Playboy On Her Christmas List. Carol Marinelli

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СКАЧАТЬ that she’d be waiting for him once the procedure was done, and she did it all in a voice that did not waver, just in case Paul could hear.

      Holly knew that voice only too well.

      She could remember her mother going in for surgery and, because Holly was the only remotely medical person in the family, all questions had been aimed at her. All decisions had been run by Holly too and it had felt overwhelming. Her father had asked her to come with them up to Theatre. When he had started to break down it had been Holly who had stepped in. Holly had concentrated on keeping her smile in place while trying to ignore the fact that her mother was so very weak and frail from the chemotherapy and doing her best not to reveal that she wasn’t terrified for her.

      ‘What do you think?’ Kay asked Daniel, and Holly looked at his grim face.

      ‘They’re giving him every chance.’ His response was noncommittal but for Holly it said enough—he didn’t think things looked good.

      * * *

      The quiet start had turned into a very busy shift and it didn’t relent.

      Holly felt all shaken but there was no time to sit down and reflect on what had happened. There was no pause button in Emergency, especially when you needed one.

      Just as Paul left, another critically ill patient came in.

      Kay handed Paul over to the care of the catheter lab staff but, given she was officially off duty, remained with Nora in the waiting room there. Holly was so busy that she had forgotten completely she was going out tonight and frowned when she saw that it was eight and that the night staff were starting to arrive.

      ‘What are you doing here?’ Holly asked.

      ‘So you can leave early for the Christmas party.’ Gloria grinned and then saw Holly’s serious face. ‘What is it?’

      And there was no point in not telling the arriving staff—one look at the admissions board and they would see the truth for themselves.

      ‘Nora’s husband was brought in...’

      As she brought the night staff up to speed Holly admitted that she had changed her mind about going to the party tonight, but Kay had other ideas. She had popped down to Emergency for that very reason, in fact, and called Holly round to her office.

      ‘I need you to give the landlord the cash we’ve been collecting,’ Kay said. They’d all been putting into the collection for a few weeks. ‘Holly, I know the last thing you feel like is partying but word is already getting out about Paul. Nora’s daughter has put it up on social media and honestly...’ Kay let out a long sigh. ‘Nora wants the party to go ahead. She thinks if it’s called off now it means that we’ve given up on Paul.’

      Holly nodded. ‘How is he doing?’

      ‘He’s over on Intensive Care. He’s in an induced coma and really we shan’t know for a few days. Oh, I don’t know, Holly, I don’t have a very good feeling about it. He was down for a long time.’

      ‘Less than an hour,’ Holly pointed out.

      ‘I know but...’

      Kay looked as if she was about to cry and Holly had no idea what to say so she offered the only thing she knew might help. ‘Do you want a cup of tea?’

      Kay laughed the simplicity of Holly’s solution and then she let out a little sob. ‘I do,’ she admitted. ‘A quick one and then I’ll head back up there. Have one with me?’

      Holly brought in a tray as Kay got the envelope from the safe.

      ‘I’d better not lose it,’ Holly said, peering inside.

      ‘You’d better not!’ Kay barked, and then closed her eyes and leant back in her chair. ‘It’s nice to relax for five minutes.’

      ‘Did you call Eamon and let him know?’ Holly asked, referring to Kay’s husband.

      ‘I did. He’s going to come and get me when I’m ready but I think I should stay awhile. Poor Nora. Honestly, that family of hers...’ Kay rolled her eyes. ‘Do you know? Her daughter asked what was going to happen for dinner! Does she not know how a bloody vending machine works? Fancy bothering her mother with that?’

      ‘And fancy bothering you with this,’ Daniel said, as he knocked on the half-open door.

      ‘What do you want?’ Kay asked. But as Daniel came in, though he gave Kay a smile, he then looked at Holly as he spoke.

      ‘All the night staff are here but Laura is having no luck getting a taxi. The wait is an hour at best. I said that I could drop you all off at the end of my shift, which is right about now.’

      ‘Then you’d better get ready,’ Kay said, moving to stand. ‘And I’d better get back up to Nora.’

      ‘Finish your tea,’ Holly suggested, and thought of the times she had sat with her own family, waiting for news, and how utterly exhausting it was. ‘Have a few moments to yourself.’

      ‘I might just do that,’ Kay agreed. ‘You’re not on tomorrow, are you?’

      ‘No, I’m off now till Monday, but I’ll call in the morning and see how Paul’s doing and—’ Her voice halted abruptly as Holly stopped herself from saying what she had been about to—fancy bothering Kay with a stupid thing like the off duty while Paul was so sick, but Nora had been the one practically keeping the off duty running over the Christmas break.

      It could wait, Holly knew that, and felt guilty for even considering raising it now.

      So instead of worrying about tomorrow, or the next, or the next, she went into the changing room and had the quickest shower ever. There was just time for a dart under the jets and a quick soap and rinse then she dried herself and pulled on her little black dress.

      ‘That’s nice,’ Anna said as Holly came out. Anna was hogging the one tiny mirror and applying eyeliner, while looking stunning in a very slinky, very red dress. ‘You always look good in that.’

      It was such a backhanded compliment that Holly actually stopped in her tracks for a second, before sitting down on the bench and pulling out her make-up bag.

      ‘Thanks.’ Holly smiled, pretending she had missed the rather bitchy comment. Oh, she was in no mood for make-up but it was certainly needed! As well as that the steam, even from a very brief shower, had made her curly hair even more so.

      ‘Daniel’s waiting,’ Anna said rather pointedly as she turned from the mirror, all ready, just as Holly got her mascara out. ‘We don’t really have much time.’

      ‘Daniel can wait for five minutes,’ Holly answered. She hadn’t asked him to play taxi driver and, more to the point, she wouldn’t have minded the long wait for a taxi just to be able to get ready and allow for some time to jolt herself out of her morose mood. ‘Or you guys can go on without me and I’ll see you there.’

      ‘No need for that. I’ll go and wait with Daniel,’ Anna said.

      ‘Sure.’

      ‘I’ll see if I can persuade him to stay СКАЧАТЬ