Baby Miracle In The Er. Sue MacKay
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be tucked into incubators with monitors attached to their tiny bodies while specialists worked their butts off to save them. Yet he suspected she still needed a shoulder to cry on, or a friend to walk it out with, talk it through with—except, being her, there probably wouldn’t be much talking.
What time did her shift finish?
Leave it alone. Stay uninvolved.
But he owed her. She’d been there for him when Jacob Brown had died in his hands. She’d listened without lecturing, she’d walked beside him as he dashed around the city for hours and had limped for days afterwards. She’d kissed him to the point when he didn’t know where he began and ended. She’d fallen into his bed as eagerly as he’d taken her there.
Definitely stay away.
It had been two years. She wouldn’t be the same woman. Must have another man in her life, in her bed by now.
Anger flared.
Down, boy. You have no rights here. You sent her packing.
If there was someone special he should be pleased. She’d be able to talk out what was bothering her tonight.
The anger only increased, and he felt his hands clenched at his sides, his abs drawn tight.
Go—ride over the bridge, head north for an hour. Turn off the brain. Then order pizza.
Man or no man in her life, Stephanie had family and friends here. He knew that much from the past. She’d be fine. Better off if it wasn’t him hanging around like a dog after a bone. He might make a mistake and touch her again. He still burned with the need to hug her that had floored him the moment he’d first seen her pressed up against the wall as though she could no longer hold herself together.
Hell. He had not given her what she needed. He’d let her go without a word. Without a hug. Without an honest-to-goodness Glad to see you and I want to help you smile. Just like last time.
Wise move for him.
Unkind and unfair on her.
STEPH SLIPPED INTO her jacket with a grateful sigh. The ambulance was restocked for the night crew. Six o’clock had clicked over on her watch. Definitely time to be someplace else.
Only that meant picking up something from the supermarket to take back to the house to heat and eat while watching the second instalment of the thriller she’d recorded last weekend.
A night on her own wasn’t appealing after the day she’d had. If only her brother and Jill weren’t away on their extended honeymoon she’d go and hassle them and talk about random stuff that had nothing to do with babies or Michael.
For a moment her mood lightened. She still struggled to get her head around her brother marrying her best friend. Their relationship was grounded in history and love. A lot of love.
Stepping outside, she gasped as cold, damp air dumped on her. The Italian summer she’d enjoyed last month seemed for ever ago. The zip on her jacket pinched her chin when she tugged it high. When had this drizzle started? It had been dry on their last call-out—but then it had been dark and she hadn’t been weather-watching.
‘Hi, Stephanie.’
Only one person called her Stephanie. Usually she didn’t like it, thought it too formal, but in that particular deep, husky voice it was more than okay. Or was that only because she was feeling so out of whack?
‘Michael.’
‘You’re done for the day?’
‘Yes, thank goodness.’
The need to be busy had long disappeared, leaving her drained and despondent. Glancing around the car park she saw him standing at the open driver’s door of a shiny hatchback—nothing like what she’d expected him to be driving. Too domestic. Did he still own a motorbike?
‘It’s been a long day.’
That was telling him too much. From deep inside, she dredged up a smile, denied the tightness those long legs and toned thighs filling his jeans created in her toes.
‘Have you been loitering around the ambulance station?’
‘Yep.’ He grinned cheekily. ‘I tried walking in but this place is like a fort.’
‘We can’t let in just anyone—especially doctors with nothing better to do with their time.’
What was Michael doing here? Surely he hadn’t stopped by to say hello to her?
‘Not sure if you know, but those babies are hanging in there, doing as well as can be expected. I phoned PICU as I was leaving for the day.’
He’d come to tell her that? Seriously? Mr Non-Involved had found out the most important news for her.
‘No one would tell me a thing because I’m not related. I was desperate to know how they were doing.’ Careful. ‘That’s fantastic.’ Definitely better than the alternative.
‘There are some advantages with my position.’
His grin was now a soft smile, winding around her like a cloud of kindness.
‘Want some company for a bit? Talk some? Up to you.’
Amazement stopped her feet from moving forward, stalled her brain. He’d offered that to the woman he’d once told he didn’t want anything more to do with outside of work? The man was still single. Or so she’d heard from one of the ED nurses. Not that she’d been asking...
Come on. He’s hot, popular and fun. There’s single, and then there’s single with a woman on his arm.
There’d always been a queue of women waiting for his attention. Gorgeous young women who could have babies. Not a thirty-two-year-old with a chip on her shoulder bigger than the crater on Mount Ruapehu, who hadn’t been able to conceive with her ex no matter how often they’d tried.
You promised to leave all this behind and start over when you returned home. One bad day doesn’t give you reason to go back on that.
Yeah, yeah.
‘I’ll take a rain-check.’
Wimp.
‘I need to get out of my uniform, then eat something.’ Now that her stomach had settled down to normal it was hinting that grub would be good.
‘If food’s what you’re wanting it’s pizza night.’
He wasn’t begging, nor pushing too hard. He was saying she was welcome to share a meal if she wanted. And talk if she needed.
That was not happening.
‘Pizza night? Because it’s Monday?’
Michael nodded and gave a wry smile. ‘Tuesday’s Thai.’
Steph couldn’t help it. She laughed. So much for keeping her distance. ‘Cooking not your thing?’
‘Always seems a bit pointless when it’s only for me.’
‘I can relate to that.’ Definitely still single.
He locked his eyes on her. ‘Well? Join me? You can jump in and I’ll call you a cab when you’re ready to go home.’
She hesitated. It was so tempting.
Oh, get real. You came home to face up to Michael, work him out of your system once and for ever. So start now.
While one half of her brain was raving the other side thought spending some downtime with this man might not be the wisest