for Tom it was something he couldn’t even bear to consider.’
‘It’s been forced on him now.’
‘Yes. He’ll have a lot of thinking to do over these next few months while he recovers his strength.’
He reached for the coffee-pot and filled his cup. ‘Actually, I called in to see Tom before I came home this evening. He said that you’d been in to see him, too, and I think it’s made him feel a lot more cheerful to know that he’s surrounded by friends. He seemed resigned to the fact that he’s not going to be able to avoid surgery.’
‘A triple bypass would give him a new lease of life.’
‘That’s true enough.’ He shook his head in grim reflection. ‘It’s a sad fact, but I can’t see him being able to come back to work. He’s only a year or so off retirement, and I think in the end he’ll come around to the fact that he will have to accept his limitations.’
‘That’s probably true, but at least he’ll have his family around him. That will be something for him to look forward to.’
Her father nodded. ‘I’m sure he’ll be glad of their support.’ His expression was sombre. ‘On the other hand, as far as we’re concerned, this whole sorry business leaves us with something of a predicament.’
Laura looked at him curiously. ‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean that the A and E department has been left with no consultant in charge.’
‘Yes, I had thought of that. I suppose, if Tom is ill for any length of time, which seems likely, the hospital will have to appoint an acting consultant, a locum perhaps.’
‘I don’t imagine it will be easy to get someone suitable as a matter of urgency. What’s most likely to happen is that Nick will be asked to stand in temporarily.’ His features darkened. ‘I expect he’ll be glad enough to step into Tom’s shoes. With nobody standing in his way, he’ll have free rein, won’t he? What is there to stop him from going after what he wants?’
Laura’s eyes widened. ‘You mean that he will be in charge?’
‘Unfortunately, I think that’s a strong possibility.’
Laura struggled to absorb that. Nick, in charge? While she respected him as a doctor, there was no way she would be happy for him to have overall control of her daily work situation. It was bad enough at the moment, when there seemed to be constant friction between them. She was forever having to bite her tongue when their sometimes heated disagreements threatened to get out of control. How would it be when he was the acting consultant?
And that was without even beginning to consider the damaging effect his sudden promotion would have on his working relationship with her father. The result would be calamitous and didn’t bear thinking about.
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