The Seduction Challenge Read online

  Standing so close to him, Lucy was suddenly very aware of the width of his shoulders. He was wearing one of the dark poloneck jumpers that he favoured, and his subtle male scent teased her nostrils.

  Suddenly anxious to put some distance between them, she backed away and moved back behind the relative safety of his desk.

  ‘I wanted to talk to you about Margaret.’

  ‘Oh, yes?’ He sat back and looked at her expectantly. ‘What happened?’

  ‘She was coughing too badly to do the spirometry so she’s going to make another appointment for two weeks’ time.’

  Joel nodded. ‘I thought that might happen, but it was worth a try. In the meantime, I’m sending her for a chest X-ray. She is a smoker, so I want to exclude lung cancer and heart failure and I sent off some bloods. She doesn’t look anaemic but it’s worth checking because it could be the cause of her breathlessness.’

  Lucy nodded. ‘You’ll be pleased to hear that she’s going to try and stop smoking.’

  Joel raised his eyebrows. ‘Pleased and surprised. I must admit I didn’t think there was any hope of that.’

  ‘I think the chest infection scared her.’

  ‘Did it now?’ Joel looked at her thoughtfully. ‘So we need to strike while the iron is hot. Did she make an appointment to see Janice?’

  Lucy shook her head. ‘No, she wasn’t that committed. She wanted to go away and read the leaflets first. I think even considering giving up smoking is a big step for her.’

  ‘OK.’ Joel nodded slowly. ‘In that case, I’ll give her a call in a few days to check on her and to give her a little push.’

  Joel caught up with Lucy a few days later. ‘I just wanted to tell you that I had the results of Margaret’s chest X-ray.’

  Lucy looked at him. ‘And?’

  ‘It showed some evidence of pulmonary hyperinflation.’

  ‘Oh.’ Lucy pulled a face, ‘That’s caused by air trapping, isn’t it? It’s a typical feature of COPD, but it can occur in chronic asthma so I suppose we still don’t have a diagnosis. What about her other tests?’

  ‘Her heart size was normal and there was no evidence of any other pathology.’

  ‘I’ve asked her to do serial peak-flow readings so when she comes back we can look at those results,’ Lucy suggested.

  Joel nodded approval. ‘Good idea.’

  That afternoon Lucy worked with Kim, the health visitor, to develop the idea for the new child health clinic.

  Ros had designed a poster which they all agreed was fantastic, and Kim spread the word among the mothers as she went about her calls.

  ‘Never suggest anything in this practice,’ Joel said cheerfully one morning when they met in the staffroom. ‘From having to be present while you jab babies, I’m now the one that’s lumbered with being the doctor for the child health clinic.’

  Lucy looked at him guiltily. ‘Do you mind, really?’

  ‘Of course not. I think it’s a great idea, and I suppose it’s sensible to have some consistency. Have you arranged a speaker for the first meeting?’

  ‘Actually, yes.’ Lucy nodded. ‘One of Kim’s mothers is an image consultant and she’s agreed to come and talk about colours and things.’

  Joel’s expression was comical. ‘Remind me to hide in my surgery. It all sounds terrifying.’

  ‘You’re certainly not going to hide in your surgery,’ said Kim briskly as she walked past and overheard the conversation. ‘We agreed that you’d mingle, remember? Be there to answer little questions that worry people.’

  Joel groaned. ‘Why did I ever agree to this?’

  But his smile was good-natured and Lucy knew that he was pleased to help.

  ‘If you’re good, we’ll let you have five minutes with the image consultant,’ Lucy teased, ‘just in case you’re wearing the wrong colours for your skin tone.’

  In fact, the image consultant was a great success, and the turnout was greater than Lucy and Kim had hoped for in their wildest dreams.

  ‘Can you believe the Porter family are here?’ Kim muttered to Lucy in an undertone as they checked the list of children for vaccination. ‘I’ve never managed to persuade her to come to clinic before. I can’t believe that an image consultant and a free cup of coffee was all it took.’

  ‘It’s nothing to do with the image consultant or the coffee,’ Ros said dryly. ‘It’s Joel. They’ve all come to see him.’

  Lucy and Kim exchanged looks, startled, and then both turned to look at where Joel was standing, surrounded by a group of giggling mothers.

  ‘I think you just might be right, Ros,’ Kim said softly. ‘Oh, well, whatever it takes.’

  They spent the rest of the session giving immunizations to little ones and advice to mothers, and when the last mother finally left they looked at each other in disbelief.

  ‘We had five babies who’ve never been immunised before,’ Ros said slowly, looking at her list. ‘That’s amazing.’

  Joel nodded. ‘It was a great idea, Lucy.’

  Lucy shook her head. ‘It wasn’t me, it was you. They came to see you.’

  Joel frowned briefly and then shrugged. ‘Just as long as they’re gentle with me.’

  He gave her a wink that was so sexy it made her insides lurch uncomfortably.

  ‘House calls, Dr Heartthrob,’ Ros teased, waving some notes in his direction. ‘One of them is Millie Gordon. She’s been discharged from hospital and Michael wanted to call on her, but he’s been tied up with a man with chest pain for an hour. He wondered if you’d go.’

  ‘Gladly.’ Joel put out his hands for the notes and looked at Lucy. ‘Want to come with me as she was your patient?’

  Lucy looked at the clock and bit her lip. It was already two o’clock. She didn’t have patients booked in for the afternoon and she’d planned to do some restocking, but still…

  ‘They don’t live far away. I’ll have you at the school at three, and that’s a promise,’ Joel said softly, clearly reading her mind.

  ‘All right, then.’ She nodded and smiled. ‘I’d really like that.’

  She grabbed her coat and followed him to his car, a brand-new BMW.

  ‘Is it better than the motorbike?’ She slid into the passenger seat and cuddled her coat around her. The weather was still bitterly cold.

  ‘Well, it’s a lot warmer,’ Joel said, his teeth gritted as he started the engine and shivered. ‘Or at least it is once the engine warms up.’

  Millie and her family lived in one of the tiny fishermen’s cottages. Joel and Lucy walked down the path together towards the front door, and rang the bell. After a minute or so Millie’s mother opened the door, and her face brightened. ‘Oh—I wasn’t expecting you to call. How nice.’

  ‘Dr Michael wanted to come,’ Joel told her, ‘but he’s dealing with an emergency so you’re landed with me instead. He sent his best wishes and told you to call him, day or night, if you’re worried. Talking of which, how are things?’

  ‘Well, it feels a bit strange, Millie being home from hospital,’ Mrs Gordon confessed. ‘I feel a bit nervous that it’s all my responsibility now, but she seems fine. I suppose they wouldn’t have discharged her if she wasn’t.’

  ‘That’s right,’ Joel agreed, following her into the sitting room and grinning at Millie. ‘Hello, trouble. How are you doing?’

  ‘I’ve been in hothpital,’ the little girl lisped, her cheeks dimpling as she smiled.

  ‘I know you have.’ Joel nodded and dropped to his haunches next to the little girl. ‘What was it like?’

  ‘Fun. I did you a painting.’

  ‘You did a painting for me?’ A strange expression crossed Joel’s face and he cleared his throat. ‘Well—that’s great. Thank you. Can I see it?’

  Millie nodded and wriggled off the sofa, padding across the room to the table at the far end.

  ‘I did one for you, too.’ She handed a brightly coloured blur to Lucy. ‘Because you saved me.’

  Lucy felt a lump build in her
throat. ‘Thank you, Millie,’ she said softly, stooping to hug the little girl. ‘This is beautiful. I shall put it on my kitchen wall at home. That way I’ll see it every morning when I eat my breakfast.’

  Millie looked pleased and she turned to Joel. ‘Where will you put yours?’

  ‘The kitchen sounds like a great idea,’ he agreed. ‘Above my table. Thank you, Millie. No one’s ever painted me a picture before.’

  Joel turned to Millie’s mother. ‘Did the hospital give you a letter for us?’

  The woman nodded and nipped out of the room. She was back within a minute and handed Joel a brown envelope. He opened it and read the contents.

  ‘So they’ve arranged a follow-up appointment at the paediatric clinic. That’s good. All right, Millie, let’s take a little look at you.’

  He examined Millie and they chatted a little longer. Finally Joel glanced at his watch and stood up.

  ‘We’ll leave you in peace now, but remember—any problems, call the surgery.’

  ‘Thanks very much, Dr Whittaker.’

  Millie’s mother walked with them to the door and waved them off.

  ‘Nice woman,’ Joel said as they climbed back into the car and drove towards the school. ‘You can relax—we’ll be in plenty of time.’

  Lucy gave him a grateful smile. ‘Thanks, Joel. If you drop us back at the surgery I can pick my car up and drive us home. Do you want to join us for supper tonight?’

  Joel cleared his throat, his tone casual. ‘I’ve got a better idea. Why don’t I take us all out instead? Sticky milk-shakes and hamburgers?’

  Lucy looked at him with an expression of disbelief. ‘You eat hamburgers?’

  ‘Well, no’, he confessed with a rueful smile, ‘not usually, but I can learn. I want to take you and Sam out for tea.’

  Lucy stared at him. ‘Aren’t you working?’

  ‘No.’ Joel shook his head. ‘Time off for good behaviour. So what do you say—is it a date? I mean, not a real date, of course,’ he said, correcting himself hastily, ‘just a date as in tea with friends.’

  ‘Relax, Joel. There’s no chance I’d mistake this for a real date,’ she joked. ‘I shouldn’t think that your idea of a date is a hamburger at four o’clock in the afternoon.’

  He grinned. ‘Well, maybe not.’

  They stopped at Lucy’s flat just long enough for her to change out of her uniform into a pair of comfortable jeans and a blue jumper, and then drove to the school.

  Sam was the first child out of the door and he dashed across the playground and stood on tiptoe to hug his mother.

  ‘Guess what?’ He was so excited he could hardly talk. ‘There’s a theatre company coming to school tomorrow and some of the children can take part. I might be one of them.’

  ‘That’s great, sweetheart.’ She hugged him close, a feeling of warmth spreading through her veins as she felt his excitement. It had been a good idea to move to Cornwall. He was settling in so well.

  ‘Hi, Joel.’ Sam looked at Joel and gave a shy grin. ‘Are you having supper with us again tonight?’

  Joel shook his head and stuffed his hands deep into his coat pockets to keep them warm. ‘No. I’m taking us all out instead. On a trip.’

  ‘A trip?’ Sam’s face brightened at the thought. ‘We normally go straight home after school.’

  ‘Not today. Today we’re going on a mystery tour.’

  Sam’s eyes widened and he smiled with delight. ‘Where? Where are we going?’

  Joel laughed and ushered them both to the car. ‘If I told you that, it wouldn’t be a mystery, would it? Hop in and you’ll soon find out.’

  He took them to the Sea Life Centre along the coast and Sam was almost speechless with awe when he saw the shark tank.

  ‘Wow. That’s so cool.’

  Joel looked pleased with himself. ‘I thought you’d like it. Aren’t they amazing?’

  Sam nodded vigorously. ‘Would they eat you?’

  ‘No, I don’t think they’re that type of shark. We can read about them if you like.’ Joel strolled over to an information board and Sam joined him, reading it aloud.

  Joel looked at him in surprise. ‘You read well.’

  Sam swelled with pride. ‘My mum taught me. I could read when I was four.’

  ‘Could you, now? You must have a pretty special mum.’ Joel’s eyes rested on Lucy and she blushed.

  They spent an hour looking round the Sea Life Centre and then they walked down the road to find somewhere to eat.

  ‘You know, pizza would be nice,’ Lucy suggested, and Joel grinned.

  ‘Great. Better than hamburger.’

  They found a pizza restaurant, settled themselves at a table and Joel ordered the food.

  Soon they were chatting about the sharks, Sam’s school and Cornwall in general.

  ‘I love it here, Mum. It’s heaps better than where we lived before. Imagine having sharks living so close.’ Sam had his mouth full of pizza and was grinning from ear to ear. ‘And with Joel here, it’s almost like being a proper family again.’

  Lucy felt as though she’d jumped naked into a freezing bath. ‘We are a proper family, sweetheart,’ she said, trying to hide her dismay at his comment.

  Joel had stopped eating and was looking at Sam. ‘Why does having me here make you feel like a proper family?’ His voice was gruff and Sam stared at them miserably, obviously aware that he’d said something wrong.

  ‘Because families usually have a daddy,’ he mumbled. ‘Kevin’s mum and dad split up, but now he has another daddy. A different daddy. I think I’d like another daddy. You’d be a nice daddy.’

  Lucy looked at him, appalled and embarrassed. ‘Sam—’

  ‘Hush, it’s OK.’ Joel reached across the table and grasped her hand, indicating that she should leave it to him. ‘Why would you like to have another daddy, Sam?’

  ‘Because it makes Mummy laugh,’ Sam said immediately. ‘When it’s just the two of us, she’s often sad. But when you’re there she’s always smiling.’

  ‘Sam, please…’ Lucy was mortified, and Joel tightened his grip on her hand.

  ‘It must have been very hard on your mum, not having your dad around,’ he told Sam quietly. ‘It’s not surprising she sometimes feels sad.’

  ‘But she’s not sad since she met you. So she should marry you,’ Sam said firmly.

  Joel’s eyes met Lucy’s and she looked away immediately, scarlet with embarrassment.

  What had she done?

  She should never have allowed her friendship with Joel to develop. It hadn’t occurred to her that Sam might misinterpret their relationship. She’d never imagined that he was so desperate for a man’s attention that he’d latch onto Joel as a prospective father.

  ‘Joel is just a friend, Sam,’ she said quickly, dragging her hand away from Joel’s and wondering how such a happy afternoon could have suddenly turned so awful.

  ‘But you don’t cry any more,’ Sam said, and Joel frowned.

  ‘Did she used to cry?’

  Sam nodded, exchanging a grown-up look with Joel. ‘At night. When she thought I was asleep. But I could hear her through the wall.’

  Lucy closed her eyes and wished she were somewhere else.

  So much for putting on a brave face around her son. She’d never realised that the walls of their London flat had been so thin.

  ‘I don’t expect your mum really wants to think about getting married again at the moment,’ Joel said, his tone matter-of-fact as he finished his pizza. ‘Sometimes, if you’ve had a bad experience, it puts you off for a while, you know?’

  Sam looked at him and nodded slowly. ‘I suppose so.’

  Lucy was staring at the remains of her pizza without seeing it.

  ‘Don’t worry, Mum.’ Sam’s voice was comforting. ‘It’s OK by me if you don’t want to get married again yet. I’m just glad you’re not crying any more.’

  She cleared her throat and looked at her son, aged six going on sixty. ‘Oh, good…I
…er…’

  ‘Finish your pizza, Sam, before it goes cold,’ Joel suggested calmly, gesturing to the waiter and ordering more drinks.

  But Lucy couldn’t eat another thing. All she could think about was Sam. She hadn’t realised that he felt like that.

  They left the restaurant and drove home, Lucy protesting that they still needed to pick up her car from the surgery.

  ‘I’ll give you a lift in tomorrow,’ Joel said, heading back for the flats.

  Lucy barely said a word on the way home, her head clouded with worries and guilt.

  Did Sam really miss having a daddy so much?

  She’d tried so hard to make up for Tim leaving.

  Was she really so miserable to be with?

  ‘Lucy…’ Joel’s gentle voice interrupted her tortured thoughts and she looked at him blankly. ‘We’re home.’

  She looked out of the window, realising that she hadn’t even noticed the journey.

  ‘Oh, Thank you.’ She fumbled with the doorhandle, aware that Joel was frowning at her with concern. ‘Come on, Sam. Time to do some reading and then bed. What do you say to Joel?’

  ‘Thank you,’ Sam recited obediently. ‘But can’t Joel come in and read my story?’

  ‘No, absolutely not.’ Lucy bustled him out of the car and up the stairs to her flat. ‘Joel has heaps of other things to do. Say goodnight.’

  ‘Goodnight, Joel.’

  She couldn’t bring herself to meet his eyes, still painfully embarrassed by the things that Sam had said, but she felt his hesitation.

  ‘Goodnight.’ He seemed about to say something else but then gave a little sigh. ‘See you in the morning.’

  And with that he turned on his heel and walked away, leaving mother and son together.

  Joel sat in his penthouse, staring across the sparkling lights of the harbour. Normally the view helped him to relax, but tonight it was doing absolutely nothing for him.

  He was too worried about Lucy.

  She’d made it obvious that she’d wanted him to leave her and Sam alone together, and he understood that. After that heavy conversation at the table she had serious things to discuss with her son.