Page 27 of Mending Hearts at the Cornish Country Hospital (The Cornish Country Hospital #6)

Felix had taken Teddie to a new trampoline park about five miles the other side of Port Tremellien.

There was nothing Teddie liked better than bouncing, and he’d attempt it on any surface with even the slightest bit of give.

If the springs on his grandparents’ sofa hadn’t collapsed by the time Eden and Teddie finally got their own place, it would be a miracle.

After the trampoline park, Felix was going to take Teddie for dinner.

It would inevitably involve nuggets or sausages, with chips.

They could only be the right sort of chips, too thick or too crunchy and they’d be rejected with a level of force that had to be seen to be believed.

If Teddie ever tried out for the Olympics, he’d have a damn good chance at qualifying for the shot put, if the effectiveness of his food-throwing technique was anything to go by.

After dinner, Felix would be bringing Teddie home, to keep to his normal bedtime routine as much as possible, and he’d stay on to babysit until either Eden or their parents got home to take over.

She didn’t need to worry about whether Teddie would be okay with Felix in charge, so the nerves looping in her stomach had nothing to do with leaving her son in her brother’s care.

Looking in the mirror, Eden tried to decide if the outfit she was wearing was too much.

It was a wide-legged, teal-coloured jump suit, which she couldn’t deny brought out the colour of her eyes.

The V-neck was low enough to give a hint of cleavage and make her look far less like the harassed working mother who usually stared back at her from the mirror.

Almost every other time she’d met up with Drew, she’d worn jeans and a T-shirt, only once opting for a summer dress and even then it had been the loose kind that could easily have concealed another small person beneath it.

The jumpsuit revealed arms which were far more toned than any workout could achieve – carrying Teddie when he was doing his paving slab impression had that effect.

The outfit was perfect for a party that was going from afternoon to evening, but it wasn’t the sort of thing she’d have worn for a catch up with a friend.

Today was supposed to be both of those things, which was why she was still wondering if she ought to change and opt for something more casual.

She didn’t want to look like she was trying too hard, especially as she still wasn’t sure how Drew felt about her.

Deep down Eden knew she was overthinking it and that he probably wouldn’t pay the slightest attention to what she was wearing.

Looking at her reflection again, she gave herself a talking to.

‘It’s fine, it’s not like I’m wearing a ball gown.’ Turning away, she grabbed her bag and a denim jacket to cover up in case she became self-conscious later, and headed out of the bedroom door.

Drew was waiting outside the house for her when she emerged, a full five minutes before they were due to meet.

She’d planned to hang around until he turned up and enjoy the cooler air outside, although it was unseasonably warm for an autumn afternoon, almost as if Amy had ordered the weather for her party.

Eden smiled when she saw Drew. She should have known he’d be early, he wouldn’t have wanted to keep her waiting even for a moment.

‘You look great.’ The words were out of her mouth before she could stop them, because he really did look great.

Drew was wearing an olive-coloured linen shirt, over navy-blue trousers.

The shirt was untucked and the sleeves casually pushed up to the elbows, giving him the look of an ever so slightly crumpled, but undeniably sexy leading man, straight out of a TV drama.

Gwen was going to have plenty to say when she saw him.

‘So do you.’ She might have taken Drew’s words as the kind of meaningless compliment that was expected in response to what she’d said to him, if he hadn’t added more. ‘You look beautiful, in fact.’

‘Thank you.’ It had been on the tip of her tongue to ask him when he’d last got his eyes tested, or to make some other self-deprecating remark, but she knew Drew was telling the truth.

As far as he was concerned, she did look beautiful.

If she batted away his compliment, he’d probably feel he had to repeat it, in an attempt to convince her that he meant it.

An exchange like that would have left them both feeling awkward.

So it was easier just to say thank you, even if she didn’t think she looked anything close to beautiful.

Eden kept her arms by her sides as they walked down the hill towards the beach.

If this had been an official date, she might have linked her arm through his, but she still wasn’t even sure what it was.

She’d asked him to a party and he’d said yes, that was all she knew for certain.

Whatever this was, she was glad Felix had pushed her into asking Drew and she’d meant what she’d said in her text, she was looking forward to it far more than she would have been without him.

Amy was hosting the party in a new restaurant that had huge bifold doors which opened onto a boardwalk, with steps down to the beach.

When the tide was out, the restaurant’s guests could play games on the sand.

Amy had explained her decision to have the party there when she, Isla and Eden had been having a coffee outside the hospital shop.

‘It sounds fabulous.’ Gwen’s eyes had glittered.

As the lynchpin that unofficially held the entire hospital together, it had been inevitable that she would be invited to the farewell party too and she was never going to be a wallflower.

‘If this Indian summer keeps on, we might even be able to go for a swim.’

‘Should I pack my swimsuit just in case?’ Isla had pulled a face, clearly thinking Gwen was joking, but she should have known better.

‘No need for that. Undies will work just as well if the mood takes you.’

Eden might be wearing her very best matching underwear beneath her jumpsuit, but that was just to make herself feel more confident about the way she looked, even if no one could see it.

In fact, there was absolutely no way anyone would see it, because she’d rather pull her own fingernails out than strip off in front of her colleagues and run into the sea.

She had a feeling Drew would be even less keen to get involved in an impromptu dip in his underwear, but it wouldn’t surprise her at all if Gwen led the charge.

That woman wasn’t frightened of anything, or at least she didn’t seem to be.

Eden on the other hand was an expert at second-guessing everything and worrying about things that hadn’t even happened.

She’d spent so much time worrying about how today would go that she hadn’t even allowed herself to imagine a scenario where it might just be lovely.

Although now that she was walking side by side with Drew, it suddenly seemed like a strong possibility.

There was a question she’d been dying to ask him, but she only felt able to do it now that they were face to face. ‘I saw Ali Wilson the other day when he came into the hospital. He said he knows you.’

‘Ah yes, we met at… Yes, I know, Ali.’ Drew clearly didn’t want to break any confidences without being certain of how much Eden knew and she felt another surge of affection for him. He was such a good man and he just kept on proving it.

‘I couldn’t believe how much better Ali looked than the last time I saw him. The mentoring is obviously paying off, but I had no idea you volunteered with Domusamare.’

‘He told you that I’m his mentor?’

‘Yes, and how much difference it’s made to him. With your job it must be hard to fit it all in.’ She wanted to tell him how impressed she was that he made time for volunteering, but before she even got the chance he did his best to make it sound like nothing much at all.

‘It’s no big deal. Just a couple of hours a week face to face, but most of it’s done on the phone.

I work with a couple of local charities, ones that are close to my heart.

’ For a moment it looked as if that might be the end of the conversation, but then Drew took a deep breath.

‘I started volunteering with a homelessness charity when I was still in Scotland. I got involved after someone I knew used their services and I saw what a difference they make. I wanted to work with a similar charity when I moved here and when someone told me about Domusamare, I knew it would be a good fit. I do some work with one of the local autism support charities too.’

‘That’s great. I still can’t understand how you fit it all in.

’ Every time she found out something else about Drew she liked him even more than she had before.

Nothing about him was a disappointment, or a red flag that made her want to back off.

After what she’d been through with Jesse, that was nothing short of a miracle.

‘I’m sure it won’t surprise you to hear this, but I’m not exactly a party animal, which means when I’m not working, I have more free time than anyone probably ought to.’

‘Oh no and there I was counting on you to be the first on the dance floor.’ Eden laughed, just to make sure he knew she was joking.

‘Anyway, never mind the dancing, I don’t know about you but I’m ready for a couple of drinks.

It’s been a long day of wrangling with bureaucracy and pulling together everything I need to try and get Teddie a place at the right school.

Thanks again for all the information you sent me by the way, but please tell me your day has been more exciting than mine. ’