A Wife for the Baby Doctor

He nearly snorted aloud at the innocence of her question.

Difficult? Try bloody impossible, especially when she stood there looking as if she was made of spun sugar and all he wanted to do was…

‘You got the job on merit,’ he pointed out gruffly. ‘Remember? I excused myself from your interview in case my presence biased the choice of candidate. Now all you have to do is prove that the committee made the right decision.’

‘But…’ She paused uncertainly.

He knew he hadn’t answered her question, but hoped that at least he’d been able to redirect her thoughts. Then he saw those slender shoulders straighten and that neat little chin inch up a little further, and knew she’d accepted the challenge.

He stifled a sigh, knowing that his life would have been very much easier if Dani had chosen a similar post in another hospital, but, without being big-headed about it, he knew that his unit was one of the best for the next stage of her training if she was still determined to specialise in paediatrics. That was especially true if she was leaning towards neonatal medicine.

‘This is the neonatal end of the unit,’ he said crisply, unable to prevent the touch of pride in his tone, ‘and it’s the most recent development within the department.’

‘Did it take you long to get approval?’ Those dark blue eyes were visually cataloguing the set-up, from the individual prettily-curtained bays—all occupied at the moment—to the mind-boggling array of monitoring equipment surrounding each clear acrylic isolette.

‘Long enough, but it was securing the level of financing that was the biggest headache. There’s just so much specialist equipment needed and the cost of each item is astronomical.’

‘That always seems so strange to me,’ she said thoughtfully. ‘When the cost of electronic items on the high street has come down so much, why should similar items be so inordinately expensive when they’re being sold to hospitals?’

He was unsurprised that she should have the same niggling suspicions that he’d been harbouring for years. It just didn’t seem credible that so many extra millions could be poured into a system and do so little good.

But that wasn’t the issue, here, he reminded himself sternly. He’d always known that she was ready to take issue with any injustice she uncovered, right from kindergarten age, and he was struck with a sudden desire to test the mettle of this new member of his team to see whether she had changed. This was no longer a matter of girls being prevented from joining the boys’ football team but the hidebound monolith of the NHS she was criticising. How would she defend her contentious words?

‘You make it sound as if hospital suppliers are profiteering at the government’s expense—or that those in charge of the hospital’s finances aren’t doing their job properly,’ he commented quietly. ‘Either of those scenarios would be one heck of an accusation.’

‘If I were making an accusation,’ she countered calmly. ‘All I’m saying is that it seems very strange that in the same week that I bought my brand-new top-of-the-line flat-screen computer monitor, the ward I was working on at my last hospital received a similar but several-years-out-of-date model costing three times the price.’

So, his new colleague wasn’t easily flustered, he noted with pleasure, and she still had the keen eye for finances that was the result of the less-than-opulent upbringing that her good-quality clothing would suggest. Interesting.

The sudden intrusion of one of the babies’ monitors drew their attention and he led the way across to one of the unit’s most recent patients.

They were just in time to see the nurse flick the bottom of the baby’s tiny foot, then reach up to reset the monitor.

‘She just needed to be reminded to keep breathing,’ she said with a smile, before her gaze strayed to the woman standing at his side.

‘Nadia, this is Dr Danielle Dixon. She has just joined us this morning.’ He turned towards Dani, careful not to meet those stunning blue eyes. ‘Nadia is one of our most experienced NICU nurses.’

‘Pleased to meet you, Nadia. Call me Dani,’ she said with that smile that came all the way from her heart. For a second her hand came up as if she was going to offer it in a shake, then she shook her head with a self-deprecating laugh. ‘One of these days I’ll remember that people wearing gloves don’t want to contaminate themselves by shaking hands.’

‘Believe me, it won’t take long,’ Nadia promised wryly. ‘That antiseptic-antibiotic gel we have to use on our hands is so vicious that we learn to avoid any unnecessary contact very quickly. Another nurse in the unit had to give up nursing because her hands were permanently raw and bleeding and she just couldn’t stand it any more.’

‘They’re trialling some new products at the moment,’ Josh offered. ‘Apparently, the hospital has received so many complaints that they’ve been forced into it, but they’ve got to make sure that the new products are at least as good at preventing cross-infection as the gel before they can sanction their use.’

‘In the meantime, in the interest of patient safety, the staff has to put up with the status quo, even though the discomfort is more likely to make them want to skip using the stuff causing the problem,’ Nadia pointed out.

‘Well, I hope you’re not implying that any of my staff are getting into slipshod habits,’ Josh demanded grimly. ‘If I thought that these tiny people were being put at risk by—’

‘Not a chance,’ Nadia interrupted with a quick smile. ‘You’ve hand-picked every one of them, so you know they’re not going to let you down.’ She turned her attention to Dani. ‘I hope you realise the impossible standards you’re going to have to achieve to keep up with this man.’

Josh couldn’t miss the gleam in those dark blue eyes as she met his gaze head on.

‘I’ve heard all about Mr Weatherby,’ she said quietly. ‘And even though I might not come up to his exacting expectations yet, it doesn’t mean that I’d ever give up trying.’

There was something in her expression that he couldn’t read and there was definitely something in the determination in her voice that told him she was delivering a personal message, but with Nadia as an onlooker this wasn’t the right time to ask what that message was. The last thing either of them needed was gossip and speculation about the two of them.

She didn’t know what impulse had her sending the message, but even though she was exhausted by a very long first day in her new job, she hadn’t been able to resist when she’d checked her computer for messages and seen that he was logged on.

DaniD: Are you still speaking to me, BB?

Then, of course, she’d had to sit there, almost holding her breath while she waited to see if he would answer.

Had she made a monumental mistake in applying for the post?

It was all she’d ever wanted to do, but after that disastrous episode on her eighteenth birthday…all her own fault, of course…things had never been the same between the two of them since. If she’d made everything worse by—

BB: What’s the matter, DaniD? Have you forgotten that I’m more likely to shout at you than go silent?

She was so relieved that he’d answered that her eyes were actually burning with the threat of tears.

DaniD: Not the strong silent type, then?

BB: Hardly!

She could almost hear his huff of laughter. He’d always been so driven to succeed in whatever he set his heart on that he definitely wasn’t the sort to suffer fools gladly. She could imagine that his reputation as a perfectionist was well earned.

BB: Having second thoughts?

DaniD: About what?

BB: The job.

DaniD: No! None!

Well, that wasn’t quite true.

She certainly didn’t have any regrets about her choice of career. It was early days yet, but so far it looked as if it was going to be everything she’d always imagined it would be.

No, the doubts were of a more personal kind, and something that really couldn’t be shared with the man who’d dubbed himself BB…her big brother…from the moment she’d been born.

Except she hadn’t seen him as a brother at all since long before her eighteenth birthday, while he never saw her as anything other than the little helpless girl he had to look after…even though she was now twenty-seven.

BB: Get some sleep. Tomorrow won’t be any easier.

She growled aloud when she read the message. It could have been sent to an immature teenager needing a prod to send her to bed for the night, and sent her angrily scrolling across for the icon to close the messenger function on the screen. When would he ever admit that she was now an adult and could decide for herself when it was time to go to sleep? She—

Just before she could click the annoying man into oblivion he sent again.

BB: You did well today, Dani, especially getting that IV in first time. See you tomorrow.