her daughter’s behalf, and listening to her made Abi wish she’d had someone who would have fought like that for her.
‘I’ll do my best for her,’ Abi promised.
Tanya was a strong woman and, ironically, Abi thought she could probably take a leaf out of her book. She could learn to stare adversity in the face, to not back down, to not be afraid.
But, then, Tanya had something to fight for. She had her daughters.
What did she have?
Abi saw Tanya out of her office. She opened the door and found Damien poised on the threshold. In the shock of Tanya’s disclosure Abi had forgotten about their meeting. She turned around and Damien followed. To her dismay, the first thing she saw when she turned were Tanya’s photos spread across her desk. She hadn’t thought to pack them away, she hadn’t known what to do with them. She didn’t want to keep them, she didn’t even want to look at them, but to sweep them off her desk and into a drawer would only draw Damien’s attention to them. She would have to stack them in a pile and get rid of them later, but before she could gather them together Damien had reached over and picked one up. It was one of Abi in uniform.
Abi held her breath while he looked it over.
He pointed at Mark. ‘Who’s this?’
‘Mark Farrington.’
‘Your commanding officer?’
Abi nodded.
‘You were in a relationship with him?’
Abi felt the colour drain from her face. Was it obvious to everyone?
She nodded again.
‘So Nicolette Farrington is a relative?’
‘His daughter.’
‘You know her?’
‘No. I’d never met her until two days ago. The referral is just a coincidence. I don’t know his family. They don’t know me.’
‘His family?’ Nicolette’s file was on Abi’s desk. Damien flicked it open and picked up another photo. The family photo. It clearly showed Mark and Tanya’s hands. Their wedding rings. ‘He’s married?’
‘Seems he was,’ Abi replied. ‘Not that he shared that information with me.’
‘You didn’t know?’
She shook her head. ‘I found out at his funeral.’ She tried to explain. ‘Finding out that I’d been in a relationship with someone else’s husband compounded my PTSD. The guilt over Mark’s death and the affair in addition to the stress from the bombing incident was the last straw.’ Abi wasn’t sure if Damien would believe her but it was suddenly extremely important to her that he did. She wanted, needed, him to trust in her.
Damien put the photos back on her desk. He turned the one with her in it face down, very slowly and very deliberately. What was he thinking? Did he believe her or was he going to torture her over the affair?
‘Does his wife know?’ he asked.
Abi nodded. ‘She gave me the photos.’
‘Do you still think it’s a good idea to take Nikki on as a patient?’
‘Yes. I can do this and I think it will be amazing. We can transform Nikki physically, improve her function and her aesthetics and restore her confidence. I know what it’s like to have your confidence completely destroyed. Mark’s lies did that to me.’
‘Will you be able to put that behind you when you operate on his daughter?’
Abi nodded. ‘I’m angry with Mark for taking advantage of me and angry with myself for being so gullible, but I’m not angry with Nikki. This is my chance to make amends for what I did, albeit unknowingly, but it’s a form of redemption. I’ll feel better if I can make up for my mistakes.’
‘Are you doing this for Nikki or for yourself?’
‘For both of us.’ Her own self-confidence had been seriously dented by Mark’s lies but even if her personal life was a wreck, at least she had her work and despite Mark’s behaviour she would do her best for his daughter. ‘I have no intention of failing to do my best for any of my patients, and that includes Nikki. But I need your help.’
‘Are you sure you can do this?’
Abi nodded.
In Damien’s opinion that was a big statement to make and he wasn’t convinced that he believed her but, despite that, he could feel himself wanting to help her. But he hesitated before he committed himself to her cause. He needed to examine why he felt this urge to help. Was it because he felt she would need support? There was no doubt she was qualified to perform the surgery but did he think she was emotionally capable? Did he want to help because he thought he might need to pick up the pieces?
He knew she had been taken advantage of. She’d been mistreated, abused, emotionally if not physically. His protective instincts were strong at the best of times but something about Abi made them even more reactive. Abi wasn’t manipulative, like his ex. She was altruistic and because he could sense the goodness in her he knew he would give her anything she asked for. Including this.
‘All right,’ he told her. ‘I will help you.’
* * *
‘Hi, have you got a minute?’
Damien was standing in her doorway. She was getting used to him popping in and out on a regular basis. She was getting used to his dark good looks, the shine in the depths of his dark eyes and the spontaneous smile that was often so unexpected but always made her spirits lift.
‘Sure.’
‘How are you coping?’ he asked.
‘I’m good,’ she replied, and realised that she spoke the truth. She was feeling good with herself for the first time in months. Guilt about the affair had compounded her PTSD and exacerbated her symptoms, but finding out that Tanya knew about Mark’s behaviour and that Abi hadn’t been his only dalliance had lessened her guilt. Her conscience had eased and so had her stress.
‘Are you busy on Sunday afternoon?’
‘Sunday? No.’ She’d assumed Damien’s question would have been work-related but she had no plans. She never had plans. ‘Why?’
‘I’ve been invited to the film industry awards.’
‘Wow! Really? By whom?’ He really did live a different life from her. She couldn’t believe she had even dared imagine after their day at the pier that she could be a part of it.
‘One of my patients has been nominated for Best Supporting Actor. He had oral cancer, a squamous cell carcinoma with secondaries in his jaw. I reconstructed his mandible and he was able to return to acting, and he’s invited me on Sunday as a thank-you.’
‘Would you like me to look after Summer for you?’
‘Summer?’ Damien shook his head. ‘No. I wanted to know if you would like to come with me.’
‘To the awards ceremony? Me? Why would you want to take me?’
‘Who else would you suggest?’ He was laughing now, the little creases in the corners of his eyes bringing life to the smooth planes of his face.
Freya, Mila. She couldn’t think of any single girls. And if she could have, would she want him to choose them over her?
‘I want to take you,’ he said, making Abi wish everything in life was that simple. ‘I thought you might enjoy it. I know you said you’re coping with the pressure of operating on Nikki and I know you want to go ahead with that and I accept that is your choice—’ Abi knew he had reservations about the surgery. He had told her he was worried that it would increase her stress levels and possibly exacerbate her PTSD, but Abi had insisted she could manage. Work was the one thing in her life that she felt she