by Fiona Lowe
Curtains? She never closed the curtains during the day.
And then she remembered. She was in Tom’s bed.
Her arm reached out and patted cold sheets. Alone in Tom’s bed.
Kicking her legs free of the rope-like sheet and pushing the duvet back, she jumped up and whipped open the curtains. Sunshine flooded the room and she fell back onto the bed and pushed herself up onto a pile of pillows. She was safe. A half laugh and half groan rumbled up from deep inside her and she automatically turned toward the bedside table, seeking a clock. But no green or red digital display greeted her. Instead, there was a large black cube with a big button on top. She pressed it and then jumped in surprise when an automated male voice said, “It’s three-seventeen p.m., Wednesday, August nineteen.”
She’d been asleep for seven hours? That totally stunned her. Despite the nightmare wake-up, she’d slept soundly, and in a foreign bed. She never slept very well and what sleep she was able to get always occurred in her own bed with the blinds wide open. It had been light when she’d fallen asleep and Tom must have closed the curtains for her when he’d got up, thinking it would help her sleep.
Mind-blowing sex was why you slept so well.
She grinned like a child who’d just been given a lollipop. Tom had been the most amazing lover and going by his moans and groans and panting breath she hadn’t been too shoddy either. She could feel the ache of muscles that hadn’t been used for a long time and just the thought of what had made them ache made her tingle.
Three o’clock. She had four hours before she had to be at work. It was time to get up and bring Tom back to bed for an hour or so before she had to head home and get ready for work. Maybe they could even grab an early dinner. Ignoring the crumpled scrubs on the floor, she whipped the sheet off the bed. Wrapping it around herself like a strapless gown, she was aiming for a seductive look—or, for Tom, a seductive feel—and she walked out into the open-plan room saying, ‘Thanks for letting me sleep. I … Oh.’
The same young man she’d seen the first morning she’d met Tom was sitting at the large table in front of a laptop with a couple of textbooks open next to him. His face wore a wide grin as he stared at her, appreciating the look.
‘Hello.’ His blue eyes rested on her cleavage.
She gripped the top of the sheet more tightly and pulled the trailing section forward, making sure her back and legs were fully covered. Her chin shot up in an attempt to make her look a lot more in control than she felt. ‘Hi. I’m Hayley.’
‘Yeah, I know. Tom said.’ He kept on grinning as if he’d witnessed exactly what had gone down in the bedroom seven hours earlier.
Oh, God, shoot me now. ‘And you’re …?’
He jumped to his feet as if her question had suddenly woken him up and kick-started his manners. ‘Jared. Jared Perkins.’
‘Jared.’ She took a breath to slow down her delivery and keep a handle on her embarrassment. ‘Is Tom home?’
He shook his sandy-coloured head. ‘No.’
‘Are you expecting him back soon?’
‘He’s at work.’ He picked up a printed piece of paper and consulted it. ‘He’s got an evening lecture and I’m picking him up at seven.’
‘Right.’ Her brain started churning over times and dates. Tom finished work at seven and she started work at seven. ‘Did he leave a message?’
‘No.’
Disappointment slugged her and she tried to brush it away. It wasn’t like they’d made an arrangement to meet. Rational thought zoomed in, making her practical. She was standing dressed in nothing but a sheet for a man who wasn’t even here. It was time to go home. She ducked back into the bedroom, dumped the sheet, pulled on her clothes and ran her fingers through her hair before snagging it back into a ponytail with a hair-tie she found in her pocket. She didn’t look in the mirror because it would be far too depressing and gave up a quick wish that she didn’t meet anyone she knew on the walk home, which was a sure-fire guarantee that she would.
When she returned to the living area, Jared was sitting back at the table, reading one of the textbooks. In his bright-coloured board shorts and surfing T-shirt, he looked as if he belonged more on Bondi Beach than inside, studying. Who was he? Tom’s brother? Nephew? She realised she didn’t know anything about Tom except he’d been a neurosurgeon and now he wasn’t.
‘Do you live here, Jared?’
‘Nah. Wouldn’t mind it, though.’ He swung his arm out toward the balcony. ‘It’s an awesome view.’
‘It is.’ What exactly was his connection to Tom? ‘Do you work for Tom?’
He shook his head emphatically. ‘No, but I do stuff for him. Driving, shopping, anything he wants.’
She guessed Jared was in his late teens or early twenties and his broad accent and lack of social etiquette hinted at the possibility that he came from a less affluent suburb. Being on call for a taciturn blind man without any financial incentive struck her as unusual. ‘That’s very good of you.’
Jared’s shoulders rolled back and he sat up straighter, as if she’d just offended him. ‘No, it isn’t. Tom’s an awesome bloke and he saved my life.’ The sincerity in his words put her rightfully back in her place.
She aimed for a conciliatory tone. ‘Everyone at The Harbour says he was a brilliant surgeon.’
‘Yeah.’ He fiddled with the edge of the textbook, folding up the corner of the page.
Hayley waited for him to say more, to say exactly what operation Tom had performed on him, but he didn’t elaborate and instead stuck his finger back on a line of text in the book and stared at it with a deep frown.
Okay. ‘I’ll leave you to it.’ She walked to the door and had her hand on the handle when Jared said, ‘You any good at chemistry?’
She stopped and turned to face him. ‘Excuse me?’
‘Chemistry.’ His voice rose slightly with aggression, and his previously friendly and open face tightened. He picked up a sheaf of papers covered in red pen and waved them at her. ‘The teacher says if I want to get into medicine I need an A and Tom says it’s easy but it bloody isn’t. You’re a doctor, right? So you get chemistry.’
His blue eyes held the duelling expressions of ‘I’m a macho guy’ with ‘I need help, Mum’. She realised it had cost him something to ask her. Just like she knew it cost Tom something every time he had to ask for help. She was struck by the similarity and she knew she couldn’t ignore his request.
She walked back to the table and dropped her bag on a chair. ‘Can you make coffee, Jared?’
‘Yeah. Tom’s got a machine.’
She smiled. ‘Good. You make me a latte and I’ll read what’s causing you problems and see if I can help. Deal?’
Relief washed over his face. ‘Deal.’
‘If we grab some take-away, Jared, I can help you with that chemistry homework when we get home,’ Tom offered as he fiddled with the seat-belt buckle, finally sliding it into the holder with a snap.
‘Thanks, but I got it sorted. But if you’re buying, I’ll stay for take-away as long as it’s pizza.’
‘You finished the chemistry?’ Tom wished his voice hadn’t risen in surprise. He knew how hard Jared was working and chemistry wasn’t something that came easily to him, but he had dogged determination and that often served a person better than natural ability without the drive to succeed.
‘Don’t sound so surprised, old man. You’re not the only person good at this stuff.’
Jared’s cocky tone was in stark contrast to the down-in-the-mouth voice he’d used earlier in the day when Tom had told him he could help him, but not until after work. He instinctively knew something else was now at play. ‘Enough of the old man, kiddo.’ He hit the word, teasing the youth back. ‘So, just like that, you totally understand electrochemical series order, which five hours ago had you ready to quit school?’
‘Yep.’
‘Good for you.’
A moment of silence passed between them and then Jared said, ‘Hayley hel
ped.’
Hayley.
Hayley, who’d been fast asleep in his bed when he’d left his apartment. He’d left it way earlier than necessary because he hadn’t wanted to be there when she woke up. Hell, he’d even invited Jared over under the guise of a fast internet connection and a quiet place to study well away from the noise of younger siblings, but the invitation had been all about Jared being in the apartment with him if Hayley woke up before he left for work. Insurance so they wouldn’t be alone together again, because if they had been he didn’t trust himself not to take her back to bed.
Blood pooled in his lap. Hell, just the thought of her had him wanting to retract his decision, but when he’d been sighted he’d never slept with a woman more than once. Well, not since he’d been a second-year registrar. He’d had one short-lived relationship with Karen, a radiographer, but he’d found within three months of dating that she’d had expectations of being considered first in his life, well ahead of study and his job. It had been a distraction he hadn’t wanted or needed. At first putting study first had been all about fear of failure and fear of poverty, but then it had become so much more and nothing and no one had been allowed to come ahead of medicine and his plan to become a neurosurgeon. He’d owed Mick that. He’d owed Mick and Carol everything. Once he’d qualified he’d set his sights on heading his own department. Work had always come first and from the moment he and Karen had parted, he’d only ever spent one night with any woman.
The fact he’d achieved the pinnacles of surgical success and had now lost it all didn’t seem enough of a reason to change his habits. Financially he was secure and the threat of poverty was long gone but, hell, he was still learning how to be blind. He didn’t need any distractions from conquering the dark and living an independent and meaningful life.
‘Hey, Tom, as well as being totally hot, she’s an awesome teacher.’
Jared’s enthusiasm for Hayley rang out loud and clear and Tom’s jaw instinctively tightened. ‘I’d appreciate it if you referred to her in terms of a surgeon and a teacher.’
‘Sorry. I’m not gonna steal her from you, dude. I’d never do that.’
The apology in the young man’s voice was unmistakeable and Tom regretted being short with him. He still wasn’t totally certain why he had been. Yes, this morning had been amazing, but now it was over.
‘Besides,’ Jared continued, ‘she’s a bit old for me, but she’s perfect for a bloke like you who’s nearly forty.’ He made the number sound ancient.
Tom gave a strangled laugh. ‘I’m thirty-nine, thank you, and if you keep on about it I’ll buy Chinese instead of pizza.’
‘You’re the same age as my dad.’ The teasing had vanished from Jared’s voice, leaving only regret.
Tom flinched. He hadn’t meant to remind the boy of his absent father or of his tough home life. He turned toward the sound of his voice and smiled. ‘I’m thinking two large La Dolce Vita specials with the lot.’
‘And a garlic pizza. Order them now and make sure they throw in the gelato because last time you let them rip you off and you don’t want me saying you’re getting old and soft.’
Tom’s mouth tweaked up into a smile. ‘Just drive the damn car, Jared.’
CHAPTER SEVEN
AS THE tinny beat-bop music filled the operating theatre, Hayley looked up from the screen, which showed the magnified image of Mrs Papadopoulos’s stone-filled gallbladder and she asked, ‘Is that my phone?’
The moment the four little words were airborne, she wanted to pull the words back. She’d forgotten that Jenny wasn’t scouting for this operation.
‘I’ll check,’ said Suzy.
Dread crawled along her skin. Why did it have to be Suzy? For the first time in days Hayley willed that the phone call not be from Tom.
It was close to the end of a long shift—twelve midnight to twelve noon—the result of a crazy idea from someone in Administration who thought it might help diminish the surgical waiting list. It meant the team had a foot in both the night shift with its emergencies and the elective routine of the day shift morning.
‘Answer it quickly, Suzy.’ Theo rolled his eyes as if the sound was burning his ears. ‘Hayley, of all the ringtones that state-of-the-art phone of yours has, why did you choose that one? You have to change it.’
‘ I can’t.’ She dropped her gaze back to the screen as she manoeuvred everything into position in preparation to sever the gallbladder from its anchoring stump. ‘I accidentally washed my lovely phone and now it’s tucked up in rice in a vague hope it might work again. Meanwhile, I’ve bought a temporary cheap phone and it only comes with one ringtone and one volume.’
‘My ears are aching already.’ With a gloved hand Theo held out a kidney dish.
Hayley dropped the badly scarred gallbladder onto the silver monometal and tried not to glance around at Suzy and ask who was calling. It had been five days since she’d seen Tom. Five days since she’d experienced the best sex of her life and then slept the most deeply she could ever remember, but since she’d left his apartment there’d been no messages, no texts, no emails, nothing. Just one long and empty silence that dragged through each day, seemingly extending it way beyond its twenty-fours.
Get over it. He never said he’d call. You never expected him to call.
Logically, she knew that they’d only acted on their simmering attraction and had come together to defuse the stress after a huge operation—that meant it had been a one-off fling. This sort of thing happened between staff occasionally, especially after a life-and-death situation. It was a type of coping mechanism—a way to share the crisis with the only other person who really understood exactly what had happened and the ramifications of how close it had come to going horribly wrong.
At least I had him.
She bit her lip as she realised with a hollow feeling that she now had something in common with Suzy. She’d used Tom and she’d let him use her. Not that she wanted to keep Tom as hers, or at least she didn’t think she did, but she hated that she’d allowed herself to become a phone vulture. Twenty-four hours after leaving Tom’s penthouse, she’d started circling her phone, constantly waiting for it to either ring or beep with a message, and when either of those two things happened, diving for it and hoping it was Tom. Now she’d even allowed her guard to fall and had asked out loud in front of her gossipy staff.
It’s time to get a grip.
Her reaction to the whole Tom situation was totally new to her and, if she was honest, scared her just a little bit. She’d certainly never been this jumpy or spent this much time thinking about Richard or Sam. Or any other man.
‘Dr Grey’s phone.’ Suzy’s voice held the same thread of dislike that was always present when she spoke to Hayley, but never seemed to be in attendance when she spoke to the other staff. ‘Oh, hello.’ Warmth suddenly infused her voice. ‘It’s Suzy Carpenter.’
Hayley heard the change in her tone and panic made her swing around.
Suzy mouthed, ‘Lachlan McQuillan.’
Relief rolled through Hayley that it wasn’t Tom and she wasn’t about to become the target for gossip.
Suzy continued talking to Hayley’s counterpart on the other side of the surgical registrar’s roster. Lach usually called Hayley for a handover just prior to starting his shift.
She let Suzy flirt with the Scot while she stitched up the four small incisions she’d made. ‘David, I’m done. Thanks, everyone.’ She stepped back and stripped off her gloves, leaving the nurses to clean up and the anaesthetist to extubate the patient before handing her over to the care of the recovery nurses.
Suzy was still talking to Lachlan when Hayley put out her hand out for her phone. Suzy glared at her before purring down the line, ‘See you at Pete’s soon.’
The nurse slapped the phone into Hayley’s hand before stalking off, and Hayley rubbed her temples as she put the phone to her ear. Lachlan was just coming back after two days off so the chances of Suzy catching him at Pete’s anytime soo
n were slim.
‘Hey, Lach, it’s been a quiet night, but if you can keep an eye on Mrs Papadopoulos’s blood pressure for me, that would be good.’
‘Not a problem, Hayley, lass. Enjoy your sleep.’
‘Study more like it. I’ve got two days off and the exams get closer every day.’
‘Aye, they do. It’s a shame you missed Finn Kennedy’s talk on the surgical considerations of gunshot wounds this morning. The man might be a devil to work for but he knows his stuff.’
‘Have you operated with him?’ Hayley hadn’t told anyone what had happened in the OR with Finn because everyone was allowed a bad day, but it still niggled at her and she wanted another person’s opinion.
‘Aye, last week. He makes it all look so easy while the rest of us struggle just to finish the job.’
So that was it, then. She’d caught Finn Kennedy on a bad day.
Lachlan continued. ‘I stayed on afterwards and caught Tom Jordan’s lecture for the final-year medical students about extra temporal epilepsy.’
Tom. Her heart jumped, filling the empty space around it and she had to force herself to sound casual. ‘Anything interesting?’
‘Aye. Fascinating.’ His Scottish accent always sounded stronger when he was excited about something. ‘His patient kept spinning and experiencing memory gaps and Tom had a hunch. So, using electrodes for a month, he charted the electrical impulses and from there he removed a three-centimetre-diameter piece of brain from the seventeen-year-old. Turns out it was at the bottom of a mal-formation called a sulcus dysplasia and the boy’s stopped spinning. Amazing stuff.’
‘He gives a good lecture, that’s for sure.’ Worried that her voice would give her away, she switched topics. ‘But listen, can you email me any notes from Kennedy’s lecture, which is more our area?’
He laughed. ‘Sure, although I hear you’ve taken to brain surgery. I’d better be careful or you’ll be making me look second-class.’
‘I was lucky, Lach. Believe me, you don’t need the stress.’
‘Aye, you’re right. Enjoy your break.’