“You have to stop beating yourself up or you’ll be no good to anyone.” Her eyes flickered. She still had a long way to go before she would feel safe, no matter what she thought, and he wanted to be there for her.
“I know. And I appreciate you letting me work off steam here. I’m hoping we get the report back tomorrow or the next day. Until then, I don’t want to let myself off the hook. It’s not fair to his family or my other patients.”
“Understandable. You’ll get through this, Liam. Now drink that coffee and go home. Some of us have to work.”
It was going to take time but Liam was determined to make Aggie change her mind. Bit by bit, he’d make her see that what happened to her wasn’t going to have any effect on their relationship. He wanted her and was convinced she wanted him too, despite her earlier comments. She’d shown him her true feelings the night of the wedding. Waking up the next morning with regrets didn’t change anything as far as he was concerned; it only showed how scared she was that he would judge her.
How Liam wished he could find the guy who did it and deal with him. Get some kind of payback for what he’d done to Aggie. That wasn’t going to happen, so the most important thing he could think to do was showing her how important she was to him. Proving that what happened to her wasn’t what would define the rest of her life.
Of course it would be hard to move past something so horrible as a sexual assault—anyone could see that. The last thing he wanted to do was trivialize the incident. Perhaps it would be a good idea to talk to Bradley. He wouldn’t mention Aggie’s name of course, although Bradley knew about the assault, but talk to him in general terms to make sure he didn’t go making things worse. As he lay in bed trying to sleep, he put that on his mental to-do list for the following day.
The next morning when he got a break, he picked up the phone and called the older man. “Bradley, Liam Davidson. I wonder if we could meet up and have a chat?”
“Sure thing, Doc. When and where? My schedule is pretty clear, unlike yours.”
“Thanks. I’m thinking late this afternoon after I finish work. About five p.m. How does that suit you?”
“I’ll be at the beach for a late afternoon walk with [what was his dog’s name?]. Why don’t you find us and get some sand between your toes? From what I hear, you could use the downtime after the week you’ve had.”
Of course Bradley had heard about it. He’d forgotten that Bradley’d told Aggie and sent her to chat to him. Everyone knew.
Liam tried not to let that sour his mood. Small island community—he should be used to it by now. “Good idea. See you then. And thanks.”
He struggled to keep his mind on his patients for the rest of the afternoon, but it kept wandering and it was an effort to bring it back to the present. Finally, the last patient left and he was able to close his door.
By the time he got down to the beach, parked his car and saw Bradley, the weather had cooled. He took his shoes and socks off, folded up his trousers to his knees, and skipped down the steps.
“Liam. Nice to see you.” Bradley’s little dog bounded toward Liam and sniffed his ankles, eventually passing him as acceptable.
“Bradley.”
“So, stressing over your patient. I’m sorry for both of you. He was a nice man, kind and considerate.”
“Yes, he was. I can’t seem to cut myself any slack for it. I know I missed something and it’s tormenting me, to be honest.” He walked beside the retired psychologist, enjoying the sea breeze on his face.
Bradley looked out over the ocean before going back to Liam. “What if you’re wrong? Have you thought of that? I always say when your number’s up, it’s up. He’d led a good life, been a wonderful husband, father, and grandfather. Maybe it was just his time, Liam.”
The thought had crossed his mind, but he’d dismissed it. “Maybe. But until I get the report back, I’ll still be questioning everything I do.”
“Understandable. Now, why don’t you tell me why you really wanted to see me.” He leaned down and undid the lead from the dog’s collar and let the little terrier run free.
Liam grinned. The man could see through anyone, him included. “Aggie came and saw me the other day.”
“Ah, yes. I thought it would be good for you to have someone to talk to. And, knowing how you feel about her, she seemed the logical person to me.”
“Thanks for that. We got into an argument and she told me what happened.”
Bradley paused and stared at him. “You mean…”
“Yes, the sexual assault.” He kicked a shell with his big toe and then stared out over the coastline. “She thinks she’s second-hand goods, Bradley. How on earth do I convince her otherwise? I dealt with cases like this in Seattle but not ever with someone I knew. I don’t want to make the wrong move and scare her away.” He shuffled his feet in the sand. “I’ve been reading reports and papers but haven’t come across anything that specifically covers that side of assaults.”
A worried frown appeared on the older man’s face. “You haven’t said anything to Atticus or Drew have you?”
Liam shook his head. “No. Certainly not. She said only a couple of people know, you included, and I understand why she’d want to keep that secret. I’d never let her down that way.”
Bradley nodded. “Good, good.” He walked a few more paces before speaking again. “I saw her the morning after the wedding. She had a spark of happiness I hadn’t seen for a long time, but then she let the doubt take over. It’s a sad state of affairs.”
“Yes, it is.
