The Paramedic's Unexpected Hero

‘Sure,’ she heard herself saying. ‘Where?’

‘There’s a pub on the corner. The Kensington Arms. It’s the hospital’s local, I believe. See you there at six-thirty?’

Kelly was putting her vehicle into reverse. She flicked a switch to start the beacons on her roof. She could actually feel her adrenaline levels rising. Excitement at not knowing what she was being dispatched to this time? Or did it also have something to do with the prospect of meeting Ari again? Outside work hours. Almost like a date…

‘I’ll be there,’ she told him. Her vehicle was pointing the right way now and her foot was poised over the accelerator. She caught his gaze for a heartbeat, however. She couldn’t quite find a smile because this suddenly seemed a little overwhelming and she put her foot down as she spoke, as if she needed to escape. ‘See you then.’

“Intrigued” didn’t quite cover how Ari was feeling about Kelly by late that afternoon.

He should have known there was a reason why he’d felt such a strong urge to protect her when that cop had demonstrated that he had absolutely no respect for her personal space. An ex-boyfriend? What on earth had she ever seen in him? And if he could treat her like that in public, well after the relationship had ended, what had he been like when they had been together, behind closed doors?

Unfortunately, Ari could imagine only too well and he was sure he was right in his suspicions. Kelly was an intelligent, capable, gorgeous-looking woman and there was only one thing that could have undermined her self-esteem enough to make her personality visibly shrink in front of him like that and that was abuse. Pure and simple. He’d not only seen it too many times in his life not to recognise the signs, he knew what it was like to be on the receiving end. He’d only just met Kelly but he could feel anger on her behalf. And sadness. And…the desire to try and help her.

Just as a friend, of course, because no matter how undeniably attractive she was that was all he could offer, but that might be enough to make her believe in how amazing she was. To help heal whatever damage that bastard had done to her and let her move forward with her life with the kind of confidence that would make sure nobody could ever put her down like that again—in public or in private.

The thought had to be shelved as his last appointment for this antenatal clinic came into the room, a small sample container in her hand.

‘Sorry that took so long. I couldn’t do much either.’

‘Doesn’t need much for a dipstick test.’ Ari unscrewed the jar on his desk and took out the test strip to dip into the urine sample. He compared the colours in the tiny squares to the chart on the jar.

‘It’s all good, isn’t it?’

‘Your protein level’s up a fraction. We’ll need to keep an eye on that. I might get a culture done to make sure you’re not brewing up a urinary tract infection.’

‘That’s dangerous for the baby, isn’t it? I’m sure I read something about protein in urine being bad.’

‘If it’s there along with high blood pressure, it can be a sign of something called pre-eclampsia and that can be dangerous if it’s not recognised in time. But your blood pressure’s fine, Janice.’ He smiled at her. ‘Try not to worry so much.’

‘I can’t help it. We’ve waited a long time for this baby, you know?’

‘I know. But you’re well past the halfway mark now and everything’s looking great. Come and hop up on the bed and I’ll measure your tummy and we can listen to baby’s heartbeat. We can have a chat about whether you want to start making a birth plan as well.’

‘Oh…yes… I’ve been thinking about that a lot. I’ve even chosen the music I want.’

Ari grinned. ‘Maybe we could choose the place you want to give birth as a first step. You were considering a home birth, weren’t you?’

‘I’ve gone right off that idea.’ Janice lay back on the bed and pulled down the waistband of her maternity jeans to expose her bump. ‘What if something went wrong? I’d rather be somewhere safe that had all the experts and medical stuff that I might need.’

‘Safety is certainly my number one priority,’ Ari agreed. ‘For both you and your baby.’

He had his handheld Doppler ready, holding the monitor in one hand and the small transducer in the other, pressing it gently to one side of Janice’s bump as he searched for the best place to hear the baby’s heartbeat. It took a few seconds for the faint thumping sounds to become clearer.

‘There we go.’ Ari turned the monitor so that Janice could see the readout. ‘One forty beats per minute. Perfect.’

Janice was smiling but her lips wobbled a moment later. ‘It gets me every time, hearing that,’ she admitted.

Ari had to smile back. ‘Me, too.’

The miracle of new life never got old. The emotions that went with it covered every human experience from anguish to ecstasy and, as Ari chatted to Janice about making her birth plan, he hoped that her experience was going to be as joyful as possible. Some women never had the luxury of any control over how their babies came into the world—like poor Vicky today. Ari had half an eye on the clock on his wall. He wanted to get an update on how Vicky and her baby were doing because Kelly would want to know and he would be seeing her very soon.

If that little Doppler had been anywhere near his own heart right now, it would have picked up that little blip of a missed beat as well as the acceleration that followed. Anticipation, that’s what it was. He was very much looking forward to seeing her again.

‘Let’s wrap this up for today, Janice. I’ve got a printout here of all the things you can think about and talk to your partner about. Like pain relief options, what kind of food and drink you might want available in labour, preferred positions or use of water. Even who gets to cut the cord. There’s lots to think about.’

‘There sure is.’ Janice’s eyes had widened. ‘Thanks, Ari. Do I need to make another appointment?’

‘Yes.’ Ari opened his diary. ‘And I’ll be in touch about the results of any further testing on your urine sample. If necessary, I’ll refer you to your GP for a blood test or any medication you might need.’

Minutes later, Ari stripped off the scrub top he’d been wearing to replace it with a black T-shirt and then his leather jacket. He collected his satchel from the corner of the room but didn’t bother picking up his motorbike helmet. He could walk to the Kensington Arms and come back for the helmet later.

The sound of an incoming text message as he turned towards the door was nothing to worry about. They were almost always about an appointment that needed to be changed. People always rang rather than texted if it was something urgent. Except that this message was something different. Nothing to do with his work and everything to do with what currently had such a high priority in his life.

He read the message and then hit a rapid dial key.

‘What’s happening, Peggy?’ He listened for only a matter of seconds, a frown deepening rapidly on his face. ‘Okay,’ he interrupted. ‘It’s okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can.’

He had to pick up his helmet and he was walking fast through the corridors of the maternity wing. He still had his phone in his hand, ready to call or text Kelly to let her know he couldn’t make it. But…he hadn’t asked for her number, had he? He had no way of contacting her because he certainly didn’t have either the time or the head space to start searching for and ringing around all the ambulance stations on this side of town. Or to go to find someone who might know her contact details because of her involvement in the flying squad. It would have to wait until later.

Ari could only hope that she would understand but if she didn’t that would be just the way things had to be. This was why he’d come back here. To be able to provide support for someone who needed him. The only woman in his life that he’d ever been able to trust completely, in fact, and that was why she deserved everything he could give her at the moment. It was also why he didn’t have space in his life for anyone else right now, possibly even a new friend.

‘What can I get you, love?’

Kelly smiled at the bartender, who had a strong Aussie accent. ‘I’ll wait, thanks. I’ve got a friend coming.’ She glanced sideways at the huge railway clock on the wall. She was a few minutes late herself so she had no right to feel disappointed that Ari wasn’t here already.

‘No worries.’ The bartender grinned at her. ‘Lucky guy.’

Kelly shook her head. ‘It’s nothing like that. He’s just a friend.’

Not even that, really. Or not yet. But the possibility was there. Of friendship. Of possibly—okay, a very small possibility but it had to be acknowledged—something more than friendship.

And there were parts of Kelly’s body that felt like they were waking up after a very long hibernation. Tingly bits that were not at all unpleasant. Quite the opposite.

The bar was quite crowded and noisy and Kelly was happy to sit on the bar stool and just relax in the convivial ambience as she let herself contemplate that tingle that had resurfaced at quite frequent intervals over the last few hours. It wasn’t freaking her out any more. In fact, she had identified something she hadn’t felt in so long it was almost a new concept in regard to her personal life.

Hope…that’s what it was…

The bartender went past, his hands filled with empty glasses. ‘Sure you don’t want something while you’re waiting?’

Blinking out of that daydream, Kelly looked at the clock and was astonished to find another fifteen minutes had gone by. Still, she shook her head, although her smile was harder to find this time. The atmosphere didn’t feel so friendly after that either. Had people noticed her sitting here alone? Was some of that laughter on her account? Oh, God…maybe some of Darryn’s mates were in here and talking about her. Passing on those nicknames and a warning to stay clear of someone who was too stupid to live.

Had she really thought that being around Ari the midwife made her feel safer? Well…that trust had been totally misplaced, hadn’t it? Right now, sliding off the bar stool, Kelly felt just as humiliated as she had when Darryn had reminded her of how worthless he thought she was.

She’d been stood up. Nobody did that to someone they had the slightest respect for, did they?

Not that she should feel this surprised. Or hurt. She knew better than to trust any man. Even one with soft, dark eyes that told her they could understand. That they wanted to know her story. That they thought she was something special.

Kelly’s breath came out in an incredulous huff as she let the pub door swing shut behind her. Who was she trying to kid? They were especially the kind of men you couldn’t trust. The ones who got under your guard and sucked you in so fast they made you feel things that you thought you’d forgotten how to feel. Maybe even feeling those things wasn’t worth it, because when reality came along and smacked you in the face, it really sucked.

‘Hey…you’re going the wrong way, darlin’.’ A group of young men were heading into the pub but one of them had turned back. ‘Come and have a drink with us, why don’t you?’

Kelly shook her head. And walked faster. There was only one place she wanted to be and that was her little basement flat where she lived alone. Where she had only herself to rely on.

Where she felt genuinely safe…

Конец ознакомительного фрагмента.

Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес».

Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес.

Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.