* * *
Eleanor trudged on, bracing herself against the wind. The storm was raging around them now, the rain forming horizontal sheets as it pelted across the hillside. She had never been out in weather like this before and she found it exhilarating to test herself against the elements. If she could survive this, she could survive anything!
‘All right?’
She looked round when Joe Thorne came alongside her. ‘Yes, although this wind is something else. I’ve never been out in a gale like this before.’
‘Welcome to the Dales,’ Joe replied, tongue very firmly tucked in his cheek. ‘The weather here takes some getting used to but you’re doing great.’ He laughed. ‘At least I don’t need to worry about falling foul of the doc now. I got the impression he’d have my guts for garters if anything happened to you!’
He moved away, leaving Ellie to digest what he had said. Daniel had been worried about her—really? The thought sent a rush of warmth through her even though she knew how stupid it was. They trudged on for another mile or so. Ellie’s legs were starting to ache now, unused to having to carry her over such rough terrain. When Joe called a halt she sank down onto a rock and rubbed her aching calves, determined that she was going to keep up with the others. The last thing she wanted was to be a burden to them, she thought, then glanced round when she heard what sounded like a shout coming from behind her. The rest of the team were gathered around Joe, checking the map, and didn’t appear to have heard anything, and she frowned. Had she imagined it?
Ellie sat quite still, listening. The wind was howling now and it was difficult to hear anything above the noise it was making. She had just decided that it had been her imagination when she heard it again. Jumping up, she ran over to Joe. ‘I heard a shout!’ She pointed towards the rock she’d been sitting on. ‘It seemed to come from over there.’
‘Right, let’s take a look.’ Joe led the way, the others fanning out on either side of him. Ellie wasn’t as quick as they were but she did her best to keep up. She gasped when she spotted a figure lying on the ground. Hurrying forward, she dropped to her knees beside the girl. She was soaking wet and shivering violently. It was obvious that she was in the first stages of hypothermia and Ellie knew that she urgently needed to warm her up.
‘My name’s Ellie and I’m a doctor,’ she told her. ‘What’s your name?’
‘Hannah.’ The girl could hardly speak because her teeth were chattering.
‘Right, Hannah, can you tell me if you’ve hurt yourself?’
‘My ankle—I think I’ve broken it,’ Hannah managed.
Ellie took a look at her right ankle while one of the team shone a torch onto it. She sighed when she saw how swollen it was. ‘Hmm, it looks very painful. I won’t try to remove your boot. We’ll leave that until we get you to hospital as it will be less painful to do it there. Is there anything else—cuts, bruises, anything at all?’
‘No, just my ankle. That’s why I couldn’t go back to find the others.’ Hannah bit her lip as tears started to pour down her cheeks. ‘I should never have gone off and left them then this wouldn’t have happened!’
‘Let’s worry about that later,’ Ellie said firmly. ‘We need to get you warm at the moment.’ Unzipping the girl’s sodden jacket, she slid it off. Hannah was wearing a T-shirt underneath and it too was soaking wet.
‘Get that off her as well, Doc,’ Joe instructed, taking a thermal top from his backpack. He helped Ellie get it on the girl then added a fleece jacket over the top with a foil blanket over that. Within a remarkably short time, Hannah was being strapped to a stretcher. Ellie also helped to fit an inflatable splint around the girl’s ankle to prevent it being jolted on the way to the rescue vehicle. Taking out his radio, Joe contacted the rest of the team to let them know what was happening and they set off.
Ellie could feel her legs trembling as she struggled to keep her footing on the rain-slick path. How the men carrying the stretcher managed to remain upright was beyond her. By the time they reached the vehicles she was exhausted but she had to find the reserves to keep going somehow. Until Hannah had been handed over to the team at the hospital, she was her responsibility. It took the best part of an hour to reach the hospital. Ellie kept a close watch on Hannah, knowing that she wasn’t out of danger yet. Hypothermia could still set in and that was the last thing they wanted. It was a relief to finally hand her over to the A and E staff, who rushed her off to Resus. At least, the girl would receive the care she needed now.
‘They’ve found the rest of the kids.’ Joe came back into the waiting area after having gone outside to answer his phone. He grinned at Ellie and the others. ‘They were sheltering in a cave close to the Witch’s Cauldron. They’re cold and wet but otherwise unharmed.’
‘Thank heaven for that!’ Ellie exclaimed. ‘Have they said what happened?’
‘Apparently, Hannah and another girl had an argument over one of the boys. It seems he’s been playing the field and, when Hannah found out, she went storming off. When she didn’t come back, the others tried to find her and got themselves lost.’ Joe rolled his eyes. ‘The course of true love has a lot to answer for!’
Everyone laughed, including Ellie, although she couldn’t help thinking how true the comment was. Love could ruin a person’s life, as she knew to her cost. It made her see that any thoughts she may have been harbouring about trying again in the future had been madness. Why expose herself to the risk of heartache all over again?
‘Oh, by the way, Ellie, I told the doc that we’d drop you off at home. There didn’t seem any point in him driving over here to collect you,’ Joe told her as they left the hospital. ‘I hope that was OK?’
‘Of course.’ Ellie dredged up a smile, not wanting Joe to suspect that she felt the tiniest bit disappointed. She took a quick breath, knowing how stupid it was. She had just decided that she was going to stick to her decision to focus on her career so what was the point of wishing she could have spent more time with Daniel? ‘Thanks, Joe. I appreciate it.’
‘No problem,’ Joe said cheerfully, unlocking the car. They all piled in, squeezing into whatever space they could find. Ellie found herself tucked into a gap between the various piles of equipment. It wasn’t the most comfortable of position but it was better than waiting around for Daniel, she assured herself. Just for a moment the image of his handsome face floated before her eyes before she blanked it out. She knew what she had to do and she wasn’t going to change her mind. For anyone.
CHAPTER EIGHT
THE DAY OF Sandra and Tim’s barbecue dawned bright and clear. After the recent rain, it was a relief to enjoy some dry weather for once. Everyone from the surgery had been invited and were looking forward to it. Sandra and Tim were excellent hosts and their barbecues were renowned as fun occasions. Daniel, however, had mixed feelings about the evening. Whilst it would be good to socialise with his friends and colleagues, he was wary of doing or saying the wrong thing around Eleanor.
There had been a marked chill about the way she had treated him since the night they had gone looking for the missing teenagers. Although she was unfailingly polite, she had made it clear that she preferred to keep her distance. He had no idea what he had done but it was obvious that he had upset her. The thought of spending the evening tiptoeing around her wasn’t appealing, especially when he knew that if it had been anyone else he would have asked them what the matter was. However, for some reason he was wary of doing that with Eleanor. And his own ambivalence unsettled him even more.
Although it was a busy day, they finished on time for once. Daniel had offered to lock up so that Marie and the rest of the staff could rush off home to get changed. He set the alarm then headed to his car. Nathan had been invited as well as he was friendly with Sandra and Tim’s son, Jack. It wasn’t often that Daniel got the chance to spend an evening with his son; between his college work and various s
porting activities, Nathan was usually busy of an evening.
At any other time, Daniel knew that he would be looking forward to them having some time together, but Eleanor’s attitude had cast a pall over the evening even though he knew it was ridiculous to let it affect him. So she didn’t want to be friends with him—so what? As long as she did her job what did it matter? And yet deep down he knew that it did matter, that it mattered a great deal. He wanted to be her friend, to have her confide in him and turn to him for help, even though he couldn’t understand why.
The party was in full swing by the time he and Nathan arrived. Sandra came to greet them, shaking her head. ‘At last! I thought you two had got lost.’
‘Sorry. My fault. I ended up sorting out some bills that I’ve been meaning to pay,’ Daniel explained, aware that it was only partially true. Fair enough, he had ended up writing out some cheques but it had been more a delaying tactic than a necessity. His eyes skimmed over the people gathered in the garden and his heart sank when he spotted Eleanor. He had delayed leaving home because he had been reluctant to find himself on the receiving end of any more chilly treatment. How pathetic was that!
‘There’s Jack,’ Nathan announced as Sandra excused herself to greet some more late arrivals. ‘See you later, Dad.’
Daniel watched as his son headed over to where a group of youngsters had gathered. The sound of their laughter carried across to him and he sighed. Nathan seemed happy enough and now it was his turn to join the fray. Maybe he was persona non grata in Eleanor’s eyes but he could hardly stand here on his own like Billy-no-mates, could he? Steeling himself, he headed over to the group from the surgery.
‘Good evening, everyone,’ he said, forcing himself to smile as he looked around. Marie was there with her husband, Ken, and Polly was with her fiancé, Martin. Lucy was there as well, although she was on her own as her boyfriend, James, a firefighter, was working that night. His gaze moved from one smiling face to another before it came to rest on Eleanor and he felt his heart sink even further when she nodded coolly at him. What on earth had he done to upset her?
Ellie felt her stomach churn. She had been dreading this moment when she would be forced to speak to Daniel, so much so that she had been tempted to phone Sandra and make some excuse as to why she couldn’t go. However, the thought of spending the evening on her own had been an even worse prospect.
She had done her best to ignore the fact that it was her birthday, even going so far as to leave the card and present her parents had sent her unopened. She didn’t need any reminders about how different this birthday was going to be compared to the last, but the downside was that she would have to socialise with Daniel and she wasn’t sure if it was wise.
Oh, it had been easy enough in work; any conversations had been strictly confined to their patients. However, an occasion like this was very different. She would have to make the usual small talk and that was what worried her. The more she got to know Daniel, the more she grew to like him.
The conversation flowed on. Polly and Martin were getting married the following Easter and Lucy asked them about their plans. Marie chipped in, reminiscing about her own wedding many years earlier. Eleanor was happy to let them talk and merely listen. Although Daniel added the odd comment, he was almost as quiet as her, she noticed. She glanced at him and felt her heart leap when she met his eyes and saw the question they held. Was he wondering why she was behaving so distantly? She sensed it was true but there was no way she could explain that it was what she needed to do rather than run the risk of becoming involved with him. After all, Daniel hadn’t given any sign that he was interested in her. On the contrary, he had made it clear that he was still very much in love with his late wife.
It was a depressing thought. Ellie was still trying to deal with it when Tim called for silence. ‘Right, folks, I have it on good authority...’ he paused and looked meaningfully at his wife before continuing ‘...that someone here tonight is celebrating a birthday. So I would like you all to join me in drinking a toast to Ellie. Happy birthday, love!’
Ellie flushed when everyone raised their glasses. She had forgotten that she had told Sandra it was her birthday that day and hadn’t been prepared for this. Now she found her mind swooping back to the previous year before she could stop it. Michael had showered her with presents: roses and champagne at breakfast; lunch at a Michelin-starred restaurant; an evening at the Opera. Tears prickled her eyes as it struck her how very different this year was.
‘Well, you certainly kept that quiet!’ Marie declared, sounding put out. ‘You never said a word about it being your birthday!’
‘I didn’t think it was worth making a fuss,’ Ellie murmured, feeling guilty.
‘Hmm, you still should have said something.’ Stepping forward, she kissed Ellie on the cheek then wagged a finger at her. ‘We’ll let you off this time, so long as you bring in some cakes tomorrow. Deal?’
‘Deal,’ Ellie agreed, laughing. Ken kissed her as well, quickly followed by Polly and Martin, and then Lucy.
‘Happy birthday, Eleanor.’ Daniel stepped forward, hesitating only briefly before he bent and kissed her on the cheek. ‘May the coming year bring you everything you want,’ he said softly so that only she could hear.
He stepped back but it was several seconds before Ellie moved. She put her hand to her cheek, feeling her skin tingling where Daniel’s lips had touched it. None of the other people’s kisses had left its mark on her but Daniel’s had. Why? What was so special about his kiss?
It was a relief when Tim announced the barbecue was ready. Ellie followed the others as people started to queue up. Daniel was ahead of her and her eyes lingered on the strong line of his back. He was a very attractive man so was that the reason she had reacted differently to his kiss? She could see the sense in that yet she had difficulty believing it. She had met other attractive men but not responded to them this way, had she? Why, even with Michael she hadn’t felt the awareness she felt whenever she was around Daniel.
Although Michael was very good looking, she had never been overwhelmed by desire for him. In fact, she knew that Michael had grown impatient when she had refused to sleep with him at first, but she had been unwilling to compromise her views. After a couple of less than satisfying relationships, she had decided that sex needed commitment for it to mean anything. Admittedly, she had never found it that fulfilling when she and Michael had finally made love after they’d got engaged, but she had told herself it would get better with time. Now, all of a sudden, she found herself wondering if she’d been wrong, if it wasn’t commitment that made a difference but the person. If she slept with Daniel, for instance, wouldn’t it feel wonderful? The thought shocked her so much that she found it impossible to focus on what was happening. When Daniel turned and handed her a plate, she stared blankly at it.
‘Are you all right, Eleanor?’
His deep voice rumbled softly, stirring her already heightened senses, and Ellie shivered. What would Daniel think if he knew what thoughts were going on inside her head? Would he be shocked or merely accept them as any experienced adult would do? Had she been naïve to believe that sex could only be enjoyed within certain boundaries? Wrong to assume that it needed commitment to make it feel right? She took a deep breath, trying to contain a rush of fear as the next question flowed into her head: Was it time she found out?
Daniel had no idea what was going on but the expression on Eleanor’s face worried him. Taking the plate out of her unresisting hand, he placed it back on the pile then led her from the queue. Fortunately, the others were too interested in their supper to notice what was happening as he steered her across the garden to the old wooden gazebo. ‘Sit down.’ He eased her down onto the seat and sat beside her. Sandra had placed tea-lights in jam jars around the garden and they gave out just enough light to see by. Bending forward, he stared into Eleanor’s face. ‘Are you feeling all right? Yo
u seem a bit, well...out of it.’
‘I’m fine.’ Her voice was so low that he had trouble hearing her.
‘Are you sure?’ Maybe it was wrong to press her but all of a sudden he needed to know what he had done to upset her. ‘You’ve not seemed yourself for a while, I have to say.’
‘Haven’t I?’ she murmured, avoiding his eyes.
Daniel’s breath caught when he realised that she understood exactly what he meant. So it wasn’t his imagination, she had been keeping him at arm’s length, although he was no closer to knowing why. ‘No. You’ve been very distant since the night we went looking for those teenagers,’ he said quietly. ‘Did I do something to upset you?’
‘Of course not.’ She gave a little shrug. ‘I just think it’s better if I focus on my job. That’s all.’
‘Better? In which way?’ he prompted, wanting to understand what she was saying.
‘Better than getting involved,’ she said flatly. ‘I’m only going to be here for a few months and after that I’ll go somewhere else. I don’t want any...complications, quite frankly.’
Daniel wasn’t sure what to say. Oh, he could appreciate her logic—he didn’t need any complications in his life at the moment either. He had enough on his plate. However, the thought of her cutting herself off this way was more than he could bear.
‘I don’t see how it would complicate matters if we were friends, Eleanor.’
‘Maybe not.’ She shrugged. ‘However, I’d prefer it if we stick to being colleagues.’
‘Doesn’t that seem a little harsh?’ he suggested, his heart aching at the thought of how lonely she was going to be if she continued behaving that way. ‘Everyone needs friends, people they can rely on in a crisis.’
The Boss Who Stole Her Heart Page 8