‘Yes, that would be a good idea.’ Anything to keep Helen quiet and away from any hubbub in the main reception area.
Corinna nodded, turning to Helen’s friend and telling her firmly not to move. Then she beckoned to Ben.
Helen wasn’t ready to walk yet. Ben grinned at her. ‘Let’s do this the easy way, shall we? Hold onto me.’
He bent, picking Helen up. He could feel her breathing against his chest, as she lay in his arms, and he followed Corinna to a modern, well equipped surgery, putting Helen down on the examination couch and operating the backrest so that she was sitting up.
‘Thanks...’ Helen seemed to be breathing a little more easily now.
‘That’s okay. I get extra points on the emergency doctor scale for carrying someone, you know. I’m just glad you aren’t too heavy.’
Helen smiled, even though the joke wasn’t really so much of a joke. Ben had just done his job, what he needed to do to keep Helen quiet and safe. But somehow, that lost feeling of being able to make a difference had filtered back into the equation. Maybe because of Helen, but more likely because Arianna Petrakis was just five minutes away now, and she’d known him when he could make a difference.
Ben saw a light blanket draped across the bottom of the couch and pulled it up over Helen’s legs. She was beginning to recover now, although the smallest thing could leave her struggling for breath again. The door to the surgery opened quietly and Ben turned.
Arianna. He’d know her anywhere. Dark curls, cut to frame her face. Liquid brown eyes, and flawless olive skin. There was something about the way she carried herself that reminded him of the bravery of the little girl who had clung so tightly to him, and...there was no getting away from it...she was beautiful.
‘Hi, I’m Dr Petrakis.’ Her manner was perfect, assured and relaxed, even though the pink in her cheeks suggested that she might have been running to get here. ‘You’re Helen?’
Helen nodded, and Arianna put a large paper pharmacy bag onto her desk. ‘I’ve got a selection of inhalers, but Dr Marsh says that the blue one with Albuterol is the one you usually have.’
‘Yes, that’s right.’ Helen seemed much better now, and managed to get three words out without gasping for breath.
‘That’s good; I have the one you need.’ Arianna reached for the bag, taking a box out and reading the Greek lettering on the side, before opening it and taking out the inhaler.
Her English was flawless, and spoken with a slight London accent, the kind you didn’t get from just learning the language. The thought that maybe she’d lived in Ben’s home town and he’d never known how close she was took Ben’s breath away, and then Arianna turned her gaze onto him.
‘Thank you, Dr Marsh.’ He thought he saw some spark of recognition, but maybe it was just in his imagination. ‘I’ll examine Helen now. Corinna will make you some coffee, if you still want to wait?’
Yes, of course... He was a tourist who’d just helped out in an emergency, and it was time for him to leave.
‘Thanks. I’ll wait.’ He turned to Helen with a smile. ‘You’re looking much better now.’
Helen gave him a smile and a thumbs up, and Ben returned the gesture before walking back out into the reception area. He didn’t really want coffee, but Corinna insisted on making him some, putting a selection of biscuits on a plate next to his cup. He sipped his drink as he waited, before Arianna appeared again.
‘Claire, you can go and see Helen now.’ She spoke to Helen’s friend, who’d been sitting miserably in the corner, despite all of Corinna’s attempts to cheer her up. ‘She’s much better, but she needs to rest a little. Andreas, our paramedic, has just arrived and he’s sitting with her. Be calm and quiet, yes?’
Claire nodded. ‘I’m sorry...’
Arianna batted the apology away with a flick of her hand. ‘It’s frightening to see someone taken ill like that, isn’t it? Now that she’s here, we can look after her and she’ll be fine. What she needs right now is to see you smiling.’
Arianna was being kind. The hurried rush through the streets to the health centre couldn’t have done Helen any good; it would have been better to keep her sitting down and get help to come to her. Maybe she’d explain that at some point, but Ben had little doubt that her firm, gentle way would make it sound like a bit of advice for the future rather than a condemnation.
Claire wiped away her tears and tried out a smile, and Arianna gave her an approving nod. Corinna took Claire’s hand, leading her towards the surgery, and then Ben’s heart started to beat a little faster as Arianna turned to walk across the reception area towards him.
Copyright © 2021 by Annie Claydon
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ISBN-13: 9781488074912
Reunited with Her Daredevil Doc
Copyright © 2021 by Susan Carlisle
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This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, businesses, companies, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
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