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The Doctor's Sleigh Bell Proposal
Susan Carlisle
His surprise Christmas promiseDr Ellen Cox goes to South America to break the shackles of her confined life. But she never imagined replacing them with bonds of desire for her new hot shot boss—Chance Freeman!Guarded Chance, sorely tempted, tries to keep Ellen at a distance and when the dangers of their job ramp up he sends her home to safety. Then he realises his mistake and heads for snowy New York, determined to win Ellen with a very special Christmas proposal!
His surprise Christmas promise
Dr. Ellen Cox goes to South America to break the shackles of her confined life. But she never imagined replacing them with bonds of desire for her new hotshot boss—Chance Freeman!
Guarded Chance, although sorely tempted, tries to keep Ellen at a distance—and when the dangers of their jobs are ramped up, he sends her home to safety. Then he realizes his mistake and heads for snowy New York, determined to win Ellen with a very special Christmas proposal!
“You need to get some sleep. We have another day of walking ahead of us.” He put another piece of brush on the fire. He continued to stand as if he wasn’t going to join her on the blanket.
“You aren’t going to sleep?” Ellen asked.
“I think I’ll sit up for a while.”
“Then I’ll keep you company—unless you’ve had enough of me?”
“I don’t think that’s possible,” he said, and then a stricken look covered his features, as if he’d said something he hadn’t meant to.
“We haven’t had that talk yet,” she said, just loud enough that she could be heard over the falls.
“Ellen, I don’t think...”
“You’re right. I don’t want to talk.” She stood. “I’ve spent the last two days worrying about dying.”
“Ellen...”
She stepped around the fire. “There might not be another day, another time, and I want to celebrate being alive. With you.”
Placing her hands on his shoulders, she went up onto her toes and kissed him.
Chance grabbed her around the waist. Pulling her against his chest, he brought her feet off the ground. His mouth devoured hers as if he was hungry and a banquet was being served.
Dear Reader (#ulink_91d8e9e3-edd8-5e49-9ea1-2a488311ece0),
I love an adventure. And Ellen and Chance’s story is just that. Take a fish-out-of-water female doctor, a man who has seen too much pain and can’t do enough to help the people he cares deeply about, add a developing country, push the two doctors together, mix in drug traffickers chasing them and the fun begins.
I hope you enjoy Ellen and Chance’s quest for love.
I want to thank Ron and Susie Woodward for sharing their experiences of working during medical mission trips in Central America. Because of their care many people like those I describe in my book now have better lives. You are both an inspiration to me.
I love to hear from my readers. You can reach me at SusanCarlisle.com (http://www.susancarlisle.com).
Susan
The Doctor’s Sleigh Bell Proposal
Susan Carlisle
www.millsandboon.co.uk (http://www.millsandboon.co.uk)
SUSAN CARLISLE’s love affair with books began in the sixth grade, when she made a bad grade in mathematics. Not allowed to watch TV until she’d brought the grade up, Susan filled her time with books. She turned her love of reading into a passion for writing, and now has over ten medical romances published through Mills & Boon. She writes about hot, sexy docs and the strong women who captivate them. Visit SusanCarlisle.com (http://www.susancarlisle.com).
To Carol, I love you for being my sister—if not by birth, of my heart.
Praise for Susan Carlisle (#ulink_5f9b831e-c091-56ce-9cdd-d3a99662d53c)
‘Gripping, stirring, and emotionally touching... A perfect medical read!’
—Goodreads on His Best Friend’s Baby
‘This emotional love story kept me riveted. A truly satisfying, emotional read. Susan Carlisle’s work is like that. Check it out, you won’t be disappointed.’
—Goodreads on NYC Angels: The Wallflower’s Secret
Contents
Cover (#u07d64cf3-79ee-5509-a137-6a9c5305801a)
Back Cover Text (#u10b2b9d8-9a2c-544e-88dd-d4bcacde39e4)
Introduction (#u1b2ce123-2ffa-593c-8c0f-cf79ddeaafd5)
Dear Reader (#ulink_67fc2728-2850-539f-97bd-4072dbdca478)
Title Page (#u36e071ca-488f-5254-9285-81cac5670be3)
About the Author (#u716f6c3f-668d-5f20-b734-cff8a502c179)
Dedication (#u858832b3-9a09-5694-a054-0a5d2349f109)
Praise (#ulink_b3c8e1b7-3ee3-5a1c-8dfc-087088dab01a)
CHAPTER ONE (#ulink_51cfa554-691b-5dfd-811b-c285d4c10f83)
CHAPTER TWO (#ulink_f9d5ea35-c402-5cf6-91b4-c8342d92d545)
CHAPTER THREE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FOUR (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER FIVE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SIX (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER SEVEN (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER EIGHT (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER NINE (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER TEN (#litres_trial_promo)
Extract (#litres_trial_promo)
Copyright (#litres_trial_promo)
CHAPTER ONE (#ulink_24585320-912e-56c1-9f7c-95cf8dd4654a)
SCREECHING VEHICLE BRAKES caught Dr. Chance Freeman’s attention. That would be his three new staff members arriving. They should have been here last night but bad weather had delayed them. He’d needed them desperately. His other team had left that morning and today’s clinic had been shorthanded and almost impossible to manage.
Chance glanced up from the baby Honduran boy he was examining and out the entrance of the canvas tent located in a clearing near a village. Beyond the long line of waiting patients, he saw a tall, twentyish woman jump down from the rear of the army surplus truck. She wore a tight green T-shirt, a bright yellow bandana round her neck and tan cargo pants that clung to her curves.
Great. High jungle fashion. He’d seen that before.
Shoulders hunched, he drew his lips into a tight line, stopping a long-suffering sound from escaping. Years ago he’d helped Alissa out of a Jeep. She’d believed in being well dressed in any environment as well. They had been newlyweds at the time. That had only lasted months.
Everything about this new staff member’s regal bearing screamed she didn’t belong in the stifling heat of a rain forest in Central America. He bet she wouldn’t last long. In his years of doing medical aid work he’d learned to recognize those who would stick out the tough conditions and long hours. His guess was that she wasn’t one of them. Everything about her screamed upper crust, big city. Pampered.
When had he become so cynical? He hadn’t even met her yet and he was already putting her in a slot. It wasn’t fair not to give her a chance just because she reminded him of his ex-wife. Still, he didn’t have the time, energy or inclination to coddle anyone, even if he desperately needed the help.
From under her wide-brimmed hat she scanned the area, her gaze coming around to lock with his. She tilted her head, shielding her eyes with a hand against the noonday sun. One of her two companions said something and she turned away.
Shaking off the spell, Chance returned to the child. He’d hardly looked down when there was a commotion outside. People were screaming and running. What was going on?
He didn’t have to wait long to find out. Two men carried another man into the tent. He was bleeding profusely around the face and neck area and down one arm. Quickly handing the baby to his mother, Chance cleared the exam table with his arm.
“Put him here. What happened?”
The men lifted the injured man onto the table. Despite Chance’s excellent Spanish, they were talking so fast he was having to work to understand them. Apparently, the man had been attacked by a jaguar while trying to save one of his goats.
A feminine voice asked from the end of the table, “What can I do to help?”
A fragrant scent floated in the air. He was tempted to lean forward and inhale. There was a marked difference between the feminine whiff and the odor of the sweaty bodies around him. Unfortunately, he would need to warn her not to wear perfume in this part of the world because it attracted unwanted insects.
Chance looked up into clear blue eyes that made him think of the pool of water at the bottom of his favorite waterfall. The woman he’d just seen climbing off the truck waited. She’d removed her hat and now he could clearly see a long blonde braid falling over a shoulder. With her fair coloring she would burn in no time in the hot Honduran sun.
“Start with cutting away the clothing.”
She stepped to the table. The paper on the table was soaked with blood. He glanced up to see her face blanch as she viewed the man who would be disfigured for life from the deep lacerations.
“Don’t faint on me,” Chance said through clenched teeth. “Michael, get over here.” He nodded toward the other table. “Go help there. Michael and I’ll handle this.”
She moved off to see about the case Michael was working on. Chance didn’t have time to ponder why someone in the medical profession couldn’t handle this type of injury.
He and Michael worked to piece the Honduran man back together. It may have been the largest number of stitches he’d ever put into a person. There would be a long recovery time.
“We need some help here,” Michael called as he finished suturing an area.
The woman stepped to the table again.
Chance glared at her. “I thought I told you—”
She gave him a determined and unwavering look. “I’ve got this.” She turned to Michael. “What do you need?”
“Bandage this hand,” he said.
“I’ll take care of it.” The words were full of confidence as fingers tipped in hot pink picked up the saline and four-by-fours sitting on the table and began cleaning around the area.
Chance had to stop himself from rolling his eyes. That manicure wouldn’t last long here and there wouldn’t be another forthcoming either. He moved on to the next laceration. As he looked at the man’s arm Chance kept a watchful eye on the new staff member. With the efficiency of few he’d seen, she’d wrapped and secured the dressing and moved on the next spot.
At least she seemed to have recovered from whatever her earlier issue had been. He was used to temporary help, but he still wanted quality.
Many who came to help with the Traveling Clinic were filled with good intentions and the idealism of saving the world but didn’t have the skills or common sense required to work in such primitive settings. The clinic served the medical issues in the small villages outside of La Ceiba. Making it even more difficult was that the locals were often hesitant about asking for help.
A jaguar attack wasn’t the clinic’s normal kind of injury but they did see a number of severe wounds from accidents. He needed staff that could handle the unexpected and often gruesome. If Chance wasn’t such a sceptic he’d have given the new woman points for her recovery but he’d been doing this type of work for far too long. Had seen staff come and go.
He was familiar with people who left. His mother had done it when he’d been a child. He’d been seven when she’d just not been there. His father was a world-renowned surgeon and had been gone much of the time. With his mother’s absence Chance had starting acting out in an effort to keep his father’s attention, even to the point of stealing. That had got him sent to boarding school. Even in that restrictive environment Chance had pushed back.
In a stern voice the headmaster had said, “It’s time for you to decide if you’re going to amount to anything in your life. Right now I’d be surprised if you do.”
He was the one man in Chance’s life who had taken a real interest in a scared and angry boy. The grizzled and gruff headmaster had believed in him, had taken time to listen. Unlike his father. Chance had wanted to make the headmaster proud and had made a change after that conversation. He’d focused on his studies. Dedicated his life to helping others. But in the area of personal relationships he had failed miserably over and over to the point he had long ago given up. Those, apparently, he wasn’t capable of having.
Why were dark memories invading now? Maybe because the new woman reminded him so much of his ex-wife, Alissa, whose defection always made him think of his mother. Two females who had rejected him. He’d moved past all that long ago. His worry now was how to keep the clinic open. Pondering old history did nothing to help with the present problem.
He watched the new woman as he changed gloves. Her movements were confident now. Marco, a local man who served as clerk, translator, and gofer for the clinic, entered the tent with a distressed look on his face. He hurried to her and said in his heavily accented voice, “I know not where you are. Please not leave again without telling. Much danger here. Not get lost.”
She looked at him. “I’m sorry. I saw the emergency and thought I should come help.”
“It’s okay, Marco. I’ll explain. See to the other two,” Chance said to the short, sturdy man.
“Sí, Dr. Chance.” Marco nodded and hurried out of the clinic.
Chance gave her a pointed look. “Please don’t leave the clinic area until we’ve talked.”
Her chin went down and she nodded. “I understand. By the way, my name is Cox. Dr. Ellen Cox. Like Bond. James Bond.” She flashed him a grin.
She was a cheeky little thing. He wasn’t certain he appreciated that.
* * *
He finished up with the injured man and sent him off in a truck to the hospital in La Ceiba. He would check in on him when they got back to town. Chance cleaned up and moved on to his next patient, who was an older woman with an infected bug bite. It would be necessary to drain it.
Before starting the procedure, he stepped to the table next to his, where a five-year-old girl sat. Digging into his pants pocket, he pulled out a peppermint and handed the piece of candy to her. She removed the clear plastic cover and plopped it into her mouth, giving Chance a wide, toothy grin. He’d given a child a second of happiness. He just wished he could make more of a difference. What he did wasn’t enough.
As Chance returned to his patient, Ellen joined him.
Since she was so enthusiastic he’d let her see to the woman as he watched. “We’re going to need a suture kit, a box of four-by-fours and bandages. Supplies are in the van.” He gestured toward the beat-up vehicle that had been parked partially under the tent so that the back end was protected from the daily afternoon rain and could function as a portable storage room. Chance waited as she hurried after the supplies.
