Alison Roberts - Hot Docs On Call - Healing His Heart

‘I told Simon I’d show him how to do a few magic tricks before he went home. I thought cheering him up was more important than a few drinks with someone I hardly know.’

‘I believe you,’ she said, her voice dripping with enough sarcasm to force Matt to defend his presence here post-shift.

‘What? You think there’s something going on with me and Quinn? She’s having a nightmare of a time with Simon and he seems to respond better when I’m around. That’s all.’ He shut down any gossip fodder without the utterance of a lie. Anything remotely salacious resided entirely in his head. For now.

‘Uh-huh? It’s not like you to turn down a hot date for a charity case.’ Rebecca wasn’t about to let this drop and he knew why when he’d been enthusing about the date he’d lined up all week, only to have blown it off at the last minute. It was no wonder he’d developed something of a reputation due to his reluctance to settle down with one woman.

It was true; there’d been a few female interests over the course of his time in London but that didn’t mean he jumped into bed with a different partner every week. Sometimes he simply enjoyed a little company. However, the slight against his character was nothing to the umbrage he took to Quinn being denigrated to a pity date. After two months of sparring and making up, he’d go as far as to say that they’d bonded as friends.

He pursed his lips together so he wouldn’t defend her honour and give Rebecca any more ammunition to tease, or admonish, him.

‘You know me, I’m never short of female company.’ Generally he wasn’t big-headed about such matters but it was better to shrug it off as a non-event than turn it into a big deal. The girl he was supposed to be seeing tonight, Kelly—or was it Kerry?—was just someone he’d met the other day. It was nothing special and neither of them had been particularly put out when he’d phoned to call it off so he could meet with Quinn instead. He wasn’t a player and it wasn’t as if he was trying to keep his options open. There was a good chance he’d never see or speak to Kelly/Kerry again.

‘No, but it is quite uncharacteristic of you to be so…hands on, at work.’

So she’d seen him with his arm around Quinn. He couldn’t even defend his actions there. There’d been no excuse for him to maintain that close contact after they’d exited the packed lift except for his own pleasure. He’d enjoyed the warmth of her pressed into him, her petite frame so delicate against his bulk and the scent of her freshly washed hair filling his nostrils until he didn’t want anything else to fill his lungs.

‘Simon’s a special boy. He’s in foster care and I guess I do have a soft spot for him. He’s one of the first patients I’ve been able to treat with spray-on skin, so I’m particularly interested in his progress for use in other cases.’ He didn’t delve into any other personal aspects of his affinity for the pair. Rebecca knew he had younger sisters, but as this was his new start, he hadn’t seen the need to divulge his personal struggles to reach this point. As far as anyone needed to know, he was simply escorting an anxious mother back to her son post-surgery.

‘It’s easy to get attached. I guess I was hoping for some juicy gossip to take my mind off things.’

‘Well, I’m not the one everyone’s talking about around here. The rumour mill’s gone into overdrive now Thomas is back.’

Rebecca’s sigh echoed along the corridor at the mention of her ex-husband. It might have come across as a dirty trick to shift focus from one taboo subject to another but he was genuinely concerned for his friend too. By all accounts the end of her marriage had been traumatic. The car crash which had claimed the life of her young daughter had also proved too much for the marriage to survive. Now her ex, a cardiologist, was here on loan, it was bound to be awkward for both of them.

Matt had seen grief rip apart many families in his line of work and in that respect he was lucky to have kept his own together. The alternative didn’t bear thinking about.

‘Me and Thomas? There’s no story to tell, I assure you. In fact, we haven’t exchanged a word since he got here. You’d never believe we knew each other, never mind that we were married once upon a time.’ Her smile faltered as she was forced to confront what were obviously unresolved issues with her ex.

‘How long has it been since you saw him last?’

‘Five years, but in some ways it feels like only yesterday.’ The hiccup in her voice exposed the raw grief still lingering beneath the surface.

‘I’m sure it’s not easy. For either of you.’ They’d both lost a child and it was important to remember they’d both been affected. He didn’t know Thomas but he knew Rebecca and she wouldn’t have given her heart away to someone who wasn’t worthy of her.

‘It’s brought a lot of memories back, good and bad. At some point I think we do need to have an honest conversation about what happened to clear the air, something we never managed when we were still together. Perhaps then we might both get some closure.’

Given that they were going to be working together, they’d need it. According to the staff who’d seen them together, the tension was palpable, and it wasn’t like Rebecca not to speak her mind. As she’d just proved with this ambush. Thank goodness she hadn’t spotted them getting cosy in the pub or he’d really have had a job trying to explain himself.

‘I hope you sort things out. Life’s too short to stay mad.’

‘We’ll see. When all is said and done this isn’t about us. We’re only here to do our jobs.’ On cue, her pager went off and put an end to their impromptu heart-to-heart. She shrugged an apology as she pushed the call button for the elevator.

‘I’m sure it’ll all work out in the end.’

Rebecca was a professional, the best in her field, and there was no way she’d let personal matters interfere with her patients’ welfare. That was one of the golden rules here and one he’d do well to remember himself.

‘We’ve all got to face our demons at some time, I guess. Right, duty calls. Stay out of trouble.’

If he was going to do that, he wouldn’t be heading to Simon’s room, straight towards it.

ALTHOUGH SEEING SIMON had come through the surgery successfully was always a relief, his aftercare never got any easier. Each stage of the treatment was often punctuated with a decline in his behaviour once they left the hospital grounds. From the moment he opened his eyes it was as if they’d taken two steps backwards instead of forward.

She’d stroked his hair, told him what a brave boy he was, promised him treats—all without the normal enthusiastic response of a child his age in return. Of course, they’d see the psychologists, who would do their best to get him to open up and help him work through the trauma, but the onus was still on her to get him past this. With a degree in child psychology herself, she really thought she’d make more progress with him. At least get him to look at her. She’d aced her written exams but the practical was killing her. Most kids would only be too glad to get out of here and go home—she knew she would be—but no amount of coaxing could get him to even acknowledge her.

When Matt strolled into the room and instantly commanded his attention she had to move away from any items which could suddenly become airborne. Although, after their dinner chat, she was able to watch their interaction through new eyes.

He’d had more experience in parenthood than her, his ease very apparent as he engaged Simon in his magic know-how. Perhaps that’s what made the difference. He was comfortable around children, whereas she’d had virtually no experience other than once being a child herself. Even then, she hadn’t socialised a great deal. Her mother had worked hard to keep a roof over their heads and often that meant missing out on playdates and birthday parties to help her at her cleaning jobs.