Sheltered by Her Top-Notch Boss Page 14

  James smiled. ‘I can think of a few other reasons,’ he said.

  Ellie would have answered but her phone’s ring tone sounded, and she gave him an apologetic look. ‘Sorry, I should have turned it off.’

  ‘No, don’t do that. You should answer it. It might be important.’

  She glanced at the caller display, and pulled a face. ‘It’s Ben, my producer.’

  She answered the call, and discovered that Ben was in an upbeat mood. ‘Something’s happened that you’ll never believe,’ he said. ‘I’ve had a call from your mother.’

  ‘My mother?’ Ellie echoed. ‘Why would my mother be getting in touch with you?’

  ‘Well, she read all the stuff about you in the papers, and she was worried about the effect it was having on the programme. Some of the articles were hinting that the series would be stopped and she was worried about that. It seems she follows your programme religiously.’

  Ellie was surprised. ‘I didn’t know that.’

  ‘Anyway, it seems she wants to put the record straight. I think she wanted me to know that none of this was your fault—actually, I knew that already—but she was calling to let me know she’s going to the newspapers. She says she wants to tell her story—that it was because she left that you went off the rails.’

  ‘But why didn’t she tell me what she was planning?’

  ‘She thought you might try to stop her. I think she’s overwhelmed with guilt about the past and she wants to make it right. She’s planning on giving you and Noah any proceeds from the articles, so she’s certainly not doing it for the money.’

  Ellie frowned. ‘But she’ll ruin her own life doing that. She mustn’t. What will people think of her?’

  ‘It’s too late to do anything about it now. She’d already contacted the papers before she rang me. The article will be in the weekend issues. All of which makes me positive that we’ll go ahead with the programmes we’ve planned and make a new series based on teenage problems. This is good news for you, Ellie.’

  Ellie wasn’t at all sure about that. Ben cut the call a short time later, and she stared into space for a minute or two.

  ‘I put your plate in the oven to keep warm while you were talking on the phone,’ James said. ‘I’ll get it for you.’

  ‘That was thoughtful of you.’ She gave him a quick smile. ‘Thanks.’

  He lifted her plate from the oven and slid it onto the table, looking at her in concern. ‘Is everything all right?’

  ‘It depends how you look at it.’ She told him what Ben had said, breaking off to eat her spaghetti now and again. ‘It’s strange, but I feel as though I want to protect her. That’s odd, isn’t it?’

  ‘Not really. She’s your mother, after all. Whatever happens, whatever they do, our parents are a deep part of our psyche.’

  She reached out and covered his hand with hers. ‘Yes.’

  He responded by gripping her hand warmly, and it was as though they had formed a bond, something that brought them together in their time of need.

  They were still holding hands when there was a brief rapping sound and then the kitchen door opened. Ellie gazed in surprise as Sophie stepped into the room. She hadn’t expected her to appear out of the blue like that, but then she remembered that James had told her she had a key so that she could come and go as she pleased.

  Sophie glanced at them and said, ‘I didn’t realise that you had company. I came to see how you are, James. This must have been a terrible day for you.’

  James nodded, and slowly released Ellie’s hand. ‘Yes.’

  ‘Well, I’m here for you now. You don’t have to worry about anything. I’ll help you with all the arrangements. There will be a lot to do, I expect.’

  He nodded, standing up to greet her. ‘Would you like some wine?’ he asked, waving a hand towards the opened bottle at the side of the table. ‘I’ll get another glass.’

  ‘Thank you.’

  Sophie sat down at the table. ‘I see you’ve already eaten,’ she said. ‘I was going to suggest that we get in a takeaway, but obviously that’s redundant now.’ She smiled as James handed her a glass. ‘You must let me organise things for you. I’ll go with you to make the arrangements—you won’t be in any shape to take it all in. I think we should go first thing tomorrow. And then I’ll organise the flowers and so on.’

  Ellie shifted uncomfortably. James couldn’t handle any of this right now. He wanted some time to grieve, to get himself together, before he launched into all the preparations that were such an unhappy necessity. Ought she to say something to Sophie?

  She tried to catch her eye to give her a warning look, but Sophie wasn’t making any eye contact with her.

  ‘White lilies would be best, don’t you think? With perhaps some white carnations slipped in among them.’

  James went over to the window and closed his eyes briefly, as though trying to shut himself off from what lay ahead. He opened his mouth to answer but no sound came out, and Ellie decided it was time to intervene.

  ‘I don’t think James is ready to make arrangements yet, Sophie. He’s still in shock. Maybe it would be best if he had a bit more time to take in what’s happened.’

  ‘Oh, of course. You’re right. I should have thought of that.’ Sophie stood up and went to stand beside James, laying a hand affectionately on his arm. ‘Like I said, I’m here for you. We’ll just take it easy for a while. Do whatever you want to do.’

  ‘I know you mean well, Sophie. Thanks for trying to help.’ James smiled at her, and as they talked quietly Ellie began to feel like an intruder.

  To cover her confusion, she set about clearing the table, stacking crockery in the dishwasher and wiping down work surfaces.

  ‘I need to go and check on something,’ James said after a while. ‘Sophie’s reminded me that there’s a problem with the stove in the drawing room. I should sort it out if we want to go and sit in there.’

  He and Sophie left the room, presumably to go to the drawing room, but Ellie went on with tidying up. She threw out some fading flowers and emptied the waste bin, putting in a fresh liner. Then she prepared the coffee machine to make a fresh brew.

  Sophie came in as she was setting out a tray with cups and saucers. ‘James is not saying much at all,’ she said softly. ‘He seems totally preoccupied. I think it’s probably best if we leave him alone for a while. I don’t think he’s in the mood for company.’

  Ellie frowned. ‘I suppose that’s understandable.’

  ‘Anyway, I’ll see to the coffee,’ Sophie murmured, filling a jug with cream from the fridge and adding a bowl of brown sugar to the tray. ‘I expect you’ll want to get off home now. James will be fine with me. I’ll take care of him.’ She smiled. ‘It is my role, after all.’

  ‘Is it?’

  ‘Of course.’ Sophie seemed surprised by Ellie’s lack of knowledge. ‘James has been too busy for any kind of commitment up to now, but it’s always been taken for granted that I’ll be his wife one day. Now that his father’s sadly no longer with us, he’ll need me by his side so that he can take his place as the next Lord Birchenall. It’s not really a situation for a single man. I expect we’ll make it a spring wedding.’

  Ellie swallowed carefully, trying to take it all in. If any of this was the truth, why had James been so attentive towards her?

  ‘You must be wondering why James has been so involved with you lately,’ Sophie said, guessing Ellie’s thoughts with pinpoint accuracy. ‘It doesn’t mean anything. He’s a kind and thoughtful man, and he wanted to look after you when you were in trouble. But being with you would never have led to anything, you know. He might have had his head turned for a while, but that would never last.’

  She looked in the wall cupboard and drew out a packet of mint chocolate biscuits and shook some out onto a plate. ‘You sho
uld know, it’s ingrained in his very being that he must marry someone with an impeccable background, someone who can carry off the role of being his wife with perfect ease. He needs a woman who can organise his dinner parties, entertain guests from the highest levels of society. That’s why he’s always kept me by his side. He needs me...’

  Ellie tried to breathe slowly and evenly, to keep herself as calm as possible. If Sophie was making this up, she was doing it with an unsurpassed expertise.

  She said slowly, ‘Doesn’t it bother you that he might have been seeing another woman?’

  ‘It’s a flirtation, nothing more. It doesn’t mean anything. Once we’re married, all that will come to an end. James has far too much integrity to jeopardise his future standing. Perhaps he’s been testing the water elsewhere, but I’m not worried about it. I know that it was just a fleeting thing while he struggled to come to terms with settling down.’

  Sophie poured coffee into two cups. ‘Anyway, I won’t delay you any longer,’ she said. ‘I’m sure you have things to do. I’ll take good care of James from now on. You don’t need to worry about that—I had his father’s blessing, after all.’

  That, at least, was true. Ellie frowned, not wanting to leave but conscious that James wasn’t here, in the kitchen, asking her to stay. Perhaps Sophie was right in what she was saying.

  ‘Goodbye, Ellie.’ Sophie picked up the tray and started towards the door. ‘Don’t forget your jacket. It’s turning chilly outside.’

  Deeply troubled, Ellie stared at the door for a while after she’d gone. Sophie was so sure of herself, so accustomed to having the run of this place, that she made her feel like an outsider.

  Slowly, she retrieved her jacket from the back of a chair. Maybe Sophie expected her to simply disappear from James’s life, but she wasn’t going to do that. And for the time being she would at least go and find James and say goodbye.

  ‘It seems to be working well enough now,’ he said, looking up from his inspection of the cast-iron stove as Ellie followed Sophie into the room.

  He glanced at the tray Sophie was carrying and frowned. ‘Only two cups?’

  ‘I’ve just remembered there’s something I must go and do,’ Ellie said. ‘So I’ll say goodbye. If you need me at all, if you want any help with anything, just give me a call. Maybe I’ll see you back at work when you’ve had some time to get yourself together. Don’t rush things. You should take as long as you need.’

  He went with her to the front door. ‘I’d hoped you might stay,’ he said, and she wanted to put her arms around him and hold him close.

  Instead, she said quietly, ‘I think Sophie’s planning on staying with you.’

  ‘Yes.’

  She walked to her car, and then with one last look around she slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine.

  What Sophie had said made perfect sense. James had seen her as a pleasant diversion, but ultimately he would marry Sophie, just as his father had wished. Why would he risk tainting his family’s aristocratic lineage by associating with a woman whose life story was being splashed all over the pages of a Sunday newspaper?

  CHAPTER TEN

  ‘IT’S REALLY GOOD to see you again.’ Ellie drank in James’s features as she walked with him towards the ambulance bay. She’d heard he was back at work, but she had been busy with patients and hadn’t seen him all morning. Now, though, she was overwhelmed by her feelings for him.

  He didn’t respond as she’d hoped, though. She longed to see the warm, easygoing man she’d come to love, but it looked as though it wasn’t to be.

  Instead, he was tense, his dark eyes shuttered, and she wasn’t sure if that was because he was still in mourning or... She hardly dared think about it. Could it be that he was putting up a barrier between them now that he had made up his mind to be with Sophie?

  Then again, perhaps he was simply on edge because he was preparing to deal with an emergency patient. There had been a road traffic accident, and a young man was being brought into A and E.

  She pulled in a deep breath. ‘I missed you,’ she said.

  ‘Did you?’

  She nodded. She’d missed him more than he could ever know. It had been heartbreaking to walk away from him that night, and over and over she’d kept asking herself if Sophie had been telling the truth. But wouldn’t he have contacted her if he had wanted to see her again?

  She said slowly, ‘I thought the funeral went very well...if these things can ever be thought of that way. The service was lovely, and the flower arrangements were beautiful, especially those inside the church.’ Her brows drew together. ‘I suppose Sophie was responsible for that.’

  ‘No. I wanted to deal with everything myself. I felt it was important that I should do that.’

  Ellie sent him a quick, sharp glance. That revelation surprised her, given that Sophie had been so keen to have a hand in everything. But perhaps it was all deeply personal to him and he hadn’t wanted anyone else making those decisions.

  ‘I was hoping to see you afterwards,’ she said, ‘but you must have gone away straight after the funeral. Harriet told me you went to stay with relatives.’

  ‘You came to the house?’

  ‘Yes.’ She lifted her shoulders. ‘I realise now that I should have rung first. I expect Harriet forgot to mention it to you. She was a bit harassed at the time.’ Her mouth made a rueful line. ‘Sophie was there and I think she was trying to suggest a few changes to the menus Harriet was planning.’

  He gave a wry smile, the first chink to show in his armour. ‘That was probably a bad move. Once she’s organised herself, Harriet hates any interference in the kitchen.’

  ‘Yes, I guessed as much, though I’ve always got on well with her. She was good to me when we lived at the lodge.’

  They reached the ambulance bay and waited. A siren sounded in the distance and Ellie knew it would only be a minute or two before it arrived.

  ‘I went away to spend some time with the family,’ James said. ‘Aunts and uncles...cousins. I needed to take some time out to clear my head and the hospital authorities granted me some compassionate leave. I’ll make it up to them with overtime over the next few weeks.’

  ‘I’m sure they won’t expect you to do that,’ she said with a frown. ‘Everyone understands that you’ve just lost your father.’

  ‘Maybe.’

  The ambulance stopped in front of the doors to the emergency unit, and as soon as the paramedics had wheeled the injured man from the back of the vehicle, James hurried forward to meet him.

  ‘His name’s Sam Donnelly,’ the paramedic said. ‘He came off his motorbike. When we first found him he was trying to talk but we couldn’t make out what he was saying. He’s become much less responsive now, though, and his heart rate is very low.’

  ‘Thanks.’

  They left the paramedic to go back to his vehicle and hurried to the resuscitation room, where James immediately began his examination of the patient. ‘Let’s get him on a cardiac monitor.’

  ‘I’ll sort it.’ Olivia went to set up the machine.

  ‘His blood pressure’s dropping,’ Ellie warned him urgently. ‘I’ll put in an IV line and take some blood for cross-matching.’ Sam looked to be about eighteen years old, and she couldn’t help wondering how his parents must be feeling, left behind in the relatives’ waiting room, knowing that their son was unconscious and that he might be dreadfully injured.

  ‘Okay.’ He started to insert an endotracheal tube into the young man’s windpipe and then connected the oxygen supply.

  He frowned as he went on with his examination. ‘His condition’s deteriorating by the minute,’ he said. ‘He’s very pale, breathing rapidly, and his pulse is weak and thready.’

  ‘His body temperature is low, too,’ Ellie remarked. Sam’s skin was moist and cl
ammy and she was beginning to be very concerned about him. He must have been hurt badly in the accident for this to be happening, but apart from some gashes on his face, arms and legs there were no visible signs of any major injury that would have caused his collapse.

  ‘Clearly, he’s going into hypovolaemic shock but there’s no obvious reason for the instability. We’d better put in a couple of wide-bore cannulas and give him fluids to compensate.’ James was thoughtful as he continued to check over the young man. ‘He must be bleeding internally, but we need to find out where it’s coming from. And we need to find out quickly.’

  ‘Do you want to do an ultrasound scan?’

  He nodded. ‘Hopefully, that will tell us what we want to know.’ He glanced at Olivia, who was monitoring the patient’s vital signs. ‘Would you give Theatre a ring and tell them we might have a patient for them? They need to be prepared.’

  ‘Okay.’

  He set up the equipment and said cautiously, ‘He probably has lower rib fractures so I think we should be looking for blunt abdominal trauma.’

  ‘That sounds logical.’

  The scan, though, wasn’t particularly helpful, and James asked the nurse to get the equipment ready so that he could do a diagnostic peritoneal lavage.

  Ellie helped him to prepare the patient, and James used a local anaesthetic as he made a small incision in Sam’s abdomen, before carefully introducing a dialysis catheter into the peritoneal cavity. Then he flushed warm saline into the opening, before slowly aspirating it back into the transparent bag.

  ‘There’s a lot of blood in there,’ Ellie observed with a frown, watching the saline slowly turn red. ‘It could be that his liver was damaged by the broken ribs.’

  ‘It looks that way. We’ll send him up to Theatre right away for a laparotomy.’ He turned to Olivia. ‘Will you give them another call and make sure they’re ready for him up there?’

  ‘I will.’

  Ellie prepped the young man for surgery. The sooner he was operated on, the better his chances of survival would be.