‘We’ll get straight back...’ He dumped her bag on the back seat and started the engine. ‘I saw you looking at your watch.’

  ‘Yes, I’ve got afternoon sessions that I need to get back for. And if we hurry we should be back in time for you to have lunch with Mette.’

  He nodded, the sharp crunch of gravel coming from beneath the tyres of the SUV as he accelerated out of the driveway.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  FLORA KNEW THAT Aksel was at the clinic that afternoon, but she didn’t drop into Mette’s room during her break.
It was bad enough that her thoughts seemed to be stalking him, without her body following suit.

  Cass had come for her physiotherapy session, glowing with a happiness that matched Lyle’s exactly. She’d come to the clinic as a patient, after sustaining injuries to her arm and leg during a search-and-rescue assignment. Then she’d met Lyle Sinclair. Sparks had flown, and the two had fallen head over heels in love. Lyle had been inconsolable when Cass had returned home to America, but now she was back in Cluchlochry for good. She’d spent most of the forty-minute physiotherapy session telling Flora about their plans for the future.

  ‘The movement in your leg is a great deal better. I’m really pleased with your improvement.’

  Cass sat up, grinning. ‘I hardly even think about it now, only when it begins to ache. Lyle says I should still be careful...’

  ‘Well, you don’t need me to tell you that he’s right, you should be taking care. But being happy helps you to heal, too.’

  ‘Then I’ll be better in no time.’ Cass slid off the treatment couch, planting her feet on the floor. ‘Especially as I have you to help me...’

  It had been an easy session. Flora stood at the door to the treatment room, watching Cass’s gait as she walked away, and Aksel intruded into her thoughts once again. Cass was so happy, and looking forward to the future, and it showed in the way she moved. Aksel was like a coiled spring, dreading the future. No wonder he had aches and pains. Tension was quite literally tearing him apart.

  He might be able to ignore it, but Flora couldn’t any more. His shoulder could probably be fixed quite easily at this stage, but if he did nothing it would only get more painful and more difficult to treat. This was what she did best, and if she really wanted to help him, it was the most obvious place to start.

  * * *

  Aksel drew up outside his cottage, trying not to notice that Flora’s porch light was on. He’d decided that he wouldn’t seek her out at the clinic this afternoon, and it felt almost saintly to deprive himself of that pleasure.

  As he got out of the SUV, opening the tailgate to let Kari out, he saw her door open and Flora marched down the path towards him, her arms wrapped around her body in a futile attempt to shelter herself from the wind. She looked determined and utterly beautiful as she faced him, her cheeks beginning to redden from the cold and small flakes of snow sticking to her hair. Aksel decided that sainthood was overrated.

  ‘The car sounds better than it did this morning.’ That was clearly just an opening gambit, and not what she’d come outside to say.

  ‘Yes, I changed the spark plugs.’ The SUV’s rusty growl had turned into a healthier-sounding purr now. Aksel closed the tailgate and reached into the passenger footwell for his shopping bags, trying not to wince as his shoulder pulled painfully.

  ‘And have you done anything about your shoulder? I’m not taking any excuses this time.’

  ‘In that case...no, I haven’t.’

  ‘Come inside.’ She motioned towards her cottage with a no-nonsense gesture that no amount of arguing was going to overcome. He hesitated and she frowned.

  ‘If you don’t come inside now, I’m going to turn into an icicle. You don’t want to have to chip me off the pavement and thaw me out, do you?’

  It was obviously meant as a threat, but the idea had a certain appeal. Particularly the thawing-out part. Aksel dismissed the thought, nudging the car door shut, and Kari followed him to Flora’s doorstep. When she opened the door, Dougal came hurtling out of the sitting room to greet them.

  He watched as she stood in front of the hall mirror, brushing half-melted snowflakes from her shoulders and hair. ‘I appreciate the concern, but there’s really no need. These things tend to rectify themselves.’

  She turned on him suddenly. ‘What’s the problem, Aksel? You have a stiff shoulder, and I’m a qualified physiotherapist. Or are you not allowed to have anything wrong with you?’

  She was just a little bit too close to the truth and it stung. He wanted to be the one that Mette could rely on completely. Strong and unbreakable. But there was no point in denying any more that his shoulder felt neither of those things at the moment.

  ‘Okay, I...appreciate the offer and... Actually, I would like you to take a look at it if you wouldn’t mind. It has been a little painful over the last few days.’ He put his shopping bags down, taking a bottle of wine from one. ‘Don’t suppose you’d like some of this first?’

  She rolled her eyes. ‘No, I don’t suppose I would. I’m not in the habit of drinking while I’m working.’

  That put him in his place. But when he walked into the sitting room, he saw that a backless chair was placed in front of the fire. She’d been concerned about him and waiting for him to come home. The thought hit him hard, spreading its warmth through his veins as he sat down.

  Suddenly all he wanted was her touch.

  * * *

  ‘Take your sweater off and let me have a look.’ Flora congratulated herself on how professional her tone sounded. It was exactly how this was going to be.

  She stood behind him, gingerly laying her fingers on his shoulder. ‘You’re very tense...’

  Flora was feeling a little tense herself suddenly. The lines of his shoulder felt as strong as they looked, and there was only the thin material of his T-shirt between her fingers and his skin.

  ‘It’s been a long day.’

  ‘What happened?’

  He turned suddenly and Flora snatched her fingers away, stepping back involuntarily. She couldn’t touch him when the smouldering blue ice of his gaze was on her.

  ‘I didn’t come here to tell you my troubles.’

  ‘I know. Turn around and tell me anyway.’

  He turned back and she continued her examination. There was a moment of silence and she concentrated on visualising the structure and musculature of his shoulder. Suddenly Aksel spoke.

  ‘Dr Sinclair took me through the results of Mette’s latest MRI scan today. It’s clear now that there isn’t going to be any more improvement in her sight.’

  ‘There was hope that there might be?’ Flora pulled the neck of his T-shirt to one side, reaching to run her fingers along his clavicle.

  ‘No, not really. The doctors in Norway told me that her condition was stable now, and there was very little chance of any change. It was unreasonable of me to hold out any hope.’

  ‘But you did anyway, because you’re her dad.’

  ‘Yes. I wasn’t expecting to come here and cry on your shoulder about it, though.’

  ‘You can’t expect muscles to heal when you’re this tense, Aksel.’

  Flora felt him take a breath, and he seemed to relax a little. As she pressed her thumb on the back of his shoulder he winced. ‘It’s a little sore there.’

  She imagined it was very sore. The shoulder must be a lot more painful than he was letting on. ‘You have a few small lumps on your collarbone. That’s usually a sign that it’s been broken recently.’

  ‘Nearly a year ago.’

  ‘And what happened? Did you get some medical treatment when you did it, or were you miles away from the nearest doctor?’

  He chuckled. ‘No. Actually, I’d gone skiing for the New Year. There was a doctor on hand and he treated it immediately.’

  ‘Good. That seems to have healed well, but the muscles in your shoulders are very tight. I can give you some exercises that will help ease them out.’

  ‘Thanks.’ He reached for his sweater.

  ‘I can work the muscles out a bit for you if you’d like. It’ll reduce the discomfort.’ It was also going to take every ounce of her resolve to stay professional, but she could do that.

  ‘That would be great. Thank you.’

  She was just debating whether it would be wise to ask him to remove his T-shirt so that she could see what she was doing a little better when he pulled it over his he
ad. Flora watched spellbound as he took an elastic band from his pocket, twisting his hair up off his shoulders.

  His skin was golden, a shade lighter than his hair. Slim hips and a broad, strong chest came as no surprise, but Aksel had to be seen to be believed. He was beautiful, and yet completely unselfconscious.

  ‘Okay. Just relax...’ The advice was for herself as well as Aksel. This was just a simple medical massage, which might make him feel a little sore in the morning but would promote healing. And she wanted very badly to heal him.

  * * *

  He could feel the warmth of the fire on his skin. Aksel closed his eyes, trying not to think about her touch. Warm, caressing and... He caught his breath as she concentrated her attention on the spot that hurt most.

  ‘Sorry. I can feel how sore it must be there...’

  ‘It’s okay.’ He didn’t want her to stop. Flora seemed to know all of his sore points, the things that tore at his heart and battered his soul. He wondered whether all of her patients felt the connection that seemed to be flowing through her fingers and spreading out across his skin.

  He felt almost as if he was floating. Disengaged from his body and the cares of the day. Just her touch, firm and assured.

  ‘My brother has cystic fibrosis.’ She’d been silent for a while, working out the muscles in his shoulder, and the observation came out of nowhere.

  ‘That’s why you became a physiotherapist?’

  ‘It was what made me first think of the idea. Alec’s physiotherapist taught him techniques to clear the mucus from his airways, and he benefited a great deal from it.’

  ‘It’s a difficult condition to live with, though.’ Aksel sensed that Flora had something more to say.

  He heard her take a breath. ‘I know how badly you want to help Mette, and how helpless you feel. I’ve been through all that with Alec. You’re tying yourself in knots and that shows, here in your shoulder.’