‘I’m a great catch.’
‘I can think of lots of catches to hanging around with you. Not interested. Sorry.’
He lowered his voice and leant towards her. ‘That’s why I enjoy being with you.’
Eliza looked over her shoulder but nobody stood near. That was all she needed—a rumour like that. ‘Don’t even joke about it.’
October had started warm and grew warmer—as did the rapport between Jack and Eliza. By the fourth of the month the weather was scorching. On the wards the heat was the favourite topic. The elderly were starting to worry about the approaching summer temperatures.
When the first pall of bushfire smoke rose in the hills, most of the patients made their way to the hospital veranda to shake their collective heads and predict disaster.
‘The worst I’ve seen was back in fifty-six,’ Keith sighed as he remembered. ‘Four lives were lost, two of Jack’s uncles and their sons. A whole branch of the family wiped out when they were caught by a wind shift up the wrong end of the gully.’
Joe was in, visiting, and he nodded. ‘I wasn’t born then but I remember my father talking about it.’
‘We’ve a good man in charge now.’ Joe turned to Eliza.
Eliza blinked as she squashed the images of her father and her own brush with death. She hated bushfire season and had sworn she’d never put herself at risk there again. The city, or at least where she lived, didn’t have bushfires . Another reason she shouldn’t have come to Bellbrook.
‘Matron Mary’s husband is the fire chief,’ Joe went on. ‘Mick’s had a lot of experience. He flies all over the state as an advisor. He was some big fire chief in the navy.’
By lunchtime the call had gone out for all available men to present to the brigade hall because the wind was pushing the flames down the hills towards the town.
Mary arrived at the hospital, ostensibly because she didn’t want to be out at her house alone but really to help Eliza as the first of the minor casualties began to trickle in.
The radio was on in the background in every room and Eliza couldn’t escape the updates. ‘Thousands of acres lost, cattle dead, shedding and fences lost, but no homes yet.’
‘No lives lost, thank goodness.’ Keith repeated what was on all their minds.
The outpatient bell rang again as Eliza fixed the nebuliser to the face of their second asthma sufferer and Eliza smiled at Mary hovering beside her.
‘You knew it would be like this, didn’t you?’
Mary nodded. ‘I thought it might. I’ll go and see this next one, shall I?’
‘Thank you.’ Eliza couldn’t leave the young girl she was with until she was sure the bronchodilator was going to work, and she suspected Mary was itching to have her hand in. Eliza just hoped Jack wouldn’t blame her for Mary’s reappearance.
Eliza knew Jack had been called to a house out of town for a middle-aged woman found unconscious by her distant neighbour, and he had to wait for the ambulance to arrive.
The day grew even hotter and a steady stream of elderly citizens arrived to help the residents make sandwiches in the main dining room for the firefighters. All of the volunteers sighed as they entered the air-conditioned coolness of the hospital.
When Jack arrived, Mary had finally been persuaded to lie down in the office on a folding bed. She’d only succumbed to Eliza’s hourly imploring because of the doctor’s imminent arrival.
When Jack walked in, order ruled alongside Eliza with all beds full with those she hadn’t wanted to discharge home without seeing Jack.
He threw his car keys on the desk. ‘Been busy while I was away?’
‘Slightly. We’ve three asthmatic children exacerbated by the smoke, two minor burns, an infant who had a febrile convulsion and one suspected broken wrist from a pushbike altercation with a panicked kangaroo.’
‘Good old Bellbrook,’ he said with a grin. ‘I’ll bet Mary is livid she’s missing this.’
Eliza met his eyes reluctantly. ‘She hasn’t missed much. She’s been here hands on for most of the morning but I’ve persuaded her she needs a rest and she’s lying down in the office.’
Eliza waited for the explosion but when she met his eyes Jack was staring down at her quizzically.
‘Were you worried I was going to blame you for Mary being here?’
So he could read minds. ‘I wondered.’
‘Mary is her own boss—which incidentally is why she makes such a good matron. The downside is she’s hard to keep at rest when you want her to. I have great confidence you will prevent her from doing anything silly. Am I right?’
‘I should hope so.’ Eliza felt as though she’d been given a reprieve, which was ridiculous.
Jack seemed to think everything was normal. ‘Let’s clear the beds, then, shall we?’
They set to and within the hour all the patients had been seen, Eliza’s initial diagnoses and treatment confirmed and sent on their way. Most would come back tomorrow for review and/or dressing of the burns, and the fractured wrist was off to Armidale for X-rays.
‘You’ve done well, Eliza.’
She glowed from those few words even though she warned herself she was a fool. ‘Thank you, Jack. Mary helped.’
‘And the responsibility was with you.’ He sat down at the nurses’ station. ‘Now, the patient I’ve been with, Dulcie Gardner, is fifty-four and has been transported to Armidale with a mild left-sided stroke. Her condition and prognosis are good with only a little left-sided weakness and slurring of speech. After she is assessed by a neurologist, I’m hoping they’ll allow her to convalesce here. One of my distant cousins is an occupational therapist on maternity leave and she’ll come in and monitor her progress for the next few weeks. How do you feel about admitting someone long term and initially labour intensive at this time?’
Of course it wasn’t a problem. ‘Fine.’
He smiled and she wondered just how many times he’d got his own way with that strategy. ‘I was hoping you’d say that. But there’s more.’
‘That serves me right for being eager to please. You sound like one of those television commercials. And what would the “more” be?’
His dark eyes twinkled at her. ‘Are you feeling eager to please?’
‘Don’t push your luck, Dr Dancer.’
He seemed reluctant to start on his next request but finally got around to it. ‘I wondered if you’d consider moving into Dulcie’s house temporarily? I know it seems bizarre, but it’s a lovely little cottage and it even has a creek. The main problem is Dulcie’s menagerie.’
Eliza’s eye’s widened at the unexpected request but Jack went on.
‘The animals in her back yard need feeding twice a day. She’s also one of the few people in Bellbrook not related to anyone else, so I can’t pull a cousin from somewhere to take over her pets. She has a daughter in Sydney somewhere but they don’t talk. It was one of the things Dulcie spoke about before the ambulance came.’
Jack was talking about a house, almost a farm, with animals, to look after on her own? She wasn’t sure if she was scared or excited at the thought which surprised her more. ‘Why me?’
‘Because you’re here for the next six weeks or so and she’ll probably be in hospital for some of that time at least. I know you hate your bed at the pub and you said you wanted a hide-away.’
He had it all figured out and the pub was driving Eliza batty with the noise on the weekends. It did sound peaceful. ‘When did you want me to start?’
He sighed with relief. ‘That’s great. What about tomorrow afternoon, if you could? The neighbours will sort the animals in the morning. I fed them while I was there this afternoon and all should be fine overnight. There’s a donkey, some rabbits and a few hens, as well as a goat or two. I think the cat and dog have enough dry food to last them until tomorrow as well.’
‘Good grief! You weren’t joking about a menagerie. What makes you think I could handle all those?’
His dark eyes crinkled. ‘A farm gi
rl like you? No problem.’
He’d certainly been listening while she’d babbled on that night. Eliza narrowed her eyes. ‘And why can’t you move in and mind the animals?’
‘I have my own dependants and you’re one of the few people in town without commitments.’ He lowered his voice. ‘Dulcie has a real feather bed in her guest room. You’d probably sleep like a baby in that.’
On Tuesday afternoon Eliza packed her few belongings at the Bellbrook Inn and transferred them to Dulcie’s tiny cottage five kilometres out of town. It was a dream of a place with a white picket fence, a moon gate above the driveway and a multitude of flowering shrubs.
Jack followed her out in his car to show her where the feed was and introduce her to Dulcie’s animals.
A large cross-cattle dog with mournful eyes and a pretty face licked Eliza’s hand as she climbed out of her car.
‘Did you send word ahead I was the hand that feeds, Dr Dancer?’
Jack laughed and stepped out of his four-wheel-drive. ‘Roxy loves everyone. Not your most reliable watchdog but she did run two kilometres to the neighbours to tell them her mistress was sick.’
That was it for Eliza. ‘You clever thing.’ She crouched down and hugged the dog, who quite happily licked her face. Eliza pushed her away, laughing. ‘I may think you are a hero, Roxy, but don’t lick me! I’m here to see everyone. Lead on, sir.’
Jack gestured grandly with his arm. ‘Poco, the donkey, is easy as long as you keep the water up to him. The goats graze fairly well, too, and I believe Dulcie divided the scraps between the rabbits and the hens. Goodness knows where the cat is, but I’m sure she will turn up for dinnertime.’
Eliza darted backwards and forwards, peering at animals and doling out food. He smiled at her enthusiasm and Eliza smiled back. She couldn’t remember when she’d felt this euphoric despite all the responsibility. Maybe she had missed living in the country.
‘When Dulcie comes back from Armidale tomorrow, you’ll be able to reassure her so she’ll rest more easily.’
Eliza looked at Jack standing there with a grin on his face, as if he didn’t have the weight of the town on his shoulders. He was oblivious of the fact that not many doctors would be concerned enough about a patient and her pets to give up a little of the precious free time he had to settle someone in to look after them.
Lately she’d wondered if the town took Jack just a little for granted. ‘I know you’ve put this on me and in the end I’m the one carting water, but it is nice you care, Jack. You’re not a bad man.’
He raised his eyebrows mockingly. ‘As far as men go, eh?’
Eliza inclined her head. ‘As you say.’
‘Well, as you said, you’ll be the one carrying water. I think you’re a champ to take them on.’ He glanced around. ‘Are you happy with the isolation? I’d forgotten how quiet it is out here. You’re not worried about the fires, are you? It’s a very clean farm, and the grass in the paddocks is short up to the house.’
Eliza glanced at the mountain behind her and the lushness of the forest that came down to the back boundary in front of the creek. The front paddock had been recently slashed and there was no debris around the house to be a fire hazard. She shrugged. ‘It’s wonderful. I’m fine. Dad’s farm was much more remote.’
Jack nodded. The tension between them slowly built, which was a shame as it had been so easy earlier. Please, don’t say anything, Eliza mentally implored Jack as she willed him to go.
‘I’ll see you tomorrow, then.’ Jack paused and looked at her for a moment as if he were going to say something else.
Finally he waved. ‘Goodnight, Eliza.’
‘Goodnight Jack.’ She sighed with relief as she watched him drive away, and she couldn’t think of a negative thing about him. ‘You’d better watch your heart, Eliza May, or you’ll be crying in your soup in another month or two.’
She turned to the animals—ten pairs of eyes staring at her with expectation.
‘We are going to have fun, people.’
CHAPTER FIVE
WEDNESDAY morning, Eliza was running late. She’d slept on a cloud with Dulcie’s featherbed and had woken after six. Then it had taken twice as long to feed everyone because the donkey had stubbornly refused to move away from the gate so that she’d had to keep climbing over the fence with the three buckets of water.
‘Typical domineering male,’ Eliza muttered as she poured water in the final trough.
On the way back to the house she remembered the eggs, and by the time she’d watered the hens and collected the eggs it was after seven o’clock.
‘I’m sorry I’m late,’ she said to Rhonda and Vivian as she hurried in.
Rhonda just smiled. ‘Dr Jack rang and said you might be.’
‘Oh he did, did he?’ Smart Alec.
‘Only a little, he said, honest.’ Rhonda played down Jack’s disloyalty.
Eliza took pity on the night sister’s horror that she’d caused a problem for Jack. ‘I’ll start the animals earlier tomorrow.’ She glanced around. ‘So how is everybody?’
As Rhonda finished handover report and left, Jack arrived.
Eliza looked happy and relaxed and he shelved his disquiet that he’d bulldozed her into minding Dulcie’s animals. Matching Dulcie’s need and Eliza’s experience on her father’s farm and her soft heart—the idea had been too good not to act on. But he’d worried she might be upset by the remoteness.
‘Good morning, Eliza. Good morning, Vivian.’
Eliza smiled at him and he could feel the vibration right down to his toes. Hell’s bells. She’d always had this effect on him but lately it felt as though he was building up a lethal level of exposure to her.
She was smiling cheekily at him and the sun came out. ‘Good morning, Doctor. You’re early. Were you hoping to beat me here?’
He felt the width of his own smile and control was harder than he wished. This was way outside his comfort zone and he wondered when his awareness of her had crept up to this level. ‘So how did it go with your new extended family?’
He’d tossed and turned most of the night because he’d worried she’d be a little nervous. And then there’d been the feather-bed fantasies.
Eliza was waxing lyrical about her new residence. ‘I love it out there. Though I’ve learnt the meaning of ‘as stubborn as a donkey’, but apart from Poco, everything went well.’
Their eyes met and the warmth in hers, even though it originated from a donkey and not from him, was a lovely way for him to start the day. But start the day he must. And drag himself away he’d better.
‘What time do you think Dulcie will be transferred back?’ Eliza queried as she picked up the patient notes.
Eliza had asked him a question—he really needed to concentrate. ‘Some time before lunch, I imagine.’ He couldn’t remember being this scatterbrained when he’d first met Lydia, who was the only yardstick he had. Though, of course, these feelings were nothing like those when he’d fallen for Lydia.
‘Well, Vivian and I will finish the rest of our work before she arrives.’
The two of them walked down to see Keith, while Vivian sped off to ensure the seniors were up for breakfast, and Jack remembered the first time he’d strode down the corridor with Eliza. Had it only been a couple of weeks ago?
Jack shrugged off his strangely obsessive behaviour and turned to look at Keith. The old man appeared much more himself and Eliza pulled the curtains.
Jack cleared his throat as if to start his day afresh. ‘So you’re almost ready for home, too, Keith?’
He could feel Eliza’s surprise beside him but she followed his lead.
‘If I take the dressing down now, you can see how much the wound has improved,’ she said.
Jack nodded and Keith slid down his pillows to let Eliza at the tape.
Keith couldn’t believe his luck. ‘Are we talking soon, Doc? My dog will have forgotten what I look like.’
‘No way Ben could do that.’ He peered at
the now exposed wound. ‘That looks great, Keith. If you’ll come in and see me in two days at the surgery, I reckon you can go home today, too. You’re to come back here if the fires come close to home. And you can bring your dog. I’m sure we can find somewhere to tie Ben up if we need to.’
The old man’s face creased with delight. ‘You beauty.’
Jack smiled. ‘Your old truck has been waiting in the hospital car park for a few weeks now. I hope it starts.’
Keith swung his legs out of the bed. ‘A little thing like that won’t stop me.’
As they walked back to the desk, Eliza beamed beside him. She genuinely cared about his patients. ‘It’s a pleasure to see how keen Keith is to go home. I didn’t expect he’d be allowed to go—nor did he.’
Jack’s face was serious. ‘I’ve been out to see Mary’s husband, Mick. He seems to think we’re in for a bad run with the fires over the next few days. I thought it better that Keith got home to see things were right before it was too late.’
Eliza felt the dread in her stomach. ‘What about Dulcie’s farm?’
‘I asked about that and Mick said the main risk is going the other way. The creek is a good break for Dulcie’s too, but Mick will keep it under surveillance.’ He glanced around at the quiet hallway. ‘I think you’re going to need all your hospital beds before we’re through.’
‘What about Mary’s pregnancy? She only has ten days to go.’
At least Eliza understood. He was having an uphill battle getting through to Mary. ‘That’s the reason I was out at the McGuiness farm.’ He ran his fingers through his hair. ‘I want her in Armidale, at least until after the baby is born. I’m not that sure of her due date because she wouldn’t go for a scan. Has some aversion to ultrasounds. So I hope this baby is fine. But if things get worse she’s better here than home alone. We’ll just have to keep her sitting down as a triage nurse or something.’
‘I’ll watch her.’
‘I know you will.’ He glanced at his watch. Eliza was good in the common-sense department and a couple of other departments he wished he had more time for. ‘I’ll scoot off and start surgery. I might even have my secretary double up the appointments so I can finish early. I’m not usually superstitious but I have a bad feeling about today.’
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