The Baby Doctor's Desire

‘Thanks, but…’ Something that looked like guilt flickered over his face. ‘There are a couple of things I need to do. I’ll, um, see you later.’

‘Sure.’ She wasn’t sure if she was more disappointed or relieved that he wasn’t joining them. Relieved because she had a chance to put some distance between them. As for the disappointment, it was better this way. Besides, Zoe and Holly would have grilled the poor man until he’d given them his complete life history.

Her best friends were already waiting for her in the canteen. ‘Chicken salad wrap, orange juice and the last strawberry yoghurt,’ Zoe said, sliding the plates across to Judith’s place.

‘Angel.’ Judith hugged her and sank into her seat. ‘You’ve obviously had a good morning, Holls—you’re usually the last one here, not me.’

‘So what were you up to?’ Holly asked.

‘My first ECV, no less.’ Judith blew on her nails and polished them on her sleeve. ‘Well, with a bit of help from our new consultant.’

‘The one who worked with your dad,’ Zoe remembered. ‘What’s he like?’

‘OK.’

‘Oh,’ Zoe said meaningfully.

Judith pulled a face at her. ‘Don’t take that tone with me—just because you’re disgustingly happily married, it doesn’t mean everyone else has to be.’

‘No.’ Zoe flushed. ‘Sorry, Jude. No matchmaking attempts, I promise.’

Judith sighed. ‘Oh, hell. I’m sorry for snapping, Zo. And you know I’m pleased you and Brad are happy.’

‘So tell us about the new boy,’ Holly prompted.

Judith took a bite of her chicken salad wrap, making her friends wait. Then she smiled. ‘Kieran Bailey? OK. He’s taller than me, dark hair, eyes like black velvet.’ And a mouth I want to feel on mine. Except I can’t have him.

‘Are you sure you’re not smitten?’ asked Holly.

Her face must have given her away. Damn. ‘You know my track record with men,’ she said lightly. ‘I always pick the louses.’

Zoe frowned. ‘You said he was OK. What makes you think he’s a louse?’

‘Because he’s married.’ Judith fiddled with her glass. ‘Why else would he smell of baby sick?’

‘Because you work in the maternity unit perhaps?’ Holly asked. ‘You’re jumping to conclusions, Jude.’

‘You should have brought him to lunch with you.’ Zoe grinned. ‘I’d have asked him for you.’

Judith rolled her eyes. ‘I know you would, Hurricane Zoe! Anyway, he said he had things to do.’

‘Which doesn’t have anything to do with being married. You can be single and have things to do,’ Holly pointed out.

‘Jude, if he’s nice and you like him—go for it,’ Zoe said.

‘You’re barely back from honeymoon and you’ve still got your rosy glasses on,’ Judith said, patting her hand. ‘It’s so not going to happen.’ Zoe and Holly had been her best friends for years. They knew the score where Judith and men were concerned: it just didn’t work. Judith had spent her time at med school studying rather than socialising—gaining a reputation as an ice maiden in the meantime. Which meant the nice men had been scared off, and the only ones who approached her now saw her as a challenge to be conquered and then boasted about.

So nowadays Judith settled for friendship. And as for the awareness that had prickled down her spine when Kieran had shaken her hand…well, she’d just have to learn to ignore it. Because nothing was going to happen between them.

Was it?

CHAPTER TWO

BY FRIDAY, Kieran felt as if he’d been working at London City General all his life. Everyone on the ward was friendly, Bella was the kind of boss who trusted you to get on with your job and see her if you had a problem, and even Tess seemed to be settling a little more at home—at least, she hadn’t cried as much as usual that morning before he’d left, and he’d managed to get to work on time ever since Monday.

The only sticking point was Judith Powell.

Because he couldn’t get her out of his head. Her smile, her voice, the vanilla scent of her perfume: they filled his senses. The back of his neck started to tingle the moment she walked into a room.

He knew from hearing the midwives teasing her about being married to her job that she was single. Which meant she wasn’t really off limits. Except…she was the daughter of his former boss. She was his colleague at work. There was Tess to consider. So, although he was tempted, it would be way, way too complicated if he started seeing Judith—even if she wanted to start seeing him, which was by no means a definite.

But sometimes when they were having a case conference he caught her eye. And the flicker of a smile that said, maybe. Or was that just his imagination? Was it just that the pull was so strong for him, he wanted it to be the same for her? That same urge to reach out and touch. Taste. Kiss.

‘Just the man I wanted to see,’ Margot said, breaking into his thoughts. ‘You’re going to buy a ticket for our fundraiser, aren’t you?’

‘Fundraiser?’

‘Jude’s Wednesday night music club.’

He frowned. ‘Jude? Our Jude?’

Margot nodded. ‘Oh, come on. Don’t say you haven’t heard about Jude’s singing. She’s…’ She stopped, and grinned. ‘Well, you can buy a ticket and hear for yourself.’

‘Jude sings?’ he queried.

‘Yes. And we get a third of the profits.’

So who got the other two-thirds? The question must have been written all over his face because Margot added hastily, ‘Paeds gets a third and ED gets a third, too. It’s a joint fundraiser with them. Jude does it every month.’

‘Right.’

‘Even if you don’t come, you can still buy a ticket. It’s for a good cause.’

How could he resist the idea of seeing Judith Powell outside the hospital? ‘Sure. When is it?’

‘Next Wednesday, at the hospital social club. There’s food as well. Zoe Hutton in Paeds makes the best cheese straws in London, and her brownies are to die for.’

Social club. Maybe, just maybe…A lightbulb flicked on in the back of his head. ‘Is it limited to just staff?’

‘No, you can bring a friend. Or a partner.’ Margot gave him a curious look.

Kieran didn’t particularly want to explain about Tess—if he did persuade her to come, the last thing she needed was to think that people were gossiping about her. But maybe a night out would do his baby sister good. Teach her that although she’d loved Aidan desperately and he’d let her down in the worst way, there was still a world outside. A world with people who’d be kinder than her ex. His next-door neighbour, Rosemary, would look after Charlie for them—she’d been keeping half an eye on Tess for him while he was at work.

Though if it meant glamming up, Tess would probably run a mile. He’d have enough of a job persuading her to put on some lipstick. Since Aidan had dumped her, Tess hadn’t seen the point in a lot of things. ‘How dressy is it?’

‘Comfortable. Smart casual,’ Margot said.

He might be able to persuade her, then. ‘Put me down for two tickets,’ he said with a smile.

‘So you’re bringing your partner?’ Margot asked.

He chuckled. ‘Honestly. Midwives must be the nosiest bunch going!’

‘Well, if you will be secretive,’ she teased back.

His smile faded. He wasn’t secretive. Just protecting his little sister. ‘Yeah, well,’ he said, and paid up.

Later that morning, Judith rapped on the door of Kieran’s office. ‘Got a minute?’

‘Sure.’ More than a minute, where she was concerned.

But this was a professional question. It deserved a professional answer. ‘What’s up?’

‘I’ve just had a mum admitted—Pippa Harrowven. She’s thirty-five weeks. She rang her midwife because she wasn’t feeling well, and the midwife sent her straight here. I’ve examined her and I’m not happy. Her temperature’s up, her heart rate’s up and so is the baby’s. She’s feeling sick but not actually vomiting, she says it hurts to pee and when I examined her there was some muscle guarding—I think it’s more than just cystitis.’

‘Has anyone done an MSU?’

A mid-stream urine sample could tell them if Pippa had an infection and what had caused it. ‘Yes—I’ve sent it to the lab for culture and sensitivity tests. Her urine’s cloudy, but when Daisy tested it, it wasn’t acid, so it’s not E. coli.’

‘Are you thinking acute pyelonephritis?’ Kieran asked.

She nodded. ‘I was. Except it’s not E. coli, so that rules it out.’

‘Not necessarily. I know E. coli accounts for eight-five per cent of cases, but it could be three or four other organisms, including Klebsiella and Proteus,’ he reminded her. ‘Any other symptoms?’

‘She’s complaining of pain and tenderness around the loins, and it seems to be following the path of the ureters. She said it started last night and it’s just got a lot worse.’

Kieran nodded. ‘It sounds very like acute pyelonephritis.’

‘I’ve asked Daisy to do her obs, and keep an eye on her temperature and pulse. But if it is pyelonephritis, we’re talking possible problems with growth and preterm labour, aren’t we?’

‘Yes.’ Kieran couldn’t figure it out. Judith had reached a diagnosis, and from what she’d told him it sounded like the correct one. So why was she still so unsure? She was the daughter of an obstetric professor. She must have grown up hearing obstetric terms bandied about the house—so surely she should be too confident, if anything.

Unless she’d once been overconfident and had made the kind of mistake that made you question every action for a very, very long time afterwards. And Bella had said that Judith didn’t want to work with her father. Kieran had worked with Ben for years and found him very fair. There was definitely more here than met the eye, and it intrigued him. ‘Want me to come and have a look?’

Her brow smoothed with relief. ‘Please.’

‘Sure.’ He followed her into the ward and Judith introduced him to Pippa.

‘I’m just going to examine you, Pippa, if that’s all right?’ He paused for the young mother-to-be’s agreement. ‘OK. Tell me if it hurts.’ Gently, he palpated her abdomen. As he moved along the path of the ureters, Pippa flinched.

‘It hurts. And I need to pee again. Except I probably won’t be able to—I couldn’t last time, and I haven’t had anything to drink since then. And…’ She turned her head and a stream of vomit splashed over Kieran’s shoes and trousers.

‘Oh, no, I’m so sorry,’ she said miserably.

‘You’re not feeling well. There’s no need to be sorry.’ He nodded to Daisy to fetch a cloth and water, then mopped Pippa’s face. ‘I’ve had worse over me.’

‘But—’

‘But nothing.’ He smiled at her. ‘We’ll have you feeling better soon, though I’m afraid you’ll be on bed rest for a while. As soon as the lab results come back, we’ll know which antibiotics to give you.’

‘But aren’t antibiotics dangerous for the baby?’

‘We’re going to keep a very close eye on you both,’ Kieran promised. ‘Jude thinks you’ve got something called pyelonephritis, and I think she’s right. It’s an infection of the kidney and the tubes that carry urine away from the kidneys, so we’ll need to give you antibiotics to stop it. I can also give you something to bring your temperature down, and we’ll put you on a drip to make sure you don’t get dehydrated.’

‘We can give you a heat pad for your back, to help with the pain,’ Judith added. ‘And Daisy’s going to keep an eye on your temperature and your pulse rate.’

‘You said bed rest. How long will I be in?’

‘A week or so,’ Kieran said.

‘But I can’t be! I—I’ve got a pile of work to do. I’m a freelance artist. If I don’t work, I don’t get paid and I’ll probably lose my client, and…’ Pippa’s lower lip trembled.

‘Is there someone we can call for you?’ Kieran asked. ‘And maybe your partner can explain to your client.’

Pippa shook her head. ‘He left me when we found out I was pregnant. He doesn’t want a baby to complicate things. But I couldn’t bring myself to have a termination. And…’ She shook her head, choked by tears.

‘How about your mum?’ Judith asked gently. ‘Or a good friend?’

‘My mum’s in Lincolnshire. I can’t drag her all the way up to London.’ Pippa wiped her hand across her eyes. ‘There’s my best friend. Except she’s busy and—’

‘If my best friend was in hospital, pregnant and ill and scared, I’d be there for her,’ Judith cut in. ‘It wouldn’t matter how busy I was.’

‘Sorry, I’m not usually this pathetic,’ Pippa said.

‘Hey. You’re not feeling well, and your hormones are all over the place,’ Kieran told her. ‘So you’re not being pathetic at all.’

‘How did I get it?’ Pippa asked.

‘You’re more likely to get it in pregnancy because urine moves more slowly from the kidney to the bladder, due to hormone changes. As your uterus gets bigger, it puts more pressure on your ureters—they’re the tubes that connect your kidneys to your bladder. And that means it’s easier for germs to grow.’

‘So it’s not something I did?’

‘No,’ Kieran reassured her.

‘Is the baby going to be all right?’

Judith nodded. ‘There’s a risk you might go into labour early, but you’re thirty-five weeks now, so your baby’s got a good chance.’

‘But you need to tell us if you feel any tightening around your uterus or stomach cramps or a low ache in your back,’ Kieran added. ‘We’ll test another urine sample forty-eight hours after we start giving you the antibiotics, and you need to have a sample tested every time you see your midwife. It might come back, so you’ll need to take antibiotics for about six weeks after you have the baby, and your GP should book you in for a check six weeks after that so we can make sure you’re not going to have any more problems.’

‘A week.’ Pippa shook her head. ‘I can’t stay in bed for a week. I really can’t.’

‘Up to you,’ Kieran said. ‘But if we don’t treat you and you end up with sepsis—that’s infection in your blood—you’ll be here for a lot longer.’ If she survived. Not that he was going to frighten her by telling her that now. He’d wait until the infection cleared.

‘I’ll call your friend,’ Judith said. She squeezed Pippa’s hand. ‘You’ll be fine. I promise.’

When the test results came back, Kieran called Judith into his office. ‘Well spotted,’ he said, passing the results to her.

She read them swiftly. ‘Klebsiella. You were right.’

‘No, you were right. You said it wasn’t E. coli. So we can start her on IV antibiotics. I’d like Daisy to do her obs at least four-hourly.’

‘Sure. I’ll go and see her.’

As she reached the door, Kieran said softly, ‘Hey.’

Judith paused and looked round. ‘What?’

‘Don’t doubt yourself. You’re doing a great job.’

‘I…’ Colour washed into her face, and she muttered something he couldn’t catch before she left his office.

Stop wishing, Kieran thought. She’s not yours, she’s not going to be yours. You just work together. Leave it at that.

Except his heart most definitely wasn’t listening.

The following Wednesday night, Tess looked dubiously at her brother. ‘I’ve changed my mind. I don’t want to leave Charlie.’

‘It’s only for a couple of hours. He’ll be absolutely fine. He likes Rosemary, she used to be a childminder before she retired so she knows everything there is to know about babies, and I’ll keep my mobile phone switched on so she can get us if she needs us.’

‘I thought you weren’t allowed to use mobiles in hospitals?’

‘It’s in the hospital social club. Different building,’ Kieran explained. ‘Come on, Tess. It’ll be fun.’

The doorbell rang, and he saw the panic in Tess’s eyes. He sighed inwardly. ‘Look, if you really don’t want to come, I understand. But it’d be nice for us to go out and let our hair down. Just for a couple of hours. We don’t have to stay late.’

‘I won’t know anyone.’

‘You’ll know me.’ He wrinkled his nose at her. ‘Anyway, it’d be a waste of good lippy if you stay in now.’ Lipstick that he’d bought her on the way home from work, hoping it would tempt her into making an effort with her appearance.

‘I look a frump.’

She certainly didn’t dress as fashionably as she had before Charlie’s arrival, but no way could anyone call Tess Bailey a frump. He’d once teased his kid sister that she’d manage to look great in a bin bag. ‘Course you don’t. And you’re going to be on the arm of the best-looking man in the hospital.’

She pursed her lips. ‘I thought I was going with you.’

Kieran grinned. That was more like the old Tess—teasing and keeping her big brother in his place. ‘You are. Come on, let’s get Rosemary settled.’

Tess had an enormous list of things to check, but finally Kieran and Rosemary persuaded her out of the door. And when they got to the hospital social club and Tess froze, Kieran slid his arm round her shoulders. ‘You’re going to enjoy this,’ he said, hugging her. ‘And if you’re a very, very good girl, I might even let you buy me a pint.’

‘Oh, you,’ Tess said, but to his relief she let him usher her into the building. They handed over their tickets, Kieran bought them both a drink, and they found a quiet table at the side of the room.

The little room filled, then the hubbub stopped, the lights dimmed and the spotlight lit up the stage.

Kieran’s jaw dropped. Judith looked incredible. She was wearing a little black dress and high heels, her hair was loose, she was wearing just enough make-up for him to notice, and his body went straight into caveman mode. His mind followed. All he could think about was rushing onto the stage, yelling ‘Mine!’ and carrying her off somewhere very private.

And then she started to sing.

Her voice was amazing. Husky and soft. And he felt as if his bones were melting as he listened to her. She looked and sounded like an angel. And he wanted her. Badly.

It was different, tonight, Judith thought. Something was different. She couldn’t put her finger on it but…

And then she glanced round the room and saw him.

Out of his suit and white coat, Kieran Bailey was gorgeous. Dark trousers, what looked like a silk shirt—a mixture of purples and blues and greens. All he needed was the earring and a trace of stubble, slightly longer hair, a hat and boots, and he’d be the perfect pirate.

She almost stumbled over the words of the song, despite the fact that she knew it well. Kieran the pirate king. Carrying her off to have his wicked way with her on his ship. Her libido rose and she panicked inwardly. Please, no. She wasn’t going to let herself fall for him. She wasn’t going to get involved with someone who wasn’t free.

Then she saw the woman sitting quietly at the table with him. Holding onto his arm very tightly, as if to advertise to everyone that he was hers. Like Kieran, she had dark hair, but her skin was much fairer. She was pretty, though she looked slightly tired and washed-out. But, then, Kieran had smelled of baby sick. Clearly they had a young baby. And with Kieran working doctors’ hours, his wife would be doing most of the childcare, taking the brunt of the broken nights.

Hell, Judith thought. Hell and double hell. He was completely off limits. And she’d just have to stay out of his way until she grew out of this crush, or whatever it was.

The problem was, even knowing what she did, she couldn’t take her eyes off him. Which made her the biggest bitch under the sun.

She caught Zoe’s gaze and flashed her a look to say, Help!

And Zoe, to her relief, pushed Brad onto the stage. At least singing a duet with her best friend’s husband helped to take her mind off Kieran. Though she was intensely aware of those dark, dark eyes. That beautiful mouth. And the fact that he was staring just as hard at her. That he wanted her just as much as she wanted him.

How could he, when he was married—and, even worse, his wife was sitting right next to him? How could he?

Whoever the blond guy was, Kieran decided he didn’t like him. He definitely didn’t like the way the man was singing with Jude. At one point, the man actually put his arm round Jude’s shoulders. Way, way, way too familiar. Kieran had to dig his fingernails into his palms to stop himself snarling, ‘Take your hands off my woman.’

Because Jude wasn’t his woman.

Yet.

‘Are you all right?’ Tess asked.

Oh, hell. He was supposed to be giving Tess a good evening, not drooling over Jude. ‘Fine. Just a bit hungry.’ Maybe his blood sugar was a bit low. Maybe that was why he was feeling dizzy—it had nothing to do with being jealous of the blond guy. ‘Margot said there was a buffet. Shall we go and get something?’

Tess looked slightly nervous, but nodded.

‘Great. Come on.’

But food didn’t help. Even with his back to the stage, he was intensely aware of Judith. And he was sure that she was just as aware of him. She’d looked pole-axed when she’d met his eyes—just for a second, and then she’d gone back into professional singer mode and looked as if nothing had happened.

He was going to have to do something about this.

Like asking her out.

Tomorrow.

CHAPTER THREE

‘MORNING.’ Kieran smiled at Judith.

‘Morning.’ She didn’t return the smile, he noted.

He tried again. ‘I didn’t realise you were so talented.’

She lifted her chin. ‘I beg your pardon?’

‘Last night. I was at your fundraiser.’ She’d caught his eye. Several times. So she knew he’d been there. ‘Your voice is gorgeous.’

‘Thank you.’

She still wasn’t smiling. Maybe she was just tired from last night. He had no idea what time it had finished because he hadn’t been able to stay until the end. Tess had started getting anxious about Charlie and, although Rosemary had reassured her on the phone, Tess had wanted to see her son for herself. No way would Kieran let his sister go home on her own, so he’d left with her. And every step away from Judith had torn at his heart.

‘The guy who sang with you—he was good, too.’ Kieran hoped he didn’t sound as jealous as he felt.

‘Brad? Yeah, he’s cool.’

‘Your boyfriend?’ Oh, for goodness’ sake! He had no right to quiz her like this. It was none of his business.

He just wanted it to be his business.

She frowned. ‘Hardly. He’s my best friend’s husband.’

Good.

When her frown deepened, Kieran had a nasty feeling that he’d just spoken aloud. ‘Good that he helps in the fundraiser, I mean.’

‘Of course he would. His wife started them, about eighteen months ago.’

From her clipped tone, he was aware that he’d said something very wrong, but what? Hopefully he’d be able to smooth things over during their shift, otherwise, it would be a waste of time asking her out tonight. She’d refuse flatly and it would only make things worse between them. ‘I’d better do my rounds.’

‘And I’m due at the antenatal clinic.’

‘See you later, then.’

Her gaze most definitely said, I’d rather not. But what on earth had he done to upset her?

He was still none the wiser at the end of Judith’s clinic, when she knocked on his door. ‘Got a moment?’

Still not as warm and friendly as she’d been on the day they’d met, but maybe if he responded as a professional, she might relax with him again. ‘Sure. Come and sit down. What’s the problem?’

‘One of my mums—Rhiannon Morgan. She missed her eight-week dating scan and now she’s thirteen weeks. But she says she’s had trouble going to the loo. She’s getting cramping and abdominal pains which have been getting worse over the last couple of days.’

‘Could be a UTI.’ Urinary tract infections were very common during pregnancy.

‘I wasn’t happy about the scan. And she’s had some spotting.’

‘Threatened miscarriage?’

Judith shook her head. ‘I can’t put my finger on it, but something’s not right. The angles on the screen were…’ she waved a hand, as if searching for a word ‘…odd.’

‘Have you done a pelvic exam?’

‘No.’

Kieran frowned. ‘It could be a retroverted uterus.’ He drew a quick sketch to show her. ‘You know the uterus is fixed at the cervix but it’s partially mobile, and it’s more likely to move during pregnancy.’