your application on its own merits. You have a very promising career ahead of you, Kelly. That was obvious when we worked together in Manchester. I know how committed you are and I wouldn’t want to do anything that would prevent you achieving your potential.’
There was something about the way he said it that bothered her. Kelly had a feeling that her career really mattered to him and that he wasn’t just saying so for appearances’ sake. However, before she could reply, the phone rang. She waited while Luca took the call. It was obviously bad news because he looked grim when he hung up.
‘Alessandro Alessi—the boy we saw yesterday during ward rounds—has suffered a convulsion. I’ll make my way straight to the ward. Can you tell the rest of the team to meet me there, please?’
‘Of course.’
Kelly stood up as he came around the desk. She followed him out of the office but soon got left behind. She headed for the staff lounge and relayed the message, trying to ignore the speculation on everyone’s faces as they made their way to the ward. They were obviously wondering if she was going to stay after what had happened yesterday so should she tell them that she had decided to leave, or should she wait until she was sure it was what she really wanted to do?
She pushed open the ward door and felt her heart scrunch up inside her when she saw Luca talking to the sister. Whether she stayed or went, it was going to hurt and there was no point pretending otherwise.
‘Grazie.’
Luca handed the chart to the sister and walked over to the bed. Ten-year-old Alessandro had been admitted with a severe headache and fever ten days earlier. Luca had immediately suspected bacterial meningitis and had had him rushed to the intensive care unit without waiting to do a lumbar puncture to confirm his diagnosis first. By the time the characteristic rash had appeared a short time later, Alessandro had been receiving intravenous antibiotics, and they had undoubtedly saved his life. That the child should have suffered this setback now was a blow.
‘How long did the convulsion last?’ he asked, his gaze centred on the boy. He knew that his team was gathering around him but he didn’t look up because he didn’t want anything to distract him…
His pulse leapt when someone brushed past him. He didn’t need to look to know it was Kelly. His internal radar had been working overtime since she had arrived. He could pinpoint her position in a room with complete accuracy, and the thought troubled him deeply.
He couldn’t afford to feel like this—it wasn’t fair to Kelly or to himself. He had promised Sophia that he would love and care for Matteo for the rest of his life, and that’s what he was going to do. There was no room in his life for anyone except his son, and he certainly didn’t intend to jeopardise Kelly’s career prospects by involving her in his affairs.
‘How long did the seizure last?’ he reiterated, clearing his mind of everything else.
‘Only a few minutes,’ Sister replied. ‘One of the junior nurses alerted me. By the time I got here, Alessandro was fine, but I thought I should let you know immediately, dottore.’
‘You did exactly the right thing. I want to know about any changes that occur as soon as they happen,’ Luca said firmly, wondering how long it would take him to drum that into his staff. Some of the nurses in particular were loath to call him in case it appeared they couldn’t cope. However, he didn’t care how many false alarms he was called to if it meant a tragedy could be averted.
He smiled at the boy. ‘So how do you feel now, Alessandro?’
‘All right, I guess,’ Alessandro muttered.
‘Bene.’ Luca nodded, although he could tell that the child wasn’t as alert as he’d been the last time he’d seen him. Taking a pen torch out of his pocket, he checked the boy’s response to light. If he wasn’t mistaken, the right eye hadn’t reacted as quickly as it should have done. The delay was infinitesimal but enough to make him decide that he would value a second opinion.
He glanced around the group, pleased to see that everyone was present. He’d made it clear when he had taken over that he expected them to turn up on time for ward rounds. The team had grown a little lax after his predecessor had left but Luca wasn’t prepared to accept less than one hundred per cent commitment from every single one of them. His gaze skimmed over his senior registrar, Carlo Baldovini, an earnest young man in his thirties. Next to Carlo was Letizia Sentini, one of the two junior registrars on the team. Letizia smiled at him, although he didn’t respond. He wasn’t interested in Letizia’s less than subtle attempts to flirt with him.
His gaze came to rest on Kelly and he felt a sudden tightening in his chest. He knew how difficult it was going to be to keep their relationship on a professional footing if she stayed at the hospital. Of all the women he had known, Kelly was the one who had touched him most. When he’d met Kelly, he’d found his soul mate, but once Sophia had told him about the baby she was expecting, he had realised that he would have to let Kelly go.
He knew that if he had to make the decision again, he would do exactly the same thing. However, as he looked at Kelly’s face, he couldn’t help wishing that circumstances had been different. If he’d not had to care for Sophia and her unborn child, he and Kelly might still be together.
‘THERE’S a hint of sluggishness about the way the right eye reacts.’
Kelly carefully erased all expression from her face as she turned to Luca. She hadn’t expected him to solicit her opinion after what had happened yesterday, although she wasn’t going to let him know that.
‘Si. That is what I thought as well.’
He took the light from her and bent over the child once more. Kelly breathed a sigh of relief. At least it appeared they agreed on something and that had to be a step in the right direction. If they could carry on this way then she might be able to stay on here.
Her heart gave a little flutter at the thought but she damped it down. She wasn’t going to rush into making a decision now it appeared that Luca had given her a stay of execution. She glanced round in surprise when Letizia suddenly stepped forward and rudely elbowed her aside.
‘Perhaps there is a blockage,’ the registrar suggested as she took Kelly’s place. ‘If an excess of cerebrospinal fluid has been collecting inside the skull, it could have caused the child to have a seizure. We shall need to operate to relieve the pressure.’
‘It is one option,’ Luca agreed calmly. He looked at Kelly and raised his brows. ‘Do you agree with Letizia, Kelly? Should we opt for surgery?’
‘I don’t think it’s possible to say for certain at this stage,’ Kelly replied, ignoring the venomous look the other woman gave her. She directed her answer to Luca, refusing to be deterred from making her point. ‘It will need a CT scan to prove if there is a blockage or not.’
‘Indeed it will, which is why we should not be too hasty.’ Luca glanced at Letizia. ‘If you could arrange for Alessandro to have a CT scan we shall decide how to proceed once we have seen the results.’ He shrugged. ‘It could be that there is infection still present so we need to check on that, too.’
‘You wish to do a lumbar puncture?’ Letizia suggested immediately.
‘No. A lumbar puncture should never be performed if there is a chance that intracranial pressure has been raised,’ he said reprovingly. ‘Blood tests will suffice for now.’
He moved away from the bed, indicating that he needed a word with the ward sister. Kelly followed the group as they all trooped to the next bed. Letizia gave her a look of loathing as she swept past her and went to the phone. Kelly sighed. She had a nasty feeling that she had made herself an enemy even though she had never intended to do so. Still, she could hardly have gone along with Letizia’s suggestion when she hadn’t agreed with her.
The