Secrets (Hope Bay) Read online

  Secrets

  a Hope Bay novel

  by

  Angela Verdenius

  (BBW Romance)

  Copyright 2018 Angela Verdenius

  All Rights Reserved

  Cover images courtesy of © Loredana | Dreamstime.com,

  © Ryhor Bruyeu | Dreamstime.com , © GlobalStock | istock.com,

  © yavuzunlu | Shutterstock.com, © Seregraff | istock.com ,

  © Anna_Om | istock.com

  Cover by Angela Verdenius

  License Statement

  No part of this book may be reproduced, resold, copied or given away in any form without prior consent of the author & publisher.

  All characters, places and happenings are figments of the author’s imagination and bear no resemblance to any person living or deceased.

  Table of Contents

  Foreword

  Glossary

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Epilogue

  Bio

  Other Books by this Author

  Foreword

  This is a romance, and I did not want to get bogged down in legal issues and drawn-out battles, so for the sake of the story I have skimmed over legalities and taken some liberty in regards to:

  1) The law to do with evidence, and the laying and withdrawing of charges.

  2) Hospital policies & procedures on theft and accusations.

  There are policies and procedures in place at every hospital for legal issues that arise.

  The law has policies and procedures in place for laying charges and withdrawing charges.

  Enjoy the romance and the HEA!

  Cheers

  Ang

  Glossary

  I found that some overseas readers were having difficulty with the Australian slang, so I thought a list of the slang I’ve used will help while reading the following story. If I’ve forgotten any, I do apologise! Also, you’ll find some of our Aussie words have different spelling to the US. Interestingly enough, as I’ve grown (gracefully) older, I find a lot of our slang is bypassing the younger generation, so if a young Aussie says they have never heard a certain word, don’t be surprised! But trust me, I’ve used these words all my life growing up, and so have a lot of my family and friends. Does that make me an older Aussie? Heck yes! LOL

  Cheers,

  Angela

  Australian Names/Terms/Slang

  AFP - Australian Federal Police

  Ambos - ambulance officers

  Arse-End Arnold - usually the soldier guarding the rear of a platoon when in the field.

  Arvo - afternoon

  Barbie - BBQ

  Beaut - beautiful, awesome, great, wonderful

  Berko - berserk

  Bewdy - as in ‘awesome, great’

  Biccies - biscuits. The same as cookies

  Bikie - biker, person who rides motorcycles.

  Bloke/s - man/men

  Bloody - a swear word ‘no bloody good’, in place of ‘no damned good’

  Blowies - blow flies

  Blue - fight, argument - as in ‘they’re having a blue’

  Boofhead - idiot, simpleton, etc. It’s an insult, though sometimes we use it as a term of affection. It depends on how it is said and meant.

  Boot (of a car) - trunk

  Brown nose - currying favour, sucking up. Has a cruder description, but let’s not go into that here. Means the same thing!

  Budgie smugglers - men’s bathers, small, brief and tight-fitting

  Buggered - many Aussie use it as a slang word for ‘broken’ (it’s buggered), ‘tired (I’m buggered), and ‘no way’ (I’m buggered if I’m going to do that). Just some examples

  Bung/Bunging - as in ‘bunging onto something’, putting on something (bung veggies on a plate, putting veggies on a plate), usually in a careless or ‘easy’ manner.

  Bush rangers - outlaws/thieves/robbers.

  Caramel Crowns - one of Arnott’s totally awesome chocolate and caramel biscuit. Gooey yumminess!

  Cark/carked - die, died.

  Chips - in Australia we have cold crunchy chips from a packet, or hot chips known in some countries as French Fries

  Chippie - carpenter

  Crash cart - resuscitation trolley in a hospital or medical setting - used for life threatening situations such as cardiac arrest

  Dander – temper

  Dial - face

  Digger - Australian soldier.

  Dill - silly, idiot

  Dogs - (as in attached to a truck) - trailers, enclosed or not, that carry goods or are empty.

  Dooks - hands

  Doona - like a padded quilt that fits inside a cover and lies on the bed. Can have the warmth of two, three or four blankets, etc.

  Donger - penis. Also another meaning is a place people sometimes sleep in, such as ‘dongers’ on mine sites.

  Dunny - toilet. When used in the terms ‘built like a brick dunny’, it refers to something built solid, unmoveable.

  Fire bug - arsonist

  Firies - fire fighters

  Garbo/s - the person/s who drive and/or load garbage onto the garbage truck.

  Gee-gees - horses

  Giggle-box - TV, television

  Gob - mouth

  Got his/her/their goat – annoyed him/her/them

  Hardifence - corrugated fibre cement sheets

  Hoon/s - person/people who indulge in antisocial behaviour. Great explanation in Wikipedia

  Iced Coffee/chocolate - a milk drink flavoured with chocolate or coffee

  Jarmies - pyjamas

  Jumper - sweater

  Kick up a stink - make a fuss, get angry

  Local rag - local newspaper

  Lolly - sweetie, candy

  Loo - toilet

  Lug - face

  Marie biscuits - Arnott brand of plain sweet biscuit - delicious.

  Milo - chocolate malt drink. Can have it hot or cold. Yummy!

  Moosh - slang for face/mouth

  Mobile phone - cell phone

  Mozzie - mosquito

  NAD - No Abnormalities Detected

  Nong - idiot

  Nooky - sex

  Paddy wagon - four wheel drive police vehicle carries four police in the double cab and has a filled-in imprisonment section in the back to place prisoners.

  Panadol - paracetamol, similar to Tylenol in the US

  Pav/s - Pavlova/Pavlovas - best dessert ever!

  PCYC - Police and Citizens Youth Club

  Pedal Pushers - three quarter pants/knickerbockers

  Porking - having sex

  Primapore - sticky patch with a pad in it, a medical dressing

  Pub – hotel

  Quack – derogatory term for a doctor

  RAC - Royal Automobile Club of Western Australia. Covers insurance, holidays, loans, etc

  Red backs - poisonous spider, black in colour with a red stripe on its back.

  Root - sex

  Rotty – Rottweiler breed of dog.

  Rubbers – condoms

  Sack - bed - as ‘in the sack’ meaning ‘in bed’

  Sandgroper - slang for a West Australian

  Servo - service station

  Shag - sex

  Sheila – female

  Slab – carton of beer.

  Smoko - morning tea and afternoon tea break

  Snaggers - sausages

  Soft drink - soda, fizzy drink

  Sparkie - electrician

  Spider (drink) - soft drink of choice
with a scoop of ice cream in it

  Spunk - good-looking man

  Stiffy - erection, boner

  Subbies - sub contractors

  Tea - some people call the evening meal dinner. In my family, we’ve always called it tea, as in breaky, dinner and tea, or breaky, lunch and tea.

  Thongs - worn on the feet, same as ‘flip flops’

  Tickled pink - delighted

  Tim Tams - a brand of Arnott’s Biscuits. Yummy!

  TLC - Tender Loving Care

  Togs - bathers, swim suit

  Torch - flashlight

  Toot - toilet

  Tradies - tradesmen

  Trots - diarrhoea

  Tucker – food

  Twistie – a brand of cheese-flavoured snack food. Yummy!

  Ute - small truck

  Vegemite - most Aussies find this spread yummy, many non-Aussies find it too salty. Here’s the hint - if you ever have Vegemite, use it spread thinly, never thickly!

  Vollie - volunteers

  Wacky baccy - marijuana

  Wanger - penis

  Waterworks - crying

  Whopper - a lie

  Yamaha & Suzuki - ‘brands’ of motorcycles.

  You wally - silly

  Chapter 1

  “No. I didn’t do it.”

  “You did! How could you?”

  “I swear.” She was getting desperate. “I swear, I didn’t do it!”

  “You did it! I’ll have your job for this! You lying piece of trash!”

  “Please.” Throat choked, tears filling her eyes, heart hammering. “Please, I’m telling the truth. Please, just listen to me, I couldn’t have-”

  “No, you listen. I’ll have your job, your reputation, and you’ll have a black mark on your record. You’ll never work in this field again!”

  Her heart thumped heavily, her stomach pitched sickeningly. This was fast becoming a nightmare, a nightmare.

  A nightmare.

  A NIGHTMARE!

  **

  Jerking awake, Emma sat bolt upright in bed, her breath coming out in ragged gasps. For several seconds the world pitched in front of her eyes before she slowly came to her senses, came awake to the gratifying realisation that it was just another dream. Another nightmare.

  “It’s okay.” Flopping back onto the bed, she stared up at the ceiling. “It’s over. It’s all over.” A wet nose poked her cheek and she turned her head to meet the gold eyes staring back at her. “Just a nightmare, CK.”

  The long, lanky ginger cat stepped up onto Emma’s belly and sat there looking down at her.

  “You’re hungry.” Glad for the normalcy, she fondled CK’s ears, the rich purring breaking out into the room a comforting and reassuring sound. “I’ll get up and feed you, hey? Some fish?”

  Forcing the nightmare to the back of her mind, to the dark recesses where it dwelt to erupt now and again just to remind her to remain on guard, Emma listened to the faint sound of the ocean crashing onto the shoreline a few streets away. Outside the window the sounds of birds calling in the wattles heralded a new day.

  A new day in a small country town on the coast.

  A small country town as far away as she could get from the city where -

  “Not going to think about it.” Gently pushing CK off her belly, she sat up and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. “Got things to do.” She switched off the alarm clock that had yet to peel out a wake-up call. “A cat to feed, a walk to have, breaky, the usual.”

  Crossing to the window, she pulled back the curtain and yanked up the blind to reveal the dawn. The sun was just spotting the horizon and it promised to be a beautiful day, warm and breezy.

  Moving quickly, Emma fed CK, leaving her eating in the kitchen while she brushed her teeth, sprayed on deodorant, bundled her wavy hair into a ponytail, yanked on a pair of pedal-pushers and an old t-shirt, slid into a pair of thongs and left the house, locking the door behind her.

  Walking down the pathway lined with daisy bushes never failed to delight her, even after living in the old house for the last six months. The little lawn each side of the pathway was green and springy, and the golden shower wattles that had also been planted in each corner of the front yard were glorious with their cascading wattle.

  Shutting the little gate, she looked back at the house. With a red tin roof, a rose-strewn archway leading onto the bull-nose veranda, it was so delightfully old-fashioned and screamed home and sanctuary.

  It had definitely been her sanctuary. That her boss had rented it to her at such a low cost still amazed her. Now all she had to do was talk him into letting her buy it, she loved it that much.

  Walking the street towards the beach still made her feel as though she’d stepped back in time. Stone and brick houses, a mix of old styles, neatly tended gardens and a variety of fences. She felt as though she’d stepped back into the early 1900s. True, Hope Bay had streets of more modern homes, but the majority was still old style.

  She hoped it stayed that way.

  Reaching the beach within minutes, she kicked off her thongs and walked along the damp sand, letting the waves lap around her toes. Seagulls whirled overhead, and in the distance she could see the big hotel that was built near the beach, the dock going down to the ocean. No tourists stirred but the staff would already be at work, just as they were in the different areas of town - the newsagent, the little corner store, the local café, and the service station. The cop shop was manned at all times, as were the ambulance, fire station and the small hospital.

  Tilting her head back, she inhaled deeply of the sea air, enjoying the solitude.

  By the time she returned home, more walkers were out and about, along with several tourists riding push bikes while taking in the sights of the quaint old coastal town, their laughter and chatter filling the air.

  After a quick shower and change of clothes, she was ready for work, this time with her hair pulled back in a claw grip and a light application of lipstick. Energized by the walk, the remnants of the nightmare erased by the tranquil air of the morning, she gave CK a quick smooch on top of her head and left her dozing on the windowsill in the sunshine.

  The day was so promising, and she was in such a good mood that she decided to buy lunch. Humming, she turned the car in the direction of the café which, at this time of the morning, would smell of Daz’s famous hot coffee and delicious pastries. Pulling up in front of it, she turned off the car and reached for the strap of her handbag that was coiled around the gear stick, a habit she’d fallen into while living in the city and continued, as even country towns had crime.

  Emma muttered a curse as she fumbled the strap and the handbag fell back to the floor. Leaning over to retrieve it, she straightened and shoved open the car door with her other hand.

  There was a loud thump followed by the car rocking slightly as someone collided with the door.

  Not to mention a particularly vile swear word.

  Horrified, she swung around to find part of a bicycle showing under the car door, along with a pair of muscular legs encased in shorts and sneakers.

  “Oh no!” Scrambling from the car, careful not to get tangled in the bike wheel, she slammed the door shut to look down at the man sprawled on the ground. “Are you all right?”

  He glared up at her. “Didn’t you look before you opened the door?”

  “I am so sorry!” Embarrassed, she crouched down beside him, her gaze running assessingly over him for injuries. “Are you hurt?”

  He shoved the bike back off his leg. “No.”

  Relieved, she offered her hand to assist him up, only to wither inside a little as he gave her hand one narrow-eyed look before pushing upright, leaving her standing with her hand still held out.

  “I really am sorry.” Biting her lip, she dropped her hand and stood as well. “Is your bike okay?”

  “It’s fine.” The reply was brusque.

  Not quite knowing what to say, she watched him bend over and brush the dirt from his knees. He had s
ome grazes but nothing too bad. Of medium height, he was nevertheless taller than her by a head. His well-worn t-shirt hugged a well-built chest and a flat abdomen. Absentmindedly, she wondered if he sported a four or six pack beneath the t-shirt, assuring herself a little belatedly that she was medically assessing him, nothing more.

  Right. It’s not those nicely flexing biceps and triceps doing anything for me. It’s not that light brown hair cut very short, the strong jaw line, that firm mouth or the laughter lines at the corners of those grey eyes.

  She loved laughter lines, the indication of humour.

  Unfortunately, his laughter lines were definitely not crinkling for her. That was evident when he glanced up. “You could have done some serious damage throwing open your door like that without checking.” His scowl had eased into annoyance.

  “I normally do check.” She held her hands out, palms up. “Like I said, I’m so sorry. Can I offer you a ride to wherever it is you’re going?”

  Straightening to his full height, the man frowned down at her.

  Emma cleared her throat. “Really, I’m sorry.”

  His frown didn’t fade.

  Several cars passed on the quiet street, the drivers getting a good eyeful, and her embarrassment climbed a little higher, her cheeks going redder the longer he looked at her.

  Finally, not knowing what else to do, she muttered, “If there are any damages to your bike, you can contact me on this number.” Leaning back into the car, she snagged her handbag and drew out a small pad and pen. Pulling back out of the car, she quickly scribbled down her phone number and handed it to him.

  At first she thought he wasn’t going to take it, but then he slowly took the paper from her and studied the number.

  “It’s my real number,” she assured him.

  Those sharp grey eyes cut back to her.

  Cheeks going a little redder - and she thought they couldn’t possibly get any hotter - Emma slid behind the wheel of her car, but before she could shut the door a masculine hand caught it and the man leaned down to study her through the open door.