Maid for the South Pole

by Demelza Carlton

  Audra bit her lip. She was going to sound crazy, she knew it. "He was the guy on the ship last year. The one who was injured and had to be medevaced out."

  "I thought you said that guy had two busted legs. We don't just ship a guy to the mainland for breaking bones. It's usually life-threatening emergencies they evacuate for, nothing less. It can't be the same guy."

  "It's him, all right. He even said he remembered me from the ship."

  Shelley smiled. "Wait, that's a good thing, right? You nursed him. Sounds like a good start to a romance story to me. And you could do worse. I mean, if you're not interested in the rock star any more, just think: you could have Mr Muscles wrapped around you, warming you up at night, instead."

  Audra shuddered. "God, no. He's married, Shelley. I remember the ship's crew trying to contact his wife, to tell her he'd been injured."

  "Just nice eye candy, then."

  Audra took a deep breath. Now or never. "I was left alone with him for a bit. The doctor at Casey wanted me to wait until he woke up before I gave him any more pain medication so he wouldn't get an overdose. So I sat, and I waited. When he woke up, he grabbed me. Tried to pull me into bed with him. He kept insisting we had to have sex."

  Shelley stared at her. "What did you do?"

  "I stabbed him with a needle and managed to get out of reach. He tried to get up on his broken legs and he passed out." Audra closed her eyes. "Then I hooked him up to an IV and avoided him for the rest of the trip."

  "Didn't you tell someone?"

  Audra shrugged. "He was unconscious. Who would believe me? I barely believed it myself. I figured I'd never see him again, so it wouldn't matter. But now he's here. In my room!"

  Shelley nodded slowly. "Okay. Do you think it might have been something in his medication that made him do that?"

  "I don't know of any legal drug that makes men with broken legs so horny they feel the need to have sex with the nearest woman, willing or not. And he remembers me from the ship. He said so."

  Shelley blew out a breath. "I'll speak to Ali and see what we can do. Maybe there's a spare bed in the temporary accommodation he can have."

  "I'd appreciate it," Audra said, over the loud gurgle of her stomach. "Sorry, I shouldn't have missed dinner."

  "Go scrounge something in the kitchen," Shelley suggested. "Carl's on tonight, and he's still talking about what a good kitchenhand you are, even though that shift you filled was weeks ago. I'm sure he'll be able to rustle up something for you."

  Audra thanked her and headed off in search of dinner. Dealing with Jean-Pierre Pennant would definitely be easier with a full stomach.

  SEVENTEEN

  "You the new guy who flew in today?" demanded a middle-aged man with a bushy beard.

  "Sure did," Jean replied, easing himself down on a chair. His leg was aching something fierce today. Good thing he had the bottom bunk – he'd never manage the climb to the top one. Now all he needed was a drink to take the edge off the pain. "Do you guys do welcome drinks here, or is that just the custom at Casey?"

  The bearded man bristled. "We're just as hospitable as Casey. What's your poison?"

  "Got any Fosters?" Jean asked.

  Everyone laughed.

  "Nah mate, all out of Fosters. Must've drunk it all. A XXXX, maybe?"

  Another test. Jean knew the answer to this one, too. "Only if you're out of Crowns and VB."

  "Not bad for a Yank," the bearded man said grudgingly. "Bruce. I keep the water running here at Davis."

  "I'm Jean, and I'm not American. I'm Canadian. A biologist."

  "I better get you that beer, then," Bruce said.

  By the time he returned, they'd all traded names and professions, and Jean was in the middle of a comfortable conversation with the supply officers about field camp conditions.

  "Pity you weren't here a few weeks back when the supply ship came in. Could've done with a seal charmer then!" Jen exclaimed. "You see, this huge elephant seal took a liking to one of our sleds. We weren't sure if he wanted to fight it or hump it. We'd loaded it up completely, but it couldn't take the weight of the cargo and the seal, and he was so determined to have his way with the equipment for the new hydroponics lab..." She continued with her story about luring the seal away with some fish, only to have him try to follow the trailer when the Hagg started towing it.

  Of course, that was the perfect opening for Jean to tell the story about the pair of elephant seals that had humped his hut at the Falkland Islands on his first year out. It hadn't been funny at the time – it'd been damn scary – but he soon had the Aussies crying tears of laughter at his retelling now.

  Jen wiped her eyes and gestured to someone behind Jean. "Come over here. You have to meet the new guy. He was just telling us about how he had a threesome with some seals!" She doubled over with laughter again.

  "I wasn't aware that bestiality was legal out here," a calm, female voice said.

  "Good one, Audra!" Bruce howled.

  Audra. His strange roommate. Jean turned to see her properly before she ran away again. Just like Doug had said, she was young and pretty, with her fair hair twisted into a loose braid that hung down her back. She held a plate on one hand like a waitress about to serve the sandwich to someone.

  Her eyes fixed on him, as dark and chilly as an Antarctic winter.

  "Have you met Jean, Audra?" Jen asked. "He's a Canadian penguin biologist. I didn't even know they had penguins in Canada!"

  "We don't," Jean corrected gently. "Not wild ones, anyway. But climate change is a global problem, and penguins are an important indicator species – "

  "Sorry, I'm going to get an early night," Audra interrupted. With a wave, she was gone.

  Jean swallowed the rest of his spiel. Probably not the right moment to wax lyrical about his PhD.

  Jen patted his arm. "Sorry about Audra. She must be tired. All the planning for the South Pole expedition on top of her normal job. I don't know how she does it."

  She hadn't looked tired. She'd looked like she wanted him dead and buried deep under the ice.

  Jean shivered inwardly, but he hitched his smile back up and rejoined the conversation. He wouldn't let one woman distract him from his purpose here. He'd let Dairine do it last time, but never again.

  They swapped stories until late, when as if by some unspoken agreement they all decided to call it a night.

  He padded into the room he shared with Audra, wondering whether she was awake or asleep. Her even breathing persuaded him to let her sleep. Maybe she'd be less murderous in the morning.

  EIGHTEEN

  Audra knocked on the station leader's office door.

  "Come in," Ali said, glancing up. "Ah, Audra. Is this about the weather report?"

  Audra nodded. "I've been trying to plot a window between the storms, but I just can't find one big enough before Christmas. Just when we get the all clear for one, I get a new storm warning for Dome Argus. This has to be one of the worst summers on record."

  "So the South Pole expedition gets postponed until after Christmas. I don't want anyone taking unnecessary risks." Ali peered at her computer. When Audra didn't leave, Ali asked, "Is there anything else?"

  She shouldn't, but Audra had to ask. "My roommate, Jean Pennant. Shelley said she'd asked whether you can switch me to another room so I don't have to share with him."

  "Well, we don't normally make women share with men, but this time there's an odd number of both, and we're full, what with three expeditions stuck here, waiting for the weather to clear. The only beds left are in the Medical Quarters. So unless you'd rather sleep in a hospital bed, I can't help you."

  "It's just...I worked with him for a little while last season, and we didn't get along," Audra said carefully.

  "Here?"

  "No, on the ship."

  Ali coughed irritably. "I didn't hear anything about trouble on the Aurora Australis last year."

  Audra lowered her gaze. "I managed to avoid him for most of the trip, so nothing partic
ularly bad happened. But things are different here at Davis. I think if we share a room for too long, there will be...an incident."

  Ali eyed Audra as if she were a particularly interesting plant specimen. "An incident. You mean an argument? We get those here all the time. Especially in winter, when everyone's cooped up for months. You'd better get used to it now, because it'll be even harder when you're all living on top of each other in the SMQ."

  Audra swallowed. She'd spent nearly a year at Romance Island Resort learning to keep her temper despite lazy colleagues, sleazy guests and the biggest challenge of all, Jay Felix. Antarctic expeditioners were so much more civilised than the people she'd worked with at the resort. "I'll do my best," Audra said.

  "Good. Now, can you ask Shelley about her estimates for when that bloody lake will thaw? If it's still iced up by Christmas, we might have to ban showers altogether."

  Both Ali and Audra winced at the thought.

  "I'll run the projections myself," Audra said. "If I'm not headed inland for a while yet, and I'm still using up precious water, I want to know."

  "Thanks." Ali returned to her work, and Audra took that as her cue to leave.

  As she left the office, Audra sighed. So much for sleeping soundly at night. Every time Jean made a sound, she jerked awake, and couldn't get back to sleep until she was certain he was asleep, too.

  Maybe by some miracle the weather would clear and she'd be on her way inland well before Christmas. A girl could hope.

  NINETEEN

  Jean reached Ali's office, only to discover she already had someone with her, so he found a chair around the corner and sat down to wait. No one had bothered to close the open door, so he heard the conversation clearly.

  "My roommate, Jean Pennant," he heard a woman say.

  Audra – and she was talking about him! Requesting a room transfer. That might not be a bad idea. Then he'd actually get some sleep instead of worrying that tonight she'd decide he wasn't allowed to live a minute longer. He wasn't sure he could bring himself to fight a woman. It just wouldn't be right. Even just the thought of it left a sour taste in his mouth.

  She mentioned the ship, the icebreaker, where Doug said she'd nursed him. Except, by the sound of things, something had happened aboard the ship that made her hate him. Whatever it was, he didn't remember.

  Maybe she'd just been traumatised by seeing his injuries. The idea lasted for a moment before Jean's reasonable side shot it down: she couldn't hate him that much for having two broken legs. It had to be something else. He wouldn't have made a pass at her, he knew that for certain. He'd still thought he was happily married then. What on Earth had he done to make her hate him so much?

  He didn't dare ask. He'd learned that early on with Dairine. If he asked what he'd done wrong, she'd been ready to hand him a list. All women were the same, and he wasn't going to let another one complicate his life.

  Audra strode up the passage, ignoring him. That meant it was his turn to talk to Ali.

  He knocked softly.

  Ali looked up. "If you're looking to swap rooms, I already told Audra no."

  Jean shrugged. "I don't have a problem with her. She doesn't snore, doesn't leave her things lying around, and she doesn't smell bad."

  "So what is the issue?" Ali asked.

  "No idea. Look, I didn't come to discuss my roommate. I wanted to ask if you had any update on the Investigator, when it'll arrive so I can head out to Heard Island." He flashed a perfunctory smile. "It'll get me out of my roommate's hair, too." Hair that looked like it would be very soft to stroke, his traitorous brain added.

  "At the moment, nothing's scheduled to arrive before January, so you'll be spending Christmas with us, and New Year, too."

  Jean's shoulders slumped. "It's just that I have nothing to do. I've finished writing as much of my thesis as I can, and I've even put together a couple of papers for my supervisor this week, but I'm at a loose end. Is there anything you need me to do around the station?" He prayed he wasn't volunteering for kitchen shifts or worse, poo patrol – dealing with the sewage tanks.

  "You're a biologist, right? Are you any good with plants, specifically hydroponics?"

  Jean's grin was genuine this time. "Are you kidding? I worked as a lab tech in a hydroponics lab through my whole undergrad degree at the University of British Columbia. Would you believe that there's a particular type of chives that grow best when the only sound they hear is Justin Bieber's music? True story."

  Ali laughed. "Good. I've got a couple of our construction guys drafting up a design for the new hydroponics building, but they could do with some help from someone who's actually run a facility like that. I'll send you over to the workshop this afternoon."

  "I can go now," Jean said eagerly.

  "You could, but they'll all be at lunch, so you may as well go eat." Ali's forehead wrinkled. "Look, I probably shouldn't say this, but...can you go out of your way to be nice to Audra? Normally, I'd say she's one of the calmest, most well-balanced members of the team at Davis. Nothing ruffles that girl. She used to work as a hotel maid for some celebrity resort, and that must have taken the patience of a saint. But today..." Ali sighed. "With looming water shortages, it'd be really great if we could avoid an incident, as she put it."

  Jean fired off a salute. "Yes, ma'am. Us Canucks have a reputation for being nice. I'll get right on it."

  He headed off.

  Loud laughter dominated the dining room, spilling out into the corridor.

  "That's the problem with you mets. One day you're predicting showers that never come, and when you say it's going to be fine we get another bloody blizzard! You need to train your weather better!"

  A female voice piped up, "Yeah, it'd be nice if a meteorology degree came with mutant superpowers that let us summon storms or sunshine at will, right, Shell?" Audra's face lit up as she laughed. "I'll mention it to the Bureau. Maybe even put it in my next video."

  "What are you doing next? I don't know how many times I've watched that one with the elephant seal who fell in love with Jen's sled."

  "I had planned to do a sort of send-off video for the South Pole expedition, but because I don't have stormy superpowers," Audra flashed a cheeky grin, "I figured I might hang around outside the men's bathrooms and see who's willing to flash some skin so everyone back home knows how sexy the Davis crew are."

  "I'll do it!" a man dressed in chef's whites said, lifting his leg into the air and pulling his pants hem up to the knee.

  "Put that hairy thing away," Audra declared. "Wait until I have my camera ready."

  More laughter, and Audra joined in, her eyes sparkling with mischief.

  Jean stood in the dimly-lit corridor, evidently invisible to the occupants of the bright dining room, seeing his roommate in a positive light for the first time. Now he was certain she was the same girl Doug had praised. And she was more than pretty. Something about her just grabbed his gaze and wouldn't let go.

  "Now, let's get this pool organised," Bruce said. "You both say Christmas, but it could be three days either way. So which is it – before Christmas, or after?"

  "Before," said Shelley.

  "After," insisted Audra.

  The chef slapped his hand on the table. "I'm with Audra. Summer's so slow to start this year, the thaw's bound to be late, too."

  Bruce shook his head. "Nah, Shelley's way more experienced. Audra's just a graduate. When she's spent the number of years down here that Shelley has, maybe her predictions will be as good. Climate change says everything's melting earlier than it should. So I'll stick with Shelley and say before Christmas."

  Paul rose from his seat. "I'm so sure Audra's right that if the lake thaws before Christmas, I will personally lead a synchronised swimming team through the lake at New Year's." He grinned through the catcalls and cheers. "Audra can coach me. You're a swim coach, right?"

  She finally stopped laughing long enough to say, "Yes, I used to coach. Not synchronised swimming. Mostly people who were just learning
to swim, but yeah, I'll do it. If I'm wrong, and we have water by Christmas, I'll coach the Davis New Year synchronised swimming team."

  "I'm in!"

  "I'm in!"

  "Me, too!"

  "What about Bruce and the other conservatives? If they're wrong, are they going to go swimming, too?" Carl challenged.

  Rumbles of agreement came from the others on the swim team. Jean's belly rumbled, too, but that was more in response to the delicious scents wafting up from the buffet, reminding him he still needed to eat lunch.

  Audra held up her hands. "They can't go swimming in a frozen lake. I say they should perform a dance routine on New Year's Eve. And Shelley, being the accomplished dancer that she is, is the best qualified instructor."

  "You're on," Shelley replied.

  As the others argued over whose team they were on, Jean slipped into the room. He couldn't resist lunch any longer.

  They were too busy discussing dance moves to notice him as he loaded up a plate. It wasn't until Jean had to decide where to sit that Bruce called, "Oi, Pennant! Which side are you on? Team Shelley or Team Audra?"

  The others waved him over to a seat at their table, which he reluctantly took. It wasn't until he glanced up that Jean realised they'd sat him directly across from Audra.

  For once, she didn't look like she wanted to kill him. She looked...curious. To Jean's surprise, he found that her eyes were an unusual shade of greenish gold, much like the cushion plants at Heard Island. Azorella eyes. And, just like the cushion plants, those eyes lured him in.

  "Team Audra, definitely," Jean heard his voice say, in the slow, deep tone he used in presentations, or when he really wanted to win someone over. Dairine had called it his devil's voice, demanding that he not use it around her because it steamed up her panties.

  Audra didn't look the slightest bit steamed up. In fact, she looked as cool and crisp as the lettuce on his plate, which he recognised as one grown in the temporary hydroponics lab.

  Still green, though, like her eyes.

  Deceptively dangerous eyes, just like the cushion plant that had nearly killed him.