Masquerade (18 page)

“Fish filets baked with tomatoes and pepper. Served with a garden salad and fresh bread. A light meal for a person recovering from illness.”

“Sounds delicious. Is there anything I can do to help?”

“No,” Alex said firmly as he walked to the oven and checked the fish. “It’s all ready. I’ve set the table on the balcony — if you want to make your way there I’ll bring the food out.”

He watched as she walked away, the sway of her hips mesmerizing. If he hadn’t been watching her he wouldn’t have seen the way she paused and put her hand to her stomach. He could see her back rise and fall as she took some very deep breaths. After a few seconds, she began moving again and went out the door.

If she turned up at work tomorrow he would be keeping a very close eye on her and at any sign that she looked like she was about to faint or felt ill he would insist she go home. He didn’t need a sick NUM in an already stretched thin emergency department.

Alex busied himself with collecting up the salad and bread and placing them on a tray before he placed the platter of piping hot fish beside them.

• • •

“It smells wonderful, Alex,” Sophie said. “I can’t wait to taste it.”

Alex smiled and placed a filet on her plate. The steam rose off the fish and curled up in the air, taking with it the aroma of the tomatoes and pepper that garnished the fish.

“Help yourself to salad,” he said as he took his seat.

Sophie took a small portion of salad and placed it next to the fish. She didn’t want to overload her stomach too much. She’d had another nausea attack as she walked out to the balcony. She only hoped Alex hadn’t seen it, otherwise he’d demand she take another day off. She couldn’t afford another sick day. There was too much that needed to be done and with Alex constantly at meetings, she was finding she was beginning to drown in the paperwork.

She picked up her knife and sliced it through the fish. The white, juicy flesh fell away, and she took a bite. It was ambrosial. The meat melted on her tongue.

“Mmmm, Alex, it tastes as good as it smells.”

They chatted about miscellaneous things and eventually the cool breeze blowing off the river forced them inside.

Sophie tried to hide her third yawn in as many minutes behind her hand. She didn’t want the evening to end but exhaustion was seeping into her bones, making them feel like they were filled with lead.

“I think it’s time Cinderella went home,” murmured Alex as he came up behind her and slipped his arms around her waist.

“I think you’re right,” she said as she yawned yet again. “I don’t know what’s come over me. I was fine ten minutes ago, now I don’t think I’ll even have the energy to make it upstairs to my apartment.”

Alex stepped beside her and placed a strong arm around her waist. “What sort of man would I be if I didn’t see my date safely to her door? Come on, let’s go.”

She sank gratefully against him as they left his apartment and traveled the short distance to her place.

They stood by her door and the nerves from earlier in the evening arrived back in her stomach, stampeding through like a herd of elephants.

“Well, umm, thanks for a really nice evening.” She leaned up and placed a kiss on his lips. She went to withdraw but he captured her face between his hands, lengthening the kiss. He hands didn’t move from her face. He just held her still while his lips moved sensually over hers. She wanted to ask him in but knew she wasn’t quite ready for that. Although her body was screaming for it, her head was telling her to wait.

She reluctantly pulled away. “I’d better go.” She slid her key in the lock. “Again, thanks for a great evening, I’ll see you at work.”

“Good night, Sophia, sweet dreams.”

She closed the door behind Alex and leaned against the wood. A sense of rightness about her and Alex’s relationship overtook her. She’d never felt this turned on from a simple kiss when she’d been seeing Neil. It had hurt bitterly at the time, but now she was grateful she’d walked into his office and had caught him.

She made her way to the bedroom, her earlier exhaustion seeming to have disappeared. She got ready for bed and when she climbed between the cool, cotton sheets she let her mind wander back to the kiss she’d just shared with Alex. She closed her eyes to relive the sensations the kiss created. Her body hummed and she hugged the feelings to herself as she drifted off to sleep.

Sophie woke to the cheerful tones of the breakfast radio announcers — how they managed to sound so happy and carefree at six in the morning always amazed her. She lay for a further five minutes before moving. Her stomach was still and she’d had no after effects from the dinner she’d shared with Alex.

Finally she was getting better.

She made her way to the shower and let the water warm her up and get the blood flowing so that her mind was fully awake and aware when she stepped out.

Once she was dressed, she grabbed some bread and popped it in the toaster. She planned to get to the hospital early so she could go through some paperwork. Today she wanted to see if she could do some hands-on work with the patients for a change. Like Alex, she missed the rush of dealing with patients and working hard to save their lives, but she also loved her position as NUM.

As she munched her way through her toast, she remembered her first spell as NUM. She’d been so confident she was mature enough to deal with the rigors and stresses of the position. How wrong she’d been.

She shuddered as she recalled how close they’d come to losing a patient all because she’d frozen up and couldn’t deal with all the traumas that had come through the doors. She’d been so grateful when the powers that be had decided to give her another chance in the role.

So far she’d proven to them that she was competent in dealing with both patients and staff management. She was really enjoying her work at the moment.

It also helped she was working with Alex. He brought a dynamic feel to the department and all the staff liked him. He was firm but fair.

Realizing she was wasting her early morning start with musings about her past, she collected up her keys and bag and went to her car. The trip into the hospital was quick, as traffic was light so early in the morning.

She walked through the doors and noticed there were only a couple of people waiting to be treated. It looked like they’d had a once-in-a-blue-moon quiet night.

There was still an hour before her shift officially started so she waved hello to Dawn and headed into her office.

She stopped short when she saw Alex seated behind his desk. He looked up at her start of surprise.

“Alex! I didn’t expect to see you here.”

His face broke out into a small, sexy smile. “I wanted to get some things done so I could free up my day. I want to be able to deal with patients today. I need to get my hands dirty.” At her raised eyebrow he said, “Figuratively speaking, of course. Why are you here so early?”

Sophie walked to her desk, put her bag away, and then sat and pulled a file toward her. “Same reason as you, I wanted to be available to help out. It’s been too long and I’ve been missing it.”

“Great minds, hey.”

She chuckled softly. “Yep, great minds.”

They worked quietly together for the next half hour; the only sounds were the rustle of papers and the occasional curse.

“I’m getting a coffee, do you want one?” asked Alex.

Sophie turned her nose up at the thought. “Ahh, no thanks, but I would love a juice please — pineapple if you can get it, if not orange is fine.”

“Your wish is my command.” He gave a lowly bow and ducked when she threw an eraser at him.

She laughed and again was extremely glad she and Alex had managed to work through things. Although, had they? Had they really sorted things out? Sure, Alex had shared his past with her and she understood his need for a no-strings-attached-relationship prior to their relationship. But he’d alluded that with her, Sophie, he wanted something more.

She’d tried so hard not to fall for him, not to fall under the same spell that had enthralled her New Year’s Eve. He’d worked his way under her defenses, and now she wondered how she would survive if his desire for her petered out.

Her stomach started to churn again, nausea welling like a ball inside of her. She stood and as she did, the door opened and Alex walked in. The aroma of the coffee hit her nostrils and her stomach recoiled in protest.

She slapped a hand on her mouth and bolted out the door, brushing past Alex who held his coffee and her drink up high so he wouldn’t spill them as she rushed out.

She made it to the ladies’ room and dry retched over the toilet bowl. Nothing was coming out. She took a deep, cleansing breath, emptying her mind and calming the calamity that had taken hold of her body and soul.

She got up, flushed the toilet and, on wobbly legs, walked out to the basins. She sluiced water over her face, not caring that her makeup was probably washed off. She blotted her face dry with a paper towel and walked out the door.

She made her way to her office again, needing to sit for a few moments. Her stomach was surprisingly settled now, like she’d imagined the whole episode, not lived through it.

“I think you should have some tests.” Alex’s words greeted her as she walked in. She looked at him, her heart softening at the concern that was etched in his face and showing in his eyes, turning them to warm, milk chocolate.

She walked over and placed a soft kiss on his cheek. “Alex, I appreciate your concern but I’m fine. You know what gastro is like; it always lingers for a while.” She walked over to her desk and took a sip of her juice. The pineapple taste sung on her tongue and, surprisingly, settled her stomach. She gulped down some more. “Mmmm that’s good. See? I’m all good.”

“Can’t say I’m convinced.” He stood and walked toward the door. “I’m going to see some patients now. I’m thinking it might be a good idea if you worked the front desk today. We’ll see how you are tomorrow and if you’re okay then you can assist with the patients.”

Sophie knew that Alex was only thinking about her but what he said raised the hackles on her back. She felt fine. She didn’t want to stay behind a desk again. She was psyched to see patients and she was going to see them.

“Look, Alex, you can turn the doctor off, I’m not your patient. I’m a qualified nurse and I wouldn’t put myself or my staff in any situation where it would be detrimental to any of us.” She moved away from her position leaning against the desk and walked over to where he was by the door. “I’m fine and I’m not going to let you dictate to me when I can and can’t help patients.”

The way his lips tightened let Sophie know that he wasn’t happy with the way she was standing up to him. “Be reasonable, Sophie, you’ve spent two days this week off sick with a nasty virus. You’ve had numerous episodes since you’ve been back. What if you faint while dealing with a patient? Then we’d have two patients.”

Sophie thought his words over and agreed they did make sense. It wouldn’t be very good if she collapsed while on the job or had to run off and be sick just when a patient needed her. She could endanger herself, her staff, and the patient. She didn’t want to give in to Alex but she knew on this occasion she would have to.

“Fine, you win,” she said begrudgingly. “I’ll stay at the desk. But if I’m needed I’m going to help.”

“Good. I’ll see you out there.”

Sophie watched his retreating back and picked up her juice container. She drained the rest of the contents, once again enjoying the taste of a juice she’d never enjoyed before.

Sophie stood at the desk, willing the double doors to glide open and multiple victims requiring assistance be wheeled in. Oh, that sounded so cruel, but she wanted something, anything to break the monotony of answering the phone or directing the minimal amount of patients that came seeking assistance. It was a rare quiet day in the department.

She hadn’t had another nausea attack, dizzy spell, nothing, nada all day. She could’ve helped, assisted, but no, every time she moved Alex seemed to appear and with just one look had her sitting back down again.

Not anymore, the next time those doors opened she was assisting, because come tomorrow she’d be back in her office dealing with more paperwork and nurses complaining about one doctor or another.

As if she’d conjured a patient up, the doors swished open. In rolled the paramedics with a woman lying curled up on a gurney.

Sophie shot out of her chair and around the desk faster than a flea jumping from one unsuspecting pet to another.

“Hi guys, what’ve we got?”

“Twenty-five-year-old female, suffering from severe nausea and dizzy spells. Collapsed at work, so they called us,” replied one of the paramedics.

Sophie could sympathize totally with the poor girl, it was probably the same bug that had been lingering around her all week.

“Have you given her anything for the nausea?”

The other paramedic shook his head.

“Okay,” Sophie said. “Put her in cubicle one.” She turned and caught the arm of John as he wandered past. “Hey John, I need you in cubicle one, female patient suffering what seems to be the ‘bug of the week.’”

John rolled his eyes. “Can’t someone else do it? I’m about to knock off.”

“If you hadn’t noticed, you’re the only doctor within reach of me. Seems everyone else has gone AWOL.”

“Fine, where is she again?” He sighed.

“Cubicle one, I’ll be in to assist you.”

As they headed for the curtained off cubicle, John commented idly, “Didn’t think Alex was letting you help today?”

Sophie’s step faltered momentarily — had they been obvious? Had the staff guessed there was something going on between her and Alex?

“Well, what Alex doesn’t know won’t hurt him. Come on, John, we have a patient to see.”

Sophie reached up and whipped the curtain aside, the sound of the rings singing like a slinky sliding down the stairs. Compassion filled her when she saw the distressed look on the girl’s face. She was dry-retching just like Sophie had this morning.

“Hi I’m Sophie and this is Dr. Allen. What’s your name?”

“Carrie,” the girl mumbled as she slumped against the pillows.