A Mother for His Twins

by Lucy Clark

  ‘Dr Thorngate,’ Martha said, breaking into her thoughts. ‘This is Dr Edwards.’

  Jennifer turned her attention away from the door to look at the man sitting behind her new desk, in her new chair. He took his time standing, as though he didn’t care he’d been found riffling through her papers. There was confidence about him and she liked that. He wore dark trousers, a crisp white shirt and a colourful tie. The shirt, however, pulled slightly across his arms as he pushed on the desk with both hands as he stood. The fabric outlined two very firm and well-toned arms and she couldn’t help but note how broad his shoulders were.

  His hair was dark brown and his eyes were a smoky grey, filled with politeness as he came over and held out his hand. ‘Dr Thorngate. Welcome to Parramatta Hospital, although I understand from your file that you actually trained here.’

  ‘Medical school, yes.’ Why did she feel as though he was the boss and she was the new recruit? ‘Thank you for the welcome, Dr Edwards.’

  ‘Please. Call me Eddie. Most of the staff do.’

  ‘All right, Eddie. I understand you’ve been keeping the seat warm—literally.’ She pointed to the chair he’d just vacated.

  He smiled at that and the effect made her do a double-take. Nice. Very nice. She swallowed and forced herself to look away. ‘That’s right.’ He turned to the secretary. ‘Martha, would you mind getting refreshments? I’m sure Dr Thorngate could do with a quick cuppa before ward round.’

  ‘Oh, I’m fine. I’ve already had two cups of coffee this morning.’ Jennifer quickly waved his words away, wanting to get control over her equilibrium. It wasn’t a common occurrence for her to be knocked off guard by a simple smile but that’s exactly what Dr Edwards…Eddie, she corrected herself…had done. With firm strides, she headed around the desk.

  He leaned forward a little and raised his eyebrows questioningly. ‘Nerves?’

  ‘Uh…’ For a whole second Jennifer’s mind went blank. The man really was extremely good-looking and highly personable. If everyone in her new department was like him, she wasn’t going to have any trouble settling in. ‘Something like that.’

  Dr Edwards smiled again. ‘Well, you’re probably going to need to top up at some point because you have an extremely busy day ahead of you.’ He didn’t move. Didn’t shift to the other side of the desk, as she’d expected him to. Instead, he stood there, his tall, firm body now close to hers. Close enough that she could feel the heat radiating from him and smell the fresh scent of his aftershave. Spicy and woodsy. Nice. Very nice.

  Jennifer closed her eyes for a brief moment, forcing herself to shift into professional gear. Dr Edwards was just another colleague and while he was her equal when it came to qualifications, he wasn’t head of unit, which, in context of the hospital’s protocols, made her his new boss.

  When she next looked at him, it was to find him studying her with a degree of confusion. ‘Something wrong? Caffeine headache?’

  ‘No. No. Not at all.’

  Jennifer fingered a pile of neat papers stacked on the desk as Martha left, closing the door behind her. ‘Is this the usual inheritance?’

  Eddie laughed. ‘I’ve tried to clear as much of the backlog as I could but there are things I thought it better for you to deal with.’

  ‘Then why don’t you take a seat…’ she indicated the one on the opposite side of her desk ‘…and let me know what requires my urgent attention?’

  Thankfully, Eddie took the hint and moved, pulling the chair up to the edge of the desk. He was still close, still crowding her a little, but thankfully now there was a large slab of wood between them rather than just a few inches of carpet. The man radiated charm, manners and had an abundance of sex appeal. As he pointed to a piece of paper, she checked his hands. Both ringless—although that meant nothing. Was he married? Engaged? Attached in some way?

  She sat there, looking at him, and realised he was expecting an answer. Clearing her throat as well as her mind from distracting thoughts of her new colleague, Jennifer forced herself to concentrate.

  ‘I’m sorry. Would you mind repeating that?’

  ‘Is anything wrong? You seem a little…I don’t know…preoccupied, distracted.’ Now he was looking at her as if she couldn’t handle the job. Well, she knew she could and she was determined to show him just how well she could do it.

  ‘No. Let’s get things sorted.’ When she didn’t elaborate any further, Eddie repeated his initial question, which she answered knowledgeably and without vacillation.

  ‘Right, then. The next thing that requires your immediate attention is the new research grant. It’s due in on Thursday so there are only a few more days to finalise all matters.’

  ‘Who’s the supervisor on the project?’

  ‘You.’

  ‘Me? I’ve inherited a research project already?’

  Eddie smiled again and once more Jennifer couldn’t believe how it changed his face. Where his initial smile had been polite and welcoming, even mildly humourous, this one made his eyes sparkle, his white, straight teeth bright and inviting. Laughter lines creased at the corners of his eyes and to top off the effect, he pushed a stray lock of hair back from his forehead and shrugged his firm, broad shoulders. ‘Nothing says “Welcome to the department” like inheriting a research project.’

  Jennifer couldn’t help but return his smile. It was so very rare that she took an instant liking to people but Dr Edwards was proving himself to be one of them. ‘I guess you’re right. Who’s the assistant supervisor?’

  ‘I am. As you can see, most of the details are in place. I’ve had Martha schedule some time for you to come across to the laboratory tomorrow afternoon so we can go over things together. That way you won’t be making your decision based only on the theory and hard-copy explanations.’

  ‘Good. Thanks for organising that.’ She put the research papers in a pile. ‘I’ll read this tonight.’

  They continued working and half an hour later, when Martha knocked on the door to say the eight-thirty ward round would start in five minutes, Jennifer looked at the large pile of papers she would be working her way through that night.

  Eddie pointed to the pile. ‘I’m so glad that’s yours and not mine any more.’

  ‘You don’t like administration work?’

  ‘Not my favourite thing to be doing of an evening.’

  ‘Cuts into your social life?’ She’d said the comment in an offhanded manner and when he didn’t answer immediately, she looked up, surprised to find him almost frowning at her. It was on the tip of her tongue to apologise but he merely shrugged, the frown instantly disappearing.

  ‘Something like that.’

  ‘Dr Edwards. If you don’t mind me asking, why didn’t you simply take on the position of head of unit yourself? Surely it wasn’t because of the amount of paperwork because, from what I’ve seen during the past half an hour, you’re a man who knows what he’s doing, knows how to run a department and is obviously very comfortable working here. I guess I’m at a loss as to why they didn’t simply promote you rather than sourcing from outside the hospital.’

  ‘Worried you think you’re stepping on my toes?’ His good humour was back and she wondered whether she’d imagined that little frown that had previously pierced his brow.

  ‘A little bit. I don’t like stepping on other people’s toes.’

  ‘Don’t be concerned on my account.’ Eddie put his big manly hand onto his chest. ‘I promise you, I didn’t want the job so you don’t have to be worried about other staff members thinking you’ve come along and stepped on my toes—er…so to speak.’ There was that smile again, the one that brightened his eyes and made Jennifer feel all funny inside. She blinked once, clearing her mind and doing her best to ignore the sensation.

  ‘That’s a relief.’

  ‘Because of what happened at your last hospital?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘In Victoria, right? You were at the Royal Melbourne, correct?’

  ‘
Yes.’

  ‘You were brought in as deputy head, promoted above someone who had worked in the hospital for years, who’d acted in that position and who’d lost out to you.’

  Jennifer was taken aback at that. ‘How on earth do you know about that?’

  ‘Ah.’ He touched the side of his nose. ‘I have my sources.’

  ‘Really?’ Jennifer leaned back in her chair and couldn’t help but cross her arms over her chest in self-defence. ‘What else did your sources tell you?’

  Eddie’s lips twitched for a moment and he met her gaze. ‘That you were the ice princess. That you were crisp and cool to everyone you met whether they were your superior or not. That you have an exceedingly high opinion of yourself and that you’ll stop at next to nothing to ensure all jobs and staff perform at nothing short of an exceptional level.’

  ‘Hmm. Not very flattering.’ Her interpersonal skills were something she’d also promised herself to work on and she’d thought, given that she’d met two whole people in the department and not had one row, that she was doing quite well.

  ‘No. Not at all.’

  ‘Then why are you smiling at me? Aren’t you concerned that I’ll become crisp with you?’

  Eddie laughed, the sound rich and warm. It was definitely guaranteed to melt any ice she may have been surrounding herself with. ‘Not at all. In fact…’ he leaned a little closer on the desk, his eyes intent with good humour ‘I’m willing to bet you were only that cold because the rest of the staff gave you a hard time. A protective reaction, if you will. Sort of like the echidna. It only puts its prickles up when it’s being attacked. We all have defence mechanisms.’

  Jennifer liked his answer and nodded but wished he’d move back. The after shave he wore was rather alluring. ‘We do.’

  He stayed where he was for another split second, their eyes meeting. ‘My sister’s a little like that. I guess that’s why I can recognise the trait in others.’

  ‘S-sister?’ She wished he’d move, give her some space, and as if he could read her mind, he did just that, leaning back before standing.

  ‘She’s a general surgeon.’

  The intercom on Jennifer’s desk buzzed and Martha announced that both of them were expected on the ward immediately. The interruption was enough to make Jennifer look away.

  ‘Anyway, given that I was armed with this prior information of you,’ Jasper continued, straightening his tie, ‘I hoped that if I greeted you with a warm and endearing attitude, you wouldn’t feel the need to be all ice and bristle.’

  Jennifer stood and headed over to the coat rack by the door to get the new white coat which hung there for her. Eddie beat her to it and held it open for her. ‘Thank you,’ she said as she slipped her arms in, breathing in his warm, spicy scent again. Nice. Very nice. She stood there for a moment and so did he. She could feel the warmth of his body very close to hers and her heart rate started to increase. Who was this man? He smelt good, had a nice smile and firm arms…arms that would protect. To top it all off, he was charming and appeared to be quite honest and not afraid to speak his mind. She respected that.

  She turned her head to look up at him and was surprised to find him simply watching her, his grey eyes intent. Swallowing, she found she couldn’t move, mesmerised by the atmosphere that surrounded them. She was positive he could hear her heart pounding against her ribs, its rhythm increasing at the look in his eyes, but within the next second he’d shifted away, reaching for his own white coat which had hung next to hers on the rack. He turned his back as he slipped it on and Jennifer smoothed the collar of her own coat as she looked at the floor and tried desperately to forget whatever it was that had just passed between them.

  ‘Ward round,’ he said.

  ‘Ward round.’ She nodded and walked towards the door. Again his long strides had him there before her. ‘Oh, I don’t have my new ID badge yet. Is that going to matter?’

  He angled his head. ‘I think everyone’s going to know who you are.’ He took his own ID badge out of his coat pocket and clipped it on. It had his picture on it, his name and title. ‘Everyone should have theirs on so you’ll be able to learn their names, ranks and serial numbers.’ He chuckled at his own joke but Jennifer hadn’t really heard what he’d said as her eyes were intent on his own badge.

  ‘Jasper? Your name is Jasper?’

  ‘Yes. Jasper Edwards.’

  ‘Jasper Edwards?’ She said the name slowly and then closed her eyes and shook her head. ‘You’re Jasper Edwards?’

  ‘Is something wrong?’

  ‘You don’t by any chance have a couple of gorgeous four-year-old daughters with lovely blonde ringlets and blue eyes called Lilly and Lola, do you?’

  Jasper’s puzzled expression slid from his face to be replaced by one of total incredulity, his eyes wide with disbelief, yet he kept his voice controlled and calm. ‘How on earth do you know that?’

  CHAPTER TWO

  ‘I KNEW it.’ Jennifer shook her head and walked past him, not even bothering to look at Martha as she strode down the corridor.

  ‘Knew what?’ Jasper was beside her in an instant, those long strides of his eating up the distance with ease. ‘How do you know all these things?’

  ‘I knew she couldn’t resist meddling in my life but this…this is pure cunning.’ Jennifer was muttering, talking more to herself than to Jasper, but he was listening quite intently as he kept pace with her.

  ‘Who? Who are you talking about? How do you know about my girls?’

  Jennifer stopped walking and turned to face him. ‘Sara.’ Her tone was cross and after shaking her head she continued on her way.

  ‘Sara? Matt’s wife?’

  ‘Yes, Matt’s wife. How many Saras do you know?’

  ‘A few. That’s not the point. Obviously you know Sara.’

  ‘Yes, and obviously we spoke on the phone last week.’

  ‘What?’ Jasper couldn’t believe how bewildering this woman was. She was smart, gorgeous and his new boss. To top it all off, she knew about his daughters. It wasn’t that people around the hospital didn’t know he had children, they did, but Jasper had worked hard to keep his private life as far away from the hospital world as possible.

  When he’d started dating again two years ago, he’d made a pact with himself to protect the girls as much as possible. He’d started out by not wanting to date anyone who worked at the hospital but as he spent the majority of his time there—and the rest at home with the twins—he realised it was virtually impossible to meet anyone who wasn’t associated in some way with the medical profession. To ensure the girls were protected, he’d compartmentalised his life and things had been going swimmingly…until now. If Jennifer knew Sara then his two worlds had just collided with a very loud bang and he wasn’t quite sure what to do next.

  ‘What do you mean we spoke on the phone? When?’

  ‘The other day when you called Sara’s house. The line was bad. Remember?’

  ‘That was you?’ His eyebrows shot up in surprise. ‘Why did you say you were Sara?’

  ‘I didn’t. I told you it wasn’t Sara but you couldn’t hear me.’

  He nodded. ‘The line was bad.’

  They weren’t far from the ward now and Jennifer was having difficulties slotting Jasper ‘call me Eddie’ Edwards into a nice, neat compartment. He didn’t fit under the ‘work colleague’ banner, neither did he fit under the ‘friend’ banner, and in the past those were the only two banners she’d had. Knowing he was a friend of Sara’s automatically connected her professional and private lives together and she didn’t like that at all. She needed to get this sorted out and now.

  She came to a halt and grabbed Jasper’s arm, pulling him into a small nook near a drinking fountain.

  ‘Look. I don’t like it when my personal and private lives mix.’

  ‘Neither do I.’

  ‘Good. Then Sara can just forget her wild ideas and we can simply work together as colleagues and nothing more. Agreed?’
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  Jasper frowned. ‘What wild ideas? What on earth are you talking about?’

  ‘Sara!’

  ‘I’ve gathered that much. I’ve also realised you’re the friend who’s been staying with Sara for this past week.’

  ‘Yes.’ It was her turn to frown.

  ‘The girls came home on Thursday, after spending the day with Sara, talking about Sara’s friend, Jen. I’m guessing you’re Jen.’

  ‘You really are very smart, Dr Edwards. Good to know you can connect the dots so easily.’ Her tone was laced with light sarcasm.

  ‘Hey. Why are you cross with me? It’s just a coincidence, that’s all.’

  ‘Yes, but one I could have at least prepared myself for.’

  ‘You’re talking in riddles again.’

  ‘Sara’s been trying to get me to date again.’

  Jasper’s eyebrows hit his hairline at her words. ‘Sara wants to set us up!’

  ‘Now you’re getting the picture.’ Jennifer looked down at her clenched hands for a moment, then lifted her head, raising her chin with a hint of defiance. Jasper found he liked the action but pushed that thought aside for now. ‘We were talking about you the other day. After you’d called.’

  ‘You were?’ Should he be worried? Jennifer had already mentioned that Sara was trying to set them up. Had Sara been touting his good points? He waited.

  ‘I was trying to figure out the loose family connection.’ She waved her words away and shook her head as though a little embarrassed by her confession. ‘Anyway, I asked her where you worked and she quickly changed the subject. You see, she knew I was coming to work here—in this department. She knew you worked here so why do you think that a woman as bright and intelligent as Sara wouldn’t tell us about each other?’

  ‘I don’t know. It slipped her mind?’

  ‘Do you really believe that? If you do, you don’t know Sara all that well.’