and choked back a sob. ‘I don’t want to die, Joey.’
‘Shh. Let the tablet dissolve. You’re not dying here, that’s for sure, not on my watch.’ Once he’d secured intravenous access into her arm, as if it was the easiest thing in the world to do on an anxious woman with poor cardiac output and refusenik veins, he squeezed Maxine’s other hand, his voice an altogether different tone to the one he’d used with Rose. ‘We’re going to make you comfortable.’
‘But, what if I do die—?’
‘No, Maxine. Do not even go there. Save your energy for getting better, not thinking the worst.’ He drew up some morphine with very steady hands, handed the ampoule to Rose to check with barely a second glance at her, then he injected the painkiller into their patient.
When he’d finished Maxine struggled to sit up. ‘Call David.’
Joe nodded. ‘I will. And I’ll tell him to meet you at the hospital. Now lie back and start getting better.’
But she tried to sit up again, her hand trembling as she grabbed his arm. ‘I’m sorry. We’re short-staffed as it is.’
He gently eased her back against the pillow and stroked her hair. ‘Please, relax. Stop talking, stop thinking about everyone else and save your energy.’
‘Tell Katy I love her.’ Her voice was strained and thick with emotion, which seemed to take Joe aback.
‘Of course, but she knows it well enough.’ His eyes filled, but he shook his head, determined. One thing Rose realised now was that she’d grossly underestimated him. Yes, he was grumpy, but he had more than enough affection and compassion for this woman. ‘Don’t go talking like that. You hear me?’
‘And find someone to make you happy. Please. You need that in your life, Joey.’
What? A zillion questions fired in Rose’s brain. That was an odd thing for his receptionist to say.
He blinked. Shook his head again, his gaze sliding quickly to Rose and then back to Maxine. Clearly he hadn’t wanted her to overhear this conversation. ‘Right. I think I can hear sirens. Any minute now we’ll have the Lake District’s finest bursting through the door.’
And they did. And when they saw who the patient was there was a flurry of activity and a very quick turnaround with a promise of having her back behind the reception desk—as she was demanding—in no time. Joe wanted to accompany her in the ambulance but Maxine flatly refused, saying he was needed here and to just phone her husband. So he did, breaking the news in that soft, concerned voice he seemed to reserve for friends and not for new staff—but then, why should he?
And then there was just the two of them left to clear up the mess of syringes and sticky papers, and tidy up the reception area, which they did in silence because Rose didn’t know what to say that wouldn’t receive a terse reply.
Thank goodness the medical centre had been closed for lunch and the incident hadn’t played out in front of a clinic full of patients. She looked at the empty chair behind the desk and felt a chill shudder through her. They’d played the scenario down, but acute heart attacks were dangerous. Fatal in lots of cases, even if the patient survived the first bout of treatment. Hearts were tricky things and needed lots of looking after—physically and emotionally.
That was why she was here, after all, to make hers better.
Eventually, Rose couldn’t cope with the oppressive silence any more. She wanted to talk about Maxine, even if he didn’t. Talking about stressful things was a good thing, so the counsellor had told her. ‘She’s so sweet. I hope she’ll be okay.’
Thor turned and looked up from the desktop computer, as if suddenly remembering she was there. Steely blue eyes narrowed. ‘Yes.’
‘You’re going to miss her.’
‘Yes.’ He paused, looking as if he was working out what to say. ‘She’s my receptionist, but she’s also my mother-in-law.’
Oh. No wonder he was so concerned. Oakdale was a small community, so of course there’d be family members all working together, unlike at the big London hospital she’d trained at. People there were from all over the world, strangers working with strangers, mostly. She’d come here because the small community had appealed. That, and a weird comforting feeling she’d had when she’d read the description of the place. It had sounded magical, idyllic and just the thing for a broken heart. A new start, fresh air and lots of exercise to exorcise her past.
But why was his mother-in-law telling him to find someone to make him happy? That made no sense at all.
As if he could read her mind, he shook his head. ‘People say things they don’t mean when they’re in a panic.’
‘She was scared. It’s understandable. You think you’re going to live for ever, then something like this hits you out of the blue. It makes you rethink everything.’
‘Right, yes.’ He was nodding, but there was little emotion there. She expected a big sigh, at least. A rub of those skilled hands through his blond hair. A raised eyebrow or some sort of shared agreement that it had been really hard working on a friend. A discussion, maybe…some sort of virtual group hug that they’d done the right things in the emergency. Anything they could have done differently, better, things to be worked on for next time. But, no, nothing.
It was like talking to an automaton. But he was only like this with her, Rose noticed. With Maxine he’d been soft and sweet. Maybe she just needed to get to know him…or he needed to get to know her, before they could have cordial work relations. Maybe she just needed to hightail it back to the agency and demand to be placed somewhere else.
Instead, she took a deep breath. Because he must have been shocked by what had just happened; what else could explain his gruff manner? ‘Hey, why don’t you take a few minutes to debrief? Have a cup of tea or something? It’s okay to feel blindsided by this.’
He looked at her as if she had two heads. ‘I’m not blindsided. I’m short-staffed. And I’m running very late for my home visits. Again.’
And with that he was gone.
THE NEW NURSE was still there when he got back from his home visits, despite her not being due to start work until tomorrow. And every time he came into the waiting area throughout the afternoon to call a patient into his room, there she was, sitting on Maxine’s chair, chatting to the patients and other nurses as if she belonged there.
Her blonde ponytail bobbed as she laughed with Dennis Blakely, making the dour old man smile for the first time in living memory, those amber eyes sparkling as she shushed a crying newborn to sleep like some sort of baby whisperer. No longer wearing the orange hat or the red coat, she was dressed for work in a high-necked top and slim black trousers. Smart. Professional.
He wished she was still in the hat and coat…inappropriate for walking or work, but they matched her vibrancy.
As he watched her, Joe had the same feeling he’d had when he’d seen her on the mountain—as if something inside him was starting to wake up after a very long hibernation—he noticed
