Chapter 2

Following as mundane a day as he could remember, Martin bade Pauline a good night and then locked the surgery door. He went back to his desk to finish off the notes of the last two patients, both of whom had managed to fall and sprain a wrist. He'd determined that neither required hospital treatment and advised them to ice the wrist from time to time and take paracetamol for the pain. As usual, Chippy Miller had asked for a sicknote and was disgruntled when Martin said he'd be fit for work on Monday.

Checking around to see that all was neat and tidy Martin retired to the kitchen to prepare the meal for Louisa. He had decided upon braised chicken and mushrooms with roasted broccoli and carrots. Dessert would be sliced cheese and apple. Preparing the meal would be as methodically done as if he were in surgery. Everything required was laid out beforehand. Oven on, casserole dish ready and ingredients lined up.

Once the chicken was in the oven he ran upstairs to wash and change before heading back to the kitchen to make the final preparations. A bottle of Chardonnay was cooling in the fridge, the broccoli and carrots were ready to be put in the oven and the table was set for two.

Promptly at 5:30 p.m. a knock at the back door heralded Louisa's arrival. Opening the door Martin's surprised, husky voice saying "Louisa" greeted her. She smiled shyly up at him and moved to step in. "Hello, Martin" she greeted him and gave him her coat to hang up. Venturing further into the kitchen she admired the perfectly set table for two, noting the wine glass for her and the tumbler for his water.

"Something smells good, Martin. What are we having?" she enquired.

"Braised chicken with roasted vegetables, followed by cheese and apple slices," he replied. "Would you like a glass of Chardonnay to go with it, or water?"

She looked at him and smiled impishly "Oh definitely the wine please, Martin." He moved to pour her a glass. As he handed the glass to her their fingers touched and her eyes flew up to his. Putting the wine down on the table she moved closer to him and said "I didn't greet you properly, did I?" before raising her face for a kiss.

Martin looked down at her taking in her beauty as he bent to kiss her, gently. The embrace lingered until the oven timer went off and Martin reluctantly let her go. He waved an arm at the table and invited her to be seated whilst he served the meal.

As they slowly enjoyed the food Martin began to pat down his pockets, looking for something. Louisa watched him and wondered what he was looking for. Eventually he found it and brought out a small box. Looking at Louisa, he opened it and asked her if she liked the enclosed ring. He explained that it had been his grandmother's which had been inherited by Joan. Obviously, Joan had no children of her own and Martin was the next best thing.

When Louisa indicated that she did like it he took it from the box and handed it to her. Unfortunately, Louisa failed to get a proper hold on it as Martin let go and it dropped neatly into the gravy on her plate! "Bugger!" exclaimed Martin before quickly gathering it up and drying it on his napkin. "I'm sorry, Louisa please take it now."

Louisa looked at the diamond ring, noting how it sparkled. A plain hoop, topped by a square diamond. She thought it looked lovely. She waited and looked at him expectantly, but he made no further move towards her. "I'll slip it on then, shall I?"

"Yes, yes please do. If it doesn't fit properly, we can have it altered so that it does. As I understand it my Grandmother's hands were somewhat distorted by arthritis so it may not. If you don't like it, we can go and I'll buy you a new one." He explained.

Louisa placed the ring on her finger and it fit perfectly. She held her hand up, turning it this way and that before saying "It's beautiful, Martin. Thank you. I like it very much and how lovely to have something with a family connection." She went on to say "Who knows, I might be able to pass it on to one of our children?"

At this Martin's head flew up and he blushed to the roots of his hair. "I hadn't got as far as thinking about a child or children!" he whispered. "Do you want to have some? I do know you will make a wonderful mother, but I'm not sure about my ability to be a good father. My own father wasn't a good role model to me and I've no other experience on which to draw." He looked downcast and sad. Given his own upbringing how could he even contemplate having children of his own? Would Louisa now have second thoughts about marrying him? He gulped at the thought of losing her just as he had plucked up the courage to ask for her to wed him.

She watched him go through a gamut of emotions before placing a hand over his large fist. "It's not something we have to decide upon immediately, is it?" she queried. "We can wait a while after we're married and make our decision then."

Martin brightened at this and felt relieved that she wasn't going to go straight out of the door after his admission. Pulling himself together again he offered tea or coffee for after, or some more wine for her.

"Tea please Martin." Was her prompt reply. "Let me help you wash up?"

"No, no you sit down, I'll give everything a quick rinse and then put it all in the dishwasher." He explained. He set about doing just that and put the kettle on for the tea. "Er, what are your plans for the rest of the evening?"

Louisa looked at him questioningly. "I thought I was going to be staying here, but if you have to do something else, I can go home." she said quickly.

Martin looked shyly at her and said "I hoped that you would stay, but I didn't want to put too much pressure on you."

Louisa got up from the couch and went over to him. She put her arms around his middle and snuggled in. At first, he was a little taken aback but then hugged her tightly. She looked up and stood on tiptoe to kiss him. "Oh Louisa" he sighed, before responding more ardently