Emergency: Mother Wanted

by Sarah Morgan

  He gave a short laugh. And anyway, if he was honest, talking was the last thing on his mind. What he really wanted to do was drag her into his bedroom and have his wicked way with her. Lose himself in that gentle warmth and amazing passion which he'd glimpsed the previous night when he'd kissed her—

  Which was out of the question, of course.

  Keely wasn't that sort of person. For all he knew, she might even still be a virgin. But whether she was or wasn't, she certainly wasn't the type to go to bed with a man unless she was emotionally attached. And emotional attachment was definitely off the agenda.

  Keely hesitated in the doorway of the kitchen, unsure whether Zach would welcome her presence. He'd been very short with her upstairs and she wasn't entirely sure why, although she could guess. Seeing another woman getting close to his daughter must be hard for him, even if she was only a friend.

  So what should she say?

  Deciding to keep it neutral, she stepped into the kitchen and settled herself at the table.

  'Nice smell.' She gave an appreciative sniff and rested her chin on her palm as she watched him cook. 'What are we having?'

  'Nothing exciting.' He reached into the fridge and removed a bag of ready-prepared salad. 'Lasagne OK with you?'.

  'More than OK. I love it. Is this mine?' She leaned forward and picked up one of the glasses of wine that he'd poured. 'Zach, I don't expect you to cook for me if I'm living here. I can look after myself.'

  He shrugged. 'It makes sense to eat together if we're both in.' He threw a smile over his shoulder. 'Don't worry, it's your turn tomorrow.'

  'Deal.' She grinned and took a sip of wine. 'I love your house, by the way.'

  'Do you?' He put the food on the table and settled himself opposite her. 'I like it, too, but some of the nannies have found it a bit isolated. It's hardly close to the local nightspots.'

  She chuckled. 'Are there any?'

  'A few.' He handed her a spoon. 'Help yourself.'

  Keely helped herself to a generous portion of lasagne. 'So how many nannies have you had?'

  'Four in total. It's been a nightmare.' He heaped salad onto his plate and pushed the bowl towards her. 'The first one stayed two months, the second one managed eight months, which was pretty good, the third one stayed one month—that was bad—and the last one, well, you know about her.'

  His mouth tightened and Keely pushed his wine towards him.

  'Don't think about her,' she advised. 'Why did the others leave?'

  'Various reasons. Phoebe was difficult—missing her mother,' His tone was casual but a faint colour touched his hard cheekbones and Keely frowned at him suspiciously.

  'And?'

  'What?' He took a slug of wine and glanced up at her, his expression remote.

  'There must have been more to it than that. A professional nanny should have been able to cope with one little girl, however difficult.' Keely's eyes widened as the penny suddenly dropped. 'It wasn't Phoebe, was it? It was you. They all fell in love with you, didn't they?'

  He gave a short laugh. 'I wouldn't exactly put it like that.'

  She put her fork down and staged at him. 'Oh, Zach, that must have been the last thing you needed.'

  'That's an understatement.' He stabbed his salad with more force than was warranted. 'It certainly made it difficult for Phoebe. Every time she got used to a nanny, I had to get rid of her.'

  Ouch. More reasons for him to avoid women.

  'Did they cause you real trouble?'

  'Yes.'

  His economical response made her smile. 'Go on, give me the gory details.'

  'You want details?' He sighed and sat back in his chair. 'All right. I found number one lying in my bed, waiting for me, when I came back from the hospital one night. That was tricky.'

  Keely gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. 'Oh, Zach! What did you do?'

  'Not what she wanted me to do,' he said dryly. 'Number two was slightly more subtle. She made my dinner every night and finally burst into tears and said that she couldn't carry on living with me unless I married her because she was so in love with me.'

  'Ouch.' Keely pulled a sympathetic face. 'And number three?'

  'Number three was virtually a repeat of number one but slightly more pornographic.'

  'Oh, dear.' Keely put her fork down and started to laugh. 'Maybe you should have recruited an older nanny?'

  'You think I didn't try that?' He drained his wine and stared into the empty glass. 'Unfortunately they all have their own families and don't want to live in. With the demands of my job, I need someone to live in.'

  Keely picked up her fork and started eating again. 'Talking of which, did you manage to speak to your housekeeper today?'

  'Barbara?' He nodded. 'Yes. Thankfully she's only too happy to help. She adores Phoebe and really wanted to look after her but couldn't offer before because she couldn't cover the nights.'

  Keely's eyes twinkled. 'And will you be safe from your housekeeper or are you likely to find her lying naked in your bed?'

  His smile was wry. 'She's fifty-six with two grandchildren of her own, so I think that the only thing she's likely to be doing with my bed is making it.' He cleared his plate and pushed the dish towards her. 'Have some more.'

  'Thanks, it's delicious.' She spooned more onto her plate and noticed him watching her curiously. 'What?'

  'It's just very refreshing, being with a woman who eats. Normally women pick at their food.'

  'Don't remind me. My appetite is my biggest failing,' Keely told him gloomily as he topped up their wineglasses.

  'Why? You hardly need to watch your weight—you've got a fabulous figure.'

  Her eyes lifted to his and she blushed gently at the reminder that he was fairly intimately acquainted with her figure after the kiss they'd shared the previous night.

  They stared at each other for a long moment, awareness sizzling between them. Then Zach stood up abruptly, his chair scraping the floor as he moved away from the table.

  Keely took a deep breath and tried to slow her pulse rate. They'd gone from comfortable to awkward in the space of a second.

  'Listen, Keely...' He turned to face her and his voice was rough. 'About last night—'

  'We already discussed last night, Zach,' she reminded him calmly, 'and you made your position quite clear.'

  A muscle worked in his jaw. 'I was wrong to kiss you—'

  'Stop worrying,' she said quietly. 'It was just a kiss. This may come as a surprise to y<?u but I have been kissed before. Please, don't think I'm reading anything into it. We were both worried about Phoebe and weird things happen to common sense in the middle of the night.'

  He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. 'Maybe, but that's no excuse on my part. I should have shown some self-control.'

  She was glad that he hadn't. Which was ridiculous, of course, because that kiss had left her wanting something she knew she couldn't have.

  'I don't know why you're worrying. Let's just try and forget it,' she suggested lightly, standing up and loading her plate into the dishwasher.

  'Can you do that?'

  She looked him straight in the eye and summoned up her best acting skills. 'Of course. I've already told you that I've moved beyond the stage of childish crushes.'

  It was a half-truth. She'd definitely moved beyond childish crushes. But what about the more adult version?

  He hesitated, his eyes searching hers. 'Keely, if you want to move out I'll understand.'

  'Move out?' Her eyes widened. 'Do you want me to move out?'

  'Of course I don't. You're fantastic with Phoebe, even when she's at her most difficult, and you're helping me out of a very tight spot. I'd have to be mad to want to let you go. But you're making all the sacrifices.'

  'I'm helping a friend,' she said gently, touching his arm. 'And I'll carry on helping for just as long as you need me. Now, are you going to relax and make us both some coffee or are you going to continue scowling at me?'

  She busied h
erself tidying up the kitchen, hoping that he'd drop the subject. She didn't want to be forced to examine her feelings for him too closely. She had a feeling that what she might find would scare her even more than Zach.

  The rest of the week passed quickly and on Friday Keely was snatching a well-deserved cup of coffee in the staff common room when Adam came into the room.

  'OK, who's the best with screaming toddlers?' He flopped into one of the chairs and pulled a face. 'I've totally failed, I'm afraid. I can't get near the child.'

  Nicky grinned. 'I thought you had children of your own.'

  'I have.' Adam looked sheepish. 'My wife deals with the difficult bits. Tantrums are her department.'

  Keely took pity on him and stood up. 'What's the story?'

  'Head injury and, frankly, it's heading fast for another one if it doesn't stop flinging itself on the ground.'

  'You'd probably strike up a better relationship if you didn't refer to the child as "it",' Keely said dryly, walking towards the door and looking towards Nicky. 'Any help on offer?'

  'Zoe is already down in the paediatric area,' Nicky said hurriedly. 'And she's a qualified paediatric nurse. Much better with toddlers than I am.'

  Keely glanced round at her colleagues in frustration. 'You're all hopeless!'

  Rolling her eyes and shaking her head, she left the room and walked down the corridor, wincing as she heard the screams. Adam hadn't been exaggerating. The little girl was lying on the floor, ignoring all attempts to soothe and placate her.

  Keely gave the A and E staff nurse a smile and walked casually over to the toy box. Then she sat down on the floor and started rummaging through it, careful not to look at the toddler.

  'Oh, look at this, Zoe!' She pulled out a brightly coloured train and set it on the floor. 'Have we got any track?'

  She rummaged again and managed to find some track.

  'You start at that end of the room, Zoe, and I'll meet you in the middle.'

  The staff nurse obligingly dropped to her knees and started to assemble the train track. As Keely had hoped, the screaming suddenly stopped and the toddler sat watching them, thumb jammed into her mouth.

  'Any carriages?' Keely delved again and found a rather battered carriage. 'Perfect. Now I need someone to fix it to the engine.'

  'Em's turn.' The child scrambled unevenly to her feet and tottered over. 'Em's turn.'

  'Is that you?' Keely handed her the carriage. 'Are you Em?'

  The toddler nodded, thumb still jammed in her mouth.

  'Short for Emma—or Emily?'

  'Emily,' the mother said quietly. 'But we tend to call her Em because that's what she calls herself.'

  'And how old is she?'

  'Two and a half.'

  'Right.' Keely turned back to the toddler. 'What colour is this train, Em?'

  'Wed. Wed and boo.'

  'Clever girl.' Keely beamed at her. 'Red and blue. And can you fix it to the carriage for me?'

  Em removed her thumb from her mouth and snapped the two toys together with ease.

  'Brilliant. Now, can you put them on the track and push them to my friend Zoe?'

  The toddler plopped onto the floor and pushed the train along to the nurse.

  'Well, she seems quite lucid and she's playing happily,' Keely said, reaching for the notes Zoe had placed on the couch and quickly scanning them. 'What happened, Mrs Barrett?'

  'She tripped and banged her head on the coffee-table.'

  Was it her imagination or did the woman look nervous?

  'And did she cry straight away?'

  Mrs Barrett nodded and licked her lips. 'Oh, yes. She was hysterical.'

  Keely gave her a sympathetic smile. 'Well, at least we know she wasn't knocked out. Has she been sick or drowsy?'

  'No, nothing like that.'

  'I just need to take a look in her eyes and examine the bump,' Keely explained, reaching for an ophthalmoscope and a teddy. 'OK, look at this, Em.'

  She switched on the ophthalmoscope and pointed it at the teddy, pretending to examine its button eyes.

  'Em's turn.' The toddler was by her side in an instant. 'Want torch.'

  'Please,' her mother prompted automatically.

  'Pees.' The little girl reached out to grab the ophthalmoscope and Keely whipped out a pen torch. 'This one's for Em. Em, look at the teddy and Keely look at Em.'

  Quickly, knowing that she didn't have time to waste, she examined the child's eyes.

  'Does your head hurt, Em?'

  'Em hurt. Rick push Em.'

  Keely stopped what she was doing and her eyes met the mother's. 'Someone pushed her?'

  'No.' Mrs Barrett swept the toddler into her arms. 'No one pushed her. My boyfriend was walking past and knocked into her, but it was an accident.'

  Keely's instincts were on full alert but she knew better than to alienate the mother at this stage.

  'That happens so easily with toddlers.' She held out her arms. 'Em come with Keely?'

  Em slipped easily into her arms and she strolled up to the trolley and sat her down.

  'I just need to finish examining her, Mrs Barrett.'

  She slipped the little girl's dress over her head and tickled the child's stomach until she gurgled with laughter.

  The mother stared at her suspiciously. 'Why are you undressing her when she banged her head?'

  'Because toddlers fall for a number of reasons,' Keely said smoothly. 'Sometimes it's because they're unsteady on their feet and sometimes it could be because they have an infection of some sort which can affect their balance. We always do a full check with a head injury. I'll want to check her ears and throat as well.'

  Zoe stepped over, her expression friendly. 'Mrs Barrett, can I just get you to fill out this card for me with Emily's details?'

  As the child's mother followed Zoe without question, Keely was able to examine the child thoroughly, which had obviously been the staff nurse's intention. Blessing her quick thinking, Keely examined the child, frowning slightly as she saw the faint yellow bruises on her upper arms.

  Her. lower legs were covered in bruises, too, but these were less concerning because children of Emily's age fell over so frequently.

  Taking a quick look at her back, she saw faint marks that made her feel decidedly uneasy. Could it be what she suspected? It was so difficult to tell in children of this age who were frequently covered in bruises.

  'Well done, Em.' She slipped the dress back over the little girl's head and glanced at Zoe.

  'I just need to talk to Mr Jordan and then we'll sort out that head.' She turned to the mother with a relaxed smile. 'Mrs Barrett, Emily has a nasty bump on the head and we may well need to admit her to our paediatric ward for twenty-four hours' observation.'

  The mother looked uneasy. 'I thought she could go straight home.'

  'I don't think so.' Keely wrote carefully on the notes, documenting everything she'd found. 'Head injuries can be deceptive in small children. I just need to talk to one of our consultants.'

  She walked briskly down the corridor and found Zach examining a young woman with chest pains.

  'Can I see you when you have a minute?'

  He gave a nod, finished his examination and then handed over to Adam.

  'Problems?' He walked with her into the corridor and she bit her Up.

  'Maybe. I've got a two-and-a-half-year-old in Paediatric Casualty with a bang on the head. Mother says she tripped and banged her head on the table but the toddler says she was pushed. I've examined her thoroughly and she has marks consistent with old bruising on her upper arms and back.'

  'Children of that age are always covered in bruises,' Zach reminded her, his gaze quizzical. 'Phoebe's the same.'

  Keely nodded. 'I know that. But these bruises aren't in the common places.'

  Zach rubbed his chin, his expression suddenly watchful. 'And you think it's non accidental?'

  'I don't know.' Keely hesitated. 'I don't want to think that, but all my instincts are saying that someth
ing isn't right'

  'How does she react to the mother?'

  'Fine.' Keely shrugged. 'Mother seems a bit nervous but that could just be because it's hospital, of course.'

  'Any sign of Dad?'

  Keely shook her head, wishing his gaze wasn't quite so blue or so direct. It made it hard to concentrate. 'No dad. Mother mentioned a boyfriend. The same person that the toddler said pushed her.'

  Zach frowned. 'I don't think you can rely on the evidence of a two-and-a-half-year-old, Keely.'

  Keely took a deep breath. 'I know that, but will you just look at her?'

  'I'll look at her.' For a moment their eyes held and tension sparked between them, then he muttered something under his breath and strode off down the corridor, leaving her feeling weak-kneed.

  Quickly she pulled herself together and caught up with him. 'I've warned the mother that we may want to admit her for twenty-four hours' observation.'

  Zach paused. 'Have you checked the register?'

  Keely shook her head. All the A and E staff had access to the Child Protection Register which listed children considered to be at risk.

  'Check the register and meet me down there.'

  Zach strode off and Keely hurried to Reception. There was no record of the child on the register, and by the time she got back to Paediatric Casualty Zach had finished his examination.

  He was playing comfortably with Emily and had the mother eating out of his hand.

  'Dr Thompson is quite right, Mrs Barrett,-' he said smoothly, casting a relaxed smile in Keely's direction. Not by the flicker of an eyelid did he betray that anything was amiss. 'Emily has had a bang on the head so we would like to keep her in overnight. I'll call the paediatricians.'

  Mrs Barrett complained a bit but also looked slightly relieved.

  'Odd,' Keely said afterwards as she and Zach walked back towards the staffroom. 'It was almost as if she wanted the child to be admitted.'