Maggie Kingsley – A Consultant Claims His Bride (страница 6)

‘Yikes, but you look even worse now than you did when you first came in this morning,’ Fiona observed, when Nell handed her the notes for the night staff. ‘If I were you, I’d go straight home and have an early night.’

‘I fully intend to,’ Nell replied. ‘I just want a quick word with Jonah. Is he about?’

‘He was in his consulting room a few minutes ago, but I’m not sure where he is now.’ The secretary stared at Nell critically. ‘You know, you could be coming down with flu. Liz Fenton was telling me last night—’

‘Got to go, Fiona,’ Nell interrupted, before the secretary could launch into a long and involved saga on who in the nursing staff was currently laid low with what.

Get it over with, she told herself as she headed off down the corridor. Grovel profusely, and get it over with—but not right away, she realised with dismay as she rounded the corner and saw her least favourite member of staff walking towards her.

‘And where are you hurrying off to at such speed, not so little Nell?’ Lawrence Summers, the consultant from Men’s Surgical, said with one of his aren’t-I-wonderful smiles. ‘Not so little Nell, as opposed to the little Nell,’ he added. ‘Get it?’

‘Very amusing, sir,’ she muttered. ‘And now if you’ll excuse me,’ she continued, but he moved faster than she did and blocked her path.

‘It’s Lawrence, Nell, as I keep telling you,’ he said. ‘Not sir, or Mr Summers, but Lawrence. And what’s your hurry? Stay a while, talk to me.’

Yeah, right, she thought. The only reason you want to talk to me is so you can ogle my breasts. So, maybe she was more than generously endowed, but every time she met the consultant it was getting harder and harder to resist the temptation to wrench up his chin and say, ‘Look, I’m more than just a pair of breasts, just as I’m sure you’re more than what you’ve got in your trousers.’

Except she wasn’t one hundred per cent certain that Lawrence actually was more than what he had in his trousers.

Brian had loathed him.

‘Flash beggar,’ he’d said one evening when they’d been having dinner. ‘Getting by on his good looks and so-called charm. I’ve worked with him in Theatre, Nell, and, believe me, he’s all show and no substance. One day he’ll come a cropper.’

Nell didn’t know whether the consultant would or not, but she did know she didn’t want to be ogled by him.

‘I’m afraid I have to go, Mr Summers,’ she said firmly, but before she could push past him he had caught her hand.

‘When are you going to go out with me, Nell?’

When hell freezes over, Lawrence. ‘I’m an engaged woman, sir.’

‘An engaged woman who isn’t wearing her engagement ring,’ he said, lifting her hand into the light and regarding it thoughtfully.

Oh, damn and blast. She’d forgotten to put it back on again after last night, and though she knew she’d have to eventually tell everyone about her broken engagement, Lawrence was the last person on that particular list.

‘It’s in the jeweller’s, she said quickly. ‘I…I noticed one of the stones was loose this morning so I left it with the jeweller to be on the safe side.’

One of Lawrence’s eyebrows rose. ‘Why do I have the feeling you’re lying?’

‘Perhaps because you have an overly suspicious nature?’ Jonah said as he came out of his consulting room. He glanced from Lawrence to Nell, then back again. ‘You also appear to be manhandling a member of my staff.’

His voice was even but Nell could hear the hint of steel beneath it, and so, apparently, could Lawrence because he released her hand immediately.

‘No offence meant, Nell,’ he said. She knew he expected her to reply, ‘None taken,’ but she would have cut out her own tongue than say it.

‘So, what brings you up from the rarefied atmosphere of Men’s Surgical, Lawrence?’ Jonah asked, and the consultant smiled.

‘Haematology tell me you’ve been complaining about the length of time you’re having to wait before they test any samples you send down, and I thought I should point out to you, as one member of staff to another, that we all have to follow a certain protocol.’

‘The protocol being that Men’s Surgical samples should always be tested first, and the rest of us have to wait in line,’ Jonah said, with a smile every bit as false as Lawrence Summers’s. ‘I don’t think so, Lawrence.’

‘Then perhaps I should also point out that you’re only an acting consultant,’ Lawrence continued, his smile completely gone now, ‘and therefore have no real authority to insist on anything.’

‘Feel free to point out whatever you like, Lawrence,’ Jonah said smoothly, ‘but it won’t get you anywhere.’

The two men stared at one another, and Nell held her breath. Only yesterday she’d told Jonah he was as soft as butter, but this was a Jonah she didn’t know. A Jonah she wouldn’t want to mess with. Lawrence clearly thought the same.

‘Fair enough, Jonah,’ he said, his smile back in place on his handsome face. ‘I just thought I’d mention it.’

‘I’m glad you did,’ Jonah replied. ‘And now, if you’ll excuse us?’ he added pointedly, which left Lawrence with nothing to do but leave.

‘Thanks for rescuing me,’ Nell said as she followed Jonah into his consulting room. ‘That man is such a creep.’

‘Lawrence Summers is a creep?’ Jonah said in surprise. ‘I thought he was God’s gift to women?’

‘In his dreams,’ Nell retorted. ‘He may look like a Greek god but anyone who’s ever been out with him says he’s got arms like an octopus and a kiss like a bathroom plunger.’

Jonah let out a splutter of laughter. ‘That’s an image that’s going to stay with me for a very long time. Now, what can I do for you?’

‘Do for me?’ she said, momentarily confused, and his eyes crinkled.

‘Well, as you were clearly headed for my room before you were waylaid by the dreaded Lawrence, I assume you wanted to speak to me.’

She did, but now she was here…

Say it, she told herself. The longer she didn’t say it, the harder it was going to be. Which was true, but it didn’t make the prospect of raising the subject of last night any easier.

‘Jonah—’ She came to a halt as his phone rang.

‘I’ll be with you in a minute,’ he said, lifting the phone, only to roll his eyes in exasperation at whatever the person at the other end of the phone was saying. ‘No, I do not want the results tomorrow,’ he told the unknown caller. ‘I want them today. They were promised for today, and this is today, so where are they?’

He winked across at her, and she tried to smile back, but as she stood uncertainly in front of his desk, words crept into her mind. Words that made her cheeks heat up, and her resolve falter.

You have such lovely hair, Jonah. Soft, silky. Smells nice, too.

Oh, criminy, had she really said that? Maybe she should forget all about plan B and go back to plan A.

‘Would you believe that Haematology still haven’t processed Donna Harrison’s blood tests?’ Jonah said when he’d put down the phone. ‘I told them I need to be sure her jaundice has completely gone before we can discharge her.’ He dragged his fingers through his hair then smiled a little ruefully. ‘Enough with the complaining. What can I do for you?’

She opened her mouth, then closed it again. ‘It doesn’t matter. You’re clearly busy, and it’s not important.’

‘It obviously is, otherwise you wouldn’t be standing there looking like you’ve got your knickers in a twist.’

Knickers. He’d seen her knickers and they weren’t frilly or pretty but the sort of serviceable, practical kind his mother probably wore.

Oh, for heaven’s sake, stop thinking about your knickers, her mind urged. Just say it because if you don’t you’ll only have to try again tomorrow and that will be even worse.

‘It’s…it’s about what happened last night, Jonah,’ she said, and his eyes met hers.

‘Nothing happened last night, Nell.’

‘I know nothing happened in the sense of…of happened,’ she said, wishing she was anywhere but there, and doing anything but having this conversation, ‘but that’s only because…because you were too much of a gentleman to take advantage of the situation.’ Or took one look at me and thought, ye gods, but I hadn’t realised she was quite that fat.

‘That’s true,’ he said solemnly, then one corner of his mouth lifted. ‘Plus I have this rather old-fashioned notion that if I make love to a woman, I rather prefer her to be able to remember it afterwards.’

‘Oh. Right.’ She could feel a blush creeping all the way up from her toes. ‘Jonah.’

‘Look, you were unhappy last night, and very drunk,’ he continued. ‘Nothing happened you need be embarrassed about.’

Oh, yes, it had.

‘And as far as I’m concerned, the subject is over, forgotten. My only regret is that Brian isn’t standing in front of me right now. He’s behaved very badly, and if he were here I’d take the greatest pleasure in inflicting some serious damage on him.’

‘You would?’ she said in surprise, and he shook his head as though amazed she should doubt it.

‘Nell, we’re friends, and I won’t allow anyone to make a friend of mine unhappy.’

Tears rose in her throat and she gulped them back with difficulty. ‘You’re the best, Jonah. You know that, don’t you?’

‘I think the words you used last night were “my hero”, “Mr Superman” and “my knight in shining armour”.’