Midwives On-Call. Alison Roberts

you stuck-up cow,’ Ruby said. ‘I just want …’ She didn’t finish but instead ran off. Isla went after her but she knew it was pointless.

      ‘She just needs some time,’ Darcie said when Isla saw her.

      ‘I know,’ Isla said, and looked at Darcie. ‘I should have been told. Just because you and Lucas aren’t talking—’

      ‘Hey!’ Darcie broke in. ‘Lucas did a CTG on a thirty-five-weeker at two and found no heartbeat. I’m going to deliver her tonight. He’s been brilliant, he’s been in with Mum and Dad all afternoon. Yes, we’ve had a row and we don’t get on, but my not telling him about Ruby had nothing to do with that. We were swamped. I had no idea Heinz was going to talk to her, I just thought he was looking through the scans.’

      ‘Isla—’

      Isla turned as Lucas knocked on the door. ‘Allegra Manos is here, she said you were to be paged when she arrived.’

      ‘Thanks.’

      ‘I’m sorry I didn’t let you know about Ruby,’ Lucas added. ‘I was in with a mum—’

      ‘Darcie explained.’ Isla let out a tense breath. ‘Sorry about that, Darcie.’

      ‘Apology accepted.’ Darcie smiled. ‘It’s just been one of those awful afternoons.’

      Not that the other patients could know that, so both Isla and Darcie pushed out a smile and went in to see Allegra.

      She looked fantastic and the baby seemed to be doing just fine.

      ‘Everything,’ Darcie said as she examined Allegra, ‘is looking great. The baby is head down and a nice size and there’s lots of fluid. How are the movements?’

      ‘Lots of them,’ Allegra said.

      Darcie spoke at length with Allegra about a trial of labour and told her that they would part insert an epidural. ‘It won’t stop you from moving around but it means that if we do need to move to a Caesarean then everything will be set up, so we can move quickly if we have to and you can also stay awake.’

      Darcie answered a few more of Allegra’s questions. ‘I’ll be seeing you weekly from now on,’ Darcie said as she stepped out.

      ‘All looks good.’ Isla smiled.

      ‘Can you let Alessi know that for me? I know he’ll be itching to find out. He’s doing his best not to ring for updates.’

      ‘I’ll let him know,’ Isla said, but when she paged him she got the head nurse in Neonatology, who said he was busy with an infant. ‘Can I pass on a message?’

      ‘It’s fine,’ Isla said. ‘I’ll try again later.’

      Much later.

      In fact, it was after eight when she made her way up to NICU and buzzed and was let in, and after washing her hands she was directed to Alessi, who was by little Elijah’s cot. ‘How is he?’ she asked.

      ‘Giving me far too many sleepless nights, but he’s doing a bit better,’ he said. He was putting an IV in Elijah’s scalp and Isla stood quietly as Alessi concentrated. There was a little picture attached to his cot of him and Archie lying together on what must have been Archie’s last day, and Isla tore her eyes from it as Alessi finished and peeled off his gloves. ‘Thank you,’ he said to the neonatal nurse who had assisted him. ‘Is this a personal visit?’ he asked as they walked from the cot.

      ‘Sort of.’ Isla nodded. ‘I’m just here to tell you about Allegra. All went well—’

      ‘We’ll go into my office.’

      Isla followed him in. ‘Your office is very messy.’

      ‘Because I’m never in it long enough to put anything away,’ he said, and as a case in point his phone buzzed and he answered it. ‘I’ll be out in a few moments.’ He then hung up the phone. ‘How is Allegra?’

      ‘Fantastic. It’s all progressing well. The baby is head down and engaged and Darcie will be seeing her weekly from now on.’

      ‘She still wants a trial of labour?’

      ‘She does,’ Isla replied. ‘Darcie has gone through it all with her and Allegra will have an epidural placed just in case a Caesarean is needed.’ She perched on the edge of his desk. ‘What time are you finishing?’ she asked, knowing that he should already be off now.

      ‘I’m just waiting for some results to come in on Elijah.’

      ‘I thought he was doing a bit better?’

      ‘He is,’ he said. ‘I just want to check his labs.’

      ‘Who’s on call tonight?’

      ‘Jed,’ Alessi clipped.

      ‘Can’t Jed—’

      ‘Isla, please don’t,’ Alessi warned, because this really was his tipping point. ‘I work long hours. If it doesn’t suit—’

      ‘Oh, please.’ She simply laughed in the face of his warning. ‘I’m not some needy miss, worried that you’re going to ruin dinner if you’re late home.’ She pulled him towards her and started to kiss his tired mouth. ‘And I’m not trying to come between you and your premmies.’ She locked her hands behind his neck and looked into the blackest, most beautiful eyes she had ever seen and was as honest as she had ever been. ‘I don’t care if you’re here till five in the morning just as long as you need to be here, Alessi … I just happen to care about you. If you were one of my staff I’d have sent you home about three hours ago. In fact, I’d have told you to take tomorrow off, too.’

      ‘I’m not one of your staff.’

      ‘Lucky for you.’

      Alessi looked at Isla. He loved how she’d bypassed his warning, how she’d admitted she cared, so he told her the truth.

      ‘I can’t send Donna and Tom home with no baby.’

      ‘And you’ll do everything to see that you don’t,’ Isla calmly assured him. ‘But Elijah’s going to be here for weeks, maybe months …’ She could see the wrestle in his eyes. ‘I’m not going to push it.’ She gave him another quick kiss and jumped down from the desk. ‘I’m heading home. Stop by if it’s not too late.’

      ‘Is Darcie on call tonight?’

      ‘Nope.’ Isla headed for the door. ‘I doubt she’ll drop dead with shock—half the hospital seems to have worked out that we’re on.’

      They were on.

      Alessi knew that when at ten, instead of crashing in the on-call room, he was driving to Isla’s. It had nothing to do with the promise of sex. He would probably be kicked out for snoring, he was so tired. It was balance, it was her, it was the calm of non-judgment and the freedom of choice along with cool reason.

      ‘I’d just about given up,’ Isla said, answering the door in her dressing gown, her hair wrapped in a towel.

      ‘Jed might call,’ he warned her. ‘I might need to go in.’

      ‘That’s fine,’ she said. ‘Do you want something to eat?’

      ‘I had something earlier,’ he said. ‘I’d kill for a shower, though.’

      He’d been to the apartment a few times but never while Darcie was there. She was tapping away on her computer while watching a movie and didn’t seem remotely fazed to see him here.

      ‘Help yourself,’ Isla said, opening her bedroom door.

      Alessi did.

      To shampoo, to conditioner, to Isla’s deodorant.

      ‘You smell like me,’ Isla said as he joined her in bed and then kissed him. ‘You taste like me, too.’

      Alessi