by Sarah Morgan
‘Our baby,’ he corrected her in a driven tone, so angry that he was literally pulsing with it. She saw the flicker in his hard jaw and the flex of muscle in his wide, powerful shoulders. ‘It’s our baby.’
‘A moment ago you were debating whether it was yours.’ Sarcasm tasted bitter in her mouth. ‘There is no “our”, Nikos. Go back to your wife. Fix your marriage. We’re finished.’ Suddenly she felt drained and exhausted, the spirit sapped from her by the explosive force of the confrontation.
‘Finished?’ His tone was thickened, his dark eyes glittering with anger, a red streak on his cheek where she’d slapped him. ‘We haven’t even started. But you’re right—we can’t do this here. The way I feel at the moment, I’m not safe to be alone with you. I’ll let you know when I’m ready to finish the conversation.’
Watching him stride away from her, Ella felt as though her heart was going to stop beating. Even though she knew it was foolish, a tiny part of her had desperately hoped he might just drag her into his arms and tell her that it was all a terrible mistake—that he loved her. That his wife didn’t exist.
That she’d got it all wrong.
But that sort of thing didn’t happen in real life, did it?
Humans were flawed, she reminded herself, restocking the resuscitation room on automatic. Endings weren’t happy. Fairy-tales were for innocent children.
And true love was a myth.
Her emotions in pieces, Ella stumbled through the next few hours of her shift. Upset and distracted, her hands were shaking and she was unusually clumsy.
‘That will have to be thrown away.’ Nikos frowned impatiently as Ella dropped another instrument on the floor. ‘What is the matter with you?’
You’re the matter with me, Ella wanted to shriek, but instead she quietly disposed of the instrument, washed her hands and opened a fresh suture pack.
Her cheeks burned hot with humiliation.
The emergency department was the one area of her life where she considered herself confident, and now she was even messing that up.
She’d lost it.
In contrast, the crackling tension between them didn’t appear to have affected the quality of Nikos’s work in any way. As usual, he was ice cool, suturing the child’s wound with hands that were entirely steady, maintaining a steady flow of conversation that involved fairies, palaces and magic kingdoms.
As if only hours earlier he hadn’t been ready to remove Ella’s head.
Envying his ability to detach himself from his problems, Ella tried not to mind that he obviously wasn’t finding it remotely awkward working alongside her.
And that said everything about their relationship, didn’t it?
He just didn’t care enough. It wasn’t hard for him whereas for her it was agony.
Not only had she been heartbroken by the end of their relationship, she now had the threat of further confrontation hovering over her like a stormcloud. He’d said that he couldn’t talk about it yet.
Well, when? And where?
Trying to divert her mind, she kept her eyes fixed on either the patient or the instruments. But she was a nervous wreck. At one point Nikos made an exasperated sound and actually put his hand over hers to steady it. Ella immediately dropped what she was holding.
‘Theos mou!’
‘Sorry. I’m sorry,’ she muttered, rapidly coming to the conclusion that the hospital wasn’t going to be able to afford to keep her on at this rate.
Nikos dragged his impatient gaze from her flushed face and deftly tied the final stitch with fingers that were sickeningly steady.
‘Those stitches can come out in ten days. I’m done here—well done, koritsi mou, you were amazing.’ Smiling at the little girl, Nikos dropped the remains of the suture on the dressing trolley, stripped off his gloves and left the room without once glancing at Ella.
Feeling like a student nurse in her first week of training, Ella discharged the child, tidied the room and made a decision.
She couldn’t do this.
She couldn’t concentrate on her work while she was consumed with anxiety about their next confrontation.
So far she’d done less than six hours of her shift and already she was a basket case. His words were going round and round in her head and the injustice of it all was building up inside her.
How dared he turn this situation into something that was her fault when he was the one who had lied?
What right did he have to be angry with her?
Heart thumping, she went to look for him and found him in his office, talking in clipped, decisive tones to someone who was clearly giving him a battery of excuses for the deplorable staffing levels.
‘Take another look at your budget,’ Nikos advised in a silky tone, his gaze resting on Ella as she hovered in the doorway. ‘Yes, I can prepare you a case if you need me to.’ His jaw tightened. ‘No, I can’t come at four o’clock. At four o’clock I will be working, staffing this department that has murals and toys, but insufficient staff. Call the meeting for nine o’clock—well, if most of them have already left by then, they’re luckier than the rest of us. Perhaps the timing will help reinforce the point I’m trying to make.’ He replaced the phone and raised an eyebrow in her direction. ‘Is this business or personal? Because if it’s personal, I don’t have time.’
‘Then make time.’ Suddenly she almost felt sorry for the hospital’s management board. She knew only too well that his kind, approachable side only extended to his young patients. When it came to adults who didn’t follow his way of thinking, Nikos was a hard, ruthless adversary. ‘I need to talk to you now.’ With a decisive push of her hand she closed the door firmly behind her and came straight to the point. ‘You have no right to be angry with me, because you are the one at fault here. It isn’t just the fact that you broke up with me or that you’re married. You lied to me. You weren’t who you said you were.’
‘You think I’m faking being a doctor?’
‘That isn’t what I mean and you know it. Don’t play word games with me!’ She stabbed her finger towards him, a sudden rush of emotion almost choking her. ‘You’re a billionaire with loads of houses and yachts and—and—you own super de luxe hotels around the world and—I had a right to know those things about you.’
‘Why?’ Arrogantly male, he held her gaze, displaying not a hint of regret or remorse. ‘What difference does it make?’
‘It makes a huge difference. How do you think I felt when I found out that you’re a billionaire?’
The derisory lift of his brows indicated that the issue wasn’t one that interested him. ‘Like you’d missed out, I should imagine.’
If she hadn’t already slapped him she would have considered doing it now.
‘It isn’t about the money! I wish you didn’t have money because then that would be once less thing you lied about! I felt betrayed, Nikos! That’s how I felt.’ Ella felt a rush of despair that he didn’t seem to understand why she might have been upset. ‘You lied about who you were and you lied about your wife! Pictures of your wedding were plastered all over the magazine I picked up in the doctor’s surgery. How could you? How could you have sex with me when you’re married? Don’t you have a conscience?’ Immediately after she’d asked the question she regretted it because she could feel her voice start to wobble. ‘What was I, Nikos? An easy lay while you were in London?’ Oh God, that was another question she shouldn’t have asked.
She was nothing to him, that’s what she was.
His eyes grew suddenly cold. ‘You are the mother of my child. Don’t cheapen yourself!’
‘You’re the one who did that,’ Ella said hoarsely, ‘by sleeping with me when you were married to another woman. You cheapened me, Nikos, and you cheapened our relationship. If you’re so rich, why didn’t you just use some of that money to fly her over from Greece to satisfy your red-hot sex drive?’ She was trembling with hot, stinging emotion but he simply watched her in silence, his cool control a stark contrast to her fiery
outburst.
‘You are jealous.’
‘To be jealous I’d have to care about you and I don’t care about you, Nikos. I stopped caring when you didn’t even have the guts to end it face to face.’ Her voice cracked and she stopped talking, afraid to say more. But already it was too late. He was rising to his feet. Walking across to her with the same sense of purpose that characterised everything he did.
‘For a woman who claims not to care, you are extremely upset.’
Tension sizzled between them and she took a step backwards, rejecting the immediate response of her body. ‘Leave me alone, Nikos. We’ll work together for now because we have to, but we don’t have to talk about anything personal. You’re angry with me and frankly I’m angry with you, too.’
Most of all she was angry that she still cared.
She didn’t want to feel what she was feeling.
‘When you’re angry, your eyes go darker.’ His eyes shielded by impossibly thick lashes, he locked his fingers with hers, trapping her hands in his. ‘The same thing happens when you are really, really aroused. Yes, we’re both angry. We are both passionate people. Passionate people experience strong emotions.’ His hands moved over hers and Ella gritted her teeth because those strong, knowing fingers were as skilful at arousing a woman as they were at healing a patient. Excitement slammed through her body, replacing anger with a much more dangerous emotion.
The air around them seemed stiflingly hot and suddenly she couldn’t think or breathe.
Where had the anger gone? She needed it. She needed it back.
‘Why did you come here, Nikos?’
His response to that was to lower his head and capture her mouth, using his intimate knowledge of her to drive her straight from earth to paradise without a pause. He kissed her with merciless skill and erotic expertise, his possessive hands capturing her face and holding her while the sensual lick of his tongue robbed her brain of thought and her legs of strength.
Despite her best intentions, her arms wound themselves round his neck, her fingers dug into his sleek, dark hair and Ella moaned in desperation as she felt his weight press her hard against the wall. Her body melted into the demands of his—soft against hard, compliant against aggressive.
‘Theos mou, you turn me on,’ he breathed against her mouth, and Ella felt her senses spin, and every one of her brain cells fuse.
They were so lost in each other that neither of them heard the door open.
‘Dr Mariakos?’ Rose didn’t get any further than his name before muttering an embarrassed apology and slinking out of the room, but her interruption was enough to break the fierce passion that had held them in its grip.
‘Nikos…’ Groaning his name, Ella pushed against the hard muscle of his chest, but he was apparently in no hurry to release her. His hands rested on the curve of her bottom, his mouth lingering on her neck. ‘Nikos—for goodness’ sake. Stop.’
Slowly he lifted his head, terminating the embrace in his own time. ‘What’s wrong?’
Ella suddenly felt sick because he was so sure of himself and she was so confused about everything and he’d just made things a thousand times worse.
‘Damn you, Nikos.’ Her voice was hoarse. ‘How dare you do that? I work here. I have a reputation.’
‘Kissing the father of your baby has no impact on your ability to heal the sick.’ Unapologetic, Nikos straightened and there was a flicker of satisfaction in his eyes as they lingered briefly on the tell-tale jut of her breasts under the blue scrub suit. ‘Your breasts are fantastic.’
‘You know what?’ Boiling with rage, every part of her body throbbing, Ella glared at him. ‘If that uncontrollable sex drive of yours is bothering you, then next time phone your wife and make some arrangement with her. I’m not interested.’
He stepped away from her, his expression cold.
‘Next time you pick up a magazine, take the trouble to read the words that go with the pictures.’ His face was oddly pale under his tan. ‘Those photographs were taken sixteen years ago, on my wedding day. And they were published a few months ago to commemorate the anniversary of an accident. My wife is dead, Ella. She was killed fifteen years ago, along with my baby daughter.’
What had possessed her to come for a drink when she didn’t feel in the least bit sociable?
Tense, jumpy and unbelievably upset, Ella sat on the harbour wall outside the pub, nursing a glass of orange juice as she stared at the boats. The night was still warm, and behind her The Lobster Pot was alive with laughter as locals and tourists spilled out of the open doors.
The pub on the water was a favourite meeting spot and the team from the emergency department had observed their usual Friday night tradition and were gathered around their favourite table, overlooking the harbour.
Ella had been persuaded to join them and hadn’t been able to come up with a ready excuse, even though she’d known she was going to be lousy company.
One drink, she promised herself, and then she’d leave.
She’d changed back into the same shorts and shirt that she’d cycled to work in and the cool stones of the wall scraped against the back of her legs. But she had no inclination to join the rest of them at the table.
She didn’t feel capable of making conversation or talking about her day.
Her head was still in a spin.
His wife was dead?
She’d had no idea.
Of course she was only human so she’d sneaked off to the computer and typed her question into a search engine—something she would have done months earlier had she not been so sure that she already had the answers.
Remembering what she’d discovered, Ella gave a sigh.
No wonder the man locked himself away emotionally.
He’d lost a wife and a child.
Her thoughts a confused and tangled mess, she watched the tourists wandering along the harbour, eating fish and chips from the paper. Below her, on one of the little boats, a couple with young children were eating hot dogs and laughing together.
Ella envied their happiness. They made family life look simple. Straightforward.
But it wasn’t that easy, was it?
Looking at the father, she wondered what secrets he was hiding behind his benevolent smile.
How long before revelations tore this perfect family unit down the middle?
Her fingers tightened around her glass and she thought of Nikos, and of how angry he was with her.
They’d been together for six months and yet he’d never mentioned his wife and child.
She’d thought they were close.
With a bitter laugh, she took a sip of her drink. Physically, they’d been close. But not emotionally. He hadn’t confided in her.
And she hadn’t confided in him either, had she?
Ella rubbed her aching forehead with her fingers, wondering why life always had to be so complicated.
At least she wouldn’t see him again until tomorrow. She had time to think about what to do for the best. The truth was she didn’t want to let Ruth down and she didn’t want to leave her job. But today had proved that she wasn’t capable of working with him.
‘Unless you want lots of questions, you should smile.’ Helen joined her, a heaped bowl of crisps in her hand. ‘You look as though you’re contemplating jumping head first into the water. Judging from your expression, I’m guessing the reunion wasn’t what you were hoping.’
Her stomach churning, Ella refused the crisps, aware that she was the object of speculation. ‘You’ve heard that he’s here, then. Is everyone gossiping? Do they all know?’
‘That you’re involved with the gorgeous Greek? Of course. He was kissing you as though it was your last moments on earth. I have to say that if a man ever kissed me like that it probably would be. I’d die of ecstasy. The sparks have been crackling between the two of you all afternoon. It’s like pouring water onto chip fat.’
Ella stared at her friend. ‘What are they saying?’
‘Wel
l—you know what the department is like.’ Helen was obviously searching for the most tactful response. ‘Everyone is desperate for light relief. It probably took less than four seconds for everyone to find out that the two of you are involved. From then on they were drawing straws as to who could go and help out in Paeds Emergency so that they could spy on the situation.’
‘Great.’ Every muscle in her body was tense, her head ached with endless thinking and her senses still hummed from a day spent within touching distance of Nikos.
Helen was steadily munching her way through the crisps. ‘I told them you moved down here first because Nikos couldn’t get away from London and that you didn’t mention it because you didn’t want people feeling awkward.’
‘Thanks. That was kind of you.’ Ella picked a piece of ice out of her glass. ‘I’m sorry I yelled at you earlier. You’ve been so good to me. I didn’t mean to be a grouch. I overreacted. I know you were only trying to help.’
‘I’m the one who’s sorry. Sorry for what I did.’
‘I didn’t tell you the whole story, so in a way it was my fault.’
‘Well, I’m still sorry.’ Helen pulled a face. ‘Obviously when I wrote that letter I didn’t think for a moment that he’d actually take a job here. Hospital management must have thought it was their lucky day, finding a doctor of his calibre.’
‘I’m sure they did.’ Ella thought about his clinical skills—about the way he was with every child he treated. ‘And maybe you did me a favour. At least now I don’t have to spend another night agonising about whether to tell him or not.’
‘So how did he take the news that he’s going to be a dad?’
Ella tightened her grip on the glass. ‘Well, it was hardly a loving reunion, if that’s what you’re asking.’ And she was still shocked by how angry he was.
She’d been naïve, she realised, to think he might have apologised.
He wasn’t the sort of man who ever felt the need to apologise because he never entertained the possibility that he could be wrong about anything.