Elliot didn’t say anything as he moved away to make the call but it didn’t stop him thinking it. Somewhere along the line he had forgotten why he had gone into medicine in the first place—to alleviate suffering and help people. Would he ever find his way back to those days when he had cared? he wondered. Return to a time when each and every patient he had treated had left their mark? He hoped so, he really did. Because he knew with a sudden flash of insight that he would never be truly happy unless he did.
* * *
It was almost eight a.m. before Polly felt that she could safely leave the hospital. Lauren had been rushed to Theatre as it appeared that her appendix was on the point of rupturing. A scan had shown that her baby was safe and well and now she just needed to get through the operation. Although it wasn’t ideal in her condition, the surgeon seemed confident that all would be well.
‘Thanks again for everything you’ve done, Polly.’ Lauren’s husband, Sam, hugged her. ‘Having you there really helped Lauren—it stopped her panicking so much.’
‘I was happy to help, and even happier that the surgeon is so positive about the outcome.’ She hugged Sam back. ‘Everything will be fine, Sam, you’ll see.’
‘I hope so.’ Sam dredged up a smile, but it was obvious that he was deeply worried about them losing this much-wanted child. ‘Anyway, you get off now. Lauren will never forgive herself if you’re late because of her.’
‘Tell her from me that she’s not to give it another thought,’ Polly said quickly. She bit her lip, wondering if she should explain, but her brother, Peter, had insisted that he would be the one to break the news. She had phoned him as soon as she had read the letter Martin had left for her. Peter was based in New York these days and had only flown into the country that afternoon but he had hired a car and driven straight over to Beesdale. They had spent the night discussing what to do until in the end Peter had insisted that she should leave it to him. It had been a relief, if she was honest. The thought of the upset it was going to cause so many people wasn’t something she relished, so she would do as Peter had suggested, drive to York and catch the train to London as she and Martin had planned to do. At least it would give her a breathing space, time to make fresh plans, because that was what she was going to have to do now, of course.
It was a scary thought. Polly did her best not to panic as she said goodbye and left. She would take things one step at a time and eventually she would come out the other side, even though she couldn’t imagine what her life was going to be like in the future. A sob caught in her throat. All her plans were up in the air; everything she had expected to happen now wouldn’t take place. It was a daunting prospect, to say the least.
Polly was so deep in thought that she had made her way outside before she remembered that she had left her car in Beesdale. Lauren had begged her to go in the ambulance with her and Polly hadn’t given any thought to what she would do after she left the hospital. She sighed wearily. If her case hadn’t been in the car then she could have taken a taxi to the station but she would need the clothes she had packed, even if they had been chosen for a very different reason...
‘Do you want a lift?’
Polly glanced round when a taxi drew up alongside her, her eyebrows rising when she recognised the man seated in the back as the driver of the other vehicle involved in the accident. ‘What are you doing here?’ she said with a sad lack of grace.
‘It appears that I’ve pulled a muscle.’ He winced as he carefully rotated his shoulder. ‘The paramedics insisted I should be checked over—something to do with any action my insurance company may decide to take in the future. It’s a lot of fuss about nothing, in my opinion.’
‘It’s always safer to get these things checked out,’ Polly murmured, feeling guilty that she hadn’t asked him earlier if he had been injured. She had been too busy putting him in his place and it wasn’t like her to behave that way but, there again, nothing that had happened in the last eight hours was normal. Once again she felt panic well up inside her. Could she cope with a future that was going to be so very different from the one she had planned?
‘Look, do you want a lift or not? You may have nothing to do today but I need to get home.’
The impatience in the man’s voice was just what she needed to steady her. Polly glared at him. ‘Are you always this charming? Or are you making a special effort just for me?’
‘Believe me, I have treated you exactly the same as everyone else,’ he retorted.
‘Then you obviously need to work on your people skills,’ Polly shot back, wrenching open the taxi door.
She settled back in the seat as the driver set off, feeling weariness wash over her. The lack of sleep plus all the emotional turmoil she’d been through had left her feeling drained. Opening her bag, she took out the letter that Martin had left for her, forcing herself to re-read the few brief lines it contained. It was still hard to believe it was true but there it was, in black and white. He had met someone else and, although he was very sorry, he had realised that he wanted to be with her and not Polly. In the meantime, he was going away and would leave it to Polly to tell everyone that the wedding was cancelled. If she preferred to say that it had been a mutual decision then that was fine with him. He only hoped that in time she would understand that he had made the right decision for both of them.
Polly took a deep breath as she folded up the letter and put it back in her bag. She hoped so too, hoped that a time would come when she didn’t feel so completely and utterly at sea. She glanced at her watch, feeling the ready tears scalding her eyes. In a couple of hours’ time everyone in Beesdale would know that she wasn’t getting married today.
CHAPTER TWO
ELLIOT REACHED FOR his wallet as the taxi drew up. He still wasn’t sure why he had offered the woman a lift. Normally, it wouldn’t have crossed his mind and yet the moment he had seen her standing outside A&E he had felt compelled to help her. Why? Because she had looked so lost, so forlorn? Why should he care how she felt? He had no idea but he could have no more left her standing there than he could have...have flown to the moon!
‘Here we are then,’ he said, dismissing that ridiculous thought as they climbed out of the cab. He drummed up a smile, making an effort to appear a shade more cordial than he had been earlier. Just for a moment he was tempted to explain about the frustrating week he’d had before he thought better of it. Explanations were for the weak, for those people who were prepared to give others an advantage over them. And he had decided many years ago that he would never let anyone take advantage of him again. ‘Right back where we started.’
‘Oh...erm...yes.’
The woman jumped as though she had been lost in a world of her own and once again Elliot’s interest was piqued. Was she worrying about Lauren and her baby, he wondered, or was there something else troubling her? The question hovered on his lips but he forced it back. He wouldn’t ask, wouldn’t invite any confidences, wouldn’t get involved in any way at all. His life was fine the way it was. He had Joseph and his work to fill it and he didn’t need anything else. If and when he needed sex then he organised it with the same attention to detail that he arranged everything else. He always chose a woman who felt the same as he did, who didn’t want commitment but merely wanted to satisfy a need. He knew without even having to think about it that this woman didn’t fall into that category. No, she would expect the lot—marriage, commitment, a lifetime of togetherness—all the things he had sworn he would avoid after he and Marianna had divorced.
The thought of his ex-wife made his mouth tighten and he saw the woman beside him colour. Reaching into her bag, she took out her car keys. ‘I won’t detain you any longer. Thank you for the lift. I appreciated it.’
With that, she walked over to her car. Elliot watched her go, wondering why he felt as though he should have said something, but what exactly? Should he have thanked her
for stopping earlier, perhaps? After all, if the accident had happened in the city then few people would have stopped—they would have been too busy with their own affairs to help a stranger. He would have had to deal with it himself, deal with the other driver as well. Although it wouldn’t have been a problem as such; after all, he was medically qualified. But would Lauren have told him that she was pregnant or would she have been put off by his attitude? The thought that she might not have disclosed the information settled like a heavy weight inside him. He couldn’t help wondering what other information he had missed over the years because people had been deterred by his less than encouraging approach. What had the redhead said before—that he needed to work on his people skills? It seemed she was right.
Elliot could feel all sorts of emotions swirling around inside him as he headed to his car. It was years since he had felt so unsure about his actions and it shook him. Every aspect of his life, from the tiniest detail to the most major decision, was always planned in advance. To find himself awash with doubts all of a sudden was scary. It made him feel vulnerable, defenceless.
‘Is everything all right?’
Elliot jumped, his heart racing, when he discovered that the woman was bending down beside the open window. Before he could stop himself, he found himself taking rapid stock of large hazel eyes, a straight little nose, a perfectly curved Cupid’s bow, and his racing heart raced a bit faster. He hadn’t noticed it before but all of a sudden he realised how attractive she was...
‘Are you sure you’re OK?’
A slim hand reached in and closed around his arm and Elliot flinched. It wasn’t her touch per se but the effect it had on him. Heat poured through his veins so that all of a sudden it felt as though he was on fire. What the hell was going on? Why was he burning up because this woman had touched him? It certainly fell beyond the range of rational explanation. All he could do was pray it would stop—and stop soon. Stop before the damage became permanent.
Panic rose inside him, adding to the conflagration. He didn’t want to respond to her this way, didn’t want to start yearning for things he had sworn he didn’t need. He wanted his life to remain exactly the same as it had been for the past eight years, and yet he had a feeling that it was already too late, that what had happened today had changed things, changed him. He took a deep breath as his vision swam. Today was going to affect his whole future and there wasn’t a thing he could do about it either!
* * *
Polly could feel the heat of the man’s skin flowing through her fingertips and frowned. Although it was a warm day for April, it wasn’t so warm that it should have caused such a rise in his temperature. Sliding her hand down to his wrist, she checked his pulse, her frown deepening when she discovered how rapid it was. He’d told her that he had strained a muscle but that didn’t explain why his pulse was racing like this, did it?
‘Do you feel sick or dizzy?’ she said, bending closer so that she could look into his eyes. Maybe he had hit his head when he had run into the back of the van, she thought anxiously. It was a known fact that a head injury could take some time to present itself and if it was left untreated it could have disastrous consequences. The thought sent a rush of fear scudding through her.
‘Are you sure you didn’t hit your head?’ Polly said urgently, checking his pupils for any irregularities, a sure sign of a head injury.
‘No. I just wrenched my neck.’
His voice was deep, husky, and Polly felt a frisson run through her. All of a sudden she was aware of him in a way she had never expected to be. She let her gaze travel over his face in the hope that she would find some clue there to explain what was happening. His eyes were green, a deep sea-green, framed by thick black lashes. His eyebrows were black too, making his skin appear paler than she would have expected, apart from along his jaw where the shadow of stubble had darkened it. His features were, frankly, uncompromising, the chiselled lines of his nose and jaw adding to the impression of a man who gave few concessions in life. Only his mouth hinted at a gentler side, the full lower lip looking disturbingly sensual. What would it be like to kiss him? Polly wondered. To feel his mouth on hers, hard and demanding at first, before his lips softened...
Heat flashed through her veins and she drew back abruptly, scared by the feelings that thought had aroused. She couldn’t recall feeling this kind of raw desire before, not even when she and Martin had made love. If she was honest, their lovemaking had been a disappointment. Although she’d had a couple of affairs during her time at college, she didn’t have a huge amount of experience and she had wondered if that was why their lovemaking hadn’t lived up to her expectations. Now she realised that it hadn’t been solely her fault and that Martin had been equally to blame. Oh, he might have gone through the motions of making love to her but had his heart been in it when he had met someone else? Someone he had wanted more than her? Polly sighed sadly. A lot of heartache could have been avoided if only Martin had found the courage to tell her the truth. It was a relief when the sound of a mobile phone ringing cut through her unhappy thoughts.
‘Elliot Grey.’ The man pressed a button on the dashboard and answered the call.
‘It’s Sister Thomas, sir. I’m afraid little Alfie Nolan’s condition has deteriorated. Dr Walters wants to take him to Theatre. He feels the faulty heart valve needs to be replaced immediately.’
Polly bit back a gasp as she listened to the conversation. So this was Elliot Grey! Oh, she’d heard about him, of course: who hadn’t? That one of the country’s leading paediatric surgeons had chosen to head up the team at their local hospital had set everyone talking. Polly had been as surprised as everyone else that he had opted to leave London and relocate to Yorkshire, and now that she had met him her amazement knew no bounds. Maybe it was naïve to make such an assumption but surely a man who spent his life caring for the most vulnerable patients should be more, well...approachable?
‘Tell Dr Walters that I shall be there as soon as I can. In the meantime, he’s to do nothing.’ Elliot Grey cut the connection without further ado. Polly suspected that he considered such niceties as saying goodbye a waste of his time. Scrolling down the list of telephone numbers, he selected one, speaking as soon as the call was answered. ‘It’s Elliot Grey. I have to go back to the hospital so I shall need you to stay with my son until I get back, Mrs Danton.’
‘I’m sorry, Dr Grey, but that isn’t possible. I’m looking after my grandchildren this morning while my daughter’s at work and I’m already late as it is,’ Iris Danton replied firmly.
‘Surely your daughter can find someone else to mind them,’ Elliot snapped back. ‘This is an emergency, after all.’
‘Maybe it is, but there’ll be another emergency if my daughter loses her job. No, I stepped in last night to help you but I can’t do it again today.’
With that the woman hung up. Polly sympathised with her because it was a bit rich to expect her to let down her daughter to fit in with Elliot Grey’s plans. However, she also knew how urgent it was that he returned to the hospital and it was that which made her speak up, that and nothing else. It definitely had nothing to do with all those crazy feelings that had swept through her a few minutes earlier.
‘I can mind your son if you’re stuck.’
‘You?’ Elliot Grey turned icy green eyes on her and Polly almost took a step back. She forced herself to stand her ground, wondering why he was so hostile when she was offering to do him a favour.
‘Yes, me. As I told you, I’m the community midwife for this area, so I think you can trust me to take good care of him.’ She shrugged when he just kept on staring at her. ‘My name’s Polly Davies. You can call the maternity unit if you want to check I’m who I say I am. They’ll vouch for me.’
‘I don’t doubt you are who you claim to be, Miss Davies. However, I do wonder why you would offer to look after Joseph. Out of the goodness of your heart,
perhaps, or because you have an ulterior motive?’
‘An ulterior motive?’ Polly repeated blankly.
‘Yes. Now that you know who I am, I can’t help but wonder if you’re looking to earn yourself some Brownie points.’ His tone was clipped and Polly felt that shiver run through her again, the one she’d felt earlier when they had first met. It took her all her time not to let him see how much it disturbed her.
‘I’ve no idea what you mean.’
‘No? I thought my views on community midwives were widely known but apparently not. So, to reiterate, I am totally opposed to women having their babies at home, which is the approach you favour. In my opinion every baby should be born in the safety of a fully equipped maternity unit so that any problems can be dealt with promptly. To be blunt, Miss Davies, I would ban you and the rest of your cohorts from delivering any more babies if I could!’
Elliot knew that it had been tactless in the extreme to have said that but he couldn’t stop himself. He had seen far too many damaged children to change his views. Every child should be born in hospital and allowing home births to take place in this day and age was a disgrace, in his opinion. He would have dearly loved to expound his views but a glance at the dashboard clock put paid to that. He needed to get back to the hospital, but how could he when there was nobody to look after Joseph...? Unless he took Polly Davies up on her offer, always assuming she was still willing after him shooting her down like that.
‘I had no idea you held such stringent views, Dr Grey. Obviously, they haven’t filtered through to me. However, much as I would love to debate the points you raised, I doubt if this is the right time. My offer still stands and, no, I don’t expect any Brownie points for looking after your son. I’m not that naïve.’
‘Thank you.’ Elliot gritted his teeth, desperately trying to hold back the apology that hovered on the tip of his tongue. That he should feel the need to apologise when he knew he was right was shock enough; however, the fact that he was so desperate to make amends was an even bigger one. What was it about this woman that made him feel so out of control? he wondered as he started the car. She had the ability to make him doubt himself and he didn’t enjoy the experience. He liked to be fully in control of himself—no, not liked, needed. It made him feel safe.
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