MAX ROUNDED THE corner and braked. An SUV with flashing hazard lights was parked in the centre of the secondary road leading to the Let’s Have Fun camp at the end of Whangaparaoa Peninsula. Further on, what appeared to be at least one enormous pine tree blocked all hope of further travel.
‘Damn. Should’ve stuck with the main road.’ The lure of Lily had tempted him off track, and now he was stopped almost outside her beach house. If he’d been late before this, there was no hope now of making it to the camp before the kids were out and at it. But, then, he wasn’t meant to oversee them twenty-four seven, and no one expected him before ten at the earliest.
Even with the windows closed the harsh noise of chainsaws in action was loud. Two people were cutting branches off the tree, while two older men were engrossed in moving the sawn lengths to the side of the road as they came free, ready to be loaded on a trailer attached to a nearby tractor.
Stepping out and tossing his jacket onto his seat, Max shut the car and headed over to the men. Might as well make himself useful. ‘Need some help?’
One man straightened up from the growing stack of timber, sweat streaming down his face despite the chilly winter air. ‘Sure do, mate. We can’t keep up with those two.’
Max looked over at the people wielding their machines and gaped. A pocket of heat expanded throughout his chilled body. Surely not? Then again, why not? Lily could still surprise him, which shouldn’t be a surprise at all. She might be tall enough to lay her head on his shoulder but she was slim and that chainsaw wasn’t made for cutting kindling. He couldn’t stop looking at the apparition before him. Curvaceous in the right places, no biceps bulging from strain to fill out the sleeves of an oversized plaid work shirt unlike anything he’d seen her wear before.
‘Here, put these on.’ One man handed him leather work gloves and leaned close to be heard above the din. ‘Saves getting splinters in your hands. Name’s Archie, and this here’s George. That guy over there’s Cal. I’m thinking you know Lily by the stunned look on your dial.’
‘I do. I’m Max.’ He was still gaping at Lily as she attacked a large branch with skill. ‘What’s she doing, brandishing that lethal equipment?’
‘Better not let her hear you say that or you’ll likely lose a leg.’ Archie laughed. ‘She’s darned handy with a chainsaw, believe me.’
As he watched, the branch hit the ground with a thud, and Lily straightened, pushed the safety goggles off her face and turned in his direction. And blinked. ‘Max?’ she mouthed, surprise registering in her steady gaze. A smile appeared on her face.
‘Obviously me,’ he answered silently, drinking in the sight of her face. How had he never realised how beautiful her smiles were? Because she’d hardly ever smiled at him. Just as well or his gut would have become permanently cramped. Nodding, he moved closer to the destruction to begin lifting logs to carry to the trailer. The muscles in his shoulders tightened as he sensed her watching him. And tightened some more when he realised she’d left her position to come across.
‘When did the trees come down?’ he asked to prevent saying what was really dominating his mind.
‘About five this morning. We waited for sunrise before getting stuck in. How did you manage to come this way? There’s supposed to be a warning sign up at the turnoff.’ Her breathing was even, despite what that chainsaw must weigh.
‘Afraid not. Unless I missed it.’ Anything was possible. He’d been dreaming about catching up with Lily again, and fighting the excitement that had brought on. She’d disappointed him when she’d turned down his offer to go for a meal together last Thursday. Once he’d have been irked, but not any more. It seemed those feelings had been replaced with a need to really know Lily, to get on with her emotions. Emotions best avoided but already impossible to ignore.
Warmth had flooded him whenever he’d thought about her over the last few days. So had the warning that he wasn’t looking for love, even if he wanted it. He had no intention of hurting a woman emotionally to meet his own ends. Hell. Emotion here, there and everywhere. It hadn’t used to be in his vocabulary. He blamed Lily. He smiled. Yeah, of course he did.
She smiled back. ‘You’re out early. Another hour and you’d have got through, no bother.’
‘This will be cleared in an hour?’ An exaggeration surely?
‘We’ve already cleared another, admittedly smaller tree further along.’ She grinned. ‘I’d better get back to it. Are you okay doing this in those clothes? The pine’s covered in sap. There are overalls in the garage behind the house if you want.’ Her head dipped in the direction of the stained timber, low-build home with picture windows from end to end and glossy-leafed shrubs placed strategically around the lawn. Beautiful in its simplicity.
Max sighed. The property was a perfect match for Lily. ‘I’ve jeans and an old shirt in the car. They’ll do.’ He hadn’t brought good clothes for the week, preferring casual ones as it often helped kids relax when they wanted to talk about their problems. He flicked the boot catch and undid the buckle of his belt—see, no notches, Lily—and smiled to himself as she hurried back to the fallen trees. Very prudish looking when she was anything but. In bed at least. He took a deep intake of air, forced it out.
Those nights together had been a revelation. The argumentative woman had flipped a switch and been hot and exciting, giving so much of herself he’d had to wonder if there were two Lilys. Then a third had come to light afterwards when she had walked away from him and kept him at a distance with her sharp retorts to anything he’d said.
It had been a wake-up call, forcing him to stop and wonder what the hell he had been playing at. Finding he wasn’t immune to her, that his heart might want to take a second look had shocked him silly. Until Lily, playing the field and remaining single had been the only way to go for him. After that, other women’s reactions towards his easy come, easy go attitude had made him realise he’d been selfish. He’d got that from his mother, who’d said girls were easier to raise than boys and that Max would need his father to keep him on track while he was growing up.
First Lily and then cancer had finally taught him how important kindness and honesty were. All the while Lily had continued niggling away at him, lighting a spark in his body, long after she’d finished working at the department to head offshore. A spark that had been relit across the road outside the medical centre last week.
He’d been his father’s son: tough. His mother had been right about that, but it wasn’t a strength he was proud of once he’d understood he’d hurt people because of it. And he did love his dad. When he’d been young, his father had dreamed of becoming a doctor but his family had been dirt poor so the day he’d turned fifteen he had left school to find a job. At first Max had wanted to study medicine for his father, but even before he’d started training he’d known there was no other career for him. He’d found a side to himself that involved caring for people without giving away his heart.
The medical scene had absorbed him, made him happy for the first time. He’d found his niche. Only when he’d been ill had his mother admitted being proud of him. Even his father, in his gruff way, had said so. That moment had lifted the cloud that had sat on his heart all his life. Dad was proud of him. And his mother.
The females in his family hadn’t abandoned him entirely when he’d been young. He’d spent time with them as they’d lived only three streets away, and his step-dad had accepted him as part of his family. But he’d been determined to put on a brave face like his father had done, and not show his hurt over being left behind.
Lily had been the one exception in his life—after the fact. At first she had been no different from any other date, but soon she could have had him eating out of her hand for more of her gentleness and that off-the-scale lovemaking. Yes, lovemaking, the first and only time he’d called sex anything other than sex. For good reason. Sex didn’t involve his heart. Lily had knocked on it.
It had been a game-changer. One that had had him raising the barriers to keep her out of his mind and soul. Even now he didn’t understand why. More importantly, why had Lily made him feel that when they hadn’t been close? He’d sometimes wondered if she too felt abandoned in some way and that he might hold some answers for her needs. Then he’d decide he was being crazy. Lily would never want him other than in the sack. It was payback for the women he’d treated the same over the years. But she’d remained an itch ever since.
The chainsaws roared to life, the sharp sound of blades cutting through wet wood filling the air. Lily and her off-sider were careful, keeping distance between themselves and continually checking to see where everyone was. The equipment wasn’t something to argue with.
A vivid, gruesome picture came to Max’s mind from his first year as an intern in an emergency room. He shuddered. A woodsman working in a pine forest had slipped while felling a tree and the result had not been good, the only thing saving the man from bleeding out being the other woodsmen working the same area with basic first-aid training to their credit. But the real mess had been handed over to Max and his colleagues at the hospital. They’d saved the guy’s leg and he’d gone back to work in the forests as soon as he’d been able, saying it couldn’t happen twice. Max wasn’t so sure. Imagine if anything like that happened to Lily. No, he did not want to conjure up that hideous image. Lily handled her saw with all the confidence she’d use with a dessert spoon, only she was super-vigilant.
‘She knows what she’s doing.’ Archie spoke beside him.
Max shuddered again. ‘I’m sure she does, but it’s nerve-racking to watch.’
‘Learned off her old man and those brothers she pretends are as weak as kittens.’ Archie chuckled. ‘No one was ever going to hold Lily back. Only had to say bet she couldn’t do something and she’d be off to prove them wrong.’
‘There’s a woman I recognise. Though she never tried to prove anyone wrong in the medical world, only determined not to make mistakes.’ Just like him. They’d been more similar than he’d realised. Wonder what else they had in common he didn’t know about?
‘You’ve worked with her?’
‘While we were training.’
Why hadn’t he spent time getting to know her better, instead of overreacting to her confident manner, when she had made it abundantly clear she wanted nothing more to do with him? He’d acted as per normal—distant—but what if he’d wooed her with some finesse? She’d got her own back by popping into his head on and off, except in the bleakest days of his treatment, giving him a nagging sense of a missed opportunity for something wonderful. He’d never know what that was about. Unless... Unless nothing. That’d mean letting her in to get behind the shield keeping his heart safe. How was he going to avoid that and get to know her better?
When both chainsaws finally stopped, the silence was overwhelming. Lily swiped her hands on her overalls, highlighting her shapely hips. Max swallowed a groan, squashed the stab of longing hitting him.
‘We’re done,’ Lily called. ‘Let’s haul the last of this clear of the road and go have a coffee, everyone.’
‘Best thing I’ve heard all morning.’ He should head away and find the camp, not hang out with Lily and her old cronies, except the idea of staying on for a bit warmed him. Max lifted a log up onto his shoulder and headed for the trailer.
Looking around, he breathed in the cold air tightening his skin and absorbed the sound of waves crashing onto the shore beyond the road. The air was heavy with salt and above gulls shrieked as they dived and soared while they patrolled the beach. Calm overtook Max. This was a great location for a week away from the madness that was the medical hub. No wonder Lily had come here before starting work.
‘I can even run to bacon and eggs if you’re lucky, guys.’ Lily was speaking to them all but smiling directly at him.
He could return her refusal to join him the other night, show her he wasn’t moved by her reappearing in his life, but it wasn’t in him to say no.
She’d stung his pride when he’d thought they’d been getting on well, yet there was a warmth tucking around him he hadn’t known for a long time, and he was damned if he could shuck it off. It felt good, right, and he wanted more. Careful. Damn, but he was tired of being careful. Again, it was Lily upsetting his determination to remain single, to cruise through life without involving, and thereby hurting, someone else. Lily. Gulp. Lily? Being careful was so ingrained in him, yet within days—in a blink—of catching sight of Lily again and ‘careful’ was disappearing from his vocabulary. Dangerous. For her. For him.
The month of isolation to prevent catching anyone’s germs when his system had had no resistance due to the new treatment. The weeks after chemo when he hadn’t wanted anyone to see him looking so despondent—not to mention bald, though that had been quite funny when the cause didn’t tear him apart.
Now that gnawing fear of the cancer returning made him leery of getting involved with someone and having to watch them cope, to pick up the pieces afterwards if the worst happened, of breaking their heart along with his. It wasn’t the greatest place to be, keeping a space between himself and everyone else, especially someone who could make all the difference if she was prepared to accept he didn’t have a guaranteed future.
Lighten up. You’ve only just caught up with Lily and you’re thinking all this? Get real. Get practical. ‘Got mushrooms to go with that?’
One well-styled eyebrow rose. ‘The man wants it all.’
Did he ever. Max shrugged, trying to keep that to himself. ‘Tomatoes?’
‘Thought you knew this woman,’ Archie grunted as he dragged a log the length of his body off the road.
‘Here, let me take that.’ Max leapt after him and took the heavy load from the old man. ‘Can’t have you falling on your face because Lily didn’t cut that in two.’
‘My fault, eh? Let me take the other end, Max.’ She took hold of the log and headed for the trailer, leaving Max no choice but to follow or drop the wood on his toes.
‘It wasn’t a challenge,’ he muttered, thinking how Archie had said she always took those on.
‘No, it’s about saving Archie’s face. And heart,’ she added quietly as they set their load on the trailer. ‘He’s got arrhythmia.’
‘Which explains the heavy breathing.’ He’d wanted to ask Archie about that but had got the evil eye when he’d opened his mouth. ‘Tough old guy, isn’t he?’
‘Yes, which is better than sitting in his rocking chair all day.’
‘Can’t do that any more,’ Archie butted in. ‘No newspapers these days.’
‘What’s wrong with the internet?’ Max asked cheekily.
‘You have to ask? I remember when we had party lines on our phones. Phones that were stuck to the wall and you couldn’t wander around the place yabbering your head off in front of everyone.’
‘You’ve got me on that one.’ Max shook his head. ‘There’s something to be said for modern technology and getting medical test results when they’re done, not the next day in the mail. Not to mention keeping in touch with friends when you can’t see them.’
Like in hospital in the middle of the night when fear of the future was tracking around your head and there was no way to stop it without talking to someone who knew you.
George had joined them. ‘You can keep track of your woman all the time.’
If he had one he’d be in touch, and available, not keeping tabs on her. ‘Never. I still believe in privacy.’ His gaze went to the tidy shoulders of the woman in front of him. She was a private person. Once he’d mistakenly believed it was snobbery because she didn’t blab about herself as some other women did. Watching her work the room during the party the other night, he’d realised he’d got that wrong.
‘Ten minutes and we’re finished here.’ Lily reached for a smaller chunk of pine.
Max picked up a piece. ‘I can smell the bacon already.’
‘George, Archie, you going to join us?’ Lily asked hopefully. ‘Cal?’
‘Thanks, but I’d better get home and see why Enid hasn’t been over with a cuppa like she promised. Probably engrossed in some book and forgotten all about us.’ Archie added his load to the trailer. ‘There’s a fair whack of fire wood here.’
‘I’ll cut it up over the next few days and bring it across.’ Lily nodded.
‘You’ll split the large rounds?’ Max asked. Lily might be tough but she wasn’t built like one of those axemen in the wood-chopping contests.
‘If there’s no one else to do it, I’ll cheat and use the chainsaw. It does make a mess but I’m not into body building.’
‘Glad to hear it.’ Her figure couldn’t be faulted. She certainly didn’t need muscles on top of muscles filling the sleeves of her shirts. ‘You might lose a toe or two.’
‘Careful,’ Cal growled. ‘That’s a challenge to Lily.’
He laughed. ‘Lily, ignore me.’
‘I am.’ Her smile was wide and full of fun.
And hit him where he didn’t want to be hit. In his heart. He gasped, looked away. Not his heart. More likely in that roped-down centre that kept him on the straight and narrow leading into the future, fuelled by a need to concentrate on those he could help through medicine and not ask for anything back. But he didn’t want to be ignored by Lily. Not by anybody. But especially not Lily. Even in jest.
‘Park your car in the driveway, out of the way,’ Lily told Max, before climbing onto the tractor and flicking on the engine, drowning out his reply. He’d surprised her by leaping in to help when he’d realised what they were doing. Her family had taught her that—jump in and help, no questions asked. Her back complained when she looked over her shoulder while backing her load around. Tomorrow all her body would ache from the exertion of cutting those trees. The chainsaw was made for heavy work, not weekenders wanting to tidy their yard, and her arms would know about it for days to come, but right now she felt alive and buzzing.
Being physical always hyped her up. Max hypes you up. There was no denying that. Strange how any time he was around her blood hummed and hope started rearing its head. But they weren’t going to get closer. They couldn’t. A sigh trickled over her lips. She wasn’t going there. There were only so many knocks a girl could take.
The men strode up the drive, tugging gloves off their hands and pausing to wait for Max to park and step out of his car.
Lily watched him straighten, roll those broad shoulders and look around until he found her and smiled. Sent the blood racing through her veins. Focusing on the job on hand and not Max, she positioned the trailer under the trees for some shelter from any precipitation in the coming days. The forecast was for scattered showers, but around here everyone knew to be prepared for rain any time.
Then, breathing deeply, she feigned nonchalance and strolled to the back door, calling out, ‘I’m putting the kettle on. Archie, try to convince Enid to join us.’
‘I’ll sling her over my shoulder and bring her across.’ Archie headed for the stile over the fence between their properties.
As he unlaced his shoes on the back step, Max asked, ‘Can I give you a hand with breakfast?’
Used to getting on with things by herself, Lily hesitated. Max sounded genuine in his offer. This relaxed feeling between them felt right. ‘Absolutely. Come on in, guys, and make yourselves comfortable. Bathroom’s along there.’ She pointed to the hallway on the right for Max’s benefit. ‘Or there’s a hand basin in the laundry.’
Tossing her jacket on a peg inside the back door, she headed to the kitchen. Strong coffee was what she needed more than anything. And for Max to change his mind and get on the road to the camp so she could breathe again. The moment she’d seen him standing by his car her heartbeat had gone haywire and still wasn’t settling.
He’d taken the long way round to the camp and had ended up pretty much at her front door. At the family beach-house door, if she was nit-picking. Had he deliberately set out to find her? If so, she wasn’t sure how that made her feel.
The restlessness that had gripped her since Leo had left, taking her dream of a family with him, hadn’t gone away completely. A need to settle in her own home and have a great job had bought her apartment and got the job of a lifetime, but there was still a hole in her life. Love. A man and a family. After her relationship failures she struggled with getting out there to find a man who might be the love of her life, but having a baby was still as clear as ever.
She’d researched surrogacy, had had an initial consultation at the fertility clinic in Remuera. The next step was as high as a mountain.
Having a baby would be amazing, life-altering in the best way imaginable. Her heart was full of love to give. It was choosing a father that gave her concern. Using a sperm bank was too impersonal for something so special and close. Babies should come not only into love but from love. She’d prefer a man she knew and admired to volunteer, not a number from the fertility bank. It might be a long wait to sort this out, but there was no rush. She wanted to settle into her job first anyway.
A long, sad sigh filled the kitchen. Hers. Startled, she glanced around, relieved to find herself alone. It was time to focus on feeding the men then getting on with the day, including catching up with Josie.
‘Where can I start?’ Max stepped into the light and airy kitchen dining space and instantly the room felt smaller.
And warmer. Lily hugged herself before turning around. ‘Knowing these men, a hot drink will be essential first. You’ll find mugs in that cupboard, tea, etcetera over on that shelf.’ Clicking the gas on to heat the elements, she removed pans from a drawer under the bench and went to the fridge for eggs and bacon.
‘I’ll set the table.’ George was already opening the cutlery drawer.
Lily loved these men. They’d been a part of her summer holidays most of her life; their children friends to catch up with in summer when everyone had come for Christmas and New Year and to recharge their batteries. ‘Cal, this is Max Bryant, a GP and sports doctor at the medical centre I’m starting at next week.’
Max shook the man’s hand. ‘I’ve come out to attend the camp and help any poor kid that can’t find someone better.’
‘Guess you’ll have time to split that wood, then.’ Cal chuckled.
‘Probably.’ Max grinned. Then got serious. ‘From what I hear, the kids are already resilient and determined to have a lot of fun doing all the activities. I’ve been told there’ll be a few pulled muscles and aches from overdoing some of the challenges, but otherwise nothing major.’
‘Don’t speak too soon,’ Lily warned, ducking around Max in the small space, focused on not bumping into that hot body. ‘We’ve already had a broken leg this year at an earlier camp. An eight-year-old girl with one leg climbed a tree. All good, and to be encouraged to a point, but in this case the branch she was on broke.’
‘Along with said leg.’ Max shook his head. ‘Kids, eh?’
‘Exactly. We take a lot of precautions, but we also want them to have fun doing the things their counterparts do, like climb trees and leap over fences and fall in the duck pond. It’s normal, and that’s what they need more than anything. To be normal.’ Lily stopped. ‘Sorry, that sounds like I’m lecturing, and I didn’t mean to.’
Max nodded. ‘It’s fine. I get it. It’s how you’d have grown up on the farm and how I was in town, always at some park or beach, running riot.’ As he added boiling water to the coffee plunger, he said, ‘You keep saying “we” when referring to the camp. What’s your role in the place?’
That’s what happened when she relaxed—she gave too much away. ‘Being on the board of directors, I tend to keep an eye on everything.’
‘Even when you were living overseas?’
Why had George and Cal chosen this moment to stop talking to each other? She couldn’t divert Max to whatever they’d been discussing, though knowing those two it would be about their backaches or stiff knees so wouldn’t have been much help. ‘I oversaw the set-up and haven’t stepped aside since.’ The site had been chosen for the rundown motel that stood in the middle of a large area of flat land leading to the beach. An extensive makeover, along with building further accommodation buildings, adding a communal kitchen, dining room and an activities hall had completed the camp. She’d paid for it all.
‘Anything to do with Josie?’
He didn’t miss a thing.
‘Some. She’s been luckier than most kids in her situation. Growing up on the farm with my brother for her dad meant she wasn’t held back, instead encouraged to get out and do the chores and ride the pony, dig a posthole. I saw what other kids could gain from sampling something similar.’
‘It wouldn’t only be her dad egging her on. Her aunt’s never been one to sit back and feel sorry for herself.’
You don’t know a thing, Max. Or nothing that matters. ‘I’ve been known to nudge her along at times.’
Cal roared with laughter. ‘Like making Josie fill the trailer with sand for the pétanque court around the side of the house.’
‘And did she do a great job?’ Lily grinned. She hadn’t bullied Josie at all, instead she’d been told she was mean for not letting Josie do the job in the first place.
‘She did, and is still proud of herself.’
‘Lily, will you come and see Enid?’ Archie burst into the kitchen, looking rattled.
‘What’s up?’ Lily moved up to him.
‘She’s speaking funny and can’t move her leg and arm on one side.’
Enid never had a sick day, and adored getting out and about in the garden when she wasn’t reading the stack of books by her bedside. ‘I’ll grab my bag.’
Max flicked off the gas and put aside the pans that had been heating. ‘Archie, lead the way while Lily gets her gear.’
‘I can’t make head or tail of what she’s saying.’
Lily bit her lip. Sounds like a stroke.
Max’s eyes met Lily’s over Archie’s head, acknowledgement coming her way. They were on the same page.
She dashed to her bedroom for the medical kit and her cellphone.
‘We’ll get out of the way,’ George said.
One look at Enid a few minutes later and Lily was tapping her phone. The left side of her face was contorted and while her lips were moving her speech was gibberish. ‘I’m calling the rescue helicopter.’
Max was kneeling by the bed, talking quietly. ‘Enid, I’m Max, a doctor and a friend of Lily’s. Archie says you were reading when he went out to help with the fallen trees this morning.’
Enid’s right eye widened briefly.
‘That’s a yes?’
Another slight movement in the eyelid.
‘How long do you think you’ve been lying here like this? One hour?’
No movement.
‘More?’
No movement.
‘That might be good,’ Lily muttered. Enid might be in the golden hour. Or she could’ve been like this for a lot longer. They’d been working on those trees for at least three hours.
‘Emergency service. Do you require the ambulance, police or fire service?’
‘Ambulance,’ Lily answered briskly.
Max asked, ‘Archie, what time did you head outside to help Lily and the men?’
‘I think it was about six but I can’t be sure. What’s wrong with Enid? She can hear you. Sort of answers you.’
‘It was near six,’ Lily said.
‘Ambulance service. Please tell me the nature of your call.’
‘I’m Lily Scott, a GP. We’re on the Whangaparaoa Peninsula and I have a woman who appears to have had a stroke. There’s a possibility we’re in the golden hour so I suggest sending the rescue helicopter.’
‘I need some details, Dr Scott. Bear with me for a moment.’
‘There’re two doctors here.’ It was irritating to go through this when she was a doctor, but she understood the reasons behind the system. Answering the questions quickly and getting information from Max, Lily waited while the woman at the other end put her on hold.
‘Archie.’ Max looked up at the man. ‘We think Enid’s had a stroke. Can you tell me if she’s got any medical conditions and if she takes any medications?’
‘What? A stroke? No, not that. Enid, look at me, tell me you’re all right.’ He was shaking and gasping for air.
Lily stepped around the bed and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. ‘Archie, deep breath in. Let it out. That’s it. We’re getting Enid urgent help now. Max is checking everything. She’s in good hands. I want you to sit down by the bed and hold Enid’s other hand. Concentrate on breathing properly. You’re no help to her if you get wound up.’ She pulled the chair from the dressing table across and gently pushed Bill onto it just as the emergency dispatcher came back on the line.
‘Dr Scott, the rescue helicopter is on the way. Is there somewhere safe to land close by?’
‘There’s an expansive grassed area in front of the houses in this bay. I’ll arrange for neighbours to be out there to wave when the helicopter gets here, and to keep the area clear of vehicles and people. There’re some wind gusts after last night’s storm from the south east.’
‘I’ll pass on the information. Since Enid has doctors in attendance I won’t keep you on the line, but call back if there’re any concerns.’
‘Just get that rescue team here fast.’ She hung up, knowing she hadn’t needed to say that, but had been unable to stop herself. This was personal. She and Max were doing all they could but Enid needed to be in hospital. ‘Helicopter’s on the way, Archie. Max, I need to get George and Cal to head to the reserve and keep it clear.’
‘Of course. It’s a long shot but you haven’t got breathing equipment in the house, by any chance?’ Max asked.
She shook her head. ‘Sorry.’
That bad, eh? Her heart stuttered for Archie and Enid. Hang in there, Enid. Help’s on its way.
‘I’ll be back as quickly as possible.’ Max had it covered, but heading outside when this was going on went against all she’d trained for, even though organising people to make it easier for the chopper to land was helping just as much.
‘I could do that if you want to stay here,’ Max offered.
He understood her need to be there for her neighbours. ‘Thank you, but I know where I’m going and I’ll be back fast.’ She headed outside, leaping the fence and dashing through a back yard to get to George’s house. ‘George, where are you? We need help.’
As soon as George grasped what she was saying, he insisted on organising everything and sent her back to Enid. She left immediately, needing to be on the spot, not away from Enid and Archie. And Max. ‘Really?’ she gasped, as she raced through the back yard. Yes, really. This Max was stronger in a kind, caring way.
‘How’s Enid?’ Lily asked the moment she stepped into the bedroom, and immediately wished she’d kept her mouth shut. She knew there’d be no change, definitely not for the better and probably not at all.
‘I shouldn’t have gone out to shift those trees.’ Archie was stricken.
Lily went to hug him. There was nothing she could say. It was natural to blame himself, even when he couldn’t have known Enid was in trouble.
Max gave her a tight smile as he continued monitoring Enid’s heart and breathing, noting everything down. An eternity seemed to pass before the thumping of helicopter rotors came from directly above the house.
As the machine moved towards the reserve and hovered, Lily was holding her breath, begging them in her mind to hurry while understanding the need for caution. The paramedics would be here as soon as they could. Which was never fast enough. She hugged Archie again, her eyes fixed on Enid, wondering how much she understood.
Suddenly the room was crowded with paramedics and their equipment. Lily and Max were redundant. Outside a stretcher stood ready for loading Enid. Max said, ‘It’s hard to hand over, isn’t it? Even when the paramedics are better equipped, it goes against all I feel about helping people.’
‘It’s difficult,’ she agreed.
Max looked at her. ‘I’m sorry about your friends.’
She teared up. Slashing her hand across her face, she muttered, ‘I know people will say Enid’s in her early seventies, it was to be expected something would happen one day. But I’ve known these two over half my life and Enid still gets around, doing the garden and cooking and going to group meetings.’ Sniff. ‘Am I writing her off already?’
A firm hand settled on her shoulder, pulled her close to that safe chest. ‘That’s no small stroke she’s suffered but, as we both know, there’s no telling for sure what’s ahead until all the tests have been completed.’
Max was only saying what she knew, but it helped somehow. As did the warmth from his body pervading her senses and taking away the loneliness that had started coming over her. ‘Thanks.’ She wasn’t in a hurry to move away.
One of the paramedics appeared to take the stretcher inside.
‘Need a hand?’ Max stepped back, leaving her chilled.
‘That’d be great. Two of us can carry this and someone take our gear.’
‘Where will you take Enid?’ Lily asked as she followed them.
‘North Shore General Hospital. Will someone be driving the husband down?’
‘I will.’ It was a no-brainer.
Except in the end George and Cal insisted on taking him. ‘We’re his mates, we go through everything together,’ George pointed out.
‘I get it,’ she agreed. Who else would Archie want in this situation, except those nearest and dearest to him? ‘Keep me posted.’
As the chopper rose from the reserve, Lily started back to the beach house. ‘I really need that coffee.’
‘Mind if I join you?’ Max asked.
‘I expected you to,’ she replied. ‘Still on for breakfast?’ Her appetite was returning. No surprise there.
‘You have to ask?’ He smiled.
A smile that touched her, and had her wondering about the warmth returning throughout her. Her wariness was backing off. It wasn’t as though they’d have another fling. Definitely not. ‘That’s a yes, then.’ Her next sigh was crisper. Her body was tightening. Good looking, in great physical shape, Max had a way of looking at her that made her toes curl, but they were not getting hooked up again. He’d only hurt her in the end, and anyway she wasn’t about to change her mind and start testing the dating waters. Whatever happened, she couldn’t get involved with Max.