Lara glanced across the room towards his children. Chloe was holding onto Aggie’s hand. ‘You have wonderful children, Dr Blake.’
‘Yes.’ He looked at them for a moment and then stirred. ‘I need to get back to the department. You know how busy it is at the moment.’
r /> ‘Do you want me to come in to work? Take the girls home for you? There must be something I can do.’ She wanted to do something. Wanted to say something. But they were standing in a busy department store, surrounded by Christmas shoppers.
Christian’s expression was guarded. ‘I don’t need help,’ he said quietly, ‘and I can take care of my girls.’
‘I’m sure you can. But who takes care of you, Christian?’The words flew from her mouth before she could stop them and he lifted an eyebrow.
‘I think I’m probably old enough to take care of myself.’
She flushed. ‘Everyone needs to be loved. Oh, God, I’m starting to sound like my mother. I’m just saying that you need to be looked after, too. Not that I’m trying to suggest that I…’ Her colour deepened as she realised how her words had sounded. ‘I didn’t exactly mean that I—’
‘Staff Nurse King.’ His voice was soft and the expression in his eyes was remote and discouraging. ‘Take my advice and quit now before you say anything else that you don’t mean.’
She held his gaze and awareness flared between them. The atmosphere crackled with tension and this time she was unable to defuse it by telling herself that he was married. ‘I could help you. I’d like to help,’ she said impulsively, and he was silent for a long moment, as if he didn’t know quite how to respond to her offer.
Finally he drew breath. ‘I’ll pretend we didn’t just have this conversation.’ He stepped back from her. ‘And I’ll pretend that I didn’t see you dressed as a fairy. If the chief executive decides to bring his grandchildren to see Father Christmas, I advise you to use those wings of yours and fly off somewhere where he can’t see you. I’ll see you back in the emergency department.’
* * *
The weather grew suddenly cold and the next week was horribly busy.
A week after her encounter with Christian in the grotto, Lara was doing a dressing in the treatment room when Jane stuck her head round the door. ‘Christian wants you in Resus, Lara.’ She gave an apologetic smile. ‘Listen to me! If I had a pound for every time I utter that phrase, I could retire somewhere hot and spend my life lying under a palm tree. I pointed out that there are actually other nurses in this department but apparently you’re the sharpest. It’s going to be awful when you leave. The rest of us will have to wake up and do some work.’
Lara wasn’t listening. Instead, she was trying to produce a reasonable explanation for the fact that her hands were shaking at the mere mention of Christian’s name. The meeting in Santa’s grotto had changed their relationship. For her, at least. She no longer saw Christian Blake as the slightly intimidating senior consultant, remote and out of reach. Married. Instead, she saw him as a warm, caring father. An incredibly sexy, single man…
Oh, for crying out loud, what was the matter with her? It didn’t matter if he was single and sexy. She was going to Australia.
And that was why she was thinking about him, of course.
Because she wasn’t in a position to begin a relationship with anyone and you always wanted what you couldn’t have.
Feeling the familiar rush of excitement at the thought of her proposed trip, she rationalised her feelings by reminding herself that the unobtainable was always more alluring.
Lara finished with the patient, washed her hands and followed Jane out into the corridor.
‘So what have we got this time?’
‘Twenty-five-year-old female cyclist hit black ice and collided with a car. She’d just had the office Christmas lunch so I think there might have been some alcohol involved. The ambulance is due in five minutes. But Christian wants you in there. Apparently you’re the most efficient nurse he’s ever worked with.’ Jane shrugged. ‘All I can say is the guy must have worked with some real duds.’
Lara laughed. ‘Thanks, boss. You’re a real boost to my confidence.’
She followed Jane into Resus, confident that her mind was back on the job. One swift glance towards Christian told her that he was well and truly back in his role of consultant—driven, confident and decisive.
No problem. Everything was fine.
And then he looked at her.
He was in conversation with the radiologist but his gaze settled on Lara and for a brief moment their eyes held and something passed between them—a wordless communication that made her body flare hot with awareness.
Christian didn’t falter in his instructions to the radiologist but Lara felt her mind go blank and for a brief, terrifying moment she couldn’t concentrate on a thing. She saw his eyes darken slightly and knew that he felt it, too. And sensed that the unexpected chemistry somehow irritated him.
Aware that her knees and hands were shaking, she bit back a whimper of frustration and turned her back on him, forcing herself to cut the connection.
What was the matter with her?
It normally took her less than five minutes to start spotting all the things that were wrong with a man.