nagging.’
‘Until they have a heart attack and realise that you were telling them the truth all along.’ Harry handed her a cup of tepid coffee and sat down. ‘Then they’re desperate to undo all the years of neglect.’
‘Something like that,’ she agreed, sipping the coffee and grimacing at the powdery aftertaste it left on her tongue. She put the cup on the table and looked at him. ‘How come you’re so clued up about heart disease?’
‘Because it’s all part and parcel of being a physician.’ Harry took a swallow of his coffee then sighed. ‘If I had a pound for every man and woman I’ve seen heading for a heart attack, I’d be able to retire. What is it about people that makes them ignore all the advice we give them and carry on doing the wrong things?’
‘Stubbornness?’ she suggested with a grin because he sounded so frustrated. ‘Folk hate to be told what to do. They want to live their lives the way they chose to.’
‘And to hell with the consequences.’ His tone was wry. ‘Only, when something does go wrong, they expect us to come up with a solution.’
‘I don’t know why you sound so surprised. Didn’t you realise that we’re supposed to perform miracles? It’s part of our remit, along with all the other things a doctor is supposed to do.’
‘Well, I for one am right out of miracles,’ Harry declared, swinging his feet onto the coffee-table. ‘I’m only a humble physician, don’t forget, not a surgeon. It’s the surgeons who are closest to God, not the likes of you and me.’
Grace burst out laughing. ‘I never thought I’d hear you admit that. I thought you believed that you had a direct line to heaven.’
‘Sorry to disappoint you but I’m under no illusions.’ He lifted the cup to his lips, watching her over the rim. ‘I’m just a guy who wants to help people, Grace. That’s all I’ve ever been.’
Grace felt a shiver run down her spine and quickly looked away. She couldn’t explain it, but there was something about the way Harry had said it that convinced her he’d been telling the truth. Harry didn’t see himself as some sort of all-powerful being but as a man who wanted to help others less fortunate than himself, and it was a revelation to realise it.
She’d had Harry summed up from the moment she’d met him: a rich playboy whose only aim in life was to have a good time and cover himself in glory. Now that image had started to go all fuzzy around the edges and it was alarming to realise that she might have been wrong about him all this time. It was a relief when he changed the subject.
‘Anyway, getting back to Miles. Even if he hasn’t had an infarc, it’s doubtful he’ll be fit enough to return to work for some time, so what are you going to do? My offer still stands, if you’re interested.’
‘I’ll bear it in mind.’ Grace flushed when his brows rose. It was obvious that her less-than-enthusiastic response hadn’t been lost on him. However, she didn’t intend to apologise because she had reservations about him working at the surgery.
‘I’d prefer to wait and see what the verdict is on Miles first before I decide what to do,’ she told him coolly.
‘Fine. It’s up to you, of course.’ Harry drained his cup then swung his feet off the table and stood up. ‘I think I’ll go outside for a bit of fresh air. It’s stifling in here. I won’t be long—ten minutes max.’
‘You don’t have to stay,’ she said quickly, hoping he couldn’t tell how eager she was all of a sudden for him to leave. Oh, it had been fine while Penny had been there, she’d been very glad of Harry’s company then. However, it was different now they were on their own. In the past half-hour she’d learned things about him that she’d never dreamed might be true, and it had unsettled her to have to adjust her view of him. How much more unsettling would it be if they continued the conversation throughout the night?
‘Why do I have a feeling that you’re trying to get rid of me?’ Harry turned to look at her and Grace’s heart missed a beat when she saw the speculation in his eyes.
‘I’ve no idea.’ She shrugged, hoping he couldn’t tell how desperate she was for him to leave. ‘Maybe it’s because you find it hard to believe that I’ll be able to manage without your manly shoulder to lean on? Well, don’t worry, Harry. I’ll be perfectly fine on my own so you can leave with a clear conscience. I’m sure you must have more interesting things to do with your evening than spend it hanging around a hospital waiting room.’
‘The only plans I have for this evening involve bed.’ He laughed when he saw her mouth purse. ‘Tut, tut, Grace, what are you thinking? I meant that I was planning on having an early night—alone.’ He opened the door and winked at her. ‘Don’t worry, I’ll be back soon. You can count on it.’
Grace ground her teeth, wishing that she’d never said anything. All she’d succeeded in doing had been to make herself look foolish—not that it was the first time, of course. Where Harry was concerned she invariably found herself saying the wrong thing, which was why she usually resorted to squabbling with him. It was easier to fight with him than run the risk of falling under his spell.
The thought alarmed her so much that she leapt to her feet. Her heart was pounding as she left the waiting room to go and find Penny because there was no way that she could deny the truth. In the past ten years she’d done everything in her power to shut Harry out of her life. That was why she’d lobbed insults at him, goaded him and accused him of all manner of things. She’d seen how charming he could be, how witty and how much fun, and she’d been afraid that he would somehow…well, seduce her.
That was the last thing she wanted to happen. She’d witnessed at first hand how destructive love could be, had watched as her mother’s life had been torn apart as her father had indulged in one affair after another, and she’d sworn it would never happen to her. That’s why she rarely dated and never went out with any man who reminded her of her father—a man exactly like Harry, in fact. But tonight she’d lowered her guard and Harry had been every bit as charming as she’d feared he would be. Now she was unable to think of him simply as a womanising Lothario. There were depths to Harry that she’d never suspected.
‘I get off at eleven so why don’t you give me a call? I’m a real night-owl and never go to bed until after midnight…unless I have a really good reason, of course.’
Grace stopped dead when she heard voices up ahead. She peered along the dimly lit corridor and spotted a couple tucked into the alcove next to the pay-phone. She recognised Harry immediately, although it took a moment longer before she realised that the young woman with him was the nurse who’d come to fetch Penny. There were no prizes for guessing what they were up to, however.
Grace’s eyes narrowed as she studied their body language which, quite frankly, should have been X-rated. The way that young nurse was simpering up at Harry was positively obscene. As for Harry—well, he seemed to be lapping it up as though it was his due. Had he used the excuse that he’d needed some fresh air so he could track down the nurse and make his move on her? Grace wondered in disgust. Well, if that was the case, she certainly wasn’t going to cramp his style.
She spun round and marched back to the waiting room, slamming the door behind her with enough force to make the window rattle in its frame. She couldn’t believe what a fool she’d been. For a few minutes she’d actually believed that she’d been wrong about Harry, and the thought of how easily he had duped her made her want to spit tacks. Leopards never changed their spots. Harry Shaw had been
