Alec Hardy plays nursemaid

Alec Hardy had not particularly wanted to attend the local primary school's summer fete but since the DS he had been assigned on his arrival, who seemed to go out her way to make him miserable and contradict everything he said, was attending with her two sons, he was elected plus it would, he supposed, get him some fresh air and he could see what he was up against since arriving in the town. Not that he thought attending such an event was the duty of a Detective Inspector, surely it didn't warrant a senior officer present but the chief had insisted he make his face known around town since he was going to be stuck there for six months and people had better get used to having him there.

He'd placed his name down for a one bedroomed flat, just down the other end of the High Street and was waiting for it to be re-decorated and to hear if he had been successful in passing the usual checks but since he was in the Police, didn't expect to be turned down for it, it was just a matter of it being ready to move into. He'd been told if successful it would be two weeks and until then, he was stuck at the hotel. He'd managed to have a look around the flat and was surveying the outside of the building after the agent had left on the Saturday morning, when a car pulled up and he noticed a blonde woman in the driving seat and thought nothing else of it.

He had arrived at the school early the next morning and was wandering around, seeing a catering tent and went to get a drink and was just leaving when he had seen the woman from the car the day before and was going to walk past but decided to talk to her. Not that she seemed to want to say much when he asked if she was helping with the fete and she seemed like she couldn't get away fast enough. That was the story of his life, women always seemed to want to get away from him, including his ex-wife and things hadn't improved since. He had walked around the school grounds, keeping his ID badge tucked into his shirt pocket at the suggestion of the head teacher he had introduced himself to upon arrival, she had said it was best not to let people know there was a Police presence and only to mention the fact he was there purely in a non-official capacity if he was recognised or asked who he was. Even the local school wasn't welcoming him, what was he going to do there for six months?

He was about to give up and go back to the hotel when he caught sight of the blonde woman again. He had passed her stall several times and she had been busy with a crowd of young children so he hadn't had chance to speak to her again and didn't think she had even noticed him. That was until he walked into the catering tent for a cup of tea and asked if there was anything to eat and saw the woman with a plateful of cakes. So making a point of walking towards her with his cup, he hoped she might be willing to share. She did. She offered him one which he gratefully took but thought it unfair to take the other one that was left.

He had tried to talk to her, about anything but she was quiet, he was doing most of the asking, Sunday and he couldn't take a day off from interrogating someone. He had hoped he could at least offer her a lift home but she had her own car so he'd offered to walk her to it and watched her drive off, thinking he might never see her again.

He didn't think he was going to get the flat he'd put in for, he'd heard nothing else about it, maybe they wanted to let it for a longer term and he'd get turned down, then he would have wasted two weeks but he got a phone call the following day to say he could pick the keys up on Friday so he could move in on Saturday. Not that he had much to move so come Friday, he had paid the deposit and first month's rent and signed initially for six months with an option to extend and spent the last night in the hotel.

He hadn't seen anything more of the blonde woman, he didn't even know if she lived in that building, she could have gone in anywhere on that row of houses and just because her car was in front of one of them, the one he was moving into, didn't mean he'd see her. Having packed his case and a few other things he'd driven the short distance and been out to get groceries without getting at least a glimpse of her.

Until the following morning, he'd driven down the road and ended up by the harbour, parking behind the café across from the Police Station and walked down the jetty, sitting on the low fence, as if watching the boats would make him get over his hatred of the water. He had intended to walk a way up the coastal path, he was supposed to exercise but it looked like it was going to rain which was why he'd taken the car and he only had his jacket and a t-shirt along with a pair of more casual trousers and since the café was close, he headed for it just as the first of the rain came down. Sitting just inside the doorway, he saw people running for shelter and their cars, some coming in the café, then a figure dashed past the window and the door opened. It was the blonde woman from the school fete the Sunday before and she was soaking wet.

ooooooooo{silversurfer60}ooooooooo

Rose stood in the doorway, trying not to drip all over the floor, unsuccessfully. She only had some change in her pocket plus her mobile and keys and now her polo shirt was soaking wet and she hoped her phone hadn't got ruined. She had seen the man with the scruffy beard looking at her when she came in and he called her over.

"Looks like you didn't dress for the weather then, can I get you a warm drink?" He got up and gestured for Rose to sit down but she was reluctant, since the seat was padded she didn't want to get stuck on it, not in front of him anyway.

She gingerly began to sit down and hoped she wouldn't be embarrassed getting back up, she was only wearing shorts, cursing herself for not wearing her jogging bottoms. Her feet were also soaking, her sports socks squishing in the bottom of her trainers and a few minutes later, he was back with a mug of steaming hot tea and a towel which he had somehow managed to scrounge from a member of staff so she thanked him and began drying her face, then her arms and legs. The tea warmed her up, not that it was a cold day, it was the end of July but the rain had been cold and unexpected.

She was feeling slightly better, now her face and arms were fairly dry and the man hadn't been watching while she was drying her legs, she hoped. Her hair, however was a different matter, since the towel was wet, she'd had no success trying to dry it so she could only imagine what she must look like and was glad she wasn't wearing any make-up.

"So, are you feeling better now, you look a bit drier, you should go home and get a hot shower and get out of those wet clothes as soon as you can. Can I give you a ride home?"

Rose was too wet to argue with him, it was still raining and she had no money on her for a taxi and would be embarrassed to get a taxi driver to wait while she went upstairs plus she would drip all over the taxi anyway so she said ok. Not that she wouldn't drip all over the man's car. So he got up, went to hand the towel back and help Rose out of her seat, she was grateful she didn't stick to it and the rain had eased off slightly and he said his car was around the back. He unlocked the car and Rose climbed into the passenger seat, it was one of those big SUV type cars, black with lots of chrome and without asking where she lived, he set off down the esplanade then onto the High Street and a few minutes later, pulled up outside Rose's building.

"How did you know where I lived?" she asked, slightly panicking now she had admitted where she lived to a stranger, well not exactly a stranger, this was the fourth time she had met him. He must have noticed her the other week when she had been coming back with her groceries.

He didn't admit anything and got out of the car, following Rose to the front door. "Well thanks anyway, it was good of you to bring me back home" she said.

It had stopped raining, finally and she was waiting for him to go but he just waited and all Rose wanted to do was go get dried properly and change her clothes and she could feel a headache coming on, just what she needed.

"I would feel better if I escorted you to your door, make sure you're ok," he said as she got her keys out and followed her inside.

Opening her flat door, she hung around waiting for him to go but he wasn't budging. Once inside, he hovered in the doorway without saying another word as Rose tried to close it. "So, listen thanks again, I don't even know your name but it was kind of you to get me that drink and the towel and really I'll be fine now," she sneezed – great.

"Yes, you sound fine, you really should get out of those wet clothes, get a shower and get to bed. You're welcome and my name is Alec. I'll call back later to see how you are."

Rose was hoping he wouldn't, all she wanted to do was get dry and lie down, she had all the makings of a bad cold coming on and was thankful there was no work the next day. "Well, thanks Alec, I'm Rose and really, there's no need to check on me, I can manage. Bye then."

As she closed the door, he said "bye" back and Rose didn't see the disappointed look on his face.

He was determined he was going to check on her later, despite her insistence she was ok. He walked up the next flight of stairs, sort of pleased she lived in his building and now he knew her name – it suited her, not that he had any notions of anything other than making sure she was ok of course.

Rose got out of her wet clothes and got under the hot shower, then still not feeling that much better, made some tea and went back to bed and fell asleep. She was woken by the ringing of the doorbell and wondered how someone had got in without using the intercom on the front door and putting her dressing gown on and fastening the chain, opened the door. It was Alec and it was four in the afternoon, she'd been asleep for over four hours and she really didn't fancy any company but she unfastened the chain and held the door open as he was trying to hand a packet to her.

"How are you feeling now?" he asked, looking down at her and noting she looked rather out of it. "Here, I brought you these, have you eaten since you got back?" He held out a famous brand cold and 'flu remedy and pushed the door open.

Rose wasn't in a state to argue with him as he shoved the packet into her hands and made his way inside. "So, have you got any soup or anything? You should eat something, fight the cold off and that cold remedy, my mother used to swear by it, they used to make them in a powder form but changed them to capsules, two of those now, two later tonight, you'll feel much better tomorrow."

He made his way into the kitchen and filled the kettle with water and switched it on and began opening the cupboard doors above the counter top and brought out a packet of instant soup, picked up a mug and emptied the contents into the cup. Rose was just standing there in disbelief at the nerve of the man and just managed to sit down at the kitchen table as the kettle boiled and he poured water into the cup and passed it to her, then he pulled out the other chair and sat opposite her. Something he seemed to be making a habit of.

Rose blew over the cup and took a sip and said, "Ow, that's hot" and put it down again.

"That's the point of it, it's supposed to be hot" but he picked it up and poured a drop of cold water into it and passed it back.

Rose could only stare at him and sipped the soup which admittedly did taste good as she'd had nothing all day, she normally made breakfast after she had returned from her run. Alec picked the packet containing the cold remedy and got up again and got a glass of water, pressed two of the tablets onto the palm of his hand and passed them to her.

She took them from him. "Blimey, those are rather large capsules, how am I supposed to swallow them?"

"Well, they're large because people used to take the powder and mix it with water or juice and drink it, now they have to get the contents of the small wrapper the powder came in and fit them into the two capsules so of course they're that size. Now just take them, no arguments."

Rose managed half a smile and said, "Yes Sir," then swallowed them with some difficulty, taking nearly the full glass of water to get them down.

Then she finished her soup and hoped he'd leave so she could go back to bed. He picked up the empty mug and went to rinse it out and left the remainder of the tablets on the kitchen table. "Right, back to bed then. I'll check on you in the morning before I go to work but if you need me, I'll write my number down, just send me a message."

Rose didn't have the strength to argue with him, he had appointed himself as her nursemaid and she was in no state to argue with him nor to ask how he had got in the building but she supposed someone had let him in, which she would have to have words with the letting agency about as only the postman etc was supposed to be let in which cut down on nuisance callers and annoying takeaway leaflets. It never occurred to her that the flat above hers may have been taken by him, she wasn't aware it was no longer empty.

He scribbled his number on a pad on the hall table and opened the door to let himself out. "I'll make sure you get some breakfast before I go to work in the morning," he said. "Bye Rose, I hope you feel better tomorrow and don't forget to take some more of those capsules later, in around four hours." With that, he closed the door behind him.

Rose was left standing staring at the closed door, wondering what that was all about but she had been wondering about him since she first saw him the other week and he had a habit of talking to her then leaving, like he enjoyed bossing people around and then disappearing and despite now knowing his first name, still didn't know who he really was.

So she went back to bed, waking up later in the evening and managing to make herself a cup of hot chocolate, took some more of the cold remedy and woke up the next morning to the sound of her doorbell ringing again, at seven thirty.

TBC