‘I’ll have it seen to. Later.’ He nodded coldly. ‘Thank you for your advice.’
‘I’m sorry ‒’
‘Nurse Blakney,’ he interrupted very quietly, ‘I’m sorry, too. I realise that you were only being as instinctively kind and honest with me as you have always been. Believe me, I am grateful. Indeed I am.’ He was almost inaudible. ‘I owe you my life. I am not going to add to the embarrassment and distress I caused you in that Casualty Department by stressing that debt, but it is hardly something a man can forget in a hurry. Particularly a man who feels about you as I mentioned in the conversation we have just had. But there comes a time when one passes the point of no return in a relationship. I’m afraid I have passed that point where you are concerned; this evening. I’ve been only too happy to accept your help in the past. I can’t do that any longer. I know you will understand. You’ve understood so much.’
I could not say one word. I could only stare at him, as if I had never seen him before. Never before had he looked at me as he was doing now. I knew I was not dreaming or imagining this, even if I could not understand it. Never in any dream or thought could I have pictured him like this.
He moved suddenly, collected the heap of books from the mantelpiece and crossed to the door. ‘I’ll look in on the Path. Drive as I go by, and see if I can spur Dr. Hodgson-Basset to a quick finish. With luck, you’ll get a short rehearsal. Good night and ‒ thank you very much.’
I had to stop him. Quite suddenly I knew what to say. ‘Just a moment, please.’
‘Yes?’ Again he turned but did not come back one step.
‘You can’t walk around Jude’s with that empty sling hanging round your neck, Dr. Cameron. And you oughtn’t to wear it as it is, because it’s so slack that it’s worse than useless. I’m afraid I can’t fix it while you’re standing so would you mind sitting down please,’ I ended breathlessly as my courage and breath ran out together.
He came towards me like a man in a trance. ‘I hoped you would understand.’
‘I think I do, now. I didn’t before.’
‘You didn’t?’ he echoed incredulously. ‘But what did you imagine I was trying to tell you?’
I knew I must be honest, but it took me several moments to mention Standing’s name.
‘Rowena Standing?’ he said in amazement. ‘You thought I was in love with her? She is a charming and remarkable person, but no more in love with me than I am with her. She is devoted to her work. She always has been and always will be.’
I nodded. ‘I know.’
He put down his heap of books. ‘Was that why you were so adamant about it being too late?’ he asked evenly.
I nodded again.
‘Could you please explain.’
It did not take me long to explain; it took very much longer to make him accept my explanation.
‘It isn’t possible, Maggie. You’ve always avoided me ‒ looked on me as someone to whom you had to be polite ‒ someone you had to take round a ward, offer tea or coffee ‒ just another man in a white coat on-duty ‒ Fiona’s elderly uncle. And I have loved you for a long time. Fiona was a stranger when you took her in your arms and comforted her. You won’t know it, but I watched you that night. I loved you then. The more I saw of you, the more I loved you and wanted to marry you and the more it irked me. And there seemed nothing I could do about it, particularly when for so long I was sure you were engaged to Thanet. Once I knew the truth about that this evening, I had to find some way of showing you what I felt. I did not want to upset you ‒ offend you ‒ but I couldn’t keep it to myself any longer.’ He kissed me gently. ‘I never guessed or dared to hope that what has happened could happen.’
‘And to think you nearly walked out for good.’
‘What else could I have done since I honestly believed you had no interest in me. I love you, Maggie. I never want to hurt, annoy, or embarrass you. If I had refused to take no for an answer, you might well have been all three. S.M.O.s only have to give the impression of being human. Not inhuman.’ He tilted my face to his. ‘Do you understand?’
‘Yes.’ I smiled. ‘Fiona said something along those lines about you.’
‘She considers her aged uncle inhuman?’
‘No. She said, off the record, you weren’t.’
His eyes were bright with happiness. ‘Sweetheart,’ he said very softly, ‘I have to tell you ‒ she’s right.’
And for a long while after that, neither of us said another word. We were together at last; there was nothing else that needed to be said.
Also by Lucilla Andrews
If you enjoyed A Ward Door Opens, you will also want to read these other stories by Lucilla Andrews.
The Print Petticoat
A moving story of heartache and hope in the Maternity Unit of a busy 1950s teaching hospital.
Joanna Anthony is a dedicated Nursery staff nurse at St Gregory’s Hospital. The nurses and doctors share laughter and tears as they tend to the mothers and babies in their care.
There is time for romance, too. After five years together, is ambitious Dr Richard Everley finally ready to settle down with Joanna? And what of the two other young doctors who have more than a professional interest in her?
It takes a serious illness for Joanna to understand where, and with whom, her future really lies.
Read The Print Petticoat from Amazon UK
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Read The Print Petticoat from Amazon AUS
The Secret Armour
There’s romance for Nurse Maggie on the wards of a 1950s teaching hospital. But is she in love with the wrong man?
Nineteen-year-old nurse Maggie Howard is completing her training at St Benedict’s Hospital. Life on the ward is hard and the Sisters are strict, but Maggie and her set mates, Alice and Rose, love their work. That’s not all that Maggie loves, when against all advice she falls for a dashing patient, David Corford.
Maggie will experience happiness, heartache and misunderstandings. And throughout the emotional ups and downs, young houseman George Hartigan is always there to provide a shoulder to cry on.
Will Maggie risk her career and future happiness over her love for a handsome patient?
Read The Secret Armour from Amazon UK
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Read The Secret Armour from Amazon AUS
The Quiet Wards
Young nurse Gillian Snow is blamed when a dangerous drug goes missing during her shift on the ward of a 1950s teaching hospital. But who took it?
Twenty-one-year-old Nurse Gillian Snow finds her career in jeopardy when a dangerous drug disappears from the drug cupboard under her care. The situation also affects her romance with dashing house-surgeon Peter Kier.
Moved from her ward to do other duties, Gillian experiences the happiness and heartache that comes from nursing both children and accident victims.
As she struggles to understand who took the drug, and why, Gillian finds support and truth from some unexpected quarters.
Read The Quiet Wards from Amazon UK
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Read The Quiet Wards from Amazon AUS
The First Year
Rose Standing has a lot to learn about hospital life, patients ‒ and romance, during her first year as a probationer nurse at St Martin’s Hospital in 1950s London.
Twenty-year-old Rose has a reputation for being accident-prone and absent-minded. Does she really have what it takes to make a good nurse?
The biggest question on Rose’s mind is whether the Senior Surgical Officer, Jake Waring, will even notice her existence. Are her daydreams about a romance between them destined to remain a fantasy?
Rose discovers that each department has its own heartaches and joys as she gains experience on the men’s surgical, women’s medical, and Casualty wards.
Meanwhile, handsome student doctor Bill Martin shows a keen interest in Rose. But she has her suspicions about his motives.
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A moving and heart-warming story of a young nurse, and the challenges she faces on the hospital wards and in her personal life.
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Read The First Year from Amazon AUS
A Hospital Summer
In the summer of 1940, Clare Dillon is a V.A.D. in an English military hospital, nursing the wounded as the bombs fall.
Twenty-year-old Clare must rise to the challenge of nursing in wartime. Whether giving comfort to a dying soldier, or assisting in a birth during an air raid, she has to remain clear-headed and professional.
Clare is not only dealing with problems at the hospital. She is also worried for the safety of her brothers, who are both in the forces. Then the Dunkirk evacuation changes her world forever.
With the medical emergencies and bombings, it’s no wonder Clare doesn’t have time to think about the attention she’s getting from young medical officer Joe Slaney. But she surprises herself when news about Joe makes her face up to what she really wants for the future.
A gripping, bittersweet story about the courage and determination of young V.A.D. nurses in the Second World War.
Read A Hospital Summer from Amazon UK
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Read A Hospital Summer from Amazon AUS
My Friend the Professor
Young probationer nurse, Frances Dorland, is dealing with the ups and downs of 1960s hospital life when she meets an understanding older man ‒ the Professor.
Frances’s nursing friends joke about the identity of the Professor, but the truth is that none of them know anything about him, except that he proves to be a loyal and kind friend to Frances.
As Frances starts to realise she feels more than friendship for the Professor, she is also trying to help the course of true love run smoothly for her best friend Estelle Dexter. And handsome student doctor Bart More is sending mixed signals to both young women.
It is only when one of the hospital staff becomes dangerously ill that Frances and her friends come to realise home truths that will change their lives forever.
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Read My Friend the Professor from Amazon AUS
Discover all of the available novels by Lucilla Andrews, and be the first to know when the next ebook is released, by going to www.lucillaandrews.com
Wyndham Books: Timeless bestsellers for today’s readers
Wyndham Books publishes the first ebook editions of bestselling works by some of the most popular authors of the twentieth century. Enjoy our Historical, Family Saga, Regency, Romance and Medical fiction and non-fiction.
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A Nurse’s Life by Jane Grant
Heart-warming and humorous tales from a 1950s student nurse
In this warm and witty book, Jane Grant recounts her life as a trainee nurse in a busy 1950s London teaching hospital.
Jane, and her friends Mary and Phyllis, discover that both happiness and heartache can be found on the wards of St. Bernard’s Hospital. Before long they realise it takes determination and a sense of humour to deal with the colourful characters of hospital life – and that goes for the staff as well as the patients.
The young nurses gain their medical training under the watchful eyes of strict, but generally fair, sisters and matrons. They meet patients who are facing the biggest challenges of their lives, and share with them moments of bravery and fear. There are times of laughter, but also of tears.
There is romance too, as Jane and her fellow student nurses enjoy the attentions of the hospital’s handsome young doctors, falling in and out of love for the first time.
A Nurse’s Life is a moving and amusing account of a bygone era, brought vividly to life. Also available in this series, there is more from Jane and her friends and family in More From a Nurse’s Life, A Sister’s Life and A Country Life.
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Doctors and Nurses: 3-in-1 box set by Sheila Burns
Three medical romances from the 1960s in one box set. Romance and drama in medical settings.
Doctor Called David ‒ Can Valerie escape her past, or is history destined to repeat itself?
1966. After nurse Valerie Scott is found innocent of a terrible crime and released from jail, she turns to prison doctor David Graves for support. The offer of a new position as a private nurse to a kind and elderly couple seems the ideal chance to rebuild her life. But are the Goddards and their adopted son Gregory all that they seem? And can a doctor called David protect Valerie from a cruel twist of fate?
Dr Irresistible M.D. ‒ Sharon wins a beauty competition but can she win a handsome stranger’s heart?
1962. Sharon’s life takes an unexpected turn when she wins a beauty competition. Then she crashes the prize car of her dreams, and is rescued by a mysterious, good-looking man. He is Glynn Rodwell ‒ Dr Irresistible. The chance of a Mediterranean cruise offers Sharon excitement and opportunity ‒ but if she takes it, will she ever see Dr Irresistible again?
The Eyes of Doctor Karl ‒ Will Cherrie discover the truth behind the hypnotic eyes of a handsome doctor?
1962. While sitting in a traffic jam, Cherrie locks eyes with a dark and handsome man. That evening she reads about the strange case of Dr Karl Heineman whose patients have died in mysterious circumstances. Cherrie accompanies a newspaper reporter friend who is investigating the story. When they call on the doctor, she is surprised to find he is the man whose eyes she hasn’t been able to forget. As Cherrie is drawn closer into his world, will she discover the truth, and love, behind the eyes of Dr Karl?
Read Doctors and Nurses now from Amazon UK
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Read Doctors and Nurses now from Amazon.com
Wyndham Books: Timeless bestsellers for today’s readers
Wyndham Books publishes the first ebook editions of bestselling works by some of the most popular authors of the twentieth century, such as Lucilla Andrews, Tessa Barclay, Ursula Bloom, Catherine Gaskin, Naomi Jacob and Lucy Walker. Enjoy our Historical, Family Saga, Regency, Romance and Medical fiction and non-fiction.
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A Ward Door Opens: A touching 1950s hospital romance (The Anniversary Collection Book 7) Page 16
