Christmas with Her Daredevil Doc Read online

  Hayley smiled. ‘So did my great-gran. But here’s your reason to give up—smoking makes your bones thinner and that puts you at greater risk of breaking a bone the next time you fall.’

  Sam liked the way that Hayley was sympathetic and realistic at the same time. She was kind, but she didn’t try to pretend that problems didn’t exist.

  ‘You won’t tell my daughter about the ciggies?’ Ethel asked.

  ‘No, but do you know if anyone’s contacted her to tell her you’ve been brought here?’ Sam asked. ‘If not, we can call her.’

  ‘She’s down in Brighton,’ Ethel said. ‘She works and she’s got kids. I don’t want to bother her.’

  ‘If you were my mum,’ Hayley said, ‘I’d want to know straight away if you were taken to hospital.’

  ‘I don’t want to worry her,’ Ethel again.

  ‘We can tell her not to rush because you’re going to be here for a while, if that makes you feel any better,’ Sam said. ‘But I agree with Hayley. I’d want to know if my mum was in hospital—and I’d be really upset if they didn’t tell me.’

  Ethel sighed. ‘All right, then.’

  Sam took her temperature and recorded it on the chart, then wrote her up for painkillers and a drip for the dehydration.

  ‘We’re pretty sure you’ve broken your hip,’ Hayley said, ‘but we need to send you for an X-ray to confirm the diagnosis.’

  ‘If it’s broken,’ Ethel said, ‘what happens then?’

  ‘You’ll need surgery,’ Sam said. ‘The surgeon might be able to use screws, rods and plates to fix it—or you might need a hip replacement.’

  ‘So I won’t be able to walk for ages?’ she asked, looking worried.

  ‘They’ll have you on your feet again, the day after the operation,’ Hayley reassured her. ‘But let’s make you more comfortable and get that X-ray done first.’

  ‘All right, love.’

  While Ethel was being seen by the radiologists, Sam removed a bead from a toddler’s nose and Hayley phoned Ethel’s daughter, who promised to drive straight up to the hospital. The X-ray confirmed everything they’d feared, and Hayley rang the orthopaedic team to ask for a surgeon to come down to the emergency department.

  ‘Let’s go and break the news to Ethel,’ Hayley said, and they went to sit by her bed in the cubicle.

  ‘I’m afraid you’ve definitely broken your hip, Ethel,’ Sam said. ‘You’ve broken it inside the socket of your hip.’ He took a pad from his pocket and drew a picture of the fracture to show her. ‘Unfortunately this kind of break won’t heal well, so you’ll need a hip replacement.’

  ‘But luckily everything’s still where it should be, so it’s not complicated enough to worry us,’ Hayley added. ‘One of the surgeons is coming down to see you.’

  ‘So what happens now?’ Ethel asked.

  ‘You’ll have the operation later today,’ Sam said.

  ‘It’ll take a couple of hours,’ Hayley added.

  ‘Will they put me out first?’ Ethel asked.

  ‘Not necessarily. The surgeon will talk through the anaesthetic options with you,’ Sam said.

  ‘After the operation, you’ll stay on the orthopaedic ward,’ Hayley continued. ‘They’ll give you painkillers and a drip, pretty much as you have right now, and they’ll start to get you back on your feet tomorrow. A physiotherapist will come and see you and teach you some exercises to help with your strength and mobility.’

  Ethel frowned. ‘So how long will I have to stay in hospital?’

  ‘Until you’re back on your feet and mobile again,’ Sam said, ‘though you might not be quite as mobile as you were before and you might need more help at home.’

  Ethel shook her head. ‘I don’t want to go into one of them nursing homes.’

  ‘Do you live in sheltered accommodation now?’ Hayley asked.

  ‘No, I live in the same house I went to the day I married my Brian,’ Ethel said. ‘Fifty-eight years, I’ve lived there. But I do have a carer come in every morning to get me up and every evening to help me get to bed. That’s the bit I have trouble with.’

  ‘You’re going to need a little more support than just twice a day,’ Sam said gently. ‘I know you’re not keen on the idea, but you might need to go to a nursing home for a few weeks after you leave hospital—just for respite care, until you’re totally on your feet again and ready to go home.’

  Ethel pursed her lips. ‘I’m not going into one of those places. They just stick you in a room in front of a telly and talk to you like you’re a toddler. I might be old, but I haven’t lost my marbles yet.’

  Hayley squeezed her hand. ‘Nursing homes aren’t all like that. Is there anyone in the family you could stay with? Your daughter, maybe?’

  ‘I can’t live with my daughter,’ Ethel said. ‘I love her dearly, but we’d fight like cat and dog. Anyway, she doesn’t have the room.’

  ‘Maybe you could move closer to her, in sheltered accommodation,’ Sam suggested, ‘so you’d still have a lot of your independence but your daughter wouldn’t be so worried about you because she’d know there was someone nearby if you needed help.’

  Ethel didn’t look convinced. ‘I don’t want to move.’

  ‘We’ll talk about it again after the surgeon’s seen you,’ Hayley said.

  ‘I’m still not going in one of them nursing homes,’ Ethel warned. ‘They stink of boiled cabbage and pee.’

  Hayley smiled. ‘We can try and find you one that doesn’t.’

  ‘Hmm. Can I have that cup of tea now, please? I’m gasping.’

  ‘Sorry, but you can’t have a cup of tea until the surgeon’s seen you,’ Hayley said. ‘You’re going to have some form of anaesthetic, so it’s not safe to have anything except water before the operation—and even water’s banned for two hours before the operation. It’s to make sure you’re not sick during the operation and end up with something in your lungs.’

  ‘Well, worse things happen at sea, as my old mum used to say,’ Ethel said.

  ‘I’ll make you that tea myself after your op,’ Sam said. ‘And toast. I’m really good at toast.’ He looked Hayley in the eye. ‘And waffles.’

  And he was gratified that she went very slightly pink. So she remembered, then? The question was whether she wanted to repeat it.

  ‘We’ll come and see you again as soon as the surgeon’s available,’ Hayley promised.

  Between them, they saw an eight-year-old who’d been tripped over in the playground and ended up with a Colles’ fracture of his wrist, a woman with what turned out to be an allergic reaction to her new eyelash extensions, and a man complaining of back pain after he’d overdone the gardening the previous day; and then it was time to see Ethel’s daughter and the surgeon.

  The surgeon sent Ethel for a DEXA scan, and meanwhile, Sam talked to Ethel’s daughter about rehab options and how to get her mum the right support. The DEXA scan confirmed that Ethel had osteoporosis; and Sam accompanied Ethel and her daughter up to the orthopaedic ward to help settle them in.

  When he got back down to the emergency department, Hayley tapped her watch. ‘Quick lunch?’

  And an overdue talk. ‘Fine.’

  She led him to the canteen, and they both selected a sandwich and coffee before finding a quiet table.

  ‘Ethel’s settled,’ Sam said. ‘I promised I’d go and see her at the end of my shift and make her that cup of tea.’

  ‘Above and beyond, hmm?’ Hayley asked.

  ‘No. Just putting myself in the shoes of our patients and using a bit of empathy,’ Sam said.

  ‘I wasn’t being snippy.’

  ‘No.’ The woman he’d met in Iceland had been warm and sweet. He’d liked her a lot. But that was when he’d thought she was only going to be a temporary part of her life. Wh
at now?

  ‘I had no idea you were going to be our new registrar,’ she said. ‘You never said you were coming to London.’

  Because he’d thought he’d never see her again. ‘I had no idea I was taking your old job,’ he countered.

  She gave him a wry smile. ‘Is this where we both do the bit from Casablanca, except it’s hospitals rather than gin joints?’

  ‘Pretty much,’ he said.

  ‘OK. Well, I’m not going to pussyfoot around it.’ She lifted her chin. ‘You and me—I hope we can be friends.’

  ‘Friends,’ he said. Which wasn’t quite how either of them had seen things in Iceland. And the attraction was still there between them; a couple of times during their shift this morning, they’d accidentally brushed against each other, and he’d seen her pupils dilate slightly. Just as his own probably had, and his skin had tingled where it had touched hers. Had it been the same for her, too?

  ‘Anything else would be too complicated,’ she said. ‘I’ve seen too many departmental relationships end in tears. And especially now, as you and I are working closely together.’

  ‘And I’ve taken over your old role, so you’re effectively my boss. Fair enough.’ Hayley had made it very clear she wanted to shut down the connection they’d shared. Which was a shame, because the more Sam saw of her, the more he liked her. They’d slipped into an easy working relationship, as if they’d known each other for years and knew how each other thought. The kind of relationship he’d thought he had with Lynda—and he’d been very wrong indeed about that. So maybe Hayley was right and they’d be better to keep this strictly platonic, rather than try to build on what they’d shared in Iceland. Trying to find a safer subject, he asked, ‘How’s the running training going?’

  She looked surprised and then pleased that he’d asked. ‘OK, though obviously Dani’s not able to go alongside me and pace me when we do the outdoor runs. She sends me off and sits on a bench in the park with a stopwatch going and listens to music while she waits for me to get back to her. But at the end of the day my finish time doesn’t really matter. What matters is that I actually finish.’

  Maybe this would be a way of getting some of the easiness back between them. ‘I’ve only just moved here and don’t know any good running routes,’ he said, ‘so if you want me to join you when you’re training outside and act as your pacemaker, you’d be doing me a favour as well. It’d be a win for both of us.’

  ‘I guess.’ She looked thoughtful. ‘Do you mind if I talk to Dani about it, first?’

  ‘Sure. Make it clear I’m not thinking of muscling in on her training sessions. It’s simply a way of helping us both out.’

  ‘So you and me, we’re good?’ she checked.

  ‘We’re good.’ And he was just going to have to ignore that attraction he felt towards her, because they weren’t going to be anything other than friends.

  ‘Great. So have you settled in London OK?’

  ‘I’m getting there,’ he said. ‘My flat’s near enough for me to cycle in to work, and the department seems nice.’

  ‘They’re a good bunch on our team,’ she said. ‘Everyone pulls their weight, and everyone gets on well together. Actually, there’s a team night out on Friday—it’s the monthly quiz night at the pub across the road. We always have a team and there’s usually one from Paediatrics and another from Maternity. And the pub does the best chips in London. Why don’t you come along, if you’re not busy?’

  ‘I might just do that.’

  ‘Oh, and while I remember—the departmental Christmas meal is the first week of December,’ she added.

  ‘Christmas?’ He raised an eyebrow. ‘It’s only August. Isn’t it too early to be thinking about Christmas?’

  ‘If you don’t book a venue well in advance, nowhere’s got any spaces left,’ she said. ‘Surely it’s like that in Manchester, too?’

  So she remembered where he used to work. ‘I guess.’

  ‘We also do a Secret Santa, where you draw someone’s name and buy them a present—Jennie, the senior receptionist, is in charge of that and she takes the deposit and choices for the meal, so have a word with her.’

  ‘Right. Thanks.’

  ‘Great. That’s that organised, then.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘I guess we’d better get back to the department.’

  CHAPTER FIVE

  ON TUESDAY, HAYLEY and Sam were both rostered onto Minors and didn’t see much of each other all day. But Hayley caught him at the end of their shift. ‘I’ve spoken to Dani. She says if you’d like to join us tomorrow, we’re doing the training straight after work and then grabbing something for dinner from the café in the park—obviously sitting at one of the tables outside, because we’ll be a bit sweaty and disgusting after our run.’

  ‘Sounds good. Thank you,’ Sam said.

  Wednesday was just as busy, but again Hayley caught up with Sam at the end of their shift. She’d already changed into her running gear, and waited for him to change, too.

  ‘So where are we running?’ he asked.

  ‘Alexandra Park,’ she said. ‘It’s by Alexandra Palace, the old BBC television studios—part of it used to be a theatre, in Victorian times. And there are amazing views from the park across the whole of London.’

  ‘Are we walking there?’ he asked.

  ‘No. We’re getting a taxi,’ she said, ‘because of Dani’s foot.’ She waved to a shorter, dark-haired woman who was sitting on one of the benches in the hospital’s main reception area, and whose foot was encased in a walking cast. Next to her, propped against the bench, were crutches.

  ‘Danielle Owens, meet Sam Price,’ Hayley said when they’d gone over to meet her.

  Danielle and Sam shook hands. ‘Nice to meet you,’ Danielle said.

  Sam wondered how much Hayley had told her. Then again, they were best friends, and he knew from his sister that women talked about that sort of thing.

  ‘So you’re going to help us with the running training?’ Danielle asked.

  ‘If you don’t mind,’ he said politely.

  ‘I’m glad of the help. I can’t exactly get a megaphone and shout at Haze from the middle of the park to pick up her pace,’ Danielle said, glaring at her cast. ‘I wish I hadn’t had to ask her to do this in the first place.’

  ‘You didn’t ask. I offered. And even you can’t run with a fractured second and third metatarsal,’ Hayley said firmly.

  ‘Oh, I could do it, all right,’ Danielle said with a grin. ‘It just wouldn’t be sensible. And I want this thing off my foot as soon as possible, so I’m doing what I’m told.’

  ‘For once,’ Hayley teased.

  They took a taxi to the park, and Danielle went through the training programme briefly with Sam.

  ‘So we have about six weeks between now and race day,’ Sam said. ‘You’re doing interval training indoors on a treadmill, and then the longer runs outside.’

  ‘Because the interval training will help with the pace, but running indoors is very different from running outdoors—and, as the actual race is outside, then Haze needs experience in running outdoors,’ Danielle explained.

  ‘Agreed. This looks like a really workable plan.’

  ‘Great. I’ll let you set the pace for the four-miler, then,’ Danielle said with a smile. ‘I’m going to get some coffee from the café and do the dreaded four-letter-word thing with my foot. See you both when you’re done.’

  Sam discovered that Hayley had been telling the truth: the park was pretty, full of people walking dogs and parents with small children. The Alexandra Palace sprawled behind the trees, a huge yellow-brick Victorian building with red-brick detailing and arched windows, a glass roof and a tall transmitter mast. When they ran past the palace itself, the views over London were stunning. He settled into a slower pace than he would norm
ally have taken, bearing in mind that Hayley was still a relative novice to running.

  A couple of times, his hand accidentally brushed against hers, and it sent a tingle through him. Did she feel it, too? But she’d made it clear that as far as she was concerned they were colleagues only, so it was pointless wondering. Besides, even though he liked her professionally, that was a whole different thing than trusting her with his heart. There was a huge difference between a no-strings fling and a real relationship.

  They rejoined Danielle around forty-five minutes later.

  ‘So how was it?’ Danielle asked.

  ‘Wonderful,’ Hayley said without batting an eyelid.

  ‘You hated it,’ Danielle said with a sigh.

  ‘I’d much rather do dance aerobics than running,’ Hayley admitted. ‘But this is for a really good cause—the MRI scanner for the newborns in your department.’ She looked at Sam. ‘And it was better running with someone else. Even though you obviously had to slow down for me and I feel a bit guilty about that.’

  ‘Don’t. Running’s still running,’ he said. ‘I enjoyed it too.’

  Danielle pushed a menu towards him. ‘My shout,’ she said.

  ‘There’s no nee—’ he began, and she rolled her eyes.

  ‘Yes, there is. I’m saying thank you for helping us out. Be gracious,’ she said.

  ‘I told you she was bossy,’ Hayley said with a grin. ‘Take advice from someone who’s known her since the first day at university. It’s quickest to just agree with her, because she always gets her way in the end.’

  ‘Then thank you, Danielle.’ Sam chose pasta, salad and a glass of mineral water; Danielle and Hayley chose the same.

  ‘So how are you finding Muswell Hill, did you do a lot of running where you were before, and where exactly were you before?’ Danielle asked after she’d ordered and paid.

  He laughed. ‘In order: OK, yes, Manchester.’