Hot Single Docs: Waiting For You: St Piran's: Prince on the Children's Ward. Carol Marinelli

‘If you want to take a job at the hospital, you should take it. I can manage.’

      ‘I promised to look after you until you’re out of the cast and that’s what I’m going to do. And, anyway, I don’t really want to work in the same hospital as Josh. You’ve seen what he’s like. He’ll be banging on my door, questioning every decision I make. We’d drive each other crazy.’ She drove fast and Alessandro found himself clenching his teeth.

      ‘Do you know these roads well?’

      ‘Yes.’

      ‘Good, because if there are any surprises behind that blind bend, you’re about to smack into it head first.’

      She shifted gears smoothly. ‘Do I make you nervous? Big, tough guy like you?’

      An image of tangled metal lodged itself in his head. ‘I’m not a good passenger.’ He didn’t elaborate but she immediately trod on the brakes.

      ‘Sorry,’ she muttered. ‘I didn’t think.’

      Her sensitivity surprised him, although it shouldn’t have. She’d always been sensitive, hadn’t she? Too sensitive.

      He braced himself for her to question him about the accident that had killed his brother but instead she smoothly changed the subject.

      ‘Did you notice anything strange about Josh?’

      ‘Strange in what way?’

      ‘You didn’t think he was tense and on edge?’

      ‘He’d just caught his sister naked with a man.’ He watched as the colour bloomed in her cheeks. ‘That was reason enough for him to be tense.’

      ‘Yes, but it wasn’t that. It was something else. Something personal. Did you see his face when he made that little speech about loving someone you couldn’t be with?’

      ‘He’s worried about you.’

      ‘I’m not sixteen years old.’ This time her gear change was vicious. ‘Why do men always think a woman has to be in love? This is the twenty-first century. I don’t want love. The most important thing to me is my career. And, anyway, a woman can have sex without being in love.’ The words spilled out of her and he watched her steadily, wondering why he wasn’t convinced.

      ‘We didn’t have sex, Tasha.’

      The gears crunched again. ‘I’m well aware of that. All I’m saying is that if we had had sex then it wouldn’t have had anything to do with being in love, and I can’t imagine why you’d even think that. Women can have sex like a man. Without emotional involvement. I don’t want emotional involvement.’

      ‘Right.’ Alessandro tried to imagine Tasha doing anything without emotional involvement, and failed. Her emotions were involved in everything, from cooking chilli to handling her stethoscope. ‘So, if that’s the case, why are you worried about what Josh said?’

      ‘There’s something wrong with him. He’s been acting really strangely since I caught him in the on-call room that day I came to see you...’ Without breaking the conversation she flicked the indicator and turned into the hospital car park. ‘And I know he had someone in the room with him, but he was hiding the fact. He didn’t want me to know. But when I saw him, he looked all lit up inside. As if something special had happened. There was an energy about him that I haven’t seen for years.’