SUMMER PULLED A napkin from the dispenser and ripped it into tiny shreds, littering the table with tissue snowflakes. Fiona Brady, the co-owner with her husband, wouldn’t be pleased she was making a mess in her spotless bakery and bistro or, worse, might come over to see what had her in such a flap, but she had to release some of this nervous energy somewhere. She daren’t order a coffee before Kaylee got there or she’d be buzzing like a bug in a bottle on her second cup.
The waitress, one of the redheaded Brady offspring, was hovering but she hoped once her friend got here and they ordered, she’d give them some privacy. She needed to get some advice about this idea of working closer with Rafael, especially after what had almost happened last night. Since Kaylee had registered Summer’s personal interest before she had, she seemed the logical choice for a confidante.
It was obvious Rafael wanted to keep things strictly professional. He’d made that clear last night when he’d avoided that kiss and all but thrown her out of his house. Then had reinforced his stance by carrying on as though nothing had happened. Working in the same clinic, sometimes with the same patients, including his daughter, it was probably for the best.
The waitress passed by and gave a puzzled glance at the confetti she’d shed all over the table. Summer brushed it into her hand and shoved it in her pocket before she reported it back to her mother.
Her heart and her stomach flipped as a familiar figure crossed the road towards the café but it wasn’t the person she’d been expecting.
‘Hi, Rafael, Gracie.’ There was no way of avoiding them when she’d chosen the seat closest to the door to give her an unobstructed view of Main Street.
‘Hey.’ He walked past her towards the counter, allowing her internal body parts to stop somersaulting. Gracie, however, pulled out a chair next to her and sat down with Dolly.
Her father put in the doughnut order the twins had requested and Gracie’s sugar cookie. ‘Er, Miss Ryan? Can I get you something? I did promise.’
‘Summer,’ Gracie shouted without looking up from Dolly, who was hopping across the table on her good leg with some assistance.
‘Pardon?’ Rafael was noticeably perplexed by her response.
‘Not Miss Ryan, Papa. Summer.’
Summer suppressed a smirk that one of the Valdez family was showing some maturity to ensure they remained on first-name terms and his eye roll at the correction didn’t escape her attention.
‘Sorry, Summer, would you like something from the case?’ Under pressure from his three-year-old, he was being overly nice now.
‘No, thanks. I’m waiting for someone. I’ll order when they get here.’ She gave him a friendly smile and was surprised to see his features darken in response.
‘Gracie, we should go and let Miss... Summer get her coffee in peace.’ He snatched up the cake box from the counter and held the door open to leave.
‘Did you get to speak to Alex about that matter we discussed?’ She knew he hadn’t, because her supervisor at the day-care centre had still been completely in the dark when she’d raised the subject of Gracie.
‘Not yet. I got a little...distracted.’
‘Let me know if you’ve changed your mind about the arrangement, or when you want me to start.’
He grunted some unintelligible response as he urged Gracie out of the premises with him. Summer waved them out, wondering what on earth had happened to put him in such a foul mood.
‘Sorry I’m late.’ Kaylee rushed in through the door and Summer was forced to drag her attention away from the father and daughter crossing back over the road. It was none of her business what was bothering him.
‘Hello.’ Kaylee waved a hand in front of her face to remind her she was there.
‘Sorry. Dr Valdez was just here. He seemed upset about something.’
‘What is it with you two? You always seem to rub each other up the wrong way.’ Summer’s coffee companion dumped her purse on the table and collapsed into the chair opposite.
‘That’s not strictly true. We both care about what’s best for Gracie, that’s all. In fact, we’ve been discussing the idea of me caring for her on a full-time basis.’
‘Do you really think that’s a good idea?’
‘Why?’
‘I’ve seen the way you look at him.’ The raised eyebrows were enough to make Summer blush.
‘He’s a good-looking guy but we’re both professional. Nothing’s going to happen.’ Despite planning to confide in her friend about the near-kiss, she decided there was nothing to tell and should simply put the matter behind her the way Rafael had clearly done.
‘Is that so? In that case, it might be a good idea for the two of you to take a step back rather than get closer where there’s more temptation. Now, we should probably order before they throw us out.’
‘I guess. I’ll have an Americano, thanks.’
‘And to eat?’
‘You choose.’ Summer had zero appetite, her stomach in knots that her wayward feelings for Rafael were apparently so transparent. Kaylee was right, she needed a buffer between her and the man she hadn’t been able to stop thinking about since last night, and he needed more people in his life than her.
She reached for her bag and the notebook and pen she kept there to jot down some sort of schedule for her and Gracie that would keep her too busy to think about Rafael.
It was only then she saw Dolly lying under the table and knew she couldn’t go home until she’d returned her to her rightful owner.
‘And you just complicated matters even more,’ she muttered to her soft-bodied friend. If Gracie was as attached to Dolly as Rafael had indicated, she’d have to return her tonight. Against her better judgement her pulse was racing at the prospect of seeing him again so soon.
‘We’ll get Dolly now, Gracie.’ Rafael had tried to placate her with every other toy in the house rather than walk back into the café and look as though he was using his daughter as an excuse to spy on whoever Summer was meeting in the bakery.
In the end he decided her wrath was preferable to his daughter’s, which experience had told him could last for hours. He’d heard enough screaming, crying and smashing things for one night and right now all he cared about was making her happy.
He parked the car across the street from Brady’s, unbuckled Gracie from her car seat and prepared to interrupt Summer’s coffee date. She’d looked so nervous and guilty when he’d spotted her in there he was convinced she had to be meeting up with another man.
Jealousy was something he hadn’t experienced in a long time and he couldn’t say he enjoyed the realisations it brought with it. She had moved on after their near-kiss. That’s what he’d wanted. Except he hadn’t expected it to happen so soon. Not when the memory was still so fresh for him he could still feel her breath on his lips. Despite all the reasons he shouldn’t be with Summer, that’s exactly where he wanted to be. Envy of the man who would have that privileged position twisted through his body like fast-acting poison, eating away at his insides and turning everything toxic.
Then he saw Summer walk out the door, talking to Dolly and, taking Gracie by the hand, he strode straight towards her.
‘We were just coming to find you.’
‘Me or my friend?’ she asked, waving Dolly’s arm at him, her adorable playfulness only furthering his pain.
‘Gracie wouldn’t go to bed without her.’ That was the understatement of the century and couldn’t begin to convey the chaos that had ensued as a result of Dolly’s disappearance. He’d torn the house and car apart looking for her to calm Gracie down before realising she’d been left as a gooseberry on Summer’s date.
‘Now she doesn’t have to.’ Summer handed her over with a smile that he only ever wanted to be for him.
‘Thanks. Did you...uh...have a nice time?’ He didn’t know why he’d asked when the thought was physical and mental torture to him and the answer was written all over her face anyway.
Her frown disappeared as quickly as it had formed as she probably wondered why he thought it was any of her business who’d she’d been with, or what they’d done. ‘I did, as it happens. Kaylee’s good company.’
‘Kaylee...yeah, she seems like fun.’ Relief whooshed through him so quickly at the mention of her colleague at the nursery his head was spinning. The knowledge that she wasn’t seeing another man after all revealed some home truths to Rafael. He’d convinced himself he couldn’t be with her but the thought of her with someone else had eaten away at him at such a devastating rate it was clear this was more than simple attraction. There were feelings developing for her that went beyond superficial desires but understanding that didn’t mean he was in any better a place to act on them.
‘Actually, I was noting down a few ideas about some fundraising events we could do to pay for some more beds in the children’s wing.’ She rummaged in her bag and it was his turn to wonder why he should be involved.
‘I’m sure it will be much appreciated. Let me know what I can do.’ The clinic already funded a couple of beds for those families who couldn’t afford their children’s medical expenses and he knew an extension to the charitable cause could only be a good thing.
‘I was hoping you would volunteer to organise it,’ she said with a grimace as he prepared to end his involvement with a donation.
‘Me? Why?’ He was stopped in his tracks by the suggestion and couldn’t figure out where this idea had come from.
‘In case you haven’t noticed, a lot of the events on Maple Island are based around food. I was thinking perhaps we could promote a healthier option by having a sponsored triathlon. I know it’s still too cold to expect people to go swimming in the sea, so we might be able to do something at the clinic. It shouldn’t be too hard to get control of the pool for the swimming event and set up some exercise bikes and treadmills for the cycling and running.’
‘Sounds good but I don’t understand where I come in.’ She’d obviously put a lot of thought into the idea and, although admirable, he didn’t understand why she would then want him to take over the reins and claim the glory.
‘That’s a funny story... You have a bit of a nickname around here—Triathlon Dad.’ She was trying to conceal a smirk and failing.
‘Okay,’ he said, not really understanding the joke.
‘On account of all the sport you do around the island,’ she explained, and this time he got it. The swimming, cycling and running he did apparently hadn’t gone unnoticed.
‘I had no idea.’ He shook his head with a laugh. It was kind of funny when he’d always imagined he’d managed to keep a low profile on the island outside the clinic.
Summer glanced at Gracie, who was too busy playing with Dolly to care what the grown-ups were talking about, and lowered her voice. ‘Anyway, I thought it might do you good to integrate into the community more.’
He bristled at the thought of inviting more people into his life when he was still experiencing the fallout from bending his house rules for her. ‘Gracie and I are quite happy as we are, thank you.’
‘I just thought...well, have you ever considered that by closing yourself off you’re also limiting Gracie’s social skills even more?’ She bit her lip, clearly knowing how close she was pushing his patience to the limit.
He didn’t appreciate anyone telling him how to raise his daughter but Summer’s opinion was one he was learning to respect. Everything she said made sense even if it sometimes felt like a slight against his parenting skills. Something he now knew she would never intentionally do.
It occurred to him that this exercise in public relations she was proposing might provide some distraction from his growing attraction to her. Their closeness could have been precipitated by his limited social circle since coming to Maple Island and he supposed it wouldn’t hurt to extend it a little. If they had other things, other people to keep them busy, they might stop seeking each other out.
‘I guess it’s worth looking into and it’s for a good cause after all.’ The clinic, and those who came to it, would benefit from the fundraising. He glanced at Gracie as she clutched her second-hand doll and considered the possibility that in trying to protect her, he’d isolated her more. Something he wanted a chance to rectify for her sake.
‘I’m not sure of your family circumstances, and do feel free to tell me to mind my own business, but do you have any family who might come over for the event? It might be a good excuse for them to come and visit, perhaps spend some time with Gracie.’ She was fishing now, looking for someone else he could invite into his daughter’s life, but that wasn’t an option.
‘No one local,’ was all the information he was prepared to give.
He thought about his parents for the first time in years. When Christina had first left, when his life had been in utter chaos, he’d considered contacting his family. He’d needed to reach out to someone for that support most people took for granted in their lives, but by then Gracie’s developmental issues had become apparent. With a future stretching ahead of them already full of uncertainty, he’d shut down any possibility of inviting his parents back into his personal business.
Someday he might forgive them for their lack of compassion towards him but he didn’t want to leave Gracie susceptible to the same treatment. If they were to reject her for not fitting in to the mould of their perfect grandchild, he knew he would never forgive them. For now, he would rather leave things as they were so no one else got hurt.
Summer’s apparent step too far into Rafael’s personal affairs was disrupted by the sound of squealing brakes, followed by an almighty crash. They both paused, and the ensuing silence was as frightening as the initial din. It became clear someone close by might be hurt and requiring assistance. After rushing back round the corner, they saw a scene of devastation that was too close to home not to affect them.
The second she saw Rafael’s silver sedan crushed between the two other vehicles she had to brace herself before her legs gave way. It had been shunted into the stationary car in front by the one currently wedged into the back of it. No one could have survived that double impact and she was grateful they’d been with her instead. The alternative didn’t bear thinking about.
‘It’s okay, Gracie.’ She comforted the little girl, who was understandably upset at the sight, and quickly moved to block the scene from Gracie’s view.
A crowd had gathered around the station wagon slammed sideways into Rafael’s car and once she’d convinced him she would look after Gracie, he sprinted across the road to help.
Every now and then he glanced up at her from his crouched position on the ground where he was talking to the injured driver, his face a conflicting mixture of emotions that weren’t difficult to interpret. She knew him well enough to see he was thankful he and Gracie were safe but worried for everyone else involved. All of which he was setting aside to help the injured. Her heart swelled, full of admiration for the man he was, not only as a committed medical professional but also as a compassionate human being. So often she’d seen him put the needs of others first and not everyone she’d encountered in life was so noble.
He flashed her a brief smile, which was every bit as brief and unsteady as hers but proof enough to Summer he was glad she was there for him and Gracie.
The assembled crowd worked on prising the mangled car door open on the driver’s side to enable access for the emergency services. With this level of trauma they had to be careful to stabilise the patient until she was transported and assessed to prevent any further damage being caused. Rafael was trying to calm the woman, who was rambling and crying about the brakes failing and, most worryingly, that she couldn’t move her legs.
The ambulance pulled up alongside and the paramedics dispersed the crowd so they could reach the injured party. Rafael relayed the events and it was only when the woman had been given urgent pain relief and stabilised with a backboard and cervical collar that he was able to take a step back and breathe.
‘I’ll come with you back to the clinic,’ he told the crew as he came back to check on Gracie. ‘Thanks for helping, Summer.’
‘I’m just glad you’re both safe.’ Drop-down-on-her-knees-weeping-and-wailing glad, though she couldn’t show it in public.
‘I can’t believe how close we came.’ He ran his hands over his head, his hair and confidence visibly ruffled for the first time since taking charge of the incident.
‘You couldn’t have known that was going to happen and you weren’t hurt, that’s the main thing.’ She knew he’d never have forgiven himself if Gracie had been injured, no matter how faultless he’d have been in what happened.
‘On initial assessment I think I’m going to be required at the clinic to treat the family before we can transfer them to Boston.’
‘It didn’t look good.’ Maple Island didn’t have a major trauma unit and they’d have to be flown to Boston, but not before they at least knew the extent of their injuries.
Rafael shook his head. ‘It’s going to be a long night.’
‘I could take Gracie back to yours if you’d like? Will we have a sleepover, Gracie?’ This wasn’t in her plans for creating more distance between her and their family but she knew that right now Rafael wouldn’t let anyone else help and neither would Gracie. She was alone in that privileged position and this was more about the patient getting the treatment she needed than her private life.
‘With Dolly too?’
‘With Dolly.’ She was grateful if that was the child’s only concern and hopefully she’d managed to keep her far enough away from everything going on to bother her.
Rafael scooped Gracie into his arms for an understandably too-long hug and Summer had to look away, choked up by the unsaid words and unexpressed emotions filling the air.
‘I’ll check in with you when I can,’ he shouted, and jumped into the back of the ambulance.
As the ambulance raced to the clinic Rafael wished he had more time to process what had happened. In all likelihood, and despite not having all of the equipment readily available in the major trauma unit of a city hospital, he was going to have to operate on the driver of the car, if only to stabilise her until they could transfer her to Boston. As always, he’d leave his personal problems outside the doors of the operating room but for now his mind was a whirl of emotions that were going to take a while to work through.
His first thoughts always belonged to Graciela and how he could’ve lost her if she’d been strapped into the back seat when the car had slammed into his.
That picture of twisted metal and shattered glass, the vehicle crumpled beyond recognition, would haunt him for ever. His shudder was a reaction to the thought of the injuries she could’ve sustained and how empty his life would be without her in it.
Summer had reassured him immediately in the aftermath. ‘She’s fine.’
Hearing her say it had released the pressure in his lungs so he’d been able to inhale a shaky breath. She’d interpreted his actions so easily he knew she’d felt as concerned as he had.
The emergency room was a hive of activity as staff buzzed around the new patients, the drama of which he was sure hadn’t been seen here before at the clinic. It was more akin to the high-paced environment of its city counterparts. Thankfully he was used to working in this kind of situation and entered with determination to bring some focus to it. Although he was aware this wasn’t his department and the staff were more than capable, he wanted to be there in case he was needed.
Rafael presented himself to the lead physician overseeing the initial assessment and shook his hand.
‘Am I glad to see you here. I’ve ordered X-rays but most of the pain appears to be centred around her spine.’
There were a lot of serious problems associated with high-impact accidents such as head, neck, chest or abdomen injuries and fractures. All of those would be referred to the relevant specialists but a further spinal injury could be prevented from causing more pain or deformity by initial surgery, and that was his area of expertise. Rafael wasn’t in the habit of boasting but he knew there wasn’t a better spinal surgeon to be found in Boston because he was here on Maple Island, and one of the first on the scene with first-hand knowledge of the traumatic event.
While waiting for the X-ray results, Rafael sought permission to do his own clinical evaluation on their adult patient. There was absolutely no hesitation from the attending physician in granting him access in the desire to expedite her treatment.
He applied progressive circular pressure to pinpoint where she was experiencing the tenderness but Paisley, the patient, was letting him know that everything he did hurt.
Potential injuries caused by the crash could include vertebrae fractures, disc extrusion, compression or carotid arterial injury. A cervical injury was often indicated by neurological discrepancy or obvious fracture or malalignment but it was too risky to perform a full range of motion assessment, given the high-impact collision she’d suffered and that she was experiencing neck pain, spine tenderness and was unable to even sit up.
She’d required a series of X-rays where all seven vertebrae had been visible and he’d consult Alex on this one too for a neurological exam measuring sensation, muscle tone and reflexes.
He was going to have to potentially stabilise the spine, remove bone fragments and restore the alignment of the vertebrae to reduce compression in the spinal cord.
If the vertebrae in the spinal cord were unsuitable he might have to perform a spinal fusion with metal plates, screws wires and metal rods. In some cases it was even possible to use small pieces of bone from the hip or knee to grow and fuse vertebrae, but he wouldn’t know until he saw the damage for himself.
Rafael was more aware than ever that his patient’s quality of life had literally been in his hands. The trauma she’d sustained to her spine would take a long period of healing and he’d wanted to give her every chance of getting back to normal. If they’d transferred her to Boston immediately there’d have been a risk of causing more damage.
The excessive displacement of the spine had required a spinal fusion to stabilise the vertebrae. It had taken over three hours, using metalwork and bone grafts, to do the job so the body would eventually build bony bridges across those segments to prevent movement and the resulting pain.
As Paisley was wheeled into Recovery, with the drainage tubes protruding from her wound, the drip attached to replace lost fluids, and an oxygen mask to ease her breathing, he pictured himself in her place. A lapse in concentration and split-second decisions were all that had saved him from a similar fate.
What would’ve happened to Gracie in those circumstances? Paisley was going to be incapacitated for quite a while and there was all the follow-up treatment after that—physiotherapy to improve mobility, occupational therapy to manage daily activities once taken for granted, and a psychologist to work through the mental trauma she’d suffered throughout. In the same position, he was afraid he’d have to put Gracie into care.
Fortunately, the patient had family and friends in Boston able to step up and provide support for her. He had no one. His family had made the decision to cut him out of their lives when he’d chosen to live the life he wanted and buck tradition. However, when it came to friends he was entirely responsible for his own resistance to let anyone close enough to claim that title.
Now, imagining himself on that hospital trolley, perhaps with his daughter lying injured on another, he knew Summer was the only person he’d want by his side.
Here she was tonight, once again going beyond her duty to devote time to his daughter. She wasn’t the sort of person who’d abandon Gracie without a second thought, the way her mother had. It was time he admitted the truth. That he was afraid another person he cared for would walk out on him again, leaving him to pick up the pieces of his broken heart and start over again. After being abandoned by his parents and Christina, he knew he wouldn’t survive another.
When he’d first arrived in America, it had been a lonely experience as well as a cultural shock. Although fluent in several languages, including English, he’d had difficulty fitting into college life, unused to sharing his space with people who weren’t family. It had taken time for him to acquire a small group of friends to socialise with, to confide in and generally spend time with. Up until then he’d had to wander the campus on his own, figuring out things for himself. Unlike other freshman students, he hadn’t had the comfort of a familiar voice on the end of the telephone to reassure him things would work out. He’d been homesick without having a home to return to if things hadn’t worked out.
Christina had been one of those who’d helped him fit in, always there to buck him up when he’d needed it, and falling for her had been inevitable when they’d spent so much time together. When she’d left he’d been taken right back to those early days, feeling abandoned and totally alone in the world. Except this time he’d had a helpless baby to take care of too. Since then it had been him and Gracie against the world and it was only recently he’d stopped thinking of himself as being alone.
Summer had shown affection for them both and had made a difference in his life and Gracie’s. To lose her in any capacity would create a hole in his life that could never be filled. Not when he could sense the chance of happiness almost within his grasp.
Summer represented a danger to his status quo but that safety net he’d strung up around him and Gracie now felt more restrictive and suffocating than sharing his space with someone who cared for them.
He was exhausted from taking care of Gracie and working but they loved life on the island and he didn’t want anything to spoil that. He’d thought he was protecting his heart by envisioning the worst-case scenario if he entered into another relationship. Now he was wondering if he wasn’t doing them all a disservice by maintaining this detachment from the rest of the world.