The sun shone clear and warm on their backs as they strode along the path. The sea breeze blew Piper’s bright golden mist of hair around her chubby face as she chattered away. Trina decided Finn looked so much more relaxed out in the open. It made her feel good that she’d helped.
A cruise ship hugged the horizon and she pointed it out to Finn. Piper saw a seabird dive into the water far below and they had to stop and watch for a minute until it came out again with a fish in its beak.
Trina admired the skill of the surfers, bobbing and swooping like brilliant supple-bodied flying fish on the curling waves.
When she commented, Finn shared, ‘I love surfing.’
‘I’ve never tried.’ Maybe she could add that to her adventure list.
Finn said, ‘When Piper is old enough I’ll teach her to surf. This looks a great place to do that.’
‘Dr Southwell used to surf every morning before he was married. Though I have to admit he did come a cropper when he was washed off the shelf last year.’
He looked back the way they’d come. ‘Really? Ouch. Which shelf?’
She pointed. ‘The ones under the cliffs, with the rock pools we were in yesterday.’
Finn frowned. ‘It doesn’t look dangerous there.’
‘It is on a king tide. And his timing was off if you ask him. They lifted him out with a chopper but the good news was his son met Ellie, my boss, when he came to locum while his father was away, and they married and are having a baby. That’s why I’m doing Ellie’s job for the next year—hence the change from night duty.’
‘Happy ending.’ His voice held only a trace of bitterness. She got that. But she’d moved on herself, thankfully.
She wondered if he’d heard his own subtext because his voice came out warmer than before. ‘So were they all the people in the restaurant on Friday?’
She’d forgotten. ‘Yes, that’s right—you were there. With Piper and your sister.’ She thought back over those present. ‘They were celebrating Ellie’s leave and my promotion.’
‘Congratulations.’
She laughed. ‘Thanks. First day tomorrow. We’ll see.’
She thought back to Friday and the pleasant lunch. Her own surprise to see Finn there. With another woman. Felt just a little embarrassed now she knew it was his sister. Hurried on in case it showed on her face. ‘The other older lady at the table is the one who makes the most divine cakes—Dr Southwell’s wife, Myra.’
‘I guess I’ll get to know them all. Dr Southwell’s offered me a place in his practice. I’ll start as soon as I can find day care for Piper.’
She raised her brows. ‘Do you have a specialty?’
‘I started in general practice. Then I went on and studied paediatrics. I thought everyone knew?’ Then he shook his head. ‘I guess I haven’t really spoken to many people. I have my Diploma of Obstetrics from my GP days, but no real experience in that. Just the antenatal side of it. Not the delivery part.’
He didn’t look old enough to have done all that. Catrina smiled at him, decided she wouldn’t share that thought and shook her head mockingly. ‘We don’t say delivery any more. Especially in Lighthouse Bay. We’re Midwifery Group Practice.’
He put his hands up. ‘Midwifery Group Practice. And I said delivery. My bad.’
‘Very.’ She smiled at him. ‘Everything is midwifery-led and woman-centred. The antenatal clinic is drop-in and popular. When the mother births, we support her choice to stay or go, and she’s visited at home within the day after if that’s what she wants or she can stay for a few days in the hospital. Either way, we don’t call a doctor unless someone is sick.’
He put out his hands helplessly and pretended to sigh. ‘I’m defunct and I haven’t even started.’
She laughed. ‘You’ll get used to it. You should meet Ellie and her husband. Sam’s the Director of Obstetrics at the base hospital and fell in love with Lighthouse Bay too. And Ellie, of course.’ She smiled at the thought. ‘Sam moved here from a big Brisbane Hospital so we’re lucky to have him as an unofficial back-up in real emergencies when he’s not on-call at the base hospital.’
She looked at him thoughtfully. ‘I’ve thought of someone who could mind Piper, if you’re interested.’
His face went blank and she hesitated. Maybe he wasn’t ready yet.
‘I’ll need to find someone eventually,’ he managed but she could see it cost him. She wished she hadn’t mentioned it now.
Then he said more firmly, ‘Sure. That would be great. I need to start looking.’
Trina thought about Marni. She didn’t regret mentioning her, though. ‘She’s a doll. A natural mother. Her twins are six months old and she’s just registered for day care status.’
Finn
FINN FELT HIS stomach drop. He wasn’t seeing the path or the ocean or the sky overhead. He shouldn’t have asked about day care. But something inside had dared him to. Something that wanted him to move on, as if he’d known he’d be catapulted into a decision if he put it out there. All his instincts wanted to draw back. Stop her telling him. Say he’d ask if he decided it was time. She’d understand. Not sure how he knew that but he believed in the truth of it.
Instead he said, ‘Would you recommend her?’
She looked at him thoughtfully. Kindly. ‘That’s tough because it’s not about me,’ she said gently, as if she could read his distress. Then she looked at Piper. ‘Marni could mind my child, if I had one.’ The tone was almost joking. He saw something that looked like pain flit across her face and remembered again there were people out there who did suffer as much as he did. People like Catrina. Left alone by the love of their life—without choice and unintentionally. Loss of love and no baby to hold like he did. Imagine life without Piper.
Catrina’s voice wasn’t quite steady but he could hear the struggle to make it so. It had been a very brave thing to say and he wanted to tell her that. Wanted to tell her that he understood. But still the coward inside him shied away from so much emotion.
Catrina said, ‘Maybe you could see if Piper likes her before you commit to work and see how she goes? Just an hour or two?’
‘That’s a good idea. Tell me about her.’
He saw her gaze into the distance, a soft smile on her face and a glimmer of distress, though this time he didn’t think it was for herself. ‘She’s a younger mum. Early twenties. She and her husband own the dry-cleaners in town but she’s a stay-at-home mum. Marni’s Mother Earth and the boys are six months old. Bundles of energy, healthy as all get-out, which is great because she nearly lost them at twenty-three weeks, and she spent a lot of time in hospital. As far as the midwives of Lighthouse Bay think, she’s a hero to us.’
He had to smile at that. ‘The Midwives of Lighthouse Bay. Sounds like a serial on TV.’
She laughed a little self-consciously and he regretted making light of the one stable thing she had in her life, hadn’t meant to embarrass her. ‘Don’t get me wrong. It’s another good ending to a story.’
Catrina seemed to relax. ‘It really was. Ellie’s husband, Sam, had been involved in research into preventing extreme premature birth in Brisbane, and thankfully he was here when she went into labour. Marni and Bob are a lovely