Dr Langley: Protector or Playboy?

Dear Reader

There’s something really special about college days, with young people so full of energy and sparkle living life to the full. Everything takes on the brightest colours. Their lives are filled with music, deep, lasting friendships and the sheer joy of being alive and trying new things.

So when the four young people in my book get together to share a house things are bound to fizz. It isn’t long before Ben and Jade find themselves drawn to one another—things are definitely beginning to warm up—but, as always, there are pitfalls along the way.

Jade is getting over a broken relationship, and the last thing she needs is to find herself falling for Ben. It’s just not going to happen—is it?

With love

Joanna

When JOANNA NEIL discovered Mills & Boon®, her lifelong addiction to reading crystallised into an exciting new career writing Medical™ Romance. Her characters are probably the outcome of her varied lifestyle, which includes working as a clerk, typist, nurse and infant teacher. She enjoys dressmaking and cooking at her Leicestershire home. Her family includes a husband, son and daughter, an exuberant yellow Labrador and two slightly crazed cockatiels. She currently works with a team of tutors at her local education centre, to provide creative writing workshops for people interested in exploring their own writing ambitions.

Recent titles by Joanna Neil:

A COTSWOLD CHRISTMAS BRIDE

THE TAMING OF DR ALEX DRAYCOTT

BECOMING DR BELLINI’S BRIDE

PLAYBOY UNDER THE MISTLETOE

Recent titles by Leah Martyn:

WEDDING IN DARLING DOWNS

OUTBACK DOCTOR, ENGLISH BRIDE

These books are also available in ebook format from www.millsandboon.co.uk

Dr Langley: Protector or Playboy?

Joanna Neil

www.millsandboon.co.uk

CHAPTER ONE

‘I DON’T know how you can face coming here straight after putting in a full day’s work at the hospital.’ Matt Berenger glanced briefly at Jade before removing the filter from his coffee cup and putting it to one side. He began to spoon sugar into the hot liquid. ‘I need a break before I can even think about starting on anything else.’

‘Put it down to sheer necessity,’ Jade answered with a rueful smile. ‘I need to keep my student loan down to the minimum.’ She sent a fleeting glance around the room. All the customers appeared to be content for the moment and it seemed no one needed her attention, so there was probably no harm in spending a moment or two swapping news with Matt.

She rested her empty tray on her hip, and briefly tugged at the skirt of her waitress uniform with her free hand. ‘This outfit drives me mad,’ she muttered through her teeth. ‘It’s totally the wrong size for me and it’s forever riding up.’

Matt studied her, his dark head tilted to one side. ‘Looks okay to me.’

Jade made a wry face. Did he know anything at all about the way women’s clothes should fit?

He tested the coffee for heat and then took a sip. ‘So how was your first day in Paediatrics?’

‘It was okay, I suppose.’ She frowned. ‘There’s so much to remember, where everything’s kept, for a start—lab forms, equipment, linen—and then there are all the new people you meet. The consultant, the registrar, the rest of the team, and nurses,—and that’s without even mentioning the patients …’ Her green eyes closed briefly. ‘To see those young children looking so poorly just breaks my heart.’

She pulled in a quick breath. ‘But at least there was someone there who was nearer to my level—he’s a year ahead of me, though, like you—he’s a pre-registration doctor, doing his year-one foundation course. I think perhaps he’s a few years older than me, so maybe he was involved in something else before he set out to study medicine.’ She frowned. ‘In fact, you probably know him, if he’s in the same year group as you. Ben Langley? Does that ring a bell?’

‘Ben.’ Matt nodded, his mouth curving. ‘Oh yes. We’ve been together on quite a few placements, and in lectures, of course. He’s okay—I like him. And I think you’ll find he’s extremely popular with all the females for miles around.’ He swallowed more coffee. ‘He seems to know his way around the hospital system, and he’s very amenable. I’m sure if you ask him, he’ll help you out with anything you need to know.’

‘Yes, I guess so. I did turn to him a couple of times, since he looked as though he had the situation in hand, but I didn’t want to do it too often for fear of looking as though I was completely hopeless.’ She gave a small sigh. ‘It’s just that everyone seems to know so much more than me. They’re all so confident, so capable, whereas I was wandering around feeling lost most of the time. Did you feel that way when you were in your fifth year? I’d expected to find things a bit easier by now.’

‘We all go through it.’ Matt smiled. ‘Anyway, as far as I can see, you’ve been doing really well. Just think, this time next year you’ll be in the same position as me, a foundation-year doctor.’

She gave a soft sigh, trying to imagine it. ‘I can’t wait.’

‘Oh, so you can’t wait, eh?’ a sharp voice snarled in her ear, making her jump. ‘But you think the customers can? Alors! You should be waiting tables, n’est ce pas? Let us have no more of this chit-chat. Allez!’

‘Uh … Oh—I’m sorry.’ Jade straightened up and shot a look at her boss, Jacques. He was an excitable man in his middle years, slightly overweight, with brown hair that was all over the place from his habit of running a hand through it. He was given to short bursts of irritability, and she guessed that came from the responsibility that went along with running a café bar in the middle of London. Today was a bad day, because the air-conditioning had broken down and the temperature in the kitchen was almost too much to bear.

She gave Matt an apologetic smile. ‘I should get on,’ she murmured. ‘I’ll see you later, back at the house, and perhaps you can tell me all about how you got on in A and E.’

‘Will do.’ Matt drank his coffee, tilting back his head and draining every last drop. ‘I’d better head off, anyway. I don’t suppose Lucy will have given a thought to getting anything in for supper. Her head’s in the clouds these days.’

Jade leapt to her friend’s defence. ‘It’s not her fault, you know. She has a lot on her mind.’ ‘Don’t we all?’

Matt left the café and Jade concentrated on clearing tables. Her boss obviously didn’t like to see her standing around talking to the customers but, as far as she could see, no new people had come in off the street.

No sooner had that thought crossed her mind than the main door swung open and a group of men entered. There were four of them, all smartly dressed in suits, shirts and ties, and one of them was the very man she’d just been talking about, Ben Langley.

He walked towards an empty table and sat down. On the wards, he gave the impression he was someone you could rely on. And here he was no different. He had that look of a man who was totally at ease with himself and everything around him … calm, yet purposeful.

She studied him surreptitiously as she waited for the group to settle down. A head taller than she was, he had dark hair and features that somehow compelled you to look, and look again. His eyes, she recalled, were a pleasing mix of grey and blue, and he had a way of looking at you that made it seem that you had his full attention.

And he was looking at her right now. She gave a faint start, her cheeks flushing with heat because he had caught her out, watching him.

His gaze was fixed on her, and she gave herself a mental shake. Get a grip, she chided herself inwardly. He was just looking at her because he wanted to order some food, and she was the waitress, for heaven’s sake.

He smiled as she walked over to the table. He had a naturally warm and friendly manner that automatically drew everyone in. She’d been aware of it from the start, and it had been fairly obvious that all the nurses had fallen for him straight away. Then again, the number-one rule for junior doctors was for them to make friends with the nursing staff if they were to make any headway in the job, and he had managed that for sure.

She drew in a deep breath. It was highly embarrassing that he and his friends should find her working here, of all places—in an instant her street cred had gone right through the floor.

‘Hello. What can I get for you?’ she asked. She gave them all a welcoming smile and let her glance roam fleetingly over his friends.

‘Steak burger and fries for me,’ the fair-haired one said. ‘I’m starving.’ He checked out her long, chestnut-coloured hair and gave her an appreciative smile.

‘I’ll have the toasted cheese sandwich,’ the young man sitting next to him said. ‘No expense spared, you see,’ he added in mock humour. ‘We’re celebrating our first day in new placements—at the hospital across the way,’ he added by way of explanation.

She nodded, but Ben said softly, ‘She knows all about placements, Jack. She’s one of us.’

Jack’s eyes widened. ‘Really? How come I’ve not seen you around?’

‘We’re in different year groups, perhaps?’ She gave a light shrug and concentrated on writing down the orders.

‘Maybe you can tell us what you’ve been up to so far this year,’ Jack said in a musing tone. ‘We could swap notes. It’s always good to have some insight into other specialties. I started on the renal unit today.’

‘Jade’s a fifth-year student,’ Ben explained, and she glanced at him. He remembered her name? It didn’t mean anything, of course. Perhaps he was good at that sort of thing. She’d remembered his name because he was the kind of man you didn’t forget.

‘That’s right,’ she murmured, adding for the benefit of the rest of the group, ‘I started in Paediatrics today, alongside Ben. I’d really like to stay and swap notes, but unfortunately I’m already in trouble with my boss for standing around talking.’ She pulled a face. ‘I can feel him glaring at me from the kitchen.’

‘Oh, dear.’ Ben acknowledged that with a sympathetic smile. ‘Then we’d better hurry up and decide what we want to eat.’ He studied the menu along with his other friend and gave her their order a moment or two later.

Jade tucked her notepad into her pocket and walked over to the kitchen. She hoped Ben wasn’t following her progress. The wretched uniform was sliding up over her hips again and it took all her willpower to resist the urge to tug it back down.

‘Here we are,’ she said a short time later, setting down the plates of food. ‘Burger and fries, toasted cheese sandwich, baguette and crepes. I’ll bring your drinks along in a minute or two.’

‘Thanks.’ Ben accepted the plate of savoury crepes she put before him. His friends began to tuck in, chatting to one another, while Ben put his food to one side for the moment and looked at her. ‘It’s good to see you again,’ he murmured, letting his gaze drift over her and making her suddenly conscious of the way her skirt clung to her and of the hint of cleavage displayed by the cotton top of the uniform. ‘I expect we’ll soon get used to working alongside one another. The first day in a placement is always a bit unnerving, isn’t it? But you seemed to be coping well enough.’

‘Did I?’ She gave a soft laugh. ‘I suppose it was okay once I managed to spend time with the patients. Everything else seemed to fade into the background then. Apart from when the consultant came to do his rounds. That was a bit scary.’ She looked at him, a small frown in her green eyes. She doubted he had any such problems.

At the end of his working day he seemed perfectly relaxed. He had removed his jacket, and where he had rolled back his shirtsleeves she saw that his strong forearms were lightly bronzed, covered with a smattering of dark hair.

‘He put you on the spot a bit, didn’t he, asking about the baby’s stridor?’ His voice was deep and low, smoothing over her like comforting hot chocolate. ‘I thought it was a bit unfair of him, really, to do that to you on your first day.’

She nodded. ‘You’re right. His questions left me flummoxed for a while, I must say. To begin with, I wondered if the strange noises the baby was making when he breathed in were to do with a respiratory problem, but at least I did get it together enough to suggest that we should check out his throat as well as his chest.’

‘And that was the right thing to say, as things turned out.’ He smiled, a full-on smile that curved his well-shaped mouth and glimmered in the depths of those smoky, grey-blue eyes. Caught unawares, Jade’s heart did a funny little flip-over in the middle of her chest.

‘Yes.’ Her voice was husky. What on earth was the matter with her? She hadn’t reacted this way to any man since she’d met Ewan. And her experience with him had surely been enough to warn her to keep her emotions under control.

She brought her mind back to the baby at the hospital. She’d learned that the infant was struggling with a ‘soft’ larynx, a condition where the immature cartilage folded inwards on inhalation, causing an airway obstruction.

‘I guess so,’ she said. ‘It’s a shame the baby’s ill enough to need surgery, though. He’s only six months old—I’d hate it if a child of mine needed an operation at such a young age.’

‘Me, too.’

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her boss beginning to glower at her from the kitchen once more, and she quietly excused herself. More customers were coming in, and she and the rest of the staff were kept busy for the next half-hour, seeing to their needs.

There was no time for a breather. As customers ate up and left the café, Jade cleared away the dishes and wiped the tables clean. Now her tray was filled with pudding bowls, cups and saucers, and as she headed back towards the kitchen with them, she saw that Ben and his friends were preparing to leave. They nodded towards her and she returned the gesture.

She wasn’t quite sure what happened next. One moment she was treading carefully between the tables, glancing at the customers to see who might shortly need attention, and the next her foot had shot out from under her and she began to tumble backwards. The tray wobbled precariously and she desperately tried to keep it aloft while fighting to keep her balance, but all the time she knew it was going to be a losing battle. Her heart sank as crockery began to slide off the tray, heading for the floor. It would only be a matter of seconds before she would follow.

Then, as she resigned herself to her fate, she discovered that strong arms were holding her, effortlessly taking her weight and steadying her.

‘You’re okay, I have you,’ Ben said. His tone was reassuring, supportive, washing over her like a soothing balm. He helped her to regain her balance, and even as she tried to thank him, she was unhappily aware of the tableware hitting the floor tiles with a resounding crash. A small cheer went up from the diners close by. ‘Que se passe-t-il? Qu’avez vous fait?’

Jade groaned as her boss hurried towards her. His dark brows pulled together, meeting in a scowl.

‘I … It was an accident,’ she told him in dismay. ‘I don’t know how it happened.’ All the time she was aware of Ben’s nearness, of his hand on her elbow and the warmth of his touch coursing through her body and setting her nerves alight. For the second time that evening, her cheeks were flushed with heat. Was she bound to constantly make a fool of herself around him?

‘Zut!’ Jacques was not pleased. ‘It is a mess.’

‘Yes. Yes, it is. I’ll clean it up,’ Jade promised. ‘I’m sorry.’

‘I am sorry, too. C’est vrai.’ He glowered at her.

Her ankle was stinging, and she looked down to see that a jagged piece of broken plate had cut into her, slashing the flesh. Blood seeped from the gash.

‘You’re hurt,’ Ben said, pulling in a sharp breath. ‘That wound needs dressing.’ He frowned. ‘Perhaps you should be taking the management to task, instead of the other way round. After all, it wasn’t your fault that someone spilled ice cream on the floor—in fact, in the circumstances you might have been badly hurt.’

‘Is that what it was? No … I’m…. It …’ She broke off as Ben’s fingers gave a warning squeeze on her arm.

Her boss flinched. ‘That’s it, of course.’ He hit his palm against his forehead and looked around. ‘I see now what’s to be done. You should go home,’ he said, coming to a sudden decision. ‘Take the rest of the night off.’

‘But I … I’m sure I’ll be fine … And anyway I can’t go home … I have to work. I need to work.’

His expression was pained. ‘Uh … with pay, naturellement,’ he muttered under his breath, as though the words had to be torn out of him. ‘Anyway, you’re not far off the end of your shift. Just go, and we will forget all this. Now. Allez!”

‘But I …’ Her protests were cut off as Ben firmly turned her away and urged her towards a door marked

‘Staff Only’.

‘You should go and get changed. But before you do that, find a first-aid box and cover that wound—unless it’s going to be awkward for you. Would you like me to help you with it?’

She shook her head. ‘No, that’s okay … I can manage, thanks.’

‘All right, then go and get your bag, or whatever.’ He gave her a light push from behind.

‘I will.’ She was aware of the other men waiting by the main door, and her chagrin was complete now that all of his friends had witnessed her stumble. Not only was she a waitress, she was a clumsy one into the bargain.

She gazed at him full on. ‘Thanks again for your help.’ She risked one last quick glance back to where she had slipped, and saw that Jacques had grabbed a brush and dustpan and was clearing up the broken crockery. Ever the showman, he gazed at the people who were looking on. ‘I am good to my staff, see? That one—she is a medical student.’ He inclined his head in Jade’s direction. ‘Who knows—I may find that I need her help one day.’ He grinned.

Jade came out of the rest room a few minutes later.

She had changed into jeans and T-shirt, and put on a light jacket in case the spring evening had turned chilly. Looking around, she was startled to find Ben waiting for her in the lounge area.

‘I didn’t really expect you to hang around,’ she said, her green eyes thoughtful. ‘What about your friends? Shouldn’t you be with them?’

He shook his head. ‘I sent them on ahead, but I dare say I’ll meet up with them later. For now, I’d much rather be with you—I wanted to make sure that you weren’t too shaken up. That was a nasty cut.’

‘I’m all right, thanks to you.’ She smiled. ‘You did a great job of catching me.’ She glanced up at him as they went out of the main door and on to the street. ‘You really don’t need to stay with me, you know. I’ll be fine.’

‘I do know, but I will, all the same.’ He looked around. ‘How do you get to and from the hospital? Do you go by bus, or do you use the tube?’

‘The bus, usually, or if it’s a pleasant day and I have plenty of time, I walk. I enjoy the fresh air and the exercise. I live just a mile or so from here.’

He nodded. ‘Which would you prefer to do now—walk, or take the bus?’

‘I think I’d rather walk, as it’s a pleasant evening.’

‘Are you sure? Isn’t your ankle going to give you problems if you do that?’

‘No, it’s fine, thanks.’ She’d washed it and covered the area with a dressing, and though it was still sore, it would be okay.

‘Good. I’ll walk you home.’

She was quiet for a moment or two, but then she said, ‘Okay. Thanks.’ There didn’t seem much point in protesting any more. He’d made up his mind, and maybe, for whatever reason, he felt that she needed to be watched over.

The sun was setting as they walked along the street that was made up of bars and coffee shops. At this time of the evening it was fairly noisy, with music filtering through open doors and windows, and with boisterous young people intent on having a good time.

‘How often do you have to work at the café?’ Ben asked. He was frowning. ‘Do you have to put in a lot of hours?’

‘It’s a fairly flexible arrangement,’ she told him. ‘Jacques appears to be a bit uptight, but he’s not a bad employer, really. He’s just having a bad day. He knows how I’m fixed, and he’s fairly accommodating. I generally help out on evenings when they’re particularly busy, and I do half a dozen or so hours at the weekends when I can pull them in.’

He shook his head. ‘It can’t be easy. It’s a shame you have to take a part time job while you’re at medical school. Training to be a doctor is not exactly an easy option, and there’s a tremendous amount of studying to be fitted in. It can’t be good for you, burning the candle at both ends. It must be a worry, making sure that you stay on top form.’

His comments stirred her own fears and she turned to him with a concerned expression. ‘Do you think I’m not up to it? Does it look that way? I’ve always done my best, and I’d hoped I managed fairly well at the hospital today. Of course, the consultant’s opinion is another matter. But, then, he was out to make a point, to put me on the spot and let me know that I have to be on my toes and bone up on the kinds of situations that will come my way.’

He looked into her eyes, recognising her insecurity, and his glance warmed her. ‘I thought you did remarkably well. But you’re not stressed out with exams right now. How will you cope when the pressure’s on towards the end of next month?’

She gave a light shrug. ‘I’ll cope the same way I always do, I hope, by making the best use of my time and generally attempting to fit a quart into a pint pot.’ She gave a wry smile. ‘Anyway, I don’t have the luxury of living on independent means.’ Her glance flicked over him. His suit was perfectly cut, beautifully tailored, and she doubted he had to worry too much about finances.

‘True.’ He sent her a sideways, curious look. ‘But going on that way is bound to put a damper on your private life.’

She laughed. ‘Well, there is that … but I don’t actually have much of a private life right now.’

He frowned. ‘Are you saying there’s no boyfriend?’

‘That’s right.’

He let out a slow breath. ‘I can’t imagine what’s wrong with the males around here,’ he said, shaking his head.

‘Nothing at all, I should think.’ She sobered. ‘I’m not overly concerned with getting involved right now. I had a bad experience with someone I thought I cared for, and who said he cared for me … it all went wrong, and I’m not keen to go there again any time soon. Anyway, there’s too much going on for me now, with my studies and work, and so on.’

The break-up with Ewan had left scars, not ones that could be seen but her faith in human nature had been severely challenged. Perhaps she should have been forewarned by her parents’ example—they’d shown her that relationships could go badly wrong.

‘I’m sorry. Do you want to talk about it?’

‘No, not really.’ She shrugged off all those troubling thoughts. ‘The only thing that really matters is that I want to be a doctor, and if it means working hard to achieve that, that’s what I’ll do.’

‘That’s a splendid ambition.’ He gave her an approving look. ‘Have you decided on a specialty yet? You seemed to be very much taken with the baby on the ward today.’

‘Not yet, though I think I’m going to like working with children, even though it can be upsetting seeing them when they’re ill. I was quite worried about baby George. I looked up his type of illness on the computer after ward rounds, and apparently most children with his problem grow out of it by the time they’re two years old. It’s so unfortunate that he has to be booked in for surgery.’