Dr Ferrero's Baby Secret. Jennifer Taylor

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СКАЧАТЬ he had tried to forget how it had felt when he had brushed against Kelly but he’d failed. He could still feel it deep inside him—her softly yielding flesh, her smooth firm skin, her heat.

      He swore softly, fluently, using the language he had learned as a child growing up in one of the poorest parts of Italy. The people in charge of the children’s home where he had been sent to live had called it gutter language and had washed out his mouth with soap and water, but even that hadn’t stopped him. It had been the only way he had been able to release the pain and anger that burned inside him.

      It hadn’t been until he had finished his degree that he had taught himself not to say the ugly words out loud. The anger had still been there, of course, along with the painful memories of his childhood. It had only been when he had met Kelly that they had started to fade. She’d made him see that he was no longer that ragged, unkempt urchin but a man whom a woman could love. The man Kelly had loved.

      How it hurt to know that he could have had a lifetime of her love if things had been different. It wasn’t that he had thrown it heedlessly away—he’d had no choice. Sophia had needed him and he couldn’t have lived with himself if he had abandoned her and her unborn child. He had traded one kind of love for another and he didn’t regret his decision. He had loved Kelly with all his heart, but she hadn’t needed him like Sophia had done.

      Luca jumped when there was a second knock on the door. ‘Come in,’ he called, picking up the bundle of messages so it would appear as though he had been doing something useful instead of sitting there, daydreaming.

      He heard the door open and footsteps cross the room but he didn’t look up. He didn’t need to. He knew it was Kelly, he could smell her scent, hear her breathing, feel her presence in every fibre of his being. He allowed himself a single, glorious second to savour the sensations that washed through him then banished them to where those memories resided. He had indulged himself enough for one day.

      ‘How was clinic?’ His tone was cool, distant, polite, the voice he used with all his staff. Luca Ferrero, the physician, gave away nothing about himself, neither the man he was today nor the child he had been. He didn’t fraternise with his colleagues because he didn’t have the time. Every second of every day was devoted either to his work or his son and that’s how he intended it to continue, especially now that Kelly was here. Kelly was the one person who could make him question the path he had chosen, the only one who could make him want more than he had.

      ‘Fine. Most of the children were follow-up cases so there were no problems.’

      ‘Bene.’ He glanced up at last, felt his heart lurch, and swiftly recovered. So maybe she was standing in a patch of sunlight that was setting her glorious hair alight but it made no difference to him. He was centred, focused wholly and exclusively on his job.

      She shifted slightly and his heart jolted again as he watched her slender body move beneath the white coat. He knew that he would never actually do it, but he longed to get up and walk around the desk, unbutton that coat and peel it off her then set to work on that prim little blouse which she wore underneath.

      His vision blurred as he pictured his hands moving down the row of tiny pearl buttons until the very last one had been unfastened. He knew from experience that her skin would be barely darker than the fabric—milky-pale, smooth, unblemished—and shuddered. He would slowly open her blouse, breathe in her scent, feel the warmth of her skin, pull her to him and…

      ‘You said that you wanted to discuss a case with me.’

      Her voice was sharp; it cut through the image that was playing in his head with rapier-like speed so that he almost gasped out loud. He managed to quash the sound before it emerged, but it shook him to know how close he had come to disaster. What the hell was he doing, playing such dangerous mind games?

      ‘That’s right.’ He stood up and went to the filing cabinet, waving her to a chair as though he didn’t care where she sat or what she did. It wasn’t true because he cared a lot, cared deeply about whether she was going to stay or leave, and how much time he could spend with her.

      He slammed the drawer, wishing he could lock his thoughts away as easily. ‘The patient’s name is Domenico del Pietro, a fifteen-year-old boy who lives in Palau with his parents.’ He handed her the file and sat down. ‘He was referred to us following a number of consultations with his own doctor.’

      Kelly frowned as she read through the case history. ‘Fever, headache, muscle pain, tenderness, nausea. A general feeling of tiredness and malaise.’ She looked up. ‘There’s nothing here about his mental state. How did he appear when you saw him?’

      ‘Somewhat depressed,’ Luca replied, inwardly smiling. It seemed that Kelly was already thinking along the right lines, not that he was surprised. She’d always been extremely sharp, quick to diagnose and accurate, too, which was more important. He carried on feeding her information, wondering how long it would take her to reach the same conclusion he had arrived at. ‘His teachers have also noticed a definite loss of concentration in recent months. Domenico is usually an A-grade student but his work has suffered of late.’

      ‘Any panic attacks or sleep disturbance?’

      ‘None reported.’

      ‘Has a full neurological assessment been carried out?’

      ‘Not yet. Domenico is due to come into hospital tomorrow and we shall do it then.’

      ‘I imagine you’ve ruled out mononucleosis. He’s the right age for it so it must have been your first thought.’

      ‘It was, but the tests came back negative.’ He leant back in his chair. ‘So, Kelly, have you any suggestions?’

      ‘ME.’ She placed the file on the desk. ‘The symptoms are all indicative of myalgic encephalomyelitis.’

      ‘And you ascribe to the school of thought that says ME is an actual illness and not the result of a psychiatric disorder like depression?’

      ‘Yes, I do.’ She met his gaze across the desk. ‘I don’t doubt that anyone who suffers from ME also suffers from depression—who wouldn’t when you’re feeling ill all the time? However, I’m convinced there is a physical cause for it. Most people who present with symptoms of ME have had a viral infection, haven’t they?’

      ‘Domenico had an upper-respiratory tract infection six months ago.’

      ‘And it was after that his symptoms appeared?’ she said.

      ‘Si,’ Luca agreed, enjoying watching her piecing together the puzzle.

      She nodded as she picked up the file and glanced at the lab results. ‘Recent tests show everything is normal, which is what I would have expected. It’s rare that the lab comes up with anything in a case of ME.’

      ‘It is. So what do you recommend?’

      ‘That we wait for the results of the neurological tests and go from there,’ she said promptly.

      ‘Which is exactly what I have decided to do.’ Luca smiled, unable to hide his satisfaction. It was good to know that his faith in her hadn’t been misplaced. ‘Maybe you would like to be involved in this case, Kelly. It will be good experience for you to follow the boy’s progress.’

      ‘I’d like that. Thank you.’ She briefly returned his smile then stood up. ‘If that’s all, I’d better СКАЧАТЬ