Yet he did not.
And certainly he didn’t want the fall-out afterwards.
‘’Night, Lizzie.’
It was why he let her go.
CHAPTER TEN
WHAT HAD SEEMED not just appropriate at the time but natural was worrying her by the time Lizzie had got home.
She loved her job.
More than that, for the first time in a long time she was panicking about what to wear to a ball, rather than panicking about the bills from the nursing home and making the month’s rent.
More than that, though, she liked Leo and had no idea how things would be at work if they—
Stop.
Over and over she told herself not to go there, but working alongside him the next week and pretending their kiss hadn’t happened, or that it had meant very little, would be hard enough. Imagine what it would be like if they—
Stop.
By Thursday Lizzie wondered if she should just walk around with a stop sign to hold up at five-minute intervals throughout the day. She was finishing up some notes on a patient when Leo walked past and paused to give her an update on Francesca. ‘She’s been moved to a ward and is improving.’
‘And Tony?’
‘I didn’t actually see Francesca, I just called.’
Lizzie noted his tense features and didn’t blame him in the least for not adding fuel to the fire by visiting Francesca. The press were all over it and the interest wasn’t abating—the Hunter name was, yet again, being held to question. Only, as it turned out, that wasn’t the reason he hadn’t visited his favourite patient.
‘She’s really upset,’ Leo explained. ‘Francesca’s no fool and she’s really upset by all the drama and, on top of everything, now the whole world knows she’s been under the knife. Amelia said she’d just burst into tears and get all upset if she saw me.’
‘I could go in and visit.’
‘Would you?’ Leo seemed to like that idea. ‘That would be great and, please, tell her she’s not to worry about me.’ He looked at Lizzie. He wanted to speak with her, he wanted to take up where they had left off, but in a rare occurrence his conscience was pricking.
Ethan was right.
Lizzie wasn’t his usual type—far from it. He was now more than questioning his decision to ask her to the ball. It was hard enough just stopping by and chatting to her.
‘I meant to ask you something,’ Lizzie said, before he walked away. ‘I’ve had a couple of patients asking when Abbie would be back. I assume she’s a doctor here?’
Leo nodded. ‘She’s a paediatric surgeon. Abbie de Luca …’
‘Oh!’ Lizzie’s eyes widened in question because de Luca was Rafael’s surname.
‘They’ve got a very sick baby.’
‘Oh, no …’ Lizzie really hadn’t had too many dealings with Rafael. His theatre list was spilling over and he was constantly at the hospital or closed in behind his office door. ‘Is there anything we can do …?’ She didn’t really know how to broach it—but shouldn’t he be home more with his family than working around the clock? ‘He seems to have a terribly heavy workload.’
‘Yes, well, he’s taken on a lot of Abbie’s patients.’ Leo felt uncomfortable discussing something so private but as head nurse Lizzie perhaps ought to be told. ‘We’re not keeping him from his family. Abbie is in America, there’s a new treatment but it’s …’ Leo gave an uncomfortable shrug, it was a very sensitive topic. ‘It’s probably better that you don’t ask Rafael how things are going. If he chooses to talk …’
‘Sure.’
‘And as for the patients, just say if they ask that she’s taking care of their daughter,’ Leo said, ‘which she is.’
‘Fine.’
‘Lizzie, about the ball …’ Leo hesitated, He really couldn’t retract his offer and anyway, apart from good manners, he assumed she’d already bought her dress and booked the million appointments women did before a ball such as this one. ‘I’ll pick you up at six.’
‘We could meet there.’
‘I’ll pick you up at six,’ he repeated.
Even though her pay had gone in, instead of venturing to the shops after work Lizzie headed over to the private wing at Kate’s and braced herself for tears and drama, but instead it was a beaming Francesca who greeted her!
‘Lizzie!’ She held out her arms. ‘Thank you so much for all you did for me.’
‘It’s just lovely to see you looking so well.’ It was—Francesca was sitting up in bed with her eyeliner and red lipstick on and even with an IV pump attached to her she still looked rather stunning. ‘Do you ever not wear make-up?’ Lizzie asked.
‘Never.’ Francesca laughed. ‘How is Leo?’
‘He’s just concerned about you,’ Lizzie said. ‘And he’s told me to let you know that you’re not to worry. It will all sort itself out. Leo wanted to come in and see you himself but thought it might cause you more upset …’
‘You haven’t heard, have you?’
‘Heard what?’ Lizzie frowned.
‘I just did a radio interview.’ Francesca beamed. ‘I said that Leo didn’t do the surgery. I said that he had operated on me in the past and I was thrilled with his work but why would I be faithful to my surgeon when I couldn’t even manage to be faithful to my husbands and lovers …’ She gave a wicked laugh. ‘I said that I was not ashamed to admit that I accept a little help for my appearance. I also told them that when I felt unwell last Monday, I went to the man I trust most with my health. I said that darling Leo took wonderful care of me and that it tears at my heart that he is being blamed for something that had nothing to do with him. Leo saved my life.’
‘Oh, Francesca!’ Lizzie’s eyes filled with tears. ‘You didn’t have to speak to the media.’
‘Of course I did.’ Francesca shrugged. ‘And it wasn’t so bad …’ Her face brightened into a beaming smile as she looked over her shoulder. ‘Lizzie, this is Tony. The cause of all this.’
A very dashing, very elegant man came into the room. ‘It’s all my fault, of course,’ Tony said, smiling as he shook Lizzie’s hand.
‘Of course it is,’ Francesca happily agreed. ‘I had to nearly die to get him to come and see me.’
Lizzie could just imagine the tempestuous rows—Francesca and a fiery Italian was a passionate combination.
‘You could have just picked up the telephone,’ Tony said, then turned back to Lizzie. ‘Thank you so much for saving her. Thank you to all at the Hunter Clinic.’
‘We really did very little.’
‘Nonsense,’ Francesca scolded. ‘Tony, can you give us a minute?’ The moment Tony had left, Francesca asked for Lizzie to fetch her bag. ‘Can I ask you to do a couple of little jobs for me?’ She was a star, a diva, and she made Lizzie smile. ‘Amelia has to go and look after her children but I have run out of my body lotion and naturally I don’t want to ask Tony.’
‘Of course.’
‘And I need my favourite hair conditioner.’ She wrote quite a list as she spoke on. ‘I hope it’s no trouble.’
‘It’s not,’ Lizzie answered truthfully. ‘I have to get a few things anyway. I’m going to a ball …’
‘The Princess Catherine’s ball?’ Francesca beamed. ‘What are you wearing?’
‘I’m not sure,’ Lizzie admitted. ‘I’ve got my black dress …’ Francesca’s rather shocked features weren’t helping matters.
‘You’re not getting something new to wear?’
‘I’m going to look for something tonight,’ Lizzie admitted. ‘I’ll make up my mind then. I might find something I like …’
‘Who’s doing your hair and make-up?’
‘Me.’
‘No, no,’ Francesca, rather frantically, shook her head. ‘You have to plan this. It’s not just a dress, think of it as a costume, think of who you are going to be that night … If I wasn’t so drained I could help you with your make-up.’
Lizzie smothered a smile as she imagined Leo’s expression if he picked her up in full prima ballerina make-up mode. ‘I’ll manage,’ Lizzie said, but she had lost her audience. Francesca was looking over her shoulder and beaming again and Lizzie assumed that Tony was back but jumped slightly when she heard Leo’s voice.
‘You didn’t have to do that.’
‘Leo!’ Francesca dismissed his concerns with a flick of the wrist. ‘As I said to Lizzie, it wasn’t so bad. I nearly died on Monday and I am vain enough that, dying or not, the last thing I wanted was Tony to see me looking as I did. It was embarrassing, it was awful, but I survived it. I don’t think anything could embarrass me after that.’ She gave a cheeky smile. ‘According to the lady who interviewed me, I am the new face of ageing apparently—seventy is the new fifty!’
‘You’re scandalous!’ Leo said.
‘I intend to be to the day I die.’
‘I’m going to go.’ Lizzie gave Francesca a kiss as she took the list and an awful lot of cash. ‘I’ll pop in later with your things.’