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She’d finally managed to procure a pair of violet scrubs and a thick pair of socks. At least she felt comfortable here at work, but from the glances Franz shot her, he was far from happy.
‘Shouldn’t you change? The people of Mirinez will expect a statement from their Head of State. You can’t do it looking like that.’
She glanced down and felt a little surge of anger.
‘Why not? Their Head of State is a doctor. They should be proud of her.’
Sullivan’s voice cut through everything.
She jumped to her feet and ran over to him. What she really wanted to do was wrap her arms around his neck but it was hardly the time or place. ‘How are you? Is everything okay?’
He pulled his surgical hat from his ruffled hair. There were huge dark circles under his eyes. He looked exhausted. ‘First case took longer than any of us thought. Mr Bahn arrested in Theatre. He’s in ICU now. I’ve just checked on him again before I came down here. I’ve also spoke to the other surgical team about their patients.’ He gave a weary smile. ‘I have to say, for a bunch of plastic surgeons they’ve done a damn good job.’
She tipped her head to the side. ‘You didn’t think they would?’
He shrugged. ‘I hoped. Most of these guys have spent the last few years performing cosmetic surgery. Breasts, noses, lips and liposuction.’
She shook her head. ‘Nope. We have plenty of those too, but I demanded the doctors I knew had worked on skin and facial reconstructions. I thought they would be best.’
He gave her an appreciative smile. ‘Then you were right. The two patients who needed facial surgery couldn’t have got any better in the US. I’m impressed.’
‘And I’m relieved,’ she sighed. ‘I’m just glad everything came together.’ She held up her hands. ‘Shouldn’t we have a national disaster plan, where everything just falls into place?’
Sullivan threw back his head and laughed. He’d worked in enough countries and with enough organisations to know just how difficult those things were. ‘Good luck with that. You’re right, you should. In case of emergency, there should be an agreement between all healthcare providers in Mirinez that they’ll play their part.’ He shrugged. ‘I don’t expect them to do it for free, but when was the last time you had an emergency like this in Mirinez?’
Gabrielle glanced at Franz then Arun, who was standing by the door, and back to Franz again. ‘I don’t actually remember if we’ve ever had an emergency before.’
Franz frowned. ‘There was some trouble at the harbour once. An accident when a boat capsized. There were around ten casualties.’
‘And who looked after them?’
Franz looked a little embarrassed. ‘Your father asked the French Prime Minister for help.’
Gabrielle couldn’t help but let out an exasperated sigh. ‘We need to do something about this.’ Then a horrible realisation swept over her. ‘I need to do something about this.’
Sullivan’s arm slid around her waist. While the warmth and familiarity was instantly welcomed, a thousand other thoughts of country and duty pushed into her head. ‘What you need to do—in fact, what we need to do—is get some sleep. I’m happy the patients are settled for now and we can check on them later.’
She didn’t step away. Couldn’t. She’d forgotten just how tired he looked. He’d been down a mine then on his feet in Theatre for the last fourteen hours. She was proving to be a terrible host.
‘Of course, you’re right. Let’s go.’
Franz held up his hand. ‘But what about the statement? The people will be expecting one.’
Sullivan’s arm put a little pressure on her from behind, urging her down the corridor. ‘Just write a press release,’ he said over his shoulder.
Arun walked in front of them, holding open the door of one of the palace limousines. ‘Arun waited too?’ Sullivan asked.
She smiled. ‘And Mikel. He went to Princess Elizabeth’s to see if he could help—answering phones, wheeling patients about. He said he wanted to.’
Sullivan gave a strange kind of smile. ‘It’s amazing how a disaster can bring out qualities you hadn’t noticed before.’
He leaned back in the seat, letting himself sink into the soft leather. His arm moved from her waist to curl around her shoulders. She followed his lead and leant her head against his chest, closing her eyes for a few seconds.
Next minute Arun was opening the door and the cool air swept around them. She rubbed her eyes and stepped out of the car, waiting for Sullivan.
The palace corridors were quiet. Half of the staff would no doubt be glued to the news channels and the other half would be answering phones and queries from all over the globe.
Her feet started to slow as she started to wonder if she should offer to go and help.
‘No,’ said Sullivan firmly.
She stared up at him from tired eyes. ‘What do you mean, no?’
He kept her walking. ‘You’re not going to do anything else. You’re going to rest. Take a few hours down time. Everything immediate has been dealt with.’
She knew he was right, but something inside her stomach coiled. ‘But—’
He cut her off. ‘But your staff haven’t had a functioning Head of State in over a year. Do you think Andreas would have organised any emergency services? Would he have found other surgeons? Treated patients? Negotiated with the directors of the hospitals?’
Fatigue rested heavily on her shoulders. ‘No. But he isn’t a doctor. He wouldn’t have been able to think that way.’
Sullivan stopped outside her doorway. ‘But would he have done anything?’ The coil inside her stomach gave a little somersault.
She pushed open her door and looked inside. In her eyes, this room still belonged to her brother. It didn’t feel like the most restful place to be—she’d spent most of last night tossing and turning.
She turned back to face Sullivan. His pale green eyes stood out against the dark night visible through her windows. ‘Probably not,’ she whispered.
She hesitated at the door again.
‘What’s wrong?’ he asked.
She shook her head. ‘I just don’t want to sleep in there.’
He gave a half-smile. ‘In that case, come with me.’
He slid his hand into hers. ‘I can’t promise you’ll be safe.’
Her heart ached. He had no idea how her thoughts tumbled around her mind right now. One hint of impropriety, one mis-seen kiss and the weight of a nation that was currently around her neck would end up around Sullivan’s too. She still hadn’t heard from Andreas. She still didn’t know why he’d left. Could it have been the pressure to start a family? They’d never discussed his family plans. But as soon as he’d married, there had been constant press speculation about a pregnancy—an heir to the throne.
In the blink of an eye the same could happen to her. Every sighting of her with a man would result in hints of an engagement then a wedding. Then the pressure to have a baby, to continue the line of succession for Mirinez.
How could she contemplate putting all of that on Sullivan? There were already tiny shadows behind his eyes. He hadn’t told her everything. She knew that. But she respected his right to privacy. The press wouldn’t.
She looked down the empty corridor. She felt entirely selfish. And so physically tired. But still it was as though every cell in her body just ached for him. She pushed everything else aside. Gave him a smile. ‘I think I will be. I could probably sleep standing up right now.’ He raised his eyebrows and she added, ‘I’d just rather do it next to you.’
He opened the door to his apartments. The bed was right in the middle of the room, the dark windows looking out over the city below. He pulled his scrub top over his head and kicked off his shoes before he was even halfway across the room. She sat down on the edge of the be
d and wriggled out of her scrub trousers and pulled off her borrowed shoes and socks, hesitating at the bottom of her top.
A soft T-shirt landed sideways on her shoulder. ‘Here, have this,’ he said as he climbed into bed, wearing only his black jockey shorts. This wasn’t exactly how she’d expected to spend her first night in Sullivan’s bed, but for now it just felt right.
‘Thanks,’ she said, swiftly swapping the scrub top for the T-shirt and crawling into bed next to him.
He held out his arm and she put her head on his chest, her arm resting across his body.
For the first time since she’d returned home she felt relieved.
This was exactly how things were supposed to be.
CHAPTER EIGHT
