The Playboy Doctor's Proposal

‘Mmm.’ Despite herself, Hannah was listening to the joke. So Ryan was actually aware of why someone like herself might take offence at his humour? Interesting. Did that mean he was intentionally trying to get under her skin? That his charm with her was as fake as it had been with Doris Matheson and he actually disliked her type as much as she did his?

Ryan’s tone was deadpan. ‘The ventriloquist was highly embarrassed. He goes red and starts apologising profusely but the blonde yells at him again. “Stay out of this, mister. I’m talking to that little jerk on your knee!”’

Hannah snorted. Somehow she managed to disguise the reluctant laughter as a sound more like derision. She didn’t want to laugh, dammit! Not at one of Ryan’s jokes and not when she’d just been through a gruelling, heart-breaking and probably fruitless couple of hours’ work. She knew exactly why he was trying to make her laugh. It had to be the quickest way of defusing an overly emotional reaction to a case. But if she let him make her feel better, it would be worse than empathising with him. She could feel the connection there, waiting to happen. It needed dealing with. She had to push Ryan as far away as possible.

‘You just can’t help yourself, can you?’

‘I thought you might appreciate that one.’

‘What makes you think I’m in the mood for jokes right now?’ Hannah swivelled so that she could give Ryan a direct look. ‘Doesn’t anything dent your warped sense of humour? Even a battered wife who died trying to get her child to a safe place?’

‘That’s precisely why I thought a joke might be a good idea,’ Ryan said wearily. ‘Sorry, maybe I should have left you to wallow in how awful it was. Maybe question your abilities and wonder endlessly what you might have been able to do better.’

‘It might be more appropriate than telling jokes.’

‘Really? What if another major case comes in in the next five minutes, Hannah? You going to be in a fit state to give that person the best you can?’

‘Of course I am.’

‘Well, lucky you. Some of us need to distract ourselves. Lift our spirits a bit. There’s always time for wallowing later.’

‘I don’t believe you ever wallow,’ Hannah snapped. She wasn’t going to admit that even that stifled snort of laughter had done something to ease the emotional downside of this job. She’d rather believe that it was being able to channel her frustration and anger into a confrontation that had been building for some time. ‘And you distract yourself often enough to be a liability in this department. You’ve been here, what, three months? And how many times have you taken time off to flit back to Australia? Four, five times? I should know—it’s usually me that does extra shifts to cover the gaps.’

This distraction was working wonderfully well. Hannah was really hitting her stride.

‘You know your problem, Ryan? You’re shallow. You’re so intent on having a fun life you can’t even spare the time to think about someone else.’

‘Oh?’ Ryan was staring at Hannah and she’d never heard him use such an icy tone. ‘Shallow, am I?’

‘You might find it more beneficial to your career to review cases like we’ve just had. You never know. Try having a professional discussion with a colleague next time instead of telling stupid jokes. You might learn something.’

‘From you?’ Ryan snorted. ‘I doubt it.’

‘Why?’ Hannah’s tone was waspish. ‘Because I’m blonde?’

‘No.’ Ryan stood up, abandoning his cup of coffee. ‘Because you’re less experienced professionally and far less competent when it comes to relationships between people. You’re judgmental, Dr Jackson, and you don’t even bother finding out the facts before you make those judgments.’

He stalked behind Hannah and she had to swivel her head to keep glaring at him as he made his parting shot. ‘And when I’m consultant, it might be nice if you made me coffee, babe. Not the other way round.’

‘Dream on, mate!’ What a pathetic rejoinder. Hannah could only hope Ryan would take it as she meant it—referring to the consultancy position and not the coffee-making.

Jennifer came in a few seconds after Ryan had left. Her eyebrows had disappeared under her fringe.

‘What on earth’s wrong with Ryan? I’ve never seen him look so grumpy!’

‘He’s a grumpy man.’

Jennifer laughed. ‘He is not and you know it. He’s a lovely man and if you weren’t trying so hard not to like him you would have realised that by now.’

‘I’m not trying hard,’ Hannah protested. ‘It’s easy. Besides, it was your friend in Sydney that told you what a reputation he had for breaking hearts. The man needs an emotional health warning attached.’

Jennifer shook her head, smiling. ‘Yeah…right.’ She took another glance at Hannah. ‘You look pretty grumpy yourself.’

‘It’s been a bad night. I hate cases like that—especially when they shouldn’t have happened in the first place.’ She sighed again. ‘And I’m tired. Roll on 7 a.m.’

‘Roll on Friday more like. Isn’t that when you leave for a few days’ R & R in the sun?’

‘Sure is.’ Hannah’s spirits finally lifted—a lot more than Ryan’s joke had achieved. ‘You know, I’m finally really looking forward to this trip.’

‘I could do with some time away from this place myself. Could be just what the doctor ordered. For both of us.’

‘Mmm.’ Hannah’s agreement was wholehearted. But it wasn’t the place she needed the break from. A few days away from Ryan Fisher was definitely what this doctor was ordering.

Hannah Jackson could go to hell in a hand basket.

The glimpse of a woman with sleek blonde hair disappearing into the melee of economy class was enough of a reminder to sink Ryan Fisher’s spirits with a nasty jolt.

He slid his cabin baggage into the overhead locker with the same ease he slid his long body into the comfortable window seat at the rear of the business class section of the plane. Seconds later, he returned the smile of a very pretty young air hostess.

‘Orange juice would be lovely,’ he agreed. ‘Exactly what I need.’

The frosted glass was presented while economy-class passengers were still filing past, but Ryan killed the faintly embarrassed reaction to the envious glances. Why shouldn’t he travel in comfort? He had to do it often enough to make it a boring inconvenience and he’d decided he may as well make the travel as enjoyable as possible when the destination usually wasn’t.

At least this time he could look forward to what lay at the other end of his journey.

‘Is there anything else you need, sir?’

Ryan suppressed a wry smile along with the temptation to ask the crew member for a thousand things. How about a miraculous cure for a little girl in Brisbane that he had far more than just a bond of family with? Or perhaps freedom from the ridiculously powerful attraction he had felt for Hannah Jackson ever since he’d first laid eyes on her three months ago?

No. He was over that. As of last Monday night when she’d told him exactly what she thought of him. She hated him. He was shallow—telling jokes when he should be taking on board the misery of others. Lazy—taking time off to flit back to Australia to have fun at regular intervals. Out to win the job she felt was rightfully hers.

Ironic that he’d actually set out to catch Hannah’s attention by demonstrating his clinical ability. He hadn’t expected the head of department to twist his arm and put his name forward for the upcoming consultancy position but then he’d thought, Why not? The anchor of a permanent job could be just what he needed to sort out his life. And at least that way Hannah would see him as an equal.

Would really see him.

How idiotic would it be to waste any more time or emotional energy hankering after someone who didn’t even have any respect, let alone liking, for him?

‘No, thanks.’ He smiled. ‘I’m fine.’

Ryan sipped his chilled juice, stretching his legs into the generous space in front of him and enjoying the fact that the seat beside him was empty. So were both the seats on the opposite side of the aisle. There was, in fact, only one other occupant of business class and Ryan found himself listening to the well-dressed man with an American accent telling the air hostess that all he wanted was to go to sleep and could he have one of those eye covers? Apparently he hadn’t expected a diversion to Auckland or a night in an airport hotel and he’d had more than enough of travelling for now.

‘It should have been a straightforward trip to Sydney and then Cairns,’ he was saying. ‘Instead, I’m bunny-hopping through the south Pacific. Inefficient, that’s what it is.’

‘There’s been a few disruptions due to some bad weather,’ the hostess responded. ‘Hopefully we’ll be able to bypass it on this trip.’

Ryan didn’t care if they hit a few bumps. Despite what Hannah thought of him, he didn’t often get a smooth ride through life. OK, so maybe he didn’t wear his heart on his sleeve and go around telling everyone his problems, but it was just as well, wasn’t it? Imagine how low he’d be feeling right now if he’d made it obvious just how attracted he’d been to Hannah and had been squashed like the bug she clearly thought he was?

Well, she wouldn’t get the opportunity now. No way. He wouldn’t have her if she threw herself at him. Wrapped up in a ribbon and nothing else.

A soft sound like a strangled groan escaped. That short flight into fantasy wasn’t likely to help anything. He drained his glass and handed it back as part of the preparation for take-off. Then he closed his eyes as the big jet rolled towards the end of the runway. Maybe he should follow the example of the other occupant of business class and escape into a few hours of peaceful oblivion.

The trip promised to be anything but restful. Hannah had an aisle seat, for which she was becoming increasingly grateful. It meant she could lean outwards.

She had to lean outwards because the man beside her was one of the fattest people Hannah had ever seen. He could easily have used up two seats all by himself but somehow he had squeezed in. Apart from the parts of his body that oozed through the gaps above and below the armrests and encroached considerably on Hannah’s space. Any sympathy for his obvious discomfort had been replaced by a more selfish concern about her own when the personality of her travelling companion began to reveal itself.

‘Name’s Blair,’ he boomed at her. ‘How’s it going?’ He certainly wasn’t shy. ‘They make these seats a bit bloody small these days, eh? Just want to pack us in like sardines so they make a profit.’

‘Mmm.’ And they were allocated the same amount of baggage weight, Hannah thought crossly. What would happen if every passenger was Blair’s size? Could the plane flip over because the baggage compartment was too light? Use twice as much fuel? Drop out of the sky?

Hannah wasn’t a great fan of flying. She leaned further into the aisle and gripped the armrest on that side as the plane gathered speed.

‘Not keen on flying, huh?’ Blair was leaning, too. ‘Wanna hold my hand?’

‘Ah…no, thanks.’ Hannah screwed her eyes shut. ‘I’m just fine.’

‘It’s OK. ‘ Blair was laughing as the wheels left the tarmac. ‘I’m single.’

There was no point pretending to be asleep because Blair didn’t seem to notice. He obviously liked to think aloud and kept himself amused by a running commentary on the choice of movies available, the tourist attractions of Cairns showcased in the airline magazine and the length of time it was taking for the cabin crew to start serving refreshments.

The reason for any delay was revealed when the captain’s voice sounded in the cabin.

‘G’ day, folks. Welcome aboard this Air New Zealand flight to Cairns. We’re expecting a bit of turbulence due to strong westerly winds courtesy of a tropical cyclone in the Coral Sea region going by the name of Willie. I’m going to keep the crew seated until we get through this next layer of cloud.’

Blair made a grumbling sound.

‘Once we’re cruising at around thirty-five thousand feet, things should get a bit smoother,’ the captain continued. ‘You’ll be free to move around the cabin at that point but I would suggest that while you’re in your seats you do keep your seat belts firmly fastened.’

Sure enough, the flight became smoother and the cabin crew began to serve drinks and meals. The steward that stopped beside Hannah cast a second glance at her companion, listened to him patiently while he complained about the delay in being fed and then winked at Hannah.

‘I’ll be back in a tick,’ he said.

When he returned, he bent down and whispered in Hannah’s ear. Then he opened the overhead locker and removed the bag she specified. Hannah unclipped her seat belt and stood up with a sigh of relief.

‘Hey!’ Blair was watching the removal of the bag with concern. ‘Where’re you going, darling?’

‘We’ve got a bit of room up front,’ the steward informed him. ‘I’m just juggling passengers a bit. If you lift the arm-rest there, Sir, I’m sure you’ll find the journey a lot more comfortable.’

Much to Hannah’s astonishment, ‘up front’ turned out to be an upgrade to business class. Her eyes widened as she realised she was going to have a window seat—no, both the seats—all to herself.

‘You’re an angel of mercy,’ she told the steward. ‘Wow! I’ve never flown business class before.’

‘Enjoy!’ The steward grinned. ‘I’ll make sure they bring you something to drink while you settle in and have a look at the breakfast menu.’

Hannah sank into the soft seat, unable to contain her smile. She stretched out her legs and wiggled her toes. Not much chance of developing a DVT here. There was any amount of elbow room, as well. She tested it, sticking her arms out like wings. She even flapped them up and down a little. Just as well there was no one to see her doing a duck impression.

Or was there? Hannah hadn’t yet considered the possibility of a passenger on the other side of the aisle. She turned her head swiftly, aware of a blush starting. And then she recognised the solitary figure by the window and she actually gasped aloud.

Glaring was probably the only description she could have used for the way Ryan Fisher was looking at her.

‘Oh, my God!’ Hannah said. ‘What are you doing here?’

CHAPTER THREE

‘I WAS about to ask you the same thing.’

‘I got upgraded.’ Hannah hadn’t intended to sound defensive. Why did this man always bring out the worst in her? ‘Things were a bit crowded down the back.’

‘Here you go, Dr Jackson.’ A pretty, redheaded hostess held out a tray with a fluted glass on it. ‘And here’s the menu. I’ll come back in a minute to see what you’d like for breakfast.’

‘Thank you.’ Hannah took a sip of her juice and pretended to study the menu, which gave a surprisingly wide choice for the first meal of the day. There were hours of this flight left. Was she going to have to make conversation with Ryan the whole way?

It was some sort of divine retribution. Hannah had been feeling guilty ever since Monday night when she’d let fly and been so rude to a colleague. She couldn’t blame him for either the retaliation or the way he’d been avoiding her for the last few days. The personal attack had been unprofessional and probably undeserved. He couldn’t know where the motivation had come from and Hannah certainly couldn’t tell him but…maybe she ought to apologise?

She flicked a quick glance from the menu towards Ryan. He was still glaring. He wasn’t about to use their first meeting away from work to try building any bridges, was he?

Hannah wished she hadn’t looked. Hadn’t caught those dark eyes. She couldn’t open her mouth to say anything because goodness only knew what might shoot out, given the peculiar situation of being in this man’s company away from a professional setting. Imagine if she started and then couldn’t stop?

If she told him her whole life history? About the man her mother had really fallen in love with—finally happy after years of getting over her husband’s tragic death. Of the way she’d been used and then abandoned. Hannah had known not to trust the next one that had come along. Why hadn’t her mother been able to see through him that easily? Perhaps the attraction to men like that was genetic and too powerful to resist. It might explain why Susie had made the same mistake. Fortunately, Hannah was stronger. She might want Ryan Fisher but there was no way she would allow herself to have him.

Oddly, the satisfying effect of pushing him firmly out of her emotional orbit the other night was wearing off. Here she was contemplating an apology. An attempt at establishing some kind of friendship even.

Ryan hadn’t blinked.

Hannah realised this in the same instant she realised she could only have noticed because she hadn’t looked away. The eye contact had continued for too long and…Oh, God! What if Ryan had seen even a fraction of what she’d been thinking?

Attack was the best form of defence, wasn’t it?

‘Why are you staring at me?’

‘I’m still waiting for you to answer my question.’

‘What question?’

‘What you’re doing here.’

‘I told you, I got upgraded.’

‘You know perfectly well that wasn’t what I meant. What the hell are you doing on this flight?’

‘Going to Cairns.’ Hannah didn’t need the change in Ryan’s expression to remind her how immature it was to be so deliberately obtuse. She gave in. ‘I’ve got a connecting flight at Cairns to go to a small town further north in Queensland. Crocodile Creek.’

Lips that were usually in some kind of motion, either talking or smiling, went curiously slack. The tone of Ryan’s voice was also stunned.

‘You’re going to Crocodile Creek?’

‘Yes.’

‘So am I.’

‘Did you decide what you’d like for breakfast, Dr Jackson?’

‘What?’ Hannah hadn’t even noticed the approach of the redheaded stewardess. ‘Oh, sorry. Um…Anything’s fine. I’m starving!’

The stewardess smiled. ‘I’ll see what I can surprise you with.’ She turned to the other side of the aisle. ‘And you, Dr Fisher? Have you decided?’

‘I’ll have the fresh fruit salad and a mushroom omelette, thanks.’

Ryan didn’t want to be surprised by his breakfast. Maybe he’d just had enough of a surprise. As had Hannah. She waited only a heartbeat after the stewardess had moved away.

‘Is there a particular reason why you’re going to Crocodile Creek at this particular time?”

‘Sure is. I’m best man at my best mate’s wedding.’

‘Oh…’ Hannah swallowed carefully. ‘That would be…Mike?’

Ryan actually closed his eyes. ‘And you know that because you’re also invited to the wedding?’

‘Yes.’

Ryan made a sound like a chuckle but it was so unlike the laughter Hannah would have recognised she wasn’t sure it had anything to do with amusement. ‘Don’t tell me you’re lined up to be the bridesmaid.’

‘No, of course I’m not. I don’t know Emily that well.’

‘Thank God for that.’

‘My sister’s the bridesmaid.’

Ryan’s eyes opened smartly. Hannah could have sworn she saw something like a flash of fear. Far more likely to be horror, she decided. He disliked her so much that the prospect of being a partner to her sister was appalling? That hurt. Hannah couldn’t resist retaliating.

‘My twin sister,’ she said. She smiled at Ryan. ‘We’re identical.’

Ryan shook his head. ‘I don’t believe this.’

‘It is a bit of a coincidence,’ Hannah agreed, more cheerfully. Ryan was so disconcerted that she actually felt like she had control of this situation—an emotional upper hand—and that had to be a first for any time she had spent in Ryan’s company, with the exception of Monday night. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all. ‘So, how come you know Mike so well?’

But Ryan didn’t appear to be listening. ‘There are two of you,’ he muttered. ‘Unbelievable!’

Their conversation was interrupted by the arrival of their food. Hannah was hungry enough to get stuck into the delicious hot croissants and jam she was served. Ryan was only halfway through his fruit salad by the time she had cleaned her plate and he didn’t look as though he was particularly enjoying the start of his meal.

Hannah had to feel sorry for him but she couldn’t resist teasing just a little. She adopted the same, slightly aggrieved tone he had been using only a short time ago.

‘You didn’t answer my question.’

‘What question?’ Ryan wasn’t being deliberately obtuse. He looked genuinely bewildered.

‘How do you know Mike? The groom at this wedding we’re both going to.’

‘Oh…I was involved in training paramedics in the armed forces for a while, years ago. Mike was keen to add medical training to his qualifications as a helicopter pilot, having been in a few dodgy situations. We hit it off and have stayed in touch ever since.’ Ryan stirred the contents of his bowl with the spoon. ‘I was really looking forward to seeing him again,’ he added sadly. ‘The last real time we had together was a surfing holiday in Bali nearly three years ago. After he got out of the army but before he took himself off to the back of beyond.’

‘Crocodile Creek does seem a bit out of the way,’ Hannah had to agree. Besides, thinking about geography was a good way to distract herself from feeling offended that Ryan seemed to think all the pleasure might have been sucked from the upcoming weekend. ‘It was easy enough to hop on a plane to Brisbane to spend a day or two with Susie.’

‘I got the impression you never took time off.’

‘I don’t take rostered time off.’

‘Unlike me.’ Ryan said it for her. ‘’Cos you’re not lazy.’

Hannah wasn’t going to let this conversation degenerate into a personality clash. Here was the opportunity she had needed. ‘I never said you were lazy, Ryan. You work as hard as I do. You’re just more inclined to take time off.’

‘For the purposes of having fun.’

‘Well…yes…’ Hannah shrugged. ‘And why not?’ Would this count as an apology, perhaps? ‘All work and no play, etcetera.’

‘Makes Jack a dull boy,’ Ryan finished. ‘And Jill a very dull girl.’

Was he telling Hannah she was dull? Just a more pointed comment than Jennifer telling her she was an ED geek? If he saw her as being more fun—say at a wedding reception—would he find her more attractive?

Hannah stomped on the wayward thought. She didn’t want Ryan to find her attractive. She didn’t want to find him attractive, for heaven’s sake! It was something that had just happened. Like a lightning bolt. A bit of freak weather—like the cyclone currently brewing in the Coral Sea, which was again causing a bit of turbulence for the jet heading for Cairns.

The two cabin-crew members pushing a meal trolley through to economy class exchanged a doubtful glance.

‘Should we wait a bit before serving the back section?’

‘No.’ The steward who had been responsible for Hannah’s upgrade shook his head. ‘Let’s get it done, then we can clear up. If we’re going to hit any really rough stuff, it’ll be when we’re north of Brisbane.’

Hannah tightened her seat belt a little.

‘Nervous?’ Ryan must have been watching her quite closely to observe the action.

‘I’m not that keen on turbulence.’

‘Doesn’t bother me.’ Ryan smiled at Hannah. Or had that smile been intended for the approaching stewardess? ‘I quite like a bumpy ride.’

Hannah and Ryan both chose coffee rather than tea. Of course the smile had been for the pretty redhead. Likewise the comment that could easily have been taken as blatant flirting.

‘I don’t know Emily,’ Ryan said. ‘Maybe you can fill me in. She’s a doctor, yes?’

‘Yes. She’s Susie’s best friend.’

‘Susie?’

‘My sister.’

‘The clone. Right. So how long has she been in Crocodile Creek?’

‘About three years. She went to Brisbane to get some post-grad training after she finished her physiotherapy degree and she liked it so much she decided to stay.’

‘I thought she was a doctor.’

‘No. She started medical school with me but it wasn’t what she wanted.’