A/N: Hi fanfiction patrons! This just popped into my head. Review my madness if you dare! Warning: Some bad language. Don't read if you have delicate ears…eyes?
Although no longer a footman but a country doctor, Thomas still dressed impeccably. So although he had been sent for by the local lord at four o'clock in the morning, his clothes were neat and not a hair was out of place as he used the grand knocker at the front entrance of the manor to announce his own arrival. He thought with pride that he would have once had to use the servants' entrance as the door was opened by a footman, dressed as he once would have been. Thomas exuded a brisk exterior of calm as he was shown up the stairs by Lord Whitby, who was describing the symptoms a distinguished guest of his was showing. Thomas had been to war after all he could cope with the sniffles. In fact, Thomas was relatively sure he could cope with anything hiding behind the door to his patient's bedroom.
He realised after opening the door, that he was dead wrong. There half smothered under a mound of luxurious covers, unmistakable despite his pallor, was Thomas's former lover, the Duke of Crowborough.
Thomas stopped and stared for just a moment before recovering his professionalism and arranging his medical kit on the table. He caught the Duke's eye briefly, and despite being ill the infuriating man managed to smirk. Thomas had been hoping James had forgotten him, which he felt would have been slightly less awkward for the both of him, but he apparently remembered. Lord Whitby left the room to give his guest some privacy while he was examined and Thomas silently cursed him. He just hoped the Duke didn't want to chat.
"Well, it seems you rose higher than valet," the Duke commented condescendingly.
"Yes, I got what I wanted," Thomas answered acidly. "What about you? Find yourself an unfortunate heiress rich enough to wed?"
The Duke chuckled. "Yes, I achieved my ambition. But I'd like to think she's not that unfortunate, she got a title out of it, after all".
Thomas was tired of this. He really didn't care he just wanted to get on with it. Picking up a stethoscope he said coolly, "I'm going to listen to your heart to see if there's any fluid around your lungs. Could you unbutton your shirt a little?"
The Duke arched an eye brow and began to unbutton his night shirt. "Any excuse for getting me out of my clothes," he said suggestively.
He really wasn't going to make this easy, Thomas reflected as he tried to retain a calm exterior while overwhelmed with an urge to slap this pompous git. Pushing personal issues aside, Thomas listened for a few moments before his suspicions were confirmed. "You have pneumonia," he told James, calmly. "It's not a serious case and I imagine you'll recover if you stay warm and keep in bed for a few weeks".
"So you're prescribing bed rest?" The Duke asked archly, running his hand up Thomas's arm. Thomas jumped back as though stung by a wasp.
"What are you doing?" he exclaimed, his veneer of calm collapsing.
"Oh, come on Thomas. I know I hurt you before, but that was a long time ago and you knew I couldn't risk my reputation. I had to get married, after all. Once more for old times' sake, we never got to say good bye properly".
Thomas felt a wave of revulsion rush over him at the idea of ever being intimate with the man in front of him again. He clearly didn't understand what he'd put Thomas through after burning his letters. However he didn't particularly want to enlighten the Duke on that score, so instead he said "No for two reasons. Firstly, you're my patient…"
James snorted. "It's not as though you've never bent the rules before, Thomas" he countered.
"Secondly," Thomas continued, as though he hadn't been interrupted. "I'm in another relationship and we've promised to be faithful to one another".
James looked incredulous. "Are you trying to tell me that you've gotten married Thomas?" he exclaimed.
Thomas shifted uncomfortably; he wasn't used to talking about his relationship in public. "No," he answered. "I'm with Dr Clarkson".
For a moment, the Duke was dumbstruck. Then he unaccountably began to laugh. "Dr Clarkson?" he asked through a fit of laughter mingled with coughing. "Well, I knew you had daddy issues Thomas, but that's just ridiculous!"
Thomas was taken off guard. "What do you mean?" he asked, realising a moment later that he should have kept his mouth shut.
"He's ancient," the Duke said unkindly. "Were there truly no other lonely men in the army?"
For once, Thomas had no cutting comeback on his lips. He went on autopilot and held up an infusion of herbs. "Take two spoonfuls of this once a day mixed in a mug of hot water," he said without expression. "I'll be back tomorrow after seeing a pharmacist about some medication".
Thomas packed up his things before leaving without bothering to say goodbye. He marched smartly out of the house before stopping just inside the entrance to gather his thoughts. What on earth had just happened?
Dr Clarkson came home to a rather unusual site. A worried looking Thomas paced the floor, muttering to himself. The last time John had seen him like this he'd been about to meet the only one of John's sons who'd managed to survive the war and he was scared he wouldn't like him. But this was different, worse than nervousness. His partner looked genuinely distressed.
John Clarkson put down his briefcase, before giving Thomas a hug. Thomas looked almost surprised by his presence before returning the hug, which worried John even more. "What happened?" he asked concernedly.
Thomas hesitated and looked down before speaking. "Do you remember me telling you about my first lover?" he asked, somewhat unexpectedly.
Dr Clarkson hesitated. "The Duke?" he queried, not sure where this was going.
"He's…"Thomas cleared his throat. "He's staying at Lord Whitby's and he has pneumonia and I have to treat him for it".
"I can understand how that could be…awkward," John stated, still not comprehending what the problem was.
"It's not just awkward!" Thomas exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air. "He's being such a tool!"
Dr Clarkson's ears pricked up at that. "What do you mean?" he asked.
"Well he's very condescending and…"Thomas hesitated again. "Well, he sort of came on to me".
"What?" Dr Clarkson was the first to admit he was the jealous type, though he generally tried to hide it, as he was attempting to now.
"I told him I was with you of course," Thomas said, dismissively waving his hand as though the idea of accepting the offer hadn't even occurred to him. That made John feel a lot more secure. "Then he laughed and said I was with you because I had 'daddy issues'," Thomas grimaced as if the comment left a bad taste in his mouth.
Dr Clarkson was certainly mad that someone had caused his partner this amount of stress however he couldn't really see a way out of the situation. "Well, we can't refuse him treatment just because he's unpleasant," he pointed out reasonably. "I guess all you can do is make sure he gets better as quickly as possible so you don't have to spend any more time with him".
Thomas nodded despondently. Dr Clarkson tried to distract him the rest of the evening, but he could tell Thomas was still slightly unnerved by the encounter.