A Nurse's Duty by Maggie Hope Page B

unless the man of the house was on shift when the meal would then be whenever he came up from the pit. Evening dinner sounded exciting and glamorous. There was no harm in going out to dinner, she told herself. They were just two friends going out for a meal, weren’t they? And it would give her a good chance to tell him about Dave.
    Of course, she should not have gone. She knew that as soon as they were seated at a corner table in a select little restaurant near the Haymarket. Robert was full of excitement, he could hardly wait until they sat down.
    ‘You know what I have to ask you, don’t you?’ he said, reaching over the table and taking her hand.
    ‘Oh, no, Robert. Please …’ Karen flushed and looked down at the tablecloth.
    ‘I want you to marry me, come with me to Africa.’
    ‘Robert, you know I can’t. The hospital –’
    ‘You’ve almost finished your training, what does it matter if the hospital gets to know about us? If they object you can leave after you get your certificate. It’s only a few short months before I will be finished too and we can be on our way. Oh, Karen my dear –’
    Karen listened to him as he went on and on, endearments mixed with reassurances that it would work out all right. She had never heard Robert talk so much before, his words tumbling over each other. She looked up and saw his eyes shining with excitement and love. She knew she was going to hurt him terribly and was filled with remorse.
    ‘Robert, I can’t marry you,’ she said quietly.
    He went on talking, describing the life they would have together, how happy and fulfilled they would be working for God.
    She tried again, a little louder this time so that the people at the next table looked up and then quickly back at their meal as though they had been caught out doing something terribly ill-bred.
    ‘Robert, I can’t marry you.’
    He stopped in mid-sentence, the excitement dying from his face. He looked at her blankly for a moment before deciding he should humour her.
    ‘Why not? Oh, Karen, we would be so good together. You’re not afraid of marriage, are you? I wouldn’t make you –’
    Karen decided the only thing to do was to come right out with it. Taking a deep breath, she said it.
    ‘I’m married already.’
    Robert looked at her across the table, a half-smile of incredulity on his face. The waiter came to take their order and Robert waved him away.
    ‘What did you say?’
    Karen blinked rapidly. She wasn’t hungry any more and the smell of food was making her feel sick. She couldn’t look him in the eyes.
    ‘I’m sorry, Robert, it’s all my fault this, isn’t it? You must think I led you on but I couldn’t tell you, could I? Probationers have to be single women so I couldn’t tell you, could I?’ She was repeating herself in her guilty embarrassment.
    Robert suddenly realized he was still holding her hand. He dropped it, visibly drawing away from her and clasping his hands together on his lap.
    ‘You see –’ Karen started again, but he interrupted her.
    ‘Wait! Let me be sure I heard you aright. Did you say you were already married?’
    ‘Yes.’ She gave him a swift glance, her cheeks aflame. What she saw in his face made her feel even more uncomfortable. ‘I … I didn’t mean to lead you on, Robert.’
    He grunted, showing what he thought of that line.
    ‘And who is he, this husband of yours? And what’s he doing letting you come away to train as a nurse?’
    Karen cleared her throat. She glanced up over Robert’s shoulder where the waiter was hovering. He followed her glance and with a muttered exclamation pushed back his chair and got to his feet.
    ‘Come on, let’s get out of here.’
    Even in his emotional state he politely told the waiter they had changed their minds and gave him a tip before leading Karen out of the restaurant into the lamp-lit Haymarket. He hailed a cab. Telling the cabbie to drive around for a while, he handed Karen into it and climbed in beside