The Italian's New-Year Marriage Wish by Sarah Morgan Page A

keep up the act for a month and then he’d give her a divorce.
    She stared out to sea, watching the waves rise and fall. It wasn’t as if they’d see that much of each other, she reasoned. She’d already seen how much of his life was tied up with thepractice. They’d both be working. She wouldn’t be spending a lot of time in his company.
    How hard would it be?
    Â 
    â€˜You’re joining us?’ Nick Tremayne stared at Amy across the desk, a serious expression on his face. ‘You’re going to work as a locum?’
    â€˜Just until Dr Donnelly arrives. Kate has confirmed that he can start in a month.’ Exhausted after a sleepless night in Marco’s spare room, Amy summoned up a smile that she hoped reflected the correct amount of enthusiasm for the situation. ‘I took Marco’s surgery for a while yesterday morning and I enjoyed it. I’m between jobs at the moment and you’re stuck so it seemed a sensible solution.’ Did she sound convincing?
    Probably not, given that she wasn’t entirely convinced herself.
    But Marco had pushed so relentlessly that she’d found herself trapped between all the lies she’d told.
    Nick looked at her, his gaze just a little too probing for her liking. ‘I hate to point out the obvious…’ he glanced towards Marco ‘…but you guys haven’t seen each other for two years. Much as we need the help professionally, I can’t risk the problems of your personal life invading practice business.’
    â€˜We’re very civilised,’ Marco said easily. ‘Working together won’t be a problem.’
    Wouldn’t it? Unconvinced, Amy glanced at him, trying to read his mind, but his face gave nothing away. Was he really as relaxed about the whole thing as he seemed?
    Perhaps Nick was asking himself the same question because he studied his friend and colleague for a moment before turning back to Amy. ‘Where are you going to live?’
    Amy opened her mouth to reply but Marco was there first. ‘In the house, with me. Where else? I’m rattling around with five bedrooms.’ His emphasis on the word ‘five’ could havebeen a linguistic slip or else a gentle reminder that they’d chosen the house with the intention of filling it with their children. ‘Amy missed her train so she stayed last night. We managed to get through the night without killing each other so I don’t anticipate a problem.’
    He was expecting her to live in the same house as him? No! That hadn’t been part of the original plan. She’d been banking on the fact that, apart from the odd bit of professional communication at work, she’d be able to avoid him. Yes, she’d stayed the previous night—shivering in the spare room like an interloper—but she’d assumed that she’d be finding herself alternative accommodation at some point. Already her eyes were gritty and her head ached as a result of a night in his spare bedroom. She’d spent the entire night awake, imagining Marco just next door, probably sprawled naked in the enormous bed that they’d chosen for the main bedroom, and now she discovered that she was going to be staying there every night.
    Amy opened her mouth to argue and then caught Nick’s searching look and instead smiled weakly. Thanks to Marco’s confident announcement she now had no choice but to stay with him. ‘That’s right,’ she said hoarsely. ‘I’m staying with him. No problem.’
    Nick shrugged. ‘Well, if you both think you can handle it. God knows, we need another doctor badly so I’m not likely to put up much of an argument. Welcome back, Amy, and welcome on board.’ His tone was brisk. ‘Well, this is a good start to the New Year. I was starting to think we might have a nervous break down before we found anyone to cover Lucy’s maternity leave.’
    â€˜How is