going to be alone,’ he said levelly, and went on his way.
When he’d gone Darcey could have wept with shame at the way she’d thrown his concern back in his face, but the fact remained that she just couldn’t have admitted what a miserable thing her life was at the present time, and if Daniel Osbourne was the loner that she’d been told he was, maybe he was also going to be on his own during the festivities, which would make her refusal of his suggestion even more bizarre.
Though having seen his sister and her children briefly, and in spite of the haste with which she herself had made her exit, she had noted the affection between them that day when they’d called to see him, so it seemed hardly likely.
* * *
The day, like any other when she was on duty, was demanding her time, energy and patience, and she put the unexpected conversation they’d just had to the back of her mind until such time as when she would be free to absorb it fully, which was fortunate as at that moment a ten-year-old boy was admitted to the ward in pain and fractious with the osteomyelitis, which was more common in children than adults.
Daniel had seen Evan Roberts in his clinic and given orders for him to be admitted to the children’s ward and given a course of antibiotics to clear the inflammation, and as Darcey and her staff followed his instructions and comforted Evan, there was an ache inside her at the memory of how she’d been so quick to refuse to sail in the ex-navy whaler that his club practised in.
Her reply to the effect that she was already going to be occupied on that occasion had been the truth and the reason for it had been understandable as far as she was concerned, having volunteered to work during the most important days of Christmas.
But would she have made that sort of commitment if she’d known that he was going to want to take her sailing, and what would he say should she tell him that she would love to go with him on some other occasion when she was free as long as the offer wasn’t made out of pity because of her solitary state.
Daniel had referred to the lifeboat on a few occasions, a bigger and more powerful craft than his club used, as theirs was involved more in the safety of local events, and the thought of it made her keen to know more about the man who had come into her life on a crowded passenger train.
* * *
As she was leaving the ward after checking on Evan and having handed his care over to the night staff, Darcey saw Daniel glance unsmilingly in her direction as he went to speak to one of them, leaving her to make her way home with the feeling that it was going to be a miserable evening and if that was what it turned out to be, she had only herself to blame. With that thought in mind she decided to eat out at one of the restaurants on the promenade to delay enduring the gloom of the evening ahead any more than she had to and went to the nearest one, only to discover that it wasn’t a good plan as just as she was about to enjoy the food put before her, Brendan Stokes appeared. Looking down at her upturned face, he said, ‘Hi, Darcey. Do you mind if I join you?’
Before she could say yes, no or maybe, he was seated opposite and was beckoning to a nearby waitress who had eyes only for a customer who had just presented himself at a table at the other side of the restaurant but had paused to answer his phone, and as Darcey followed the woman’s gaze she stifled a groan.
Why hadn’t it occurred to her? she thought. It was to be expected that staff from Oceans House who had been working all day would choose the nearest restaurant, as had been the case on the night she’d dined with the two nurses.
‘The boss just appeared,’ her unwelcome companion said. ‘He hasn’t had much to say today, but it’s clear that someone has rubbed him up the wrong way.’ As she glanced over again, she saw Daniel abruptly standing and preparing to leave. ‘Look, he’s no sooner arrived than he’s going, which I suspect will turn out to be a lifeboat alert.’
‘So tell me about Mr Osbourne’s connection with the lifeboat service,’ she said. ‘How does he come to be part of it?’
‘His father was in charge at one time, him and old Ely were the main crew members, and when he died a couple of years back Daniel agreed to fill the gap his passing had left.
‘He and Ely are hoping that some day new members of the lifeboat crew will come from their Young Sailors’ Club, but their antics while he’s been away haven’t exactly filled him with confidence.’
* * *
As he turned to leave, Daniel glanced across and saw Darcey and Brendan dining cosily together, it seemed, and his jaw tightened. Was his second-in-command the reason for Darcey’s fully booked Christmas, he thought grimly, the womaniser who never missed a trick if an attractive member of the opposite sex was anywhere near? Had the apparent lack of interest she’d shown when Brendan Stokes had eyed her up on his rounds merely been a pretence?
He had entered the restaurant by another door, but in leaving he passed their table and with a brief nod was gone in answer to the request for his presence on the lifeboat, taking with him the thought that she was the first woman he had even looked at since Katrina’s welcome departure, and he might have been on the way to making another big mistake.
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