‘Oh, I’m sure they would, from the sound of that. He knew all the books on his shelves, all ten thousand of them or whatever. If I wanted to know anything, he knew exactly where to find the answer. He had a mind like a steel trap.’
‘It must run in the family,’ he said, and she could hear the smile in his voice. He gave her hand another squeeze.
‘It’s getting late. I ought to go home,’ he said softly, and she nodded, but for a long time neither of them moved, and his thumb was stroking slowly over the back of her hand, sending tingles along her arm.
She eased her hand away and stood up, gathering up their cups and putting them on the tray, and he picked it up and followed her in. She heard a clatter and he swore, and she flicked the light on and turned to take the tray.
‘Are you OK?’
‘Yeah, I missed the step. Again. My night vision’s apparently total rubbish. Ignore me.’
Ignore him? When he was poised on the brink of a precipice with his sight hanging in the balance? Unlikely.
She took the tray from him, put it down and headed towards the front door, switching on the table lamp on the old carved chest in the hall.
He paused by the door, his face bathed in the gentle light, staring down into her eyes. ‘Thank you for feeding me, it was really tasty. And for the tools. I’ll let you have them back as soon as I’m done, and I promise I’ll do the door properly this time.’
She smiled. ‘No hurry,’ she said, and went up on tiptoe to kiss him goodbye.
Error? Or the best thing she’d done in ages?
Because it wasn’t just a kiss, a friendly peck on the cheek, even though it was meant to be.
For some reason it morphed into an invitation, and he turned his head a fraction, his lips warm and firm and supple as they found hers, and with a soft sigh he cradled her head in his hands, settled his mouth on hers and kissed her.
Really kissed her, his lips slow and gentle, gradually deepening the kiss until her legs turned to jelly and she could hardly stand.
Then he lifted his head and stared down into her eyes.
‘I’m not looking for a relationship, Laura, you have to know that.’
‘I know that. Nor am I.’
‘So where’s this going?’ he asked softly, and she held his eyes, reading the need, the tenderness, the restraint. And the fear, lurking in the background. She couldn’t let him go. Not tonight, and maybe not ever.
She smiled. ‘That depends on the contents of your wallet.’
He gave a surprised little laugh, and his eyes crinkled and lit up. ‘You’re after my money?’ And then he stopped teasing her, the smile changing again, back to tender. Back to sexy.
‘Don’t worry. I didn’t trust myself around you. My wallet’s ready for this.’
She swallowed, her heart hammering in her chest, her body aching for his. She opened her mouth to speak, but nothing came out except a soft sigh of relief as her lips tilted into a smile.
She held out her hand, and he took it, letting her lead him into her bedroom.
‘Millie, no, in your bed,’ she said, and Millie turned and padded back towards the kitchen. By the time she’d closed the door he’d turned on the bedside light, and he held out his hand to her.
‘Come here. You’re far too far away.’
She walked up to him, reaching for the buttons on his shirt, trailing her lips over his skin as she went. She touched her tongue to his nipples, one after the other, then blew softly, feeling the change in texture as they tightened in response.
‘You do know you’re killing me?’ he said calmly, although he wasn’t calm. She could feel his heart against her mouth, just the other side of his ribs, the solid thud reassuringly strong. She lifted her head and looked up into his beautiful eyes. The eyes that could be going blind....
‘I want you,’ she said softly, and he groaned and hauled her into his arms, ditching his restraint.
Their clothes were in the way, so they ditched them, too, coming together skin to skin with gasps and sighs. She could feel the tension in him, the heat of his skin, the hard jut of his erection against her abdomen as he kissed her again, his tongue delving, thrusting, his teeth taking gentle bites of her lips as he pulled away to look down at her body.
‘So soft,’ he murmured, his hands cradling her breasts, lifting them to his lips, suckling her nipples deeply into his mouth in turn and sending sharp arrows of need deep into her body.
She let out a shuddering sigh and he pulled away, groping for his wallet. Then he was back, tugging the duvet out of the way and tumbling them onto the bed in a tangle of arms and legs, his hands and mouth roaming freely all over her until she was ready to scream with frustration.
‘Please...’
And he was there, their bodies merged, moving to a rhythm as old as time. She felt him tense, felt her body explode with sensation as it convulsed around him and then was still, felt the racing of his heart against her, the heave of his chest as he sucked in air, the aftershocks that took her breath away, and then he stroked the hair away from her eyes and kissed her, and nothing had ever felt so right.
CHAPTER SIX
‘I SHOULD GO HOME.’
She stirred, her head shifting on his shoulder as she turned it to look at him, her eyes soft and sleepy.
‘You probably should. I’m on an early shift tomorrow, and I need to walk Millie before I go, which means a hideously early start.’
‘What happens to her while you’re at work?’
‘She has a dog walker—she calls herself the Fairy Dogmother, and she’s been walking her for years. She takes her out into the country and lets her off to play, which Grumps couldn’t do, and she’s been really brilliant. She walks her at some point every day, even if I’m around, because my shifts are so random that I never know when I’ll be needed so it gives me flexibility. I’d be lost without her, and so would Millie. She loves her to bits.’
‘She loves everyone, doesn’t she? She certainly smiles at me.’
‘She does. She’s a proper softie. Grumps adored her.’
She shifted closer, turning his face towards her and touching her lips to his, and his body stirred.
How could he still want her so much? They’d just had mind-blowing sex—what, half an hour ago? Maybe less. And he wanted her again.
‘Uh-uh, you need your sleep,’ he mumbled against her lips, and eased away, dropping a kiss on her nose as he threw back the duvet and rolled away from her and stood up, scouring the room for his clothes. He plucked his jersey shorts off the back of a chair, his jeans off the floor, his shirt from the end of the bed. He had no idea where his socks were.
Ah. There. Snuggled up with her bra. He pulled them on, slid his feet into his shoes and stood up, and she wriggled up the bed and sat up, pulling the duvet up under her arms—but not before he’d watched her breasts jostling gently with the movement.
He groaned inwardly at his body’s enthusiastic response, scooped up his wallet and leant over to kiss her.
‘Thanks again for supper and the tools. I’ll see you tomorrow. I don’t start till midday, so I’ll see if I can get the door fixed before then.’
‘No rush.’
He chuckled. ‘There is if I’m not going to break the glass. It’s still sticking a bit despite my worst efforts. Don’t move, I’ll let myself out.’
‘Will you be OK in the dark? Can you see to get home or do you want a lift?’
‘I’ve got a torch on my phone. I’ll be fine.’
He dropped another kiss on her soft, yielding and oh-so-tempting lips, and walked away while he still could.
How can I want her so much?
Millie came to the door to see him out, her smile bringing a lump to his throat. Would he have a dog like her one day, a dog to guide him and keep him safer? Would he need one?
Don
’t jump the gun.
He gave her a little fuss then let himself out, and his movement triggered the outside light. Another thing he could do with at his new house, he thought, and he switched on his torch and walked carefully home, wishing he’d had the foresight to leave the porch light on.
No matter. He used the torch to find the keyhole, and opened the front door with slightly less than the usual fight.
Poor thing. She was right, he’d trashed it. Thank God she’d come when she had and stopped him. He’d fix it first thing.
He shut the door with his foot, got himself a glass of water and headed up to bed.
* * *
She hardly saw Tom the next day—just enough to share a smile and in his case a wicked little wink before he was plunged back into the fray in Resus, shortly after what should have been her mid-afternoon break. Not that she’d had lunch either—
‘Go and grab a coffee while it’s not insane,’ James said, appearing at her elbow, so she put down the set of notes she’d just picked up and headed down to the café before he changed his mind.
She wasn’t sure if Tom would have had lunch before he’d left for work. Probably, but just in case she picked up a wrapped muffin that would keep for a day or two, and a coffee which definitely wouldn’t but might keep him going a bit longer, and took them and her own coffee and almond croissant out into the park to sit in the sun for five minutes.
‘Hi.’
She glanced up and saw Livvy Hunter coming towards her, her subtle baby bump now visible under her scrubs, and she waved at the chair opposite.
‘Hi there. Come and join me. I’m just grabbing some vitamin D while the going’s good.’
Livvy sat down and eyed Tom’s muffin.
‘Two cakes? Isn’t that getting a bit much?’
Damn. ‘Yeah, they’re not both for me. One’s for Tom.’
Livvy’s eyes narrowed slightly, and Laura could swear there were little lumps under her hair where her antennae had pricked up. Time for some damage limitation.
‘He’s been in Resus since he arrived, and he was just coming out and the red phone rang again, so I thought I’d take him back something as I was here.’
‘Yeah, right,’ Livvy said, tipping her head on one side. ‘You look different.’
So much for damage limitation. She held her friend’s eyes with difficulty. ‘Different?’
‘Yes. As in—well, I don’t know. Loved up?’
She lost the battle and glanced down, tearing her croissant into bite-sized bits. ‘Why would I look loved up?’
‘I don’t know. You tell me.’
No way on earth.
‘I’m just happy. Happy that the weather’s better and the sun’s out, happy that I’m finally having some lunch, happy that you’re doing so well with your pregnancy—that’s all. Just happy.’ She could feel Livvy’s eyes on her, and looked up and met them. ‘Is that a problem?’
‘Of course it’s not a problem. It’s lovely to see you happy, after all you’ve been through. It’s just...’
‘Just what?’
‘Just—a bit coincidental.’
She shrugged. ‘Maybe. But that’s all it is. Anyway, what are you doing here on your day off?’
‘I’ve just had my twenty-week scan,’ Livvy said, and Laura didn’t need to ask. Her smile said it all.
‘Did you get a picture?’
‘Of course.’ She pulled the envelope out of her bag, opened it and passed Laura a slightly grainy image of her baby’s face.
‘Oh, that’s just so magical! So, everything’s OK?’
‘Yes, everything’s absolutely fine. Matt was with me, and we both welled up a bit. He didn’t think we would ever be able to have a baby after my cancer treatment, and I certainly didn’t, and it took a while for me to get pregnant, but now—I’m actually starting to believe it, and Amber and Charlie are getting excited, and it’s all good.’
Laura felt her own eyes welling. ‘Oh, Livvy, I’m so happy for you that it’s all working out so well. That’s such great news. Do you know what it is?’
‘Yes. She’s a girl. Amber’s going to be ecstatic. She was desperate for a little sister.’ There was a tiny pause, and then Livvy added softly, ‘We’re going to call her Juliet, after Matt’s first wife. Only her middle name, but we just wanted her to be a part of this, because she’ll always be a part of our family.’
Now Laura really was welling up, and she sniffed and blinked and squeezed Libby’s hand. ‘Oh, Livvy. Juliet’s a lovely name, and what a beautiful way to remember her.’
‘We thought so. Can I steal a bit of your croissant?’
Laura laughed and pushed the plate towards her. ‘Have the rest of it. I need to get back.’
She did. Her pager bleeped in her pocket, and she pulled it out and read the screen.
‘Resus. Joy. See you tomorrow.’
She leant over and kissed Livvy’s cheek, and grabbing Tom’s coffee and muffin she headed back via the park, going in through the staff door into the back entrance of the ED.
She parked the coffee and muffin behind the work station and went into Resus where Ryan McKenna was just starting to brief the team.
She smiled back at Tom as she passed him, and went up to Ryan. ‘So what have we got?’
* * *
It was gone midnight before he got home after his twelve-hour shift, and of course he’d forgotten to put the porch light on when he’d left at midday in blazing sunshine.
Damn. He really, really needed to get an outside light with a motion sensor so he could find his way to the door after the street lights were out.
And just to underline the necessity, he misjudged the step again and smacked his hand against the doorframe, digging the keys into his palm. Swearing fluently, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and turned on the torch, got the key in the lock and went in and studied his hand in the light.
It hadn’t broken the skin, luckily, but it still hurt and his knuckles were bruised. Stupid, but at least the front door opened and shut now. Small mercies.
He threw the keys down on the hall table in disgust and went through to the kitchen. All he’d had all day apart from a couple of glasses of water was a coffee and a big fat muffin Laura had brought him back from the Park Café after her break. He’d finally got to it at five, when the coffee was well and truly cold, but at least nobody had stolen the muffin.
He opened the fridge and studied the contents. Nothing instant, nothing he could ping in the microwave, but he did have cheese, and he had some salad, so he made himself a massive cheese salad sandwich, squirted mayo into it and dropped into the sofa, turning on the television and scrolling down the guide without any real interest.
He was too tired to bother, too strung out after his full-on shift to sleep, and always in the background was the niggling worry of his eyes. He’d had the day from hell, and all he really wanted was to crawl into bed with Laura and hide from the world.
Could he do that? Would it be fair or reasonable?
Absolutely not, not in any way, but he pulled his phone out and saw a message from her.
‘Call me when you finish, if you want to?’
He wanted, he definitely wanted, but it wasn’t fair.
In which case, she shouldn’t have said it.
He cracked and called her, and she sounded warm and sleepy and he felt instantly guilty. ‘Damn. I’m sorry, I’ve woken you up.’
‘Not really, I was only dozing. I was expecting your call. How was it?’
‘Hell, frankly. What did you expect? It’s Saturday night.’
‘Want to come round?’
Did he ever. ‘I need a shower. Can you wait?’
‘Of course I can wait. I’ve got a day off tomorrow.’
Twenty minutes later he was walking into her arms, and it felt so good
he could have cried.
He didn’t. He took her back to bed, wrapped her in his arms and fell asleep instantly.
* * *
Laura woke with a crick in her neck, a heavy arm draped over her waist and a warm body curled around her back. She shifted her head, tugged the pillow under it better and felt him stir against her.
‘Morning,’ she murmured, and he grunted.
‘Time is it?’ he mumbled, almost inaudibly, and she felt herself smile.
‘Six-thirty.’
‘Umph.’
She wriggled out from under his arm and went to the bathroom, and when she came back he slung his arm over her and she felt a warm hand curl around her breast. ‘Mmm,’ he said. ‘Feels good.’
She half expected him to fall asleep again, but he didn’t, he went to the bathroom and then came back smelling of toothpaste and warm, sleepy man, his body snuggling more firmly against hers. She felt him start to nibble her shoulder, his thumb sweeping idly over her nipple, his hips pressing gently against her bottom. ‘So good.’
She turned in his arms and he nudged one leg between hers and sighed. ‘Mmm. That’s nice.’
His mouth found hers, coaxing, nibbling, his hands slow and lazy and warm, and then he rolled away, rummaged on the floor and came back with a smile and a little foil packet.
She took it from him, tipped him onto his back and took control.
His eyes scrunched shut. ‘You’re torturing me.’
‘Mmm. It’s fun.’
She straddled him, her hands on his shoulders, pinning him to the bed while she rocked slowly against him until he lost it and took over, and what had started as warm and lazy and tender turned into hot and hard and fast as he drove them over the edge into a maelstrom of sensation that robbed her of breath, of thought, of reason.
And then he rolled to his side, taking her with him, and they lay face to face, their heads together, their breath mingling as it slowed and their bodies recovered.
‘Wow.’ He laughed softly and stroked her face with a gentle hand. ‘That was something else. Maybe I should stay over more often.’
Healing Her Emergency Doc Page 10