he joined in and it felt great. Strange, but great, to have made some inroads.
Gabby was right. Maybe he and Mitch should call a truce—he just didn’t know how to take that step. Maybe have that beer in The Shed, and a chat. Would his brother be open to that? A chat? That was something they hadn’t managed for a long time. Seemed Gabby was right about way too much for her own good.
Jodi patted his arm and smiled. ‘I can’t thank you enough for what you’ve done. Perhaps you could come round to the house sometime? See how things go? Jamie would like that.’
‘And Mitchell?’
‘Give him time. I’ll work on it.’
‘Okay. Yes. I’d like that. If it’s not too much trouble.’ He slipped a kiss on the boy’s head and huffed out a breath. Things were starting to look up, a chance at making something better with Mitchell, being part of Jamie’s life. And a damned fine night spent with a gorgeous woman—with promises of a whole lot more.
Her plans for a truce were finally taking form. He couldn’t wait to tell her he’d actually been invited to his brother’s house.
Now all he had to do was find her again.
Hours later he sloped back to his apartment block, tired, hungry and distinctly annoyed. Not knowing the correct address of the woman he was sleeping with was an error he wouldn’t make again. He’d hammered on half the doors in Boston Road. Hadn’t clicked at first that it was a damned main road that stretched for miles. And why the hell did she have her phone switched off? She had hours before she was back on duty, and that meant hours to play.
Turning the corner towards his front door, he was semi-blinded by a riot of colour. And now irritation almost burst out of him. Damn. He didn’t want her silly gifts, he wanted her. Now. In bed.
But she’d sneaked back when he’d been out and had brought him a trio of ghastly plants identical to the last one. Okay, not identical. These at least looked alive.
Three—the same number of times they’d made love. Ah, the reality started to sink in.
Plus, she’d left a basket of oranges, pineapple, bread and milk. A tub of plant food. This time there was no note. He checked. And checked again, his good mood rapidly degenerating.
Shoving the door open and backing into his flat with his arms overflowing, he finally nailed what was bugging him. This wasn’t a thank- you gift. Or a friendly gesture. It wasn’t an I’ll be back soon to share.
It was a kiss-off. A goodbye.
7
Six weeks later...
‘And that, my friends, is a wrap,’ Max raised his voice above the upbeat rock music that accompanied every closure he did. As he finished securing the final clip on his patient’s swollen belly, the usual wave of relief hit him in the gut. It was only the beginning of a long journey, but at least the old guy had a chance now. ‘I’ll check on him when he’s out of Recovery. Any problems, call me. I’ll be up in the paediatric HDU.’
‘HDU? Why? We don’t have a patient there at the moment, do we?’
Deflecting the strange looks from his registrar, Max lobbed his gloves into the pedal bin, flicked off his surgical gown and washed his hands. ‘I think I left my keys up there. Just going to check.’
‘I could phone up if you like. Save you the trouble.’
Goddamn, could the man not leave him alone? ‘No worries. I could do with the exercise.’
Surgery couldn’t go fast enough these days. Not when his body had a homing instinct straight to the HDU.
Turning the corner, he saw Gabby leaving the staff cafeteria, coffee in hand. He jogged to catch her up and fell into step. ‘I was just on my way to find you. In your usual hurry again, Nurse Radley?’
She offered him a wobbly smile, hesitant and unsure. Despite the confident outward appearance she liked to show the world, he could read every emotion flitting across her eyes. Today it was embarrassment, uncertainty and a dash of heat.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want him, then. Even after all this time her cheeks still heated at the sight of him. It was that she’d decided she couldn’t, for some reason. ‘I’m trying to get back to the ward. Since that gastro bug hit the hospital we’ve been rushed off our feet and painfully short-staffed. It took everyone out in waves.’
‘But we haven’t spoken properly