He’d thought her attractive yesterday, but seeing her this morning when he’d left Theatre, she’d reminded him of a fragile Madonna and a strange urge to protect her had welled uncomfortably in his throat. A sudden desire to cradle her worried face in his hands and reassure her.
No doubt she would have something to say about him trying that and he shook off the uneasiness that feeling left him with. She stopped at a table that couldn’t be described as secluded but it seemed it would do. Marco pulled out her chair.
‘You are smiling? Something amuses you?’
‘Gossip.’
He glanced around. ‘In a hospital as large as this?’
‘Especially in this hospital.’ She followed his gaze. Tried not to look at Evie and Finn. ‘I hate gossip. It lives and breathes other people’s business. And here I am with the handsome Italian doctor who has operated on my daughter. I’m never seen with anyone.’
‘At least you notice something about me.’
‘You’re a bit hard to miss.’
He looked around. ‘I too despise gossip.’ The memories tasted bitter in his mouth.
Emily heard the underlying resentment and wondered where that had come from. The waitress arrived as soon as they’d picked up the menu and Emily put it down again and smiled at the girl. ‘We’ve only twenty minutes. Should we order food?’
‘Sure. Promise I’ll be quick. What would you like?’
She looked at Marco. ‘Scones and cream?’
Marco smiled at the young girl and she blushed all the way to the roots of her hair. ‘One hot chocolate, one coffee black, and two scones and cream. Per favore.’ The girl nodded and sped off.
Well, that was that. She studied his face. He didn’t look tired. So maybe he really did manage on four hours’ sleep. She was beginning to droop. She stifled a yawn. ‘So tell me how it went.’
‘Very well. No complications. A simple scope and shunt away from the narrowed opening into the bladder. Initial ultrasound shows good drainage into the bladder already.’
‘Do you think my granddaughter’s kidneys will be very damaged?’
His face softened and he reached across to touch her hand. Just that one stroke made her feel better. Comforted. His hand moved back. ‘This I cannot tell. We will hope not.’
What did she expect? How could he know that? She just wanted reassurance but wisely he had promised nothing he couldn’t give. Still, she appreciated his empathy. He was a kind man.
The hot drinks and scones arrived and they both smiled at the waitress. ‘So quick. Grazie.’
‘Wow.’ Emily too was impressed. ‘Thank you.’ The girl grinned and hurried off and almost bumped into Finn, who stood suddenly from his chair, almost knocking it over.
He growled something at their waitress and shook off Evie’s hand before he stormed towards the door. Evie’s face looked white and drawn and Emily looked away. Maybe she could catch up with Evie later. Check she was okay. There was no doubt she was in love with the man who had just left her and Emily felt her heart go out to the younger woman. She’d picked a hard road there.
‘It seems our surgical chief is not happy.’ Marco too had seen.
She refocussed on the man beside her. ‘I’m sorry?’
‘Finn. We met in the States a few years ago. Got on well.’
Of course Marco would know him. They were both surgeons. She spread cream on the scone and then dropped a dollop of jam in the middle. ‘Evie’s tough. If anyone can bounce back from Finn’s ill humour, Evie can.’
‘And who is she?’
‘A medical officer here, a darned good one, but she’s more than that. Her father’s the hospital’s main benefactor, and the reason Sydney Harbour has so many ground-breaking programs.’
‘Lockheart?’
‘Yes. If rumour is to be believed, she and Finn have an on-again, off-again relationship that sometimes rattles the windows around here. But if I needed medical help, either of them would do fine by me.’
And you would do fine by me, he thought, and the premonition that this woman could rock his stable skim-the-surface world seeped into his bones with a wary premonition. ‘I realise you have a lot on your mind but have you thought about dinner this evening?’
‘No.’ Not much anyway. ‘I really can’t think of anything until after I see Annie.’
‘Of course. Forgive me.’ He was not usually this impatient.
They sipped their drinks and the silence became a little strained. She broke it. ‘So how long are you here? At Sydney Harbour?’
‘A month. Then I fly out to the US for a consultancy in New York. Last month it was London.’
She sipped her cocoa and the heat seeped into her cold edges. His life sounded a little on the cool side too.
Suddenly she wasn’t hungry. ‘It sounds a glamorous life.’ The creamy scone stared back at her. Like a red eye. She bet she had red eyes. Why on earth had this man asked her to breakfast? Kindness. That was all. Now she just needed to accept the favour and move on.
‘Si. Glamorous.’ He picked up his coffee and took a sip.
‘So where is home?’ At his frown she tried again. ‘Your family.’
His expression didn’t change but she felt stillness come over him. And the temperature dropped another two degrees. So he didn’t like questions. ‘I have no family. I rent when I need. Mostly I work.’
‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to pry.’ She glanced at her watch and took another sip of her cocoa. ‘I might see if Annie is back.’
He’d been abrupt. Closed her out like he always did when people asked about his family. No wonder she wanted to leave. What did he expect to happen? He never answered questions about himself. He’d learnt at a very young age when the police were eager for any news of his father. When neighbours had shunned his family as soon as they’d realised who they were.
But this woman would never do that. The voice came from nowhere. Just a whisper, like she’d whispered yesterday to his thoughts, and he closed his ears.
‘I apologise.’ He glanced down at her uneaten scone. ‘Your food.’
‘I’m not really hungry.’ She yawned. ‘Excuse me.’ He wanted to pick her up and carry her to a big feather bed and tuck her in to sleep. Or not to sleep.
He glanced around for the waitress and managed to catch her eye. She nodded and started their way.
‘We will go. See if Annie is back on the ward and then you must go home to bed.’ There was that thought again. Emily in bed. He dragged his mind away from her golden bob of hair lying next to his on the pillow.
She dug into her bag for her wallet and he shook his head. ‘Please. Allow me.’ He laid a note on the table and stood up to help pull out her chair. The waitress arrived and he smiled and gestured with his hand that she keep the change.
Emily stood and he followed her out of the kiosk back towards the wards. He wanted to ask if she would come with him tonight but he would not ask again. Perhaps after she’d seen her daughter he would know.
‘HI, MA,’ Annie whispered sleepily. ‘They said