Return of the Maverick
Sue MacKay

www.millsandboon.co.uk

Table of Contents

Cover

Title Page

About the Author

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Copyright

Dear Reader

At the top of New Zealand’s South Island is Blenheim, set in a beautiful area with vineyards for as far as you can see and then some. The Wither Hills make a stunning backdrop, and the waters of the Wairau River seem to change colour depending on the season.

It is the perfect place for Erin and Brad to meet and fall in love. If only life was that easy. Both have painful pasts to deal with before they can find happiness. When Brad is forced back home he dreads facing his past, but being thrown into working with Erin leaves him no room for running away again.

I apologise to Lucky, the cat, for the role I have given her in this story. In real life she would never have done such a thing. I am thrilled to have finished this, my third Medical™ Romance. I hope you enjoy reading Brad and Erin’s story.

Cheers!

Sue MacKay

www.suemackay.co.nz

About the Author

With a background working in medical laboratories, and a love of the romance genre, it is no surprise that SUE MACKAY writes Medical™ Romance stories. An avid reader all her life, she wrote her first story at age eight—about a prince, of course. She lives with her husband in beautiful Marlborough Sounds, at the top of New Zealand’s South Island, where she can indulge her passions for the outdoors, the sea and cycling. She is currently training as a volunteer ambulance officer.

Dedicated to the girlfriends—Faye, Fay, Jill & Jen.

For the wine and coffees, laughter and tears,

and your amazing support 2010/11.

CHAPTER ONE

‘WHAT time did you set out biking this morning?’ the woman behind the counter asked as she totted up how much Erin Foley owed for her groceries.

‘Six.’ Erin rolled her shoulders, the muscles tight from bending over the handlebars. Her body felt warm, taut, fit. A hot shower would cap off a great ride and prepare her for the day ahead at the medical centre.

Savita shook her head. ‘You’re nuts. Sane people are still in bed at that hour.’

Erin grinned. ‘You were here when I went past on my way out.’ Scooping up the milk and pot of margarine, she pushed them into her backpack. Glancing at her watch, she scowled. ‘First day back from my holidays and I’m going to be late for work.’ First day working with the new GP. However temporary he was, he probably wouldn’t be impressed with her tardiness.

Not unless he was also a cyclist, and understood the need to train for mountain bike challenges. But she already knew he rode a Harley rather than pedalling an Avanti. Did he ride his motorbike to work? Take it on house calls? That would have the patients talking. Less chance of being late with a Harley too.

Savita laughed. ‘You caught me out. I got here just after five-thirty.’

‘And you think I’m nuts? See you tomorrow.’ Erin grabbed her bread, spun around and ran slap bang into someone standing right behind her. The loaf of bread fell from her fingers as she strove to keep her balance. Her other hand slapped against hard chest muscle.

Large hands gripped her upper arms. ‘Easy,’ growled a deep voice from somewhere above her head.

Erin instantly stepped back against the counter, trying to ignore the broad chest filling her sight. The stranger dropped his hands immediately. Shifting sideways, she tried to manoeuvre around him, but he moved at the same moment in the same direction. Briefly they danced around each other, trying to pass, until Erin stopped. ‘Your move.’

She flipped her head back to say more and blinked. Not because of the harsh summer sunlight streaming through the door, although with the morning temperature already in the mid-twenties that was glaring enough. No. It was the man standing right in front of her who’d taken her breath away.

The strikingly big man.

His white cotton shirt contrasted with the tanned skin of his throat, and was tucked into casual navy-blue trousers that fitted his hips and thighs to perfection. Her lungs squeezed, tried to take in air as he reached down to pick up her dropped loaf.

‘Your bread.’ Amusement laced that bass tone.

‘Thank you.’ Snatching the plastic-wrapped loaf from his extended hand, she shoved it into her backpack before slinging it over her shoulders, determined not to stare. But she failed. Noted how his arms now folded over his chest accentuated everything underneath that shirt. Lots of well-honed muscles pushed out the crisp fabric.

Erin swallowed with difficulty. Forced herself to look away. Unfortunately her gaze dropped, down to those thighs. Dear heaven. A sharp ache snagged her bottom lip where her teeth bit in. Sweat trickled down between her shoulder blades. Her fingers shook so that she had trouble getting the two ends of the pack’s straps to click together across her abdomen.

Men were not supposed to look like this. Good enough to eat. More than good enough to want go to bed with.

You don’t know who he is. And you want to sleep with him?

She blinked again, trying to blot out the image of him sprawled across her king-size bed. As if that worked. It would take more strength than she possessed to mentally delete that picture. Giving in to temptation, she continued her downward perusal. Big feet.

Another swallow.

If she turned back to Savita and tried leaving again, would she find he’d been a figment of her imagination? An illusion brought on by a drought of close contact with the male species?

She had dated a few times over the previous year, to test the water and expel some of the loneliness that dogged her. But even now that her guilt about her husband, Jonathon, had started ebbing away there was still the fear of losing her carefully gained control over her life. That tended to deter her from any serious relationship she might be interested in starting. The need to be in charge of her life was a big part of why she’d left the army two years ago; why she’d moved to the South Island and Blenheim rather than return to Auckland where she’d done her nursing degree; why she’d bought her very own house and planted a garden.

‘You said something about being late.’ The man’s voice matched his body. Big. Toned. Sexy.

‘Yes, I am,’ she answered. And getting later by the minute. But her feet were still anchored to the floor. A tremor ran through her. If she couldn’t move because of her knee-weakening attraction to this man, then she was in serious trouble. When was the last time she’d ever felt as though her skin was crackling because of a man? That had never happened. Not once. Not even Jonathon had managed to have that effect on her.

He was handing money to Savita for a newspaper, but watching her. ‘Do you usually go for long rides before work?’

Tugging her spine straight and her shoulders back, Erin looked directly up at his face. Sunglasses covered his eyes. But goose-bumps still lifted on her arms. His sun-bleached blond hair touched his shoulders. A scar ran from his bottom lip to his chin. His strong jaw line jutted challengingly. She could almost feel that mouth on her feverish skin.

She stammered an answer, ‘I—I’m training for a b-bike challenge that goes over a mountain pass down into Hanmer Springs.’

‘Sounds like hard work to me.’ He grinned at her, sending her stomach into a riot of spasms.

‘I enjoy it.’ She would not grab the counter for support. He’d notice and she didn’t want him to see how easily he’d rattled her. It was a senseless overreaction. He was a stranger and likely to stay that way. She’d never seen him anywhere around Blenheim, a small town where he’d have been noticed the moment he stepped outside his front door. And not just by her. He was a man that every female alive would notice. And would want. But for her he was out of bounds. Even a brief fling would mean giving up some of that control she valued so much. Damn it, she could already feel it slipping away and she’d been in his presence less than five minutes.

She headed outside and reached for her bike. He followed, the newspaper tucked under his arm. When she swung her leg over the seat his eyes tracked the movement, raising her heart beat to a ridiculously high rate for an extremely fit thirty-year-old. Keep this up and she’d fall off before she’d even got to the road. ‘I might see you around,’ she muttered, but didn’t pull out onto the bitumen.

Why was she making conversation with him? She didn’t know his name. And she didn’t need these strong and alien feelings of desire he’d switched on in her. A man like this would wake up the dead with his sexual allure, and she was only emotionally paralysed. She certainly didn’t want to grapple with the overwhelming guilt and pain of the past again.

But she couldn’t deny the bone-melting desire he’d turned on as easily as flicking a light switch. Her blood already hummed through her veins, sending tendrils of heat down to her toes, out to her fingers.

‘We could meet for a drink.’ His eyes lanced her, the warm colour of creamy fudge.

From somewhere deep inside Erin dredged up a reply. ‘Thanks, but I don’t think so.’ Not what her hormones were telling her, but what the sane and sensible side of her brain deemed was in her best interests.

‘Really?’ he drawled. He stood next to her, dwarfing her, which at five-eight wasn’t something she was used to.

Had he seen through her precarious self-control? ‘I really need to get going. I’ll be more than just a few minutes late for work now.’ She didn’t wait for his reply, instead pushed hard on the pedals and cycled down the footpath until a gap in the traffic allowed her onto the road.

But while she might be outwardly casually dismissing this guy, she wasn’t fooling herself. He was hot. And her body reacted to him like kittens to a saucer of milk. She wanted him.

She wasn’t having him.

Besides, right now she should be at home preparing for work and her first meeting with the man she’d once told in no uncertain terms over the phone that he was letting down someone very dear to her. The man who had started work at the medical centre last week while she’d been on holiday and whom she had to get on with if she was to keep the job that gave her so much satisfaction.

But who was that guy back at the shop?

Brad Perano knew he should’ve turned away the moment he saw her slide off the bike and straighten up. As she strode into the store her long legs had immediately snagged his attention. The attraction had been instant. He’d followed her without thinking about what he was doing. Who knew which paper he’d bought? He’d just grabbed blindly.

Next she’d be having him up on charges for stalking her if he wasn’t careful. Really? his brain taunted him as he watched her pedal away. She’d been interested in him too. He’d seen it in her widening eyes, in the way her teeth had bitten into her lip, in the dazed expression she’d worn as she’d tried to buckle that strap.

But she’d had more sense than him. She’d said no to his reckless suggestion of a drink together. He owed her for that. But he was flummoxed that he’d even asked the woman out when he’d vowed never to get close to any female again. Hadn’t he learned the lessons dearest Penelope had taught him so well? The one and only time he’d allowed himself to be vulnerable, his wife had gobbled him up like a hungry dog and spewed out the resulting mess years later.

The bright red helmet the woman wore was easy to follow as she weaved her way through the busy morning traffic. Then she turned a corner and he lost sight of her. Which was just as well. He’d intended getting to the clinic early to familiarise himself with the day’s patients. He didn’t like treating people without knowing their medical history thoroughly. He’d known some of these people when he’d lived here in New Zealand’s beautiful Marlborough district as a child; gone to school with them, partied, played rugby. Real friends he’d dumped on and left in the lurch.

To patients in a small community their doctor was a part of their lives. Now he had to get to know them all over again and hope they were willing to give him a second chance. Then there was the added humiliation of Penelope’s perfidy after she’d flaunted her extravagant lifestyle in their faces years ago. Would they treat him kindly? Or was he always going to be paying for his misspent youth and his crazy marriage?

Car tyres squealed. The sound came from the direction the woman had ridden. More screeches rent the air as other drivers slammed on brakes. A scream chilled Brad’s blood. Had she been hit? Car versus cyclist did not bode well. He’d seen that kind of accident all too often in Adelaide where he’d been living and working for the last three years. The cyclists always came off worst.

He ran.

As he turned the corner he saw a mangled bike lying in the middle of the road. Three people gathered around a body lying twisted in the wreckage. A bright red helmet caught his focus. And the breath he’d been holding eased out over his lips. The woman was kneeling beside a young child, her fingers on his wrist.

She was all right. The relief was immense and surprising. Even as he made his way to her side and knelt down he was questioning why he felt so charged around her.

She looked up, and her eyes widened as they had at the store. ‘I’ve called the ambulance but I don’t suppose by any chance you might be a doctor?’

‘It’s your lucky day. I am.’ He felt good to be able to say that, giving her what she wanted right at this moment.

‘Lucky day for the boy, not me. I didn’t really think I had a chance of my wish being granted.’ She turned to the child and concentrated on finding a pulse.

Oh, well, okay. She was thinking about the patient, which was exactly what he should be doing. Once again she’d distracted him. ‘How’s that pulse?’

‘It’s racing.’ She ran her free hand over the boy’s torso. ‘Hey, little man, can you hear me? I’m a nurse and I’m checking you over, okay?’ She got no answer.

A racing pulse indicated shock. Not surprising considering that the boy seemed to have been knocked off his bike by a small van. Brad studied the scene, noting the bike’s back wheel wrapped around the child’s leg, an arm lying at an odd angle indicating a fracture, and blood streaming from his forehead. He appeared unconscious. Brad delicately felt the young boy’s head for trauma injuries.

He turned to the nurse. ‘There’s a major contusion on the right-hand side of the head.’ Brain injury was a serious consideration.

‘Can we remove the bike without moving him?’ she asked.

‘You’re thinking of spinal injuries.’ He studied the way the boy’s foot was through the spokes. ‘We could but it’s best we wait for the paramedics so they can put a collar on first.’

They worked together, quickly and carefully, checking the boy thoroughly. Within moments an ambulance pulled up and a paramedic was with them. ‘Hey, what’ve we got?’

Brad quickly explained the injuries he’d noted while the paramedic applied a plastic collar, his gaze returning to the boy. Blond hair was plastered to the boy’s scalp. Brad’s belly suddenly clenched. The young innocent face, now very pale, dredged up a memory from deep in Brad’s soul.

Raw pain sliced through him, wrenched his heart. ‘Sammy.’ The name tore through him, spilled over his tongue, out into the street. ‘Sammy.’

His beloved boy hurting, his body broken, not moving at all. Sammy could be dying. He could have a serious brain injury. And his father couldn’t help him.

The nurse had a hand on his wrist, shaking him, talking to him in a calm voice. ‘Doctor, this is Jason Curtis. He lives just along the road.’

‘What?’ Brad dragged his gaze from the lad and turned to stare into the sincerest, deepest blue eyes he’d ever seen. The woman was telling him something important. He shook his head in an attempt to clear away the fog, and listened carefully.

‘Jason Curtis. His father works at the building centre.’ She dropped his wrist.

‘Not Sammy?’ Not his son? Hope flared. Brad looked back at the boy lying before him, and gulped. He looked nothing like Samuel. Except for the blond hair, the skinny legs and knobbly knees. Brad’s head spun. Damn it, he’d just made an idiot of himself freaking out like that. How could it be Samuel anyway? He was far away in California. The pain subsided, and Brad leaned down to run the back of his hand over the boy’s soft cheek, his fingers shaking.

Not his son, but another man would be feeling this agony as soon as he learned about the accident. What did these medical people think of him losing his cool like that? They’d probably cart him off to the lock up if he wasn’t careful. He looked around at the thinning crowd. At least no one here seemed to have recognised him. Thank goodness. He didn’t want his mistake added to the rest of the gossip no doubt circulating around Blenheim about him. Twisting his neck further, he found the nurse’s thoughtful gaze on him. She’d heard every word he’d uttered.

She gave him a tentative smile before filling in the patient report form for the ambulance crew. ‘Jason’s mum works in ED.’

The second officer leaned over and read the boy’s name. He whistled. ‘This is Polly’s boy? She’s already on shift.’

Glad of the distraction, Brad said, ‘Tricky. What happens when you call this job through to ED? It could be her who picks up the radio link.’ He felt for the woman. ‘Is there any other way of letting the staff know so they can tell her personally?’

‘We’ll phone in on our cell,’ one of the medics answered as he strapped the oxygen mask to Jason. ‘Right, let’s get that bike off and roll this lad onto the backboard.’

The four of them worked to get Jason safely untangled before transferring him to the stretcher and into the ambulance.

Brad turned to the nurse now standing beside him. ‘Phew, I’m glad that’s over. I always feel uncomfortable dealing with these situations when I’ve got no equipment at hand.’

‘I know exactly what you mean.’ Her teeth dug into her bottom lip. ‘And poor Polly’s going to get a shock, even if she is told before Jason gets there.’ She looked up at him and he could see the thought in her eyes.

A shock such as he’d just had.

Stepping up to the back of the ambulance, the woman advised the paramedic, ‘Tell Polly I’ve gone round to tell Jason’s father, will you?’

The paramedic began closing the back of the ambulance. ‘Sure will. And thanks for your help, Erin. I wish you’d come and join us. You’d make a great team member and we could use your skills.’

Brad gasped. Erin? As in Erin Foley, nurse at the medical centre he’d started working at? What would she have to say about his loss of concentration back there? If she informed the staff at the centre about it they might think they had more cause to look at him sideways.

But right now she was saying with an expressive shrug, ‘Who knows? If my new boss doesn’t work out, I might have to consider it.’

Still absorbing this latest bombshell, Brad muttered, ‘You’ve got doubts about a new boss before you’ve even worked with him?’ Why? Could she be feeling remorse for the tongue-lashing she’d given him over the phone last month despite not knowing him?

Erin blinked at him. ‘Ah, yes, I have.’ Turning her shoulder to him, she spoke to the paramedic again.

Of course she’d think it was none of Brad’s business. He should tell her who he was, get whatever was bothering her out in the open before clinic began. But, damn it, this was the woman who’d forced his hand, made him jump on a plane and cross the Tasman to help out the man who’d taken care of him years ago. If not for Erin Foley’s caustic phone call he’d still be justifying staying in Adelaide, pretending it was work that kept him there, not reluctance to face a town full of people who’d despised him for being a bad boy as a teenager. People who were no doubt laughing up their sleeves at his failed marriage, thinking he’d got his just deserts for believing he could escape his roots and rubbing their noses in it as he went. He shivered. And he couldn’t bear if they started in on Samuel.

The laughter about his mistakes and misdemeanours he could handle, but if anyone dared say a word about Samuel’s parentage he wouldn’t be able to hold in his hurt and anger.

A nudge in the arm from Erin’s elbow brought him back to his surroundings. She asked politely, ‘Are you okay? You look a bit pale.’

Pale? ‘I’m fine.’ He opened his clenched hands. ‘You want me to come with you to tell the boy’s father?’

‘No, thanks. I know them well.’

And he was a stranger. In her eyes, at least. There was a very real chance he’d know one of Jason’s parents, might’ve gone to school with one of them, so it was best he didn’t go with Erin to see Jason’s father. Brad didn’t want the past getting in the way of what she had to tell the other man. ‘Fair enough. Though someone else might’ve already beaten you to the door.’

‘Very likely but I need to make sure. I’d say Jason was on his way to school when he was hit by the van.’ She stretched her legs and looked around the crowd, nodded at a few people she obviously knew.

Of course she knew them. Some of them might even be patients at the medical centre where he now worked. Where she worked. He was her boss and he was interested in her other than as a nurse. That had to stop right now. This very instant. It wasn’t professional.

Only last week when he’d started at the clinic he’d had to hold his tongue when everyone had told him about the competent and cheerful nurse who had gone on leave the same day he’d started. He’d known the acid of her tongue over the phone, but nothing else about her. He’d expected a middle-aged paragon who was efficiency personified. No one had told him she was drop-dead gorgeous, and that was with a helmet on and wearing those dreadful Spandex cycle shorts with the padded seat.

Movement out of the corner of Brad’s eye caught his attention. Two youngsters were picking up a bike from the side of the road, a bike that looked suspiciously like Erin’s. ‘Hey, you two.’

The boys stopped, glanced over their shoulders, apprehension on their sulky faces. Little blighters had been about to steal the bike. ‘Put that down now.’

Their apprehension grew, but they remained quiet.

Erin looked around. ‘What’s going on?’

‘Those two were borrowing your bike.’ He’d managed to stop their silly escapade.

Her head spun around so fast she had to be giddy. Her eyes hardened, and she stormed across to retrieve her cycle. Damn, but she looked even more beautiful when she was angry. Something he didn’t need to know. But his brain seemed to be filing it away for later anyway.

She growled at the boys in a low voice that stroked his raw nerves. ‘You were going to steal my bike? How dare you? If you want a bike, get a job and earn the money for one. I should report you to the police.’

One of the boys scoffed, ‘Yeah, right, lady.’

The other glared at her defensively. ‘Who’d give us a job?’

She looked from one boy to the other, a frown scrunching her forehead. ‘I would, if I could. Unfortunately there aren’t any jobs for schoolkids where I work.’

Brad noted how hope flared quickly in the lads’ eyes, and disappeared as rapidly. Poor kids. Maybe he could think of something. But in the meantime they still owed her an apology. He turned to the boys. ‘Haven’t you two got something to say to this lady?’

Like twins they screwed their noses into sneers and rolled their eyes at her. But they did mutter, ‘Sorry.’

‘I imagine that’s as good as I’m going to get.’

He sighed. He’d heard these sorts of comments throughout his youth. People always expected the worst of kids from the wrong part of town, and judging by the worn and ill-fitting school uniforms these two were wearing, that was exactly where they came from. ‘You could give them a break.’

‘What? Am I supposed to congratulate the boys for being would-be thieves? They need a good dressing down.’

True, and they’d get one from him if their parents weren’t forthcoming. Did he know these boys’ families? It might be better for him if he left them alone and headed straight to the clinic. Don’t get involved. Don’t stir up the past any more than you have to.

But he still shook his head at Erin in warning before turning to the boys. ‘Come on, you two. Let’s get out of here.’

Before he hauled this woman into his arms, bike and all, and kissed her until her legs couldn’t hold her up. Banging his hand on his head, he muttered, ‘What the hell’s the matter with me?’

He tried to concentrate on the lads, tried to ignore her as she checked the road was clear before cycling away. She was going to be furious when she learned who he was. Why hadn’t he introduced himself once he’d realised they’d be working together?

Because he didn’t want to see the disdain at what she perceived to be his lack of compassion towards David any sooner than he had to. Had she heard about his badboy reputation? Would that add to her scorn?

But as those trim legs pumped the pedals he couldn’t stop staring after her. His hungry gaze followed her out onto the road. Her backside, clad in those cycling shorts, was a sight not to be missed. It sent his temperature soaring, his heart racing, and his groin aching. He really tried to look elsewhere, for his own sake, but he couldn’t. He watched as she weaved amongst the traffic, his gaze following her until she finally disappeared from sight.

Unfortunately he couldn’t disappear off the radar for the next few months as he’d committed to helping David adjust to his illness. That took precedence over everything. Over everyone, including blue-eyed beauties. The same one who’d rightly accused him during that phone conversation of putting David second.

Home. The one place he’d been too ashamed to return to. The place he and his ex-wife had been in a hurry to leave and make a fresh start away from his bad image. Away to a city where he didn’t have to explain to a patient that while he might’ve stolen a shirt off their washing line years earlier, he could now competently diagnose their illness. In Adelaide his wife had finally begun to carve out the lifestyle she’d craved all her underprivileged childhood. Brad had always known Penelope had used him to get out of Blenheim but he’d understood her, and loved her enough to give her what she wanted. Big mistake.

His marriage had been the one subject that had been taboo between him and David. The older man had seen further ahead than Brad could, had known no one could feed Penelope’s hunger. David had foreseen no amount of wealth would give her what she needed, and he’d argued long and hard with Brad not to marry her. Brad had believed he could provide more than enough to keep his wife happy. Time had proved David right, Brad wrong, and cost him his son.

He and David had patched the rift between them enough to get along again, but the deep affection they’d always known since David had first taken him into his home as a fourteen-year-old was missing. The man who’d kept him out of court, made him accountable for his own actions and, finally, set him on the right path to a successful career now needed looking out for.

Brad glanced at the two boys skulking along beside him. He’d expected they’d have taken off by now. ‘You two hungry?’

Two heads flicked around, astonishment in their eyes. ‘Yes.’

‘Okay, back to the shop. I saw some buns and sandwiches in a cabinet that should fill the hole in your bellies.’

‘Cool.’

‘Thanks, man.’

‘Call me Brad.’ His step lightened. He liked it that he could do something for those that life gave a rough deal. He put on his confident, competent doctor’s face, the one that hid his nervousness about facing up to people he’d hurt in the past.

Then there was Erin. He had to front up to her too. At least she hadn’t featured in his past. Neither was she going to feature in his future. Settling into David’s place in the practice had just got a whole load more difficult.

CHAPTER TWO

ERIN rushed into the medical centre as though being chased by a hungry lion, knowing she’d have kept a lot of people waiting. She had an immunisation clinic and the waiting room was full of young mothers and their toddlers. ‘Sorry I’m late, everyone, but there was an accident and I stopped to give a hand.’

‘It’s okay, we heard,’ one of the women said as she shoved a pacifier in the mouth of a screeching child.

A curly-haired toddler grabbed at the hem of Erin’s straight denim skirt, tugging her to a halt.

‘Hey, gorgeous, how are you today?’ Erin bent down and swung Katie Bryant into her arms.

Big brown eyes stared back at her out of a pale face with shadows on her cheeks. One tiny fist tapped Erin’s chin.

‘I guess that means you’re fine.’ Erin kissed the top of Katie’s head and gently placed her back on her feet. ‘Is she not sleeping too well?’ she asked Alison, Katie’s mother.

‘Too much sometimes. I never have trouble putting her to bed these days.’

Maybe she was overreacting but Erin decided she’d get Annie or Dr Perano to take a look at Katie before her injection. The little girl didn’t look quite right, not as robust as she usually was. A temperature reading wouldn’t go astray either. Glancing around the room, Erin’s heart squeezed as she saw all the little ones playing and crying and chattering, the mums talking and laughing as though they had all the time in the world. This was what she wanted, more than anything else. To be a mother, to have her own family. This was what she could never have.

She may have reconciled herself to the fact that she was infertile but that hadn’t stopped the hurt, the fierce need or the raw longing that sometimes overtook her. Especially on days like this when she worked with lots of children.

Infertility sucked.

Erin leaned over the counter at Reception, looking for the pile of files relating to her young patients. She said quietly to the receptionist, ‘Jason Curtis was hit by a car. Has anything come through from the hospital about his condition yet?’

Marilyn paused between phone calls. ‘Dr Perano said he’d ring ED shortly. He told us you’d been there so we figured you’d be running behind time.’

‘Dr Perano? How would he know—?’ Erin’s stomach dropped. ‘The guy at the accident scene was a doctor… That was Bradley Perano?’

Embarrassment gripped her, making her squirm right down to her sandals. She’d been ogling him at the corner store. What was that going to do for their future working relationship? She gaped at Marilyn. ‘No way. That couldn’t have been Dr Perano. Too much of a coincidence.’

Please, she silently begged the receptionist, please tell me I’m wrong in my supposition.

‘Definitely me.’ A deep, sexy voice came from behind the door of the office where the filing cabinets stood. He appeared in the middle of the office, taking up all the space with his big frame. ‘But not really a coincidence when you think we weren’t far from the clinic. I was on my way here when I stopped at the store.’

Here, where they were to work together. Did he also know that by living with Dr David Taylor he’d become her neighbour too? Breathe. Slowly. In. Out. Erin spied the patient notes she needed as she turned to face Dr Perano fully. ‘So you’ve guessed I’m Erin, the practice nurse?’

He came to shake her hand. ‘Yes, I worked it out when that paramedic used your name.’

‘You didn’t say anything.’ Her hand disappeared somewhere inside his big, rough one.

His expression turned wary, but he said in the voice that made her heart rate speed up, ‘Sorry about that, but there was a lot going on.’

Sure, there had been, but there’d also been ample opportunity to introduce himself. ‘It would’ve been nice if you’d said something. We tend to be friendly around here.’ And she could’ve prepared herself better for this moment.

Wariness turned to disbelief. ‘I’m sure you’re right.’ His tone suggested otherwise. ‘Anyway, now we’ve met. Everyone talked you up big time last week. You and Annie.’

Annie was her best friend and a part-time GP at the medical centre. They’d spent a week in Golden Bay with Annie’s three little boys while Annie’s husband had been overseas with his job as a winemaker.

‘Annie’s wonderful. Her patients love her.’ With a start Erin realised Brad was still holding her hand. A nervous tug and she’d retrieved it. She jammed her hand in the big pocket on her skirt, holding in the warmth he’d engendered. If only she’d had known who this guy was before making an idiot of herself at the shop. She’d heard so much about him from David that she’d made the mistake of thinking she already knew him. Never in her wildest dreams had she imagined a man so imposing that she lost all sense of reality around him. It was only day one. She’d get over this by tomorrow and then they’d work together without any problems.

She was very happy at this medical centre where she’d got to know the patients, and the staff treated her like one of their own. She did not need anyone disrupting that.

Bradley was still talking, no contrition in his voice. ‘I’ve heard your patients adore you, too.’

Ignoring that she edged around him, muttering, ‘Excuse me, but I need to get working.’

Stepping in front of her, he stopped her escape. ‘Erin, can I have a word first? In my office?’

‘Can it wait, Dr Perano? I’ve held up these people long enough already.’ She looked around the waiting room and was astonished to see all the mothers watching her and obviously listening to their conversation.

‘Firstly, it’s Brad, not Dr Perano. Secondly…’ And the guy paused to smile beguilingly across at those waiting women. ‘Secondly, I’m sure no one will mind if I talk to my practice nurse for a few minutes.’

‘Go ahead.’ One mother grinned. ‘He’s far more interesting than us lot.’

Thanks a million. Where was female solidarity when you needed it? Erin scowled at them all and only got winks and grins back. Except from Alison Byrant, who seemed to be studying the new doctor carefully.

In Brad’s office Erin sat, waiting, on the corner of his desk. What did he want to talk to her about that couldn’t be said out in the office? Goose-bumps lifted the skin on her arms. Probably that phone conversation when she’d told him how selfish she thought he was for not coming home to give David some support.

Now that the Parkinson’s disease that had struck David was relentlessly getting worse, it was time for Brad to pay his dues. That night when she’d answered the phone for David after cleaning him up she had been fit to yell at someone. Bradley Perano had phoned at the perfect time. She mightn’t have met him back then but she’d certainly told him what she thought of him. Her heart thudded slowly and painfully. She had been abrupt and he’d deserved better. He had his own problems, which David had alluded to but not divulged.

Apprehension trickled across her mind as she watched this insanely good-looking man close the door firmly and make his way around to sit behind his desk, his long legs taking few strides to reach his chair. Light scuff marks showed on his trousers where he’d knelt down on the road beside her to attend to Jason.

Erin swivelled around, keeping him in sight. Her gaze was drawn to his fingers: long and strong, they’d do amazing things to her sensory nerves if they ever touched her skin.

He cleared his throat, forcing her to look up and lock gazes with him. A thoughtful expression tightened his face, darkened the fudge colour of his eyes to mud. So he wasn’t happy with her.

‘About this morning at the accident site…’ He hesitated. ‘When I saw that child lying there I got a shock and made a mistake. Sammy fell out of a tree once, broke his arm and got concussed. He was very lucky. For some reason this morning seemed like a rerun, only worse.’

Not about her, then. ‘Sammy being Samuel, your son?’ Another clue to this man’s identity she’d overlooked that morning. But she had been more worried about Jason.

Brad’s eyebrows flicked up, down. ‘I take it that David has mentioned my family?’

‘Only that you and your wife have been separated for about eighteen months and that Samuel is with his mother.’ When Brad’s lips tightened into a hard line she added, ‘David only mentioned it after I quizzed him about you before you’d decided to come home to take over his medical practice while he sorts things out. I don’t know all the details.’

‘Is that why you gave me a bollocking over the phone?’ His tone lifted in anger. ‘What I chose to do was none of your business.’

Heat rushed into her cheeks. ‘True, but half an hour before you rang I’d called in to see David and found him trying to wipe up the mug of coffee that he’d spilled over his clothes and the carpet. He was in a bit of a state, cross at his lack of control over a simple mug, embarrassed that I had to help him get out of his trousers.’ She hesitated, reminded herself she had to work with this man, and added, ‘I’m sorry I took it out on you.’

‘It must’ve been difficult for you.’

‘Only because David’s stubbornly independent.’ And because she’d often seen him sitting on the veranda of his big old house staring down the drive as though waiting for Brad to arrive. David had needed Brad desperately, and she’d told him. Rightly, or wrongly. Make that wrongly. She should’ve kept her mouth shut. On the other hand, it had worked and David was happier than he’d been in a long time.

‘Isn’t he just? Stubborn as an ox. And you were right that night. It is my place to be here for David. I owe him a lot.’

‘I heard you lived with David and Mary as a teenager.’

He nodded. ‘They rescued me from foster-care when I got into trouble with the law. David always listens to people, especially youngsters who don’t have anyone on their side. I gave them merry hell at times, but they were always there for me from the day I met them.’ Brad leaned back in his chair, tipped his head to stare up at the ceiling. ‘I should’ve come the moment David told me about the Parkinson’s, given him the time off to reassess his priorities. But I was caught between two people—David and my son.’

Not an easy choice. Why was he telling her this? Did he feel he had to justify his actions to her? ‘Haven’t Samuel and his mother moved to California?’

He winced. ‘Yes.’

So, what had stopped him coming, then? Glancing at his stern face, she thought better of asking. But she couldn’t imagine what it must’ve been like for Brad to have his son taken so far away. To only see him on rare occasions when he’d have been used to having Samuel in his life every day must’ve broken his heart. It was one thing not to be able to have a child, but to have one and lose him? That was far beyond her comprehension. She’d never feel complete again if it happened to her.

On the desk the phone buzzed discreetly. Grateful for the interruption, Erin slipped out the door, leaving Brad to answer it. Leaving Brad with a haunted look in his eyes.

Panic rose, threatened to engulf her. She could not share the clinic with this man. She’d go crazy trying to deal with all the emotions that whirled through her at the sight of him. A moment ago she’d wanted to hug away that haunted look. Imagine if she’d attempted to? He’d have been furious. How was she going to manage? One day at a time? Impossible. One minute at a time?

Brad watched Erin go as he slowly reached for the phone. What a motormouth he’d turned into all of a sudden, raving on about personal things to her, exposing himself to her scorn. Which hadn’t been forthcoming. He’d grown to expect derision from Blenheim folk ever since his wayward youth spent here. The one time he’d talked to Erin on the phone she’d been so scathing in her criticism of him that he’d believed she was just another disgruntled Blenheimite, but she’d managed to make him think about how he was letting David down, made him realise it was time to move on from what Penelope had done.

The pain that had stabbed him when he’d talked about Sammy to Erin was ebbing. She still didn’t know how he’d struggled to leave the apartment where he and Penelope had brought Sammy home as a four-day-old infant; where he’d taught his boy to play ball in the back yard; where he’d told him endless stories, attempting to get him to go to sleep. The apartment was crammed with sweet memories Brad hadn’t been able to bring himself to leave. The rooms were filled with the sound of Sam’s laughter. His childish drawings still adorned the walls of his bedroom and the kitchen. His rugby ball lay discarded by the back door, not needed in his new life.

The phone stopped ringing.

Brad spun around in his chair to stare out the window at the back of a brick wall beyond which rose the ugly sight of a supermarket.

‘God, Sammy, I miss you so much. Sunday night phone calls are just not enough, buddy.’ He needed to touch his boy, to hug him and talk with him. Hearing his excited chatter over the phone did not make up for not being able to see Sam’s eyes grow as big as plates and his mouth curl up into a happy smile as he explained how he’d hit a run at baseball.

Baseball. A goddamned Yankee game. What was wrong with good old rugby? A game that Kiwis and Aussies loved? A man should be able to teach his boy the rudiments of a real bloke’s game.

Someone knocked on his door, and Marilyn’s face appeared tentatively around the edge. ‘ED is on the line regarding Jason. Is there something wrong with your phone line? I put the call through here.’

‘Try again, Marilyn. I’ll get it this time.’ He gave her a smile, the kind that usually got him most things he wanted. Except in Blenheim. Would it work with Erin? Would she fall for his charms? More likely she’d tell him to go take a flying leap off a very high cliff.

This time he took the call. ‘Perano.’

‘Roger Bailey, ED, Blenheim Hospital.’

‘Roger, as in the best oarsman Otago Med School ever put up against Canterbury?’ Brad hoped this was one man who’d accept him back in town without prejudice. Roger had loathed Penelope from the start, bringing tension between the two men.

‘Didn’t do us a lot of good, considering some of the useless dudes we had on that team. You still kicking a rugby ball around?’

‘Not since I tore a ligament in my shoulder and decided I was getting too soft.’ Not since my son was stolen from me.

‘How are you anyway? I hear you’re back to keep David out of trouble.’

‘Only for a few months.’ But even in the week since he’d arrived here, Brad had noticed some of the tension lining David’s mouth easing, making him wonder how he’d be able to leave again.

‘Right, about Jason Curtis.’

‘Go on.’ Brad sighed with relief. No mention of his ex-wife, then. The local gossip machine had probably put out an all-points bulletin about the state of Brad Perano’s marriage before he’d even made the decision to move back home. Glad to have avoided the subject, Brad listened to everything Roger had to say about their young patient.

Roger filled him in quickly and efficiently. ‘I’m flying Jason up to Starship Children’s Hospital in Auckland on the medical emergency plane. I’m not happy about the head injury and we don’t have a resident neurosurgeon here. I’m probably being over-cautious but better that way than thinking we can handle his problems and having it backfire on us.’

Brad hung up, and noted his computer informing him he had two patients waiting to be seen. ‘Great, now I’m running late.’ What had happened to the idea of coming in early and being very organised by the time the clinic opened for business?

He’d tell Erin about Jason later. Erin. The name suited her. Damn it. Why couldn’t she be called Gertrude or Winifred? Then he’d be able to recall his austere great-aunts every time he looked at her, and forget the blinding passion that had rocked him earlier. Being squashed in that kennel-size shop, he’d felt dizzy with the scent of her.

Erin.

Damn it. He had to work with her. Like it or not. She could be another problem to add to an already overly long list of problems, starting with a town that he had to get back on side with.

Erin’s only a problem if you let her be, squeaked a pesky little voice in his head.

Brad shoved the voice aside and went in search of his first patient. Nothing like focussing on someone else’s problems to forget his own for a while.

Erin sat at the tiny table in the centre’s kitchen and bit into her salad sandwich. Not exactly the most exciting lunch but it was all she’d had time to slap together after the way her morning had gone.

‘I’d have thought you’d be munching on burgers and fries, getting all the carbs you can after your early morning ride.’ Brad dropped onto a chair opposite her, threatening its flimsy legs with his weight.

‘She would if I didn’t nag her to be healthy.’ David beat her to answering Brad as he walked in behind him.

Erin rolled her eyes at the man who’d been more like a father to her than her own had. She knew he was hoping Brad would buy him out of the practice. ‘One of the drawbacks of working with David is that he thinks he can order me around.’

‘He was always like that with me too.’ Brad snagged a muffin out of the goodies basket David had brought in for all the staff as he officially handed over the last of his patients to Brad. ‘By the way, David, I’ve got two young rascals to mow your lawns for you. They’re going to cost you twenty bucks a fortnight, starting this afternoon.’

‘That’s a lot of money for two lads.’

‘You’ve got a lot of lawn.’

‘Those boys who wanted my bike? You’re giving them a job?’ Erin stared at Brad. ‘Is that wise?’

‘You told them you’d give them a job if you could. I just happened to think of one.’

David was looking from her to Brad and back again. ‘Did you two meet before this morning?’

Erin stared at the remains of her sandwich and dropped it on the plate, pushed it aside. ‘We bumped into each other at the shop and then again at Jason’s accident just along the road.’

‘Hardly surprising when you live next door to each other, I guess.’ David studied his muffin as though seeing it for the first time.

‘Neighbours?’ Brad sounded shocked, and that hurt. Did he hate the idea? Or did he see some advantages?

Erin hadn’t made her own mind up about the situation yet, but one thing was for sure: there was no changing it. She wasn’t moving, and Brad had to stay with David while helping him out so they were stuck with each other living close by.

Brad was asking her, ‘Which is your house?’

‘The townhouse at the bottom of David’s driveway. Two years ago I came to Blenheim looking for a job and wanting to buy my own place. I went to an open home and David was there, trying to sell this wonderful brand-new home. We got talking and by the time I went back to my motel that night I had a house and a job. Amazing how things work out sometimes.’ Those two pieces of good fortune had made her think the move to Blenheim was meant to be.

‘Best thing you ever did, my girl. For me anyway.’ David stood up. ‘Anyone for coffee?’

‘No, thanks.’ Erin leaned over the back of her chair to dig inside the fridge for a can of soda she’d put there earlier. The snap of the tab was loud in the sudden silence.

Brad was watching her, a thoughtful expression clouding his face. ‘Where did you move from?’

He was full of questions.

‘I was of no fixed abode. An army brat who grew up and then joined the very service I’d hated all my childhood.’ Always shifting from one base to the next, new schools and new kids to get on side with. The only constant had been Jonathon. For some bizarre reason, more often than not they found themselves living at the same base and going to the same school. He’d been her best friend who became her husband. The services had been the only life she’d known. She’d panicked when the time had come to choose a career and a town to live in. The services had been a safe option.

‘So you left the army to do your nursing training?’ Brad sounded genuinely interested.

‘No, I took three years’ leave when I turned twenty. Then once I’d qualified I transferred from the signals corps to the medical unit.’ She got up and shoved a window open. Brad seemed to consume all the air, leaving none for her. ‘It’s hot in here,’ she said lamely, then glanced at her watch. ‘Oops, I’ve got a patient coming in for her hep. A shot. Lucky girl’s off to Tanzania next month.’

At the door she stopped, remembering Katie Bryant. ‘Brad, I’ve made an appointment for you to see Katie Bryant. She came in for her immunisation shots this morning. I tried to get her mother to stay on this morning but she already had another appointment at the dentist.’

Erin paused, thought about the unease she’d felt when she’d seen Katie. ‘I would’ve talked to either of you first but you were both busy at the time. I think there’s something wrong with Katie but I don’t know what. Just a gut feeling. She’s pale, underweight, sleeps a lot.’

‘When’s her mother bringing her back?’ Brad asked, wariness edging his voice. The same caution she’d noted in Alison’s voice when they’d talked about Katie.

‘Wednesday morning. I tried to persuade her to bring Katie before then but with nothing specific to go on I didn’t succeed.’

Brad turned to David. ‘Are Katie and her mother related to Joey Bryant?’

‘Wife and daughter.’

Brad’s Adam’s apple bobbed. ‘Maybe you should see them.’

David caught Brad’s eye. ‘No. You’ve got to start somewhere and Joey’s family is perfect.’

Brad stared at David for a long moment before turning to Erin and asking, ‘Does the mother think there was anything out of the ordinary with her daughter?’

What was going on here? Something had just gone down between David and Brad that she couldn’t understand. Erin focussed on the question Brad had asked. She’d think about the rest later. ‘Not at all. Said it was nice that Katie had begun sleeping so well. Sleeping has always been a problem with her, driving her parents to despair at times.’ She sipped her soda. ‘I’m probably wasting everyone’s time but I want to be sure.’

Erin Foley. Brad hadn’t managed to dispel her image from his mind all day. Not even his trepidation about seeing Joey’s wife had wiped his mind clear of the nurse. Which said a lot because he was as nervous as hell about talking to Alison. Maybe when Alison told Joey who their new GP was, their appointment would be cancelled. That would not be good for little Katie and more than anything Brad wanted to do what was best for his patients. Erin was concerned about the girl so he must see her.

Erin. His brain always switched back to her. When she’d arrived at the medical centre in such a damned hurry that morning and he’d seen that mass of shining black curls tumbling down her back, he’d have fallen flat on his face if he hadn’t grabbed the filing cabinet. She was a knockout.

She’d flustered him, her laughter echoing through the building when she’d been with those children first thing. She certainly had a way with her that had made each one of them giggle and talk non-stop, forgetting about the needle about to stab their thigh. She’d make a great mother, if that was anything to go by.

An unbidden thought, an unwanted one, entered his head. Did she have a partner? David had said she lived alone, which surely meant no partner, no children? But a beautiful woman like Erin would never be completely single. There had to be a man somewhere in her life.

That idea made Brad’s good mood evaporate in an instant. Which was plain silly. He did not want to get involved with any female. Been there, done the time. A fling might be all right but he wasn’t having one with Erin Foley. A bad idea in the circumstances.

‘Goodnight, Dr Perano,’ Marilyn called from behind her desk.

He paused. ‘What would it take to get you to call me Brad?’ Marilyn appeared to be in her late fifties, and seemed a stickler for protocol. So far she’d refused to budge on using his first name, but he was determined to win. Judging by the set of her jaw, it might take a while.

‘I’m sizing you up, young man. Give me time.’

Did she know of him from the past? He didn’t recall her at all, but the stories about him might have coloured her perception of him even before they’d met.

‘Young man?’ Brad muttered. ‘I’m thirty-four.’

‘And I’m sixty-four, so be patient.’ She stood and pushed her chair under her desk, then leaned down to retrieve her handbag from the floor. Then she looked him in the eye. ‘Just be good to our David and you’ll have me calling you any damned thing you like.’

So he was on notice from the office staff. But the fact that David’s staff cared so much for the older man actually made Brad hum as he opened the door to the car park. He might’ve been slow in getting here but others had stepped up to the mark. Guilt caught him. David had shown no censure towards him. Which only said how big-hearted the man was and how much further indebted he had become.

Outside David called to him from beside his car. ‘You on your way home, too? Want me to pick up anything from the supermarket?’

‘No, I’ve got all I need to cook tonight’s dinner.’ Brad scratched his chin thoughtfully. ‘So Erin lives down the bottom of our drive. That’s kind of handy for you.’

‘Perfect situation.’ David raised pale blue eyes to him. ‘Don’t tell me you’re bothered by it? Why would you be?’

Because she’d be too close to him. There’d be no getting away from her. It was one thing that they’d be working together. He could probably manage to keep her at arm’s length here, but to have her practically living on his doorstep meant he’d never have peace of mind. He slapped his hands on his hips and stared across at David, suddenly cross. ‘I don’t like it.’

‘Erin’s been very helpful and always there if I’ve needed anything.’ David talked as though he hadn’t seen Brad’s angst, but Brad knew better. David missed nothing, and now his eyes twinkled suspiciously. ‘I think you two will get along very well.’

‘You are so wrong.’ They’d light up like flames with petrol added. Something indefinable and hot already sat between them, something he wasn’t prepared to explore.

‘Give her a chance. Get to know her. You’ll like her.’

I already like her. A lot. Too much. But bitter experience had taught him people weren’t always what they first seemed to be. ‘You could be wrong.’

‘Bradley, you give her a chance. I’ll not have you upsetting the cosy set-up we’ve got at work or anywhere else.’

David only called him Bradley when he wanted to make a point, but that didn’t stop Brad arguing. ‘It’s not wise to socialise with staff.’

David chuckled. ‘You can’t expect me to agree with that. Not when my Mary was a nurse on my surgical ward when I was an intern.’

‘There are always exceptions.’ Was the old boy matchmaking?

How much worse could this get?

CHAPTER THREE

‘WHAT a day I’ve had, Lucky.’ Erin chattered to her cat as she drove carefully through the streets towards home. ‘First day back and already I feel like my holiday is so long ago it didn’t happen.’

Lucky was unusually silent, sitting in the cage staring straight ahead, ignoring Erin entirely.

‘Come on, stop sulking. It’s not as though I left you incarcerated in some dire cat hostel with no one to care for you. I know for a fact you’ve been pampered beyond your wildest dreams.’ The fees had been horrendous, but well worth it. The Paws Cattery came highly recommended.

‘We’ve got a new neighbour.’ Her mouth turned up into a reluctant smile. ‘He’s gorgeous.’ An image of Brad on his Harley-Davidson made her mouth water. She’d been putting drugs away in the clinic’s fridge when the bike had roared to life outside. Discreetly nudging aside the curtain a tad, she’d studied the man who’d had her heart rate rising and falling alarmingly throughout the day. The Harley belonged with him, balanced perfectly between those muscular thighs, adding to his sexiness. Brad intrigued her, confused her, and had her wondering what it would be like to get to know him.

To have an affair with him? The steering-wheel flicked sideways. She straightened the car, her heart pounding in her throat. Just thinking about Brad was dangerous.

‘Definitely no affair,’ she reassured Lucky. Brad would be used to experienced women, not someone who’d only ever known one man intimately. Anyway, she liked her life where no man told her how to live, where to work, when to cook dinner.

But an affair might get this sizzling sensation out of her blood so her life could return to the peaceful state it had been in when she’d woken up that morning. But, no, it wasn’t going to happen. Affairs always ended with bad feelings on at least one side, which would not bode well for working with Brad afterwards. So she lied to the cat. ‘Brad’s not my type, Lucks. Don’t you go schmoozing up to him, either.’

Lucky continued staring ahead, rocking slightly as Erin turned into her drive.

‘You just remember you’re on my side.’ She really, really wished Brad could go and live somewhere else. But that also wasn’t going to happen. David needed him so she couldn’t deprive David of the man he considered his son.

The garage door lifted and Erin nosed the car inside. ‘Home, sweet home, Lucky. Let’s see if some of your favourite gourmet tuna feast will make you love me again.’

Out of her cage, Lucky arched her back and stared around. Erin sighed and picked up laden grocery bags. In the kitchen she dumped the bags on the bench and switched the oven on to heat up a ready-made pasta bake. Turning, she gasped. ‘What the—?’

Drawers from the dresser were on the floor, their contents spilled out over the floor. Apprehension filled her. Had she been burgled? She glanced around warily. Someone had certainly been in here. She’d locked up before she’d left for work that morning. Hadn’t she? She had been in a rush. Maybe she hadn’t checked all the locks.

What if the thief’s still here? Her heart rose in her throat. Reaching a shaking hand into the utensil drawer, she removed the rolling pin.

‘Lucky?’ The cat stood in the centre of the kitchen, her back still arched, her eyes wild. ‘Are we alone? Can you hear anyone moving around?’

Lucky’s head flicked from side to side. Not a lot to go on. Erin sucked a breath. She’d done self-defence training in the army, and come up against some big, stroppy men in the process. A burglar couldn’t get the better of her.

Raising the rolling pin, she did a quick, thorough search of her home. No one hid behind the doors or in the wardrobes. Upstairs in her bedroom drawers had been emptied over the bed, and some small change had gone, but as far as she could make out that was all that was missing. Kids?

Down in her laundry the door that led out into the garden wide was open. Closer inspection showed it had been jemmied so now it wouldn’t shut properly.

Feeling more confident, Erin quickly walked around the outside but found no trace of her burglar. Glancing across to the trees that bordered onto her section from David’s place, she made to go and search there, hesitated. Maybe not a wise idea. The area around those trees looked darker than usual.

Returning inside, she picked up the phone and dialled the cop who lived in the adjoining townhouse. No reply. Next she tried David’s number. She didn’t want him to coming racing down here but he might’ve noticed someone loitering.

‘David Taylor’s house. Can I help you?’ That disturbingly sexy voice rolled down the line at her.

Of course Brad would answer. How silly of her not to think of that.

His voice snapped into her musings. ‘Hello? Any one there?’

‘Yes, It’s Erin.’ Then added, ‘Erin Foley.’ ‘Yes, I think I know who Erin is. Super nurse and crazy cyclist.’

‘Why crazy cyclist?’

‘Anyone who prefers to pedal than use a motor has to be crazy.’

So he wasn’t an exercise freak. Again the image of Brad on his Harley rose before her eyes.

‘Erin? I find one-sided phone calls rather awkward.’ She shook her head. ‘Sorry. Is David there? I wondered if he’d seen anyone hanging around the back of my house. Or maybe in his front garden.’

‘Why? Has something happened? Are you all right?’ ‘I’m fine. But my house has been broken into.’ ‘Don’t go outside. Lock all the doors. I’m on my way.’ ‘Too late, I’ve already checked out there.’ But her words fell into a void as Brad banged down the phone at his end. She pushed redial. She didn’t want that Goliath in her house. His presence would make it feel claustrophobic. She wouldn’t know what to say to him. ‘Answer the phone.’ He didn’t.

He thumped the back door repeatedly, calling out, ‘Erin, it’s me, Brad. Open up.’ He did not want to be here, about to walk into her home. Like walking into the lioness’s den. But he couldn’t ignore the fact Erin might be in trouble.

‘It’s not locked,’ he heard her call. His top teeth ground across the bottom ones. Hadn’t he told her to lock up?

The door swung open, revealing Erin with her arms full of a grey tabby. ‘Come in.’

‘You should’ve checked it was me before you opened the door,’ he growled. His hands gripped his hips, his chest rising and falling after his frantic run down here.

‘Your voice is very distinctive.’ Her face coloured as she stepped back, holding the door wide. ‘Anyway, the lock is broken.’

His voice distinctive? How? ‘I’ll take a look at it.’

‘Thanks. I’ve already looked around outside. No one was hiding behind the shrubs.’

‘You did what?’ His heart stuttered. ‘What if your burglar had been out there? You could’ve been attacked.’

‘I’ll have you know I’m very well trained in self-defence.’ But there was a sheepish look in those startlingly blue eyes.

‘I’m sure you are.’ But he didn’t like the idea someone might’ve hurt her. Even more, he didn’t like it that he cared a lot about what happened to her. He stepped inside and pushed the door closed behind him, leaning back against it. Why her sheepish look?

‘Come through. Did you ask David if he’d seen anyone hanging around?’ She shrugged at him as though she didn’t care if he followed her or not.

Brad didn’t believe that nonchalance. It sounded forced. His estimation of her rose higher. She was one brave woman. He placed his hand on her shoulder, forcing her to turn around and meet his gaze full on. A hint of worry lurked in the deep blue shadows. ‘Want me to take a look through your house?’

The cat tensed in her arms, and Erin ran a soothing hand down its back. ‘I already did. The drawers in the kitchen dresser and my bedroom have been rifled but nothing else seems to have been touched.’

‘Then you’re fortunate.’ Relief swamped him. At least she was safe. He dropped his hand, but not before her heat radiated up his arm, sending jolts of yearning through his body.

‘I guess, but it does annoy me, someone breaking in. Whoever it was took a few dollars but that seems to be all.’ Her tongue slid across her bottom lip.

Brad dragged a hand over his head, trying to ignore her sweet mouth and the need to kiss it brought on by her action. Stepping back, he bumped up against the door again. ‘I’ll see what’s needed to repair your door.’

‘I’ve got some tools in the garage if you require them. Help yourself.’

‘Maybe you should call the police.’

Erin told him, ‘My neighbour’s a cop but he’s not home yet. I’ll call the watch house later.’

‘Okay.’ Brad left her and went to poke around in her minimal tool collection for a hammer and nails. ‘This’ll help secure the door for now but tomorrow I’ll get a new lock and install it,’ he told her as he passed the kitchen again.

‘Thank you, but that won’t be necessary. I’ll phone the locksmith in the morning.’

He had a sudden suspicion. ‘Any idea what time this happened?’

She shook her head, sending her shiny black hair swirling around her shoulders. ‘I only got home a few minutes ago.’

‘Cain and Tony.’ He’d bet his Harley on them being the culprits.

‘Who?’

‘The two boys from this morning. I had them come around and meet David before they mow his lawns next weekend. I’m trying to teach them that they have to earn money for the things they want in life. Which I think you mentioned to them quite forcefully.’ It had been her comments that had made him think about ways to help the boys.

‘There’s quite a leap from walking off with an abandoned bike to being guilty of breaking and entering.’ Amusement lit up her eyes.

‘You might be right.’ But the more he thought about it the more certain he was he’d found the culprits. ‘Will you give me a chance to talk to them before you talk to the cops?’

She folded her arms under her breasts. His mouth dried, and he had to struggle to hear her through the pounding in his ears.

‘How long have you known those boys?’

‘Since this morning.’ Most of my life. They are me at that age. ‘I’ve found out about their backgrounds. Not good. I’d like to help them if I can.’ Like David and Mary did for me.

Her gaze was disconcerting. As was her next question. ‘You sure you know what you’re doing?’

‘Yes.’ He wouldn’t plead for her to understand him. Neither would he divulge his history, if she didn’t already know it, in order to win some slack for the boys. She had to accept his opinion.

‘Okay.’

‘That’s it? No conditions? No questions? You’ll let me talk to them first?’ She’d surprised him. Deflated him, really. He sucked a breath, added belatedly, ‘Thanks.’

She nodded. ‘I’ll make some coffee while you’re fixing that door.’

‘I’d prefer a beer.’ Brad slipped into the laundry and tackled the broken lock.

Either the kettle was slow or he was fast because soon he was standing in her kitchen, watching her put her groceries away. The cat strolled across and used his boots to sharpen its claws. Unperturbed, he hunkered down and rubbed the back of its neck with his forefinger. ‘What’s the moggy’s name?’

‘Lucky. Lucky I found her at the SPCA.’

‘So you’re into looking out for strays, too.’ Cats. Boys. They all needed love and understanding.

Looking up at Erin, his chest tightened. Her gaze was fixed on his finger stroking the cat. A light flush coloured her cheeks, sending his imagination running riot. It wasn’t hard to envisage caressing her skin. Hell, it seemed they only had to be together for a few moments and the fireworks started.

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