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Mrs Wood left the room clutching her prescription and Alice moved on to the next patient. And the next.
She was reading a discharge letter from a surgeon when her door opened and Gio walked in, juggling two coffees and a large paper bag.
‘I’m fulfilling my brief from Mary. Breakfast.’ He flashed her a smile, kicked the door shut with his foot and placed everything on the desk in front of her. He ripped open the bag and waved a hand. ‘Help yourself.’
She sat back in her chair and stared at him in exasperation. She never stopped for a break when she was seeing patients. It threw her concentration and just meant an even longer day. ‘I’ve still got patients to see.’
‘Actually, you haven’t. At least, not at this exact moment. I checked with Mary.’ He sat down in the chair next to her desk. ‘Your last patient has cancelled so you’ve got a break. And so have I. Let’s make the most of it.’
She stared at the selection of croissants and muffins. ‘I’m not really hungry but now you’re here we could quickly run through the referral strategy for—’
‘Alice.’ He leaned forward, a flash of humour in his dark eyes. ‘If you’re about to mention work, hold the thought.’ He pushed the bag towards her. ‘I refuse to discuss anything until I’ve seen you eat.’
The scent of warm, freshly baked cakes wafted under her nose. ‘But I—’
‘Didn’t eat breakfast,’ he reminded her calmly, ‘and you’ve got the whole morning ahead of you. You can’t get through that workload on one cup of black coffee, even though it was excellent.’
She sighed and her hand hovered over the bag. Eventually her fingers closed over a muffin. ‘Fine. Thanks. If I eat this, will you leave me alone?’
‘Possibly.’ He waited until she’d taken a bite. ‘Now we can talk about work. I’m interested in following up on Harriet. You mentioned that there’s a baby clinic this afternoon. Is she likely to attend?’
‘Possibly.’ The muffin was still warm and tasted delicious. She wondered how she could have thought she wasn’t hungry. She was starving. ‘Rita would know whether she’s down for immunisation. Or she may just come to have the baby weighed. Gina is around this morning, too. It would be worth talking to her. I’ve got a meeting with her at eleven-fifteen, to talk about our MMR rates.’
‘I’ll join you. Then I can discuss Harriet.’
‘Fine.’ Her gaze slid longingly at the remaining muffins. ‘Can I have another?’
‘Eat.’ He pushed them towards her and she gave a guilty smile.
‘I’ll cook supper tonight in return.’ She thought she saw a look of alarm cross his face but then decided she must have imagined it.
‘There’s no need, I thought we could—’
‘I insist.’ It was the least she could do, she thought, devouring the muffin and reached for another without even thinking. She loathed cooking, but there were times when it couldn’t be avoided. ‘Last night’s supper of cheese on toast was hardly a gourmet treat. Tonight I’ll do a curry.’ She’d made one once before and it hadn’t turned out too badly.
‘Alice, why don’t you let me—’ He broke off and turned as the door opened and Rita walked in.
‘Can you come to the waiting room? Betty needs advice.’
Alice brushed the crumbs from her lap and stood up. ‘I’ll come now. Nice breakfast. Thanks.’
Dropping the empty bag in the bin on his way past, Gio followed, wondering if she even realised that she’d eaten her way through three muffins.
It was almost eleven o’clock, and she’d been up since dawn and working on an empty stomach until he’d intervened.
Something definitely needed to be done about her lifestyle.
He gave a wry smile. Even more so if he was going to be living with her. After sampling her cheese on toast, he didn’t dare imagine what her curry would be like, but he had a suspicion that the after-effects might require medication.
He walked into the reception area and watched while she walked over to the couple standing at the desk.
‘Betty? What’s happened?’
‘Eating too quickly, that’s what happened.’ Betty scowled at her husband but there was worry in her eyes. ‘Thought I’d cook him a nice bit of fish for breakfast, straight from the quay, but he wasn’t looking what he was doing and now he’s got a bone lodged in his throat. And, of course, it has to be right at peak season when the shop’s clogged with people spending money and I can’t trust that dizzy girl on her own behind the counter. If we have to go to A and E it will be hours and—’
‘Betty.’
Gio watched, fascinated, as Alice put a hand on the woman’s arm and interrupted her gently, her voice steady and confident. ‘Calm down. I’m sure we’ll manage to take the bone out here, but if not—’ She broke off as the door opened again and another woman hurried in, her face disturbingly pale, a hand resting on her swollen stomach. ‘Cathy? Has something happened?’
