Page 65 of Six Steps to Happiness
Willow laughed. “Who do you think organised it?”
Ronnie smiled to herself. It was just like Bea to find a way to circumvent hospital visiting time rules.
“You should have seen her yesterday when Dad walked in with Gaye instead of you.”
Knowing Bea’s thoughts on the woman, Ronnie could imagine.
“Naturally, Gaye tried to fawn all over her, but Grandmother wasn’t having any of it.”
“It’s good to know she’s back to her usual indomitable self,” Ronnie said as her daughter started up the car. “I have to admit, she had me worried for a while.”
“Me too,” Willow replied, pulling away from the kerb. “I’d love to know what was in that drip they gave her. It’s like some miracle cure.”
Ronnie thought back to when she first met Bea. Ronnie and Nick hadn’t been together long and her then future mother-in-law didn’t seem keen on their relationship at all. Bea never said as much, but Ronnie heard it in the woman’s voice, saw it in her facial expressions, and Bea was quite the expert when it came to backhanded compliments.
Ronnie put it down to Nick’s dad dying so young. It had been mother and son, and no-one else for so long, Ronnie was bound to be an intrusion, a threat even. Then they had to go and fall pregnant and the prospect of breaking that bit of news felt terrifying.
That was when everything changed. Overnight, Bea went from covert dragon lady to the nicest, kindest, most supportive woman anyone could meet. She still had her moments, of course, and Bea was a lioness when it came to her family. Ronnie tried to picture the previous night’s events, and while she never thought she’d say it, she had to admit she felt a bit sorry for Gaye. As mothers-in-law went, Ronnie’s could be quite intimidating when she wanted to be.
As the drive continued, Ronnie listened to her daughter chatting away about the tension between everyone during the previous day’s hospital visit. How Bea had struggled to look at Gaye, let alone engage with her. The way Willow told it, Nick spent the whole time acting like they were one big happy family, ignoring the fact that the medical staff popping in and out could sense they were anything but. However, while Willow laughed about it all, Ronnie struggled to raise a smile. She shifted in her seat, uncomfortable, finding the whole situation anything but funny.
47
Ronnie was pleased to find Bea sat up in bed awaiting their arrival when she and Willow tapped on the door and entered her room. Her daughter had been right to question what had been in the woman’s drip, her mother-in-law appeared back to her happy healthy self. It was as if her funny turn had never happened, and Ronnie smiled at the sight of Bea’s face lighting up as soon as they walked in.
She moved to give her mother-in-law a hug, before glancing around the room. “Comfortable enough,” she said, taking in how bright and airy the space was thanks to its huge window. There was a sink unit in the corner, a TV screen fixed to the wall opposite Bea’s bed, and a glass and jug of water sat on the bedside cabinet, which was made up of a drawer and a cupboard in which to house Bea’s belongings. Ronnie turned her attention back to her mother-in-law. “So, how is the patient feeling today?”
“Ready to go home,” Bea replied. “I keep telling them I feel fine now, but will they listen?”
Ronnie chuckled, glad she wasn’t part of her mother-in-law’s medical team. She could imagine the grief Bea was giving them. “You have to let them do their job.”
“Before you even think about leaving,” Willow said.
“You wouldn’t be saying that if you were the one being prodded and poked every five minutes. Have you seen this?” Bea held out her arm, inner elbow face-up to reveal the biggest and blackest of bruises left behind after a blood test.
Ronnie and Willow grimaced at the sight.
“Exactly. Call themselves nurses, butchers more like.”
“Yes, well, like the doctor said, dizzy spells and fainting happen for a reason. They have to do these things to figure out what that reason is.”
“Hopefully this lot will cheer you up,” Willow said, placing the holdall she carried at the bottom of Bea’s bed. “A toothbrush, a nightie, everything you asked for with a few extras. Magazines, some sweets, that kind of thing.”
“Thank you.” Bea indicated to the hospital gown she’d had to make do with. “These things do nothing for a woman’s modesty.”
Ronnie pulled a couple of chairs up to the side of the bed and she and Willow sat down. “So, how are you really doing?”
Her mother-in-law’s shoulders slumped. “If you must know, I’m feeling a bit silly. This really is a lot of fuss over nothing.”
“We’ll let the medical experts be the judge of that,” Ronnie replied.
“I don’t know what you’re complaining about,” Willow said. “Being able to lie in bed all day, your meals brought to you on a tray, lots of dishy men in white coats giving you special attention. Minus the illness, I wouldn’t mind a bit of that.”
“Now you mention it,” Bea replied, a naughty smile suddenly appearing on her face. “There is this one young gentleman who pops in from time to time.”
Ronnie smiled too, happy to see her mother-in-law’s spirits lifting again.
“Doctor Raj, oh he does light up the room. But don’t worry, I’m keeping my hands to myself. It wouldn’t do to cross a line with my granddaughter’s future husband.”
