Jennifer Taylor - The Boss Who Stole Her Heart

‘Good morning.’

Daniel swung round when he recognised Eleanor’s voice. In a fast sweep his eyes ran over her from the severely styled hair to the sensible shoes on her narrow feet and he felt his nerves start to tingle. What was it about this woman that affected him so much? he wondered dizzily. As an eligible widower, he’d had his share of women pursuing him over the past four years. However, he had never taken them up on their invitations to lunch and dinner, or whatever else had been on offer. The fact was that he hadn’t been interested in them.

Not once had he felt that spark, that flicker of desire ignite inside him, yet as he looked at Eleanor, he felt it now. And in a big way too. Why it was happening was a mystery but he couldn’t lie to himself, couldn’t pretend that he didn’t feel it. He was attracted to her and it couldn’t have come at a worst time either. If she had been let down, as he suspected, the last thing she needed was to embark on another relationship, especially with him. He didn’t have time for a relationship. He needed to focus on Nathan: his son’s future had to take priority over everything else.

Daniel took a deep breath, clamping down on the surge of disappointment that rose inside him. There was no question about what he was going to do. He was going to ignore all these crazy feelings and be there for Nathan.

* * *

Ellie could feel her tension mounting as Daniel continued to stare at her without uttering a word. Was he having second thoughts? she wondered anxiously. Regretting whatever impulse had led him to offer her this job?

She bit her lip, unsure what she was going to do if that proved to be the case. She had given up the lease on the flat in Kent, sold all her furniture, and got rid of everything that reminded her of Michael. One of the main attractions about this job was the fact that it came with accommodation. There was a furnished flat above the surgery, which had seemed like a godsend. However, if she lost the job then it was going to be extremely difficult to start all over again. She had been living off her savings for the past months but they certainly wouldn’t stretch to cover the costs of renting a flat and furnishing it. The prospect of not only having to find herself another job but somewhere to live as well was daunting to say the least.

Ellie breathed in deeply when she felt her eyes prickle with tears. Since her interview, she had found herself breaking down all too often. It was as though Daniel’s kindness that day had opened the floodgates and all the hurt she had held at bay kept flooding out. However, there was no way that she intended to break down again in front of him. He might think she was playing the sympathy card and that was the last thing she wanted.

‘Hi, Eleanor. Nice to meet you. I’m Marie, the head receptionist and general factotum around here.’ The middle-aged woman behind the desk leant over and offered Ellie her hand.

‘Good to meet you too,’ Ellie replied automatically, shaking hands. She glanced at Daniel, wishing he would say something. If he was having second thoughts, it would be better if he said so rather than standing there, looking at her...

‘Sorry.’ Daniel suddenly roused himself. He smiled apologetically as he offered her his hand. ‘I was wool-gathering. Welcome to The Larches, Eleanor. It’s good to have you on board.’

Ellie felt relief wash over her as she reached for his hand. She had completely misread the situation, it appeared. Daniel wasn’t thinking of rescinding his offer after all. His hand closed around hers and a frisson ran through her when she felt the strength of his fingers envelop hers. For some reason she couldn’t explain, it felt right to have him hold her hand, right and wonderfully reassuring. Even though she knew nothing about him, she felt safe with him. Safe and cherished.

‘It’s good to be here,’ she murmured, quickly withdrawing her hand. She dredged up a smile, needing to rid her head of such nonsense. Daniel Saunders was her employer, no more and no less than that. He wasn’t going to have any impact on her life outside work.

‘So where would you like to start? I imagine you’d like to see the flat first.’ Daniel’s voice held no trace of anything yet Ellie felt herself flush when he addressed her. It was so unlike her to react that way that she found herself stammering.

‘I...ahem... Whatever suits you best, Dr Saunders.’

‘It’s Daniel,’ he reminded her, his blue eyes holding hers fast for a moment before he turned away. ‘Maybe we can leave the flat till later then. I’ve had a word with Beth and she’s going to show you the ropes so you can get an idea of how we do things around here.’

‘I’m sure that won’t be necessary,’ Ellie said swiftly, wanting to put an end to the pleasantries. The sooner she got down to work, the more comfortable she would feel. It was the newness of it all that was unsettling her, of course, not Daniel per se. It was a relief to have found an explanation and she hurried on. ‘I’ve been a GP for some time now and I’m completely up to speed when it comes to all the paperwork and everything else that comes with the job.’

‘I’m sure you are. However, every practice has its own way of doing things and The Larches is no different, so I’d appreciate it if you would indulge me on this point.’ He smiled thinly, making Ellie wish that she hadn’t said anything. The last thing she wanted was him thinking that she was someone who made a fuss.

‘Of course. I...I just didn’t want to waste Dr Andrews’s time,’ she explained lamely. ‘I’m sure she must be very busy.’

‘She is.’ Daniel placed his hand under her elbow as he led her away from the desk.

Ellie drew in a quick breath, trying to stem the nervous fluttering of her heart, but it refused to quieten down. It was as though Daniel’s touch had set off a chain reaction, ripples of awareness flowing from where his fingers lightly gripped her arm and spreading throughout her entire body. It was hard not to show how alarmed she felt when he stopped and looked at her.

‘However, between you and me, Eleanor, I’m trying to cut down the amount of work Beth is doing. She’s eight months pregnant and this is her last week in work before she goes on maternity leave, so I don’t want her overdoing things and making herself ill. If she’s showing you the ropes, at least I know that she isn’t rushing around all over the place.’

‘Oh, right. I see.’ Beth carefully withdrew her arm, stifling a wholly ridiculous feeling of disappointment. Of course Daniel was more concerned about his long-time colleague than he was about her!

‘I knew you’d understand.’ Daniel treated her to a strangely intimate smile before he led the way along the corridor. He stopped at one of the doors, tapping lightly on the beechwood panels before opening it. ‘Beth, I’ve got Eleanor with me. If you can show her how we do things, as we discussed, that would be great.’ He gestured for Ellie to step forward, winking at her as she passed him. Ellie felt a rush of warmth engulf her. It was as though they were two conspirators sharing a secret and she had to admit that she rather liked the idea. She was smiling when she stepped into the room and the pretty, fair-haired woman seated behind the desk smiled back.

‘Hi, Eleanor. It’s good to meet you. Come on in and make yourself comfortable.’ She chuckled, her hazel eyes filled with mischief as she glanced at Daniel. ‘This is going to be your room next week, so it will give you a chance to try it out for size. Anything you don’t like tell the boss. I’m sure he’ll do everything possible to sort it out!’

‘Don’t go putting ideas into Eleanor’s head,’ Daniel retorted. ‘She’ll be giving me a list of things she wants before I know it.’ He rolled his eyes. ‘Like that singer who demanded a basket of kittens to play with in her dressing room before she would go on stage and perform!’