Oh, baby, I’m going to take you all right. “I’d love to.” He was on duty Saturday night, but he would call in sick and they would have to find someone to take his place.
Mallory was a man who believed in planning ahead, but what was happening to him now went beyond his wildest dreams.
Over the next few weeks he was swept up in Lauren’s social circle, and life took on a dizzying pace. He would be out with Lauren dancing half the night, and stumble through his days at the hospital. There were mounting complaints about his work, but he didn’t care. I’ll be out of here soon, he told himself.
The thought of getting away from the dreary county hospital and having his own practice was exciting enough, but Lauren was the bonus that Lady Luck had given him.
Kat was becoming a nuisance. Mallory had to keep finding pretexts to avoid seeing her. When she would press him, he would say, “Darling, I’m crazy about you…of course I want to marry you, but right now, I…” and he would go into a litany of excuses.
It was Lauren who suggested that the two of them spend a weekend at the family lodge at Big Sur. Mallory was elated. Everything is coming up roses, he thought. I’m going to own the whole damned world!
The lodge was spread across pine-covered hills, an enormous structure built of wood and tile and stone, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It had a master bedroom, eight guest bedrooms, a spacious living room with a stone fireplace, an indoor swimming pool, and a large hot tub. Everything smelled of old money.
When they walked in, Lauren turned to Mallory and said, “I let the servants go for the weekend.”
Mallory grinned. “Good thinking.” He put his arms around Lauren and said softly, “I’m wild about you.”
“Show me,” Lauren said.
They spent the day in bed, and Lauren was almost as insatiable as Kat.
“You’re wearing me out!” Mallory laughed.
“Good. I don’t want you to be able to make love to anyone else.” She sat up in bed. “There is no one else, is there, Ken?”
“Absolutely not,” Mallory said sincerely. “There’s no one in the world for me but you. I’m in love with you, Lauren.” Now was the time to take the plunge, to wrap his whole future up in one neat package. It would be one thing to be a successful doctor in private practice. It would be something else to be Alex Harrison’s son-in-law. “I want to marry you.”
He held his breath, waiting for her answer.
“Oh, yes, darling,” Lauren said. “Yes.”
At the apartment, Kat was frantically trying to reach Mallory. She telephoned the hospital.
“I’m sorry, Dr. Hunter, Dr. Mallory is not on call, and doesn’t answer his page.”
“Didn’t he leave word where he could be reached?”
“We have no record of it.”
Kat replaced the receiver and turned to Paige. “Something’s happened to him, I know it. He would have called me by now.”
“Kat, there could be a hundred reasons why you haven’t heard from him. Perhaps he had to go out of town suddenly, or…”
“You’re right. I’m sure there’s some good excuse.”
Kat looked at the phone and willed it to ring.
When Mallory returned to San Francisco, he telephoned Kat at the hospital.
“Dr. Hunter is off duty,” the receptionist told him.
“Thank you.” Mallory called the apartment. Kat was there.
“Hi, baby!”
“Ken! Where have you been? I’ve been worried about you. I tried everywhere to reach—”
“I had a family emergency,” he said smoothly. “I’m sorry I didn’t have a chance to call you. I had to go out of town. May I come over?”
“You know you may. I’m so glad you’re all right. I—”
“Half an hour.” He replaced the receiver and thought happily, The time has come, the walrus said, to speak of many things. Kat, baby, it was great fun, but it was just one of those things.
When Mallory arrived at the apartment, Kat threw her arms around him. “I’ve missed you!” She could not tell him how desperately worried she had been. Men hated that kind of thing. She stood back. “Darling, you look absolutely exhausted.”