Fairytale With The Single Dad. Alison Roberts

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      He shrugged. ‘We’re not sure. I’d been at work all day and then went to pick Anna up from school. She found Lottie like that when we got back.’

      She nodded. ‘She has sustained a great deal of damage to her left eye, but it’s hard to see at the moment whether the eyeball itself has been ruptured. If it has, we might have to remove it, but at this stage I think we need to see if she’ll survive the night.’

      Dr Jones let out a heavy sigh and glanced at his daughter. ‘Do you think Lottie might die?’

      ‘It’s fifty-fifty. I can give her a painkiller and some antibiotics if you wish. The bite marks are quite small and thin, possibly caused by a cat or a fox. Their mouths are filled with bacteria, so the chance of infection is high. There aren’t any fatal injuries, but shock can kill an animal like this. It’s up to you what measures you’d like me to take.’

      She left the implication hanging. Did he want to see if the rabbit survived? Or did he want her to put the rabbit to sleep?

      Dr Jones thought for a moment. ‘Lottie is Anna’s world. She loves animals. If there aren’t any fatal injuries I think I owe it to her to see if Lottie makes it through the night. She won’t be in any pain?’

      ‘There’ll be some discomfort, but the painkillers should help her an awful lot. I’ll give her the injections, but if you can take her home, keep her somewhere warm and safe where she won’t be disturbed. Do you have an indoor cage?’

      He shook his head. ‘I don’t.’

      ‘A bathroom, then. It’s the safest place—somewhere there aren’t any cables or wires to chew.’

      ‘Will she want to eat?’

      ‘You must get her to try. When a rabbit goes into shock it sometimes stops eating, and it will just lead to further complications if her digestive system shuts down. Offer her all her favourites and try to get her to drink, too. I’ll need to see her first thing in the morning. Can you bring her in then?’

      ‘Before surgery, yes. About eight?’

      She nodded. ‘I’ll be here.’

      Sydney slipped back inside her room and administered the injections. She really hoped on their behalf that Lottie would survive, but the poor thing had been through a terrible ordeal.

      Back in the waiting room, she handed the carrier to Dr Jones and then, hesitantly, after thinking twice about doing so, she knelt in front of Anna. She tried not to notice the way the little girl’s eyes looked into hers with so much hope. The way tears had welled in her eyes.

      ‘Stay nice and quiet for her. No loud noises. Lottie needs to rest. Can you help her do that?’

      Anna nodded. ‘Yes.’

      ‘Good.’ She stood up again, frighteningly taken in by the little girl’s big blue eyes. So similar to Olivia’s it was unsettling. How was it possible that this little girl should remind her so strongly of her own?

      Backing away, she held open the door for them, eager for them to go. So she could breathe again.

      ‘What do I owe you?’ Dr Jones glanced over at the till.

      ‘We’ll sort it in the morning. Don’t worry. And good luck.’

      She watched them go and backed away from the door. They were a nice family, little Anna and her father. Was there a wife at home, waiting for news? It hadn’t sounded like it. He’d been at work, he’d picked his daughter up from school. No mention of anyone else.

      It doesn’t matter. You’re not interested in him anyway. Dr Jones is off limits!

      So why was she thinking about him? Just because he was handsome? No. She wasn’t that shallow. It must be because of the way she’d walked out on him that morning after her consultation. She’d been rude and had not apologised for it, either. She’d been defensive. Abrupt. Even though he had suggested the most ridiculous thing. And now she’d helped with their rabbit; that was all. They’d all had a shock and she knew how that felt. She wanted it to be easier for them.

      Poor rabbit.

      She hoped it was still alive in the morning.

      Nathan had a sleepless night. It wasn’t just because of the rabbit. Though he was worrying about getting up in the morning and finding her dead on the floor of the bathroom. If that happened then he wanted to deal with everything before Anna saw any of it. She shouldn’t have to see that.

      But, no. It was his own body that had kept him from sleeping.

      Yesterday he’d tried to give advice on getting a good night’s sleep to Sydney and he felt a bit hypocritical. Yes, there were tried and tested methods—relaxation, a milky drink, a warm bath, checking you had a comfortable bed—but they didn’t work for him, either.

      The spasticity he suffered from his multiple sclerosis kept him awake at night.

      It wasn’t as bad as it was for some people, and he knew he was lucky that no one just looking at him could guess his condition. He liked it that way. Fought to keep it so. But that didn’t stop the damned stiffness that never seemed to go away. Sometimes he would lie there, trying to relax, and he would feel his muscles tightening so hard it almost felt like a vice. Then he would have to rub at his arm or his leg and hope that it would go away. It never did. And he knew it wouldn’t. But that didn’t stop him from trying.

      So he’d spent the night alternately staring at the ceiling and getting up to check that the rabbit was still breathing.

      At five a.m. he crawled out of bed, ready for a cup of tea, and checked on Lottie once more.

      She’s still alive. Thank goodness!

      He gave her some dandelion leaves from the back garden and happily watched as she chewed them down, Her appetite was still good. Then he tried to pipette some water into her mouth—which she didn’t like—so he decided to leave her a small bowl to drink from instead.

      Anna was thrilled when she woke to find Lottie moving about in the bathroom. The rabbit’s left eye still looked pretty mangled, though, and Anna was keen for the time to pass so she could go to the vet with her dad before school.

      ‘You won’t be at the vet, Anna. I’m dropping you at breakfast club, as normal.’

      ‘But, Daddy, I want to go! Please?’

      ‘No, Anna. I’m sorry.’

      It was important that she kept to her routine. He hated changing things in Anna’s life. And, though the incident with Lottie was out of the ordinary, it didn’t mean that Anna’s life had to be disturbed. It had changed enough already. Her mother had walked out on them both, not to mention that he had his diagnosis to deal with. Life for Anna would change dramatically at some point, if his condition worsened. Best to keep things as normal as he could, for however long he could. He would not have her upset unnecessarily.

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