Above them List pressed his lips together, no doubt smothering a smile at Sophie’s reluctant concession to Cooper’s order. ‘Right, soldiers.’ He nodded to Simone and the soldier who’d brought the stretcher. ‘Take Captain Ingram inside.’
Cooper felt for the two as they reached down to lift the stretcher once Sophie had slid across onto it. She had plenty more of those icy glares and wasn’t worried about sharing them around.
List leaned close to murmur, ‘Go with her. Make sure she’s all right.’ Then he marched back to the front of the parade.
Cooper muttered, ‘Try and stop me, mate,’ and strode after the stretcher bearers. Now the fun would really start.
Except Sophie surprised him. ‘I’m feeling stupid. There’ve been a few times when I’ve experienced light-headedness but I put it down to the heat and lack of sleep. What sort of doctor does that make me? It’s not a good start to motherhood, is it?’ Her eyes lifted to him, imploring him to go easy on her.
She didn’t have to ask. He wasn’t about to rip into her, only wanted to make sure she and baby were safe. The sadness and worry blinking out of those green eyes hit him hard. She wasn’t as confident as she made out. Yet she insisted on going it alone. Not on his watch she wasn’t. Not now, not ever. They were in this together. Even if not living under the same roof, he’d make absolutely certain he was always there for her. ‘I heard doctors usually made the worst mothers, always thinking of all the horrific things that can go wrong. It’s cool that you’re not like that.’
Suspicion clouded her eyes. ‘You don’t think I’m too casual?’
‘No, Sophie, I don’t. You look fit and healthy. I haven’t seen you do anything you shouldn’t, like go jogging in the heat or drink alcohol. Our baby is in perfect hands.’
She gasped.
So did Simone.
Cooper slapped a hand on his forehead. ‘Sorry.’ He’d forgotten they weren’t alone. ‘I shouldn’t have said that.’
Simone was smiling as she looked at Sophie. ‘Don’t worry. I know nothing.’ Then she leaned over to give Sophie a hug. ‘Knew you were more than friends.’
Sophie looked surprised. ‘Actually, we’re not. Not really.’
Time he was out of there. Partaking in a discussion with the hard-nosed sergeant about their relationship was not happening. ‘I’ll get the sphygmomanometer and phlebotomy kit.’ And some air that wasn’t laced with Sophie scent and filled with words he wanted to refute. They weren’t friends, not in the true sense of the word, yet he wanted to be. More than anything. He wanted to be able to spend time with Sophie and say anything he liked, help her without wondering how she’d interpret his actions. At the moment they were leery of each other, and he was past putting up with that.
Neither woman tried to stop him going, but when he returned with the equipment needed to take a BP reading and some bloods to send to the lab Sophie was on her own, looking glum.
‘Hey, you’re doing fine.’ Cooper ran a hand over her shoulder.
Tears glittered out of the eyes she raised to him. ‘You think? I’m feeling so hopeless.’
Pressure built in his chest, and the need to be there for her expanded further. This wasn’t just about his responsibility towards her and the baby. This was about that friendship they didn’t have yet. ‘There’s not a hopeless bone in your body.’
‘I’d say thanks but, really, you don’t know me at all.’
‘I know you’re stubborn, kind, fun, sexy...’ Now, why had he added that? Friends and sex were a mismatch. Except sex had led to them being tied together with a child. Now the friendship had to start. Which meant sex was off the list. ‘Did I mention annoying and adorable?’
Now she looked disappointed. ‘It’s been said before: you’re a charmer.’
He’d meant every word and hadn’t been trying to get his own way about anything. He’d been wanting to make her relax and stop fretting about how she was coping. That wasn’t good for her or the infant. ‘Let’s find out what’s going on.’ He held up the BP cuff.
Holding out her arm, she told him, ‘You can’t do a glucose test. I ate breakfast.’
‘We’ll start with a non-fasting and if that’s even slightly raised we’ll follow up with a fasting blood tomorrow.’ No more stalling.
Sophie sagged, her chin hitting her sternum. ‘Get on with it.’ There was no strength in her words, just defeat.
That unsettled him further. He preferred the fighting, stubborn Sophie to this one. Watching the monitor until it beeped, he felt out of his depth. Sure, reading BPs and taking bloods was basic medicine, but cheering up his patient when he was so involved was more complicated than he’d expected. And he was about to add to her gloom. ‘BP’s too low.’
‘I figured.’ She shook her head. ‘Gestational diabetes is looking more likely by the minute.’
‘They don’t necessarily go hand in hand,’ he argued.
‘I know.’ She held her arm out again and watched quietly while he drew some blood.
* * *
Three hours later Cooper found Sophie munching on a healthy salad and reading files in her office. ‘Your glucose is a little too high.’
‘So tomorrow I’d do a glucose tolerance test. Can we start early? I get hungry all the time.’
‘I’ll take the fasting sample twelve hours after your dinner tonight.’ And fingers crossed the final results would be normal.
They weren’t. ‘I’ve got gestational diabetes.’ Sophie put the phone down the following afternoon and stared at Cooper.
‘I was hoping otherwise.’ But he wasn’t surprised at the result.
‘You and me both. Guess I’m off the ice cream.’
‘They can relax in the canteen. There’ll be enough left to go round everyone from now on.’
Her smile was tired. ‘Home is looking better and better all the time.’
Home meant a lot to do, if what he’d gleaned from their conversations was true. ‘You made those appointments for viewing properties yet?’
‘I’ve got four lined up the day after we touch down.’
Of course she had. Tired she may be, inefficient she wasn’t. ‘Anything that really excites you?’ Would it be wrong to hope not? He might’ve got off the hook when she’d turned down his offer to live with him for a while, but more and more the need to be there with her for these weeks leading up to the birth was dominating his thoughts. She needed pampering. He was going to pamper Sophie? Yep, and why not?
‘Yes, all of them,’ she replied in the flattest voice he’d heard in a long time.
‘Better than nothing you like.’
She didn’t answer.
THE TEMPERATURES FINALLY EASED, for which Sophie was grateful. The heat had been all-consuming. By the time she boarded the air force plane bound for home she was almost sorry to be leaving.
‘Thanks for everything you’ve done for me,’ she told Alistair as she