The Italian Doctor

by Jennifer Taylor

  She smiled when she realised that Luke was awake. She turned to look at him, letting her eyes feast on his face. There were tiny lines fanning from the corners of his eyes, the dark shadow of stubble on his jaw, but he had never looked more handsome than he did at that moment, lying beside her in bed. ‘That I’m happy. That’s all.’

  An expression almost of pain crossed his face. ‘Maggie, I…’

  She pressed a finger against his lips, stopping the words because she didn’t want to hear them. ‘No. I know that nothing has changed and that in a few months time you’ll be…be going back to Boston.’

  Her voice broke just a little and she heard him sigh as he drew her into his arms. ‘I never wanted this to happen, Maggie. I certainly didn’t plan it.’

  ‘I know.’ She drew back and looked at him, determined to make him understand that she was telling the truth. Maybe she would have regrets later but she would deal with them when the time came. ‘I understand how you feel because I feel the same way. We never planned on this happening but it has. Now I can’t see any point in us not enjoying the next few months we have together.’

  ‘I wish I could argue with that,’ he said ruefully, dropping a kiss on her upturned face. ‘I know I should. I should be listing all the reasons why what we’ve done is wrong and doing my damnedest to put things right again.’

  ‘So why aren’t you?’ she murmured, letting her hand explore his chest. Smooth skin and silky hair slid beneath her appreciative fingertips and she sighed. This was something she could very easily get used to, a new, exciting game of touch and feel.

  He trapped her hand against him, preventing it from exploring further, and there was an expression of hungry resignation on his face when he looked at her. ‘Because I couldn’t muster a single convincing argument if my life depended on it at this moment. Damn it, Maggie, I’m putty in your hands!’

  She laughed as she eased her hand free and let it travel over the taut, flat muscles of his stomach and beyond. ‘Definitely not putty, Luke. Not in my opinion, anyway!’

  He laughed then groaned, rolling her over and pressing her into the mattress with a speed that stole her breath. This time there was an added tenderness to their love-making, almost a desperation about the way they clung together. Maybe they were both conscious of how soon it was all going to end but Maggie refused to let herself dwell on that. It was the present that mattered, not the future.

  ‘What do you think?’

  Maggie opened the door to the side room so that Beverley could see inside. She laughed when she saw the woman’s stunned expression.

  ‘I never expected… I had no idea…’ Beverley’s eyes welled with tears as she turned and hugged Maggie. ‘Thank you so much. It’s just wonderful!’

  ‘It’s our pleasure,’ Maggie declared, shooting a satisfied look around the room. It was Alan’s and Beverley’s wedding day and she, Angela and Tracy had decided that they had to do something to make it even more special for the couple.

  Alan still wasn’t well enough to be discharged so the registrar was coming to the hospital to perform the ceremony. Roger Hopkins had given permission for them to use the side room so the three of them had spent the morning getting it ready. They had finished night duty the day before and it should have been their day off, but they’d been happy to give up their free time for such a deserving cause.

  ‘The flowers are just beautiful,’ Beverley declared, admiring the arrangement that Maggie had made from flowers culled from her parents’ garden. ‘And look at those balloons,’ she gasped, pointing to a cascade of silver and blue helium balloons that filled one entire corner of the room.

  ‘Dr Fabrizzi sent those along as his contribution,’ Maggie explained, trying hard to control the tingle that just saying Luke’s name caused. ‘And Tracy and Angela made the streamers to match them,’ she continued, drawing Beverley’s attention to the yards and yards of paper chains the two young nurses had fashioned out of metallic paper.

  ‘It’s just wonderful. Alan will be so thrilled when he sees it!’ Beverley proclaimed.

  ‘Good. I’m glad you like it. The wedding is at two, isn’t it? So not long now. I love your dress, by the way. It really suits you,’ Maggie said sincerely, earning herself a grateful smile.

  ‘Do you think so?’ Beverley glanced down at the short, ivory silk dress she was wearing. ‘I decided that it would be a bit over the top to have a proper wedding dress in the circumstances, so I opted for something simple. Then I wasn’t sure if it was right.’

  ‘It’s perfect,’ Maggie assured her. ‘And you look lovely.’

  She looked round when she heard footsteps, feeling her heart lift when she saw Luke. It didn’t make any difference that it had been only a few hours since she’d last seen him because her heart still seemed to fill with joy.

  He had spent the previous night at her flat as he’d spent every night since the one when she’d been injured. In fact, they’d spent every moment they could together in the past few days. However, she refused to fall into the trap of thinking that the situation had changed and that Luke had revised his views on love and marriage.

  Luke enjoyed being with her. They laughed at the same things, liked the same music and made wonderful love together. None of those meant that he’d changed his plans for the future. When he returned to Boston they wouldn’t see each other again. It made the present all the more special because she felt as though she had to store up as many wonderful memories while she could.

  Beverley thanked him for the balloons then excused herself to go and see if Alan’s parents had arrived. Her own parents were elderly and they’d decided not to make the journey to England. However, once Alan was discharged, the couple intended to fly to America to visit them. All things considered, everything had worked out surprisingly well and Maggie said as much to Luke.

  ‘It certainly has,’ he agreed. ‘I believe Beverley is going to move to England.’

  ‘That’s right. She’s decided that Alan comes first and her job comes second.’ She hurried on when she realised what she’d said. It wouldn’t help to compare her situation to the other woman’s because she knew that Luke would never again compromise when it came to his work.

  ‘Did you know they’d asked Ted Robert’s wife to provide a buffet after the ceremony?’ she said brightly to cover the rather flat feeling her thought had caused. ‘Ted happened to mention that his wife did the catering at their pub, so Alan asked him if she would lay on some food after the wedding. Everyone from the ward is invited, which is a really nice gesture, I thought.’

  ‘It is.’ Luke’s expression was brooding as he looked around the gaily decorated room. Maggie had no idea what he was thinking but it was obvious that something was troubling him. She wanted to ask him what was wrong and yet, perversely, she didn’t want to hear what his answer might be. If they were only to have a few short months together, she didn’t want them being spoiled.

  ‘I believe the police have arrested another youth in connection with the hit-and-run accident,’ she continued, deliberately changing the subject. ‘Tracy showed me a report in this morning’s paper.’

  ‘That’s right. I was just coming to see if you’d heard,’ he replied, making an obvious effort to shake off whatever dark thoughts had been troubling him. ‘Evidently, Gary Walsh—that boy who was hanging around here—has made a statement. It was a good job that Security managed to stop him as he tried the leave the building the other night, otherwise the police would have found it difficult to bring a case against his friend. However, with Gary’s testimony, plus the forensic evidence they’ve gathered, they’re confident that they’ll get a conviction.’

  ‘Good. He needs locking up for what he did to poor Lisa.’ She sighed. ‘I feel rather sorry for Gary. I think he was led by his friend.’

  ‘Trust you to find something good to say about him,’ Luke observed with a smile. ‘Aren’t you forgetting what he did to you?’

  ‘No. And I was scared, I admit. Howe
ver, I don’t think he meant to hurt me. It was an accident. But the fact that he cared enough about Lisa to spend all that time hanging around here does say something in his favour.’

  ‘Maybe. By the way, I believe the mystery of how he got through all those doors has been solved. The architect in charge of the building work had been checking for structural problems. He’s admitted that he got called away and must have forgotten to lock up after he’d finished.’

  ‘Well, thank heavens it’s all over and done with is all I can say.’ Maggie glanced at her watch and groaned when she saw the time. ‘I’d better get changed out of these jeans before the wedding. I’ll see you later, I expect.’

  ‘You will.’ Luke shot a glance along the deserted corridor then claimed a swift kiss.

  Maggie sighed as she made her way to the staffroom. One more kiss and one more memory to cherish in the future.

  The room was crowded by the time Beverley made her entrance, although to an outsider it must have looked a very motley collection of wedding guests. Maggie had to smile when she saw the array of bandages and plaster casts, the crutches and walking frames. There was even a drip stand, artistically concealed behind the balloons!

  Beverley arrived on Alan’s father’s arm and someone switched on a tape of the wedding march. Maggie smiled as she caught Luke’s eye. He had been one of the last to arrive and had stayed by the door rather than disrupt everyone. Now she felt a ripple run down her spine when she saw the way he was looking at her with the strangest expression on his face.

  Maggie looked away, unable to deal with how it made her feel to have him look at her like that. What was he thinking to cause him to look at her as though he were trying to see into her soul?

  She had no idea, but she was aware of him watching her throughout the ceremony. She managed to resist looking at him again until Alan and Beverley exchanged their vows. As they spoke the words that would bind them together, she found herself turning to Luke, found her eyes irresistibly caught and held by the intensity in his.

  It was a moment that left her shaken because she didn’t understand what it meant. Maggie kissed the happy couple after the ceremony, and offered them her good wishes, but it felt as though she were functioning on automatic pilot. Most of the guests were making their way back to the ward and she followed them, helping out wherever she could. She couldn’t see any sign of Luke but assumed that he must have gone on ahead because he’d been nearer to the door. However, when she finally made it to the ward there was no sign of him.

  The buffet had been laid out on trestle tables down the centre of the ward. Those who could balance a plate and cup helped themselves while the rest were served by the staff. Maggie automatically set to and doled out plates of sandwiches and savouries, but she kept watching the doors, wondering when Luke would appear. However, by the time the cake had been cut and a toast drunk to the happy couple he still hadn’t arrived.

  She helped clear up, all the time expecting him to put in an appearance—but he never did. Of course, it could be that he’d been called to Theatre but it seemed odd that he hadn’t let her know. She left the hospital shortly before five and caught the bus home, half expecting to find his car parked outside her flat, but there was no sign of it.

  She let herself in and changed out of her dress, feeling really on edge. She found herself watching the clock, but day turned to evening and Luke still hadn’t appeared or phoned to let her know where he was. Finally, at nine o’clock, she could bear it no longer and phoned his hotel, only to be told that there was no answer from his room.

  Maggie put down the phone, feeling sick with worry because she had no idea what was going on. If Luke had been held up, surely he could have got a message to her?

  She went to the window while she tried to think and felt her heart lift with relief when she saw his car parked outside. He was here! Safe and sound.

  She ran downstairs to let him in, not caring if he thought she was overreacting. However, when she went out to the car there was no sign of him and she looked round uncertainly, wondering where he’d gone. Night was drawing in and across the road the riverbank was shrouded in shadow. She might not have seen the figure sitting on the grass if she hadn’t been looking really hard.

  Maggie’s heart was hammering as she crossed the road. She couldn’t have explained it but she knew deep down that something was wrong. Luke looked up when she stopped beside him and the expression on his face scared her because she’d never seen anyone who looked so tense before.

  ‘I… I was worried about you,’ she said, her voice quavering with apprehension.

  ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to worry you.’ He took a deep breath as he stared across the water. ‘I needed some time on my own to work out what I was going to say, but I’m not sure I know how to set about it even now.’

  ‘Maybe you should start at the beginning and go on from there,’ she suggested quietly, although it was an effort to maintain her composure as she wondered what he was going to tell her.

  ‘I expect you’re right. It sounds logical, doesn’t it?’ He summoned a smile but his eyes were wary when he looked at her. Was that because he knew that she wasn’t going to like what he had to say?

  Panic overwhelmed her at the thought so she missed what else he said. She stared at him in confusion when she caught the tail end of the sentence. ‘Wh-what did you say?’

  ‘I know it must be a shock for you, Maggie. It was a shock for me, too. The last thing I planned on doing was falling in love with you, but I just couldn’t help myself.’

  He sighed as he turned to stare at the river again. ‘It’s ironic, isn’t it? I thought that I had everything I wanted in life, then you came along and turned my whole world upside down. The more time I spent with you the more I started to realise how much I was denying myself. My work is important to me but it isn’t everything. I want a home and family, all the things that people have been telling me I need, in fact. But most of all I want the woman I love to make my life complete.’

  ‘A-and that’s me? You’re saying that you love me, Luke?’ She couldn’t believe what she was hearing, and it was obvious that he must have heard the bewilderment in her voice.

  ‘Yes. I love you, Maggie. I love you with all my heart, and I want to spend the rest of my life with you.’ His voice grated with emotion and Maggie felt her breath catch. It was obvious that he was telling her the truth, even though it felt as though she must be dreaming!

  ‘But if it isn’t what you want then tell me now, Maggie. I… I’ll make arrangements to go back to Boston as soon—’

  ‘No!’ The word exploded from her because the thought of him leaving was simply too painful to bear.

  An expression of anguish crossed Luke’s face before he abruptly rose to his feet. ‘I’m sorry. It seems that I’ve made a complete fool of myself. I didn’t mean to offend you, Maggie.’

  He turned and strode away. For a few blank seconds Maggie stared at his retreating back in disbelief, before hastily scrambling to her feet and racing after him.

  ‘Wait, Luke! You don’t understand,’ she implored, catching hold of his arm to make him stop.

  ‘Look, Maggie, there’s no point trying to spare my feelings,’ he began stiffly.

  ‘I love you.’ She stepped closer to him so that she could look straight into his eyes. ‘I love you, Luke Fabrizzi. Do you understand what I’m saying? I love you!’

  ‘But you just said…’ He stopped and frowned, obviously thinking back to what had happened. Maggie laughed softly, uncaring that her heart was in her eyes as she looked at him.

  ‘I said no because I didn’t want you going back to Boston. I certainly wasn’t saying no to the idea of you loving me!’

  The tension seemed to drain out of him all of a sudden. He gave a whoop of pure delight as he swept her into his arms. ‘Thank heaven for that!’

  He kissed her hard and extremely thoroughly then drew back to look at her. ‘You’re sure that you aren’t just being kind?
I know what a caring person you are, Maggie…’

  ‘No, I am not being kind. I love you, you idiot. I…love…you!’ She punctuated each word with a kiss, her heart brimming over with happiness when she felt his lips clinging to hers.

  Luke shook his head in bemusement after the final kiss. ‘I can’t believe this is actually happening.’

  ‘Neither can I. You’d better pinch me so that I know I’m not dreaming,’ she said, laughing up at him.

  ‘Oh, I can do better than that.’

  He kissed her again with a tenderness that brought tears to her eyes. It was obvious that he was as deeply moved by it as she was because his voice wasn’t quite steady when he was finally able to speak. ‘I didn’t think I could ever feel this happy, Maggie.’

  ‘Me, too. Or is it neither?’ She brushed a kiss along his jaw, loving the taste of his skin and the little shudder he gave. But, then, she loved everything about him and told him so, earning herself another blissful kiss that had her sighing in contentment. His tone was more than a little smug as he took note of her dreamy expression.

  ‘Highly satisfactory. I hope you’ll continue to respond like that when we’re married.’

  ‘Married? Oh, but you… I…we…’

  ‘Was that a yes or a no?’ Luke teased. ‘This is no time to be hesitating. I don’t ask women to marry me very often, Maggie. In fact, it’s a first for me so I hope you aren’t going to make me regret my impulsiveness.’

  ‘I thought you weren’t the marrying kind,’ she shot back, deciding to give him a taste of his own delicious medicine.

  ‘I’m not. Asking the woman I love to marry me doesn’t make me a serial proposer. It’s a one-off, never-to-be-repeated offer,’ he stated emphatically. ‘So, will you marry me, Maggie?’

  ‘Yes, although I never dreamt I’d be saying that!’

  ‘I never dreamt I’d be asking so that makes us quits!’

  He kissed her again. There was a marked reluctance about the way he dragged his mouth from hers. ‘I suppose I’d better explain how all this came about. I don’t want you thinking you’ve agreed to marry some sort of crazy guy who changes his mind all the time.’