by Leah Martyn
‘Grab them. We’ll need both.’
‘Oh, my God—Nathan!’ Darcie burst in, her horrified look going to the young man on the floor. Dropping beside Jack, she shot open her medical case. ‘Any response?’
‘Not yet. Run the oxygen, please, Darcie. I need to get an airway in.’
‘I can do CPR.’ Warren dived in to help.
‘Defib’s charging.’ Darcie watched as Jack positioned the tube carefully and attached it to the oxygen.
‘Breathe,’ he grated. ‘Come on, sunshine. You can do it!’
Darcie bit her lips together. With sickening dread she waited for some movement from Nathan’s chest. Waited. And watched as Jack checked for a pulse. Again and again. The nerves in Darcie’s stomach tightened. ‘Shocking?’
‘Only option,’ Jack said tersely. ‘Everyone clear, please.’
Nathan’s young, fit body jerked and fell. Darcie felt for a pulse and shook her head.
‘Dammit! Shocking again. Clear, please.’ Jack’s controlled direction seemed to echo round the big old-fashioned kitchen.
Come on, Nathan. Come on! Darcie willed silently. And then...a faint jiggle that got stronger. ‘We have output,’ she confirmed, husky relief in her voice.
Jack’s expression cleared. ‘Good work. Now, let’s get some fluids into this guy.’ He looked up sharply. ‘Has someone called an ambulance?’
‘We’re here, Doc.’ Two paramedics stepped through with a stretcher.
Darcie looked up from inserting the cannula to receive the drip. ‘Say hello to Dr Jack Cassidy, guys.’ Relief was zinging through her and she gave rein to a muted smile. ‘He’s the new boss at the hospital—only been here a few hours.’
‘And already saved a life, by the look of it. Zach Bayliss.’ The senior paramedic held out his hand. ‘My partner, Brett Carew.’
A flurry of handshakes ensued.
Nathan was loaded quickly. ‘We’ll see you across at the hospital, then, Doc?’ Zach confirmed.
‘We’ll be over directly.’ Jack turned to Warren. ‘You should disconnect all power until it’s been checked by the electrical authority. You might have other dodgy gear about the place.’
‘Will do, Doc. Hell, I don’t ever want to see a repetition of this...’
Jack looked around the kitchen. ‘This will stuff up your meal preparation. Do you have a contingency plan?’
‘We do. As it happens, we’d planned to put wood-fired pizzas on the menu tomorrow so we started up the brick oven for a trial run this afternoon. It’s still going strong. We’ll have a line of pizzas going in no time.’
Jack gave a rueful grin. ‘You couldn’t send a couple across to the residence, could you, mate? We still haven’t have had dinner.’
‘Yeah, absolutely. No worries.’ Warren flicked a hand in compliance. ‘On the house, of course. And thanks, Doc. Mighty job with Nathan.’
Jack waved away the thanks and they walked out together.
‘Right to go, then?’ Darcie had tidied up the medical debris and was waiting on the veranda.
Jack nodded and they went across to her car.
‘Nathan didn’t appear to have any fractures,’ she said. ‘But he must have landed with an almighty thump.’
‘I’ll check him thoroughly in Resus. Do you know if he has family to be notified?’
‘Not sure. But Warren will have got onto that.’
Jack sent her a quick, narrow look. ‘He said it was your initiative to have both the defib and oxygen located at the pub. Well done, Dr Drummond.’
‘I was just being proactive.’ Darcie shrugged away his praise. ‘There’s always a crowd in the pub at the weekends. Accidents happen. The odd nasty punch-up. Even a couple of heart attacks while I’ve been here. Having the defibrillator and the oxygen on site seemed a no-brainer. And the staff at the pub all have first-aid knowledge.’
‘Down to you as well?’ Jack asked.
‘And our nurse manager, Maggie Neville. You haven’t met her yet.’ Darcie gave a small chuckle. ‘I think she could run the place if it came to it.’
‘Good.’ Jack stretched his legs out as far as they would go. ‘Nice to have backup.’
A beat of silence.
‘I was very glad to have your backup this evening, Jack.’
Jack felt an expectant throb in his veins. What was this? A tick of approval from the very reserved English doctor? And unless he was mistaken, her husky little compliment had come straight from her heart.
CHAPTER THREE
WHEN THEY PULLED into the hospital car park, Jack said, ‘I can take over from here, Darcie. Go home. I’m sure you’ve more than earned a night off.’
She made a small face. ‘If you’re sure?’
‘More than sure. I’m pulling rank, Doctor. You’re officially off duty.’
‘Thanks, then.’ Darcie felt the weight of responsibility drop from her. ‘I’d actually kill for a leisurely bath.’
‘And dinner’s on its way,’ Jack confirmed, as he swung out of the car. ‘Warren’s sending over pizzas.’
* * *
Lauren stood with Jack as he made notations on Nathan’s chart. ‘How’s he doing?’ she asked quietly.
‘He has entry and exit burns on his left hand and right foot. It’s obviously been a serious shock. We’ll need him on a heart monitor for the next little while.’
‘He’s coming round.’ Lauren looked down at her watch to check the young man’s pulse. ‘You’re in hospital, Nathan,’ she said as Nathan’s eyes opened. ‘You’ve had an electric shock. This is Dr Cassidy.’
‘Take it easy, Nathan.’ Jack was calmly reassuring. ‘This contraption here is helping you breathe.’
Nathan’s eyes squeezed shut and then opened.
‘Pulse is fine,’ Lauren reported.
‘In that case, I think we can extubate.’ Jack explained to their patient what he was about to do. ‘You’re recovering well, Nathan, and there’s an excellent chance you’ll be able to breathe on your own.’ He turned to Lauren. ‘Stand by with the oxygen, please, but let’s hope he won’t need it.’
Lauren noticed the surgeon’s hands were gentle. Mentally, she gave him a vote of approval. In her time she’d seen extubations carried out with all the finesse of pulling nails with a claw hammer.
‘I want you to cough now, Nathan,’ Jack said as the tube was fully removed. ‘Go for it,’ he added, as Nathan looked confused. ‘You won’t damage anything.’
Nathan coughed obligingly.
‘OK, let’s have a listen to your chest now.’ Jack dipped his head, his face impassive in concentration. ‘Good lad.’ He gave a guarded smile. ‘You’re breathing well.
‘Thanks, Doc.’ Nathan’s voice was rusty. ‘Guess I’ve been lucky. When can I get out of here?’
‘Not so fast, mate.’ Jack raised a staying hand. ‘You’ve had a hell of a whack to every part of your body. We’ll need to monitor you for a couple of days.’
Nathan looked anxious. ‘My job—’
‘Is safe,’ Jack said firmly. ‘Warren will be in to see you about that tomorrow. In the meantime, I want you to just rest and let the nurses take care of you.’
‘And we do that very well.’ Lauren gave the young man a cheeky smile. ‘Fluids as a matter of course, Doctor?’
‘Please.’ Jack continued writing on Nathan’s chart. ‘Call if there’s a problem, Lauren. I’ll be right over.’
‘Will do. Good to have you on board, Jack,’ Lauren said as they walked out.
Jack pocketed his pen and then turned to the nurse. ‘What time do the shops come alive here in the mornings?’
‘Depends what you need.’ A small evocative smile nipped Lauren’s mouth. ‘There’s a truckers’ café that opens about five-thirty
, supermarket and bakery about six, everything else around eight-thirty-ish.’
‘Thanks for the heads-up.’ Jack acknowledged the information with a curt nod and strode off.
* * *
‘This is fantastic!’ They were eating pizza straight from the box and Jack pulled out a long curl of melted cheese and began eating it with exaggerated relish. ‘Why the look, Dr Drummond?’ He gave a folded-in grin. ‘You didn’t expect us to stand on ceremony and set the table for dinner, did you?’
Darcie took her time answering, obviously enjoying her own slice of the delicious wood-fired pizza. ‘I thought the present state of the fridge would have proved I’m no domestic goddess.’
‘Who needs them?’ Jack wound out another curl of cheese. ‘Do you want the last piece?’
Darcie waved his offer away and got to her feet. ‘I found some raspberry ripple ice cream in the freezer. Fancy some?’
Jack shook his head. ‘No, thanks.’
‘Cup of tea, then?’
‘Any decent coffee going, by any chance?’
‘There’s some good instant. Near as we get can to the real stuff out here.’
‘Perfect.’ Jack got up from the table and moved across to the sink to wash his hands. Drying them on a length of paper towel, he moved closer to look over her shoulder as she reached up to get mugs from the top cupboard. ‘Turned out all right, then, didn’t it?’ His voice had a gruff quality. ‘Our impromptu dinner, I mean.’
He was very close and Darcie felt warning signals clang all over her body. The zig-zag of awareness startled her, unnerved her. With her breathing shallower than usual, she said, ‘It was great.’ She took her time, placing the mugs carefully on the countertop as though they were fine china, instead of the cheerful, chunky variety from the supermarket.
‘So, Darcie...’ Jack about-turned, leaning against the bench of cupboards and folding his arms. ‘Do you think we’ll rub along all right?’
She blinked uncertainly. In just a few hours Jack Cassidy had brought a sense of stability and authority to the place, his presence like a rock she could hang onto for dear life.
Whoa, no! Those kinds of thoughts led to a road with no signposts and she wasn’t going there. The water in the electric jug came to boiling point and she switched it off. ‘We’d better rub along,’ she replied, ignoring the flare of heat in his eyes and waving light-hearted banter like a flag. ‘We’re the only doctors for hundreds of miles. It won’t do much for morale if either of us stomps off in a hissy fit.’
Jack gave a crack of laughter. ‘Do male doctors have hissy fits?’
‘Of course they do! Especially in theatres.’ She made the coffee quickly and handed him his mug. ‘They just call it something else.’
‘Thanks.’ Jack met her gaze and held it. She had the most amazing eyes, he thought. They were hazel, coppery brown near the pupils, shading to dark green at the rims. And they were looking at him with a kind of vivid expectancy. ‘I suppose men might have a rant,’ he suggested.
‘Or a tirade?’
‘A meltdown?’
‘Ten out of ten. That’s an excellent analogy.’ She smiled, holding it for a few seconds, letting it ripen on her face and then throwing in a tiny nose crinkle for good measure.
Hell. Jack felt the vibes of awareness hissing like a live wire between them. Enough to shift his newly achieved stable world off its hinges.
But only if he let it.
Lifting his coffee, he took a mouthful and winced, deciding he’d probably given his throat full-thickness burns. He had to break this proximity before he did something entirely out of character.
And kissed her.
‘Uh...’ His jaw worked a bit. ‘Let’s grab what’s left of the evening and take our coffee outside to the courtyard.’
Darcie looked surprised but nevertheless picked up her mug and followed him. ‘I’ll just turn on the outside light,’ she said. ‘We don’t want to break our necks in the dark.’
‘There’s plenty of moonlight.’ Jack looked around him as they sat at the old wooden table. The smell of jasmine was in the air. It twisted around a trellis at least six feet high. ‘I guess this place would have a few stories to tell,’ he surmised.
‘Probably.’ Darcie took a careful mouthful of her coffee.
Tipping his head back Jack looked up, his gaze widening in awe at the canopy of stars, some of which looked close enough to touch, while myriad others were scattered like so much fairy dust in the swept enormous heavens. So very different from London. ‘You’re a long way from home, Darcie.’
Darcie tensed. She’d expected the question or something similar but not quite so soon. For a heartbeat she was tempted to lower her guard and tell him the plain, unvarnished truth. But to do that would make her feel vulnerable. And perhaps make him feel uncomfortable, or worse even—sorry for her. And she so did not want that from any man. ‘This is Australia.’ She feigned nonchalance with an accompanying little shrug. ‘So I imagine I must be a long way from home. But this is home now.’
Jack heard the almost fierce assertiveness in her voice. OK, he wouldn’t trespass. Darcie Drummond obviously had her ghosts, the same as he did. But he liked to think he’d laid his to rest. On the other hand, he had a feeling young Dr Drummond here appeared to be still running from hers.
‘So, tell me a bit about Sunday Creek,’ he said evenly. ‘No GP here, I take it?’
‘Not for a long time. Anyone with a medical problem comes to the hospital.’
‘So we take each day as it comes, then?’
‘Yes.’ She smiled into the softness of the night. ‘I’ve treated a few characters.’
He chuckled. ‘It’s the outback. Of course you have.’ With subtlety, he pressed a little further, determined to get to know her better. ‘Any one instance stand out?’
‘Oh, yes.’ She smiled, activating a tiny dimple beside her mouth. ‘Pretty soon after I’d arrived here I had a call out to one of the station properties. There’d been an accident in the shearing shed. I was still at the stage of being wide-eyed with wonder at the size and scope of everything.’
‘That figures.’ Jack tilted his head, listening.
‘When I stepped inside the shearing shed I was thrown with the hive of activity. I’m sure I must have stood there gaping, wondering where to go or whom I should speak to. Then one of the men bellowed, “Ducks on the pond!” and suddenly there was this deathly kind of silence.’
Jack’s laughter rippled.
Darcie pressed a finger to her lips, covering an upside-down smile. ‘You know what it means, of course?’
‘Yep.’ He shot her a wry half-grin. ‘It’s simply shorthand for, “Mind your language, there’s a lady present.”’
‘I had to ask Maggie when I got back to the hospital,’ Darcie confessed. ‘But the men were very kind to me and, fortunately, the emergency was only a case of a rather deep wound that needed suturing. I stayed for morning tea in the shed. I think I managed OK,’ she added modestly.
‘From the sound of it, I’d say you managed brilliantly.’ In the moonlight, Jack’s gaze softened over her. She was gutsy and no slouch as a doctor. He already had proof of that. He wondered what her story was. And why she’d felt the need to practise her skills so far from her roots.
Leaning back in his chair, he clasped his hands behind his head. ‘I’ll cover the weekend. I want you to have a break.’
‘Oh.’ Darcie looked uncertain. ‘Shouldn’t I hand over officially?’
‘We can do that officially on Monday. Meanwhile, I’ll get a feel for things in general, talk to a few faces.’
‘I won’t know what to do with myself...’ The words were out before she could stop them.
‘Have some fun,’ Jack suggested. ‘See your friends.’
He made it so
und so simple—so normal. And it would look pathetic if she hung around the house for the entire weekend. Her brain quickly sorted through the possibilities. She supposed she did have a couple of friends she could visit—Louise and Max Alderton. They lived on a property, Willow Bend, only ten miles out. Louise was on the hospital board and somehow had sensed Darcie’s need for a no-strings kind of friendship.
She could give Lou a call now. She’d still be up. See if it was OK to visit. Maybe they could go for a ride... ‘OK. I’ll do that. Thanks.’
* * *
Next morning, Darcie couldn’t believe she’d slept in. If you called seven-thirty sleeping in, she thought wryly, sitting up to look out at the new day. The sun had risen, the temperature climbing already. Blocking a yawn, she stretched and threw herself out of bed. She had a holiday.
And she’d better remember there was a man in the house. Slipping into her short dressing gown, she sprinted along the hallway to the bathroom.
As she dressed, Darcie sensed something different about the place. A feeling of the house coming alive. And there was a delicious smell of grilling bacon coming from the kitchen.
And that could mean only one thing. Jack was up and around and amazingly he must be cooking breakfast. She hoped he’d made enough for two because she intended joining him.
As she made her way along the hallway to the kitchen, her newly found confidence began faltering. Perhaps she was being presumptuous. She didn’t expect Jack to feed her. She really didn’t.
But already her preconceived ideas about him had begun falling like skittles. He wasn’t strutty—just competent. And from what she’d observed, he seemed straightforward and she liked that. If he’d only made breakfast for one, then he’d tell her so.
She paused at the kitchen door, ran her tongue around the seam of her lips and said, ‘You’re up early.’
Busy at the cooker top, Jack turned his head and gave her a casual ‘Morning. How do you like your eggs?’
‘Um...’ Darcie’s mouth opened and closed. ‘Scrambled, I think.’ She joined him at the stove. He was turning sausages and the bacon was set aside in the warming oven.
‘Me too.’ He gave her a quick smile. ‘Will you do that while I watch these guys?’
