Courtship

Part 26

Marina had thought about working in a hospital. In fact, up until that fateful day when she had decided she wanted to set up a clinic, a hospital is where she saw herself. She knew it working at a hospital would involve shift work. That would affect the centre she and Isabelle set up. So working at a hospital was shelved. Instead she found a way to ensure she had a steady income while working with Isabelle to set up a clinic.

It was more successful than either sister had anticipated. Marina had tapped into a real need. The service they provided had grown faster than either had expected.

Now they were pushed for time and resources. Two years and it had grown from renting one portacabin to renting space on the docks, smack bang in the middle of a working girls' district. Their reputation for no lectures, no judgment, just options, had spread, within that particular community.

They had women coming in now and actively retraining. The women brought their children in while then learnt a new skill. They had women coming in for health checks. That's how it had started. Free medical help. They couldn't do anything about the drugs scene, but most of the women who came in weren't doing drugs and weren't using the money to support a habit.

When they had decided to set up the centre they had done it without any fanfare and with a determination to keep their private lives and this venture separate. They did not want any unwanted digging, for that no doubt would generate a degree of interest that looked beyond the surface. Yes, people would run stories about the centre, but at some point they were sure that some journalist would dig deeper and discover the family had hoodwinked the community for years into believing the Soujour D'Sa family was solvent. That would no doubt result in unraveling all that they had achieved in stopping them from tipping over at the brink of poverty. Isabelle and Marina had kept the centre out of the limelight. The press of high society women working with prostitutes might bring in resource, but it would drive the women they were trying to help away. So they usually arrived and left in disguise and most of the women there knew them as Izzy and Rina. As a result, people in their own social circle knew nothing about the centre or their work. Both Marina and Isabelle were very careful about keeping that quiet. The women who came to the centre were not interested in who ran it, just that it ran. That's all that was important to them: that free access to medical help, and that open door to new opportunities. They were curious but most of that curiousity was easily appeased. Of course some of them had found out who the two sisters were, but they, like Isabelle and Marina were keen not to draw attention to the sisters or themselves. So it had operated beneath the radar.

Marina glanced at Rhianna as she and Jethro danced past. She wondered, whether Rhianna would be interested in helping, and whether Marina should ask her? Could they afford to take that risk. Rhianna might be interested, but she'd have to agree not to keep it a secret. Marina and Isabelle both knew they were reaching their limit, both in terms of providing medical assistance and in terms of re-skilling those who were interested in a second chance.

"Hey." Rafe looked puzzled. She had drifted away, but clearly what ever she had been thinking about was a bit of a challenge, for her eyes had lost that sparkle. Instead there was a brief flash of anxiety.

"Sorry." She pinned a smile to her lips and shook her head,. "I was miles away."

"I must be loosing my touch." Rafe told her with a wry smile. There was something she was keeping from him, that thought registered the minute he looked into her eyes and realised she had become guarded. Now what was going on, he wondered.

"Doubt it." She muttered. He looked suddenly rather alert, as if he was questioning her without asking the question. She hoped her eyes hadn't given her away. In an attempt to appear blaze she propped her chin on her palm and looked straight at him and switched the topic to him. "So what about you? Been up to anything interesting?"

Now that was a far from subtle change in subject. And clearly a determined attempt to move the topic away from a discussion about her. He would return to her locum stint in due course. In the meantime he'd play to her rules. "Like?"

Relieved to find he was allowing her to move the focus from her to him, she shrugged. "I don't know. Whatever." While he knew about her work as a locum, all she knew was that he was still working at the hospital. On the social scene he was never short of beautiful women for company, but in the last two years she hadn't noticed anyone who was in his company long term. That had her frowning. Was he a commitment phobe? That had her grinning. She could talk. When was the last time she'd been out for three straight dates?

"I did a triathalon last year." Rafe announced and was delighted to see he had caught her off guard. Her eyes went wide in surprise. Rafe injected a smile in his voice as he added, "Don't mean to brag, but I did the Coast to coast."

"Gosh!" She blinked.

He laughed. "And. Never again." He admitted, and without thinking shuffled his chair forward toward her. The band had started up again and he thought they afforded him the perfect opportunity to close the gap.

She laughed and leaned back, but there wasn't much space to occupy, so in essence they were now just a few inches from each other. "You like that kind of stuff." She said and hoped she did not look as nervous as she felt. Was he coming onto her?

"How would you know?"

She knew she was about to floor him. So she went for the blunt approach and fully intended to enjoy his reaction. "Ah, well on my quest for a consultant hubby I checked out your hobbies!"

"You didn't!" He laughed. "You do realise that could count as stalker!"

"Ok, I didn't." She grinned and then told him. "But you looked petrified for a second." She laughed happily. "Belle was at a party when you told her about some triathalon thing. I think you were hitting her up for sponsorship money! You were fund raising for something or the other and doing a triathalon down south somewhere! As you can see I got all the details." She grinned at him.

"For a moment there I thought you might be a bunny boiler!"

"Sorry I couldn't resist baiting you."

"Not nice." He leaned back in.

"But fun." She giggled and he found himself suddenly rather enchanted.