‘Intubation gear, too,’ he added, as he resumed his position at Mrs. Sanders’s head.
‘What? No eye of toad or wing of bat, Dr Hunt? No magic wand?’ she taunted unreasonably as she pressed down on the centre of the chest again.
It was bitchy and uncalled for, given his willingness to help after she had called him a quack, but she was annoyed that even in the midst of a medical emergency, his unbuttoned shirt and bare chest were disturbingly distracting.
How could she be thinking about his body at such a time?
‘Too late for that now, Maddy,’ he stated, his lips tight.
Her jibe might have been amusing at another time but Marcus was also struggling with his own distractions. Like how her skirt had ridden up, exposing a generous length of thigh, and the way the silk of her blouse pulled taut and slid seductively over pert breasts.
There was a time and a place. This was definitely not it!
Madeline heard the sirens wailing somewhere close by and breathed a sigh of relief. Locked in this battle with Marcus to save Mrs. Sanders’s life seemed deeply intimate and she was pleased that other health-care professionals would soon join them and break the connection.
The two ambulance officers were there within the minute and Madeline explained what she knew and the four of them worked together. One of the ambulance team worked on intravenous access while Madeline and Marcus continued CPR. The other drew up first-line drugs.
‘We need to intubate,’ said Marcus when the machine recommended no shock again.
The officer handed him a laryngoscope and Marcus skilfully inserted the plastic airway into the trachea. Removing the mask from the bag-mask apparatus, he connected the bag to the top of the tube and squeezed oxygenated air into the lungs as the paramedic secured the tube in place.
The machine analysed again and everyone moved back as it recommended a shock and Madeline pushed the green button one more time. They moved back in and Marcus felt for a pulse.
‘Got one,’ he said.
There was no time for congratulations. ‘Let’s load her and go,’ said the paramedic who had established the intravenous access. They swapped the defib over for the more complex machine in the ambulance with a full-screen cardiac monitor attached, and Madeline helped load their patient onto the trolley as Marcus continued to administer breaths.
Madeline noted the tachycardia, relieved that they had got Mrs. Sanders back, but she was having runs of VT and she knew that the patient’s condition was still critical and unstable. They had her ready for transport quickly and Madeline put her arm around Brett who was silent and pale, obviously shocked by everything that had just happened.
‘Come on, son,’ Marcus said gently, passing over the bag to the paramedic. ‘You can ride up front.’ Brett nodded absently, following his stretchered mother like a zombie.
‘I’d like to ride in the back with her — is that all right?’ Madeline asked the paramedics, who gave her a nod. If she arrested again, another pair of hands would be helpful.
‘I’ll follow in my car,’ said Marcus.
She turned to face him and took an abrupt step back, not realising how close behind her he was.
‘There’s no need,’ Madeline said, trying not to sound ungrateful. After all, she couldn’t have done it without him.
Now the immediate emergency was over, the ebb of the adrenaline that had surged through her system was making her nauseous. Combined with her jet lag, she was shaking badly.
He put his hands gently on her shoulders and frowned at their trembling. ‘Are you OK?’ he asked, applying slight pressure to her shoulders.
Madeline looked into his face then wished she hadn’t. She felt absurdly close to tears. She didn’t want this man to be kind to her. She wanted him and the unsettling feelings she felt when she was near him to go away.
‘I’m fine.’ She shrugged her shoulders and his hands fell away.
Marcus lifted his hand and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, which had loosened from the tight knot at the nape of her neck. Madeline pulled back as the urge to lay her head against his chest took hold.
‘Dr Harrington,’ one of the paramedics called. ‘Coming,’ she replied, and stepped away from Marcus on shaky legs.
CHAPTER TWO
MADELINE was sitting in the family waiting area with Brett when Marcus finally tracked her down. On their arrival the hospital staff had efficiently taken over. After briefing them, Madeline had left to call Mr Sanders. She hated that part the most. Talking to shocked families in grave situations always made her feel helpless.
She was feeling really weary now, staring blankly at the opposite wall, her eyes feeling like the bottom of a sandpit. Marcus pushed a steaming cup of coffee towards her face. She blinked, staring at him, unseeing at first until her body pulsed betrayingly and recognition dawned. Overwhelming tiredness made her irritable.
‘I told you there was no need to come,’ she said, ignoring the coffee. Didn’t he have a child to get back to?
‘Take it, Maddy,’ he ordered in a soft voice which nonetheless brooked no argument. The pungent aroma of coffee hit her and her stomach growled. Madeline realised she hadn’t eaten since breakfast on the plane. She took the polystyrene cup.
He handed Brett a cold can of soft drink and sat down beside her. They drank in silence, Madeline desperately trying to quell the frisson of awareness just sitting next to Marcus was causing. Their arms occasionally brushed and she was awake again. Fully, completely awake.
Pull yourself together, she lectured herself. He is unavailable. So are you, or you will be again soon anyway. And you’re going to squash this man like an ant on Monday — you don’t want to be lusting after him as you’re giving him his marching orders. The thought kept her focussed and a smile curved across her full mouth as Madeline imagined the look on his face as she handed him the notice of eviction.
The fantasy was marred by a sudden pang of guilt. They may not see eye to eye on treatment methodologies but he was an actual doctor and obviously very skilled, and had helped her tonight without question, despite her previous hostile threats.
‘Plotting my demise, Maddy?’
His low growl in her ear caused a riot of sensations to surge through her. Startled that he could so accurately read her thoughts, she turned to face him, composing her features to disguise her inner turmoil. ‘How did you guess?’ she parried lightly.
‘Maddy, Maddy.’ He laughed and stroked the dark stubble on his jaw. ‘Don’t ever play poker.’
Madeline followed the caress intently, sidetracked by sudden wanton thoughts of his stubble brushing against her skin. Her nipples hardened and, as she watched him, his eyes widened and his hand stilled at her blatant arousal.
She stared for an age, caught in his intense blue gaze. The bustle of hospital life continued around them, oblivious to the sexual energy arcing between them.
‘Dr Harrington.’
A young nurse interrupted. Madeline blinked and looked at her in a slightly disorientated fashion. ‘Y-yes?’
‘Mrs Sanders has just gone up to Intensive Care.’
‘Oh,’ said Madeline, pulling herself together, ‘Thanks, we’ll go right up.’
The nurse’s attention, however, had strayed to Marcus. She was smiling at him, an invitation in her eyes. Marcus winked at her and Madeline rolled her eyes. Thank goodness she’d never been a slave to her hormones. How did people get things done? Stay focussed? Function?