‘Ah…’ He nodded. ‘Things change, don’t they?’ He looked at her, a gentle, indulgent smile on his face. ‘But I can see that you’re a girl after my own heart, Louise. May I call you Louise?’
‘Of course.’
‘Thank you. I’m Joseph. You’ve been very kind to me and I want to thank you for all that you’ve done. I feel guilty about this. I’m sure you must be busy and I’m taking up so much of your time.’
‘That’s all right, and you don’t need to feel guilty at all. I’m happy to be here with you. As things stand, I’m able to take a slightly longer lunch break today. But, whatever happens, I won’t leave you until you’re safely on your way home.’
He patted her hand once more in acceptance of that, and itwas as shewas returning the gesture that she became aware of a man striding purposefully towards them.
She looked up, casting a thoughtful glance over him as he approached. Like his grandfather, he was well-dressed, wearing a grey suit, though the jacket hung open to reveal a crisply laundered shirt with a pale, faintly striped design. She wondered if he was a businessman of some sort.
He was tall, long-legged, and his demeanour was resolute, the jut of his strong jaw signalling a man who was used to being in charge.
His gaze flicked over her. ‘Are you the lady who called me? Louise Bridgford?’
She nodded. ‘That’s right. I am.’
‘Thank you for calling me, and for staying here with my grandfather. I appreciate it.’ Then he turned his attention to Joseph, and his matter-of-fact manner changed to one of concern. ‘How are you feeling?’ he asked, hunkering down, his knees bent so that he could be at eye level with him.
Louise let her glance wander over the beautiful cut of his black hair, noting its springy texture. The hair seemed to reflect the man. It shimmered faintly in the sunlight, with not a strand out of place, and she judged that each fibre was thick and strong.
‘I’m fine now. This young lady here, Louise, has been a great help to me.’
James subjected her to another quick scrutiny before turning back to his grandfather. He nodded. ‘I’m glad to hear it, but what happened to you? Was it just that you felt short of breath, or did you actually collapse?’
‘I just felt a bit peculiar,’ Joseph told him. ‘I’m feeling much better now.’
James appeared to be giving that some thought. ‘The car isn’t too far away. I’ve brought it as far into the park as I could. I’m just wondering if you’re going to be able to manage the walk.’
‘Yes… I think I can do that, if you just give me another minute or two.’
‘Hmm.’ James was doubtful. ‘Perhaps it would be better if I called for the paramedics. You should probably have someone look you over at the hospital.’
‘No. I don’t want that.’ Joseph’s voice was firm. ‘I wouldn’t like that at all. I’ll walk back to the car.’ He made to get up and, seeing how the colour immediately drained from him, both James and Louise gently pressured him back down into his seat.
‘I think I might have a solution,’ Louise murmured, getting to her feet.
James stood up and came alongside her, both of them moving a short distance from where his grandfather was sitting. ‘And what might that be?’ he asked.
‘I work at the hospital just across the way. I could go over there and borrow a wheelchair. It shouldn’t take me more than a few minutes to go and organise that.’
‘That seems like a good idea. Would there be any objection to you doing that?’
She shook her head. ‘I think they trust me enough to know that I’ll bring it back. There’s just the question of whether you could sit and wait with your grandfather that long.’
James gave her an odd look. ‘I’m not sure that I know what you mean.’
‘As far as I understand it,’ she said, giving him a direct stare, ‘you were with your grandfather when you suddenly went off and started to deal with your phone calls. Do I have that right?’
‘Partly.’ He frowned. ‘We were at the café, and I received a phone call that was quite urgent. The signal wasn’t too good, so I left my grandfather enjoying a cup of tea and a bun and went to deal with it outside.’
She guessed that he had been so taken up with dealing with his call that afterwards he had forgotten all about his grandfather. Of course he wasn’t going to admit that to her, was he?
‘Well, I sincerely hope that isn’t going to happen again, because it’s very important that you stay with him. You can’t be sure that his condition won’t worsen—in fact, if I were you, I would be on the alert to call out the emergency services.’
She glanced down at the watch on her wrist. ‘I shall have to get a move on. Will you be here when I get back? Can I rely on you?’
He gave her a narrowed stare and she had the impression that he didn’t like being questioned that way. He made as if to say something, but then he must have thought better of it because he simply waved a hand in a gesture of acceptance, urging her to go ahead.
‘I’ll be here,’ he said.
Louise set off at a brisk pace and within a few short minutes she was back at the hospital. ‘Is it all right if I take one of these wheelchairs?’ she asked the senior registrar in charge of the adult A&E unit. ‘I’ll bring it back in less than half an hour.’
‘Go ahead,’ the registrar told her. ‘Are you okay? Is there a problem?’
‘Nothing I can’t handle,’ she told him. ‘Thanks, Taylor.’
When she arrived back at the park, James was pacing across the grass in front of the oak tree. Joseph was sitting where she had left him, and he looked more weary than ever, as though his fighting spirit had gone. She wondered if he was even aware of them being around.
‘Has something happened?’ she asked.
Perhaps itwas more of an accusing stare than a questioning glance that she directed towards James, because he stopped pacing long enough to give her a startled look.
‘No, nothing. What did you think might have gone on? I’m not exactly sure what opinion you have of me, but I do care for my grandfather, very much so.’
She didn’t respond, and he tacked on, ‘I think he must have some kind of chest infection, and I’ll probably have to call the doctor out to him once we get home. The trouble is, he can be quite determined once he’s made up his mind about something, and I don’t think it would have been worth the stress that would have followed if I had tried to take him to the hospital.’
‘Well, I have the wheelchair and a blanket, so we should be able to get him back to your car easily enough now.’ She started to walk towards Joseph, adding, ‘As to the rest of what you said, I just have a problem with somebody who lets his work take priority over family responsibilities. I can’t fathom what could be so important that it can’t wait until you’re back in the office. No matter what you said, I was actually relieved to come back and find that you were still here.’
James was already starting to help his grandfather into the wheelchair. He settled the blanket around him, his movements gentle and solicitous, but there was a hint of tension in the fixed shape of his mouth.
‘Some calls can’t be ignored,’ he said in a low voice. ‘Perhaps you don’t have anything of importance going on in your life, or you would have some understanding of that.’
Her green eyes flashed a warning. ‘I wouldn’t go there if I were you,’ she said, her voice ominously quiet.
Joseph stirred and looked from one to the other. ‘Have I missed something?’ he asked.