A Very Special Child

‘Three? So he’s still only a baby really. I bet he does all sorts of silly things, doesn’t he, like chewing your slippers?’

Katie shook her head, her huge blue eyes full of scorn. ‘Sandy doesn’t do that! He’s a good dog. He sleeps in my room when I’m at home, on my bed.’ The little girl looked momentarily unsure. ‘You won’t tell Mummy that, will you? She might make him sleep downstairs if she finds out.’

Laura shook her head so that her reddish-brown curls danced around her pretty heart-shaped face. Her hair was baby fine and the bane of her life, defying all her attempts to keep it neatly styled. She kept it cut short in an effort to tame it, but the soft curls seemed to have a life of their own most of the time.

‘No, I won’t tell her, sweetheart. It will be our little secret. Now let’s get you cleaned up then I can remake your bed and you’ll feel a lot better.’

Stowing the last of the soiled linen into the plastic sack, she carried it to the linen chute then filled a basin with warm water. She took it back and drew the curtains around the bed to give them some privacy as she set about stripping off Katie’s night-dress. The child looked painfully thin once she was undressed, her arms like sticks and her ribs protruding. Laura sighed softly as she ran the damp washcloth over her emaciated little body.

Anorexia was a frequent symptom of urinary tract infection in children of this age, and a worrying one. She made up her mind to read through Katie’s notes the minute she had chance to bring herself up to date with the case. She smiled as she dropped the damp cloth into the basin and reached for a towel. Already she was finding herself getting involved, which was a good sign. Maybe it wouldn’t be that difficult to pick up the threads of this new job after all.

Once the little girl was dry, she found a fresh nightie in the bedside locker and popped it over her head. ‘Right, that’s better, isn’t it? Now I’ll go and find some clean bedding. And I’ll make sure it’s prettier than the last lot…promise!’

Leaving Katie giggling happily, she hurried off to find the linen cupboard. Rachel was nowhere in sight and the other two nurses on duty were busy with the morning’s drugs round. Laura hesitated, wondering if she should ask them to direct her, but it seemed silly to make a fuss. It couldn’t be that difficult to find where the supplies were kept, for heaven’s sake!

After a few false starts she finally located the linen cupboard and hurried inside to hunt through the shelves for something suitable. In common with a lot of hospitals, Dalverston General steered clear of the usual starched white linen for use in its children’s ward so that the shelves were stacked with brightly patterned covers and sheets bearing all manner of designs. However, it was on the very top shelf that Laura finally spotted exactly what she wanted—a bed set printed with playful grey kittens and fluffy yellow ducklings, which would be sure to appeal to Katie.

Hefting over the stool, she climbed up to get it, but she was just that bit too short to reach the shelf. She heaved a sigh of annoyance. It wasn’t the first time she’d had occasion to rue her diminutive five feet two inches of height, nor would it be the last, but she refused to be beaten!

Standing on tiptoe, she made a grab for the linen then gasped in dismay as she felt the stool skidding from under her. She closed her eyes as she felt herself tumbling backwards, waiting for the inevitable to happen, then found them winging open again as a pair of strong arms fastened around her before she could hit the floor.

‘Mmm, so my horoscope was right after all.’

‘I…um. Pardon?’ Laura took a quick breath as she struggled to make sense of what was happening. One minute she’d been heading straight for disaster and the next she found herself staring into the most beautiful pair of grey eyes she had ever seen. It was little wonder that she was having difficulty following what was going on!

‘Uh-huh, in the paper this morning. I always read my horoscope, you see, not that I always believe what it says.’ The grey eyes crinkled at the corners as the man chuckled softly. ‘I tend to be a selective believer, you understand. But it does make me wonder if maybe I should take it more seriously when something like this happens.’

‘Something like this…’ Laura took another quick breath but it didn’t seem to achieve any more than the first had done. The feeling of bewilderment certainly didn’t decrease; in fact, it seemed to have grown worse. In desperation she tried a third breath for good measure and was rather pleased with the results when she found that she could manage a simple question at last.

‘What do you mean?’

‘That my horoscope said not to let any opportunity slip through my fingers today.’ He chuckled again and she shivered as she felt the vibrations which rippled through her body. It was only then that she realised their position, that this man—this stranger—was still cradling her against his chest.

The realisation brought a flood of colour to her cheeks. She opened her mouth to ask him to put her down but he seemed to guess what she’d been about to say. He set her gently on her feet and stepped back, his grey eyes assessing as they skimmed over her.

‘Anyway, enough of such nonsense. Are you OK? You haven’t hurt yourself?’

There was genuine concern in his deep voice and Laura hastily shook her head. Now that the shock was beginning to wear off she was starting to feel like a fool. Why on earth hadn’t she accepted her own limitations, instead of nearly causing an accident like that? A broken arm or leg certainly wouldn’t have been a good start to her first day back at work!

‘I’m fine. Thank you,’ she replied stiffly, carefully avoiding the rather too astute gaze so that he wouldn’t see how embarrassed she felt. Her averted eyes widened as she suddenly realised what he was wearing, which was very little, quite frankly.

Jogging shorts and a sleeveless vest in well-washed grey marl weren’t the usual clothes one expected to see in a hospital corridor, but he wore them well, she had to admit. She knew that she was staring but she couldn’t seem to stop as her eyes feasted on the perfection of his well-toned physique. His skin was lightly tanned, gleaming smoothly in the glow from the single bulb which was all the linen cupboard boasted by way of lighting. Laura’s hands tightened against a sudden urge to run her fingers over his skin to see if it really did feel as marvellously smooth as it looked.…

She dragged her eyes away from the powerful conformation of muscles, deeming it wiser to let them home in on other aspects of his appearance, and immediately noticed how tall he was. He had to be at least six feet tall, with light brown hair which fell casually over a wide forehead.

His features were craggy rather than conventionally handsome, she decided thoughtfully, very masculine with that square jaw, impressive nose and chiselled cheekbones. However, it was only when he spoke that she became aware of the silence which had fallen while she’d been taking stock.

‘Sure? It must have given you quite a scare.…’

‘I’m fine. Honestly,’ she said quickly, uncomfortable with the way she was acting. It had been a long time since she’d been so aware of any man, and that she should be aware of this stranger now shocked her, made her feel guilty. Surely the fact that she had loved Ian so much should have made her immune to any other man’s appeal?

She took another of those pitifully ineffectual breaths then gave him a cool smile, hoping that he would take the hint and not pursue the subject. She had no idea who he was, but the way he was dressed could be a clue. A lot of parents stayed in the hospital with their children so it seemed likely that he was one of them. The thought that he might be the father of one of her new charges didn’t ease her mind. What caring parent would be impressed by a nurse who was incapable of getting linen off a shelf without causing a near-disaster?

The thought made her inwardly groan, although she took care not to let him see how flustered she felt. ‘Anyway, thanks again. You saved me from a nasty tumble.’

‘My pleasure.’ He returned her smile readily enough but she could tell that he’d sensed her embarrassment. It made her feel more uncomfortable than ever that he should be able to read her mind so easily. However, before she had time to dwell on it, he reached up to lift the bedding off the top shelf and handed it to her.

‘I think this was what you were after. Here you go.’

He gave her a last brief smile then left before Laura could thank him, his long legs carrying him swiftly along the corridor in the direction of the lifts. She stared after him for a moment then deliberately turned round and made her way back to the ward.

Katie was as delighted with the bed linen as Laura had hoped she would be, and chatted away non-stop as Laura set to work making the bed. She was glad of the distraction because it meant that she had no time to brood about what had happened. The encounter had disturbed her and not just because of the fright she’d had either. It was very odd.

Once the bed was neatly made again, Laura tucked Katie up then went to find Rachel. She was in the office, going through a stack of papers, and she grinned ruefully as Laura tapped on the door.

‘Oh, hi! Sorry to drop you in it like that, Laura, but, as you’ve probably guessed, we’re short-staffed. Anyway, come and sit down while I give you the introductory talk I had planned! Mark’s not due for another half-hour yet so we’ll have time to get you acquainted with how things are done around here.’

‘Mark?’ Laura queried as she sat down.

‘Mark Dawson, our paediatric reg. You haven’t met him?’ Rachel frowned as she got up to plug in the kettle.

‘No. David White was here the last time I visited the ward,’ she explained.

‘When Robbie was here as a patient?’ Rachel smiled as she spooned instant coffee into two mugs. ‘How is he? Up to all sorts of mischief, I’ll bet!’

‘How did you guess?’ Laura laughed softly, her face lighting up as she thought about her son. ‘He started school a few months ago and has been leading the teachers a merry dance!’

‘He’s a real little sweetheart. We were all sorry when it was time for him to leave us, and we don’t say that about all our patients, believe me!’

Rachel sat down behind the desk and frowned. ‘It’s hard to believe that it’s only a few months since that train crash you and Robbie were involved in, isn’t it?’

‘Ten months to be precise.’ Laura sighed reminiscently as she thought back. ‘I’m just grateful that both of us came through it all right.’

‘You must be. It must have been a horrible experience for you, something you never expect to happen,’ Rachel suggested with a shudder.

‘It was. And yet in a way it had a postive effect because being in hospital afterwards made me realise how much I missed the job. It spurred me on to come back to work.’

‘Really?’ Rachel smiled. ‘Well, it’s great to have you back, Laura. I just want to say how pleased I was when I heard that you’d accepted this post. We’ve been desperate to fill the vacancy, and to get someone with your experience is a real bonus.’

‘Thank you. To be honest, I didn’t expect to be so lucky as to find a job with such marvellous hours.’ Laura took a sip of her coffee. ‘Obviously, I need to work but I also need to be there for Robbie. Knowing that I can work nine to five each day makes all the difference.’

‘You can thank Mark for that because it was his idea,’ Rachel explained. ‘He’s very keen to encourage women who have left nursing to start a family to come back. His view is that it’s not only a waste of valuable training when they leave the workforce but a waste of their experience as well. That’s why he suggested we adapt the hours for this post to suit someone with family commitments.’

‘Well, I’m really glad he thought of it!’ Laura grinned. ‘I’m starting to like this Mark Dawson already and I haven’t even met him!’

‘Oh, give it a couple of days and you’ll be like the rest of us…totally besotted with the guy!’ Rachel laughed as she saw Laura’s expression. ‘Honestly! David was great and we were sorry to lose him when he moved to Glasgow, but Mark…well, Mark is something special. We all love him to bits. If I had to sum him up I’d say that he has to be one of the nicest, most caring men I’ve ever met—’

Rachel broke off and laughed as she looked towards the door. ‘I bet your ears are burning. We were just talking about you!’