The sound of an engine caught Tamara’s attention. Well timed. Ross looked towards the entrance to the clinic’s grounds and saw a minibus making its way towards them. In contrast to the vehicle’s rather battered appearance, the trailer behind it carried three gleaming hulls.
Laurie was watching Tamara’s face, as the minibus drew to a halt in front of them. A man got out, stretching his legs, and two women followed. The side doors of the bus opened, and three more men jumped down onto the gravel.
‘They must be lost,’ Tamara remarked, and Laurie shrugged. One of the men had detached himself from the group and was jogging towards them.
But Tamara couldn’t take her eyes off the boats. It was obvious they were a very different kind of craft from the clinic’s, and that their light frames and graceful curves were state-of-the-art water-going technology.
‘Hi.’ The man stopped in front of them. ‘I’m looking for Tamara.’
Now he had all of Tamara’s attention, and she was staring at him open-mouthed. Laurie nudged her, and she let out a breath.
‘I’m Tamara.’
‘Hey, there. My name’s Grant Levelle. We heard you might be interested in coming rowing with us.’
‘Yes! Please...’ Tamara was on her feet before Ross could hold out his hand to help her.
‘Great. Would you like to come and meet the others?’ Grant was grinning from ear to ear. Tamara nodded, and he gave Laurie a nod before starting to amble with her at a slow pace towards the minibus.
‘When’s he going to tell her?’ Ross was watching as the group crowded around Tamara, each one shaking her hand as they were introduced.
‘Probably...right about now...’ She smiled as Grant bent down, pulling up the leg of his tracksuit trousers to reveal his own prosthetic.
Tamara was staring up at him, her eyes shining. Grant took her arm, guiding her out of the way as the rest of the group started to loosen the straps that fixed one of the boats securely to the trailer. He was obviously explaining everything that was happening, and Tamara was hanging on every word.
Laurie turned to him. ‘Did you see her face?’
‘Yeah. I think you’ve just made that young lady’s day. Probably her whole year.’ It was so nice to see Laurie’s obvious glee. ‘Why don’t you go over?’
‘I don’t want to crowd her. This is her treat.’ Laurie was watching the team just as intently as Tamara was as they unfastened the boats from the trailer. This was her life. Her teammates. She’d left them behind to come here, and Ross could see in her eyes how much she’d missed them.
He got to his feet. ‘I should welcome them. And let them know where the sandwiches and drinks are.’
‘Ah, yes. They’ll definitely want to know about sandwiches.’ Laurie jumped to her feet, leading him over to the group.
He welcomed each one of them, thanking them for coming and shaking their hands. Laurie hugged both of the women, exchanging jokes with the men and laughing at their suggestions that she’d been taking it easy for the last few weeks and they’d be seeing later how out of shape she was.
The feeling tugged at him like a long-lost memory. The one kid at school who wasn’t part of a group because he lived too far from everyone else. He wasn’t a part of this either.
Ross stuffed his hands into his pockets, making an excuse about having to go and see how things were going in the kitchen, and walked away. Laurie and Grant would look after Tamara, and he had other things to do.
Sam was standing inside the main doors of the clinic with a group of patients and staff, all watching what was going on. When she saw him, she fell into step beside him.
‘She’s in her element, isn’t she?’
‘Yes. Did you see Tamara’s face when Grant showed her his prosthetic?’ Ross would treasure that look. The moment that a teenager’s future seemed to open up before her eyes.
‘Yes, I did. Makes it all worthwhile...’ Sam looked up at him thoughtfully. ‘Actually, I was referring to Laurie.’
Something cold wound its way around Ross’s heart. Sam was right, Laurie’s face had lit up in just the same way as Tamara’s had when she greeted her teammates. It was a stark reminder that her life wasn’t here, with him.
‘Yeah. It’s a good day for Laurie as well.’
* * *
It was good to see everyone again, and to be around the everyday activity of people who took rowing seriously, the unloading of the boats from the trailer and setting them into the water. It was a temptation too. On a nice day like this, she wanted to stretch her shoulders and feel the pull of the oars. But Laurie contented herself with helping Grant make the adjustments needed to one of the sliding seats in the three-person scull, so that Tamara could give it a try.
‘Who is that guy, and what’s he done with Laurie Sullivan?’ Grant joined her on the grass, watching as Ross double-checked Tamara’s seat, talking to her and making sure that her position wouldn’t put her leg under any strain that she wasn’t ready for yet.