Rescuing Dr. MacAllister

'But will he sell the dog?' Freddie's face crumpled. 'I don't want them to sell the dog.'

'He won't sell the dog,' Ellie said firmly, slipping the filthy coat off Freddie's shoulder and unbuttoning the old cardigan that he wore over a loose-fitting shirt. 'Now, can you climb up on this couch with my help, or do we need some other people?'

Still muttering about frost and dogs, Freddie heaved himself onto the couch and lay down with a groan.

'Can't sleep. Got to report for duty at oh-nine-hundred hours.'

'You've got plenty of time, Freddie,' Ellie soothed as she checked his pulse and popped a thermometer in his mouth.'

'I can't be late—' He broke off and cried out in pain, clutching the sides of the trolley, which Ellie had put up to stop him falling off.

'How long have you had this pain, Freddie?' Her voice was urgent but he was lying there clutching his stomach, unable to answer.

Gently she pulled his trousers down, biting her lip when she saw how filthy he was. Poor, poor man. He was badly in need of some attention.

'I'm going to get you some nice clean clothes,' she murmured as she dropped his into a bag to send to the volunteer service. Fortunately they had an army of volunteers who did wonderful things like helping the homeless.

She gently covered him with a blanket and then nipped outside to the corridor in search of a doctor.

The first person she saw was Will, deep in conversation with Ben, and she stopped dead.

She didn't want Will near Freddie.

Ben stopped talking when he saw her. 'Did you want a doctor?'

She nodded warily, avoiding Will's glance. 'I'm worried about Freddie.'

'Why? Has he been taken over by lice?' Will laughed at his own joke and Ellie glared at him.

'You are so insensitive!'

He looked slightly taken aback and immediately defended himself. 'The guy just wants to come in for a bit of free heat and a bath. If we're too nice to him, he'll be here all the time. In case you hadn't noticed, we're too busy to waste our time on no-hopers.' He glanced at his watch. 'Which cubicle is he in? I'll sort him out on my way to lunch for you.'

"That won't be necessary.' Ben's tone was icy cold and he shot the other doctor a contemptuous look before glancing at Ellie with a question in his eyes. 'Where is he?'

She smiled with relief and gratitude. 'I've put him in cubicle one.' As they moved away from Will, she briefed him on what she'd found. 'It may be nothing, but he seems to be in a lot of pain and he's got a temperature and a tachychardia and he's confused.'

He gave a slight smile. 'You have been busy.'

They reached the door of the room and she put a hand on his arm to stop him going in. 'Ben...' She bit her lip and lowered her voice. 'I haven't had time to give him a wash because I was worried there might be something very wrong so I wanted him checked first, but if it bothers you...'

'It doesn't bother me.' He pushed her gently to one side and walked into the room.

'Hello, Mr Hayward.' His tone was warm arid respectful and Ellie felt a rush of relief. She should have known that Ben would treat every patient with dignity. 'I'm Dr MacAllister. Ellie tells me you've been having some pains in your stomach. Can you tell me about them?'

'Can't climb to the top in this weather,' Freddie mumbled, and Ben frowned slightly, reaching out a hand for the record card and reading the results of the observations that Ellie had already taken, together with past notes.

'Do you mind if I just feel your tummy?' Very gently Ben examined Freddie's abdomen and the old man howled in pain. Ben's mouth tightened. 'His abdomen is like a board. Fast-bleep the surgical reg and get me a venflon. I need to take some bloods and give him some antibiotics. In my opinion, he could have appendicitis.'

'Do you want me to call Will?'

A slight smile played around Ben's firm mouth. 'I don't think so, do you?'

'Maybe not.' Her heart performed strange antics in her chest as she stared at his mouth, hypnotised by his sexy smile.

He was an incredibly impressive man, she decided. At first glance he seemed tough and unapproachable, but she'd seen how kind he'd been to Lindsay when she'd been desperately afraid, and how warm and respectful he was being now to Freddie who needed medical help so badly. Unlike Will, he clearly didn't make snap judgements based on appearances.

He was the best doctor she'd ever worked with.