'Would you have dinner with me one evening?' Anna showed her surprise and his smile faded. 'No, perhaps not. Lunch then, Anna?' 'I. . .'she began, overwhelmed by the invitation and wondering what he really wanted of her. He was old enough to be her father, of her mother's generation rather than her own. 'Th . . . that would be very nice, sir,' she found herself saying. 'Lunch, that is,' she added, and his smile returned. He pushed back his slightly greying hair in a curiously boyish gesture. 'Thank you,' he said simply, then they began to discuss dates and times. It would have to be when Anna was off duty and that presented a problem in itself. If her mother objected to the registrar she would certainly object to a much older consultant taking her daughter out. Anna knew she must lie to Mother, painful though it was, and they fixed the following Friday for their lunch. With eyes round with astonishment, Anna watched Dr Tester stroll out of the day-room, whistling softly to himself.
