Summer in Sydney. Fiona McArthur

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      ‘Sage?’

      ‘You light it …’ She put a mug of coffee into his hands. ‘It’s supposed to clear the room of negative energy …’

      Why didn’t he think of that?

      ‘And these?’ He picked up some tiny little figures, no bigger than her fingernails.

      ‘They’re my worry dolls,’ Ruby said. ‘You tell them your problems at night and then put them in a little bag under your pillow and they take care of them while you sleep …’

      This was so not him.

      This hadn’t even been him ten years ago when it had been okay to wake up with a student nurse with a joint by her bedside.

      He could hear wind chimes outside her window and they grated on his nerves.

      ‘What time do you have to be in?’ Ruby asked as he glanced again at his watch.

      ‘I’m off today. You?’ Cort asked.

      ‘I’m on a late shift.’ She was grateful of the temporary reprieve, that now she wouldn’t have to face him at work till tomorrow and then she was off for almost a week before she did her stint of nights.

      His phone rang then and he looked at it and grimaced.

      ‘Cort Mason.’ He took a drink of coffee, perhaps sensing that would be all he had for a long time. ‘What do you mean, she’s not coming in?’ He shook his head. ‘No it’s fine to call. What’s the problem?’ He listened for a moment, taking in more coffee. ‘Okay, tell him to leave it. Just put on a saline soak and I’ll be in as soon as I can. Make sure he’s got analgesia.’

      ‘Okay?’ Ruby checked.

      ‘I’ve got to go in after all. Jamelia …’ He didn’t elaborate. ‘They need me in.’ He was cursing himself because he just hadn’t been thinking, had not been thinking last night. He just wanted to go home and clear his head, but now he had to go into work.

      ‘I’d better go.’ Cort grimaced as his phone rang again, because now he’d said he was coming in, he was public property. Ruby felt a bit sorry for whoever was on the end of the line because he was more than a bit crabby as he took the call while at the same time retrieving his discarded, crumpled shirt. ‘I said I’ll be there as soon as I can,’ Cort snapped, and then hung up. ‘I need to get there, but I can’t go in yesterday’s suit.’

      ‘You can have a shower here,’ she offered. ‘Maybe wear some scrubs.’

      She didn’t get it, but it wasn’t her fault. ‘I can’t look as if I’ve been out all night,’ Cort said, because, well, he couldn’t. ‘You know what they’re like.’

      ‘God, yes.’ Because she did—the whole clique of them, with their noses in everybody’s business—and she could understand why he wouldn’t want them in his, especially if it involved her.

      ‘I can get you something to wear from Adam’s room,’ Ruby offered, and Cort closed his eyes. God, had it really come to this? But reluctantly he nodded and then headed down the hall to a very cluttered bathroom, brimming with straighteners and make-up and tampons spilling out of a box and beach towels instead of towels. He was too bloody staid and sensible to be doing this.

      Ruby had to go back downstairs, because that was where Adam’s room was.

      ‘Poor Adam.’ Jess grinned as Ruby came out with a black casual shirt that looked the sort of thing a registrar might wear on a Sunday. ‘No wonder he’s always moaning he can’t find his things when he gets back.’

      Ruby met Cort in the bedroom, wrapped in a beach towel, and she averted her eyes as he dropped it and pulled on his clothes.

      ‘Thanks for this,’ he said as he pulled on Adam’s shirt.

      ‘No problem.’

      He picked up his jacket and was obviously wondering what to do with it.

      ‘You can pick it up later,’ Ruby said, and because she knew he didn’t want that awkward moment where he had to face her later, she added kindly, ‘I’m on a late shift so I won’t be here. I’ll leave it on the porch.’

      ‘It’s just …’

      ‘I know.’

      She did.

      ‘It’s not just for me,’ Cort said. ‘I don’t want it to be difficult for you at work—and, believe me, it would be.’

      ‘It won’t be,’ Ruby said, ‘because no-one will find out.’

      He could hear the chatter from the kitchen, the little gaggle he’d have to walk past on the way out, but she must have read his thoughts. ‘It’s just my housemates, they won’t say anything.’

      ‘Ruby …’

      She shook her head, because she didn’t want the big speech or promises that wouldn’t be kept and she really didn’t want to examine last night with him.

      In fact, confused as to her own part in this, her own behaviour with him, Ruby didn’t want to examine last night at all.

      ‘Go on,’ she said. ‘Get back to being crabby.’

      And he’d do that.

      He had no choice but to do that, but it would be a hard ask to forget last night.

      He went to go, but he couldn’t quite yet.

      Couldn’t just leave it at that, as if it had been nothing.

      He walked over and took her into his arms and she let him hold her, and she knew he would soon be back to crabby, knew at work he had to ignore her and that was a blessing because she felt as if he had exposed her last night, but it was nice that it ended with a cuddle.

      Okay, a kiss, Ruby thought as he searched for her lips.

      Why couldn’t he be a bastard? Ruby thought as his lips roamed hers.

      Bastards were gone when you woke up, or chatted up your friend on the way out, or ‘borrowed’ twenty dollars for a taxi. Every girl knew that. There was even a coded list on the fridge downstairs, and now that he was kissing her, and so very nicely too, she couldn’t even add him to it.

      It really was a lovely kiss that tasted different from last night. It was slow and tender and laced with regret because she’d be back at work this afternoon and so would he and last night wouldn’t have happened.

      Except, Ruby realised as he let her go and walked out her bedroom door, it had.

       CHAPTER SIX

      ‘RUBY …’ He did not look up as the nurses did their handover and Sheila did the allocations. He’d deliberately avoided the staffroom as the late staff СКАЧАТЬ