The next morning she was still feeling unsettled by the previous day - and she didn't notice that she overdid it on her run. By the time she came back from the jog, every muscle in her body hurt, and the lungs felt on fire. She walked into the cottage and leaned her back against the closet. Rhys had left after their exchange, she'd heard the door bang from the guest room. James Whitlaw had been right, she thought in irritation. Staying with Mable blurred the boundaries between Viola and the Holyoakes - and there was nothing Viola valued in life more than boundaries.

She took a quick shower and made coffee. She was finishing her second cup, when the doorbell rang. Viola let Molly in, greeted the girl, and went back to her iPad. A former colleague had sent her an interesting article, and soon she was absorbed in reading.

"Morning, Viola," Mable greeted her, entering the kitchen. "Look at you! Like a magazine cover, every morning!" Viola smiled at the old woman. "Will you join me in church today?" Mable asked. "The Reverend Phibbs is a bore but we won't have to endure him for long. March next year, our own Oliver will be taking the position of the curate in St. Peter's church."

"Oh that's lovely!" Viola exclaimed in sincere joy.

She always loved Oliver Holyoake, Rhys' cousin. She couldn't phrase it any better than to say that he had a beautiful soul. The man radiated kindness and acceptance. She'd received the most heartfelt comforting letter from him when her parents passed away, and as unsentimental as she was, she'd kept it in her jewellery box.

"I think I'll stay in today, Nana," Viola added. "Molly, will you drive Mable to St. Peter's?"

"Of course!" Molly said. "And then Mrs. Holyoake wanted to go visit a few shops in Fleckney Woulds."

"Will you join us for lunch, Viola?" Mable asked.

"Let me know," Viola said. "I'll go to the surgery for a bit, I still have plenty of boxes to unpack. Could you, please, drop me off?"

With their day planned, Mable and Viola both went upstairs to change.

***

Viola had a moment of hesitation whether to ring the bell or to open the door to the flat with the key Fenton had given her, but then she reminded herself he was downstairs in the surgery - and it was her flat, at least for now.

She entered and walked into her room. The doctors and nurses traditionally lived above the surgery in Fleckney Woulds, but Fenton's - and now Viola's - nurse, a lovely Serbian young woman named Snezha Stankovic had a family in town. As Fenton had explained to Viola, her half of the flat - with a half-separate entrance, an en suite, and access to a small balcony - had been renovated just as the rest of the surgery about five years earlier, but no one had lived in it since then. Viola's predecessor had been renting a cottage in Fleckney Fields with his family.

Viola had moved her furniture already - her platform bed, her massive free-standing wardrobe, and her desk and chair - all of them coordinated, bespoke, and Bauhaus. She'd hung and arranged her clothes in the wardrobe the first day, but there were still skyscrapers of boxes waiting for her. Viola went to the kitchen to make coffee for herself. Fenton's kitchen looked bare but clean. While she stood over the cezve, her to-do list was taking shape in her mind. And then her mobile rang on the counter, and she picked it up.

"Viola, this is Fenton," the Welshman said. His voice was tense. "Are you willing to start working earlier?"

Straight to business, aren't we, Alan?

"Morning, Alan," she said and took the cezve off the hob. "I'm upstairs in the flat. How can I help you?"

"Oh, upstairs," he muttered. "I'm stuck in the surgery with a small procedure, and apparently there's been an incident in Frake's Gym, in the pool. Nothing serious, they didn't call an ambulance from Abernathy General. Would you mind stopping by there and checking on them? Technically, it would be Snezha's duty, but she's away today."

"Alan, my paperwork hasn't gone through, you remember that, right?"

Viola poured her coffee in her KeepCup and opened the fridge searching for cream.

"Just stop by there and see if they should call an ambulance," Fenton said and gave out a frustrated huff. "Unofficially. It's a small town, Viola," he said. "Lots of what's happening here is unofficial."

"Pardon?" Viola asked, straightening up.

"A kid slipped on water or something, and they might need stitches. Just check on them, would you?" Fenton said, and before she could say anything, he grumbled a thank you and hung up.

Not enjoying the countryside life as much now, do you, Viola?

***

She parked her Panda near the Frake's Gym and Spa, and climbed out of the car. She'd googled the gym before, considering joining it when she moved. It was a new building, high-tech and pristine. Viola came in and was immediately greeted by a wide smile from a receptionist.

"Welcome to Frake's Gym and Spa! My name is Amandeep. How can we help you today?" the young woman said in a melodic voice.

"Good day, I'm Dr. Viola Holyoake," Viola started.

"Oh, you're Dr. Fenton's colleague! Thank you so much for stopping by!" the girl exclaimed and jumped to her feet. "Could I take you through, please?"

That was an unexpected level of professionalism the woman was demonstrating, Viola thought in admiration. No faffing about, no unnecessary questions - and no mentioning any medical emergency in front of several punters wandering about. Well done.

"Sure," she said.

The receptionist beckoned another employee, who took her spot behind the desk, and she walked Viola through the sliding doors. While walking the sparkling clean halls, Amandeep gave Viola a quick tour of yoga and cycling classrooms, the changing rooms, and the gym, and soon they walked into the pool part of the facility.

"There's a children's class going on right now," Amandeep said, letting Viola step into the swimming area. "One of the children slipped outside the pool. We're grateful you were willing to come in," the receptionist said to Viola opening the door with her fob. "Our employee treated the cut, and the parents have been informed, but I'm sure they will be relieved to know there was no need for an ambulance."

Viola stepped into what looked like a 25-metre swimming pool area - and immediately saw a girl of around fourtenn, sitting on a bench near the wall with a young lad in a tee with the words 'Assistant Coach' and jammers, chatting with her.

"Evy, Arlo, this is Dr. Holyoake," Amandeep addressed them. "She just stopped by to see how you're doing."

"Hiya!" the one called Arlo said and looked her over with curiosity.

"Hi!" the girl said and gave Viola a wide grin. "Are you the coach's ex-wife?"

"Pardon?" Viola asked - and then she had a suspicion.

She felt blood drain from her face, and she whipped her head to look at the pool. There were about a dozen more children bobbing in the shallow end, slowly climbing the ladder out, one by one - and Rhys Holyoake stood on the edge in a water suit, pointing at something in the water.

Rhys Holyoake. The man who'd almost drowned at the age of ten, and who's always been aquaphobic. In a watersuit - short sleeves, tight on his massive upper arms; shorts hugging his sculpted strong thighs; his cap in his hand. His hair disheveled, sticking out more on one side.

"The class is almost over," Amandeep said. "We should move you to the office, Evy."

"But you are, right?" Evy asked Viola, who slowly tore her eyes off her ex-husband and looked at the girl.

"Pardon?"

"Coach Holyoake's your ex-husband, right?"

"Let's have a look at your cut, shall we?" Viola said, gathering her composure.

"I'll go get the coach," Arlo said and quickly walked away from them.

Did you just twitch to stop him?! What's this about? Slow inhale, then exhale. Keep your face under control.

"How's your leg, Evy?" she asked in an even tone.

"It's fine," the girl said. "I slipped, and there was that corner there." She pointed at the skimmer. "Arlo's cleaned it up already, but there was a lo-o-o-ot of blood, and everyone freaked out! It was so funny! And then–"

"Good day, Viola," Rhys said above Viola.

Viola jolted.

You talked to him yesterday. There's no way you could've forgotten what he sounds like.

"Hi," she said and slowly looked up at him.

And of course, the signature frown.

"She's here to look at my leg," Evy announced in a jolly voice. "But it's fine! And Arlo put the Elastoplast on it!"

"Your mum's coming, Evy," Amandeep said and gave Rhys a wide smile. "It's just the coach wanted to make sure you didn't need an ambulance."

The children were now walking by them, their bare feet making wet noises on the tile, like a line of goslings, and 'Bye, coach' and 'See you next week, coach' kept coming. Rhys made eye contact and nodded to each one, and Evy waved to her mates, while Viola just stood there, feeling quite out of place in her tweed pencil skirt, her turtleneck, and the slippers they'd given her at the entrance.

What is Rhys Holyoake even like as a coach?! she suddenly wondered. She knew what he was like as a boss. Being friends with James Whitlaw at the time when Rhys had just started his company had given her enough insight. The words 'hard,' 'ruthless,' and 'wanker' had been used in those conversations. On the other hand, she'd just seen him with his niece and nephew the day before. 'Like a different person' would describe his laughing and rolling in the snow best.

"So, let's see your leg," she said, focusing on the present. After all, what did it matter? "Perhaps, in the office just as you said?" she addressed the receptionist.

"Coach, can you go with me?" Evy asked.

"For sure," he answered softly and smiled at the girl.

All four of them went to the coach office, while Arlo stayed behind, looking after the rest of the goslings. Evy sat in a chair, and Viola just started with all the usual questions - how deep the wound was, how long it had been, etcetera - when the receptionist's mobile vibrated.

"Your mum's here, Evy," Amandeep said. "So, it seems not calling an ambulance was the right call," she addressed Viola.

"The cut is shallow, and the bleeding stopped in under 15 minutes, so I'd say, yes," Viola said, getting up from where she'd squatted in front of the girl. "I would come see your doctor tomorrow, just to make sure it's been cleaned properly and isn't getting infected, but other than that, you're good."

"Let me take her to her mum," Amandeep said.

Evy jumped to her feet, once again confirming Viola's assessment.

"See you next week, coach," she said and lifted her hand.

Rhys high-fived her with a small smile.

"Watch under your feet next time," he grumbled, and the girl laughed, stuck her tongue at him, and left with the receptionist.

The door closed behind them.

"I'd like to wash my hands," Viola said, avoiding looking at him.

Which is odd because why wouldn't you want to experience a dose of dopamine pumping in the left ventral tegmental area of your brain, which is a normal human reaction to seeing someone attractive? And calling Rhys Holyoake, every line of his massive body on display, attractive would be an understatement of the century. He might be not everyone's cup of tea, but Viola had always been into Chris Hemsworth-sized and -shaped men.

"That way," he said and pointed at the second door in the office.

She nodded and quickly walked to the door. While she lathered soap and rubbed between her fingers, she once again reminded herself that she'd known they'd run into each other - a lot - once she moved to this tiny county. It's just because you keep running into him when one of you is pretty much half-starkers. That's all.

She slowly exhaled through her rounded lips, dried her hands, and stepped out of the bathroom. He stood over the desk, slightly bent, typing something on a laptop with one hand.

"Show me out, please," she said, and he looked up.

There was a pause - what could he possibly be studying so intently? - and then he nodded. While walking after him through the gym, Viola could feel lashings of curious looks, but she'd already calmed down, and it didn't bother her. Unlike the view of his muscular back, favourably outlined by the black of the watersuit.

At the door to the main area he stopped and pushed the button to open the door for her.

"Ta," she said and gave him a polite smile.

"See you tonight," he said, and before she could ask, he turned around and walked back along the hallway.