The Surgeon and the Princess Karin Baine (websites to read books for free .TXT) 📖

man, Georgiana. If I was trying to butter you up don’t you think I’d take you somewhere more upmarket?’ Now Ed was the one all puffed up with indignation, his voice carrying farther than she appreciated.

‘I couldn’t say. It’s not as if I know you.’ She leaned across the table to continue the argument in private, hoping to persuade Ed to do the same so as not to draw any attention from bystanders.

He looked as though she’d helped herself to his food as well as hers. His pain so palpable she could nearly feel it.

‘I thought we were getting along well.’ The laid-back Ed she’d thought him to be was gone, to be replaced with someone prepared to stand against the disservice she was doing him. He got up, walked over to the bin and deposited his rubbish in one short, sharp motion before returning to the table.

Georgiana considered what he’d had to say and the way he was reacting to the suggestion their interaction this far had been a convoluted plot by her mother. It was blatantly obvious how annoyed he was in his tone and his body language. Unless he was an award-winning actor, she’d really insulted him.

She was both relieved and remorseful, even if none of this managed to change her mind.

‘If I got that wrong, I apologise.’ She was stubborn and defensive but when she was wrong, she admitted it. Something she’d learned was important from parents who would never confess to making mistakes. Apologies and acknowledgement of wrongdoings were vital for closure. Poor Freddie never got his and she doubted she ever would either.

‘You did get it wrong. Apology accepted.’ The thin line of his mouth relaxed along with his frown. One good thing about a man who didn’t sweat the small stuff was that he didn’t appear to hold a grudge either. Georgiana wished she were more like him.

Whatever Ed might think, she didn’t see what difference she could make to anyone’s life when her own was so pathetic the one person who’d befriended her now stood accused of being paid off to do so.

How was such a paranoid, needy loser going to improve someone else’s lot? Unless she was held up as an example of what not to become. None of this changed her mind about the situation.

Ed waved a white paper napkin in surrender. ‘Truce?’

What choice did she have but to agree to a ceasefire in hostilities when he was the only person she had to talk to?

She took her time finishing her drink, knowing they were going to be locked in the car soon, where she’d be suffocated under that damned blanket and the reminder of failing her public duty.

The door to the coffee shop was thrown open and a young family burst in. Their excited chatter filled the air and took the pressure off her to try and make more conversation with Ed.

‘What do you want, Ethan?’ The young dad ushered his boisterous son into a booth next to them, followed by his other half, who was pushing a buggy.

‘Hot chocolate.’ The youngster climbed up on the back of the seat to stare over at Georgiana. She gave him a flash of a smile then pulled her baseball cap down again.

‘Sit down, son, and leave the lady alone.’ The father tugged him back down, making sure he was settled in a seat before he went to the counter.

The baby started wailing then to be released from its imprisonment, and as his mother was busy trying to pacify her youngest Ethan made a break for it again.

Georgiana couldn’t see what was going on behind her but she could guess as draughts of cold air hit the back of her neck.

‘Ethan, leave the door alone,’ his father bellowed from the other side of the coffee shop.

‘Time to go?’ Ed suggested and Georgiana nodded her head enthusiastically. There’d been sufficient conflict for one night. She didn’t need to be involved in anyone else’s domestic.

‘Yes, please.’ She deposited her rubbish and they made their move to go.

Suddenly there was a blood-curdling scream drawing the attention of everyone in the café towards the door.

‘Ethan!’ The little boy’s mother was screaming just as loudly as her son and it wasn’t long before they saw why.

‘He’s trapped his fingers in the door.’ Ed hared off towards the sobbing boy, where the glass door was now smeared with tears and blood.

‘We need a first-aid kit now. Now!’ Georgiana shouted to the staff. She was straight back into medic mode faced with the emergency.

Ed held the door at an angle so she could ease the boy’s hand out of the door jamb. Whatever he’d been up to, he’d managed to get his fingers caught inside the heavy hinged door.

The distraught parents rushed over but she knew it would be best for them to keep their distance until they managed to stem Ethan’s injuries.

‘We’re both medical professionals. If you could phone an ambulance, we’ll take care of your son.’

The dad immediately got out his mobile phone and the mum did her best to soothe both of their children while looking close to tears herself.

‘It’ll be okay, Ethan, baby.’

‘They can’t get anyone here for a while. All available ambulances have been diverted to a major emergency on the motorway.’ Ethan’s father relayed the bad news but Ed remained calm as he knelt down beside the boy. ‘We’ll take him to my clinic down the street. I can help him.’

He motioned Georgiana over and she could see why he was anxious to get the child to the clinic. The large gash running along the back of his hand was bleeding everywhere and so deep she could see exposed bone.

She grabbed a bottle of water from behind the counter, which Ed poured over the wound to clean it. Ethan yelled.

‘Sorry, mate, we don’t want anything nasty to get in there and cause an infection. Georgiana, can you get a dressing out for me?’ Ed was holding the boy’s hand up, trying to stem