Читать книгу Hot Single Docs: Blinded By The Boss - Amy Andrews - Страница 19

CHAPTER NINE

IT WAS CLEAR when Leo Hunter telephoned to check whether Edward had anything he’d like to raise at this afternoon’s review meeting that he was not expecting him to attend. Leo knew him well enough to understand that Edward’s pledge to support the new charity arm of the Hunter Clinic was on the level of research, operating procedures and maintaining clinical excellence. It didn’t involve attending meetings which didn’t deal with those goals.

The usual procedure was that Leo informed him that a meeting was taking place, more as a gesture of courtesy than anything else, and Edward tendered his apologies and read the minutes when they were circulated. That had always worked perfectly.

‘You mean you’re considering some research?’ Leo’s voice sounded perplexed.

‘No, not really. Well, maybe if something presents itself. I’m just interested in how we can help these kids outside of simply giving them the medical treatment they need.’

There was a pause and Edward shook the handset of his phone, wondering if the line had suddenly gone dead, before realising that Leo was just taking his time in getting his head around the proposition. Edward’s forte had always been in the operating theatre, making clinical decisions and implementing them. That was his skillset. He usually left community issues to someone else.

‘I’ll see you later, then.’ Leo still sounded a bit suspicious. ‘We’ve had to move the time from four o’clock to six, in order to fit in with the operating schedules.’

Edward’s heart sank. Six o’clock. He’d been to his share of these meetings, and they were renowned for going on until late into the night. Usually he’d be the last to object, but tonight... Actually, he wasn’t doing anything tonight. But he’d been rather looking forward to doing nothing with Charlotte and Isaac.

All the same, he’d just asked for this and it seemed grudging to turn it down now. ‘I’m free at six. I’ll see you then.’

* * *

Edward got home at ten o’ clock. Isaac was already in bed, and he hadn’t expected to have a meal waiting for him, but within moments of him depositing the armful of papers that he’d brought home onto the hall table Charlotte was calling him into the kitchen

‘Is that enough?’ She surveyed the full plate, with three different kinds of salad and a large slice of home-made quiche.

‘Are you mad? You obviously don’t have any idea what I usually manage to feed myself when I get home late.’

His diet was relatively balanced, and usually healthy, but when Edward was busy cooking didn’t figure much in the equation.

She dismissed his customary eating habits with a small sniff and walked over to the fridge. ‘Would you like some juice? Or there’s some of that sparkling fruit cordial left over.’

‘I’ll have a glass of wine, if you’ll join me.’ Edward put his knife and fork down and got to his feet.

‘Stay there. I’ll get it.’ She walked to the wine cooler and opened the glass door, her hand hovering over the rows of bottles.

‘That one...’ Edward indicated a light, fruity white, and nodded when she pulled it out, holding it up so he could see the label.

He was beginning to see what his father saw in marriage. Not the meal on the table, or the fact that the lights were on in the house, but just that there was someone there. Someone to share the little things with—eating and drinking. Someone to talk to. Somehow the fact that Isaac was asleep upstairs and Charlotte was relaxing here downstairs gave Edward an immense feeling of well-being.

‘I’ve got some treacle tart for afters.’ She took a dish out of the fridge and put it into the oven to warm, then carried the bottle over to the table.

‘Mmm. I love treacle tart. I haven’t had it in years. And this quiche is really good, thank you.’

Edward opened the wine, and poured a glass for her. She took a sip and smiled.

‘This is nice.’

The bottle probably cost more than the whole of the rest of the meal, but Edward wasn’t about to tell her that. You couldn’t buy what made the food so special and the wine so incidental. It was all about the cooking and the care that had gone into the preparation. About the knife and fork set precisely on the table, with a napkin and a glass. The flowers from the garden—just a couple of blooms—in a jug that usually lived under the sink.

‘I’ve been stuck in a meeting for hours. It’s good to get home.’

She raised one eyebrow. ‘Which meeting was that?’

‘Oh, one of Leo’s. Reviewing the progress of the charity arm of the clinic.’ Edward wondered whether she’d pick up on the unlikeliness of the whole thing.

‘Really?’

If she had, it looked as if she’d decided not to ask.

‘Yes. Leo seemed really pleased. There’s a lot of progress being made.’

She nodded. ‘So Leo and Ethan are getting on a little better?’ It was an open secret that while the brothers remained professional in their dealings with the staff, they had what was euphemistically termed ‘issues’ with each other.

‘Looks like it. Leo was praising Ethan’s work, and Ethan looked genuinely pleased. A little bit surprised, as well.’

‘I imagine Ethan felt he had to prove himself when he came back.’ Charlotte was staring speculatively at her wine glass.

‘I don’t see why. Ethan’s a superb surgeon.’

‘Oh, Edward!’ She narrowed her eyes at him. ‘It’s not all about how good you are at something. Ethan could be the best surgeon in the world, but he’s still recovering from his injuries. He had to feel that there was an element of pity involved when Leo brought him back into the practice.’

‘Yeah, I suppose anyone would. I think Ethan’s realised that was never the case, though, and that Leo wanted him back for his medical skills. He was talking about the work that Leo had put into regaining the Hunter Clinic’s reputation as well.’

‘Really? That’s good. Sounds as if they’ve got a bit more respect for each other now. So how’s everything else going?’

‘There are a lot of possibilities for expanding the charity side of the operation. Community issues to be taken into consideration—’ He broke off as Charlotte hid a smile behind her hand. ‘What?’

‘You’ve been engaging in chit-chat about community issues, have you?’

He didn’t blame her for her amused disbelief—he’d been both disbelieving and slightly amused himself. ‘Well, someone’s got to think about it.’

‘And that’s you, all of a sudden?’ She couldn’t disguise the warmth in her eyes.

‘Maybe. We’ll see. Anyway, I have some really interesting opportunities in the pipeline, both at the clinic and at the Lighthouse Hospital. And there’s an opportunity for me to join one of the teams visiting Africa for a few weeks. I’d like to hear what you think.’

He paused, aware that he didn’t usually do this either. Edward made his own decisions about the way his career was going to go, without any reference to anyone else. But suddenly he not only wanted to tell Charlotte, he wanted to hear what she had to say.

‘That sounds fantastic. I want to hear everything.’

She pointed at the food in front of him, which had all but completely slipped his mind in his enthusiasm.

‘Finish your meal first, though...’

‘Yeah. Then I’ll tell you all about it.’

* * *

They talked for an hour, and then Charlotte’s rapt attention was overtaken by fatigue. Edward turned to a book, and when he lifted his eyes after only a page she was asleep. He lifted her feet gently up onto the sofa, put a cushion beneath her head, and went back to his reading.

Calmed by the low sound of her breathing, he let the words on the page fly through his mind, forming pictures and patterns as they went. It was as if her very presence made him more receptive—somehow more creative. The raw excitement of new thoughts, new challenges, reared up and dragged him headlong into the heady world of new possibilities that he so loved.

A sound penetrated his consciousness. Something outside in the hallway. The kind of thing that he would normally never heed, but which now somehow managed to jar all his instincts and set his nerves onto red alert.

He rose quietly and went to investigate.

‘Hey, buddy. What’s the matter?’

Isaac was at the front door, clutching Stinky with one hand and trying to pull the door open with the other. He ignored Edward, redoubling his efforts.

He should probably go and wake Charlotte. But she was sleeping so soundly, so peacefully. He could at least give this a go before he did so. Walking over to Isaac, he went down on one knee beside him.

‘You want to go out?’

Isaac shook his head, giving the door one last tug.

‘Ah, I see. You’re just checking that we’re locked up safely for the night. That no one can get in.’

Isaac nodded, staring at the floor as if he was being hauled up in front of the headmaster in disgrace.

‘Right, then. That’s a good idea. Let’s do it together.’ Edward imagined that Isaac probably wanted Charlotte to accompany him, and when the boy curled his arms around his neck he almost jumped back in surprise.

‘Okay.’

‘Well, let’s fetch your dressing gown, then, so you don’t get cold. And we can have a story afterwards if you’d like.’

Isaac nodded, and Edward hoisted him up in his arms. Lifting that small weight made him feel stronger than normal. As if he was some kind of superhero who could make things right and conquer all manner of monsters—even the ones in Isaac’s head.

Surgeon and Dragon-Slayer General. Edward quite liked the sound of that. And if one involved precision instruments, the other involved a large sword which could be brandished flamboyantly when the opportunity arose. There was even a fair maiden, who was currently fast asleep on the sofa, and an apprentice who was also asleep, worn out by a brief but thorough inspection of the locks on all the doors and windows and the first few pages of his favourite bedtime story.

The last half-hour hadn’t involved scaling any high walls, or actually rescuing anyone, but that was okay. Another time, perhaps, when the fair maiden wasn’t in such immediate need of her beauty sleep.

Isaac stirred against him, snuggling up tight.

‘Let’s get you back to bed, little man.’ Edward whispered the words so as not to disturb the sleeping child, and rose, carrying the boy up to his bed.

And then, before he had the chance to think about any such thing with Charlotte, he gently shook her awake, turning back to his book as soon as she had bidden him a sleepy goodnight.