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Except Marty was the first person she saw when she walked in.
‘What are you doing here?’ she demanded, before realising he was surrounded by young men and women and she’d embarrassed herself far more than she’d embarrassed him.
‘Ah, Emma, just the person we needed,’ he said, with such a bland smile she wanted to hit him. ‘These are a group of medical students from Retford university. We always take some for work experience so they can see a smaller hospital in action, and although we don’t wish for accidents it’s an opportunity for them to see how the search and rescue team operates.’
Emma smiled feebly at the four young women and two young men who made up the group.
‘Emma,’ Marty continued, ‘usually joins the rescue team when we have a callout that requires a doctor.’
‘And is she trained the way you say you’re trained?’ one of the young women asked, flashing such a dazzling smile at Marty Emma wanted to hit her.
Or him, for he was smiling right back at the questioner, all daring charm.
‘Of course,’ he said. ‘We had a training day only last week. Every member of the team has to update their skills twice a year.’
The young woman looked as if she’d have liked to have been at the training day, and Marty’s smile suggested he wouldn’t have minded at all, but one of the men was now asking, ‘Don’t most SAR teams have their own doctors on staff? Wouldn’t it be better carrying a doctor who knows what he’s doing?’
He realised what he’d said, blushed, and turned to Emma.
‘Sorry, ma’am, that came out wrong.’
‘Indeed it did,’ Marty replied, not bothering to hide his delight at both Emma’s and the young man’s embarrassment. ‘But we’re a very small operation, situated at a small country hospital because from here we can cover a far wider range than we would flying out of Retford, for example. Originally this service was connected to the Lifesaver’s movement with sponsorship from big business, and we still get that sponsorship, although we get some government help as well.’
‘So all doctors here at Braxton can be on call?’ the young man persisted, and Emma took pity on him.
‘In areas where there are no doctors employed by search and rescue operations the local doctors, usually from the emergency department, are used. I think one of the reasons I got this job was because I’d been trained for SAR missions, and had done winch training, underwater rescue, which is great fun if ever you want to get into SAR, rescues off moving targets like ships at sea, the lot.’
The young man looked at her in admiration.
‘I wish we’d been here for that training day you had, it sounds like fun.’
Emma’s eyes met Marty’s across the young heads, and the slight nod he gave told her that he, too, was thinking of Ken. But they were young and idealistic, these students, and didn’t really need to know about sitting by someone’s bed waiting for them to die when all your years of training and experience had been about helping people live…
A wave of tiredness swept over her and she knew she’d have been better off staying at home and trying to sleep, no matter what thoughts would have run in circles through her head.
‘Will you join us for lunch? We’re just off to continue this discussion in the canteen then we’re taking the hospital bus out to the base to show them around.’
Emma would have loved to say no, but there’d been the hint of a plea in Marty’s voice, and if he felt as tired as she was feeling, he would need help to field the students’ questions.
The young man who’d asked the question—Alex, she’d discovered—made sure he sat next to her at the long table, and Emma smiled to herself as she saw the young women crowd around Marty.
Like moths to a flame, she thought, and realised that, quite apart from his commitment problems, he would be a dangerous man to know well because he was kind and interesting and always willing to help, but anyone who loved him would live in a constant state of jealousy which would surely eat away at the strongest relationship.
Anyone who loved him?
No, no, she definitely didn’t.
Couldn’t!
So why was she probably turning green as he patted a beautiful young blonde on the hand?
Why did her stomach scrunch when he smiled at the hot brunette?
Damn the man! He’d bewitched her. He’d made it quite clear right from the start—and had definitely confirmed it last night—that he wasn’t available for any kind of commitment, then he’d taken her with a passion that had imprinted him not only in her mind but on her body.
