Undercover At City Hospital

Undercover At City Hospital
CAROL MARINELLI

The sexy ER consultant at Melbourne City Hospital catches Bella Gray's eye instantly, but she knows she shouldn't get involved with Heath Jameson.As a police officer, working undercover in the hospital to catch a drug thief, Bella can't risk exposing the investigation. As a woman, carrying a heavy emotional burden, she can't risk falling in love. Only Bella can still feel her life beginning to change, no matter how hard she tries to resist their mutual attraction.But will Heath ever trust Bella once he discovers who she really is?

“So, with all our suspects on duty tonight, let’s hope for all our sakes we get a result.” The chief issued his command to Bella.

With an end possibly in sight, Bella could feel her newly acquired confidence diminishing rapidly. Her mind was whirring as she made her way to work, going over and over her own mental notes, checking and rechecking her theory just to be sure she was right. As much as she would have loved to dwell on the thought of seeing Heath at work later, tonight was just too big for any diversions, no matter how appealing. But she allowed herself one tiny luxurious glimpse, one grateful sigh that hopefully soon this would all be over, that soon she’d be able to tell Heath the whole truth, and hopefully he’d understand about her police work—understand why she’d had to go undercover. Then she could really start life over again.

POLICE SURGEONS

Love, life and medicine—on the beat!

Working side by side—and sometimes hand in hand—dedicated medical professionals join forces with the police service for the very best in emotional excitement!

From domestic disturbance to emergency room drama, they work to prove innocence or guilt, and find passion and emotion along the way.

Undercover at City Hospital

Carol Marinelli

www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)

CONTENTS

Cover (#u967f38a5-8eb9-5115-8fa9-5bbac0b6e487)

Introduction (#u309e30ab-6431-5104-8ecd-df0eb2649404)

Title Page (#uc7250288-514e-5fa8-9356-0f55d5e7794d)

CHAPTER ONE (#uc3b158dc-be4e-5818-a71c-e0c237c096cc)

CHAPTER TWO (#udf877c9c-f92d-5421-b3a7-1c1276c8c54a)

CHAPTER THREE (#u60a010d7-f339-57eb-b2de-4108cf7aee1b)

CHAPTER FOUR (#ue6e4886b-2720-5110-aef5-5ff2ac226199)

CHAPTER FIVE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ELEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER TWELVE (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER THIRTEEN (#litres_trial_promo)

EPILOGUE (#litres_trial_promo)

Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)

CHAPTER ONE (#uf15f44b4-e1c5-5ef9-82df-7ed3959826fa)

‘YOU know that you don’t have to accept this assignment, Constable Gray?’ Inspector Eddie Bandford did his best impersonation of a friendly yet professional smile and Bella did the same, reminding herself to keep her hands neatly folded in her lap and to stare her senior in the eye. A natural fidget, it took Bella a supreme effort to do what seemingly came naturally to most people over the age of five—sit still for five minutes! ‘You know,’ Inspector Bandford continued, his voice so assured, his platitudes so emphatic Bella almost believed him, ‘that if you decided this isn’t for you, in no way will it impact on your application to be a detective.’

‘Absolutely.’ Bella nodded, her response equally emphatic, her clear green eyes unblinking as she stared assuredly back. ‘But I want to do this, Inspector Bandford. In fact, I’m thrilled that I’m even being considered.’

Another friendly yet professional smile.

Another pause as he eyed the file in front of him, and had she had a bell in her pocket, Bella would have been sorely tempted to ring it, to call for some time out.

Cut the bull, Eddie, she wanted to snarl. You know as well as I do that if I turn this down, my application to be a detective will be fed into the shredder by the time I hit the lifts. You know as well as I do that the only reason, the only reason, I’m being considered for this role is that I happen to have been stupid enough to keep my nursing registration up to date and that I’m practically the only cop in Melbourne who can work my way around the inside of an emergency room instead of hovering in the waiting room.

‘It doesn’t worry you?’ Inspector Bandford closed the case file and picked up another, flicking through it with agonizing slowness as Bella felt her stomach turn to liquid as her senior read through her personal record. ‘Going back to nursing, I mean. I understand you left because—’

‘Because I realised that I wanted to be a policewoman,’ Bella broke in, her voice amazingly even, nodding when he looked up to affirm her point. But even with a hefty dash of assertion added to her words still she registered the tiny flicker of doubt in Inspector Bandford’s expression and moved quickly to quell it. ‘That all happened years ago,’ Bella said firmly, waving an almost dismissive hand at the personal file he was holding. ‘I dealt with all that long ago.’

‘But even so…’

She could hear the hesitancy in his voice, her inquisitive eyes taking in the deepening frown between his eyes, and Bella pulled on every last reserve she had to drag out a small laugh.

‘I thought you wanted me to take the job, Inspector.’

‘No,’ Eddie corrected her. ‘I’ve merely asked you to come in here to discuss the possibility, that’s all. Detective Miller and I both agree that this business with drugs going missing at Melbourne City has been going on for long enough. Unfortunately, all the usual channels of investigation have been exhausted. All the staff have been extensively interviewed, we’ve had surveillance in place from the waiting room, even hidden cameras in the drug room…’

‘Which have been repeatedly sabotaged…’ It was Bella breaking in now, her curious mind switching in an instant to the puzzle that needed to be fixed, focusing on the task that could be hers if only Eddie Bandford gave the final nod of approval.

‘Clearly, from our observations it’s someone senior that’s taking the drugs.’ After a long moment of hesitation he handed her a list of subjects and Bella snapped them out of his hand like an eager puppy taking a treat. ‘Someone with good access…’

‘Most doctors and nurses would have access to the drug cupboards,’ Bella pointed out, but Eddie shook his head.

‘Only a few very senior staff knew that we were installing cameras in the drug room. Not only that, most of the drugs have been taken soon after the pharmacist has stocked up the cupboards and there’s a decent haul to be had. Whoever’s taking the drugs knows what they’re doing, knows exactly how the system works and knows that we’re watching them.’

‘Why has Dr Ramirez been ruled out?’ Bella asked, reading down the line of suspects. ‘He was the most likely suspect for a while and from this I can see why. He’s the consultant of the department, recently lost a child, been involved in a major accident, there are a lot of stressors…’

‘There are,’ Eddie agreed. ‘And, as you say, he was one of the prime suspects, until he headed off for an extended break in Spain and the thefts continued.’

‘Shame!’ Bella gave a rueful laugh.

Eddie reciprocated with one of his own, but as her eyes worked the list again they both went quiet. He did nothing to fill the silence, watching as his junior mulled the situation over, processed all the information she had been given that afternoon, chewing on her bottom lip in quiet contemplation, a hand that had been clenched in her lap moving to her head and automatically freeing a blond strand of neatly tied-back hair and twirling it around her fingers. If Eddie Bandford had had any doubts about the validity of sending in one of his uniformed constables as an undercover nurse, they wavered then—Isabella Gray was the natural born detective that she insisted she was on rather too many occasions. Petite, dizzy and terribly blond she may be, but that was a gift in itself. Not for a second would you imagine the razor-sharp mind behind that rather scatty exterior, the shrewdness behind those trusting green eyes, and perhaps more relevantly the aloofness behind that dazzling smile. Isabella Gray had, by police standards, the enviable natural ability to make people open up to her while giving away absolutely nothing of herself, coupled with a brain, that came up in just a few moments with an extremely pertinent observation.