A Cotswold Christmas Bride

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‘That’s a shame … but you seem to be doing very well, all the same. You’ve done half of it already.’

It was worrying that he’d started having leg cramps again—it was a sign that the circulation to the lower half of his body was weak, one of the symptoms of his condition. He had been born with a narrowing of the aorta, the main blood vessel of the heart, and that could only be corrected by surgery.

She looked around. ‘I wonder if any of the puzzle pieces fell on to the floor?’ Bending down, she searched the area around his bed, and came up triumphantly a moment later with two pieces of puzzle. ‘Aha … I think we’ve found the kitten’s ear,’ she said with a smile, handing them over. ‘Perhaps you could put them in place, and then I’ll check your blood pressure?’

He nodded obligingly. He was a good-natured boy, and it tore at Sophie’s heart that his body let him down.

She left him at work on his puzzle a few minutes later, and went to speak to the nurse. ‘I’m going to alter his medication,’ she told Hannah as she wrote instructions on his chart. ‘We’ll give him a slightly higher dose to strengthen the contractions of the heart. That should help ease the leg cramps. Did Mr Burnley say when he was hoping to operate?’

Hannah shook her head. ‘He’s talking to the parents now. He wants to do an echocardiogram so that he can see how the heart is working. He’s scheduled it for tomorrow morning.’

‘Good.’ It was a simple, non-invasive procedure, using ultrasound to transfer images of the heart in action on to a computer screen, and it wasn’t something that would upset Marcus in any way. ‘Let’s hope the medication does the trick. The sooner we can get him stabilised, the sooner he can have surgery.’

Sophie spent the rest of the morning tending to the other patients on the ward. One o’clock came and went, and it was only when Lucas startled her by coming onto the ward that she remembered she was supposed to have met up with him. Seeing him stride briskly into her territory filled her with unease. What would it take for him to realise that she really didn’t want to get to know him better?

‘Since you didn’t come to the restaurant for lunch,’ he remarked, walking to where she stood by the nurses’ station, writing up her notes, ‘I thought I’d better bring lunch to you.’

He was holding two sturdy, waxed carrier bags, and she frowned, wondering what on earth he had brought with him. ‘Um … we’ve been really busy here this morning,’ she murmured.

‘Of course. It’s like that down in A and E all the time. The only difference is we encourage staff to take their breaks whenever possible, otherwise they’ll begin to flag before the day is out.’

He glanced around the ward. ‘Everything looks fairly peaceful here at the moment. Dare I hope that you might come and share some food with me?’ He lifted a dark brow in invitation, wafting one of the bags in front of her nose. A delicious aroma of cinnamon, fruit and pastries filled the air, and in spite of herself Sophie’s mouth began to water.

‘I take it you haven’t already eaten?’ he queried.

She shook her head. ‘Not since I grabbed a cereal bar this morning. I should have stopped for a snack mid-morning, but you know how it is—something cropped up.’

He tut-tutted. ‘It won’t do, you know. Doctors have to take care of themselves. How else can they expect to be fit enough to take care of their patients?’ He looked around. ‘Is there somewhere we can go to sit and eat this?’

She frowned. It would be criminal to let that food go to waste. ‘The office is empty right now,’ she suggested. ‘There’s a kettle in there, so we can have a hot drink if you like.’

‘No need,’ he said, ‘unless you’d rather have tea. It’s all in hand. I brought coffee along with me.’

‘Okay.’ She showed him into the office, and then peered into the carrier bags that he set down on the desk. ‘Goodness! You thought of everything.’

His grey eyes crinkled. ‘I do my best.’ He began to take out packages, and Sophie watched as appetising dishes appeared one by one.

‘I’m overwhelmed.’ Sophie smiled as she surveyed the feast. ‘It’s everything I might have bought for myself.’

‘It just goes to show that great minds think alike,’ he murmured, setting out cutlery on the desktop. He sat down opposite her. ‘So, how come you only managed a cereal bar this morning? If that’s how you normally go on, it’s no wonder you have fainting attacks.’

‘Like I said, I’d really rather forget about that,’ she answered, frowning. ‘I told you I was stressed. It’s just that there’s so much to do, what with feeding the animals twice a day and making sure they’re clean and comfortable. Then there are the eggs to collect, and the fruit needs picking before it rots on the stems. We grow several different kinds of fruit on the farm—strawberries, raspberries, redcurrants and cranberries.’

She drew in a quick breath. ‘It’s late in the season, but a good many of the plants are still fruiting because they’re under cover in polythene tunnels. I should have started on it before this, but there’s been so much to do. It was okay when my parents were alive, because they took care of everything. I helped out when I could, but coping with all this on my own is a bit beyond me at the moment.’

Her expression was thoughtful. ‘The cranberries, especially, are ripe for picking. Every year I would help my mother gather them in, and then we would make cranberry sauce, jar upon jar of the stuff, ready for the Christmas season. She’d give it away to friends, neighbours, anyone who wanted it, really.’ She picked up her fork. ‘I don’t know what I’ll do this year. It won’t seem the same somehow. Christmas is going to be nothing like what it was before. How could it be?’

‘The first year will be the worst.’ He frowned. ‘I’m sure your friends will be keen to invite you to their places, though. After all, it’s a time when you should be with other people.’

‘Maybe. Or I could go and help out at a refuge, or somewhere.’

‘You have a while yet to think it through.’ He sprinkled cheese over his baked potato and dug in a fork. ‘In the meantime, maybe you should think of bringing in some help around the farm.’

She nodded, causing her honey-blonde hair to glide silkily over her shoulders. ‘I thought of asking around in the village. I put an advert in the local paper, but so far no one’s answered. There might be some teenagers looking for part-time work, though. I suppose I could put a notice in the newsagent’s shop. I already have people to help with the other crops—we grow vegetables and corn, but they aren’t really a problem. It’s just the animals that I worry about.’ She helped herself to salad, enjoying the crisp flavours and the sweet tang of mayonnaise.

She glanced at him. ‘You said that your parents have a farm. I suppose you must have been brought up there?’

‘Not exactly. It’s something they took up after they opted for early retirement, but they’ve taken to it surprisingly well. I suppose it’s what prompted me to move to the area. My sister and her family came over here to be near them, and I decided to follow suit. We’ve always been close as a family, and this part of the Cotswolds appealed to me—it’s really lovely. I worked at one of the hospitals in the surrounding area for a time, and then this post came up, exactly what I wanted, so I grabbed it with both hands.’ He swallowed a mouthful of coffee. ‘As to the farm, it’s more the kind of place where people can visit—children come to see the animals or play in the hay barn. And then there are trailer rides and a play area.’

Her mouth curved. ‘It sounds wonderful. What did your parents do before they retired?’

He added salad to his plate. ‘My father was a GP and my mother worked as a health visitor. Even my sister, Ella, joined the profession. She was a nurse, but she gave it up when she and her husband started a family.’ He grinned. ‘It’s something she seems to be good at—she’s pregnant again. This will be her third child.’

Sophie thought about that for a moment. ‘I think it would have been good to be part of a family like that. I was an only child, but I often wished I had a brother or a sister.’ She lifted her shoulders briefly. ‘It wasn’t to be.’

‘It happens that way, sometimes. I was fortunate.’ He helped himself to a spiced fruit bun. ‘So how did you come to study medicine?’

She took a sip of coffee before she answered him. ‘I’m not sure when it began, but I’ve always known that I wanted to work with children. Perhaps it was because I had no brothers and sisters. I was around eleven years old when our neighbours’ children were taken ill with meningitis, and that had a profound effect on me. They were my friends and I was scared they might not get better, but our GP rushed them into hospital and when they came home a few weeks later, they were fine. I was impressed. I thought hospital work was something I might do later on.’

‘I think you chose the right career. You were very good with James earlier—tender, caring and professional at the same time. His parents are reassured that he’s in good hands.’

‘I’m glad they feel that way.’ She finished off her coffee. ‘He settled into the ward well enough, and he’s sleeping now, which is probably a good thing. I doubt he had much rest last night with all his breathing difficulties.’

He nodded, and then gave her a musing glance. ‘Does it ever bother you, working with children?’

‘Oh, yes.’ It was a heartfelt statement. ‘All the time. I’d defy anyone to be blasé about it. But it’s rewarding, too.’ She thought about young Marcus, with his engaging smile, and brightened. ‘Children take life as it comes and grab it with both hands. It’s lovely to see what a wonderland it is for them. Everything is new and exciting, and sometimes it’s refreshing to look at the world through their eyes.’

His gaze trailed over her. ‘I’m sure they love having you as their doctor.’

‘I hope so. I do my best.’ She wiped her hands on a serviette and surveyed the remains of their lunch. ‘We seem to have polished that off between us with no trouble at all. Thank you for that,’ she said, returning his gaze with real appreciation.

It was hard to imagine why he was going to so much trouble to feed her and get to know her, but it would have been churlish of her not to acknowledge his efforts. Perhaps he was more concerned about her fainting on him than she had realised, and that was the real reason he was keeping an eye on her.

There was a knock on the door, and Hannah looked into the room. ‘Sorry to interrupt,’ she said, ‘but Mr Burnley’s looking for you, Sophie. He wants a word with you before he goes off on his rounds.’

‘Thanks, Hannah.’ Sophie stood up. ‘I’ll go and find him.’ She glanced at Lucas. ‘I’m sorry to cut this short,’ she said, ‘but Mr Burnley’s our cardiac surgeon, and I wouldn’t want to keep him waiting.’

‘That’s all right, I understand.’ Lucas began to clear away the remains of their feast. ‘I’ll take the opportunity to go and look in on young James while I’m here, if I may.’ He gave the nurse a look that would have set fire to steel. ‘Perhaps Hannah would show me where he is?’

Flustered, Hannah stared at him, her mouth dropping open a little. ‘You want me to take you to him? Um … yes … yes, of course. I can do that.’ She pulled herself together, as though she realised she was babbling. ‘I was forgetting you’re new around here. He’s in the bay along the corridor. If you want to follow me, I’ll lead the way.’

‘Thank you.’ Lucas’s smile had an even more devastating effect on Hannah’s composure. He walked to the door, holding it open so that she could retreat into the corridor, and for just a second their fingers touched. Hannah looked as though her senses were in a whirl, and Sophie could see that she was trying desperately to get a hold on herself.

A wry smile edged Sophie’s lips. It was just as well she’d made up her mind to steer clear of Lucas. He was obviously pure dynamite, and she’d no intention of becoming his next conquest.

CHAPTER THREE

‘HOW is our little patient doing?’ Lucas was frowning as he walked towards the bed in the paediatric bay of the emergency unit. It was some days later, and Sophie was getting used to seeing him about the place.

‘Not so badly now,’ Hannah said on a heartfelt sigh, ‘but I can tell you, that was a worrying hour or so.’ She glanced at Sophie. ‘For a while there, I thought we were going to lose her.’

Sophie nodded. ‘Me, too.’ She stretched, easing the ache in her lower back. It was mid-afternoon and she had been working full out all day, first with her charges on the paediatric ward and now with this small child who had been rushed to hospital by ambulance.

‘Her parents had no idea she would have such a bad reaction to nuts,’ Lucas commented. ‘They’ll have to be extra careful from now on.’ He gazed down at the small child, whose fair curls tumbled over the pillow. The five-year-old’s face was drained of colour so that she was almost as pale as the sheets. ‘Still, she seems to be a lot more comfortable now.’

‘Yes, she does. It was lucky you managed to get in an airway before the swelling in her throat became too severe.’ Sophie glanced at him. Her respect for Lucas had grown by leaps and bounds over the last hour or so. By all accounts, he had worked desperately to save this little girl before calling Sophie down for a consultation, and as soon as she had set foot in A and E she had been able to see for herself how capable he was, and how gentle and caring he had been with the child.

Hannah was right. It had been touch and go for a while, but after all Lucas’s efforts and a further shot of adrenalin, the child was at last beginning to recover, to everyone’s relief.

‘She’ll need to be observed over the next few hours,’ Sophie said, dragging her thoughts away from Lucas to the job in hand, ‘so we’ll admit her to the paediatric ward.’ She glanced at Hannah. ‘We’ll keep Sarah on IV fluids for a while, with the addition of a low-dose steroid and an antihistamine.’

‘Okay, you can leave it with me.’ Hannah went to check on the IV fluids, and Sophie went to find a computer in the doctors’ writing-up area where she could sit down to type up her notes.

Lucas followed her, coming to sit on the edge of the desk, watching her as she worked and making her all too conscious of his powerful, overwhelmingly male body. She sent him an oblique glance, her fingers pausing on the keyboard. ‘Have you made arrangements for the parents to talk with a specialist?’ she asked him, trying to keep her voice on an even keel. He was long and lean, flat stomached, and just having him close by made her abdomen tighten and had all of her senses in a flurry.

He nodded. ‘I told them I would make an appointment for Sarah to see an immunologist.’

‘Good. Sometimes, if things are handled the right way, the allergy might disappear completely after a few years.’

‘True. Let’s hope she’s one of the lucky ones.’ He stayed silent while she finished inputting the data, and when she leaned back in her chair, arching her back and suppressing a faint yawn, his gaze trailed over her.

‘How are things with you?’ he murmured, a hint of concern coming into his eyes. ‘You look tired. Are you still overdoing things?’

‘It’s good of you to ask, but I’m fine, thanks,’ she answered, absently curling and uncurling her fingers to dissipate the ache in her knuckles. It wasn’t the truth, but rumours spread like wildfire in this place, and she didn’t want it broadcast that she was under the weather and feeling the strain. She had a responsible position to uphold, and the last thing she needed was for people to think she couldn’t cope.

‘Hmm.’ It was clear he didn’t believe her. ‘You’re very pale. Are you quite sure you aren’t anaemic?’

‘Like I said, I’m fine.’ She was compounding the lie. She’d been so tired lately, that it was quite possible she was anaemic, but at least she’d done the responsible thing and paid another visit to her GP. He had found some problems with the haemoglobin levels in her blood, but wanted to know more about what was causing these, along with her other symptoms, and had ordered another set of blood tests. As soon as the results from those were back, hopefully she’d know if her problems were physical or simply the result of all the stress she’d been under of late. Not that she’d want Lucas to know any of that. All she actually wanted right now was to go and take her long overdue break. Perhaps a cup of coffee would perk her up a bit.

‘You’re very cagey, aren’t you?’ Lucas commented in an amused tone, as he tried to fathom her expression.

‘I wonder if Nathan’s responsible for that, or whether you’ve always been that way?’

‘Perhaps it comes from being an only child,’ she murmured, logging out of the computer. ‘In some ways, it has its advantages. You learn to appreciate your independence.’

‘And miss out on so much.’ He studied her briefly. ‘You make it hard for anyone to get close to you—or perhaps it’s just me that you have a problem with.’ He frowned. ‘But that only makes me all the more intrigued.’ He shook his head in a perplexed fashion. ‘I’m not quite sure what it is about you that has me all fired up … but I can’t help feeling that I need to shield you from whatever life is throwing at you. Maybe it’s that we seem to be opposites—the fact that I have a strong family to back me up, while you appear to be all alone in the world and put up a defensive front—but whatever the reason, I definitely want to get to know you better, Sophie … and I’ll do it, sooner or later.’

She shook her head. ‘Like I said, you don’t need to do that.’

His pager began to bleep, and he checked the text message before turning his attention back to her. ‘Sorry Sophie, but I have to go,’ he said, his brow creasing. ‘Something about a pregnant woman with high blood pressure.’

‘That doesn’t sound too good.’ She stood up, preparing to follow him into the main reception area.

‘No, it doesn’t.’ He sent her a thoughtful look. ‘Are you heading back to Paediatrics, or will you be able to find time to take a break? We do great coffee down here in A and E. And I keep a snacks table on hand for the staff. You could help yourself from it, and maybe go and sit in the garden room for a while. It might make you feel better.’

She gave him a wry smile. So much for her trying to fob him off. He hadn’t believed a word she’d said, had he?

‘I’m not sure … I was due a break over an hour ago.’ The cafeteria was two flights up, and didn’t hold out much appeal for her at the moment. She wanted sunshine and fresh air and a complete change of scenery. Perhaps that would help to lift her spirits.

‘There are glazed fruit tarts … and jam doughnuts,’ he said in a coaxing fashion as they walked towards the treatment area. ‘And salad sandwiches, freshly made, with bread bought this morning from the bakery down the road … and cheese. You like cheese, don’t you? It’s very good for you—full of—’

She laughed. ‘Enough,’ she said. ‘You don’t need to go on. You’ve convinced me. I’ll grab something from the snacks table and take it out into the garden room.’ It would be good to enjoy the late October sunshine.

‘Good.’ He looked pleased with himself. ‘I’ll come and join you just as soon as I can … as soon as I’ve taken a look at this young woman.’

Sophie’s brows rose a fraction. She might have known there was a hidden motive in his attempt to get her to stay around. What was it with Lucas that he wasn’t prepared to give up on her? Was she some kind of a challenge to him? So far she seemed to be the only female in the hospital who didn’t swoon at his mere presence! Or perhaps she presented him with a medical conundrum that he needed to solve?

The thought pulled her up sharply. Why would any man be drawn to a woman whose life was marred by illness? Hadn’t she learned that lesson with Nathan? He might have attempted to start up the relationship with her again at the wedding, but that would have been a short-lived exercise. As soon as he realised she was still plagued by symptoms he would have dropped her like a hot brick. And eventually Lucas would do the same.

It would be better if she didn’t think about it any longer, though. Weren’t there enough complications in her life without adding him to the list?

They parted company a few minutes later, and Sophie made her way to the sunlit garden room. She was alone in here, and for a while she enjoyed the solitude. The glass doors were open a little to let in a light breeze, and she could see white tables and chairs set out on the terrace beyond.

She chose a table by the door, and breathed in the fresh air. Yellow jasmine scrambled over trellised wooden panels, and here and there stone tubs were filled with autumn flowers, yellow and bronze chrysanthemums and bold, white asters with yellow centres. At intervals there were tall green palms that added a restful touch.

She sat down and began to eat from the selection of food on her tray. The fruit pie was cool and refreshing, and instead of coffee she had chosen fresh orange juice. It wasn’t too long before she began to feel her batteries recharging. Maybe there was nothing wrong with her after all. The thought cheered her, and she looked around, happy with her surroundings, drawing energy from the complete break from work.

A short time later, she heard children’s voices coming closer. A line edged its way into her brow. Did the youngsters belong to someone who worked here? This was a place where the staff could rest a while, so they weren’t likely to be the offspring of patients.

‘Is Mummy very poorly?’ The voices came nearer, and Sophie looked around to see Lucas coming towards her, holding the hands of a fretful young girl, around six years old, and a little boy who looked to be a year or so younger.

‘She needs to rest. That’s why she’s going to stay in hospital for a while, so that we can take good care of her.’ Lucas’s voice was warm and reassuring.

Sophie stood as he approached the table, ‘Lucas, is anything wrong?’ She could see from his grim expression that his return to the hub of A and E had turned out very differently from what he had expected.

He nodded. ‘The patient I was paged for,’ he answered quietly, ‘turned out to be my sister Ella. I didn’t realise who she was until I went to see her because no one had her details.’ He put an arm around each of the children’s shoulders and drew them forward. ‘These are my niece and nephew, Emily and William. Apparently they were out on a shopping trip together when Ella was taken ill.’

Sophie could only imagine what he was going through, but she kept up an appearance of calm, so as not to upset the children. ‘Hello,’ she said, smiling at them. ‘I’m sorry to hear that your mother is poorly … but I know that your uncle will look after her very well. He’s a very good doctor.’

William nodded. ‘I know.’ He was frowning, his grey eyes confused, and Sophie guessed he was trying his utmost to come to terms with what had happened.

‘It must have been a shock for you,’ she said, looking from one to the other. ‘Do you want to tell me about it?’

William shook his head, but Emily couldn’t contain herself and blurted out, ‘Mummy fainted. A lady in the shop had to help us. We didn’t know what to do. We couldn’t make Mummy wake up.’

Sophie wanted to put her arms round the little girl and give her a hug. ‘You must have been very frightened.’ William didn’t give way to his emotions. He was still trying to be stoical, but surely it couldn’t be good for him to keep everything bottled up inside?

She glanced at Luke. ‘Was there any indication that this might happen? How was she in her previous pregnancies?’

‘It was plain sailing with both Emily and William but she has found this third pregnancy much harder. Really, I should have expected something like this. She’s been complaining of headaches and blurred vision, and I could see that there was some swelling in her hands and around her ankles. I told her to talk to her obstetrician as a matter of urgency and check with the midwife. She said she would, but it doesn’t look as though she carried it through.’

‘I suppose she was busy with the children,’ Sophie said in a low voice. ‘Women don’t always get their priorities right when they’re looking after a family.’

‘I’m beginning to realise that now.’ Lucas encouraged the children to sit down, and Sophie offered them orange juice and sandwiches from her tray. William accepted the sandwich but sat holding it, not attempting to eat, while Emily sipped at a glass of juice. Her cheeks were flushed, and streaked with tears that had escaped.

Sophie felt in her coat pocket for her small stock of badges. She gave them to children on the paediatric ward whenever they had been brave or needed cheering up. ‘Perhaps you’d like to colour these in,’ she suggested. ‘There’s a teddy bear with a spotted necktie, and a teddy bear with a flowery vest. Choose which ones you want. I think I’ve some coloured pencils in my other pocket.’ She delved around and produced half a dozen small pencils. ‘There you are. Just the thing.’