The Italian Doctor

‘I’m not looking for a wife—full stop. I’m not interested in home, family and all the other things everyone thinks I’m lacking in my life. I’m perfectly happy the way I am. To put it bluntly, I’m not the marrying kind. So if you have set your sights on me then I suggest that you think again because I’m not interested.’

Maggie didn’t know which bit of the statement to reply to first. Should she first of all deny that she’d been party to her grandmother’s machinations or leave that until she’d told him exactly where he could get off? The sheer arrogance of him took her breath away, but not for long, mercifully enough.

‘This may come as a shock, Dr Fabrizzi, but I had no idea what Nonna had planned. If I had done then, believe me, I wouldn’t be here now!’

Luke shrugged as he got up. ‘Whatever you say. I don’t intend to argue the point. So long as we both know where we stand, that’s fine by me.’

He walked to the door but Maggie got there ahead of him. Her dark eyes blazed as she glared into his face. ‘Well, it isn’t fine with me! I’ve met some arrogant people in my time but you’re in a league of your own. Do you honestly believe that every woman you meet is so smitten with your charms that she’s longing to snare you into marriage?’

She laughed scornfully and was pleased to see a flicker of annoyance cross his face. Good! It was about time that someone took Dr I-love-me Fabrizzi down several large pegs.

‘Sorry, handsome, but you leave me cold. I like my men to have a bit more going for them than mere good looks. Personality is a definite plus factor, humility another wonderful attribute, and then, of course, there’s intelligence.’

Her scornful gaze swept from the tips of his elegantly shod feet to the top of his well-groomed head before she smiled. ‘I’m afraid you score a big fat zero on all those important points.’

His face hardened. Maggie felt her breath catch when she saw the fire that blazed in his eyes all of a sudden. She stood stock-still, afraid that if she moved she might precipitate a reprisal. How did she know that he was within a hairsbreadth of kissing her until she was forced to retract every word?

Luke took a deep breath and even as she watched the fire faded from his eyes. He smiled at her, that coolly taunting smile she was starting to dislike intensely. ‘Then it seems we have both got what we wanted from this encounter after all, Maggie. You’ve checked me out and found me lacking and I have made my position clear.’

Before she could object he bent and brushed her cheek with his lips. ‘Ciao, cara. It’s been a pleasure meeting you…’

The telephone rang. Maggie snapped back to the present with a jolt. She quickly dealt with the query then hung up. Glancing at her watch, she realised with a start that only a few minutes had passed since Luke had left the office. It felt much longer than that…

She left the office, determined not to waste any more time by daydreaming. Hurrying into the ward, she went straight to Alice Bradshaw’s bed. The curtains had been drawn around it and Luke was sitting by the bed, holding the old lady’s hand. He looked round when she appeared.

‘I’ve just been telling Mrs Bradshaw that there’s a bit more of a problem with her hip than we’d first thought,’ he explained quietly.

Maggie smiled reassuringly at the old lady. ‘I told Dr Fabrizzi that you’d prefer to know exactly what was wrong, Alice.’

‘That’s right, dear. I can’t see much point beating about the bush.’ The old lady smiled at Luke. ‘Although I wouldn’t mind spinning it out just so you could sit there holding my hand a bit longer!’

He laughed. ‘Now, that’s what I call a compliment. It’s taken me years to perfect my bedside manner so it’s good to know that it’s appreciated.’

‘Oh, it’s appreciated all right!’ She turned to Maggie and winked. ‘I think most of us ladies enjoy having a handsome man paying us attention, don’t we, dear?’

Maggie’s smile was a trifle forced. She steadfastly avoided Luke’s eyes because she knew what she would see in them…

Her heart performed that irritating little manoeuvre once again—seeming to curl up and roll over inside her chest. Why did the thought of his amusement at her being put on the spot make her feel all shivery inside? Surely she should have found his conviction that any woman would delight in his attentions more irritating than anything else? Yet for some strange reason it wasn’t irritation she felt right then.

‘I expect most women enjoy a bit of flattery once in a while,’ she said as calmly as she could. ‘However, I think we’re basically too level-headed to be swayed by it.’

‘Speak for yourself!’ Alice retorted. ‘This young man could turn my head if I was thirty years younger, and I don’t mind admitting it!’

The old lady’s tone was so wry that Maggie had to laugh. ‘You’re shameless! Whatever will Dr Fabrizzi think?’

‘That if we could magic away those thirty years then I would be having to get to the back of the line. I can’t imagine that the guys around here are slow to spot a good-looking woman,’ Luke replied dryly.

‘Well, I had my share of admirers in my younger days, I have to admit.’ Alice’s lined face broke into a delighted smile so that Maggie had a glimpse of the lovely young woman she must have been in her prime.

She felt her heart warm when she realised how much the compliment had meant to the old lady. Far too often doctors failed to think of the elderly as anything more than a set of medical conditions, but not Luke. He saw the old lady as a real person with real feelings, not just as an illness that needed treating. It surprised Maggie how pleased she felt to know that.

‘I bet you did.’ Luke’s smile was warm as he squeezed the old lady’s hand. ‘And I’m sure you’ll have more in the future once we get this hip sorted out.’

Alice sighed. ‘Will you be able to fix it though, Doctor? The thing that scares me most is the thought of ending my days in a wheelchair. Oh, I know I can’t do half the things I used to do when I was younger, but I value my independence. I don’t want to end up being a burden to my family.’

‘I’m not going to lie to you, Mrs Bradshaw, and claim that this is going to be easy. And I’m not going to assure you that you’ll be back to normal in a couple of weeks either.’

His tone was uncompromising yet Maggie saw the old lady smile. ‘Then what are you going to tell me?’

‘That with care, plus a lot of determination on your part, you will be back on your feet. It isn’t going to happen overnight nor will your hip ever be as good as it was when you were younger. As I explained, you’re suffering from osteoporosis, which means your bones are far more brittle than they used to be, so we are going to have to take that into account.

‘I’m going to replace the worn-out joint but you’re going to have to be very careful not to put too much pressure on it afterwards. It’s going to take a lot of hard work to regain your mobility, but I’m convinced that you’ll be able to get around unaided eventually,’ he stated firmly.

‘Then that’s good enough for me. Thank you.’ Alice’s eyes swam with tears of relief. ‘I know you’ll do your best and that’s all that matters. I was so afraid that nobody would bother, you see. You read all those dreadful stories in the newspapers and I thought that as I’m in my seventies everyone would think it was a waste of time and money to bother with me.’

‘No way!’ Luke’s tone was grim. Maggie was surprised by the vehemence it held. ‘Giving people the chance to lead a happy and pain-free life at whatever age isn’t something that can be counted in terms of dollars…or pounds.’ He gave the old lady’s hand a final squeeze. ‘I’ll see you in surgery in about an hour, Mrs Bradshaw. And that’s a date!’

He left the cubicle and Alice sighed softly. ‘I think I’ve been very lucky, don’t you, my dear? In fact, I’d say Dalverston is lucky to have a man like that working here. You don’t get many doctors like your Dr Fabrizzi.’

Maggie smiled but the word seemed to be buzzing inside her head. ‘Your Dr Fabrizzi…’

She took a deep breath when she realised that once again her mind was running off at tangents. Maybe there was an explanation for the way it had been behaving of late but she wasn’t going to waste any more time that day looking for one.

‘I’m sure you’re right,’ she said briskly as she straightened the old lady’s bed. ‘Now, try to have a little rest. One of the theatre staff will be up shortly to give you your pre-med.’

She moved away from the bed as the old lady closed her eyes, and glanced around the ward, automatically checking that everything was in order. The surgical ward was one of the busiest in the hospital and there was always something that needed doing.

Her eyes alighted on Luke, who had been waylaid by one of the male patients. The ward was a mixed one, although male and female patients were placed at opposite ends. Now Maggie watched with interest as he stopped to speak to David Garner, a young rugby player who’d been admitted the previous day with a shattered kneecap.

David was due for surgery that afternoon and was very worried about the after-effects of his operation and whether he would be able to play rugby again. Maggie couldn’t help wondering if Luke would have the same rapport with this patient as he’d had with Mrs Bradshaw. In her experience, men who got on well with women rarely related well to other men so it was interesting to observe what was happening.

A burst of laughter rang around the ward and she shook her head in amazement when she saw David Garner slap Luke’s hand in a high-five. To her mind, the two men shouldn’t have had a thing in common yet they looked as though they were the best of friends!

‘He certainly has a way with him, doesn’t he?’ Doreen paused on her way to fetch one of the patients a fresh jug of water. She gave Maggie a teasing look. ‘There’s a lot more to our Dr Fabrizzi than just a handsome face, isn’t there? Admit it, Maggie, he’s one heck of a doctor.’

‘I never said that he wasn’t!’ Maggie heard the snap in her voice and quickly moderated her tone. ‘It’s obvious that he’s highly skilled.’

‘But it’s going to take more than his expertise to win you over?’ Doreen shook her head. ‘I’ll give it a month and then I bet you’ll be as smitten as the rest of us, Maggie Carr. In fact, I’m so sure I’ll be proved right that I’m willing to put my hard-earned money on it. A fiver says that you’ll be a paid-up member of the Fabrizzi fan club by this time next month.’

‘You’re on!’ She shook Doreen’s hand to seal their bet. ‘A fiver will come in very handy, thank you. It will be easy money, too.’

The older nurse just laughed. ‘Oh, I don’t think so. It seems to me that our Luke has already got under your skin, Maggie. You could be in for a big surprise!’

Doreen went on her way, still smiling. Maggie rolled her eyes. Under her skin indeed? What rubbish!

Another burst of laughter had her gaze winging back down the ward and a shiver danced along her nerves. How could she explain the strange way she reacted around Luke? She could deny it until she was blue in the face but there was no doubt that she was unusually aware of him. Far too often in the past weeks she’d found her thoughts straying to him. Was it because they’d got off to such a bad start that she felt she had to be on her guard around him?

She sighed as she realised that she had no idea what the real answer was. She quickly headed for the office and a mound of paperwork that needed her attention. Maybe Doreen hadn’t been so far off track after all because it was obvious that Luke Fabrizzi was fast becoming a veritable thorn in her flesh!

CHAPTER TWO

THE morning passed in fits and starts. There was the usual rush to get patients ready for Theatre, followed by a lull while they waited for them to be returned to the ward. Maggie completed her paperwork then decided that as there were three new admissions scheduled for that afternoon she would take an early lunch.

It was a trek to the bowels of the hospital where the makeshift canteen had been set up, and once there the surroundings left a lot to be desired. Maggie stared glumly at the sage-green-painted walls and murky brown ceiling. ‘Not very cheering, is it? Roll on when they get the renovations finished.’

‘Amen to that!’ Rachel Hart, a sister on Children’s Medical, picked up a plate of limp-looking sandwiches and stared despondently at it. ‘If this is the best we have to look forward to for the next six months then heaven help us!’

She plonked the sandwiches on her tray as Maggie laughed. ‘It should be good for our figures if nothing else. We certainly won’t be rushing back for second helpings.’

She selected a plate of the uninspiring sandwiches for herself, added a cup of tea to her tray, then followed Rachel to a table in the corner once they’d paid for their meals. There were quite a lot of staff taking early lunches and the sound of their voices echoed in the cavernous room.

‘What a din!’ She winced as she drew out a chair from the table and its legs made a horrible screeching noise as they dragged across the concrete floor. ‘Oops, sorry.’

Rachel carefully eased out a chair and sat down. ‘You’d think they could have come up with something better than this, wouldn’t you? It’s an absolute disgrace. I am seriously thinking about having a word with our union rep about it.’

Maggie shrugged, although she couldn’t help thinking that it wasn’t like Rachel to complain. She was normally such a positive person and made the best of any situation. ‘I suppose it was all the management could think of in the circumstances. It can’t be easy, fitting everything around the refurbishment programme.’

‘I suppose not. Sorry, I didn’t mean to moan.’ Rachel grimaced. ‘I feel a bit down in the dumps at the moment so everything seems to be getting on top of me.’

‘Any particular reason for it?’ Maggie queried, taking a bite of her sandwich and discovering that, thankfully, it tasted better than it looked.

‘Oh, you know…this and that,’ Rachel replied noncommittally. She picked up her cup then abruptly put it back on the saucer. ‘Can I ask you something, Maggie? In confidence, I mean.’

‘Of course. Fire away.’ Maggie frowned, wondering what her friend wanted to ask her. She and Rachel had become friends during their training when they’d worked together on the children’s ward, and it bothered her to see the other woman looking so downcast.

‘Has Luke mentioned anything about Tom?’ Rachel coloured when Maggie looked at her in surprise. ‘I thought he might have said something in passing about how Tom is getting on.’

She tailed off uncertainly and Maggie stifled a sigh. Rachel had been dating Tom Hartley before he’d flown to Boston on the exchange scheme. Although she didn’t know what had gone on between him and Rachel, she’d always suspected that her friend had been very fond of the young surgical registrar. However, there was little she could tell Rachel for a number of reasons which she thought it best not to go into. To admit that she and Luke hadn’t held a single civilised conversation in the whole two weeks he’d been at Dalverston General wasn’t something she wanted to admit to anyone, least of all Rachel, who would be bound to ask questions.

‘I’m afraid not,’ she replied evasively. ‘Tom’s name hasn’t cropped up, but you could always ask Luke yourself, couldn’t you? Maybe he knows where Tom is staying while he’s in Boston so you could write to him.’

Rachel shook her head. ‘No, I don’t think so.’

She quickly changed the subject by telling Maggie about the pop concert she’d been to the previous weekend with her niece. Maggie didn’t try to pursue the subject but she couldn’t help feeling guilty that she hadn’t been able to help. It made her realise how bad the situation really was between her and Luke, and that worried her. She didn’t like the idea of being so much at odds with someone she worked with.

The thought lingered at the back of her mind after she and Rachel had parted company to return to their respective wards. One of the afternoon admissions had arrived early so Maggie went to get her settled in while Angela and Doreen went for lunch.

The patient’s name was Lauren Atkins, a nineteen-year-old ballet dancer. She’d sprained her ankle very badly during rehearsals the previous day. Subsequent investigations had shown that the ligaments were torn and would need to be surgically repaired. Lauren was accompanied by her mother and it took only a few minutes for Maggie to realise that she was going to need a lot of tact and patience to deal with the older woman.

‘If I’d had my way Lauren wouldn’t be here!’ Gloria Atkins glared at Maggie as though it was her fault her daughter had needed to be admitted to hospital. ‘Lauren should be treated privately, not by the NHS. It’s her whole future at stake here, everything we’ve worked so hard for. I don’t want just anyone operating on her ankle!’

‘Mum—please!’ Lauren implored, looking embarrassed. Maggie gave her a reassuring smile. It wasn’t the first time she’d encountered this sort of attitude neither would it be the last. A lot of people were under the illusion that paying for treatment ensured they would receive better care. They seemed to overlook the fact that it was often the same surgeons who operated on both private and NHS patients.

‘I assure you that Lauren will receive the very best treatment possible, Mrs Atkins. The surgeons here are some of the best in Britain.’

‘Hmm, I have my doubts about that. Not that I’m reassured, of course.’ Gloria refused to be mollified. ‘Everyone knows that the really innovative medicine comes from the States. If I’d had my way then Lauren would have been on the first flight over there this morning. However, her father took the decision to let her come here.’

Maggie felt her hackles rise. However, a glance at Lauren’s miserable face was enough to make her swallow her sharp retort. The poor girl must be worried enough, without having to listen to that sort of nonsense.

‘How long have you been dancing, Lauren?’ she asked instead, helping the girl onto the bed and ignoring her mother.

‘Oh, years. Since I was three or four.’ Lauren grimaced. ‘I must be mad, mustn’t I?’

Maggie smiled although she’d heard the faintly resentful note in the teenager’s voice. ‘You must be dedicated. I know how gruelling ballet dancing can be and how much work you must have put in to reach your present standard.’

‘She has a natural talent. Everyone says so.’ Gloria leaned over and fussed with her daughter’s hair. ‘She takes after me, you see. I was a ballet dancer, although I never had the advantages Lauren has had.’

Maggie didn’t say anything. She had seen the shadow that had crossed Lauren’s face and couldn’t help wondering if the girl believed that she’d been so lucky. Had Lauren been pushed by her mother into choosing ballet as her career? It seemed a distinct possibility.

It wasn’t her place to ask, however, so she carried on getting Lauren settled. She was just showing the teenager how to operate the radio when the sound of footsteps made her glance round, and she felt herself colour when she saw Luke. She hadn’t expected him to appear so soon and felt a little flummoxed by his early arrival.

‘I…um…this is Lauren Atkins, Dr Fabrizzi.’ She quickly gathered her wits and made the introductions. ‘You’ll be operating on her ankle tomorrow morning, I believe.’

Before Luke had a chance to reply, Mrs Atkins cut in. ‘You look very young to be performing such a skilled operation. I must say that I expected someone more experienced. I don’t know if I’m happy about you treating my daughter. Lauren’s whole future is at stake here!’

‘I understand your concerns, Mrs Atkins.’ He smiled politely at the woman. He didn’t appear at all perturbed by her comments, although Maggie knew that a lot of doctors would have taken a very dim view of being spoken to that way.

‘However, I assure you that I’ve performed this operation a number of times in the past and each time the outcome has been entirely successful.’

‘You’re American!’ Mrs Atkins visibly brightened.

‘That’s right. I’m from Boston. I was fortunate enough to be offered a placement on the exchange scheme so I shall be working in Dalverston for the next six months,’ he explained calmly.

‘And you’re a surgeon back in Boston?’ Gloria persisted.

‘I am. I’m working here as a senior registrar. However, when I return home I shall be taking up a consultant’s post.’ He shrugged modestly as he continued outlining his qualifications. ‘I’ve done a lot of research into the causes and problems of sports-related injuries, including publishing a number of papers on the subject. It’s an area that I am extremely interested in.’

Maggie was amazed by what she’d heard. She’d had no idea that he was so highly qualified. It made her wonder why he’d decided to accept the post on the exchange scheme. Most of the doctors who did so weren’t nearly as high up the professional ladder as he was.

There was no time to dwell on it, though, not with Luke waiting to examine Lauren and take her case history. That was another strange thing he did, now that she thought about it. Most of the senior staff left it to the junior housemen to take patients’ medical histories but Luke preferred to speak to those he would be operating on himself. It made her realise that there was a lot she didn’t know about Luke Fabrizzi and that was worrying, even though she wasn’t sure why it should be.

It took a bit of persuasion to remove Mrs Atkins from her daughter’s bedside but Maggie was firm. She ushered the woman into the day-room then went back to the ward. Luke had drawn up a chair beside the bed and was chatting to Lauren. Maggie was pleased to see that the girl looked far more relaxed now, although that was probably due to Luke’s presence, of course!

Her mouth set into a prim line. Most women would find it hard not to respond to a man as good-looking as Luke was, whatever their age. However, she hoped that he wouldn’t lay on the charm with too heavy a hand. She had seen cases before where patients had developed crushes on their doctors and they were always tricky to deal with. The thought of having to cope with a love-sick teenager wasn’t one that appealed at all.

He looked round and his brows rose when he saw her set expression. ‘Nothing wrong, I hope, Staff?’

‘Not so far,’ she replied with a smile that could have drawn blood. She turned her attention to Lauren and smiled more warmly this time. ‘We need to take a few details, Lauren, if you will bear with us. I know it’s a bind, having to answer all these questions, but we’ll get them done as quickly as we can.’

‘There’s no rush!’ Lauren laughed self-consciously and Maggie sighed as she realised that her suspicions had been correct. Obviously, the girl wasn’t in a rush to get the formalities over with if it meant prolonging the time she spent with Luke.

‘The longer you can keep Mum away from me the better, although I know that sounds an awful thing to say.’ Lauren grimaced. ‘She means well but I wish that she would let me get on with my life, instead of interfering all the time!’

Luke laughed softly although his gaze had sharpened. ‘A lot of mothers tend to be over-protective, Lauren. It comes with the job.’

‘Oh, I know that! But it’s more than that. Mum seems to want me to do all the things she wanted to do. She doesn’t understand that I’m not her.’ A tear slid down her cheek. ‘I don’t know how to make her understand that I want to lead my own life, not the one she has mapped out for me!’

There was a wealth of anguish in the girl’s voice. Maggie glanced at Luke and could tell that he was as concerned as she was. It was obvious that the situation was causing Lauren a great deal of distress and that was the last thing they wanted.

‘It isn’t easy to make parents understand that you know what you want, Lauren,’ she explained sympathetically. ‘I know that only too well.’

‘Do you?’ The teenager looked expectantly at her and Maggie sighed as she realised that she had to explain what she’d meant. It made her feel a little uncomfortable to talk about her own situation with Luke there, but maybe it would be for the best, in a way. It was about time he realised that he’d made a mistake when they’d met in Milan.