What had Kelly ever done to provoke that kind of treatment? And calling her Cowbell? What the heck was that about? Not that it mattered, anyway. The man had been unprofessional to the point where an official complaint might be justified but that hadn’t entered his head at the time. No...the only thing that Ari had wanted to do in that moment was to protect Kelly. The way he would always want to protect someone who was vulnerable and under threat.
The urge had been so powerful that, if Vicky hadn’t started crying at that moment, he would have been on his feet and by Kelly’s side. Telling that cop just how she had taken control of a situation that had been a lot more threatening than the one he and his colleague had arrived into. And that Kelly had gained control by using nothing more than her voice and her determination. She hadn’t needed to wave weapons around or cause physical pain.
His intervention hadn’t been required, of course. He might have caught a glimpse of the other side of the coin that was Kelly but it had only been momentary. She’d gone right back to doing her job without her focus being compromised one little bit. Strength had won out over vulnerability. That glimpse had been enough, however. Especially given the connection he was already aware of.
Ari was intrigued.
He wanted to know more.
And, yeah...he knew he should just let it go because that kind of interest had created problems before. He’d never had the space for a woman in his life who wanted to depend on a long-term relationship and he didn’t have the space for another woman in his life for any reason right now.
The ambulance carrying Kelly and Vicky was turning into the bay right outside Kensington’s emergency department. Ari couldn’t park his bike there so he had to go further down the road to access the staff car park. He’d have to walk back this way to head towards the maternity wing, though. Well...okay, it was a bit of a detour and he didn’t exactly have the luxury of time to be making detours but...
...but the pull to do that was so strong he knew it might well prove to be irresistible.
* * *
Different.
That was what was so intriguing about Ari the midwife.
It wasn’t simply that a male midwife was unusual. Or that he wore his hair long enough to need to tie it back to keep it out of the way for work. It wasn’t even the strangely hot contrast between the idea that he had chosen his profession because he loved babies and that obvious gentleness in caring for his clients and the sheer masculinity of a big man who rode around on a powerful motorbike and wore leather.
There was something else that Kelly couldn’t quite nail down and, now that she had the time to think about something other than the patient she’d just accompanied to hospital, her brain didn’t want to let it go. She was in a supply room down the corridor from the emergency department at Kensington Hospital, collecting everything she needed to restock the kit that was in the back of her rapid response car. The task was automatic. And easy, because all she had to do was run back through the scene in her head and pick up a replacement for everything she’d used.
An oxygen mask was first on the list and then it was IV supplies. Kelly added a strip of alcohol wipes to the bag, a sixteen-gauge cannula and a couple of Luer plugs and occlusive dressings. She had to stand on tiptoe to reach the shelf with bags of saline and the packages containing the giving sets.
It wasn’t just the treatment she had given her patient that Kelly was remembering as she collected the items. She was remembering the assistance she’d had. How easy it had been to work with someone who could anticipate what she needed and when. He was probably quite capable of inserting an IV line himself but he hadn’t given the slightest hint of being frustrated at her taking the lead. A lot of men wouldn’t like that, especially if that lead was being taken by a woman. Especially men like Darryn...
And there it was...that thing that had been at the back of her mind that felt important enough to identify. The reason that Ari was so different. It was the contrast between those two men that was almost as blinding as the difference between light and dark. Superficially, that contrast was there for everybody to see. Blond and fair-skinned against a Mediterranean kind of colouring. But the difference that Kelly could now see in retrospect was something only she could be aware of and that was the contrast in how those two men made her feel.
It was pathetic, given that she’d escaped her relationship with Darryn so long ago, that he could still make her feel stupid. Belittled. Afraid of what was going to come next, whether it was something being broken or vicious words or the threat of physical harm that seemed just as bad as any actual violence might have been. Worse, in some ways, because there was no evidence left that might have made others realise that something was very wrong. And why would anyone have believed her when he could be so very charming in public? She wouldn’t have believed it herself back in the early days when he’d set out to capture her heart. Now it was hard to believe that she could ever have imagined herself to be in love with him.
And in contrast to that was the feeling of...of safety...that Ari had given her. She’d only really noticed it when she’d seen him following the ambulance on that huge motorbike but it had been there right from the moment she’d met him, hadn’t it? When she’d seen him crouched beside Vicky as she’d entered that living room. There’d been something in his body language that had made her aware of his total focus on the pregnant woman. Something she could sense in the gentle movement of his hands on her belly that had made her think that if she was his patient she would feel safe.
She’d seen that look on his face when he’d heard Darryn taunting her with that horrible, old nickname. As unlikely as it seemed, Kelly could believe that he knew exactly how she was feeling in that moment and he’d almost looked as if he was ready to leap to his feet and come to defend her, but maybe she’d imagined that. In any case, it had been Vicky who had needed his attention far more than she had.
Remnants of that feeling of safety were still there, however, and it was doing something weird to Kelly’s gut. Making it feel like it did when she was nervous—a fluttering kind of sensation. Stronger than butterflies. More like birds. It wasn’t an unpleasant feeling but it was unusual enough for Kelly to prefer that it would go away. Grabbing a handful of ECG electrodes, she headed back to the ambulance bay where her vehicle had been left to one side. She opened the back hatch and then opened her kit to lie flat so that she could slot her replacement supplies into the pouches they belonged in.
The movement and change of scene seemed to have done the trick in dispelling that strange fluttering sensation. Maybe now that she had identified what had been niggling at the back of her mind, she could now dismiss that as well. It wasn’t as if she was likely to see Ari again anytime soon and, even if she did, it wouldn’t mean anything. So what if he was the polar opposite of her ex-boyfriend? That didn’t mean that she was attracted to him, did it? She hadn’t been remotely interested in men since she’d broken up with Darryn and that was long enough now to make her think she might remain single for ever.
Zipping her kit closed, Kelly tightened the safety belts that held the defibrillator and an oxygen cylinder in place and then pulled the hatch shut. She was already fishing for the set of keys in her pocket as she turned to see the tall figure walking towards her. The man she hadn’t expected to see again anytime soon. If she’d been trying to subconsciously convince herself that those wingbeats in her belly didn’t have anything to do with attraction, she realised in that moment that it was a totally lost cause because just the sight of Ari made them spiral into an intensity that was a shaft of something rather too close to physical pain.
The pain of a barrier being smashed, perhaps?
‘Hey...just the person I was hoping to see.’
He was smiling at her. She hadn’t seen anything more than the hint of a smile on his face before and it was lovely. Warm. Genuine. Enough to make his eyes crinkle at the corners. Br
own eyes, she noticed as he came close enough—just as warm as that smile. It was impossible not to smile back.
‘All good?’ Ari asked. ‘How’s Vicky? I was hoping to get here sooner but I got held up with some calls.’
‘You would have needed to be quick. I was most impressed with how fast they worked. There was a team waiting for us in Resus. An ultrasound confirmed the placental abruption and also revealed that there was quite a lot of blood trapped behind the placenta so what we saw was only part of the volume she’d lost.’
‘No wonder she was going into shock. Did she need a transfusion?’
Kelly nodded. ‘They had the first unit running as they took her up to Theatre.’ She glanced at her watch. ‘Her baby should be being delivered right about now. You’ll probably be able to see her on one of the maternity wards later this afternoon. I’m just hoping that they’ll both be okay.’
‘You and me both.’ Ari’s smile was long gone. ‘Especially if she’s going back to that violent thug of a husband.’
‘The police involvement was part of the ambulance report so Social Services has been notified. If Vicky wants help, it’s there for her.’
‘I’ll put something in my paperwork as well. My colleague, Yvonne, will be doing the postnatal house calls so I’ll have a chat to her. I’d hate to have her go back into an abusive relationship.’
‘Mmm...’ Kelly had to look away from Ari’s gaze. It was too intense. As if he really did see more than he should.
‘And what about that cop? I’m tempted to put in a complaint about his behaviour.’
Kelly’s heart missed a beat. ‘What behaviour?’
‘Brendan might be a thug but he was handled pretty roughly. And—’ there was a note of anger in Ari’s voice ‘—I didn’t like the way he spoke to you either.’
Kelly sucked in a quick breath. ‘Don’t say anything. Please. It would only make things worse.’
‘What things?’
‘He’s my ex,’ she admitted. ‘It was over a long time ago and we don’t cross paths very often but... I wouldn’t want to stir things up. You know...’
There was a beat of silence between them. A beat that was so long Kelly had to look back to catch Ari’s gaze.
He did know, she thought. More than she would have been prepared to admit to anyone on first acquaintance. But that wasn’t stopping him from wanting to know more. What was even stranger was that she wanted to tell him more. To tell him everything, in fact, and maybe she would have said more right then but as she opened her mouth, her pager sounded.
‘Uh-oh...’ She glanced at the message. ‘Code Red. I need to go.’
‘Me, too.’ Ari stepped out of her way but didn’t keep going. ‘I finish work about six,’ he told her as she opened her car door. ‘Want to meet for a drink or a coffee or something? I might be able to update you on Vicky by then.’
Kelly slammed her door shut but immediately pressed the button that rolled her window down. Already, her focus was veering towards her next callout but that new twist of her gut was sharp enough to make her catch her breath.
‘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.
The Paramedic's Unexpected Hero Page 3