Читать книгу: «The Boss Who Stole Her Heart»

CHAPTER ONE

SHE COULD HAVE been beautiful with that fine clear skin and those huge grey eyes. However, the severely cropped black hair and strictly functional clothing did nothing to enhance her appearance. As he took stock of the woman seated in front of his desk, Daniel Saunders found himself wondering why Eleanor Munroe had failed to make the most of her considerable assets. Was she deliberately trying to disguise her femininity for some reason, playing down the fact that she was a highly attractive woman?

‘Right then, Dr Munroe, we may as well get straight down to business.’

Daniel dismissed that strangely unsettling thought as he picked up her CV. He skimmed through it once more, although he already knew the facts by heart. Dr Eleanor Munroe was thirty-five years old, with a birthday coming up the following month. She had read medicine at Cambridge and graduated with a First Class Honours degree. After completing her rotations at St Linus’s Hospital in London, she had opted to go into general practice and had trained at a busy practice in Kent and subsequently been hired by them too. She had supplied references from the head of the practice and had added a codicil to the bottom of her CV that gave Daniel permission to phone and speak to her referee directly.

Although it was unusual to do that so early in the proceedings, Daniel had taken up the offer and he had to admit that he’d been impressed by what he had heard. According to her former employer, Dr Munroe was above reproach and any practice who hired her would be extremely fortunate to secure her services. It appeared that Eleanor Munroe ticked all the boxes on paper, at least, but he still needed to be sure that they could work together.

‘A most impressive CV, Dr Munroe,’ he said, glancing up. ‘Backed up by the conversation I had with your former colleague. He was highly complimentary and even mentioned that you were in the running for a senior partnership. It makes me wonder why you decided to leave your last post when you were so successful there.’

‘I left for personal reasons, Dr Saunders.’

Her voice was cool, distant even, so Daniel had no idea why the hairs on the back of his neck sprang to attention. He glanced at her CV again, needing a moment to collect himself. He hadn’t felt this aware of a woman in a very long time, not since Camille, his wife, had died, in fact. That it should happen now, and with seemingly so little reason, surprised him. He cleared his throat.

‘I see. So what attracted you to the post here at The Larches? You do understand that it’s only temporary? Beth—Dr Andrews, that is—is planning to return once her maternity leave is over. Barring any unforeseen changes to her plans, she will be back at work next September.’

‘I understand that. It was perfectly clear from your advertisement.’ Eleanor Munroe pinned him with a chilly stare. ‘I wouldn’t have wasted your time or mine by applying for the post if I wasn’t happy with the terms.’

‘Quite so.’ Daniel summoned a smile although he couldn’t help feeling uncomfortable at the frosty rebuke. She certainly wasn’t a pushover, he decided, storing that titbit away for future reference.

‘Right, now we’ve established that, let me tell you about the practice,’ he continued briskly, needing to take control of the proceedings once more. He wasn’t normally indecisive when it came to his work—he was always single-minded and focused. However, Dr Munroe seemed to possess the ability to unsettle him and he wanted to get back on track. ‘The Larches, whilst being a rural practice, is extremely busy, mainly because we cover such a wide area of the Yorkshire Dales. As you will know from our advertisement, as well as the main surgery here in Beesdale we run a branch surgery at Hemsthwaite. Between the two sites we have roughly four and a half thousand patients on our books. So if you thought it would be easier working here than in your previous post then I’m afraid you were mistaken.’

‘I didn’t apply for the job because I thought it would be the easy option,’ Eleanor Munroe said brusquely. ‘On the contrary, I am looking forward to being kept busy should I decide to accept the position.’

Daniel could feel his eyebrows rise and struggled to control them but Dr Munroe’s confidence was more than a little startling. There had been no trace of doubt in her voice that she would be hired, no hint at all that she saw this interview as anything more than a formality. Eleanor Munroe obviously knew her own worth. And what was more, she intended to make sure that everyone else was aware of it too!

* * *

Ellie could feel perspiration trickling down her back. That had come out completely wrong! She knew it wasn’t a given that she would be hired for the job. Despite first-class references and glowing endorsements, there were other factors to consider, the main one being that Dr Saunders needed to be sure they could work together. That seemingly arrogant statement would hardly have endeared her to him, would it? If she could have taken back the words she would have done so, but there was nothing she could do now except brazen it out.

Ellie sat up straighter, curbing the urge to run her hand over her newly short hair. She had never worn her hair so short before but she had decided to make a lot of changes to her life and changing her appearance had been first on her agenda. Once she had sorted out her new hairstyle, she had bagged up all the pretty, feminine dresses, the jewel bright tops, the high-heeled shoes, and given them to a charity shop. Her wardrobe now consisted of serviceable tailored trousers and shirts—neat, tidy, professional. Now that she was concentrating on what she wanted, she didn’t need any more frippery.

‘Well, there’s no doubt that anyone who works here will be kept extremely busy,’ Daniel Saunders said evenly, although Ellie could tell that her comment had been added to the minus column on her score sheet.

She bit back a groan, not wanting him to guess how mortified she felt. She wanted this job—no, not wanted it, needed it. If she moved to Yorkshire it would be the first step towards rebuilding her life. Maybe the future wasn’t going to turn out the way she had thought it would but she intended to have a good life and on her terms too. Even though she’d been betrayed in the worst possible way, she was going to use what had happened to her advantage. She had always been a rather cautious person, preferring to stick to what she knew, but not any more. No, she intended to travel and see something of the world while she furthered her career. Maybe what had happened had been a blow but she would get over it. She was determined about that!

Ellie was so lost in her thoughts that it was a moment before she realised Dr Saunders had asked her a question. ‘I’m sorry,’ she said, feeling the embarrassed colour run up her neck. She hated to be caught unawares. She thrived on order and preferred to be prepared at all times. However, there was something about the man seated opposite that unsettled her.

‘I asked if moving up here would create any problems for you, Dr Munroe.’ Daniel Saunders shrugged, drawing Ellie’s unwilling attention to the width of his shoulders. He was casually dressed in navy chinos and a light blue shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and, despite herself, Ellie couldn’t help noticing how the blue of his shirt brought out the midnight blue of his eyes and highlighted the steel-grey streaks at his temples before she forced her mind away from such nonsense.

‘Problems?’ she repeated uncertainly. ‘In which way, Dr Saunders?’

‘You may need to consider someone else’s views. It’s a long way from Kent to Yorkshire and a lot of people might not be happy about relocating so far away.’

‘I don’t need to consider anyone else, I assure you.’ Ellie sat up straighter, annoyed that he should have asked her a question like that. Maybe she should have let it go but, after what had happened recently, it stung. She glared at him. ‘So if you’re trying to find out if I have a husband or a partner who might object then I consider it a blatant infringement of my rights. I think you will find that no prospective employer has the right to discriminate against a female employee on such grounds.’

‘I’m sure that’s correct, Dr Munroe. However, to set your mind at rest, it’s a question I would ask any potential employee. Male or female.’

His tone was as hard as flint and Ellie realised with a sinking heart that she had completely blotted her copybook now. No way was he going to offer her the job after this. Pushing back her chair, she stood up, wanting to bring the interview to a conclusion before she did something unforgivable. She hadn’t cried, not even when she had found her fiancé in bed with one of their colleagues that day. She had held onto her composure throughout it all, right through the apologies and the ever more elaborate excuses. She hadn’t even lost it when Michael had tried to blame her for his behaviour yet, for some reason, at that moment she could have stood there and wept.

‘I apologise. I should never have said that. It was completely out of order. Thank you for seeing me, Dr Saunders. I hope you find someone suitable to fill the post.’ Ellie swung round and headed towards the door. She knew it was directly behind her but she couldn’t seem to see where she was going. She blundered into a filing cabinet and winced when the metal dug painfully into her hip. What was wrong with her? Why couldn’t she find her way out?

‘Here. Come and sit down.’

A large and surprisingly comforting hand closed around her arm as she found herself being led back to the chair. Ellie dropped down onto the seat because she really didn’t have a choice. Tears were streaming down her face now, blinding her to everything else; she could only sit there while Daniel Saunders went to the sink and filled a glass with cold water.

‘Drink this.’ He crouched down beside her, so close that she could smell the clean fragrance of shampoo that clung to his hair. Holding the glass to her lips, he urged her to take a sip. A few drops of water trickled down her chin but before she could find a tissue, he wiped them away with his fingertips. ‘Better?’

Ellie nodded, not trusting herself to speak. At any other time she would have been mortified by her loss of control but, oddly, she felt nothing. Daniel Saunders straightened up and put the glass on the desk then regarded her with eyes that held only compassion. He obviously wasn’t the type to pass judgement, she thought, and found the idea strangely comforting.

‘I apologise if I upset you, Eleanor. It wasn’t my intention.’

His deep voice rolled softly over her name, affording it a surprisingly pleasing inflection. She had never really liked her name, had always thought it was too formal and old-fashioned. However, it sounded different when he said it, softer, gentler, far more appealing. She bit her lip, aware that she was allowing herself to be sidetracked. What did it matter how he said her name? The only thing that mattered was that she had made a fool of herself.

Pushing back the chair, she stood up, wanting to get away as quickly as possible. Maybe she had been pinning her hopes on getting this job but there would be other jobs in other parts of the country or abroad. Maybe she had promised her parents that she would stay in the UK until she had thought things through properly, but if she moved overseas, to Australia or New Zealand for instance, there would be no risk of her having to see Michael ever again...

‘Right, it’s time I gave you the conducted tour. We were lucky enough to secure funding to improve the facilities here so you may be surprised by what we offer our patients.’ Daniel Saunders stepped around her and opened the door. His eyebrows rose when Ellie failed to move. ‘Whenever you’re ready, Eleanor.’

‘Oh! But I thought...’ Ellie tailed off, unsure what was happening. Why on earth was he offering to show her around when there was no chance of her being offered the job?

‘You thought that you’d blown it?’ Daniel Saunders laughed softly. ‘On the contrary, Eleanor, it seems to me that you’re exactly the sort of person I want working here.’

‘I am? But why? I mean, I made a complete and utter mess of my interview, didn’t I? And if that wasn’t enough, I compounded my mistakes by breaking down and crying.’ She shook her head. ‘If I were in your shoes, Dr Saunders, I wouldn’t hire me for all the tea in China!’

‘It’s Daniel. If we’re going to be working together then I can’t see any point in us standing on ceremony.’ His blue eyes were filled with certainty when they met hers and Ellie felt a surge of warmth flow through her and start to melt the ice that had enveloped her these past terrible months. It was all she could do to concentrate as he continued in the same quietly assured tone.

‘As for hiring you, from where I’m standing you seem like the ideal choice. I don’t want someone working here who can’t relate to our patients, someone who fails to understand that the problems life throws at them can and do impact on their health. I also don’t want someone who’s afraid to show her feelings either. So will you take the job, Eleanor? Please?’