TWELVE
HE WAS LATE. Almost a year late by his reckoning, although, by rights, he should have been here from the very beginning.
Callum O’Neill’s mouth thinned as he paid off the cab and turned to face the cottage that had once been his home. He had sworn when he had left that he would never come back here again. This place held too many bad memories and he had promised himself that he would do his best to forget what had gone on. However, that had been before he had received that letter. Before everything had changed.
Callum could feel his heart thumping as he walked up the path. He knocked on the door, wondering what sort of reception he would receive. He wasn’t expecting red carpet treatment but he was hoping that things would improve once he explained what had happened. It had taken months for the letter to reach him. He had been moving around such a lot as he had helped to set up the programme he had been working on. It was vital to roll it out to as many communities as possible as Malaria was endemic over much of sub-Saharan Africa. It was little wonder the letter hadn’t reached him for such a long time but would Beth understand that? He hoped so. He couldn’t bear to think that they would end up arguing again. They had done enough of that in the past and he, for one, couldn’t bear to go down that route again.
‘If you’re wanting Dr Andrews then she isn’t there.’
Callum swung round. ‘Oh, right. Do you know where she is, by any chance?’ he asked, recognising the elderly woman who had spoken to him as a patient from the surgery. He had worked at The Larches Surgery for almost a year, filling in as a locum GP so he could be with Beth. Their relationship had already been under a lot of strain by then and it hadn’t helped that they were living so far apart—he based in London and Beth in the Yorkshire Dales—so he had made the decision to relocate. Sadly, it hadn’t helped their marriage as much as he had hoped it would. Things had gone too far by that stage and so instead they had split up, which made what had happened later all the more poignant...
‘Why, she’s in the church, of course! Where else would she be?’ The woman frowned. ‘You’re Dr O’Neill, aren’t you? I thought I recognised you. We’ve not seen you around here for a while. Funny that you should turn up today, although maybe you’ve been invited.’
‘Invited?’ Callum repeated uncertainly. ‘Invited to what?’
‘The wedding.’ She sniffed. ‘Although if you ask me it’s far too soon for them to be getting married. I mean, they barely know each other. Still, fools rush in, as my old mum used to say.’
With that, she went on her way. Callum stared after her, feeling shock reverberating throughout his entire body. Beth was getting married again? She was getting married today! His feet were already moving before the thought had sunk in. He raced across the road, taking the path that led to Beesdale Parish Church. He could hear the church bells ringing and put on a spurt. He had to make Beth see that she couldn’t go ahead and marry someone else, not now, not ever! It was as though his mind was crystal clear all of a sudden and for the first time in ages he knew what he wanted, and that was Beth.
The bells had stopped ringing by the time Callum reached the church and his panic increased to epic proportions. The service must have started and he had no idea how long it took to reach the part where the minister declared the couple man and wife. When he and Beth had married it was in a registry office, a no-frills affair that had been over in minutes. Neither of them had cared about the ceremony. The only thing that had mattered was that they could make their vows to love and cherish each other for the rest of their lives. They had been so sure that their love would last for ever, he thought sadly, but it hadn’t worked out that way. As he had discovered, all the promises in the world couldn’t guarantee that.
The thought lent wings to his feet as he raced up the path. The heavy oak doors were closed and he wasted valuable seconds, wrestling them open. He almost fell into the church when they finally gave way and he saw people turn to look at him but he had eyes for no one except the woman in white standing before the altar. She was the only person who hadn’t turned around and his heart ached with a searing pain when it struck him that she was oblivious to his presence. She was too busy looking at the man she was about to marry to notice him.
Callum felt the coldness of defeat sweep over him. In that moment, he realised that he had no right to stop what was happening. He turned to leave, knowing it was the only thing he could do. He’d had his chance and blown it; it wasn’t fair to expect Beth to take him back. Maybe he hadn’t known the truth until that letter had reached him but he had still left her, hadn’t he? Why would she want him back when she had found someone else?
‘Callum? What are you doing here?’
He recognised her voice immediately, heaven knew, he should do when he heard it every night in his dreams. Each time he fell asleep he heard her speaking to him, saw her, touched her, held her, loved her, felt her love him in return. The only difference was that she wouldn’t be looking at him with love in her eyes now. Her love was reserved for another man, the man who was going to do his best to make her happy, as he had failed to do.
‘I asked you a question, Callum. At least have the decency to answer it!’
There was no welcome in her voice, no hint of warmth. That she didn’t want him there was obvious. Callum turned slowly around because what else could he do? Just for a moment his vision blurred before he managed to focus and he blinked as he took stock of the pale pink dress she was wearing and the jaunty little hat with its swirl of purple feathers on the crown...
His gaze flew to the couple standing in front of the altar and he felt the blood drain from his head when he realised that the bride was Polly. He didn’t recognise the groom; he had never seen him before, but it didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was that Beth wasn’t getting married today. It meant that he still had a chance, one precious chance to win her back! His heart was in his mouth as he turned to face her. This was the most important moment of his life and he had to get it right.
‘I came to see you, Beth. You and our baby.’
* * *
Beth could feel her legs trembling and clutched hold of a nearby pew. She could hear the murmur of voices as the congregation started whispering together. Were they as shocked as she was to see Callum? Were they wondering why he was here and what he wanted? In a small town like Beesdale, it was hard to keep anything secret—everyone knew that he had run out on her and left her pregnant. Now the thought of her daughter helped to steady her. No way was she going to allow Callum to destroy Beatrix’s life the way he had destroyed hers!
She turned cold hazel eyes on him. ‘Come outside. We can’t talk in here.’
She didn’t wait to see if he was following as she led the way out of the church. It was up to Callum what he did and she had no intention of trying to influence him in any way. She walked down the path, only pausing when she reached the lich gate. There was very little traffic about as most of the townspeople were in the church. Polly was the local midwife and greatly loved; everyone wanted to help her celebrate her special day. Tears suddenly pricked her eyes but Beth blinked them away. She wasn’t going to think about the dreams she’d had when she and Callum had married. That was all in the past and too much had happened since. Their divorce had been difficult enough, but the fact that he hadn’t even bothered to acknowledge their child until today was so much worse.
