Under a Siena Sun (Escape to Tuscany #1) - T.A. Williams Page 0,18

in the rehabilitation department. If you’d like to follow me…’

They shook hands and as they made their way down a wide corridor, Lucy took the opportunity to sound her out about the tennis champion.

‘How’s Mr Lorenzo doing?’

The physio gave that same shrug that Lucy had noted from Bruno. ‘Physically pretty good. He’s a very fit man, as you would expect, and his injury doesn’t stop him walking, driving, doing most things normal people do on a daily basis. The problem is that he isn’t a normal person. Unfortunately, Doctor Saeed and Doctor Lanslebourg say his knee problems mean he’ll be out of competitive tennis for at least another year or two, quite probably forever, and that’s taken its toll on him emotionally.’

Lucy’s ears pricked up. The name she had mentioned was far from common, even in France. ‘Dr Lanslebourg? I don’t suppose that’s Doctor Charles Lanslebourg, by any chance? Tall French guy, blond hair, good-looking.’

The physio shot her a quick sideways grin. ‘Very good-looking. Yes, that’s him. So you know him?’

‘I know him.’ Lucy was genuinely staggered. The world of medicine was a small one, but even so… ‘He and I were both in Médecins Sans Frontières together in Greece four years ago.’

‘So you must know him well.’

Lucy definitely knew Charles Lanslebourg well. Although their free time in Lesbos had been limited, she and he had hooked up, and there had been a time when she had been pretty sure she was falling in love with him. Then there had been that unforgettable night when she caught him with one of the nurses and she had requested an immediate transfer to a different continent. She hadn’t spoken to him since.

‘Yes, I know him well, or at least I did.’ Suddenly her dream job was looking far less inviting. ‘Is he here this afternoon?’

‘No, he doesn’t usually work on Fridays. He’ll be in on Monday though. Would you like me to tell him you send your regards?’

There had been a time when a black mamba in a box would have been all Lucy would have wanted to send him, but four years had passed and the hurt had diminished, so she just shook her head. ‘That’s okay, thanks. I’ll tell him myself when I see him.’

‘David’s in here.’

Lucy noted the use of his first name. Clearly, the tennis champion was a familiar face around here. Louisa opened the door and ushered Lucy inside. David Lorenzo was sitting on a weights bench, wearing just a pair of black spandex training shorts. He was facing away from her, hands gripping a steel bar above his head, so she had a moment to study him before walking across to his side. As Louisa had said, he looked very fit. There wasn’t an ounce of excess fat on him and as he pulled and released the bar above his head, lifting a staggeringly heavy load of weights each time, it was clear that his upper body was every bit as muscular as his powerful legs.

Quite unexpectedly Lucy felt a spark of what could only be explained as attraction at the sight of his naked back. It had been drummed into her from her very first year as a medical student that involvement with a patient was one of the cardinal sins for any doctor. This feeling of attraction was instantly followed by a wave of annoyance – at herself. Apart from being forbidden fruit because of her Hippocratic oath, he also undoubtedly came from a completely alien world of riches and celebrity, exactly the world of excess and wealth she had so feared when considering accepting this job. She told herself in no uncertain terms that she would do well to think of this man as just a patient. Period.

She walked over to him and positioned herself by his injured side, pleased to see the entry and exit wounds now well on the way to healing up and no longer needing to be dressed. He was sweating profusely and pushing himself hard, his eyes closed, his teeth gritted, and she counted twelve reps before he finally released the bar and stretched. As he did so, he opened his eyes and saw her. To her surprise, considering he must have been in shock when they had met before, he not only recognised her, but also remembered her name.

‘Dr Young. Come to check up on me?’

As before, there was little or no warmth in his voice. Still, he wasn’t the first grumpy patient she had come across,