Emergency: Mother Wanted. Sarah Morgan

me, it’s less than exciting and, frankly, the landlord gives me the creeps.’

      ‘My wife and I are renting a house in Ambleside until we decide where we’re going to settle,’ Adam told them, savouring his beer with obvious enjoyment. ‘What about you Fiona?’

      ‘Oh, I’ve got an aunt who lives about ten minutes from the hospital, so I’m staying with her for now. She’s great fun, actually.’ Fiona ripped open another packet of crisps. ‘Where do the rest of the staff live?’

      Nicky settled back in her chair and stretched out her hands towards the log fire. ‘Well, the senior consultant, Sean, lives about fifteen minutes’ drive away in a converted barn with his wife and three utterly delectable children. Zoe, the staff nurse you probably met today, lives with her boyfriend in Ambleside and I live with my husband in a cottage about ten minutes away towards the Langdales.’

      ‘Nice. I want to live somewhere more rural. At the moment I’m stuck in a tiny flat in the middle of town.’ Keely pulled a face. ‘What I really wanted was to live in a rural retreat. You know, views of the fells, sheep at the bottom of my garden and an appalling trip to work every time it snows.’

      Nicky laughed. ‘In other words, somewhere totally impractical.’

      ‘That’s me.’ Keely beamed at her. ‘I came up here to escape from the city. If I wanted the city I’d still be living in London.’

      ‘So why the Lakes?’

      Keely shrugged and took a sip of her drink. ‘Because this unit has a good reputation and because I love walking.’

      And because it was sufficiently far away from her totally oppressive family to give her some much needed breathing space.

      ‘I like walking.’ Nicky munched at the crisps. ‘So does Sean. He was in the army before he trained as a doctor so he’s a real expert at climbing and things. And Zach loves the outdoors too.’

      That explained the athletic body…

      ‘Well, I’m going to go and see some rental properties as soon as I get a free moment,’ Keely muttered, pushing thoughts of Zach’s body away and glancing at her watch. ‘I suppose I’d better be going. I’ve got some serious studying to do.’

      Fiona lifted an eyebrow. ‘Studying?’

      ‘Yes, studying.’ Keely gave a wry smile, deciding to confess. Even though they’d only worked together for a week, she already liked her new colleagues enormously. ‘The last time I saw Zach I was sixteen years old and he obviously still sees me that way. I need to impress him.’

      ‘Sixteen?’ Nicky put her drink on the table with a thump and stared at her in amazement. ‘How did you come to meet Zach at the tender age of sixteen?’

      ‘He trained with my brother,’ Keely said, carefully missing out that he’d also worked for her father. The less people knew about her family the better. ‘He used to come and stay sometimes.’

      ‘Wow.’ Fiona gave her a saucy wink. ‘I bet he played havoc with your hormones at sixteen.’

      Keely managed a weak laugh. He was playing havoc with her hormones at twenty-four, too.

      ‘Anyway, I clearly have to work harder to impress him than everyone else.’

      Nicky frowned. ‘I don’t think that’s true. You impressed him yesterday—you told him that the man had taken tricyclics.’

      ‘Yes—and I was the one who didn’t know the answer,’ Adam reminded them with a sheepish grin. ‘If anyone needs to go home to study it’s me.’

      ‘No.’ Keely stared into her now empty glass. ‘Zach doesn’t see you as a teenager.’

      Nicky wiggled her toes in front of the fire. ‘If I were you I’d just be yourself. From what I’ve seen today you’re going to make a great casualty officer. You’re good humoured, you don’t panic in an emergency, you’re friendly to everyone and you’re nice with the patients. Zach will see that for himself soon enough.’

      Would he?

      Keely wasn’t so sure. After the way he’d reacted this week it was fairly obvious to her that Zach thought he needed to keep an eye on her.

      She’d give it a few more days and then she’d have to have a word with him.

      * * *

      ‘There’s been a pile-up on the motorway. Six cars. They’ve asked for a medical team. Zach, I’d like you to go.’ Sean Nicholson glanced at the other cas. officers. ‘And Keely.’

      Keely felt a rush of excitement which died immediately when she heard Zach contradict him sharply.

      ‘Not Keely. I’ll take Adam.’

       Adam?

      Keely opened her mouth to protest and then shut it again, glancing instead towards Sean. Surely he’d object?

      But he didn’t. He merely gave a brisk nod. ‘Fine. Nicky and I will get things ready here. Nicky, which of your nursing staff do you want to send?’

      ‘Liz,’ Nicky said promptly, and immediately everyone swung into action.

      Seething with fury, Keely helped prepare Resus for a large influx of casualties and she liaised with Ambulance Control and the wards.

      By the time the patients had been admitted and dealt with her shift was almost over, but she was determined to have a word with Zach. She thought she knew why he hadn’t sent her out with the medical team, but she wanted to hear it from his lips.

      ‘May I talk to you?’

      He looked slightly surprised but he gave a nod and they walked towards his office.

      ‘Were there any fatalities?’ It was small talk but she didn’t want to tackle her problem in the corridor with the whole department listening.

      ‘Two. Trapped inside one of the vehicles. It was the usual story—everyone driving too close together, bunched up in the fog.’

      He opened the door to his office and she followed him inside and closed the door firmly behind them.

      His eyes drifted quizzically to her hands which were still holding the door handle. ‘So what’s the matter, Keely?’

      She took a deep breath. ‘You’re the matter. Or rather, the way you treat me is the matter. Why are you doing it, Zach?’

      He looked at her warily. ‘Why am I doing what?’

      She gave him an impatient look. ‘You don’t ask me any questions, you don’t let me see any complicated patients, you hang over me like a nursemaid and now you just refused to let me go out as part of an emergency team even though Sean obviously thought I was capable of it.’ She ticked the reasons off one by one on her fingers. ‘I know you don’t trust me but I think you should at least give me a chance.’

      There was a long silence and then he turned and walked over to his window, staring out into the darkness towards the fells. ‘I do trust you.’

      ‘No, you don’t!’ She walked over to him, determined to make him look at her. ‘You never let me work the way you let the other doctors work.’

      ‘That isn’t because I don’t trust you,’ he muttered, raking long fingers through his already ruffled hair.

      Keely frowned, baffled by his response. ‘Why, then? If you trust me then why aren’t you just throwing me in the deep end along with everyone else? Why wouldn’t you let me go out as part of the emergency team? It’s obvious that you don’t trust my clinical judgement—’

      ‘That’s not true.’ He frowned sharply, as if the thought hadn’t occurred to him. ‘From what I’ve seen, your clinical judgement is spot on.’

      ‘So why…?’

      He