Was that the sort of dependable life she should be aiming for with the twins, a life where emotions were only ever on an even keel? Nothing spontaneous or unpredictable. Nothing exciting, or dangerous. And definitely nothing that encouraged images that drove every sane thought from her head.
She knew she should make the most sensible decision and turn the dance down. She should turn down anything Nick ever proposed. Although in one respect, it made no difference. She already knew she’d have fantasies aplenty to keep her tossing and turning tonight. And for some nights to come.
At the same moment the thought crossed her mind, a colleague of Philip’s she knew reasonably well approached her and said with urgency, ‘We need a doctor.’
Just what I was thinking, thought Rosie, but out loud she said, ‘What is it?’ And as she did, she knew instinctively she was waving goodbye to her plans for the rest of the evening.
CHAPTER FOUR
NICK watched as Rosie turned back to Philip. He didn’t seem her type but, then, he didn’t know her well. Besides, she’d ended things with him. He’d take that as proof he wasn’t her type. It still begged the question as to why the guy would have let Rosie go without trying to juggle their lives somehow. Then again, what did it matter? Nick was the one Rosie had promised to dance with. Another man approached Rosie and bent down to talk to her. Nick bristled at the possibility that he’d been beaten to the first dance.
‘Nick, mate.’ Nick turned as a hand clasped his shoulder to find his friend Tim standing just behind his chair. ‘We need a doctor.’
‘What is it?’ He listened as he glanced back at Rosie and found she was following the man who had spoken with her through the crowd. Same mission?
‘The PM’s Chief of Staff, Howard Hoffman, has collapsed, he’s having trouble breathing,’ Tim explained as he led the way across the room to a table where a rather overweight man, aged roughly in his fifties, sat slumped in a chair. Rosie was already there, loosening the man’s tie. As Nick approached, he saw Howard’s face was flushed and although at first glance he didn’t look to be in any worse shape than most of the other ageing, overweight men in the room, he was audibly wheezing. Nick said to Tim, his voice low, ‘Has someone called an ambulance?’
‘That was being done when I came to find you.’
‘Check on it. We can always cancel it if we need to but it’s better to be safe.’
‘Will do.’ Tim nodded and moved off to attend to it.
Nick joined Rosie and they acknowledged each other with a nod, a brief smile turning up the corners of Rosie’s mouth for a moment. Then she said, ‘Howard, Nick and I are doctors.’ She gestured to Nick at her side and Howard glanced with glazed eyes at them both but gave no other sign of interest. ‘Can you tell us if this has happened before?’
Rosie picked up the man’s wrist, checking his pulse. As Howard nodded, Nick pushed Howard’s other sleeve up, revealing a Medic Alert bracelet.
He read the inscription. ‘Nut allergy.’
‘Howard, do you have an epipen?’ Rosie asked.
He nodded again.
‘Where is it?’
‘My wife,’ Howard wheezed.
Nick and Rosie looked around at the same time but could see no one who looked like a concerned wife. Wouldn’t she be coming forward?
‘Where is she?’ Nick asked.
‘Bathroom,’ Howard replied with difficulty. His lips had become more swollen, and soon he wouldn’t be able to speak at all.
Rosie still had her fingers at the man’s wrist. ‘Pulse is more erratic,’ she said to Nick. The redness on Howard’s face was becoming worse, developing into hives now.
‘Someone go and find her.’ Nick spoke loudly, and the general noise around them quietened instantly. ‘You.’ He pinned his gaze on a woman hovering nearby. ‘Check the ladies’ bathrooms, we need that epipen.’
The woman didn’t hesitate, clearly gathering from Nick’s authoritative tone that time was of the essence. Thankfully Rosie was here, leaving him free for the time being to orchestrate events while Rosie attended to Howard.
Rosie was aware of Nick organising events, sending a woman to find the epipen, speaking to another man about an ambulance, leaving her free to concentrate on Howard. Getting a shot of epinephrine into him was really the only treatment but Rosie knew there were a couple of things she could do while they located Howard’s wife. Calming Howard was one of them.
‘We’ll find your wife, Howard. Can you look at me and keep trying to breathe through your nose?’ Rosie kept eye contact with Howard, keeping him focused on her. Keeping Howard’s airway open was the priority for now as his breathing was becoming more laboured by the second.
‘Does anyone have a Ventolin inhaler?’
Bronchodilators were normally not hard to find amongst a group of people of this size and one was quickly passed to Rosie.
‘This will help you to breathe,’ she said. ‘Have you used one before?’
Howard nodded and Rosie held it for him, squeezing the cylinder four times, once for each of four inhalations. Nick was standing beside them, scanning the crowd.
‘They’ve found her,’ he said to Rosie.
‘Howard? Howard!’ Rosie could hear her now, coming closer.
‘Make some space, let her through.’ That was Nick.
A short, anxious-looking woman pushed through the crowd. She held the epipen in one hand, her handbag in the other. Rosie had no idea if Howard’s wife planned to inject her husband but the woman’s hands were shaking so badly Rosie wasn’t going to let her try.
She took the epipen from the woman’s fingers. ‘I’m a doctor, I can do it.’ Howard’s wife relinquished the pen and sank into the chair Nick pulled out for her.
‘Thank you,’ Rosie mouthed to Nick, who grinned at her, apparently confident she had the situation under control, although if she was the distractible type, his smile would have spelt the end of her efficiency. She popped the cap off the pen and held it against Howard’s thigh. She depressed the button, plunging the adrenalin into his system while she counted to five.
‘Do you find yourself in the middle of medical emergencies everywhere you go?’ Nick had squatted down next to her, murmuring his words so only she could hear. ‘First the accident at the beach, now this?’
‘I was going to ask you the same thing.’ She kept her eyes trained on Howard as they spoke. He was already responding positively to the drug, his breathing calming. ‘The most dramatic thing I’ve come across off duty is some bad cases of sunburn. Perhaps it’s our karma.’
‘You don’t have training in emergency medicine?’
‘A GP with an interest in paediatrics?’ She shook her head. ‘Nothing so exciting there on a day-to-day basis.’
‘Maybe—’ Nick started to speak but was interrupted by someone in the crowd calling out that the ambulance was here.
Rosie saw people moving aside to let the paramedics through, and she and Nick stood up simultaneously. Whatever Nick had been going to say lost in the moment.
‘Rosie?’ Rosie jumped at the sound of Philip’s voice behind her just as the paramedics arrived at Howard’s side. She turned and motioned for him to wait while she filled the paramedics in on Howard.
That done, she left Nick with the paramedics and went to Philip.
‘Well done with Howard. You averted some bad publicity there, thanks.’
Work was always Philip’s first thought so she wasn’t surprised his main concern was the negative coverage the event could have generated. ‘There are some more people I want you to meet.’
Rosie considered her options. She’d promised to help Philip this evening. She could hardly refuse a direct request for help so she could dance with Nick instead. But she’d filled a fair quota of schmoozing with politicians and now she’d done some medical work on the side. Enough was enough…
‘I might go home, Philip, I’ve had enough for one evening.’
‘I understand.’ Which he would. Philip w
as always courteous, to her, at least, even if he was unsure how to be so chivalrous to her niece and nephew. ‘I’ll get my driver to drop you.’
More chivalry. Nice, but not what she wanted. She wanted big and rugged, she wanted less polish and more manly command. She wanted Nick.
‘I’ll take a taxi.’
‘If you’re sure? I do appreciate your coming tonight; it wasn’t the night I wanted to announce our separation.’ He inclined his head slightly, a typical Philip gesture. ‘This is nice, you and me still friends, still civil.’
Rosie laughed. ‘It’s one of the main things we have in common, Phil, civility at all costs. It’s unlikely to desert us now.’
He bent to kiss her, aiming for her cheek this time. ‘Let me know when you want to come down to Canberra to collect your things.’
‘I will.’ So it really was over. They’d both acknowledged it. Rosie waited for a pang of regret as Philip walked away but none came. Their relationship hadn’t been right for her and becoming the twins’ guardian had forced her to make the break that had already been a matter of when, not if. How different her life had become in a matter of weeks.
Politician’s partner, Canberra, hobnobbing, black tie. Had that been her? It felt a million miles away from where she was now. In just two months, the fit was no longer right.
Had it ever really been?
But the question hovering on her lips was, What was she going to be? Later on, when the dust had settled, where would she find herself?
Single female. Guardian aunt. Out-of-work doctor. Old Sydney girl come home for good. That was her, for now. And that was okay.
But later?
Sense of humour, attentive, intelligent, tall, gorgeous, safe-to-drown-in eyes, lover’s hands…
She’d been looking for words to describe herself and a flood of words for Nick had come instead. She forced herself to stem the flow of descriptions. There was no room in her future for such an image. As if she held the same appeal for him as he did for her!
Then the image of tugging on his bow-tie until it tumbled loose about his neck swam back into mind and she let herself tumble with it, straight into a delectable daydream she really shouldn’t be having in a public place.
The paramedics had left with Howard, and Nick had hung back until Philip had moved off, pleased when he saw Rosie scanning the crowd. He hoped she was looking for him, and as he stepped forward into her view, he knew from her smile his assumption had been correct.
‘Well done with Howard.’ He touched her on the arm and she moved ever so slightly closer to him, close enough for him to smell the light rose scent of her perfume, close enough to see she had exactly five golden freckles on the bridge of her nose. ‘Does duty call or will we get our dance, more medical emergencies notwithstanding?’
‘I think I have to go. Philip wanted me to meet more people and I begged off on grounds of tiredness. And I should let Mum get home, she’s babysitting.’
‘All sound reasons but, even so, I’m disappointed.’ She smiled at his teasing. ‘I’ll drive you home if you don’t have a lift. My official duties as a token Kiwi are at an end.’
She hesitated then nodded and he did his best to look nonchalant and not as if his heart had been beating faster while he’d waited for her answer. She gave him her address but he knew it already. He knew they only lived a few streets apart, close to the hospital where he’d operate on Charlie. It was why he’d chosen that day for surgery, to make it easier for her.
‘I’ll say my goodbyes and meet you out the front, is that okay?’
‘Sure,’ she said, and they moved off in opposite directions.
Five minutes later he left the function room and scanned the foyer, his gut clenching when Rosie was at first nowhere to be seen. Then, through the doors, he caught a glimpse of yellow and saw she’d been waiting outside on the steps. The knots in his stomach relaxed.
They chatted easily on the walk to his car. Rosie’s eyes widened as Nick slowed his steps when they approached an expensive-looking, sleek black car. She audibly swallowed a burst of laughter as Nick led her around the Mercedes Benz to his old heap obscured in the next parking bay. ‘If I’d known I was driving you home, I’d have brought the Rolls.’
‘I’m glad you didn’t.’ Rosie’s green eyes danced with laughter. ‘I’ve always had an aversion to Rolls-Royces.’
‘Then you’re going to love Molly,’ he said patting the roof. ‘She’s about as far as something can be from a Rolls and still have an engine.’ He opened the door for her, waiting for her to get settled before saying, ‘Block your ears, this door needs quite a slam to get it shut.’ She covered her ears with her hands, looking up at him with a big grin, and for a moment he simply stared at her, all golden and shining and beautiful and quite out of place in his car. Quite out of place in his world? After all, the movers and shakers they’d just spent the evening with were her world, not his.
Ten minutes later the conversation between them was still flowing naturally and he was still contemplating the question. And questioning why he cared. He was a single man with a single-minded focus on re-establishing himself. There were no plans for a relationship, even dating, in the next year or so. Yet as they chatted, bouncing off one another with their stories and laughter, he found himself returning again and again to the image of this gorgeous woman becoming a regular front-seat passenger in his car.
Impossible, but it made a pleasant change from thinking about work and debt all the time.
Curiosity got the better of him. ‘How did you meet Philip?’ His question was apropos of nothing but a quick glance her way suggested she wasn’t taken aback so he went on, fishing, ‘I wouldn’t have thought a paediatrician would have much in common with a politician.’
‘Some hospital function, a lifetime ago. He was the local Member of Parliament and an invited guest, I think.’
‘You think?’
‘I can’t remember exactly. Is it important?’
‘Sure it’s important.’
‘How?’
‘Perhaps interesting is a better word than important. I love the idea of two people, when they’re old and grey, being able to think back and remember the first moment they met. I think it’s romantic.’
She considered that then nodded. ‘I guess it is, but not for Philip and me, now that he’s my ex-boyfriend.’
‘Except you didn’t know when you started going out with him that one day he’d be your ex.’
‘Do you remember every ex-girlfriend and where you met?’
He laughed. ‘Maybe there’s one or two from years ago I’m hazy about but, other than them, pretty much. I can even tell you when I first met you.’ It wasn’t something he’d meant to share, but he could hardly back away from the statement now. It was already out there. He’d just have to play down how well he recalled every detail about their first meeting.
She wasn’t taking him seriously, anyway, and said laughingly, ‘Not a real challenge, it was only a week ago and the circumstances were a little unusual.’
Despite his intentions to do the opposite, he rose to the challenge and raised the stakes. ‘And I can tell you when I saw you for the second time.’
‘A whole three days ago,’ she teased, but he sensed now she was enjoying the exchange. Pleased she’d made an impression?
‘Four days ago. And I remember what you were wearing.’
She nodded and gave a noncommittal ‘Uh-huh.’
‘A floaty top with some sort of pattern…’ He paused as he negotiated a corner.
‘So far so good.’
‘In a green that matched your eyes.’ He glanced over at her, pleased she was looking at him. It was hard to tell in the low light, but he was pretty sure a tinge of pink had crept up around her neck and her breathing was definitely shallower.
‘Getting better.’ She swallowed, and he had the feeling it was an effort for her to make her voice sound light, natural.
‘And white pants with a stain on.’
He visualised her that day. ‘The left knee, where it looked like you’d spilled something.’
‘I thought I’d got that stain out!’
‘Not completely.’
‘We’d had pancakes for breakfast and I spilt maple syrup. So either you’ve proved you’ve got a better memory for trivia than me, or you have a special interest in laundry.’
‘Neither.’ He let a moment of silence stretch between them. ‘It proves I’m more interested in you than you were in Philip.’ Man, there he went again. What was it about this woman that had him making such crazy admissions? He was straying so far from the script it was laughable.
‘Oh.’ The sound came out with a breath, making it sound husky. Desire hardened in his abdomen. Ah, that old chestnut. That was why he was acting so out of character. Desire he could cope with, he could stay in control of that. Only tonight he’d felt for the first time, like a physical sensation, that the noose around his neck had loosened. He was heading in the right direction. So he could loosen up, too, just a little, not a lot, right? Relax a little and spend some time with a woman who was attractive and interesting. He shut out the insistent voice that said it was more than that.
She was sitting still, staring at him. Wondering how to take what he’d just said? He looked back to the road, making a right turn into her street and slowing down to look at house numbers as he said, ‘Which is perhaps not what you were expecting me to say but there it is. I’d like to spend some time with you. No pressure, no expectations.’
He pulled into her driveway, Rosie confirming with a gesture it was the right one. As he turned off the engine, she spoke.
‘I’d really like that, Nick.’ She hesitated and then went on, ‘I’d really like to spend some time with you, too, as a friend, but my time’s not my own at the moment. All my energy is going into the twins.’
Italian Doctor, Dream Proposal / Wanted: A Father for her Twins Page 23