Page 57 of Welcome to the Cornish Country Hospital

‘Not because of the letter?’ She bit her lip. She wanted Esther to want more for herself than a man who was hedging his bets, but she didn’t want to be the cause of her friend regretting what she’d done. Not when it had already come so close to causing them to lose their friendship for good.

‘No, but the letter gave me the strength to do it.’ Esther reached out and squeezed her hand. ‘I’d had this feeling for a long while that Lucas was almost playing a part in our relationship. Doing all the things he should be doing, but just notfeelingall the things he should be feeling. And it felt like he was using this, us, as the rehearsal for the real thing when it finally came along. I don’t want to be someone’s trial run. I want to be the love of someone’s life and, when I read your letter, I realised I already was.’

‘Why did it take you so long?’ It was Danni’s eyes filling with tears, and Esther shrugged.

‘I don’t know, but I could ask you the same question.’

‘Maybe he put a spell on us?’ Danni raised her eyebrows and Esther smiled.

‘He must have done. Either way, the spell was broken by the time I read your letter and I decided that the best thing was for me to go, but I was sobbing while I was packing everything into the bags. Not because I didn’t want to leave, but because I felt guilty about ending things and letting everyone down about the wedding.’ Esther let out a long breath and pulled her shoulders back, looking nothing like a woman who’d spent the last few hours sobbing. ‘But then I found a weekend bag that I was going to use for some of my stuff. Inside it was the bill from a hotel, from February this year, for their Valentine’s Special weekend package. And do you remember where I was on Valentine’s weekend?’

‘You came down here to help me get settled in, because Lucas had to work.’

‘Except he clearly didn’t, but it turned out I spent Valentine’s with my one true love anyway.’ Esther’s eyes clouded with tears for the first time. ‘Is there any chance you can forgive me for what I said? I think I only lashed out because I already knew you were right, but I didn’t want to admit it.’

‘You’re the one who needs to be able to forgive me.’

‘There’s nothing to forgive.’ Esther leant into the confines of the car and gave Danni the best hug she’d ever had in her life. It might have been an awkward space, and the seatbelt might have ended up half-strangling her, but it was a moment she’d been terrified might never come, which meant it was nothing less than perfect.

‘Right, now, are you going to park your car over there and help me pack up the rest of my stuff or what?’ Esther gestured to a space further down the road.

‘I couldn’t think of anything I’d rather do.’ Smiling as she closed the door, Danni felt the tension ease from her spine for the first time in weeks.

31

‘What do you mean there’s nothing you can do about it?’ Esther put her coffee cup down on the table with a bang. It was an uncharacteristically mild day for late autumn, where the wind had dropped and the sun on Danni’s back was strong enough for her to take off her jacket. They were sitting at one of the tables outside the rehab unit, making the most of the weather and the chance to catch up with Connie and Gwen.

‘I created a Facebook page setting up the cottage as a holiday let and within an hour I’d taken the first three bookings. And I emailed my resignation into the HR department on Friday night.’ Danni shrugged, despite what felt like a lead weight having settled in her stomach when she realised just how brutally she’d gone about severing all ties with Port Kara. ‘What can I say – I was going all-in to start again somewhere new.’

‘Just explain to HR, and the people who are renting the cottage, that you’ve changed your mind.’ Esther, who had always hated letting anyone down, was adamant. ‘You can’t go, Haggars; you love it here and everyone loves you.’

‘Not everyone.’

‘If you’re talking about Lucas, stuff him!’ Gwen mimed a gesture with the middle finger on her left hand to back up her words. ‘He’s not worth changing your life for.’

‘He told me, even before Esther left him, that he was going to ensure he made things as awkward as possible for me.’

‘Well, let him.’ Connie, who’d been given the all-clear to leave the unit the next day, was equally emphatic. ‘Living your life because of what other people might think, or in an attempt to make other people happy, is a recipe for disaster. I ought to know. Don’t let it do the same to you too.’

‘Mum and Dad would be more than happy for you to move in with us for a bit.’

‘I can’t ask them to do that.’ It had been a huge relief to know that Esther hadn’t told her family about their fallout. She’d said it was because deep down she’d known they’d work things out. But the last thing she wanted to do was impose on them, or anyone else. ‘I suppose I could try to find an alternative holiday let for the bookings I’ve taken. Or maybe even stay in a hotel for those weeks. But it doesn’t change the fact that I’ve handed in my notice.’

‘They’re not going to want to accept notice from someone with your skills.’ It was Connie’s turn to shrug. ‘Just tell them your plans have changed. They’ll be delighted.’

‘Not if Lucas has got anything to do with it. He’s quite capable of getting HR involved and accusing me of harassment or something.’ Danni had always hated the idea of being a victim, but there was no denying that Lucas’s status in the hospital outranked hers. ‘The fact that I’ve offered a letter of resignation, and then tried to take it back, would support anything he said about me creating drama at work, or doing stuff just to get attention. It shouldn’t be the way it works, but his stock is higher than mine and, if they can only keep one of us, it’ll be him.’

‘In that case they’re idiots.’ Gwen looked capable of punching the next person she saw from HR right on the end of their nose. ‘Although I might have an idea.’

‘You do know your reputation precedes you, don’t you, Gwen?’ Danni smiled for the first time. ‘And I don’t want you tying yourself to the railings outside the hospital, in the nude, for my benefit.’

‘I’ve done it before and I’ll do it again if I have to.’ Gwen laughed. ‘But this idea’s a bit more sneaky than that, and Craig in the IT department owes me a favour.’

‘What have the IT department got to do with it?’ Esther furrowed her brow.

‘The less you know about it the better.’ Tapping the side of her nose, Gwen lowered her voice. ‘But Craig and his wife started coming to my belly-dancing classes at the beginning of the year, and his wife said their love life has never been better. So I’m sure I can get him to help out.’

‘It’s like being in a spy movie. A bad spy movie.’ Connie nudged Gwen’s arm. ‘But as long as it works, and it means St Piran’s doesn’t lose the best doctor it’s got, then I say go for it, whatever it is. And I might just have a little idea of my own.’

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