Laura Iding - Snowbound With The Single Dad

The door at the back of the auditorium opened and he heard a little murmur around him, accompanied by the sound of over a hundred firefighters straightening up all at once. He turned sideways, trying to see what had caused that effect. Had the chief officer just come into the room?

No. It wasn’t the chief officer. It was a woman with caramel-coloured hair and a sway to her step. His mouth fell open. Jess?

All of a sudden he was paying attention to what the man at the front of the room was saying. ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’d like you to welcome Dr Jessica Rae. She’s a paediatrician at Parkhill, the children’s hospital in Glasgow.’

Callum tore his eyes away from Jessica for a moment—something none of the other men in the room were doing—to look at his programme. It had someone else’s name on it for the next lecture.

‘Dr Rae is filling in for Dr Shepherd, who had an unexpected family emergency today. We’re very grateful that she could find the time to step in for us. Dr Rae will be talking to us about paediatric smoke inhalation and immediate treatment.’

Callum watched as Jessica walked to the front of the room. Her hair was shining and resting in curls on her shoulders. And she was dressed cleverly in layers to hide how thin she was, and in bright colours to complement her skin tone.

‘Hey, Callum, isn’t that the lady doc from the minibus accident?’ the firefighter sitting next to him whispered.

‘Yes, it is.’ He still hadn’t taken his eyes from her. She was wearing a bright blue dress that was draped and gathered at the front. She looked good. She had more colour about her face today and was wearing bright lipstick.

‘Wow. She looks gorgeous.’ He turned and squinted at Callum, in the way only a friend could. ‘Didn’t you say you knew her from years gone by?’

Callum shifted uncomfortably in his seat. He knew exactly what was going on in Frank’s head. ‘Yeah. She’s an old friend.’

Frank let out the lowest of whistles. ‘Wish my old friends looked like that.’

The hackles at the back of Callum’s neck immediately rose. Frank was only voicing what every appreciative man in the room was thinking. But that didn’t mean that he liked it. He wanted to put a cocoon around Jess and protect her. Hide her away from the leering glances.

He hadn’t seen her in more than a week and, boy, was she a sight for sore eyes. The fact that thought had sprung into his mind alarmed him. Why, all of a sudden, was he annoyed by the fact that other men found her attractive? What right did he have to feel like that?

More than once this week his hand had hovered over the phone, thinking of a reason to phone Jess again. Looking for any excuse just to speak to her.

But then his rational side had kicked in and brought him back into reality.

Too bad reality was looking kind of blurry right now.

Jess stood up at the podium and looked around the room. When her eyes rested on Callum he saw her give a little start, before she gave him a nervous smile.

‘Hi, folks. I recognise some of the faces in here today because unfortunately, in our lines of business, our paths frequently cross.’ She pressed a button and the presentation appeared on the wall behind her. ‘I’m going to give you some up-to-date information on the best things you can do for a child with smoke inhalation.’ She lifted her hand and gestured around the auditorium. ‘I’m sure it’s something you’ve all had to deal with.’

Jessica was confident at work. She was in control. That much was clearly evident. She could probably have done this presentation with her eyes shut. And it was nice to see her that way.

Her voice was steady and clear. ‘We don’t expect any of you to do anything more than the most basic first aid. I’m sure you’re all aware that the paramedics and ambulances aren’t always on scene immediately, so my job today is to give you enough information to feel confident in your first responses.’

She lifted her hand, pressed a button on the remote and the screen behind her changed. Then she turned back and gave the room a dazzling smile. ‘Now, let’s begin.’

It was officially the quickest thirty minutes of her life. She hadn’t hesitated that morning when a colleague had asked her to cover for him. As a paediatric consultant at a teaching hospital she was often asked to give lectures to medical students and people in other disciplines. This was a walk in the park for her.

If only there wasn’t a great big distraction right in the middle of the room.

Callum was definitely the proverbial elephant in the room today.

She spent the whole thirty minutes trying to avoid looking at him. She was sure that if she caught a glimpse of his green eyes she wouldn’t be able to concentrate at all.

It was strange. She should have felt happy that there was a friend in the room, but instead she felt almost like a student undergoing an examination. It was just as well the firefighters went easy on her and there were only a few questions at the end. That was the beauty of talking just before the coffee break—no one wanted to hang around for long.

As soon as she’d finished the room emptied quickly. Her heart started to thud. Would Callum leave without speaking to her? Maybe he had to network with some of his colleagues and wouldn’t have time.

‘Hey, Jess. That was a nice surprise.’ She started at his voice and turned around quickly as someone jostled him from behind and pushed them even closer together. It looked as if it was a stampede towards the strong smell of coffee.

Her hand went up automatically and rested on his chest. She could feel the heat of his body through his thin black shirt. ‘Hey, you too. I didn’t expect to be here. Just filling in for a friend.’

‘What happened?’

‘Mark Shepherd’s wife has cancer. She had a bad reaction to her chemo, so he wanted to stay home with her.’

‘I’m sorry to hear that. How are the kids from the accident doing?’

She raised her eyebrows. ‘You mean you haven’t already phoned today?’

He squirmed. ‘Okay, I admit it. I’m a bit of a stalker.’

She laid her hand on his arm. ‘But only in a good way. We’ve got four still in, but they’re all improving. With kids we just take things one day at a time.’

Callum nodded slowly. He held his elbow out towards her. ‘Have you time for some refreshments before you leave?’

‘Hmm, firefighter coffee. Is it as bad as I think it will be?’

‘Scandalous! We’re very serious about our coffee, and we’re even more serious about our cakes. I can guarantee you a fruit scone.’

‘Something does smell pretty good around here.’ She put her hand through his crooked elbow. ‘Why do I get the impression that you’re trying to fatten me up, Callum?’

He rolled his eyes and pressed his other hand to his chest. ‘Tragedy, you’ve caught me out.’ His face broke into a wide grin. ‘Let’s call it looking out for a friend.’

Her heart gave a little flutter. ‘Friends? Is that what we are again, Callum?’

‘I certainly hope so.’ There was something so nice about the way he’d said those words. Not a moment’s hesitation. He didn’t even need to think about it for a second.

Friends. She liked that word. It felt safe.

They walked across the corridor to the coffee room. The queue had died down a little and she had a little time to peruse the cakes in the glass cabinet. The firefighters certainly did take their coffee seriously. This was an outlet of a popular coffee house, with all their famous tempting products on display.

He placed his arm on the counter and slid a tray in front of her. ‘What can I tempt you with?’

Now, there was a question.

The thoughts that flooded her mind almost made her blush.