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‘How come?’
‘Lots of things really.’
‘Such as?’
Candy hesitated. She hadn’t really spoken to anyone about the fact she was considering leaving. She glanced at Steele and realised that by the time she got back from Hawaii he’d be gone, so it really made no difference. ‘I’m not sure if I still want to work in Emergency.’
‘It must be a pretty stressful job.’
‘It is at times.’ Candy nodded. ‘Though it’s not just that. I made a mistake couple of months back.’ She didn’t elaborate; instead, she lay down on the sofa, determined to squeeze in some sleep during her break.
‘A professional mistake?’ Steele probed, and Candy let out a small laugh at his very direct question.
‘No, it was a personal one.’
‘Do tell.’
‘No way.’
‘So there are two things I have to find out about you now,’ Steele teased. ‘The story behind your name and the mistake that Nurse Candy made.’
‘You can try, but it won’t get you anywhere,’ Candy said, and closed her eyes. ‘I’m going to have a little rest.’
‘Hopefully you talk in your sleep.’
She smiled with her eyes closed and was mildly surprised when after a moment or so Steele continued to speak.
‘We all make mistakes, Candy,’ he said. His lovely deep voice was soothing and broke into her semi-doze. ‘If I’ve learnt one thing in this job, it’s that everyone makes so-called mistakes and also that everyone wastes way too much time regretting them.’
She opened her eyes and looked at him. ‘You really do like your job,’ Candy said, and it wasn’t a question, more an observation, and Steele nodded.
‘I really do.’
Yes, she should sleep and her aching body might regret it later but she chose to forgo the full hour of sleep just to find out a little more about him. She lay there and peeked over to Steele, who was still looking at her.
‘Did you always want to work in geriatrics?’
‘Not really,’ Steele said. ‘It sort of found me, I guess. I was pretty much raised by my grandmother...’
‘Are your parents...?’ Her voice trailed off and Steele grinned.
‘They’re not dead.’
‘Good.’
‘My parents are both doctors and were very serious about their careers. I was a late accident. I don’t think they ever really wanted to have children. My mother was a top thoracic surgeon—which means she had balls.’
Candy laughed.
‘My grandmother looked after me till I went to boarding school and in the holidays I stayed with her.’ He saw her frown. ‘My parents are good people. They were just very, very focused. Anyway, when I went to my grandmother’s for Easter one year, she was very confused. Just completely off the wall. I rang my mother and she pretty much would have had her shipped off to a nursing home that day.’
‘Really?’ Candy said.
‘Really!’ Steele nodded. ‘But the GP came and it turned out all she had was a urine infection. He explained the confusion it could cause in the elderly. Anyway, two days later she was completely back to herself. It just stayed with me, I guess.’
‘My nonna lived with us.’ Candy yawned. ‘I think my mother thinks she’ll be living with me...’
‘Did your mother work?’ Steele asked, and Candy shook her head. ‘You do, though. You have a career.’
Candy looked at him. Right there, right then, she felt as if he knew the wrestle in her heart because though she loved her parents they clashed a lot as Candy struggled to be independent when they didn’t want her to be. ‘I do have a career,’ Candy said, ‘and I had to fight to have one.’
‘Have your rest.’ He smiled and Candy nodded.
She’d had to fight to simply be here, Candy thought as she closed her eyes. Her parents had wanted her to marry Franco, and for her to work in the family business. They hadn’t understood that she’d wanted to study to become a nurse.
Candy fell asleep but it felt about twenty seconds later that her phone bleeped and told her that her hour was up and it was time to go back to work. The staffroom was empty and when she went round to the ward Steele wasn’t there either.
