‘And that’s about it,’ Jodie said finally. She didn’t mention getting fired, or the investigation by the NMC. If he offered her the job, they could discuss it then.

‘Good, good. And what made you choose London Medical?’

She guessed he didn’t want to hear her say it was the first position she was offered. Nate Bisby had told her it was all about contacts. It seemed a good idea to use what she had. ‘Once I’d decided on a sales career it seemed a good idea to work for the best. I have a friend who works for London Medical. He absolutely loves what he does so it seemed to be the perfect reference.

Barker’s eyebrows rose. ‘A friend?’

‘Yes, Flynn Douglas. He’s worked here for several years.’ She waited for the nod of acknowledgement at the mention of one of their own. But instead, Barker’s head tilted in a question.

‘Flynn Douglas?’

‘Yes.’ She reached for her bag, pulled it to her and searched inside for the card she’d looked at so carefully the day before. ‘Here,’ she said, holding it forward.

Barker took it, eyes narrowing as he looked at it, the corners of his suddenly thin lips turning downward. ‘Have you known this… Flynn Douglas… long?’

The ice in his voice sent a band of tension tightening around Jodie’s head. She gulped and stared at his now stern, unfriendly face. There was something terribly wrong. It seemed a good time to be honest. ‘Two weeks.’

Barker tapped the card. ‘We don’t have anyone called Flynn Douglas working at London Medical.’ He reached into a drawer, took out a business card and slid it across the desk. ‘These are what our cards look like. As you can see, the company logo of an intertwined L and M are quite distinctive.’

Jodie picked up the grey card with trembling fingers. It was a distinctive design. There was no similar logo on Flynn’s card. ‘Maybe I’ve made a mistake, maybe it’s a different company.’

She wasn’t really surprised when Barker shook his head. ‘That’s impossible. And I have to admit I’m a little concerned that this man appears to be pretending to work for us.’

A little concerned? Jodie was flabbergasted, stunned. ‘I’m sure there is a reasonable explanation,’ she said, trying to think by any stretch of the imagination what it could be.