Alison Roberts - Hot Docs On Call - Healing His Heart

Quinn exhaled a shaky breath as the front door clicked shut.

It had been a close call and, now she knew the number, it was going to be a test of endurance not to put him on speed dial.

IT HAD BEEN several days since the infamous kiss but Quinn hadn’t laid eyes on Matt at all. Quite a feat when she’d spent every waking moment back at the hospital. She thought he’d be there when Simon had his dressings changed, an ordeal in itself. Although it was the nurses who routinely did that job, he usually called in to see how they were. He was definitely avoiding her.

Whilst his noticeable absence had prevented any awkwardness between them after locking lips together, a sense of loss seemed to have engulfed her and Simon as a result. They’d become much too invested in his company and now she had very fond, intimate memories to make her pine for him too.

It had been her decision to stop things before they’d gone any further. Hot kisses and steamy intervals didn’t bring any comfort when there was no commitment behind them. Passion didn’t mean much to her these days when she’d found out the hard way men used it to hide their true intentions. She’d thought Darryl had loved her because he was so attentive in that department but when it came down to putting a child’s needs before his he’d shown how shallow he really was. She wouldn’t be duped for a second time into believing a man’s interest in her body was anything more than just that. Darryl had nearly broken her spirit altogether with his betrayal, to the point she’d questioned her own judgement about foster care. What was the point if the whole ideal of a happy family was a sham concocted so the male species could satisfy their own selfish needs?

It was meeting Simon which had convinced her she’d taken the right path and she wouldn’t be so easily diverted from it again. A handsome face and a kissable mouth weren’t enough for her to risk her or Simon’s future if she was dumped again and sent spiralling back down into despair. Things were difficult at the moment but she was still soldiering on, wasn’t ready to give up the fight. One more knock to her confidence might well change that. No, she’d made the right call and she’d just have to learn to live with it. Regardless of how much she wanted Matt to be the man she’d always thought would be the head of her perfect little family.

Today, to distract herself from the events of that evening, she’d joined the committee fighting to save the Castle. Whilst Simon was busy with his physiotherapist, who was working with him to make sure he maintained the movement in his right arm, she had some time to herself. She chose to spend it putting the world to rights with other committee members over a latte in the canteen. Her position also allowed her to keep watch on the door in case of a glimpse of the elusive Mr McGrory.

‘I’m so glad you’ve joined us, Quinn. It’ll really help our cause to have parents of our patients on board, as well as the staff. This is about the children, and showing the board the Castle is an important part of the community, and is more than just a lucrative piece of land.’ Victoria Christie sat forward in her chair, fixing Quinn with her intense hazel eyes. She was a paramedic, the head of the committee and apparently very passionate about the cause.

With her buoyant enthusiasm she was the perfect choice for a front woman and Quinn got the impression she would attach herself to the wrecking ball should the dreaded demolition come to fruition.

‘I’m only too happy to help. I’ll sign a petition, wave a placard, write a personal impact statement…whatever it takes to make a difference. Matt…er… Mr McGrory suggested I join since I spend most of my days here anyway.’ Mostly, she suspected, to get her out of his lovely blond hair, but at least it was a more productive way of filling her time than fretting and crying on shoulders of very busy surgeons.

‘Matt’s very passionate about his work and his patients. He’s one of the good guys.’ The tall blonde she’d been introduced to at the start of this meeting was Robyn Kelly, head of surgery at the hospital and the committee’s PR person.

Quinn shifted her gaze towards the pile of papers on the table outlining their press coverage so far in case her blush gave away her thoughts about that very personal, private moment she’d spent with her colleague at her house.

‘He’s been very patient with Simon, and me, but we’re well on the way to recovery. I hope future patients are as lucky to have him on their side.’ She smiled as brightly as her pained cheeks would allow. In truth, she didn’t want anyone to get as close as she had been to him but that didn’t mean she’d deny another family his expertise.

‘That’s a really good idea!’ Victoria slammed her cup back down on the table, sloshing the contents into the saucer.

‘What is?’ With one hand Robyn quickly moved the newspaper cuttings out of the path of the tea puddle slowly spreading across the table, and used the other to soak up the mess with a napkin.

She exuded a self-confidence Quinn had once had, before a runaway boyfriend and being catapulted into life as a single foster parent had robbed her of it. With a little time and more experience she hoped she’d soon be able to clear up her own messes as swiftly and efficiently.

Although she’d never regret her decision to leave her full-time teaching position to raise Simon, she did envy both women to a certain degree. They were still career women, free to gossip over coffee without feeling guilty about taking some ‘me’ time. It was just as well they’d been so welcoming, arranging this meet as soon as she’d expressed an interest in the committee. Otherwise her jealousy might have got the better of her again.

‘Personal impact stories, of course. Perhaps we could collate short statements from patients and their families, past and present. They could give an account of what the hospital has done for them and what it would mean to lose its support.

‘That could add a really heartfelt element to the cause…’

‘I could make a start with the families of the other children who were treated after the school fire.’ Quinn knew most of them by sight now, if not personally, and they were certainly aware of Simon. Their kids had been discharged from the hospital long ago whilst he and Ryan, who’d suffered the most serious injuries, were still receiving treatment.

This new mission would give her an introduction into a conversation which didn’t have to solely revolve around Simon’s trauma. She wasn’t the one who bore the physical scars but even she was sick of the sympathetic murmuring every time they walked past.

‘Fantastic. That would be better coming from you, a concerned parent, rather than a soon-to-be-out-of-work member of staff.’ Victoria’s smile softened her features and her praise endeared her to Quinn even more.

‘We might even get the papers to run a series of them to really hammer home how much a part of the children’s recovery the Castle has become. Honest raw emotion versus cold hard cash…I think my contacts at the paper would be only too glad to wage war on some corporate fat cats.’ Robyn was furiously scribbling in a reporter’s notebook she’d plucked from her handbag.

‘Quinn, I’ll pass your name on to a few of the patients who want to help. You could be the co-ordinator for this leg of the campaign, if that’s not too much trouble?’ After draining her cup, Victoria got to her feet and effectively ended the meeting.

‘Not at all. I could even make up some questionnaires to hand out if it would make things easier?’ Admin she could do, and while paperwork had been the bane of her teaching career it was something positive here. It gave her an identity which wasn’t merely that of Quinn, the single mother. She still had one useful function.