‘Late?’ He frowned, his expression suddenly thoughtful. ‘But she used to be the most punctual person in the world. Really dedicated. Why would Glenda be late?’
Anna bit her lip. She’d asked herself the same question a few times lately and she was steeling herself to address the matter with Glenda. But there was no way she was discussing this with Sam McKenna.
‘It’s really none of your business,’ she said coldly, and he gave a dismissive shrug.
‘Fair enough. Just didn’t sound much like the Glenda I used to know, that’s all.’
‘Well, you haven’t exactly been spending much time around here lately and people do change,’ Anna said tartly.
He ran a hand over his jaw, his expression thoughtful. ‘Have you tackled her?’
She gave an impatient sigh. ‘No. No, actually, I haven’t. If you must know, I haven’t had time to breathe or eat in the last few months, let alone sit down and get cosy with the staff.’
His eyes narrowed and his gaze swept her face. ‘That bad, huh?’
She gritted her teeth again and cursed herself for showing emotion in front of Sam. He would waste no time throwing it back at her. ‘Not bad. Just busy. And if it’s all right by you, I’d like to drop the subject now. When I need your advice, I’ll ask for it.’
‘No, you wouldn’t.’ He hooked his fingers into the pockets of his jeans and lounged against the reception desk. He had a lean, athletic physique, honed to perfection by his obsession with dangerous sports. ‘You wouldn’t ask my advice if you were hanging off a cliff by your fingernails. You’re so crazily independent, Riggs, that you’d drown rather than ask someone to throw you a lifebelt.’
‘Then it’s a good job I’m not drowning,’ she said coldly, walking through to the reception area and automatically picking up some scattered toys and returning them to the basket. ‘And for your information, I’d take the lifebelt as long as you weren’t the one throwing it. Now, are we going to sort this problem out?’
He shrugged and stifled a yawn. ‘What’s there to sort out? You need a locum. I’m here.’
She straightened one of the chairs. ‘As far as I’m concerned, those two statements are not linked.’
He drew a breath and she lifted a hand to indicate that she hadn’t finished. ‘What I need, McKenna, is a serious doctor willing to do some serious work. What I don’t need is some image-hungry film-star medic with an over-inflated ego which is going to get in my way every time I try and see a patient.’
To her surprise and immense irritation, he smiled. An all-male, sexy smile that tugged something deep in her pelvis.
Damn, he irritated her.
Completely aware of that fact, he straightened up and strolled towards her, a dangerous gleam in his blue eyes as they swept her face. ‘Oh, boy, oh, boy, I really do unsettle you, don’t I, Riggs? Why is that, I wonder?’
‘Do you want a list?’ She backed away, trying to maintain her personal space. ‘And I can’t imagine this is exactly your idea of heaven either. Why did you agree to it?’
His blue eyes glittered. ‘I told you. Emotional blackmail on the part of my father. He was ill. He needed a holiday. He couldn’t find anyone else. That kind of thing. Tugs at the heart.’
‘You don’t have a heart.’
He grinned. ‘Ouch. Been reading my press cuttings again, Riggs?’
‘Hardly.’ Her glance was impatient. ‘The way you run your love life—or should I say sex life—is your business. But the practice is my business. Your dad certainly never mentioned to me that he was having trouble finding anyone.’
Sam gave a careless shrug. ‘Well, the fact is I’m here now. Make the most of me.’
She angled her head and lifted an eyebrow. ‘Excuse me? I’m supposed to be honoured that you’ve graced us with your presence? Let me tell you something, Dr Charm, I’m not at all convinced you’ll know a real patient when you see one. You see, here in real life surgery land, the problems aren’t staged.’
His gaze didn’t flicker. ‘Is that so?’
‘What happens when you deal with something that doesn’t make good television? Are you going to pass them through to me? Or do you grab a textbook?’
He examined his fingernails thoughtfully. ‘You really aren’t going to make this easy, are you, Riggs?’
She bit her lip. Somehow he made her feel small, childish. ‘It’s just that this practice is busy,’ she said wearily, sweeping her dark hair away from her face and risking eye contact. ‘I need proper help. Heavy-duty help.’
S
harp blue eyes searched hers. ‘My dad hasn’t been pulling his weight, has he?’