Emergency: Christmas

‘Makes the cars rust,’ Jeremy broke in. ‘I’d rather be up on the hills and just have the view.’

Penelope turned to collect her change from the barman. Was that how Jeremy saw her, perhaps? As part of a view? Jeremy was making this difficult. If she invited him to join their table now, it could be seen as a very obvious ploy to throw herself at the man. The flash of irritation took Penelope by surprise. So did the memory of a piece of Belinda’s advice. Maybe letting Jeremy think she wasn’t interested wasn’t such a bad idea after all. Maybe letting him think that she might be interested in someone else was an even better idea. Penelope picked up the wineglasses. She smiled at Mark.

‘I finish at two tomorrow,’ she told him casually. ‘If you don’t want the hassle of renting a car I’d be happy to play taxi driver. I was born and raised in Wellington so I know my way around.’

‘Thanks.’ Mark looked delighted. ‘I’d really appreciate that, Penny. How ’bout we meet here at two-thirty?’

‘I’ll be here.’ Penelope smiled again and included Jeremy in her glance. ‘See you later, Jeremy.’

Belinda’s dismayed expression at Penelope returning to their table alone was less pronounced than the one Jeremy had been trying to conceal when she’d left the bar. Penelope smiled reassuringly at Belinda. She’d fill her in later and thank her for having given her the idea in the first place. Plan B had definite possibilities. Penelope stole a glance at the bar and caught Jeremy’s thoughtful stare in her direction. She looked away hurriedly and bit back a satisfied smile.

Plan B appeared to be working perfectly already.

CHAPTER THREE

PENELOPE knew she ought to be feeling guilty.

Here she was, heading out on a date with a man who had no idea of the part he was playing in Plan B. But Penelope wasn’t feeling guilty at all. In fact, Mark’s company was so relaxing she could forget about Plan B and the frustration in her life that had led to its creation. Even the weather was doing its bit to add to a pleasant afternoon. The dark clouds and squalls of heavy spring rain had cleared to leave only cotton-wool puffs scudding across a brilliant blue sky. The stiff breeze was still chilly and Penelope was glad she had chosen to wear her red jumper again—this time with the warmth of a shirt underneath. Woolly socks and trainers on her feet might not be as sexy as the summer sandals she had considered briefly but, then, this wasn’t a real ‘date’. Merely an outing. A helpful gesture towards a new colleague who was turning out to be very pleasant company.

Mark was driving Penelope’s small hatchback car. It had been his own suggestion and Penelope had been happy to hand over the keys. Now she could really relax and enjoy whatever the afternoon had to offer. She loved the drive around the harbour and one of the houses Mark had lined up to view was quite remote—right out past Scorching Bay.

‘You need to get into the right-hand lane here,’ she directed. ‘We want to go through the Mount Victoria tunnel and then follow the main road down to the harbour.’ Penelope watched as Mark checked the rear-view mirrors and indicated their lane change.

‘It would be at least a twenty-minute drive to the hospital from Scorching Bay,’ she warned Mark. ‘Probably a lot more in heavy traffic. Won’t that be a hassle?’

‘Could be worth it,’ Mark responded. ‘It’s not as if we’re on call and have to come in to work at a moment’s notice. We have set shift hours. Sometimes you need to be able to put real distance between home and work. Especially in a department like ours.’

Penelope agreed readily. Emergency medicine was usually full on. Huge numbers of patients could often take a heavy toll on both professional and personal resources.

‘What do you do, Penny? To switch off from work?’

‘Sleep mostly.’ Penelope laughed. ‘And spend time with friends.’

‘Any particular friends?’ Mark’s query was casual but Penelope sensed he was sounding out whether she had a man in her life. She suppressed the pang of guilt firmly.

‘Only Bindy. Belinda Scott,’ she elaborated in response to the questioning expression Mark gave her. ‘She’s a nurse in Emergency, too. Tall. Long, reddish hair.’

‘Oh, yes.’ Mark nodded. He had noticed Belinda. Of course he had. Any man would have noticed Belinda.

‘She’s my flatmate.’

‘Where do you live?’

‘We share a townhouse tucked up on Mount Victoria. Right on the border of the park. One of the walkways goes past our back door. Bindy often drags me out running. She’s an exercise freak.’

‘And you’re not?’

‘Not really,’ Penelope confessed. She looked down at her sturdy, denim-clad legs and her laugh was self-deprecating. ‘Can’t you tell?’

‘No,’ Mark responded promptly. He flashed her a sideways grin. ‘I’m a bit of couch potato myself. You look just fine to me. Are we still in the right lane here?’

‘Yes. There’s a big roundabout coming up. We go left and that’ll take us onto Shelly Bay Road. Just keep the harbour on your left after that and we can’t go wrong.’ Penelope stole a glance at her companion. There wasn’t much wrong with the way Mark looked even if he was a couch potato, which was doubtful. He wasn’t particularly tall—maybe five nine or ten—and his shoulders were broad for his height so he couldn’t be considered lean, yet the impression he gave was one of nice proportions. Maybe it was his colouring that was appealing. The black hair and very dark green eyes. Or maybe it was his laid-back manner. Quiet but confident. Friendly but thoughtful at the same time. Penelope had the feeling that Mark’s loyalty might not be given easily but once it was given it would be there to stay. She liked that. Mark had the makings of being a good friend.

The silence between them was quite comfortable but Penelope wanted to talk. She wanted to learn more about him.

‘I’ve got a sister in Wellington as well. Rachael. She’s the only one in my family left here so I try and see her as much as I can.’ Penelope made a mental note to call her sister when she got home. She hadn’t tried very hard lately to spend time with Rachael but it hadn’t been until her conversation with Belinda yesterday that she had realised why she had been unconsciously avoiding contact. Jealousy was a poisonous emotion and Penelope had no intention of letting its tentacles gain any more of a hold on her life. ‘Rachael’s a vet,’ she told Mark brightly. ‘She’s three years younger than me and she’s expecting her first baby next year. She and Tom are very excited.’

‘I can imagine.’ Mark’s smile looked almost wistful. Penelope wondered if he had yearnings for a family himself. Or did he already have one? An ex-wife and a few children tucked away somewhere? He hadn’t needed reminding of the direction to take at the roundabout. They headed out along Shelly Bay Road.

‘That will make you an aunt,’ Mark observed. ‘Is that a first for you?’

‘Hardly!’ Penelope laughed. ‘My oldest sister, Sandra, has two children and my brother, John, has three. Sandra lives in Auckland, though, and John’s been in Australia for ten years so I’ve never seen much of those nieces and nephews. Rachael’s baby will be the first one I’ll have a lot to do with.’ It would also be the first pregnancy to watch developing. The first pregnancy to be expected to discuss in intimate detail and the first nursery to help plan. Of course Rachael didn’t want to talk about anything else these days. Penelope would have been exactly the same.

‘You’re very lucky to have such a big family,’ Mark told her. ‘I was an only child.’

‘I wanted to be an only child.’ Penelope grinned.

‘Why?’ Mark sounded astonished.

‘Both my sisters are very clever and beautiful. And they’ve both got blonde hair.’ Penelope was still smiling. ‘I was the black sheep of the family.’

Mark’s glance was admonishing. ‘Stop putting yourself down,’ he directed firmly. ‘You’re an extremely attractive woman.’

‘Thanks.’ Penelope glanced away in embarrassment. Heavens, she hoped that Mark didn’t think she had been fishing for a compliment. She bit her bottom lip, torn between embarrassment and pleasure. That was twice in two days that someone had commented positively on her looks. Even if one of them had been a rather weird patient, it was still flattering. Penelope let her gaze sweep the harbour with its usual level of interesting shipping activity as she tried to think of something casual to say.

The inter-island ferry was just leaving the wharf on the far side. A huge container ship was waiting its turn to dock, two tugboats guarding its bows. Several small fishing vessels were out and a keen yachtsman in a small craft was making the most of the stiff breeze, bouncing over the choppy water close to the road.

‘Not the best day for sailing.’ Penelope needed to break the short silence that was vaguely uncomfortable for the first time. She didn’t want Mark to think that he had stepped over a boundary and said something unwelcome. The comment sounded deliberately casual, however, and made Penelope feel more, rather than less, uncomfortable.

Mark’s glance was reassuring. Penelope suspected he had noticed her discomfort and was quite happy to take their conversation in whatever direction she preferred.

‘It does look a bit rough out there.’ Mark’s gaze was now back on the road. He was negotiating its frequent turns competently. ‘I can see why they’ve got that metal barrier fence between us and the harbour. This wouldn’t be a pleasant drive in really bad weather.’

‘No, and Wellington is renowned for delivering plenty of that.’

‘So the myth is based on reality? I grew up in the South Island,’ Mark told her. ‘In Dunedin. We all knew Wellington’s reputation for foul weather but I thought it might be exaggerated. Dunedin’s not exactly tropical.’

‘I’m ashamed to say I’ve never been that far south,’ Penelope confessed. ‘We used to have summer camping holidays around Nelson but that’s right up the top of the South Island and the weather was always perfect as I remember it.’

‘Childhood summer holidays always seem to have had great weather, don’t they?’ Mark looked thoughtful. ‘Maybe we just don’t remember the bad stuff. I used to go and stay with some cousins in Central Otago. It was wonderful.’

‘Did you do your training in Dunedin?’

Mark nodded. ‘I moved to Australia as a registrar and then went to England for a few years. Too long,’ he added quietly.

‘You didn’t like it?’

‘The job was great. That’s where I fell in love with emergency medicine. Things didn’t work out in the end, though.’ Mark paused for a second as though considering how much he wanted to say on the topic. An imperceptible shake of his head and a brighter tone to his voice suggested he had chosen a new direction. ‘No hope of getting a consultancy there. I would have been a grandfather by the time I stopped being a senior registrar.’