Daring To Date Dr Celebrity

He’d expected a lot of things but her passionate objection was something he hadn’t anticipated. But he wasn’t one to back down from a challenge and he suspected that was just as well.

He’d found it interesting that when Dr Simpson had voiced her concerns no one else had spoken up. Did that mean that she was the only one with concerns or just that she was the only one forthright enough to voice them?

He could see her now in the corner of his eye. A petite woman, she was sitting with perfect posture, her spine stiff and straight, self-control evident. Whatever she might be lacking in size she’d certainly made up for in spirit, but he wondered if she would have been so forthright if she’d known he and Gail could hear every word.

He turned his head to look at her properly. Her shiny curtain of hair fell smoothly down each side of her face, framing it perfectly. Dark chocolate-brown eyes, the colour of which contrasted sharply with her creamy complexion, looked back at him and as he watched he could see two crimson patches of heat appearing over her chiselled cheekbones.

The only other contrasting colour on her face was the soft, plump swell of her pink lips. She held his gaze and he could see the challenge in her brown eyes demanding he convince her of the merits of this project.

Yep, he reckoned, she would have told him straight to his face if she’d known he was standing behind her within earshot. He got the impression she wasn’t one to hold back.

Well, challenge accepted, he thought. He needed her on side and he wouldn’t rest until she came on board.

Along with the television project he had his own reasons for coming to Mount Gambier. He’d suggested Blue Lake Hospital as a potential location because it suited him and he wasn’t about to sit here and see the project fall apart now. It needed to go ahead and in order to work it really needed the support of the existing hospital staff. And not just one or two of them, he needed them all.

The television network hadn’t brought anyone other than him across from the previous series. The budget, with the hospital board’s permission, was being used to bolster the hospital coffers, and there wasn’t any money to pay extra doctors. The project needed to use the doctors and nurses that were to hand.

He would do whatever it took to convince Dr Simpson of that. He just needed to find out what she wanted. And work out how to give it to her.

He smiled at her, giving her the smile he’d always used on his older sisters when he’d wanted to get his own way, but this time there was no answering smile. No response at all from Dr Simpson, unless he counted the turning of her head to look away. Not the outcome he’d wanted, he had to admit, but there was still time. This had to work.

Annie couldn’t get out of the meeting room fast enough once Gail wrapped up the session. She had no desire to hang around under Caspar’s inspection. No desire to be coerced into signing consent forms. And she wasn’t prepared for further discussions about why she was so against the idea of appearing on television. Her reasons were none of his business. All he needed to know was that she wasn’t interested. In any of it.

She dragged Tori to the staff cafeteria, desperate for a coffee fix after the stress and strain of the meeting. She couldn’t think straight while he was watching her with his heavy-eyed green gaze. Her mental picture of him tangled in his sheets was proving hard to shift and even though she knew it was entirely a product of her imagination she was mortified that her mind had taken her there, and she knew she had to put some distance between them if she was going to be able to keep those lustful thoughts out of her head.

She needed some distance if she was going to be able to focus on her job. But if she’d thought she was going to escape discussing the hottest topic in the hospital, she was mistaken.

The cafeteria was buzzing with the news and even Tori, despite bringing Annie to task for staring at Caspar earlier when she should have been listening to Gail, couldn’t resist bringing him into their conversation now. ‘What have you got against him?’ she wanted to know.

‘It’s not him per se,’ Annie tried to explain. ‘I just don’t want cameras following my every move. I’m here to do a job. I owe it to my patients to give them my best. I don’t want people in my way. And that includes him.’

The idea of cameras watching her terrified her. Twice in her life she had been the subject of media attention and neither time had the experience been pleasant, but the thought of working in close proximity to Caspar St Claire, of having him watch her with his bedroom eyes, was even more terrifying. She didn’t know if she’d be able to concentrate under his gaze and that made her feel vulnerable. And feeling vulnerable was not something she enjoyed.

‘Well, I think he’s here to stay,’ Tori told her. ‘At least for the next eight weeks. And you’ll probably be working quite closely with him. He’ll be responsible for the care of all those little newborns you deliver. I don’t see how you can avoid him. Or why you’d want to.’

Annie sighed. Tori was right. She was going to have to come up with a solution. She was going to have to work out how to cope with the situation, as unpleasant as it seemed. ‘I suppose I can’t avoid him,’ she agreed, ‘but I should be able to avoid being on camera. They’ll soon get sick of taking footage of the back of my head and then hopefully they can leave me alone to get on with my job.’

Tori was laughing. ‘You’re amazing. You’d have to be the only female in the entire hospital who would complain about having to spend time with Dr Tall, Dark and Handsome. Enjoy it. You’ll be the envy of all the women in town.’

Annie couldn’t imagine being able to enjoy one single minute of it and she’d happily swap places with Tori. With anyone, for that matter. ‘I’m sure you’ll get your turn, he’s bound to need your services while he’s here,’ she replied. ‘You can make sure you have yourself on the roster when they’re filming. You can show your face on camera and then they won’t need me.’

‘I’ll be in Theatre with a mask over my face,’ Tori grumbled, as she picked up her coffee and moved away from the counter. ‘Hey, maybe you could just start wearing a mask for your consults—that would solve your problem.’

Annie didn’t bother to respond to that comment. She just glared at Tori as she stirred milk into her coffee but Tori wasn’t finished.

‘Caspar St Claire.’ She sighed. ‘He even sounds like a movie star.’

Annie snorted. ‘He probably changed his name for television. I mean, really, who has a name like that?’

‘You don’t like my name, Dr Simpson?’

Damn it. Annie closed her eyes and groaned silently. He’d sneaked up on her and caught her out again. She was going to have to be more careful. She opened her eyes to find Tori trying to stifle a smile. Great. She turned round and came face to face with Dr Tall, Dark and Handsome.

He wasn’t trying to stifle a smile. In fact, he was smirking. At her expense. How she’d love to wipe that look off his face but the only way she could think of doing that was by telling him she didn’t like his name. And that wasn’t true. It was a name that rolled smoothly off the tongue, a name that wouldn’t be easily forgotten. Smooth and unforgettable. Much like the man himself, she guessed. Real or not, his name suited him.

‘You have a very nice name,’ she admitted grudgingly, ‘but it’s unusual enough to make me wonder if you made it up.’ She had to tilt her head back to look up into his face. He was several inches taller than her, an inch or two over six feet, she guessed, and from her viewpoint the strong angles of his jaw, darkened by the shadow of his beard, were even more obvious.

‘I admit it’s unusual but I assure you it’s the name my parents gave me. I can’t practise medicine under any other,’ he replied.

Annie shrugged. He’d made a fair point.

‘I seem to be needing to assure you of a lot of things, Dr Simpson.’ He was standing close enough that Annie could see where his day’s growth of beard was beginning to darken his jaw and she could feel his breath on her face as he spoke. She looked down, away from his inquisitive green eyes, but she was still aware of the little puffs of soft, warm air that smelt of peppermint and brushed her cheekbones when he spoke to her.

‘Is there anything else that’s bothering you?’ he asked. ‘I’d really like you to be on board with this project. As the hospital’s obstetrician and paediatrician our paths will cross often, and if we can find a way to work together I think it will be to everyone’s advantage. Should we clear the air some more while we have time?’

She looked up again, dragging her eyes away from the broad expanse of his chest to meet his eyes. At this distance she could see they were flecked with brown. Annoyed with herself for noticing, she retorted, ‘You may have the time, Dr St Claire, but I’m very busy so if you’ll excuse me I have patients to see.’

She knew she sounded snippy but he was standing too close. She was too aware of him. Of his green eyes, of his broad shoulders, of his breath on her skin, and his proximity was playing havoc with her senses, making it impossible for her to think. She couldn’t cope with him in her personal space. She hadn’t worked out how she was going to deal with him yet. Not in her hospital or in her life. She needed distance. It was the only thing that was going to work for her. She needed to leave. Now.

She picked up her coffee, gripping the cardboard cup so tightly it was in danger of being crushed, and stalked off, glaring at Tori to make sure her friend followed her. She didn’t want to leave her consorting with the enemy.

‘That was rude,’ Tori admonished as she hurried to keep pace with Annie. ‘You’ll need to play nicely. He could arrange to make you look bad on camera.’

‘He wouldn’t!’ Annie’s stride faltered. She hadn’t stopped to consider the consequences of her behaviour.

‘No, probably not,’ Tori admitted. ‘If you’d been listening to Gail you would have heard that their intention isn’t to paint any of us in a bad light but to give people an insight into what goes on inside a hospital. But I’m sure they’re not averse to showing any sparks that might be flying between patients and their families or families and staff or even just between the staff. And where those sparks come from is probably irrelevant—antagonistic or friendly, they all make for good television. But don’t forget, Gail’s first priority will be to Caspar. She has no loyalty to you so my advice is to play nicely.’

Annie cursed her bad luck. Why had the television network decided to film here? All she wanted was to be left in peace, to be left alone to do her work. Working under the scrutiny of cameras wasn’t part of her agenda. She didn’t want to be in the spotlight and she had no intention of being a celebrity doctor.

If she didn’t give permission to include her in the series then Caspar St Claire wouldn’t have the opportunity to make her look bad. But she supposed it wouldn’t hurt to play nicely just in case. But it would be even better if she could avoid him altogether.

That plan worked for the rest of the afternoon. Almost.

Annie was heading home, exiting through the main lobby, when the front page of the local paper caught her eye. Caspar was smiling up at her from the centre of the page, looking just as handsome in black and white as he did in the flesh. Curiosity got the better of her and she stopped and picked up the paper, noticing that it was a couple of days old already.

She flicked it open and as she unfolded it Caspar’s photographed companion came into view. A tall, attractive blonde woman, Annie recognised her as the host of a popular light entertainment show. Her curiosity piqued further, she began to read the article. Naturally it started by espousing Caspar’s talents as the local boy who was returning to his home town as a celebrity doctor and went on to talk about the success of the television series. Annie opened the paper, turning to page four to continue reading, interested to see what the journalist had to say about the woman on Caspar’s arm.

‘Anything interesting in there?’

Annie jumped as Caspar’s warm-treacle tones broke her concentration, interrupting her before she got to the gossip. She looked up, taking in his narrow hips, grey suit and broad shoulders almost as a reflex before her eyes came to rest on his face. One corner of his mouth lifted in the beginning of a smile and she could see the humour in his eyes as he waited for her to deny that she’d been reading about him. But there was no use pretending she hadn’t been hunting for information.

‘You interrupted me before I got to the good bit,’ she replied.

The smile that had been threatening to begin now broke across his face as he laughed. ‘If there’s anything you need to know, why don’t you ask me? I’ll trade you a question for a question.’

She tried to ignore the way his smile made his eyes sparkle, triggering the tremble in her stomach. ‘Mount Gambier is a long way from the bright lights of Melbourne. How did the network convince you to come here?’ she asked.

Annie herself had moved to Mount Gambier happily, hoping the regional location and the job opportunity would give her a chance to rebuild her life, but in her mind the country town seemed a strange choice not only for the television series but also for Caspar St Claire. Regardless of the fact he’d been raised here, she knew he hadn’t lived in the Mount for a long time and she wondered what had made him agree to return. With his confident manner and his high profile he seemed far more suited to a big city hospital and to the perks his celebrity status would bring him in a city like Melbourne.

‘I wanted to come.’

‘Why?’ she asked.

‘That’s two questions,’ he said, as he shook his head at her. ‘I believe it’s my turn now. What are you doing after work?’

His question surprised her. She opened her mouth to say ‘Nothing’ but quickly realised that, depending on his motives, she might be opening herself up for an unwanted invitation. She closed her mouth, biting back her reply as she tried to think of a different answer.

‘Going to the gym,’ she told him. That was sort of true. It was what she should be doing, although it wasn’t what she felt like and she knew she’d probably skip it altogether, but he didn’t need to know that. Just like he didn’t need to know her stomach was fluttering with nerves. She told herself it was because she found his presence irritating but she knew she was also bothered because she found him attractive and there was no way she wanted him to know that either.

She wished she could ignore his good looks but she suspected she was going to find that difficult. She’d just have to ignore him instead, she thought as she made a show of checking her watch.

‘I’ll see you tomorrow, then,’ he replied, leaving her wondering why he’d asked in the first place, but his answer served to remind her that it was going to be impossible to ignore him completely. Whether she liked it or not, they would be working together.

Annie hung back as Caspar headed for the exit. She stuck with her pretence of being busy as she didn’t want to walk out with him. From the hospital foyer she watched as he climbed into his car. He drove a silver Audi TT, which was definitely a car for a big-city doctor, and she wondered how much the television network was paying him, before reminding herself that he, and therefore his circumstances, was none of her business.

Annie briefly considered skipping her after-work gym class but she knew Tori would expect a decent reason before she’d allow her to opt out. They’d made a commitment to exercise together, hoping that would make them take it more seriously, and ‘Can’t be bothered’ wasn’t going to get her off the hook. She changed into her gym gear at the hospital so she could avoid going home first. She knew that if she went home the temptation to pour a glass of wine and sit on the couch and think about how her day had gone pear-shaped would be too much. In retrospect she decided that going to the gym might help keep her mind off her day.

‘So, did you decide to sign the network’s consent form?’ Tori asked when they met before their gym class.

‘Not yet. Have you?’

Tori nodded. ‘I’m really excited about the project. Not to mention working with Caspar. Phil is a terrific paediatrician but he’s old enough to be my father. I think we’ve got a pretty good deal having Caspar take over while Phil is on leave. I can’t think of many better ways to spend my theatre time than watching Caspar St Claire.’

Tori had a point but Annie didn’t agree wholeheartedly. ‘I would have preferred him to be here minus the cameras, though,’ she replied. She had been on television before and both occasions had been unpleasant, to say the least. Traumatic would be a better way to describe it. She didn’t relish the idea of being exposed to the cameras.

And she knew that was how she was feeling—exposed and vulnerable. Annie had found Tori’s support and friendship invaluable since she’d moved to the Mount but Tori still only knew half the story as far as Annie’s history went. She thought about telling Tori the whole truth but now wasn’t the time or the place.

‘Unfortunately it doesn’t work that way,’ Tori said. ‘The cameras are part of the package. Look at it this way—you want your contract renewed, don’t you? I think taking part in this series would be a very good way of getting support for an extension of your contract.’

The instructor called them all to order and the class began putting an end to their conversation. Annie wasn’t fit enough to talk and exercise at the same time but she was co-ordinated enough to be able to exercise and think about Tori’s comment.

Her contract with the hospital was for twelve months. She needed it to be extended. She needed the job and needed the money. As much as she hated the idea of being on television, she knew Tori was right. She didn’t have a choice. She couldn’t afford to be choosy or create waves. She would have to sign the agreement and she would have to work with Caspar St Claire.

Avoiding Caspar for one afternoon had been a good start but she couldn’t avoid him for ever and, in case she’d forgotten the fact, she had an early reminder when she arrived at the hospital the following morning. Parked almost outside the front doors was a large van emblazoned with the television network logo.

Filming was due to start today and it appeared they were ready and raring to go. Just thinking about it made her insides tremble. She actually felt nauseous at the thought of the camera crew dogging her steps.

Annie sighed as she made her way into the hospital and upstairs to the maternity ward. She had little doubt her path would cross with Caspar’s at some point today.

She still hadn’t signed the agreement, but she planned to do it later that day. She was hoping to delay it just a little longer to buy herself one more day, one more day when she would be safe from observation.

She kept her head down as she hurried past the nursery, too afraid to look through the large glass door in case she saw him—she was keen to avoid an inevitable meeting for as long as possible. She stopped briefly at the nurses’ station to check for any updates before rushing to begin her rounds, rushing to hide behind the sanctuary of ward room curtains and doors.

Once she was among her patients she slowed her pace, ambling through her rounds. She wasn’t consulting until the afternoon so she took her time, hoping that Caspar would be long gone from the floor before she emerged again. When she eventually finished she returned to the nurses’ station to sign case notes but she made sure she kept her back to the wall, not wanting to give Caspar another opportunity to sneak up on her and overhear any conversations. She had no idea where he was but she wasn’t taking any chances.

However, within a few minutes she realised he must be on the floor. Nurses started appearing from all corners of the wing, from patients’ bedsides, the tearoom and even the pan room, as if there had been a silent announcement about events unfolding. And the only thing Annie could think of that would have the nurses all heading into the corridors would be if word had got around that Caspar St Claire was coming their way.

She glanced up from the notes and wasn’t surprised to see him walking towards the desk with nurses trailing in his wake, almost falling over themselves as they rushed to offer their help. One of the nurses, whose name Annie thought was Tiffany, almost knocked down another in her desperate hurry to get to Caspar first.

The scene was rather amusing and Annie found she was smiling to herself and feeling positive for the first time since Caspar had arrived at Blue Lake Hospital. But that didn’t mean she wanted to deal with him this morning. She thought about pretending she hadn’t seen him and making her escape, running away and hiding again. But it was too late. He was heading her way. And smiling. At her.

Did he think her smile was for him? She supposed he would. He had no reason to think she was smiling to herself about the unfolding tableau.

She had to admit he had a really lovely smile. A crease appeared on either side of his mouth, running down to his jaw. They framed his lips and accentuated his square jaw, and the brooding expression in his eyes was replaced with laughter. It was all too easy to keep smiling back at him in return but she needed to remember that she wasn’t one of the young, impressionable nurses and she had to remember that he wasn’t Dr Tall, Dark and Handsome to her. He was Dr Disturbing-her-peaceful-life.

Annie wiped the smile from her face as he drew nearer but she hadn’t completely forgotten Tori’s warning to play nicely.

‘Good morning,’ she greeted him. ‘Are you finding your way around all right?’

‘Yes. Everyone’s being very helpful,’ he replied, but he looked at her for a moment longer than he needed to and Annie could almost hear the unspoken words. Except for you.

Well, that was too bad for him. She imagined he was used to getting his own way but that didn’t mean he deserved to. And if Tiffany and the other nurses on this ward were the yardsticks then she didn’t doubt the females on staff were being extremely helpful.

‘Where is the crew?’ she asked, choosing to ignore his unspoken implication.

‘They’re busy doing their own checks. They need to do some run-throughs before we start—lighting, sound, that sort of thing.’

She’d expected to see him with an entourage. ‘How many of them are there?’

‘Only a few,’ he answered. ‘Liam, the cameraman, Keegan for sound and lighting, and you met Gail, the producer.’

‘No make-up?’

‘No make-up.’

That would explain why he looked so good in the flesh. Dr Tall, Dark and Handsome wasn’t made up for the cameras. The thought didn’t make her feel any better. She still wasn’t sure how she felt about men who were so good looking.

She’d thought his nose was slightly too long but standing directly in front of him now even that looked perfect and she knew she’d just been searching for flaws. It was hard to fault him physically.

‘Apparently our production budget is very modest, which is why the network can afford to be generous towards the hospital. We don’t have a lot of expenses.’

‘What about your fee? They must pay you?’ She remembered his sleek silver sports car and the words were out of her mouth before she realised how rude she sounded. ‘Sorry, ignore that, it’s none of my business.’ She was desperate to change the subject and she looked around quickly, searching for another topic of conversation.

The nurses, having all come out of the woodwork, were now milling around, pretending to look busy, but Annie could see they were all there to check Caspar out. She remembered how he’d known everyone in the meeting yesterday and wondered if his extensive knowledge included the nurses.

‘Do I need to introduce you or have you memorised everyone’s names?’ she asked as she gestured towards the nurses.