LITMIR.BIZ

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ninetieth birthday. She’s been saving her leave for this trip.’ He flicked a glance at Faye’s back, then looked at Ally. ‘She could’ve taken two months and still not used up what she’s owed,’ he added.

      ‘Europe’s a long way to go for any less time.’ Not that it had anything to do with her, except she would have been signed on here for longer and that meant more weeks—okay, hours—in Flynn’s company. Already that looked like being a problem. His marital status wasn’t having any effect on curtailing the reaction her body had to him.

      She took the mug being handed to her and was surprised to see her hand shaking. She searched her head for something ordinary to focus on, and came back to Kat. ‘Bet the trip’s another reason why there isn’t much furniture or clutter in the flat.’ A girl after her own heart, though for a different reason.

      ‘Morning, everyone.’ A man strolled in. ‘Coffee smells good.’ Then he saw Ally. ‘Hi, I’m Jerome, GP extraordinaire, working with this motley lot.’

      Amidst laughter and banter Ally sat back and listened as the nurses joined them and began discussing patients and the two emergencies that had happened over the weekend. She felt right at home. This was the same Monday-morning scenario she’d sat through in most of the clinics she’d worked at ever since qualifying. Same cases, different names. Same egos, different names. Soon her gaze wandered to the man sitting opposite her, and she felt that hitch in her breathing again.

      Flynn was watching her from under hooded eyes, his chin low, his arms folded across his chest as he leaned as far back in his chair as possible without spilling over backwards.

      Ally’s breathing became shallow and fast, like it did after a particularly hard run. The man had no right to make her feel like this. Who did he think he was? The sooner this meeting was finished the better. She could go and play with patients and hide from him until all her body parts returned to their normal functions. At the rate she was going, that’d be some time around midnight.

      The sound of scraping chairs on the floor dragged her attention back to the other people in the room and gave her the escape she desperately needed.

      But fifteen minutes after the meeting ended, Flynn was entering her room with a frightened young girl in tow. ‘Ally, I’d like you to meet Chrissie Gordon.’ He ushered the girl, dressed in school uniform, to a chair.

      ‘Hi, Chrissie. Love your nail colour. It’s like hot pink and fiery red all mixed up.’ It would have lit up a dark room.

      ‘It’s called Monster Red.’ Chrissie shrugged at her, as if to say, Who gives a rat’s tail? Something serious was definitely on this young lady’s mind.

      Given that Flynn had brought Chrissie to see her, they must be about to talk about protection during sex or STDs. Or pregnancy. The girl looked stumped, as if her worst possible nightmare had just become real. Ally wanted to scoop her up into her arms and ward off whatever was about to be revealed. Instead, she looked at Flynn and raised an eyebrow.

      ‘Chrissie’s done several dip-stick tests for pregnancy and they all showed positive.’ Flynn’s face held nothing but sympathy for his patient’s predicament. ‘I’d like you to take a blood sample for an HCG test to confirm that, and then we’ll also know how far along she is if the result’s positive.’

      It wasn’t going to be negative with all those stick tests showing otherwise. ‘No problem.’

      Ally took the lab form he handed her and glancing down saw requests for WR and VDRL to check for STDs, antibodies and a blood group. She noted the girl’s date of birth. Chrissie was fifteen. Too young to be dealing with this. Ally’s heart went out to the frightened child as she thought back to when she’d been that age. She’d barely been coping with her own life, let alone be able to manage looking after a baby. Face it, she doubted her ability to do that now. Locking eyes with Flynn, she said, ‘Leave it to me.’

      His nod was sharp. ‘Right, Chrissie, I’ll call you on your cell when the lab results come back.’

      ‘Thanks, Dr Reynolds,’ Chrissie whispered, as her fingers picked at the edge of her jersey, beginning to unravel a thread. ‘You won’t tell Mum, will you?’

      ‘Of course not. You know even if I wanted to—which I don’t—I’m not allowed to disclose your confidential information. It’s up to you to decide when to talk to your mother, but let’s wait until we get these tests done and you can come and see me again first, if that’ll make it easier for you.’ Flynn drew a breath and added, ‘You won’t be able to hide the pregnancy for ever.’

      ‘I know. But not yet, okay?’ The girl’s head bowed over her almost flat chest. ‘I’m afraid. It hurts to have a baby, doesn’t it?’

      Ally placed a hand over Chrissie’s and squeezed gently. ‘You’re getting way ahead of yourself. Let’s do those tests and find out how far along you are. After I’ve taken your blood I’ll explain a few things about early-stage pregnancy if you like.’

      ‘Yes, please. I think.’ Fat tears oozed out of Chrissie’s eyes and slid down her cheeks to drip onto her jersey. ‘Mum’s going to kill me.’

      ‘No, she won’t,’ Flynn said. About to leave the room, he turned back to hunker down in front of Chrissie and said emphatically, ‘Angela will be very supportive of you. You’re her daughter. That’s what mothers do.’

      Yeah, right, you don’t know a thing, buster, if that’s what you believe. Did you grow up in la-la land? Ally clamped her lips shut for fear of spilling the truth. Some mothers couldn’t care two drops of nothing about their daughters. Some dump their babies on strangers’ door-steps.

      But when she glanced at Flynn, he shook his head and mouthed, ‘It’s true of Angela.’

      Had he known what she’d been thinking? The tension that had been tightening her shoulders left off as she conceded silently that if he was right then Chrissie was luckier than some. A big positive in what must feel like a very negative morning for the girl. ‘Good,’ she acknowledged with a nod at Flynn. As for his mind-reading, did that mean he’d known exactly what she’d been thinking about him back there in the staffroom?

      ‘Have you had a blood test before?’ she asked Chrissie. She’d wasted enough time thinking about Dr Reynolds.

      Flynn disappeared quietly, closing the door behind him.

      ‘Yeah, three times. I hate them. I fainted every time.’

      ‘You can lie on the bed, then. No way do I want to be picking you off the floor, now, do I?’

      She was rewarded with a glimmer of a smile. ‘I don’t weigh too much. You’d manage.’

      It was the first time anyone had suggested she looked tough and strong. ‘I might manage, but me and weightlifting don’t get along. How heavy are you anyway?’

      ‘Forty-eight k. I’m lucky, I can eat and eat and I stay thin. My mum’s jealous.’ At the mention of her mum her face fell and her mouth puckered. ‘I can’t tell her. She’ll be really angry. She had me when she was seventeen. All my life she’s told me not to play around with boys. She wants me to go to university and be educated, unlike her. She missed out because she had me.’

      Handing Chrissie a cup of cold water and a box of tissues, Ally sat down to talk. Her first booked appointment would have to wait. ‘I won’t deny your mother’s going to be disappointed, even upset, but she’ll come round because she loves you.’ Flynn had better have got that right because she didn’t believe in giving false hope. It just hurt more in the long run.

      ‘You think? You don’t even know her.’

      ‘True. But I see a young woman who someone’s been making sure had everything that’s important in life. You look healthy, which means she’s fed you well and kept you warm and clothed. Your uniform’s in good condition, not an op-shop one. You’re obviously up to speed with your education.’ She daren’t

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