wild curls. He was so absorbed by the soft, feminine curve of her jaw that he didn’t even realise she’d replaced the receiver.
‘That was Sean.’
‘Nicholson?’ Alessandro struggled to concentrate. ‘Did he want to talk to me?’
‘No.’ Her voice was calm as she reached into the oven for the stack of pancakes she was keeping warm. ‘He wanted to talk to me.’
‘What about?’
Christy put the pancakes in the middle of the table. ‘Working in A and E. He wants me to do bank work for the two weeks leading up to Christmas to cover all the nurses you have off sick.’
Alessandro watched while she reached into the fridge for maple syrup. ‘And you said no.’
‘Actually, I said yes.’ She added a plate of lemon slices and a bowl of sugar to the table.
Alessandro stared at her in blatant astonishment. ‘Why would you say yes?’
Her gaze lifted to his, her green eyes cool. ‘Why wouldn’t I?’
‘Well, because…’ He dragged a hand through his dark hair and frowned, suspecting that he was about to get himself into hot water. ‘Because it’s a long time since you’ve worked in A and E. You’ve been at home with the children for years now and—’
‘And you think my brain has gone to mush?’ Her tone had an edge to it as she reached into the cutlery drawer and withdrew a knife. ‘Why don’t you just say it, Alessandro? You don’t think I’m up to it, do you?’ She slammed the drawer shut with a decisive flick of her hand and Alessandro closed his eyes briefly and wished he’d stayed at the hospital.
‘I’m just thinking of you. You’ve no idea what A and E is like now.’ He spread lean, strong hands to emphasise his point. ‘Every day there’s a new piece of high-tech equipment to master and the work is full on and relentless. Every single day we’re stretched to the limit. And then there’s the violent drunks—’
She put the knife on the table next to the syrup. ‘You don’t think I can cope with a violent drunk?’
Alessandro eyed the dangerous glint in her eye and felt the hot burn of lust spread through his body. He’d always loved her passion and her strength. The fact that she was afraid of nothing. ‘You’re a strong woman, that’s true, querida,’ he drawled, ‘but—’
‘But nothing! Believe it or not, I still have a brain, Alessandro, and giving birth to your children hasn’t changed that fact.’ Passion and fire burned in her eyes and he was suddenly relieved that she’d put the knife down.
‘You’re overreacting.’
‘Well, excuse me, but when I’m patronised I do have a tendency to overreact,’ she said in a dangerously sweet tone. ‘And let’s be honest here for a moment, shall we? You’re not thinking of me. You’re thinking of yourself. You’re afraid I’ll embarrass you. Or that when you get home, your dinner won’t be cooked. Or that I’ll be too tired for sex—’
‘Enough!’ He said the word sharply, his eyes sliding to the door, but there was no sign of the children.
‘Yes, Alessandro. I’ve had enough.’ She glared at him. ‘But you’re not thinking of me, are you? You just don’t want anything to upset the perfect order of your life.’
He inhaled sharply. ‘A and E is busy and challenging and—’
‘And you don’t think I’m up to it,’ Christy repeated, her jaw lifting in a stubborn expression that he knew so well. ‘Well, I’m going to prove you wrong. I was a good nurse, Alessandro. You seem to have forgotten that.’
‘I haven’t forgotten that and you don’t have to prove anything to me,’ Alessandro said stiffly. ‘You’ve been looking after the children and that’s important. It’s enough.’
‘For you, yes. But what if it isn’t enough for me?’ Her voice was strangely flat. ‘You carry on building your career, moving forwards and upwards, and you’ve never once stopped to wonder whether I’m happy standing still.’
Alessandro stared at her. ‘I thought you were happy being at home with the children. Being a practice nurse.’
‘Ben has been in full-time education for three years,’ she replied shortly. ‘And being a practice nurse was a forced decision based on the hours. You know that.’
Did he? Did he know that? Had he ever stopped to think about the choices she’d made? Feeling trapped in a corner, Alessandro ran a hand over the back of his neck.
‘If you weren’t happy, you should have talked to me.’
‘When? The only way to guarantee an audience with you over the past year would have been to break something vital and arrive at your place of work in an ambulance.’ She slammed a pan down on the side. ‘I tried talking to you, Alessandro. You weren’t listening.’
‘I’m listening now.’ He refrained from saying that he couldn’t hear much above the banging and clattering that she was making as she worked her way around the kitchen.
She paused, the rapid rise and fall of her chest an indication of the depth of emotion bottled up inside her. ‘And now isn’t the time. Isn’t that typical?’ Rubbing a hand over her forehead, she gave a humourless laugh and took a breath. ‘Children! Breakfast!’
Alessandro didn’t budge from the doorway. ‘We’re going to talk about this, Christy.’
‘Some time, yes, but the pancakes are getting cold so it can’t be now.’ She slid a pancake onto Ben’s plate. ‘But I’m starting at the hospital this afternoon. Late shift. You’re looking after the children.’
Alessandro opened his mouth to suggest that she delay it a few days to give him time to run through the essentials with her, but the children pushed past him and he decided that Christy was right. This wasn’t the right time. She had no idea what A and E was like now, he thought fiercely, and made a mental note to ask Sean and Nicky to keep a discreet eye on her.
‘You’re working at the hospital, Mum?’ Katy poured maple syrup over her pancakes. ‘What’s going to happen to us?’
‘When Daddy isn’t around, you’ll go to Grandma’s,’ Christy said immediately, and Katy’s face brightened.
‘Cool. Shopping.’
Alessandro frowned. ‘You don’t mind spending most of the week at your grandmother’s?’
‘Why would I?’ Katy gave a wide smile. ‘She always says that the great thing about being a grandma is having someone to spoil. I’m more than happy to be that someone.’
‘Her chocolate cake is awesome,’ Ben added, heaping sugar in the middle of a pancake. ‘It’s all gooey and she cuts really big pieces. And she never worries about it spoiling your appetite.’
‘You see?’ Christy looked at Alessandro and gave a shrug. ‘And, anyway, it will only be for part of the day. I’ll still have plenty of time to spend with the children. Everyone’s
