LITMIR.BIZ

       CHAPTER TWO

      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 thing to do. Especially tonight, when her emotions were already ragged.

      ‘My car’s right here.’

      The sporty little number had been her big indulgence the day she’d arrived back in town. All part of the statement she’d made about settling down for good. Every time she climbed into the car it was a reminder of that. Some days it made her happy. Today she wasn’t so sure she’d done the right thing.

      ‘Then follow me.’

      She hadn’t forgotten where he lived. How could she with all those memories of what they’d got up to in his house?

      Opening his car door, he paused. ‘I’m not going to pressure you into talking about something you’d prefer not to, Stephanie. Chilling out after something that obviously upset you today could be cathartic. That’s all.’

      He was offering to do for her what she’d done for him when he’d been cut up over losing that little boy. Her chest squeezed painfully. Why not? He would do that for anyone, because he knew what they’d be feeling, thinking, wanting.

       Anyone, Steph, not just you.

      Which was why she answered with, ‘I’ll be right behind you.’

      She could always take a wrong turn if she changed her mind

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