New Boss New Year Bride (6 page)

‘About you doing the house-calls with Melissa? Great idea. I accept.’

‘That’s not what I meant. I was talking about
you
doing the house-calls tomorrow with your sister. Get to know her better.’

‘I can’t take her. No. No siree.’ He shook his head.

‘She’s your sister, Dex. You’re going to need to open up to her sooner or later.’

‘I choose later.’

‘Dex, I under—’

‘No. You don’t understand, Joss. You have parents who are definitely your parents. You weren’t lied to for almost thirty years by the people you love. You didn’t find out—completely out of the blue—that you have an older sister, that you were adopted!’ Dex thumped the desk.

Joss watched his friend. He hadn’t seen him this riled-up for a long time.

Dex took a breath and calmed himself down. ‘Look, I think it’s great that she’s here helping out at the clinic. Scoring ourselves an OB/GYN for a year was a great stroke of genius on your part and one of the major reasons I agreed to her coming. You are also right that it would be good for me to get to know her—just in case one day I need to ask for some bone marrow or a kidney or something. But right now it’s just too soon for me to even be contemplating spending a whole day with her.’

Joss felt the walls start to close in on him, and wondered if he could try another tack at convincing Dex that spending time with Melissa was a good thing. There was no way
he
could do it. Such close quarters…That wouldn’t be a way for him to get his libido back under control again.

‘I know you’ve been hurt, Dex, but as I’ve pointed out before, none of this is Melissa’s fault. Imagine how she’s
feeling. She comes to town to meet you, to get to know you, and you’ve hardly said two words to her.’

‘I’ve said a few more than that,’ Dex felt compelled to point out.

‘It’s like ripping a sticking plaster off. The sooner you get it over and done with, the better.’

‘Why can’t you take her? You’re the boss here.’

‘You’re an equal financial partner, Dex.’

‘But you run the show. You know I’m not good at the admin thing.’

‘I know, and as the “admin thing” guy, I’m telling you it’s your turn to do house-calls tomorrow, and Melissa will be accompanying you. End of story.’

‘Ahh, but that’s where you’re wrong. You see, I think secretly, deep down inside, you really
want
to do these house-calls with Melissa tagging along. I think you
want
to get to know her better. I think you
want
to see if you can find some flaws, some faults—anything to help you to stop thinking about her.’

‘What? What on earth are you talking about?’

‘You like her.’ Dex waggled his eyebrows up and down in an insinuating manner.

Joss ignored him and tried to keep his tone strictly professional. ‘Of course I like her. She’s a colleague.’

‘That’s not what I meant and you know it. You
like
like her. I saw you both before, in the corridor, making googly eyes at each other.’

Joss closed his eyes for a moment, unable to believe Dex had witnessed those few intense moments. But it was true, and there was no use denying it to his friend because Dex knew him far too well.

‘This is good, Joss. You haven’t been interested in any woman since Christina.’ Dex leaned forward on the desk. ‘If you like her, mate, you should do something about it.’

‘She’s your sister. She’s a colleague. She’s here to work. She has a year-long contract and I don’t want anything to go wrong.’

‘What if everything goes right? What if she’s your Ms Right? You could marry her and we could end up being real brothers! That would be cool.’

Joss shook his head, knowing his friend was only joking. ‘Funny. Very amusing,’ he remarked without humour.

‘But seriously, this is a good time for you to let go of the past and move forward into the future.’

‘Hmm.’

‘You need to let Christina go, Joss. Everything that happened to you all those years ago is gone. Finished. Done. I never believed the allegations brought against you, and neither did your family. You were cleared of any charges and you moved on with your life—geographically, but not emotionally.’

‘You’re one to talk,’ Joss commented. ‘You haven’t spoken to your family in how long?’

‘This discussion isn’t about me. It’s about you. When, since you left Perth, have you ever been this interested in a woman? I’ll tell you—never.’

‘It’s why I came to Didja in the first place. To get away from women. Besides, what if Melissa turns out to be like Christina? Ever think of that? What if she’s all nice and lovely on the surface, but dig a little deeper and I might find something I don’t want to know about?’

‘Excuses, excuses. Believe me, I’ve used them all in my time. But this isn’t about me; it’s about you. You like her. You’re attracted to her. That alone is enough of a reason to get to know her a little better. The past doesn’t matter any more, and Christina wasn’t any good for you anyway.’

‘Apparently not.’

‘You needed friends—true friends—to help build you up again, to support you.’

‘And you were there.’

‘That’s right. And now you can be there for me by agreeing to do the house-calls this week.’

‘Nice segué.’ Joss shook his head and grinned at his friend. ‘But my answer is still no.’

It had to be. He had to get his life back onto the nice even keel it had been in three days ago—before he’d ever laid eyes on Melissa Clarkson.

Dex’s mobile phone rang and he broke off their debate in order to answer it. Joss mentally cooled his heels whilst he waited, going over the arguments in his mind. It was imperative he succeed. When Dex ended the call, he grinned very slowly at his friend.

‘You look like the cat who ate the cream.’

‘Oh, I have. I don’t usually play dirty, but a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do.’

Joss’s skin started to prickle with apprehension at his friend’s words. ‘Who was that on the phone?’

‘The Watkinsons.’

Joss closed his eyes and buried his head in his hands, his shoulders instantly slumped in defeat. ‘Oh, no.’

‘Well you may cry, “Oh, no”, my friend, because they’re coming to Didja tomorrow. They’ll be here for a whole week—and you know what that means.’

He wished Dex would keep quiet—that he’d go away. ‘Can’t you just gloat in private?’ he asked, his words still muffled behind his hands.

‘Nope. Besides, gloating is done much better in front of the person you wish to gloat about. I don’t make the rules, mate, I just follow them. What a darn shame that the Watkinsons chose this particular weekend to come to Didja. What a darn shame that I need to be here to monitor their two children who have cystic fibrosis. What a darn shame I won’t
be able to do the house-calls tomorrow because I’ll be needed here, at the hospital in town.’

‘All right.’ Joss sat up straight and squared his shoulders. ‘All right. I’ll do your house-calls tomorrow. But you are definitely going out next week and that’s final. Nothing you can do will make me change my mind. Watkinsons or no Watkinsons.’

‘Yes!’ Dex punched the air.

‘Get out.’ Joss pointed to the door. ‘Go on. Go gloat elsewhere. I have a lot of work to get done.’

Joss watched his friend almost dance his way out of the consulting room. When he was gone Joss shook his head, unable to believe the unlucky turn of events. Where he’d thought he’d have time away from Melissa, to control his wayward mind and body, it was now a matter of finding strategies which would see him through tomorrow.

He rubbed his jaw and exhaled slowly. Melissa was beautiful, funny and smart. Everything he’d ever wanted. Then again, Christina had been beautiful, funny and smart, and she’d ripped his heart out and crushed it. Although he was definitely attracted to Melissa, he’d also do well to be on his guard.

Women could lie. Women could be devious. Women were the reason he’d hibernated in the Outback for the past four years, keeping his distance from any sort of personal relationship. Yes, the sooner he discovered Melissa Clarkson’s faults and flaws, the sooner he could move past this undeniable pull he felt towards her.

All that said, he desperately
wasn’t
looking forward to tomorrow.

B
UB
had told Melissa to pack an overnight bag whenever she went out on house-calls.

‘It’s just something we do out here in the Outback. You never know when the weather will turn. You could have buckets of rain coming down on you one moment and then bush fires the next. Sometimes you’ve gotta find shelter wherever you can, and other times you just go to the nearest farmhouse.’

‘And people just let you stay?’

‘Of course.’ Bub had looked at her as though she was mad. ‘We all support each other out here. You’ll see lots of great scenery, maybe even some Aussie animals—we have quite a few emus out here. You’ll meet new people, see how they all live, and be back in time to enjoy a coldie at the pub.’ Bub had frowned as she’d spoken.

‘Something wrong?’

‘No. Not really. Just that I haven’t seen Josiah down at the pub the past few nights. He’s usually there. Hope he’s not gonna start all that brooding stuff again.’

‘He broods?’

‘Oh, not for ages. But now and then, when his world is rocked from side to side, he tends to retreat back into his cave.’

‘Cave?’

‘A metaphor, darl. Never mind me. Off you go. Go pack your bag and get ready for tomorrow—and above all, enjoy yourself.’

Therefore Melissa had packed her overnight bag. In fact she’d packed and repacked it several times during the course of the evening. She’d been unable to sleep last night, so excited to be going out on house-calls with her brother. She would get to spend time with Dex, and even if he hardly spoke to her, just being with him, sitting beside him in the car, would be enough for her. It was happening. What she’d wanted for so long was finally coming true. She couldn’t believe that her luck seemed to be changing.

With a smile on her face and a spring in her step, she made her way out of her apartment, checking she had the keys which Joss had given her. She closed the door, put her hat on her head and carried her overnight bag to the waiting ute.

‘Joss!’ She was surprised to see him up this early. Clinic didn’t start for another two hours, so she’d presumed he’d still be sleeping. Instead, he was walking around checking the ute’s fitted tarpaulin cover was securely in place.

He held out a hand. ‘Your bag?’

Melissa handed over her bag. Joss didn’t appear to be in a good mood at all, and she guiltily hoped she hadn’t kept him awake last night with all her to-ing and fro-ing around the apartment due to her restless excitement.

Melissa looked around her. ‘Where’s Dex?’

‘Sleeping.’ Joss stowed her bag beneath the tarp before checking everything was secure once more. Then, much to Melissa’s horror, he opened the driver’s door and climbed in behind the wheel. Her eyes widened as she opened the passenger door.

‘What are you doing?’

He looked across at her as though she were thick. ‘Getting ready to drive.’

‘But…but…where’s Dex? Why is he sleeping? You can’t…You’re not doing…’ She stopped, her brain working overtime to cope with this change. Joss was doing the house-calls? She took a breath and tried to get herself under control. ‘I thought I was doing house-calls with Dex.’

‘Something came up.’

‘He’s not coming!’ Didn’t Dex want to be with her? Spend time with her? Was this her brother’s way of telling her to stay away? That she could work here but she had to keep her distance as far as trying to have a relationship with him was concerned? Pain, hurt and rejection rose up within her.

‘That’s right. So if you get in we can get this day over and done with. And the sooner, the better.’ He mumbled the last bit to himself, but Melissa had excellent hearing.

Melissa tried to swallow back the tears. Apparently neither of her colleagues wanted to spend time with her. Anger welled up inside. ‘You don’t want to do house-calls with me?’ She stood outside the ute, stubbornly refusing to get in. ‘Well, that’s just fine. I can go out with Dex next week, and you can spare yourself from having to endure my company all day long. And if Dex doesn’t want to go out with me next week, then write me a list of what I need to do and I’ll figure it out on my own. Honestly, I’d heard all about Outback hospitality and how everyone here would make me feel welcome—well, between you and Dex I’m feeling about as welcome as a squashed bug on a windshield.’

Melissa shut the door and started walking away. Joss closed his eyes for a second, then hit the steering wheel. He climbed from the ute and hurried after her. It wasn’t her fault Dex had changed the plan, and he felt like a heel. He’d let his unwanted attraction for her get in the way of his profession
alism and now he’d made her feel bad. Joss knew what he had to do. He had sisters and he knew how temperamental women could be.

‘Lis.’ He reached out a hand to stop her, but she shrugged away his touch.

‘You know, I just don’t get you. One minute you’re nice, and the next you’re all Mr Tortured Soul and clamming up tighter than a…than a clam.’ She turned to face him and pointed to the ute. ‘It’s a shame Dex doesn’t want to do the house-calls with me, but you know what? That’s OK. I can live with that. But this is part of my job and, quite frankly, I’d appreciate just a bit more professionalism on your part.’

Joss nodded. ‘You’re absolutely right, and I apologise for my behaviour.’ He shifted his feet and shoved his hands into the pockets of his khaki shorts. ‘Dex has to stay here and monitor a family who are coming to town. Two of their kids have CF and he’s the expert in that field.’

‘Oh.’ So it wasn’t just the fact that he hadn’t wanted to spend time alone with her. Melissa started to feel bad about her outburst. This would have meant that Joss would have had to do some pretty fancy footwork in rearranging schedules. Still, one of them could have let her know about the change.

She could feel her anger draining and tried to hold on to it. When she was angry with Joss she didn’t have to worry about fighting the attraction she felt for him. She wasn’t particularly looking forward to spending all day with him in the close confines of the ute. They could hardly cope within the close confines of the kitchenette. Still, she was a professional, and this was part of her job. Whether she liked it or not, she’d be spending the day with Joss.

He held out his hand, indicating the ute. ‘Shall we?’ His tone was calmer, more reasonable, and she could see the business mask he wore was back in place. ‘We have a busy
day to get through, so the sooner we get rolling, the sooner we’ll be back and having a drink at the pub.’

Melissa nodded, and the two of them returned to the waiting vehicle and climbed in, buckling their seat-belts. ‘So, boss. Where’s our first port of call?’

‘Interesting that you should use a sailing metaphor out here, where there is barely any water at all.’ Joss was driving the ute onto the main road of the town. ‘Our first “port of call”, as you term it, is the mine headquarters site office. It’s only fitting that you get to meet the head honchos in their official capacity, even though you’ve probably seen them around the town, and you also need to get a glimpse of what the mine is all about.’

‘Looking forward to it.’ As they drove, the buildings of the town became few and far between. It was as though there was an invisible line and houses couldn’t be built beyond it, because suddenly Melissa looked around and there were only small green shrubs mixing with the red-orange dirt at the side of the road.

After a while Joss turned right and headed down another seemingly endless road, and soon, as the signage depicted, they were upon the mine’s security gate. After signing in, Joss parked next to a few other cars. As a way of making up for his bad behaviour earlier, Joss came around the car to open Melissa’s door, but she beat him to it.

‘Problem?’ she asked, seeing him round her side of the car.

‘Uh…no.’ He felt self-conscious. ‘I was just going to open your door for you.’

‘Really?’ Her eyebrows hit her hairline in surprise. ‘Do you mean to tell me that chivalry isn’t dead? Even out here in the middle of nowhere?’

‘That’s exactly it.’ His expression was deadpan, but she thought she detected a slight twinkling of laughter in his eyes.

‘In that case, then, I’ll let you make it up to me by allowing you to open the door to the building.’

‘Oh, thank you, Dr Clarkson. You’re too kind.’

‘And, should it ever rain here, make sure you have your coat handy. I loathe standing in puddles.’

He dutifully held the door open, waiting for her to precede him. ‘Duly noted, Dr Clarkson,’ he murmured as they headed towards the reception desk.

The area was still half-decked in tinsel and baubles as the woman behind the desk was in the process of taking them down.

‘Hello, Joss,’ she said over her shoulder as she came down off a stepladder. ‘Happy New Year to you.’ She was bright and bubbly, her yellow badge declaring her name was Veronica. She wore a floral dress, had short grey hair and had a pen pushed behind her ear. ‘And to you as well…Melissa, isn’t it?’

‘It is.’ They both returned her greeting.

‘There hasn’t been an emergency, has there? I haven’t been notified of one.’ She walked to her desk and shuffled a few pieces of paper around.

‘No, Veronica. No emergency. I’ve brought Dr Clarkson here to introduce her around and to help give her a bit of a bird’s eye view of the mine.’

‘Good idea. Well, it’s lovely to see you again, Melissa.’

‘Again?’

‘We met on New Year’s Eve. You probably don’t remember. It’s difficult when you’re the new girl in town.’ The phone on the desk started ringing. ‘Go on through. Both Jeff and Scott are in there somewhere.’ Veronica answered the phone as Joss led Melissa through a door and down a corridor.

‘Have I met Jeff and Scott? Can you remember? It’s really quite disconcerting when people know you but you don’t have a clue who
they
are.’

Joss shrugged. ‘I’m not sure.’ Although he was sure she would have remembered meeting Scott. If Dex was the charming rogue in their community, Scott was most definitely the womaniser. If Scott had tried to sleaze Melissa at New Year’s, the woman would have remembered.

They went through into a different office, Joss not bothering to knock as he opened the door. Two men were sitting at a large conference table, papers strewn before them.

‘Joss.’ One of them looked up.

‘G’day, fellas. Just wanted to officially introduce you to our new doctor.’

‘Excellent.’ The two men came over and shook her hand warmly. Scott, however, held on to Melissa’s hand for a bit longer than was necessary.

‘When Jeff told me how incredibly beautiful you were I was immensely sorry I hadn’t stayed in Didja for New Year. I’ve been in Perth,’ he volunteered. ‘Still, it’s a real pleasure to have you join our little community, Melissa. A real pleasure.’ He shook her hand slowly as he said the last few words, and then with a great reluctance let her go.

Joss was trying not to seethe at the lecherous way Scott was looking at Melissa. If he needed to appoint himself her official protector then so be it. All for the good of the clinic, of course.

‘Well…thank you.’ Melissa stepped back, wanting to put a bit of distance between herself and Scott and accidentally bumped into Joss. He steadied her with a hand at her waist, letting it linger for a desperate moment before he dropped it back to his side.

As Jeff talked, telling her about the mining operation and pointing to the photographs on the wall which showed her exactly what the open cut mine looked like, Melissa was only conscious of the fact that Joss was still quite close to her.

That brief touch of his hand on her back had left a heated imprint, and the spicy scent he wore was starting to drive her to distraction. Why was she so interested in him? How did this attraction, which seemed to have come from nowhere, consume her so much?

Even when they headed out of the office so she could see the actual mine itself, she was highly conscious of every move Joss made. They went outside and walked down a set of stairs to the viewing platform, all of them standing there doing the time-honoured Australian salute of swatting flies, looking over the mining operation. Jeff and Scott pointed out the different aspects of the job, but all Melissa was conscious of was the nearness of her colleague. The platform was quite small, and therefore he couldn’t really keep his distance. The heat from his torso was more prominent than the hot sun shining down on them, and it was affecting her equilibrium in ways the sun never could.

Melissa hoped to goodness that she nodded and murmured in the correct places, but knew she would probably have to research the entire mining operation on line, when Joss wasn’t around to distract her.

They didn’t spend too much time watching the enormous trucks—one or two of them with tinsel still wrapped around their antennae from Christmas—carting the mined rock up and down incredibly steep slopes which led in and out of the earth. Instead they headed back inside, away from the heat and the flies.

‘Would you both like to stay for a drink?’ Scott asked when they were back in the conference room. ‘It’s a bit of a scorcher out there at the moment.’

Melissa looked to Joss, unsure what their next move was. He was the boss, and today she was dancing to his tune.

‘Sorry,’ Joss replied a moment later, wanting to get Melissa
as far away from Scott as possible. Honestly, the man had been giving Melissa such a come-on the entire time they’d been out on that platform. Joss hadn’t liked it one bit. ‘We need to get going. Have to get out to the Etheringtons, with quite a few stops to make along the way.’

‘That’s a lot of ground to cover,’ Jeff remarked.

‘His missus about ready to pop yet?’ Scott asked.

Joss’s smile was tight. ‘Not yet, but that’s one reason why I needed Melissa here to come along. Given that she’s a qualified obstetrician, she’ll be able to make sure everything is progressing well as far as mother and baby are concerned.’ Joss turned to Melissa. ‘Ready?’

It was strange, but even when he looked at her like that, one simple word coming from his lips, all she was aware of were his blue eyes, and the way they seemed to convey a multitude of unspoken words—especially when he lifted his eyebrows in such a cute and inquisitive manner. Talk about mixed signals and total confusion!