am going to do everything I can not to hurt you. If for some reason there’s ever a procedure that will hurt, I will tell you, and we’ll work it out, but this one,’ Ross said, ‘isn’t going to hurt.’
He tightened the tourniquet and Hannah watched. He swabbed the vein a couple of times and then got out the needle, and she didn’t cry or move away, she just watched.
‘Even I’m nervous now.’ Ross grinned, and so too did Annika, that tiny pause lifting the mood in the room. Even Hannah managed a little smile. She stared as the needle went in, and flinched, but only because she was expecting pain. When it didn’t come, when the needle was in and Ross was taping it securely in place, her grin grew much wider when Ross told her she had been very brave.
‘Very brave!’ Annika said, like a parrot, because she could never be as at ease with children as he was. She was attaching the IV and Ross was looking through his drug book, working out the new medication regime that he wanted Hannah on.
Brighter now it was all over, Hannah looked up at Annika.
‘You’re pretty.’
‘Thank you.’ She hated this. It was okay when Elsie said it, or one of the oldies, but children were so probing. Annika was still trying to attach the bung, but the little hard bit of plastic proved fiddly, and the last thing she wanted was to mess up the IV access. She almost did when Hannah spoke next.
‘Have you got a boyfriend?’
‘No.’ Her cheeks were on fire, and she could feel Ross looking at her, though she was so not going to look at him.
‘I thought you did, Annika.’ He spoke then to Hannah. ‘He’s a very nice guy, apparently.’
‘It’s very early days.’ The drip was attached, and now she had to strap it in place.
‘I like a boy in my class,’ Hannah said, with a confidence Annika would never possess. ‘He sent me a card, and he wrote that he’s coming to visit me once I’m allowed visitors that aren’t my mum.’
‘That’s nice.’
‘So, where does your boyfriend take you?’ Hannah probed.
‘I’m more a stay-at-home person …’ Annika blew at her fringe and pressed in the numbers. Ross was beside her, checking that the dosage was correct and signing off on the sheet. She could feel that he was laughing, knew he was enjoying her discomfort—and there and then she decided to be brave.
Exceptionally brave—and if it didn’t work she’d blame Cecil and Elsie.
‘I was thinking of asking him over for dinner on Saturday.’ Annika swallowed. She knew her face was on fire, she was cringing and burning, and yet she was also excited.
‘That sounds nice. I’m sure he’d love it,’ was all Ross said.
She got Hannah back to bed, and then, as she went back into the treatment room to prepare Luke’s dressing, Ross came in.
‘I don’t want to talk at work.’
‘Fine.’
‘So can we just keep things separate?’
‘No problem, Annika.’
‘I mean it, Ross.’
‘Of course,’ he said patiently. ‘Annika, do you know where the ten gauge needles are kept? They’ve run out on the IV trolley …’
And he was so matter-of-fact, so absolutely normal in his behaviour towards her, that Annika wondered if she actually had asked him out at all. At six a.m. on a Saturday, when he hadn’t asked for a time, or even an address, she wasn’t sure that she had.
CHAPTER SIX
‘HOW’S the children’s ward?’ Elsie was wide awake before Annika had even flicked the lights on.
‘It’s okay,’ Annika said, and then she admitted the truth. ‘I’ll be glad when it’s over.’
‘What have you got next?’
‘Maternity,’ Annika said, as Elsie slurped her tea.
She seemed to have caught her second wind these past few days: more and more she was lucid, and the lucid times were lasting longer too. She was getting over that nasty UTI, Dianne, the Div 1 nurse had explained. They often caused confusion in the elderly, or, as in Elsie’s case, exacerbated dementia. It was good to have her back.
‘I’m not looking forward to it.’
‘What are you looking forward to?’
‘I don’t know,’ Annika admitted.
‘How’s your boyfriend?’ Elsie asked when they were in the shower, Annika in her gumboots, Elsie in her little shower chair. ‘How’s Ross?’
‘I don’t know that either,’ Annika said, cringing a little when Elsie said his name. ‘It’s complicated.’
‘Love isn’t complicated,’ Elsie said. ‘You are.’
And they had a laugh, a real laugh, as she dried and dressed Elsie and put her in her chair. Then Annika did something she had never done before.
‘I’ve got something for you.’ Nervous, she went to the fridge and brought out her creation.
It was a white chocolate box, filled with chocolate mousse and stuffed with raspberries.
‘Where’s my toast?’ Elsie asked, and that made Annika laugh. Then the old lady peered at the creation and dipped her bony finger into the mousse, licked it, and had a raspberry. ‘You bought this for me?’
‘I made it,’ Annika said. ‘This was my practice one …’ She immediately apologised. ‘Sorry, that sounds rude …’
‘It doesn’t sound rude at all.’
‘You have to spread the white chocolate on parchment paper and then slice it; you only fill the boxes at the end. I did a course a few years ago,’ Annika admitted. ‘Well, I didn’t finish it …’
‘You didn’t need to,’ Elsie said. ‘You could serve this up every night and he’d be happy. This is all you need … it’s delicious …’ Elsie was cramming raspberries in her mouth. ‘This is for your man?’
‘I’m worried he’ll think I’ve gone to too much effort.’
‘Is he worth the effort?’ Elsie asked.
‘Yes.’
‘Then don’t worry.’
‘I think I’ve asked him to dinner tonight.’
‘You think?’ Elsie frowned. ‘What did he say?’
‘That it sounded very nice.’ Annika gulped. ‘Only we haven’t
