Chapter 18

Louisa was washing some fresh vegetables for their dinner when Martin walked into the kitchen. He stopped next to the table where James was constructing a building of some sort with his ABC bricks. He had the word 'house' spelled out in front of the tower, "Good evening, James."

"Daddy," James smiled up at him, then went back to his construction. Martin tilted his head to inspect James' house from different angles before commending him, "House. Well done James."

He walked over to Louisa and greeted her with a slight peck on the cheek, "Good evening, how are you feeling?" He brushed his fingers across her forehead, "Any nausea? Light-headedness?"

She raised her eyes to meet his, "A bit this morning, but I'm fine now. How was your day?"

"Good. Busy. How was yours?"

"'Bout the same. I started my essay. Lots of research."

She took out a cutting board and started to trim the summer squash and beans. "How did it go with Nate this week? Do you think he will work out?"

"Seems competent enough."

"Good. A couple of the ladies in the shops have mentioned how impressed they are with him. Very nice bedside manner … and soooo handsome." She tipped her head in a mock swoon.

"As if either of those qualities make for good patient care."

"Perhaps not, but they are less likely to put off a visit to the surgery if they think he might be caring for them."

Martin huffed, refusing to respond to her unspoken implication about his own bedside manner. It had been a point of contention from their very first meeting. "I spoke to him about taking on more patient care responsibility this afternoon, and he seems very interested. I plan to have him handle all patient care in the next few weeks to assure myself that he is capable of evaluating patient conditions and providing appropriate care. I will observe his work and make notes and then decide which kind of cases I feel comfortable with him handling alone, and which cases I want to treat myself. I am responsible for the care of the surgery patients, and I must be satisfied that he is capable of treating them. I don't want the surgery to be accused of malpractice."

She paused for a moment and looked up at him, "Sounds a bit risky."

"No, nurse practitioners handle many routine patient situations throughout the NHS. No reason he shouldn't have that responsibility here. It will give me the time I need to work on the surgery simulation project without unduly affecting patient care."

He peeked over her shoulder, "Can I help?"

"Yeah. I bought some chicken filets. Seemed like a nice change from fish. I've got a simple rice pilaf steaming, and I made a tomato and cucumber salad. Maybe you could season the chicken and sauté it. I thought we could steam these veggies and drizzle them with some olive oil. How does that sound?"

"Very nutritious."

He reached over for his apron and put it on, and she added, "I also picked up a custard for pudding."

"Really?"

"Yeah. I just wanted something sweet."

"Humph."

'I can't have my wine in the evening, so …"

"Empty calories. You can't afford …"

She cut him off, "They're not empty calories Martin. There's egg and milk in the custard – protein and calcium. I plan to serve it over some cut up berries … lots of vitamins. A very healthy end to the meal."

"Perhaps." He pulled a skillet from the cupboard and muttered under his breath, "… still too much saturated fat."

"I heard that."

He glanced in her direction, lifting both eyebrows and nodding his head for emphasis, "Good!"

He reached for the olive oil and several herbs to season the chicken and placed the skillet on the hob as Louisa put the trimmed vegetables in the steamer. She pulled some plates and silverware from the cupboard and put them on the table. "James, it's time to eat. We need to move your bricks."

"No."

"Yes." She started to gather them up to place into his storage bin, but he hovered over his construction protectively.

"No. I want to save my house."

"Louisa, let me handle this. You watch the chicken." Martin marched into his office and came back with a stiff piece of cardboard. "Now James, we can slide this board under your house, like so, and move it into the living room." Martin carried the house into the lounge, and James followed behind and watched Martin as he gently placed the construction down on the coffee table. He looked up at his daddy with approval and a resounding, "Yes." Clapping his hands, he sat down on the floor to continue to play.

Louisa looked over her shoulder and grinned at James, "Clever Daddy." James grinned back at her, "Yes."

Martin tugged on his ear and then addressed his son, "But James, it's time to wash your hands. We are ready to eat." He ushered a reluctant James upstairs to use the bathroom and wash his hands, after which they returned to the kitchen where Martin instructed James in the fine art of setting the table. Louisa prepared a plate for James, and placed it on the table along with a cup of milk.

Louisa poured herself a glass of milk and placed it on the table while Martin plated their meal. She was hungry and tucked into her meal immediately as Martin looked on in approval. "Hungry?"

She lifted her eyes and realised that he was teasing her, and she smiled at him, "Yeah, I guess I was."

"No nausea then?"

"No Martin. I told you I'm fine. It only seems to affect me in the morning. Thank God."

She took a few more bites whilst encouraging James to eat his meal as well. "I spoke with Mrs. Trappet today, told her we were thinking of relocating. I told her we wanted to stay in the village, close to the surgery. She said there are several nice homes just outside the village, but there's really nothing on offer in the village proper right now."

Martin thought he might enjoy living just outside the village away from prying eyes, but he knew that wouldn't make Louisa happy. She seemed to enjoy being around all the villagers. But he ploughed ahead anyway, "A home on the edge of the village could be satisfactory. We might be able to have a larger more modern house and a garden for the children to play in." It occurred to him that a more modern house would have higher doorways; he would be less likely to hit his head when moving from room to room, a real benefit over the homes in the centre of the village.

Louisa made a face and looked down at her plate, "I suppose … "

"You don't like the idea?"

"I don't know. I've always lived in the village, and I like being close to the harbour, being able to step out the door and see the sea, hear the birds ..."

"Umm. Just a thought." He continued to quietly eat his meal. "I think we should consult with an architect as well. This house is not ideal for a larger surgical practice. Even if we moved to another home, it is not suitable for more than one doctor. I would need to rearrange the layout, or move to a more efficient building."

'Yes, I can see that. I was hoping I could have my child counselling office here as well, but there really isn't room for that, is there?"

"No."

"If you moved the surgery, we could keep this house as our home, maybe add a small bedroom upstairs with a terrace or sheltered porch underneath. I'll ask around for the names of good architects, see if we can find someone who could tell us what is achievable. I told Samantha you were also thinking of moving the surgery. She offered to show us properties that might work for the surgery tomorrow if we are free."

"Samantha?"

"You know, Mrs. Trappet"

"Yes," Martin sighed. It seemed as though this coming year was to be full of changes. It could be difficult, and he was beginning to dread it. His therapy for the haemophobia was going well, but he could see the stress of all the changes hindering his progress. He thought he should discuss all the changes that were about to take place with Dr. Payne to help him cope.

They finished their meal and started the washing up whilst James returned to his bricks. Martin brought up the subject of Pauline Lamb, "Nathaniel mentioned that many of the villagers are shouting epithets at him as he walks from the car park to the surgery and during midday lunch, accusing him of taking Pauline's job. Evidently Pauline has been spreading the news that I refused to hire her in preference for a male nurse."

Louisa looked at him in concern, "Is she accusing you of discrimination?"

"Not directly, but it's apparent that she is not going to go away quietly. If she were to bring a formal complaint, she would have no grounds. Nathaniel's qualifications are far superior to hers. But the villagers don't know that, and they are making Nathaniel feel unwelcome."

Louisa shook her head in dismay, "That's a shame, but I don't think it will last long. I told you that the patients who have met him like him."

Martin nodded his head, "Yes. I told him to ignore the villagers and that they would soon grow accustomed to having him work here." Martin finished up with the soiled pans and turned off the water. 'I told him that some of the villagers still call me a 'tosser', that it's just their way."

Louisa dried the last pan and crouched down to place it in the cupboard, "I suppose." She stood up and looked at him with a troubled expression. "Still, I wish they wouldn't."

"Humph," he grunted. "It's just their way. Doesn't bother me." He turned towards James, "Time for your bath, James."

"I need to finish my tower." James reached for another brink to add to a tower he was constructing next to his house.

"Hmm. That's quite a construction, but it's bath time. You can finish it tomorrow."

James stood and contemplated his house with its tower, " 'kay."