Marrying The Boss (11 page)

Kate guessed he was speaking with his
father as Spencer's lips tightened. As he replied the intriguing
intonations when he spoke rapidly in Greek rippled across her skin,
raising fresh goose-bumps.

She clearly heard the tightly controlled
undercurrent of anger in his voice. Whatever his father was saying
to him, he didn't like it. Spencer's face darkened to thunderous as
the dialogue continued. His tone had become clipped and curt. Kate
heard the sudden click from the other end as the connection was
slashed.

"
Yassou
,
Papa
." Spencer shook his head as he dropped the receiver back
into its cradle.

He looked up at Kate. "Apparently my aunt
has seen fit to telephone my father and complain about my treatment
of her." He pushed his fingers through his hair. "She got him out
of bed. He was phoning from Melbourne to get my side of the story.
He isn't pleased."

"
I'm sorry." Kate shifted in acute
discomfort. "It sounded like the two of you were having an
argument."

"
It's a Greek thing; we always sound like
we're arguing. You get used to it." Spencer's mouth twisted. "Papa
gets excited if he thinks any of his family isn't getting a fair
deal. I think I put him straight on a few salient points. There
won't be any more complaints."

His expression became grim. "It was my
father's idea that Alexia came to live with us when Katerina left.
He's convinced I can't look after myself. That a Greek man cannot
be allowed live alone. It isn't the right thing."

His frowning gaze moved over Kate's face.
"I'm told I need a woman to look after me, to keep house and
maintain order in my life. I guess as some kind of substitute for a
mother my son hasn't seen in over three years."

"
And you disagree with your father."

"
Jamie and I can get by on our own." He
seemed to look through her. "Maybe it's time we did that. I'll
speak to Alexia about her stirring up trouble to no good account.
See what she has to say for herself."

Kate put down her empty coffee cup. "Well,
I think it's well past time I left. I hope you manage to work
things out with your aunt. Please let me know if there's anything
more I can do to help."

"
Thank you. And thanks again for tonight."
Spencer moved closer to escort her out of the house. His hand
settled into the small of her back as he leaned past her to open
the door. "I couldn't have done it without your help."

"
I enjoyed looking after your son." Kate
leaned down to slip on her sandals. She straightened to find his
blue eyes watching her with an unfathomable expression.

Spencer shoved his hands into the pockets
of his jeans. "Perhaps you'll let us repay you with that invitation
to dinner. When we've got everything sorted out."

"
Perhaps." Kate nodded, trying to read his
face in the darkness. Her heart did an odd little flip. She
searched for safer ground. "You said earlier that you went back to
see Ryan McCarthy. How is he?"

"
A lot better. The antibiotics are starting
to have an effect. He should come through it without any permanent
scarring. He's very lucky we got to it in time."

"
Yes, lucky that you could recognize what
had bitten him." She paused for a long moment. "
Yassou
." She hitched a breath, testing the
strange new word with her tongue.

In the cool, morning light she saw
Spencer's quick, approving smile gleam in the soft shadows of his
face. Its vital warmth curled through her senses, leaving her even
more confused. This man was finding his way into her thoughts far
too often. It wouldn't do. They could have nothing
together.

"
Yassou
, Kate," he replied, his gaze suddenly intense.
"
Efcharisto,
thank you. And since I've kept you so late, you should take
the rest of the morning off. Catch up on some sleep. I would walk
you home, but I have Jamie to consider so I—"

"
I understand." Kate moved quickly away
into the darkness. "I'll be fine and I'll go in to work around
eleven."

"
That's fine with me. Phone me the moment
you get inside. I want to know that you've arrived safely," Spencer
called after her.

Kate turned to look back once. Spencer's
broad bulk was framed by the light spilling from the open doorway.
His silent vigil gave Kate a distracting sense of security and
belonging she couldn't explain.

It stayed with her long after she returned
to the cottage and locked the door behind her. She telephoned
Spencer to assure him she'd come to no harm, ending the call
swiftly before going to take her shower and getting into
bed.

But sleep proved elusive. Finally she got
up and dressed for the day ahead, deciding she was better off at
work. She was locking the cottage when Spencer's black four wheel
drive pulled up beside her car.

"
What's wrong?" Kate started forward even
as Spencer leaned across to thrust open the passenger
door.

"
Get in. We've got a potentially serious
burn injury to attend. I was dropping Jamie off at school, when I
got the call on my cell-phone. It's only just happened."

Kate's
emotional confusion went tumbling
from her mind. She grabbed her medical bag before hoisting herself
into the passenger seat and closing the door. "Where did it
happen?"

"
In the next street." Spencer accelerated
out of the yard, turning into the street and heading towards the
junction at the bottom of the road. "A patient of mine, Bill
Jackson, decided to light his incinerator with petrol. It exploded
on him. His wife has already phoned for the ambulance. I'm afraid
Bill's become very accident prone over the years."

He glanced briefly at her. "What puzzles
me is when she phoned, Martha asked for you. She was very insistent
that you come too."

Kate gasped and sat forward. "Martha was
my first patient yesterday. She's been having more frequent angina
attacks. It didn't take long for me to deduce that her husband was
the culprit."

"
I see, so that's why she wanted you,"
Spencer replied. "Yes, unfortunately Bill has always been very
independent, but he won't see reason. This time we must try to make
him see sense."

"
I agree." Kate bit her lip. "But what can
we do?"

"
I'll think about it." Spencer's mouth
turned down. "It'll have to be drastic. Unfortunately Bill also has
a real thing about working women, especially female doctors. Are
you up some old fashioned, chauvinist talk?"

"
Don't worry, I can handle it. I've been
asked many times before when the real doctor is going to show
up."

"
I'll bet you have." He threw the vehicle
into park and got out. "Here we are."

Pulling a pair of sterile gloves from her
bag, Kate hurried after him as they crossed the front garden to
where a sprawled figure was lying a short distance from a
smoldering incinerator. Martha was standing beside him trickling
water over his arm from a garden hose. They were both soaked to the
skin and the old lady's face was pale, her frail body shaking with
cold and reaction.

Kate heard her muttering, "Silly, silly
old fool, I've told him about doing stupid things. But he won't
listen. He never listens."

"
Okay, Martha, we've got him." Spencer
gently took the hose from her hand. "We'll take care of him. The
ambulance is here so let's get you seen to first. Dr Martin can
take care of Bill."

The old lady looked up. "Oh, Spencer, you
came. And thank goodness you're here too, Kate. I told Bill you
would help." Her voice faded out as she promptly fainted, slumping
back against Spencer's broad chest.

"
You can cope here?" Spencer questioned
over Martha's bent head.

"
Go on, take care of her. I'll be fine."

"
I'll be back as soon as I can." Spencer
picked up Martha's frail body and carried her away towards the
ambulance.

Kate looked back to her patient, gathering
herself as she sank to her knees. The old man groaned and opened
his eyes.

"
Who are you?" Bill frowned with
suspicion.

"
Dr. Kate Martin." Kate met the challenge
evident his faded eyes. She waited for his reaction. It wasn't long
in coming.

Bill Jackson seemed to measure her
determination. "Okay, so you're the nosy new doctor woman. Martha,
she told me about you." He groaned. "Where's Spence?"

"
Looking after your wife. Martha fainted as
we arrived. You've frightened her very badly." Her concern mounted
as she began to examine his forearm.

It was lucky he'd been wearing a T-shirt
in the early morning heat. There was no clothing to adhere to the
burned skin. Fortunately he appeared to have only first and second
degree burns. Kate breathed a sigh of thankfulness.

As she worked, Kate felt rather than saw
Spencer come up behind her. When she looked she saw he'd been
followed by the second ambulance officer.

She turned back to her patient. "I'll give
you something for the pain, Mr. Jackson. But you will need to keep
the wound very clean."

"
Leave me alone. Spencer can help me now,"
the old man grumbled. "He knows me."

"
I'm very sure he does." Kate didn't look
up from her task of placing a sterile dressing over the burned
area. Bill continued to watch her work with mutinous
suspicion.

Spencer pulled on a fresh pair of gloves
as sank to one knee beside her. "So, how are you two getting
on?"

"
Women doctors," Bill spluttered. "It ain't
right."

"
Oh, I don't know, from the look of things,
I think Dr Martin is doing a very good job."

Kate could hear the shades of anger and
concern coloring Spencer's tone as he assisted her. "Thanks for the
vote of confidence. How's Mrs. Jackson?"

Spencer didn't reply immediately as they
continued to work over Bill's arm together. Kate managed to keep
herself from staring at his strong hands moving with Kate full
skill and dexterity for such a big man.

Finally Spencer said, "I'm very concerned
about Martha. I'm going to send her off to hospital in the
ambulance with Bill. I've managed to stabilize her. But we're going
to have to increase her medication."

Concentrating on her work, Kate wasn't
slow to pick up on his deliberately measured tone. "I see. And
what's her prognosis, Dr. Stelanos?"

Spencer inhaled and shook his head, giving
the ambulance officer a warning look. "I don't know. Scares like
this morning aren't doing her any good. They're still working on
her in the ambulance. Her angina will be tricky to control unless
she has complete rest and no more sudden upheavals."

After a moment of tense silence the
officer behind them shuffled his feet and cleared his throat. "I'll
go and check on her." He hurried away.

Bill Jackson rolled his head and groaned.
"All right, so I wasn't quick enough to get out of the way. Must be
getting too slow in my old age. I won't do it again."

His faded eyes swung back to Kate's. "I
love my wife. Martha means everything to me. I can't lose her. Not
now. Don't let her die."

"
Oh, I'm sure she'll be all right." Kate
met his helpless look with a deep sense of sorrow and felt her
throat close.

This was the kind of love she once thought
she'd found with Eric. She glanced over at Spencer. Could she ever
find that sort of love again with a man like him?

She felt suddenly breathless and out of
control. She shook her head at her own foolishness. When would she
ever learn?

Her future was already mapped out, simple
and functional. It had no room for kids, dogs, horses or even
lonely old people who still loved each other despite their many
differences over the years.

Certainly her life had no room for blue
eyed, dark haired pirates, no matter how undeniably gorgeous and
disturbing.

No
, her startled mind reacted with real
alarm. He'll only break your heart if you let him get close, as
surely as the sun rises every morning.

She fought back the threat of tears and
clasped Bill's uninjured hand. "Your Martha will pull through. But
she's going to need a lot of care when she comes home. You can't go
on scaring her like this."

Bill shook his head as Spencer helped him
to sit up. "I yelled for Martha to grab the hose straight away,
like you're supposed to. I know I scared her, but I didn't mean
to."

"
Yes, you did the right thing. You were
very lucky. This could have been a lot worse. But you must try and
not be so independent. You must let other people look after
you."