‘We need to keep you in for a while, I’m afraid. Nurse Tilly will go and ring the admissions team, and we’ll get you settled as soon as we can, OK?’

‘Don’t worry,’ I add, reaching out to give Mr Barwell’s hand a squeeze. ‘We’ll take good care of you and get you home as soon as possible.’

‘Thank you,’ Will says softly, gazing at me with those incredible blue eyes. ‘For everything.’

‘My pleasure,’ I reply. ‘It’s kind of what we do here.’

‘I think that man has taken a shine to you,’ Luke says once we’re through the curtain and out of earshot. Is that a hint of jealousy I can hear in his voice? ‘Be careful, won’t you? You know what his type is like.’

‘No. What are they like?’ I ask, feeling my irritation rising again.

‘They see you as some sort of rescuer, a Florence Nightingale figure, and latch on to that.’

‘I’m doing my job and being friendly,’ I tell him firmly. ‘Nothing more.’

He looks distinctly unconvinced as he stalks off. As I pick up the phone to call the admissions team about Mr Barwell, I can’t help reflecting on the difference between him and Will again. Why doesn’t Luke have that same sense of responsibility about him? Caring for his mother must be a big burden but, besides using it as a reason to limit our time together and only meet at my flat, it doesn’t seem to bother him at all. For the first time, I’m starting to wonder if maybe Tash has a point and there’s more to this than meets the eye.

12

After a sleepless night where I’ve role-played all sorts of scenarios in my head, including going round to Luke’s mother’s flat like Tash suggested, I’ve given myself a firm talking to and decided that I’m overreacting to the differences between Luke and Will. Of course Luke isn’t perfect; nobody is. I didn’t like the proprietorial way he behaved when we were on shift together, but I guess it shows he cares, and maybe I can reassure him and help him to tone it down a bit.

I’m in the flat alone as Luke and Mike are both working. Normally I relish the peace and quiet, but I can’t seem to settle today. The situation with Tash is still on my mind, even if I’m not ready to talk to her yet, and Mr Barwell’s attempted suicide is also bothering me. That, at least, I can do something about, I decide as I grab my car keys. I wouldn’t normally go anywhere near the hospital on a day off, but I need something to distract me, and maybe the opportunity of observing Will’s relationship with his father some more might help to quell my doubts about Luke.