Читать книгу Gina's Little Secret - Jennifer Taylor - Страница 6

4 p.m. 11 December

‘THAT was ED on the phone. Bet you can’t guess what they wanted?’

Sister Georgina Lee groaned as she looked up from the computer. ‘Don’t tell me—they want us to find yet another bed for yet another patient.’

‘Got it in one!’ Rosie James, their young student nurse, grinned. ‘Give yourself a pat on the back.’

‘I would do if I had the time to spare.’ Gina’s expression was wry as she glanced at the computer screen. ‘It’s the third time I’ve tried to fill in this order form. At this rate, we’re going to run out of basic supplies.’

‘It has been busy,’ Rosie agreed. ‘I had no idea that life on the acute assessment unit would be so hectic. I thought it would be a doddle, to be honest. Patients would be sent here for a couple of hours and then they’d either be moved to a ward or sent home.’

‘That’s what most folk believe if they haven’t worked here.’ Gina laughed, her slate-grey eyes filled with amusement. ‘It’s what I thought happened here too when I took this job. I soon discovered how wrong I was!’

‘It must have been a shock,’ Rosie suggested.

Gina shrugged. ‘A bit, but I must admit that I enjoy the variety. If you work on a ward like Women’s Surgical, for instance, then you know that your patients will be either preparing for an operation or recovering from one. In here, you never know what you’re going to have to deal with. It certainly keeps you on your toes.’

‘I suppose so, although I’m not sure I’d be able to cope with the pressure, long term,’ Rosie admitted.

‘It’s not for everyone,’ Gina said firmly, not wanting the younger woman to feel discouraged. She shot another glance at the screen and stood up. ‘We’d better go and see if we can sort out a bed. Mr Walker in the end bay is supposed to be moving to Cardiology, so maybe we can sweet-talk them into taking him sooner than planned.’

Gina led the way, pausing en route to let the rest of the staff know that another admission was on the way. She smiled when her friend, Julie Grey, groaned. ‘I know how you feel, Jules. We’re bursting at the seams as it is. At this rate we’ll soon be having to use the staffroom!’

‘Either that or leave patients on trolleys in the corridor as used to happen in the past,’ Julie said ruefully.

‘Thank heavens those days are gone,’ Gina retorted. ‘The thought of any patient being abandoned like that makes my blood run cold.’

‘We all hated it,’ Julie assured her. ‘This new unit might get crowded but it’s a huge improvement on how things used to be.’

Gina left the staff to get on with their work and went to have a word with Frank Walker. He had been rushed in by ambulance at lunchtime complaining of chest pains. Subsequent tests had shown blockages to three of the main coronary arteries and the decision had been made to perform a bypass. Now Gina smiled as she stopped beside his bed.

‘So how are you feeling now, Mr Walker?’

‘So-so. The pain has eased off thanks to the medication, so that’s a blessing.’ He sighed. ‘I suppose I’ve only got myself to blame. My wife’s been nagging me for years to stop smoking and eat sensibly but I took no notice. I thought she was making a fuss about nothing.’

‘It’s hard to accept advice sometimes,’ Gina said tactfully. ‘Still, once you’ve had the bypass done, you’ll feel a lot better.’

‘Do you think so?’ Frank looked worried. ‘Oh, I know that young chap who came to see me was very dismissive, but you can’t help worrying, can you? I mean, they have to stop your heart and everything.’

‘Yes, they do, but they attach you to a special machine which takes over the jobs your heart and lungs would normally do,’ Gina explained, wishing, not for the first time, that Miles Humphreys had a better bedside manner. An operation such as this might be routine to him but it certainly wasn’t routine for the patient.

‘So you think it’s quite safe, do you, Sister?’ Frank said anxiously. ‘And that I should have it done?’

‘I do. Although it’s a major operation, it’s performed frequently. And I know for a fact that the cardio team here at St Saviour’s are highly skilled.’ She patted Frank’s hand. ‘You’ll be fine, I promise you.’

‘Thank you.’ Frank smiled at her. ‘I feel much happier now. Shame that young doctor didn’t take the time to reassure me like you’ve just done. You should give him a few tips on how to talk to his patients.’

Gina smiled although she didn’t say anything. Talking to Miles was something she was trying to avoid. Ever since he’d asked her out on a date and she’d refused, there’d been an atmosphere when he came into the ward. If only he would accept that there was nothing personal about her refusing his invitation.

She sighed as she went to phone the cardiology unit. The truth was she wasn’t interested in Miles or any other man. She’d had her heart broken once and there was no way that she was going to risk it happening again, especially when it could impact on Lily. Making sure that her two-year-old daughter was safe and happy was all that mattered. There was no room in her life for a relationship.

Frank Walker had just been transferred to the cardiology unit when the porters arrived with their latest admission. Gina was in the office, making yet another attempt to get to grips with the paperwork, but she went out to meet them. Julie had already directed them to the end bay and they were manoeuvring the bed into place when Gina got there.

‘So, who have we got?’ she asked, unclipping the notes from the foot rail. She glanced at the patient’s details. Name: Marco Andretti. Age: thirty-seven. Address: Villa Rosa, Florence, Italy. Just for a moment the full impact of what she was reading didn’t hit her and then all of a sudden her heart began to pound. It had to be a mistake! It couldn’t be her Marco….

Could it?

Gina took a deep breath as she forced herself to look at the man lying on the bed. His eyes were shut and the right side of his head was swathed in a thick white dressing but neither of those things mattered. As her eyes drank in the olive-tanned skin, the elegant nose, the chiselled jaw and sensuous curve of his mouth she felt panic assail her. It was Marco. There was no mistake about that!

‘Gina? Hey, are you OK?’

Gina jumped when Julie tapped her on the arm. She knew there was no point claiming that she was fine because her friend wouldn’t believe her. ‘I … urn … I feel a bit queasy, that’s all. I expect I’m hungry.’

‘Probably because you worked straight through your break.’ Julie made flapping movements with her hands. ‘Go on, scoot! You go and make yourself a cup of coffee. We can manage here, can’t we, Rosie?’

‘Well, if you’re sure.’ Gina turned away when the older woman nodded. Normally, she wouldn’t have dreamt of leaving the staff to settle in a new patient without her being present, but this wasn’t a normal situation, was it? A wave of hysterical laughter welled up inside her and she pressed her hand to her mouth as she made her way to the staffroom. Thankfully, there was nobody in there so she switched on the kettle then sank down on a chair as her legs suddenly gave way.

What twist of fate had brought Marco here to the very hospital where she worked? she wondered dizzily. It would be three years this Christmas since she had seen him last, three whole years since he had told her bluntly that he didn’t envisage them ever having a future together. His expression had been so cold that any protests she might have made had remained unuttered. What would have been the point of trying to convince him that they’d had something special, something worth fighting for, when he obviously hadn’t believed that himself? She couldn’t have made him love her, definitely wouldn’t have begged him to, so she had done what he had wanted and walked away.

Gina’s heart was heavy as she recalled that terrible period in her life. She had wondered in the beginning if once she had gone, he might realise that he missed her more than he had thought; however, as the weeks had passed, and he had made no attempt to contact her, she had accepted how foolish she’d been to hope for that. Marco may have enjoyed making love to her. He may even have enjoyed spending time with her for a short while, but he had never needed her as a permanent part of his life.

It had been hard to face that fact but at least it had made it easier to decide what to do when Lily was born. But now Marco was here and Gina knew that his reappearance in her life would have repercussions. It was bound to. Marco was Lily’s father. He had a daughter he knew nothing about.