doesn’t shorten in the meantime. That’s why external fixation is the best option.’
He looked round when he sensed that someone was standing behind him and stiffened when he saw Rose. ‘Yes?’
‘Mrs Robinson’s daughter is on her way in. ETA three minutes,’ she told him quietly, then moved away.
Owen watched her walk over to the bed and it was all he could do not to go after her and demand to know what she was doing there. He’d barely slept since the night he’d met her in the pub. He knew that he’d handled the situation badly by offering her money, but it had been his last resort after everything else had failed. Now he had no idea what she was up to, but he couldn’t accept that it was coincidence that had brought her to his department that day. She was planning something and, whatever it was it would have an impact on Daniel.
The thought of the damage she might cause was too much to deal with. Owen knew that he had to put some distance between himself and Rose Tremayne, otherwise he couldn’t be held responsible for his actions. Spinning round on his heel, he strode out of the room, ignoring the startled looks from his staff as they watched him leave. He needed a couple of minutes on his own to think things through. If Rose did have a plan, he intended to be one step ahead of her!
Rose bit her lip as she watched the doors swing shut after Owen Gallagher had left. She knew he was furious about her being there but it wasn’t her fault. She’d had no idea that he worked at St Anne’s when she’d accepted this job, otherwise she wouldn’t have taken it. Now she couldn’t decide what to do. Should she go after him and explain that she hadn’t intended to make life difficult for him by turning up in his department? Or would it be better if she left well alone?
‘I wonder what’s up with His Highness today.’
Rose summoned a smile when Rob Lomax came over to her. Instinct told her that it would be a mistake to let anyone know about her link to Owen Gallagher so she feigned ignorance. ‘Do you mean Dr Gallagher?’
‘Uh-huh. He’s like a cat on a hot tin roof today and it isn’t like him. That guy is the epitome of cool normally. Isn’t that right, Suzie?’
‘Isn’t what right? And don’t call me Suzie. You know I don’t like it.’
‘I know how you feel.’ Rose smiled as the other registrar joined them. ‘I hate it when people call me Rosie.’
Suzanne grimaced. ‘Then my advice to you is to make sure that certain members of this staff are fully acquainted with your views.’ She shot a speaking look at Rob, who tried to look hurt.
‘Do you mean me?’
‘If the cap fits…’ Suzanne sniffed loftily and walked away.
Rose chuckled. ‘That put you in your place, didn’t it?’
‘She loves me really,’ Rob assured her, grinning. ‘So, I know that your name is Rose but I don’t know much else. How about filling me in over a cup of coffee after we finish up here?’
‘Sorry, but I think I’d better stick to what I’m getting paid for.’
Rose smiled to take the sting out of her refusal, but nowadays she made a point of not getting involved with the male members of staff wherever she was sent to work. The few times she’d been out with a man in the past it had usually ended badly—her date had expected more from her than she’d been prepared to give. But she had made up her mind after Daniel had been adopted that she would never put herself in the position of being hurt like that again. It was much easier if she kept things on a strictly friendly footing.
‘That makes a change,’ Rob declared, unfazed by her refusal. ‘Most of the agency staff seem to think they’re here to socialise. Angie—that’s the charge nurse—keeps threatening to padlock the staffroom door. Usually they spend more time in there drinking coffee than doing any work!’
‘You must have been using the wrong agency,’ she said lightly, not wanting to be drawn into a discussion about the merits—or pitfalls—of employing agency nurses. There was enough ill feeling as it was, without her encouraging people to think badly of all agency staff.
The porters arrived just then, to take the motorcyclist up to Theatre. Rose checked that his notes were up to date and handed him over, then went to help with the patient who’d been brought in. It was Michelle Robinson, the daughter of the woman who had suffered the heart attack, and she was in a very bad way.
Owen reappeared, and he and the team did all they could for her, but it was a losing battle from the outset. The young woman’s injuries were just too extensive and she died thirty minutes later. Rose nodded when Angie asked her to remove all the leads and tubes before her family came to identify her. It would be distressing enough for them without them having to see all the unpleasant details.
Another couple of patients were brought into Resus, but Rose was asked to work the cubicles and didn’t deal with them. She was glad of the change because dealing with the most severely injured was always harrowing. As she went to report to the triage nurse, she found herself remembering what Rob had said about Owen Gallagher’s mood that day and sighed.
It didn’t take a genius to work out why he was out of sorts. Seeing her there must have been as big a shock for him as it had been for her. All she could hope was that it wouldn’t make a difficult situation any worse. No matter what he believed, she only had Daniel’s best interests at heart, and if getting in touch with her would help Daniel then she most certainly wasn’t going to refuse to see him.
The day wore on, the usual mix of high drama and the mundane. Overcrowded GP surgeries meant that a lot of people who came to the department didn’t actually need to be treated there. Rose dealt with half a dozen minor injuries ranging from a deeply embedded splinter to a sore throat then, at Angie’s behest, went for a break.
There were a couple of other nurses in the staffroom when she went in and she tried not to take it personally when they ignored her. She never stayed in one place long enough to make friends, so she was used to being ignored. She made herself a cup of coffee and had just sat down to drink it when the door opened and Owen Gallagher appeared.
She had managed to keep out of his way since she’d left Resus. With her working the cubicles, it hadn’t been that difficult to avoid him and she’d been glad of the respite. Knowing that she was an object of loathing in his eyes wasn’t the most pleasant experience she’d ever had. Now she stiffened as his gaze skimmed over the other nurses and landed on her. Even from that distance she could see the chill in his grey eyes. He strode towards her and his face was like thunder when he stopped in front of her.
‘There is a waiting-room full of people out there. I suggest you attend to what you’re being paid for, Ms Tremayne. And, to my knowledge, that doesn’t include sitting here, drinking coffee.’
His tone was icy with contempt and Rose flushed. She didn’t say a word as she got up, took her mug to the sink and emptied the coffee down the drain. Nobody said anything as she left the staffroom but she could feel the other nurses watching her and it was galling to know what they must be thinking.
They probably thought she wasn’t pulling her weight after what Owen Gallagher had said, and the unfairness of being labelled as lazy was very hard to take. She did a good job wherever she worked and put one hundred per cent effort into it, too. That was why she’d been offered so many permanent posts—every hospital she’d worked at had asked her if she would like to join their staff, but she’d had to refuse.
