Author's Note: So, me and my friend Aimee on Twitter have decided to do a bit of a collab! Over the last two days we've been talking about what this fic should look like and how it should go and so we decided to put it out there for you all to have a read! This fic will be updated whenever a new chapter is written, so we don't have a set updating schedule I'm afraid. We hope that you all enjoy this fic though and happy reading! x
Shelagh grimaced as she brushed her fingers against the darkening bruise on her cheekbone when she was stood in front of the mirror in the bedroom that she shared with her husband one morning, a sigh falling from her lips as she knew that she would have to cover it up with some powder before she went to Nonnatus House to meet Sister Julienne just before lunchtime.
The low grunt that came from the bed that she had vacated a few minutes earlier prompted her to look over her shoulder, her heart pounding against her ribs as she watched Graham stir before relief flooded her body when he rolled over and his snores filled the air again. She hadn't always been this scared of him; he hadn't been violent, but ever since he had started drinking…he had become someone that she no longer recognized.
As she walked over to her dressing table in search of her powder, she reminded herself that Graham hadn't meant to hit her last night. He had had several cans of beer and she had scolded him for making a mess and for getting himself into such a state again and – in the heat of the moment – he had struck her across the face. It had been her own mistake, she knew that, and so she had forgiven him when he had climbed into bed behind her before encircling her in his arms and humming apologies between kisses to her shoulder and the side of her neck.
It didn't take long for her to cover the bruise on her cheek with powder – she had become so used to doing it that she could do it with her eyes closed – and once she had placed the lid back on the powder she returned it to the drawer in her dressing table before heading over to the bed, walking around to Graham's side and perching herself on the edge of the mattress. 'I love you so much, you know.' She told him while she stroked his dark hair.
She leaned down to give him a kiss on the cheek before running her hand across his shoulder and down his arm and getting up from the bed to walk over to the bedroom door and get her dressing gown. Once she had taken it from the hook on the back of the door she slipped it on and tied the sashes around her waist, her lips curling up into a smile of adoration when she opened the door and her gaze landed on her three-year-old daughter, Isla.
Isla wrapped her arms around her neck and buried her face in her shoulder once she had lowered herself down to her level, a sigh escaping her when she wrapped her own arms around her waist and gave her a squeeze before kissing the side of her head through her hair. It hurt her to know that Isla was too afraid to come into her room for a cuddle in the morning; that her father intimidated her so much that she didn't dare come into the room without him giving her permission first. 'Morning, Mummy.' She heard Isla whisper as she nuzzled her shoulder.
'Good morning, angel.' She replied before resting her hands on her arms and drawing her out of her embrace so that she could look into her eyes, 'Did you have a nice rest?' Isla gave a silent nod in reply as she looked at her. She moved her hands from her arms to her waist before bringing her close enough to press her lips to her brow, the two of them laughing together when her stomach gave a loud rumble a few seconds later. 'Goodness gracious, someone managed to work up quite the appetite through the night, didn't they?' Isla giggled at her exclamation.
'Breakfast?' She raised her brow at her mother.
'Yes, I think it's time Mummy went downstairs to find you something to eat.' Shelagh nodded. 'Would you like to come down to the kitchen with me so that you can choose what you want to have for breakfast, sweetheart?'
'Yes please, Mummy.' Isla said.
After pressing a final kiss onto her forehead, Shelagh rose from her crouched position before taking hold of her daughter's hand and stepping out of the bedroom before closing the door after glancing over her shoulder to make sure that Graham was still sleeping. She then brushed her thumb against Isla's knuckles before helping her to walk carefully down the staircase and then along the hall until the two of them came to their little kitchen.
It didn't take Isla long to decide that she wanted jam on toast for her breakfast and so – while she pulled out a chair at the table and climbed up onto it – Shelagh put two slices of bread into the toaster and went into the cupboard for the jam. Once she had placed the jam jar down on the kitchen counter she approached the dining table before drawing out the chair next to Isla and sitting down in it before reaching out to caress her cheek.
'Isla, do you remember how I told you that I have to go out for a little while this afternoon?' She asked, sighing when her little girl nodded. 'Well, while I'm gone, I want you to be a good girl and stay in your bedroom and play with your toys, okay?' She took one of her hands in her own before giving the back of her palm a soft kiss.
'Why?' Isla asked.
'Because…because Daddy has a bad headache and he's tired so he might be a bit of a grump today. You only have to stay in your bedroom until I get home though, and then we can make some cookies if you like? We can do whatever you want, but only if you do as Mummy says and you stay in your bedroom until I come back.'
Isla gave her a smile before squeezing her hand. 'Okay.'
'You're such a good girl.' Shelagh ran her hand over her hair.
She rose from her chair after a few seconds before making her way over to the toaster and getting Isla's toast out of it, a smile on her lips when she returned to the table after putting the toast on a plate and spreading the jam over them. 'Now, I want you to sit here and eat all your breakfast while I go and do a little bit of cleaning in the sitting room before Daddy gets up.' She told her daughter after placing her plate of toast down in front of her.
'Thank you, Mummy.' Isla smiled, Shelagh bending at the waist to kiss her forehead.
She then walked over to the kitchen counter before opening a drawer and pulling out a bin-bag, her gaze falling on the doorway to the sitting room as she tried to prepare herself for the mess she was about to come across. After making sure that Isla was eating her jam on toast she walked out of the kitchen and into the sitting room, her face falling when she took in the sight before her. There were empty beer cans scattered around the floor near his armchair, the photo frames that had been sat on the windowsill had been knocked off and some of the ornaments that had been sat on the cabinet near the door were now laying on the floor in quite a sorry state.
Graham had obviously stumbled right into it.
Deciding to just get on with cleaning the room instead of scolding her husband again in her head, she made her way over to his chair before bending down to pick up the beer cans and drop them into the bin-bag. It didn't take too long for her to finish getting rid of the beer cans and once she had tied the bin-bag she set it down and began to pick up the photo frames that were on the floor. The first one that she picked up was a photograph that she and Graham had had taken on their wedding day almost ten years ago. The years had passed so quickly.
The feeling of arms snaking around her middle startled her a few minutes later before she settled down when Graham pressed his lips to her shoulder through her dressing gown. 'Morning.' He pressed his lips to the side of her neck, Shelagh leaning back into his chest as she continued to hold onto their wedding photo. 'You know; you looked so beautiful in that dress. When you came walking down the aisle I almost cried at the sight of you.'
A delicate smile graced Shelagh's features before she heard him sigh when he rested his chin on her shoulder. 'About last night.' He grazed his nose against the side of her neck before she gave him a silent shake of the head.
'I don't want to talk about last night.' She whispered. 'I want to forget about it.'
She lowered her gaze to his chest when he turned her in his arms, Graham caressing her waist before he hooked his finger beneath her chin and lifted her gaze to his. 'I was out of order.' He told her as he moved his hand to her cheekbone and brushed his fingertips against the bruise that he knew she had covered up, her eyes fluttering closed at the contact. 'I had no right to hit you; you were just trying to help me, sweetheart, I know that now.'
'Graham, it's alright.' She soothed.
'No, Shelagh,' He placed his hand on the small of her back and drew her close before smoothing circles into the fabric of her dressing gown, 'no it's not. I need to sober up; I know that, and I swear I'm going to try harder.'
Shelagh lowered her gaze to his chest. 'You know that I love you…' She sighed, 'but words don't mean anything to me anymore. You need to prove it, Graham, you need to prove to me that you're going to sober up because otherwise that's just another empty promise.' She brought her gaze back to his when he kissed her on the temple.
'I will prove it to you.' He grazed her nose with his. 'You'll see.'
The two of them shared a small smile then before his gaze flicked from hers to her lips and back again, his hold of her tightening before he lowered his head to capture her lips between his in a gentle kiss. She placed a hand on his chest as her eyes fell closed again, stroking the dark hairs on his chest with her fingers while his lips caressed hers. Graham ran his tongue along the seam of her lips a few moments later and she sighed, parting her lips so he could deepen their kiss. As his tongue danced with hers she could taste the beer that he had been drinking the evening before and it took every ounce of strength that she possessed to prevent herself from gagging at the taste.
'Back to bed?' He suggested when he broke their kiss before tilting his head to leave a kiss to the area of her neck just below her jaw, Shelagh swallowing nervously as he kissed his way down her neck.
'Isla's in the kitchen.' She breathed as her head dropped to one side on instinct and he pulled her closer to him.
'She'll be alright.' He told her before pulling on the sash of her dressing gown to open it and slipping the garment off of her shoulders, Shelagh placing her hand on his chest when it fell to the floor.
'Graham, I…'
'Mummy, may I have a drink?' Relief flooded her body when Isla called from the kitchen and gave her a reason to ease her husband back from her, Graham groaning in disappointment as he stopped leaving kisses on her neck.
She reached up to run the back of her hand down his cheek when their eyes met.
He gave her a small smile at her caress before she began to walk past him, her breath hitching when he caught her around the waist and palled her back against his chest. 'Tonight.' He pressed a kiss to the side of her head.
Instead of feeling excitement at his words she felt dread as she knew that – when she went to bed that night – he wasn't going to stop kissing her and wasn't going to leave her be until he had had his way with her. She offered him a smile when she turned her head in his direction, hoping that it was convincing enough before he kissed her lips and let go of her. She waited until she had walked out of the sitting room before she let out a tearful sigh.
When she walked into the kitchen, however, she forced a smile to appear on her lips so that she didn't upset Isla. 'What would you like to drink, sweet pea?' She asked after walking over to her daughter and tucking one of her mousy curls back beneath her ear, Isla humming in thought for a second as she finished her second piece of toast.
'Apple juice, please.' She replied.
'Alright.' Shelagh nodded before leaving a kiss to the top of her head and taking the empty plate from the table.
As she set about pouring her little girl some apple juice, Graham walked into the kitchen and when she turned to take Isla's drink to her she was able to see just how anxious she was as she looked at her father. She sat down in the chair beside her daughter after putting her apple juice down on the table and she felt her heart sink when she saw her flinch when Graham gave her hair a stroke while he walked past her on his way over to the refrigerator.
It didn't take long for him to make himself some breakfast and leave the kitchen with it, Shelagh's brow creasing when she rested her hand on Isla's knee beneath the table. 'Daddy does love you, darling; you know that, don't you?' She sighed, Isla lifting her gaze from her cup of apple juice to her own before she gave her a sceptical look.
'He's mean.' Isla told her.
'He's not mean, Isla, he's just…not well…' Shelagh explained.
'He hurts you.' Isla whimpered.
Shelagh fell silent for a few moments at her words, her heart racing in her chest as she wondered if Isla had seen Graham backhand her in the sitting room the night before. After swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat she took one of her daughter's hands in hers before looking her in the eye. 'Darling, I want you to tell me something.' She told her. 'You won't be in trouble, I swear that, but you need to tell me the truth about this.'
'Okay.' Isla nodded.
Shelagh caressed her knuckles with her thumb. 'Were…were you watching when Daddy smacked me last night?'
Isla sat in silence for a few seconds as tears sparkled in her eyes before she sucked her bottom lip and nodded.
'Oh, sweetheart…' Shelagh placed her hands on her little girl's waist before bringing her into her lap, Isla hiding her face in her chest as she curled her fingers into her nightgown and snuggled against her with a quiet sniffle. 'What were you doing out of bed?' Shelagh asked after she had buried a number of lingering kisses into her hair.
'I wanted cuddles.' Isla admitted. 'I'm sorry.'
Shelagh shook her head before tightening her hold of her and kissing her crown again. 'You have nothing to be sorry about.' Her lips brushed her hair while she spoke to her. 'You've done nothing wrong, Isla, I mean that.'
There was only one person to blame for Isla seeing Graham strike her last night.
And that was Graham himself.
It was later that morning when Shelagh was sat on the chair in front of her dressing table while she brushed out her hair, her gaze fixed on Isla through the mirror as she was sat on the bed that she and Graham shared while she played with her doll. Knowing that her daughter had seen her father in such an intoxicated state the evening before; knowing that she had witnessed him slap her across the face so hard made her want to burst into tears.
When she had been standing in the sitting room with one hand on her burning cheek after Graham had hit her, she had thought that she had seen movement on the staircase but tears had blurred her vision and so she had managed to convince herself that she had been wrong. She knew now, however, that she had been right and the movement she had seen had been Isla running back upstairs after she had seen her get whacked by her father.
She wanted to believe that that was the first time she had seen Graham whack her during an argument or when he had a few beers in him, but the fact that she was so terrified of him and the fact that she hated it when he cuddled her or brought her to sit with him told her that there was a high chance that she had seen him belt her several times. She was so young and so innocent; she shouldn't have had to watch her father belt her mother.
The sound of the bedroom door opening brought her out of her thoughts after a time and when Graham came walking into the room she turned to Isla and offered her a soft smile. 'Isla, darling, can you go and play with your doll in your room for a little while? Mummy needs to have a private talk with your Daddy.' She admitted.
'Okay.' Isla replied before she got down from the bed and walked across the room towards the door, Shelagh turning to her husband once their daughter had walked out of the bedroom and closed the door behind herself.
'What do you want to talk to me about?' Graham asked as he sat down on the edge of the bed.
Shelagh sighed as she set her hairbrush down on her dressing table. 'I know that I said that I wanted to leave what happened last night in the past and forget about it, but I feel as though we have to talk about it now.' She saw the slight confusion on her husband's face as he looked at her. 'Isla…saw what you did to me.' She said.
'She saw me…'
'Yes, she did.' She replied. 'And I don't think that was the first time she's seen you put your hands on me, either.'
Graham gazed down at his lap as he felt a surge of annoyance course through him. 'What part of "when you're in bed you stay in bed" doesn't that girl understand?' He growled, Shelagh glaring at him from where she was sat.
'Don't you dare.' She spat. 'Don't you dare make out that this is her fault!'
Graham looked up at her at her outburst before scowling. 'If she had behaved herself and remained in bed then she wouldn't have seen anything, now would she?' He snapped while the two of them looked at one another.
'You shouldn't have put your hands on me in the first place; you said so yourself when we were downstairs!' She almost shouted. 'Our little girl is three years old, Graham, and she has seen things that no child her age should ever have to see! It's your fault that she saw you hit me last night because you were the one who made the choice to hit me. The blame isn't on me and it isn't on our daughter; it's on you because you haven't got the first idea about how to control your temper and to know when you've had enough to drink!' Tears were stinging her eyes.
'I apologised to you.' He growled. 'What else do you want from me?'
'I want the man I fell in love with back!' She released a sob. 'When we were courting; when we were first married you were so gentle with me. You hated it if men whistled at me when we were out for a walk together and you never would have dreamed of hitting me or insulting me if we argued or if I didn't have dinner on the table when you got home from work.' Soft tears were rolling down her cheeks. 'I don't understand what I've done wrong.'
When she cast her gaze down to her lap she heard Graham sigh as he got up from the bed, a sniffle coming from her when he knelt down in front of her and took one of her hands in his. 'You haven't done anything wrong.' This time his tone was loving as he spoke to her and she looked into his eyes when he gave her knuckles a caress. 'You are an incredible wife and a perfect Mummy to our daughter and Isla and I are so blessed to have you.'
'Then…then why do you hit me? Why do you tell me that I'm a waste of space?' She asked him while she cried.
Graham kept silent for a moment before sighing. 'Because…because I find it difficult to control my temper.'
'When you hit me and when you insult me it makes me feel like you've fallen out of love with me.' She told him.
He reached up to wipe the tears from her cheeks before he rose from his crouched position. 'Come with me.'
She got up from the chair before allowing him to lead her over to their bed by the hand, their eyes meeting when he sat down and placed his hands on her waist before he eased her onto his knee. 'Listen to me…' He told her while wrapping one arm around her middle and bringing his free hand up to sweep her hair out of her face. 'you are my wife and you mean more to me than anything else on earth, my love, and I will never stop loving you.'
'Do you mean it?' She sniffed.
'With every fibre of my being.' He traced the line of her jaw with his fingers.
She gave him a gentle smile then before lacing her arms around his neck and leaning forward to give him a warm kiss, Graham running his hand up and down her back through her dress when she drew back from him. 'I want you to wear a cardigan when you go to Nonnatus House.' He told her, Shelagh's heart sinking in her chest as she knew his reasoning. He didn't want Sister Julienne to notice the bruises that she had on her arms and forearms.
'Alright.' She unwound her arms from around his neck and ran her hands across his shoulders and down his arms before slipping from his lap to walk over to her wardrobe and choose a cardigan. In the end she chose the pale pink one that she had bought a few days earlier before slipping her arms into the sleeves. 'I won't be gone for too long, I don't think. I just have to sign some forms and then get my uniform off of Sister Julienne. I don't even think I'll be there for an hour.' Graham rose from the bed before walking over to her and kissing her brow softly.
'We'll be fine, don't worry.' He caressed her waist.
'Okay.' She smiled. 'Now, I had better get going if I'm going to be at Nonnatus House on time.'
The two of them shared a kiss then before she slipped from his hold and left the bedroom, her lips curling into a smile when she knocked on Isla's door before pushing it open and entering the room. 'I'm leaving now, darling.' She said as Isla looked up at her from where she was sat on the floor with her dolls, her daughter pushing herself to her feet before she approached her and put both of her arms around her legs. 'Do you remember what I said?'
'Stay in here.' Isla nodded against the skirt of her dress. 'I'll miss you.'
'I'll miss you too, sweet pea,' She ran her hand over her hair, 'but I won't be gone for too long.'
'Can we go to the park later?' Isla asked when she looked up at her and met her gaze.
Shelagh giggled before getting down to her level. 'Yes, we can go to the park when I get home.'
The happiness was evident on Isla's face.
'Now, I need to get going.' Shelagh kissed her on the forehead. 'I'll see you in a little while, alright?'
'Alright.' Isla echoed before her mother left the bedroom while she walked back over to her dolls.
Once Shelagh had closed the door to her daughter's bedroom behind her, she sighed. Even though Graham had told her that things would be fine, she was still sceptical. Deep down, she wished she could take Isla with her, but she knew that if she did then she and Sister Julienne wouldn't be able to talk since Isla would be asking her question after question.
Knowing that she was going to end up being late if she stood there brooding for a moment longer, she walked downstairs before picking up her handbag and leaving the house to start the short walk to Nonnatus House.
It was a little over an hour later when she was walking home from Nonnatus House with her new nursing bag in one hand and the package that contained her uniform tucked under her arm. The meeting that she had just had with Sister Julienne had gone as well as she had expected it would; the elder woman had been kind and made her feel welcome, but when she had been signing the paperwork the sleeve of her cardigan had rolled up somewhat.
The Sister had noticed the marks on her wrist – the marks that Graham had made by seizing her wrist when she had tried to storm out of the sitting room after another one of their arguments a couple of days before – and when she had asked her how she had received the bruises after she had pulled her sleeve back down she had told her that she was always walking into counters and doorframes when she was at home and that it was nothing.
She had been relieved when Sister Julienne hadn't pressed her further and had started to go through her schedule with her, but it had been obvious to her that the elder woman hadn't believed what she had said about walking into things at home. Sister Julienne had asked her if she would like to stay for a cup of tea once the meeting had come to an end, but she had wanted nothing more than to return home to Isla and so she had politely refused.
When she reached the flat that she lived in with her husband and daughter she sighed in relief as she pushed the door open and stepped inside, her brow furrowing in concern when she shut the door behind her and Isla came to stand at the top of the stairs with tear stains on her cheeks. She stood in silence for a time as she watched her little girl walk down the staircase, but got down to her level and sighed when Isla came to stand in front of her.
'What's the matter, precious?' She whispered as she placed her hands on her daughter's waist.
'Daddy shouted at me.' Isla told her before wiping her damp cheeks with the palms of her hands.
Shelagh's concern grew. 'He shouted at you? What for?'
'I was thirsty.' Isla admitted. 'I wanted a drink.'
'And he shouted at you for asking him if he would get you one?' Shelagh raised her brow.
Her daughter gave her a silent nod as tears sparkled in her eyes.
'Oh, Isla, come here.' She drew her into her arms before allowing her to wrap her arms around her neck and hide her face in her shoulder, her fingers running through her mousy hair as she heard her sniff against her shoulder. After a few minutes she eased her back from her before reaching up to remove the tears from her cheeks with the tips of her fingers. 'How about we go to the park, hmm? Would that make you feel a little better, my darling?'
Isla smiled at her suggestion before nodding. 'Can I go on the swings?'
'Of course.' Shelagh giggled. 'You can go on whatever you like.'
Isla took a step closer to her and kissed her on the cheek. 'I love you, Mummy.'
'I love you too, Isla.' Shelagh reassured her. 'Now, pop upstairs and find your coat.'
She watched her little girl ascend the stairs before she turned her head in the direction of the sitting room and let out a sigh as she shook her head. Once she had risen from her crouched position she folded her arms across her chest and walked towards the sitting room, Graham looking over at her as he took another long sip of beer when she walked into the room. 'Before you start snapping at me, I'm not drunk.' He admitted as she scowled at him.
'No,' She replied, 'but it's not going to be long until you are.'
'You've been home for five minutes,' He sighed, 'give it a rest.'
Shelagh lowered herself down onto the arm of the settee before looking at him in silence for a few minutes. 'Isla told me that you shouted at her because she came downstairs to ask you if you would get her a drink.' She said.
'She was being a pest.' He grumbled.
'No, she was thirsty.' She hissed. 'There's a difference.'
He rolled his eyes in response.
'It doesn't surprise me that she's scared of you, you know. You're always shouting at her.' She told him.
'Don't exaggerate.' He scoffed.
'I'm not.' She sighed. 'Whenever she's downstairs you snap at her for being too loud and whenever she's playing in the garden you snap at her for getting grass stains on her dresses. You're always telling me that you want to have a proper relationship with her; a relationship that a father is supposed to have with his little girl, but you're not realising that you're the one who's stopping that from happening. You're just pushing her away, Graham.'
Graham turned his head in the direction of the window before taking another swig of his beer.
'How many of those are you planning on having?' She asked.
'As many as I want.' He admitted.
'Well, I want you to think about this whenever you open another can.' She said as she got off of the arm of the settee. 'If you're drunk and passed out in that chair when Isla and I get home from the park later on, you'll be sleeping down here tonight and I'll never believe another one of your promises.' And, with that, she walked out of the sitting room before giggling when she saw Isla sitting on the stairs while she tried to put her shoes on.
'You might find it a little easier if you unbuckle them first, angel.' She informed her while approaching the stairs before she knelt down in front of her daughter, accepted the shoe from her and unbuckled it before pushing it onto her foot and fastening the buckle again. Once she had gotten her other shoe on she allowed her to slide her hand into hers before smiling when she jumped off of the stairs, Isla giggling when she gazed up into her eyes.
'Can we go to the park now, Mummy, can we go to the park now?' Isla asked while tugging on her hand.
Shelagh felt her heart swell with love for Isla when she saw the glimmer in her eyes. 'Come on, then.' She winked.
She opened the front door before allowing her daughter to step out of the flat first, the two of them entwining their fingers whilst she closed the door behind them before they both started to walk in the direction of the park.
Isla's eyelashes and warm breath beat against the side of Shelagh's neck when she was lying in bed with her in her arms late that evening, her head cushioned on her shoulder as she slept and her arm was draped over her middle while her mother ran her fingers through her hair in a comforting fashion. Walking into the sitting room to find Graham passed out in his armchair hadn't come as a surprise to her – she had known that that was the state she was going to find him in when she returned before she and Isla had even walked out of the flat to go to the park, but Graham had been shocked when it had dawned on him that she had meant what she had said to him earlier.
It had been obvious to her when she had set him a bed up on the settee that he had thought she had been joking when she had told him that he would be sleeping downstairs if she came home to him drunk, but not a single thing that she had said to him had been a joke. She was so sick and tired of coming home to a husband who did nothing but groan at her because he had a headache; of coming home to find countless beer cans on the floor and she was going to teach him a lesson whether he liked it or not. And it was clear that he didn't like it one bit.
'Mummy…' She heard Isla murmur as she stirred in her embrace before she turned her head towards her and kissed her on the forehead before shushing her, the love that she possessed for her deepening when she snuggled further into her and grasped the material of her nightgown in her hand before drifting off to sleep once more.
Isla had been so worn out when the two of them had left the park, the little darling, and had asked to be carried because of that. She was a lot heavier than she used to be since she was just a few months away from turning four now, but Shelagh hadn't been able to find it in her to make her walk and so she had picked her up and balanced her on her hip before allowing her to snuggle against her whilst she had carried her through the streets of Poplar.
Her back had started to ache after she had walked with her for a few minutes and just when she had been about to tell Isla that she needed to put her down, the sound of a car horn had prompted her to stop in her tracks. It had been the doctor that she had bumped into when she had been leaving Nonnatus House after meeting Sister Julienne – Patrick Turner if she remembered correctly – and when he had seen that she had been struggling to walk with Isla he had offered to drive the two of them home. She had tried to protest but then he had insisted.
Once she had opened the door and slipped into the passenger seat of his car, she had gotten Isla comfortable in her lap before the doctor had started driving again. The two of them had talked for a while - she had told him about how she and Graham had left Scotland and moved to Poplar with Isla because he had wanted them all to have a fresh start and Patrick had told her a few things about himself – and then when he had stopped the car outside her flat she had thanked him for giving up his time to drive her and Isla home before slipping out of it.
The last thing he had said to her before driving off had been: 'I'll see you at clinic on Monday afternoon.'
It was strange…she had only known this man for a matter of minutes and yet she felt as though she had known him for years. The conversation that the two of them had shared had flowed so smoothly and he had made her laugh more than once with his stories about his son, Timothy. If she was honest, she hadn't wanted to go home. She hadn't wanted Graham to remove the smile from her lips, but she had known she had had no other choice.
As she lay in silence in bed now, she found that she was almost…impatient…to see Patrick again at clinic.
When she heard the bedroom door squeak on its hinges as it opened she looked up from Isla to see her husband walk into the room, her brow creasing as he closed the door behind himself. 'I thought I told you that I wanted you to spend the night on the settee.' She told him as she continued to trail her fingers through Isla's silken hair.
'I can't get comfortable.' He said. 'Can't I just come to bed?'
Shelagh thought for a moment before sighing when she looked over at him again. 'You can come to bed, but I don't want to hear your apologies or your promises and I don't want you to hold me. I'm beyond tired and I want to be left alone so that I can sleep.' Graham gave a silent nod in response before turning out the light and heading over to their bed, Shelagh tightening her hold of Isla before she kissed her on the head and began to settle down with her. She closed her eyes as she felt her husband pull back the quilt and climb into bed behind her, listening to the sound of Isla's snores as Graham laid himself down and covered himself with their quilt.
'Goodnight, Shelagh.' He said.
'Goodnight, Graham.' She replied.
The two of them fell into silence then, Graham falling asleep in just a few minutes while Shelagh continued to lie awake and snuggle with her little girl. She didn't know what mood Graham was going to be in in the morning; whether he was going to be annoyed with her for trying to make him sleep on the settee or whether he was going to be in the same apologetic mood that he had been in when he had woken up earlier that morning. There was one thing she knew for certain though, and that was that she wasn't going to give into his kisses and his nuzzles.
She wouldn't forgive him for breaking his promise until he proved to her that he was going to sober up.
Until the man that she fell in love with returned.
Author's Note: Thank you all so much for reading this first chapter and please review! x