Stunted Heart: Hot sapphic romance by Helena Harte

Author:Helena Harte [Harte, Helena]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Butterworth Books
Published: 2023-07-31T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

Taryn held the driver’s side door open, and Cassie stepped out.

“This shouldn’t take long,” Cassie said.

“You said that your friend’s daughter was here for more chemo?” Taryn closed the door behind her.

“I think of Sara as a colleague rather than a friend.”

Taryn looked surprised. “Really? If this is what you do for your colleagues, your friends are very lucky.”

Cassie frowned. “What makes you say that?”

“You don’t think that what you’re doing is a big deal?” Taryn asked and smiled.

Cassie popped the trunk and pulled out her purse. “Do you think it is?”

Taryn chuckled. “I do. I think you’ve got a huge heart.” She pulled Cassie into a soft embrace and kissed her forehead. “It’s quite endearing.”

“I’m pretty sure not many people would want to be friends with me.” Cassie pulled away and locked her car. “Friendships take time to nurture and maintain, and time is something I don’t have much of.”

Taryn tilted her head. “Like I say, you only get a finite number of heartbeats. It’s best to spend them doing what you love.”

Cassie raised her eyebrows and gave a hollow laugh. “That’s a rather Utopian way of looking at things.” She gestured toward the entrance. “Come on. I don’t want to miss visiting time.”

Taryn followed Cassie into the clinic, thinking about what she’d just said. There was a certain melancholy in Cassie’s words, seemingly kissed with more than a little wistfulness or possibly regret. And as Taryn had uttered a version of her motto, she questioned the validity of her own choices. Did she still love the stunts and the shows? Over the last week of practice, even the levitated double globe of death hadn’t offered its usual allure, and her mind had wandered to thoughts of what Cassie might be doing instead of laser-focusing on what she was doing. And that was dangerous. She counted herself lucky that her lack of concentration hadn’t resulted in any incidents.

She flicked through the vast array of leaflets on the wall rack to give Cassie privacy while she made her donation. There seemed to be information for every type of cancer, disease, and physical ailment, as well as mental health assistance. The free clinic was trying to do what some of continental Europe and the UK offered, but with private philanthropic funding rather than money from the government. Taryn glanced around, trying to be as inconspicuous as possible, and her heart ached for what she saw. The waiting room was filled with people whose illnesses had gone hitherto untreated because they couldn’t afford healthcare. Infected, undressed wounds; a woman with a growth the size of a watermelon on her side; and a father and son who looked in such a state of malnutrition, she could’ve mistaken them for starving Third World citizens—not citizens of one of the largest civilized nations on earth.

Cassie was donating her money, and she’d also talked about volunteering and giving her time and expertise too. Taryn thought about the money her parents had invested in her and her own lapsed license.

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