The GP’s Meant-To-Be Bride

by Jennifer Taylor

  Gemma got up and put her arm around her. ‘I think you need to see one of the doctors, Sarah. I’ll check who’s free. I really don’t feel happy about starting your injections today if you’re sickening for something. It wouldn’t be very sensible, would it?’

  ‘I don’t suppose so.’ Sarah sighed as she mopped her eyes with a tissue. ‘Although Martin will be furious if I don’t have my shot today. He’s been planning this holiday for ages. I don’t want to go, really, because I can’t bear the thought of having to strip off if we go to the beach, but Martin refuses to listen to me. He keeps telling me that I should buck up my ideas and stop moaning.’ She gave a noisy sniff. ‘I don’t know why he stays with me. I mean, look at me! I’m so gross that it’s no wonder he doesn’t fancy me any more.’

  Gemma didn’t say anything as she reached for the phone. If Sarah’s husband tried being a little more sympathetic there might not be a problem, she thought privately. She checked with Carol and discovered that Ross had a cancelled appointment in fifteen minutes’ time so booked Sarah in. Once everything was arranged she took the other woman through to the meeting room and let her wait in there rather than return to the reception area while she was upset.

  She promised Sarah that she would take her through to see Ross when it was time and went back to her room, trying to curb the feeling of excitement that was making her feel twitchy now too. She’d not seen Ross yet that day but the memory of what had happened on Saturday still loomed large. Ross had seemed so relaxed when he’d been at her house, and she’d found herself responding to him even more than usual. It was only the thought of how horrified he would be if he saw her scars that had brought her down to earth. And what a bumpy landing it had been.

  It had been years since she’d felt so angry. Not even when she’d split up with Mike had she felt so overwhelmed by the unfairness of it all. However, on Saturday the pain had been too much to bear. What had made it worse was that Ross had witnessed her distress.

  Should she have told him the truth? she wondered, not for the first time. But how could she have told him when it would have meant her explaining everything else—how she’d been thinking about him in those jeans and taking her to his bed…

  Heat washed through her and she knew that she couldn’t have risked telling Ross about her accident on Saturday, neither could she tell him in the future either. Although she knew how sympathetic he would be, that wasn’t the point. It must remain her secret, one she could never share with him in case it meant she had to share all the others.

  Ross had been looking forward to a break after Carol had informed him that his eleven o’clock appointment had cancelled. His list had seemed to be longer than ever that day and those precious few minutes would have been nice. Normally, he worked through his appointments and didn’t even think about it, but he felt very on edge that day. He’d felt this way ever since Saturday, too, felt uneasy, distracted, unable to concentrate on the simplest tasks, and it was all down to Gemma and the effect she seemed to be having on him recently. Why was he so acutely aware of her all of a sudden when he had never really noticed her before?

  It was impossible to answer that question. When Carol phoned to tell him that she had slotted in another patient, he was relieved. Perhaps he didn’t need a breather after all—he needed to concentrate on his job and stop thinking all these crazy thoughts. He ushered out his patient and went back to his desk, not bothering to glance up when there was a knock on the door.

  ‘Come in,’ he called, his gaze locked to the computer as he finished updating the previous patient’s file.

  ‘Good morning, Dr Mackenzie,’ someone said quietly and Ross’s head jerked up when he immediately recognised Gemma’s voice.

  ‘Good morning, Gemma,’ he replied, feeling a smile twitching at the corners of his mouth as he looked at her. She was dressed in her usual uniform which comprised a navy-blue cotton dress and flat shoes. However, the funny thing was that even though he must have seen her in the outfit hundreds of times before, he’d never realised before how much it suited her. He felt a sudden stirring in his lower body and hurriedly looked away. There was no point fantasising about how the body beneath that crisply laundered cotton would look because he was never going to find out!

  He cleared his throat, determined to get a grip on himself and his wayward emotions. ‘Did you want to speak to me about a patient?’

  ‘Yes, Sarah Roberts. Carol has slotted her into your list—has she told you?’ She carried on when he nodded. ‘Sarah was supposed to have the first of her travel immunisation shots this morning. She and her husband are going to Mexico after Christmas so it’s the usual—typhoid and hepatitis A. If I’m not mistaken, you signed the authorisation note.’

  ‘I did. Why? Is there a problem about Sarah having the shots?’

  ‘I’m not sure. That’s why I thought she should see you before I gave them to her.’

  ‘You’d better sit down and tell me what’s worrying you,’ Ross said immediately. He waited while Gemma took her seat, clamping down on the spasm of appreciation that reared its naughty little head again as he watched her cross her shapely legs. No fantasising, no imagining, and definitely no lusting!

  ‘It’s hard to pinpoint what’s wrong, but Sarah doesn’t seem like herself today. She’s very flushed and her pulse and breathing are both very erratic.’

  Gemma frowned as she tried to work out how best to explain and Ross did a bit more heavy-duty clamping when he saw her delicate brows knit together so beguilingly. He had never thought that eyebrows could be erotic, but they could be on the right person, it appeared.

  ‘That’s it, is it?’ he said quickly because he hated feeling that he wasn’t in control. He’d never experienced this problem before and he couldn’t understand what was wrong with him now…unless the shock of the previous week’s events had knocked his system out of kilter.

  It seemed like the most logical explanation and he clung to it, like a drowning man to a life raft. ‘She’s flushed and has an erratic pulse and breathing? Nothing else?’

  ‘No, except that Sarah mentioned she’d felt very jittery over the weekend, as though she’d had a shock, but it was all very vague, I’m afraid.’ Gemma sighed. ‘I’m sorry to be so unhelpful but that’s all I could get out of her. It’s obvious that she’s extremely unhappy, though.’

  ‘About her weight?’ Ross suggested.

  ‘That’s the main reason, although the fact that her husband is less than sympathetic isn’t helping. Sarah seems to believe that he no longer finds her attractive because she’s overweight.’

  ‘That’s a difficult one to resolve.’ Ross shrugged when Gemma looked at him questioningly. ‘The more upset Sarah is about the state of her marriage, the more she comforts herself by eating, and the problem spirals.’

  ‘If only her husband would reassure her that her weight doesn’t matter, it would help.’

  ‘If it’s true, yes, it would help. But maybe her weight does matter to him. Maybe he finds it a turn-off.’

  ‘So it’s all down to appearance,’ she said bitterly. ‘Men can only love a woman if she conforms to their idea of perfection.’

  Ross frowned when he heard the bitter note in her voice. He had a feeling the comment was based on personal experience, but that didn’t make any sense. His gaze skimmed over Gemma and he didn’t even attempt to curb the surge his body gave this time. Gemma was gorgeous from the top of her silky head to the tips of her toes in those sensible shoes so what experience could she have of being rejected? He was on the verge of asking her when she stood up.

  ‘I’ll fetch Sarah in,’ she said coolly as she went to the door.

  Ross sat back in his seat, trying to clear his mind so he could concentrate on their patient’s problem rather than Gemma’s…He sighed. What problem? He was merely speculating that there was a problem and he couldn’t possibly be right. His gaze lingered on Gemma as she ushered Sarah into the room. There wasn’t a man born who wouldn’t want t
o be with Gemma and keep her by his side, day in and day out. She was perfect in every way and he was only sorry that it had taken him so long to realise that himself.

  Gemma got Sarah settled in the chair. She knew there was no reason why she should stay, but she’d seen the pleading look Sarah had given her and didn’t have the heart to leave her. Sitting down beside her, she shot Ross an anxious look, but he seemed well aware of the other woman’s fragile state of mind.

  ‘Gemma has told me that you’ve not felt very well over the weekend, Sarah,’ he said gently. ‘We need to get to the bottom of what may be wrong with you, don’t we?’

  ‘Yes.’ Sarah bit her lip and Gemma could tell that she was close to tears again.

  ‘There’s no need to worry about getting upset, Sarah. Sometimes having a good cry is the best medicine of all.’ Ross smiled sympathetically at her. ‘Bottling things up causes a lot more damage, believe me.’

  ‘I thought I was going mad,’ Sarah admitted, obviously relieved to be able to talk about what was worrying her. ‘I feel so jittery, as though every nerve in my body is jangling.’

  ‘Have you taken anything that could have caused this reaction?’ Ross looked calmly into Sarah’s eyes. ‘Some drugs are known to have this kind of an effect and I’d like to rule them out or get you the help you may need.’

  ‘Drugs,’ Sarah echoed, then flushed. ‘Oh, no, no! I’ve not taken anything like that. I mean, I wouldn’t!’

  ‘Good. I’m pleased to hear it, but I had to ask.’

  Ross’s tone was soothing and Gemma saw Sarah relax again. He was always so good with the patients, she thought, so kind and sympathetic that they couldn’t help responding to him. The thought sent a feeling of warmth flooding through her. She couldn’t help responding to him either, although it wasn’t his sympathy she wanted.

  ‘The first principle of diagnosis is to rule out the obvious and that’s what we’ve just done,’ he continued in the same easy tone, and Gemma forced her mind to behave itself. ‘I’m going to examine you now, take your blood pressure and ask you a few more questions if that’s all right?’

  ‘Yes. Thank you.’

  Ross got up and came around the desk. Gemma jumped up and went to fetch the sphygmomanometer off the shelf in the corner. He nodded when she brought it over to him.

  ‘Thanks. Would you do the honours?’

  ‘Of course.’

  Gemma wrapped the inflatable cuff around Sarah’s upper arm and pumped it up. She took the reading and then repeated it to make sure it was correct. Ross leant over to check the reading and frowned.

  ‘That reading is way too high, although it wasn’t a problem on Friday.’

  ‘Sarah’s BP has always been very steady,’ Gemma agreed, trying not to notice how good he smelled as the spicy scent of shower gel assailed her nostrils.

  ‘Which means this is a very recent occurrence.’

  He checked Sarah’s pulse next, then listened to her chest, back and front through his stethoscope. Gemma didn’t want to disturb him so once she had unfastened the cuff, she stayed where she was, crammed between him and the desk. She tried not to breathe too deeply, not wanting to test her willpower again by drinking in any more of that delicious aroma, only it wasn’t just her nostrils that were tingling now. Ross’s nearness was having its usual effect on her, but whereas in the past she had been able to control it, it was more difficult now that the mental barriers had been breached. He was no longer Heather’s fiancé and it was hard to slot him back into the safe category when she wanted to slot him into a very different one.

  ‘Tell me what you did at the weekend, Sarah.’

  Ross finished his examination and resumed his seat. Gemma’s legs felt weak as she returned the sphygmomanometer to its rightful place. Being in such close proximity to him had been a test of her self-control but she’d survived. She went back and sat beside Sarah, determined to focus on this problem.

  ‘Nothing much. I did some housework and shopping, cooked our meals. That’s about it.’

  ‘And your husband ate the same food as you did?’ Ross persisted.

  ‘Well, no. I have that diet sheet, and Martin isn’t keen on salads and things like that,’ Sarah replied, sounding flustered. She started plucking at the strap on her bag again and Gemma could tell that she was becoming increasingly agitated.

  Ross noticed it as well because he leant forward and looked her in the eyes. ‘Is there something you aren’t telling us, Sarah? We only want to help you so please don’t think that we’re going to judge you. Our sole concern is your welfare, isn’t that right, Gemma?’

  ‘Yes,’ Gemma agreed, turning to the other woman. ‘Dr Mackenzie and I want to help you, Sarah.’

  Sarah’s face suddenly crumpled. ‘I think it might be the coffee,’ she whispered.

  ‘Coffee?’ Gemma repeated, glancing at Ross, who shrugged.

  ‘Yes. I found this diet on the Internet, you see. It said that if you drank lots of very strong coffee it would help you lose weight. Dozens of people had written to the site to say how much weight they’d lost so I thought I’d try it.’ She tailed off, tears streaming down her face.

  Ross sighed. ‘Do you know how many cups of coffee you’ve drunk?’

  ‘Not really. Several dozen, I suppose. I had five this morning before I came here.’

  ‘And I expect it was strong coffee too, like espresso?’ Ross said gently.

  ‘Yes,’ Sarah mumbled miserably.

  ‘Then it’s pretty clear what’s happened. You’ve overdosed on caffeine. That’s why you feel so hot and nervous, and why your heart is racing and your blood pressure is elevated.’

  ‘Overdosed? But it was just coffee!’ Sarah exclaimed. ‘You make it sound like I’ve taken some sort of drug!’

  ‘Because that’s what caffeine is—a stimulant drug that occurs naturally in coffee beans, tea leaves, cocoa beans and cola nuts. It’s classified as a drug to the extent that it’s use is banned by athletes taking part in any kind of sporting event.’

  ‘But I had no idea…I mean, everyone drinks coffee,’ Sarah protested.

  ‘But not in the quantity that you’ve been drinking it. A couple of cups of coffee a day—regular strength, mind—is fine. However, more than that can lead to caffeine addiction and there’s all the usual side-effects when you stop drinking it—headaches, tremors, sleeplessness, etcetera.’

  ‘I feel so stupid. I had no idea it could do all those things. I just wanted to lose weight as fast as I could.’

  ‘Believe me, Sarah, this isn’t the way,’ Ross said firmly. ‘All you’ll do is ruin your health and it’s not worth that, is it?’

  ‘No,’ Sarah said slowly. ‘I don’t want to make myself ill. I just want to feel pretty again and know that Martin finds me attractive.’

  ‘Then stick to the diet we’ve given you,’ Ross told her. ‘It won’t happen overnight because it isn’t a miracle cure. But any weight loss will be achieved sensibly and without you endangering your health.’

  Sarah nodded. ‘You’re right. I can’t believe how silly I’ve been. I felt so ill this morning, too. I thought I was dying.’

  ‘You’ll feel a lot better once the caffeine works its way out of your system,’ Ross assured her. ‘Drink plenty of water and get some rest, and you should feel a lot better tomorrow.’ He glanced at Gemma. ‘I don’t think it’s wise to start the immunisation programme today so maybe you can reschedule Sarah’s appointment for next week.’

  ‘Of course.’ Gemma stood up and followed Sarah to the door.

  She glanced back when Ross said quietly behind her, ‘Well done for recognising there was a problem. Hopefully, we’ve managed to stop it developing into anything more serious.’

  ‘You mean, you’ve stopped it developing into something more serious,’ Gemma countered. Her gaze rested on his handsome face and it felt as though her heart was swelling to double its normal size. He was such a good doctor and such a good person. He deserved to be happy and she
would do everything she could to help him win back the woman he loved.

  ‘The credit is all yours, Ross,’ she said, forcing down the lump in her throat because she couldn’t help wishing that she was that woman. ‘I just wish that Heather had seen you with Sarah just now. She would realise exactly what she has lost.’

  There wasn’t time to say anything else as Sarah was waiting for her. She closed the door and accompanied Sarah to the desk where they set up another appointment for the following week. After that, Gemma had to catch up with her own appointments. She overran, of course, and ended up working through her lunch-break, but it didn’t matter. It was better to stay busy, to keep her thoughts centred and not let them wander. She knew where they would have ended up—where they always did, with Ross.

  CHAPTER NINE

  ANOTHER

  week passed, the second since his aborted wedding day, and Ross was rostered to work on the Saturday morning. Although a lot of practices closed on Saturdays, Dalverston Surgery opened for emergency appointments only. With there being only two weeks left before Christmas, he didn’t expect it to be busy that day, but one couldn’t always foretell these things. He arrived for work at his usual time, nodding to Dianne Southern, their new receptionist, as he went in. ‘Oh, before you go, Dr Mackenzie, there’s been a call.’ Dianne handed him a slip of paper. ‘Mrs Naylor from Naylor’s Farm phoned. She said that her husband wasn’t well and could someone pop out to see him.’

  ‘Did Mrs Naylor say what was wrong with him?’ Ross asked, wondering how urgent the situation was.

  ‘No.’ Dianne frowned. ‘Her exact words were that her hubby wasn’t feeling too good and she thought he should see the doctor, if it wasn’t too much trouble.’

  ‘Right. Can you phone Mrs Naylor back and tell her that I’ll call after surgery finishes? And if you could find out a bit more information for me, Dianne, it would help.’