by Lucy Clark
COMING HOME TO KATOOMBA
Lucy Clark
Blue Mountains A & E – Book 2
The single father
Oliver Bowan came to Katoomba to create a home for his daughter and seek custody. He wanted nothing to get in the way of that, but distraction came to the new head of E.R. in the shape of Dr. Stephanie Brooks. Their attraction was undeniable, but Oliver claimed he could never love again, and Stephanie couldn't live her life on the sidelines of a single father and his child -- no matter how much she loved them. Yet happiness was staring them in the face, if only Oliver could be honest with himself about his feelings.
CHAPTER ONE
Stephanie parked her car in the doctors' car park and walked briskly towards the hospital administration building. They'd paged her three times—twice when she'd been having coffee with her good friend Nicolette and once in the car on the drive from Blackheath to Katoomba. She checked her cellphone as she walked and realised she'd forgotten to charge the battery again.
She entered the warm building, glad to be out of the early evening cold, and headed to the CEO's office. Katoomba hospital, about two hours from Sydney, was a mix of old and new wings, with corridors everywhere.
'Hi, Darla,' she said cheerfully to the CEO's assistant. 'Sorry you couldn't get me. Forgot to charge my phone again.'
'Never mind.' Darla held out her hands. 'Give me your coat and bag and cellphone—I'll charge it—and go right in. They're waiting for you.'
Stephanie unwound her scarf and shrugged out of her winter coat. 'They?'
'The new director,' Darla whispered.
'He wasn't due for another five days.' Stephanie's tone was also low, as she handed over the cellphone.
'He's here now.'
'What's his name again?'
'Oliver Bowan.'
'Oliver Bowan,' Stephanie repeated. 'That's right. The man who's taking my job.'
'Your temporary job, and just as a heads-up, he's quite a dish. I wouldn't mind working alongside him every day.' Darla sighed dramatically and Stephanie smiled.
'I pictured him as grey, balding with a comb-over.'
Darla laughed out loud and then quickly covered her mouth. 'Then you're in for a shock. Go.' She angled her head towards the door behind her which led to the CEO's office.
Stephanie took a deep breath, briefly knocking on the door before heading in. 'Sorry it took me so long to get here, Graham.' She breezed into the room, both men standing at her presence.
'That's fine, Stephanie. I'd like you to meet Oliver Bowan.'
She turned and looked at her new boss for the first time and realised Darla was one hundred per cent correct. What a dish! His dark brown hair was short at the sides with a hint of grey at the temples, parted at the side with a lock falling across his forehead. He pushed it back impatiently, his fingers leaving faint tracks in the thick waves. Definitely not a comb-over. She smiled to herself and held oat her hand. His skin touched hers the instant their gazes met and in that brief moment it felt as though the world had stopped revolving and tilted precariously on its axis.
A warm tingling sensation spread from her fingertips up her arm before being amplified throughout her entire body. His eyes were blue—an ice-blue so light and so fresh... She was mesmerised. He was looking at her with something like complete astonishment, his jaw slack for a moment before he recovered.
'I'm pleased to meet you.'
Oh, his deep, rich tone fitted perfectly with the rest of him. 'Finally.' Stephanie squeezed his hand once more before reluctantly letting go. She saw his stunned gaze surveying her hair and her earrings. 'Not what you were expecting, eh?' She chuckled and so did Graham. 'I guess most people think green hair and medicine don't usually go together.'
'Stephanie was a brave participant in "Shave for a Cure" about two weeks ago,' Graham explained. 'Before that, she had a lovely head of reddish-gold curls.'
'Both the colour and the curls were from a bottle, so it was no great loss.' She shrugged. 'Besides, we raised quite a bit of money so it was worth it.'
'I see,' Oliver replied, even if he wasn't quite sure that he did.
'We weren't expecting you until Saturday,' Stephanie remarked.
'I had a change of plans.'
'Oliver's more than happy to take over straight away,' Graham was saying, and Stephanie reluctantly dragged her gaze away from the man beside her to look at the CEO. 'I presume that's fine with you?'
'Absolutely.'
'I thought as much,' Graham was saying. 'Stephanie's home burned down a few weeks ago, such a tragedy, so she's been under more pressure than usual.'
'I'm sorry to hear that. I hope no one was hurt.'
'My neighbour, Mrs Malincotty, is in the burns unit in Sydney but she's doing OK.'
'Good news, then.' Once more their gazes met and Stephanie couldn't help the involuntary smile that lit her features. It was as though they were having two completely different conversations. One with their eyes and one with their words. The eyes one was much more interesting, she decided. 'It sounds as though you've had an extremely busy time.'
'You can say that again. House burning down on Sunday night, head shaved on Tuesday. That's life, but it could have been a lot worse.'
'I'm glad you have such a positive outlook on life.'
'What other is there to have?' She shrugged again.
'Good philosophy,' Graham added. 'Right. All the paperwork is done. I'll get Darla to process everything so, Stephanie, if you wouldn't mind showing Oliver around and introducing him to the trauma unit staff, that about wraps things up.' Graham stood and held out his hand to Oliver. 'Welcome to the Blue Mountains and Katoomba hospital,' he said officially.
Stephanie got to her feet as the two men shook hands. 'Let's go.' She opened the door and waited, expecting Oliver to follow her. He did, but first he picked up a large suitcase which she hadn't noticed in the corner of the room. 'You've just arrived?'
He glanced down at the suitcase, then back to her. 'Obviously.' There was a twinkle behind his eyes, even though he wasn't smiling.
'Are you mocking me?'
'Yes.'
'Oh. OK.' She smiled at the CEO. 'Thanks, Graham.' She headed out to Darla and picked up her cellphone, bag, coat and scarf. 'You were right,' she whispered to the assistant. 'Very dishy.' The two women smiled before Oliver came out of the office, suitcase trailing like a puppy behind him.
'Not going to be macho and carry it?' Stephanie couldn't resist teasing.
'I'd rather conserve my energy for dealing with my insubordinate staff.'
It was Stephanie's turn to stare, slack-jawed for a split second before she laughed, Darla and Graham joining in.
'All right, then, Dr Bowan. Let's go meet the troops.' They left the CEO's office and headed along an internal corridor so they didn't have to go back outside into the cold. 'I think you'll find the rest of the staff quite placid in comparison to me. Well...' Stephanie looked him up and down, taking in the pin-striped suit '...some of the nurses might be a little, shall we say, flirtatious but I'm not going to tell you which ones. That, you'll just have to find out for yourself.'
'So no one else has a brightly coloured head?'
'Nope. I'm unique.'
'Something I've already come to realise.' He was looking again at her ears and she subconsciously lifted a hand to one ear. Now that her hair was so much shorter, the four sets of earrings she wore were definitely more prominent.
'Hey—you can directly blame my brother for these. He keeps buying me the most beautiful earrings and I want to wear them all at once.'
'Ever thought of changing them daily?'
'I do.' Stephanie smiled and turned a corner before heading to the lifts and punching the but
ton. 'We can stow your case in my office—uh, well your office now—and then go meet the staff that are here.'
'Thank you, Dr Brooks.'
'I hope you're not going to continue with that.'
'Pardon?'
'Dr Brooks.'
'No, I'm Dr Bowan.'
Stephanie smiled. 'You know what I mean. Call me Stephanie or Steph, whichever takes your fancy.' The lift arrived and she went in, holding the door for him and his suitcase. 'Just the one bag? Surely, as this is a permanent job for you here in the Blue Mountains, you'll have more than one bag.' She punched the button for two floors below and the old lift doors slowly began to shut.
'This is all, for now.'
'Fair enough. Where are you staying?'
'In a house somewhere. My previous secretary organised temporary accommodation until I have time to look around for a more permanent residence.' He patted his suit jacket pocket. 'It's all written down and the estate agent said they'd leave the key in the letterbox, which I thought was odd.'
'Odd?'
'Leaving the key to a house in a letterbox isn't exactly high security.'
The doors opened and she headed out, looking over her shoulder at him. 'Where have you come from?'
Oliver raised an eyebrow. 'Do you really need a talk on the birds and the bees, Stephanie?'
She gave him a bored look. 'Hardly, Oliver. It's just if you've come here from a big, bustling city, then a key in the letterbox would seem odd to you.'
He followed her along yet another winding corridor. 'This place is a rabbit warren.'
'You'll get used to it. So? Are you going to answer the question?'
'Seattle.'
'Really?'
'You seem surprised.'
'You don't sound American.'
'I'm Australian. My ex-wife is American.'
'Ah. Currently single, then?' She made sure the question came out casually but she'd already noted the lack of wedding ring, even though it was commonplace for a lot of married doctors not to wear rings.
'Planning to ask me out?' he countered.
Stephanie stopped and looked at him in stunned confusion. Was it possible this man was as direct as her and possessed the same sense of humour? Realising he was waiting for an answer, as well as enjoying having knocked her off balance, she tried for an air of nonchalance, tossing her head and continuing their trek through the corridors. 'Play your cards right and there's a definite possibility.'
To her further astonishment and delight, she heard him chuckle. 'In that case, I am definitely unattached. And you?'
'Here we are,' she said, ignoring his question and unlocking a door. 'Your new office.' She walked in and switched on the light, putting her coat, bag and scarf on a chair. 'Sorry it's a bit messy. If I'd known you were coming—'
'You'd have baked a cake?' he interrupted, as he went further into the room and placed his suitcase against the wall out of the way.
'Well, maybe.' She went around the desk and quickly gathered pieces of paper into neater piles.
'Leave it. I'll have to sort through it all anyway.'
'We should probably go through it together in case you have any questions,' she added. 'First, though, let's get the introductions over.' She waited for him to exit the room, locking the door behind her. 'I presume Darla's organising keys and passes for you?'
'Should be ready tomorrow.'
'Now, let me think who's on tonight. Sophie's here— she's an excellent triage nurse. Jade—she has her head screwed on right and I think Lauren's on, too. Hmm... Lauren.' Stephanie frowned, thinking of the perky brunette nurse who would definitely be employing her expert flirting skills with the new trauma unit boss.
'What about Lauren?'
Stephanie smiled and pretended to lock her lips and throw away the key.
'Ah. One of the ones I should watch out for, eh? Noted.'
'Who knows? She might be your type.'
'Know me that well, Dr Brooks?'
'No. That's why I said might, Dr Bowan.' Stephanie swiped her card through a lock and pushed open the door. 'Here we are.' She'd been conscious of Oliver walking next to her the entire way from Graham's office to her own but now, entering the A and E department where quite a few staff members momentarily stopped to watch them walk towards the nurses' station, Stephanie was totally aware of the man beside her.
There was a mild, spicy scent around him and she wondered how much travelling he'd done that day. Why had he come to the hospital immediately he'd arrived in the district? Eager to do his work? Perhaps using it as a test to see how both the hospital and his staff coped with an unexpected arrival?
She wouldn't put it past him and realised the entire time she'd spent in his company had probably been her own test. She groaned quietly and shook her head. She should have been more professional instead of teasing him but... Stephanie shrugged, knowing there was nothing she could do about it now even if she wanted to. Besides, she was who she was and nothing was going to change that.
'Sophie.' Stephanie indicated the nurse at the desk. 'Meet Oliver Bowan, the new trauma unit director.'
Sophie held out her hand, smiling a welcome. 'Good to have you here.' She picked up a file. 'Are you officially on duty?'
'Need help?' he asked briskly, his face serious.
Sophie smiled. 'We're doing just fine tonight. Ah, here are two of my best nurses. Jade and Lauren.' As the two nurses headed across to the desk, Stephanie watched as Lauren, already holding Oliver's gaze, pulled her shoulders back, effectively thrusting out her chest. Sophie introduced them and Lauren encompassed his hand with both of hers, almost stroking his hand as he took a step back.
'Well, isn't this just wonderful?' Lauren crooned, giving Oliver her winning smile. 'With you and Stephen around, we have eye candy galore. Oh, no offence, Steph,' she added quickly. 'Can't blame a girl for looking.'
Stephanie smiled benignly. She didn't care whether or not Lauren looked at her twin brother because she knew Stephen was more than capable of holding his own. Besides, she also knew Stephen was very interested in her friend Nicolette. He was about to open his own general practice and Nicolette was going to help him. It wouldn't be long before both her brother and friend stopped fighting the natural attraction that existed between them.
Sophie and Jade headed off to see to their patients while Lauren worked hard to engage Oliver in conversation. He smiled nicely at the pretty nurse and Stephanie rolled her eyes and looked away. It appeared Oliver Bowan was going to have every female within a heartbeat falling for him. She couldn't stand that kind of man and where she'd felt a spark with him earlier, it was definitely starting to fizzle out now.
'So, who's this Stephen fellow?' Oliver asked Lauren.
'He's one of the doctors here. He saved Stephanie from a burning house and it was all very dramatic and heroic,' Lauren gushed, and then sighed romantically. 'All girls love that knight-in-shining-armour thing, don't we, Steph?'
'Mmm.' Stephanie grimaced, trying not to look at the two of them together. When the phone beside her rang, she snatched it up, glad to have something to do. 'A and E, Dr Brooks.'
'Stephanie, it's Nicolette. There's been an accident on the overpass at Medlow Bath. I've called it in but wanted the hospital to know Stephen and I are on the scene. We're going to need back-up, and soon.'
'What's the situation?' Stephanie reached for a pen and piece of paper.
'A coal truck hit a tourist bus, pushing the bus over the overpass wall. We saw it all. It happened right in front of us.'
'Oh, my goodness. Is Stephen all right? Are you?'
'We're fine. There was a loud noise but I'm not sure what it was. Kind of like a huge cracking sound, which rocked the area. Stephen's just gone to look. I'll call with more info as I get it. Just a second, Steph.'
Stephanie waited impatiently.
'Stephanie?' Oliver asked. 'What's going on?'
She looked at him, amazed he'd been able to drag himself away from Lauren's sparkling repart
ee. 'Accident in Medlow Bath. Just getting details now.' Nicolette came back on the line.
'Stephen said the train was just coming into the station when the bus went over. The train hit the coach and pushed it along the tracks into the station. I've got to go. Stephen and I both have our phones. Give me a call when you're close.'
'We're on our way.' Stephanie put the phone down and continued writing notes.
'Stephanie?' Oliver was waiting impatiently and she held up one finger for him to wait.
'Just let me get this down.' She finished writing and then stood. 'Lauren, get the trauma unit retrieval team together in the tearoom, stat. We need to move on this quickly.' The nurses headed off and Stephanie went to move as well, but Oliver barred her way.
'Aren't you forgetting something?' His tone was brisk and the way he looked at her was with mild disdain. What was his problem? First he was funny, then he was flirty with Lauren and now he was brisk.
'And that would be?'
'I'm in charge of this unit now.' His words were enough to make her see red.
'Oh, and I suppose you know our procedures?'
'I know what I intend to change.'
'You can do that tomorrow. Right now, we need to get organised. Do you even know where Medlow Bath is?'
'As a matter of fact, I do as I've studied a map of the area. I don't, however, know the way to the tearoom. If you'd be so kind as to lead the way...' Oliver trailed off, stepping back to let her pass.
'Thank you.' The words were clipped and as she strode off, he kept pace beside her.
'You're right, though. We'll start on implementing new procedures tomorrow. For tonight, introduce me to the staff, give the briefing and I'll take it from there. Although I don't know your procedures, I am highly qualified in trauma medicine. Is your Stephen?'
'Stephen?'
'I presume he's on the scene?'
'Yes.'
'I'm merely asking if he's trained enough to handle this situation.'
Stephanie was offended for both her brother and her friend. 'He and Nicolette have both worked in war zones. I'd say they're more than qualified to handle emergency trauma.'
