A Special Kind Of Family

about as sexy, don’t you think?’

It was light banter, Erin thought. Dom was talking them all down from horror.

Herself included.

She was used to emergencies. Emergencies were what she did for a living. But even in her city emergency department, a case such as this, where a child had come so close to death, would shake her to the core.

She still needed to be professional. She did not need to cry. She never cried at work. Why the sudden urge now?

Emotions. Hormones. Her world was shifting.

Stupid. Fanciful. Undeniable.

Jamie breathed on while Erin administered light sedation. She did it without conferring but Dom watched her; watched the dose. She felt on trial. A new kid in school, desperate to please the big guy.

Or not. It was a fanciful way of thinking. She was here to help, not to think about what Dom was thinking about her.

Or to cry.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

And then, at last, the ambulance arrived. Two skilled paramedics took over. They knew Dom well. She could see they respected him. As well they might, she thought.

Jamie would need to spend the night in hospital, until the swelling subsided. ‘There’s no hospital here,’ Dom told her, regretful. ‘We have a small one but with only one doctor we had to close it. There’s a paediatrician in Campbelltown. Jamie will be in good hands.’

They loaded Jamie into the ambulance. His mother went with him.

His dad followed behind, driving the family car.

Dom and Erin were left alone, standing on the verge of a country road, with the debris of an emergency around them.

She still wanted to cry.

‘Let’s get you home,’ Dom said gently, and she made a last-ditch attempt to get herself together. And found suddenly there was a wad of tissues in her hand.

‘I’m n-not c-crying,’ she stammered. ‘I never cry.’

‘I can see that,’ he said, and he wasn’t smiling.

‘It’s just…’

‘You had a really big night last night.’ He paused. ‘Thank you,’ he said softly.

‘Thank…me?’

‘You know we only had seconds. The seconds you gave me here may well have made the difference. Thank you for being here.’

‘It’s my pleasure,’ Erin said, and subsided under her tissues, trying not to wail. ‘It’s all my pleasure.’

Charles was waiting.

They didn’t have to go into the house to find him. He was out on the road, standing beside his Porsche, looking angry.

‘Uh-oh,’ Erin said.

‘You want a medical defence?’ Dom pulled up behind the Porsche. He climbed out of the car before Erin could do the same.

‘We saved a life,’ he said, before Charles could speak. ‘Erin was great.’

But Charles’s expression didn’t relax. Given time to think, to assess the crisis for what it was, he’d have offered to help himself. But being left behind to play nursery maid would have made him…well, like he was now.

‘Did Dulcie come?’ Dom asked.

‘Yes,’ he said shortly. ‘She’s in the house with the boys.’

‘Thank you for helping out,’ Dom said, and held out his hand.

It wasn’t taken. Charles stared down at it like he didn’t know what Dom was offering.

‘I had to go, Charles,’ Erin said, then thought, Damn, that had sounded like pleading and why should she plead?

‘Of course you did,’ Charles said, obviously making an effort to sound pleasant. ‘So do we. Grab your things from the house, get rid of that footwear and we’ll leave.’

‘With Marilyn.’

Charles’s attempt at a smile faded. ‘You can’t take the dog to my mother’s house.’

‘We won’t stay on. I’ll ask my parents to take us home.’

‘You think your parents would let you keep the dog?’

‘I’m not a kid.’

‘Hey, why don’t I go inside and make sure the kids are okay?’ Dom interjected, looking mildly interested and nothing else-and Erin fought off a need to grab his arm and say stay.

She didn’t. She was a big kid. She almost felt grown up.

‘You’re okay?’ Dom asked, and that tiny gesture of caring suddenly had her feeling tears welling up again. What was wrong with her? She was turning into a wuss.

She sniffed. Loudly. ‘I’m fine,’ she managed, and he cast her a doubtful look and then nodded and headed for the house.

But when he reached the veranda he turned back. ‘I can find someone to drive you back to Melbourne if you want,’ he called.

Erin didn’t answer. She couldn’t trust herself to speak.

But Melbourne sounded good.

Marilyn aside, she didn’t want to go placidly with Charles. She didn’t want her parents-and Charles’s parents- looking reproachfully at her, making her feel sorry for Charles, making her feel sorry for them.

She’d had over twenty years of sorry. Surely that was enough. Sorry was doing her head in.

‘I mean it,’ Dom said, and went inside and closed the door.

Erin closed her eyes. Actually…the way Dom was making her feel was doing her head in.

‘Erin, what the hell’s going on?’ Charles said. ‘You’re behaving like a child.’

‘I’m not.’

‘Don’t tell me-’

‘No, don’t tell me,’ she snapped. ‘Enough. I’m sorry you’ve all got the wrong idea. You’re my friend, Charles, but you’re not my lover. And while I love my parents-and I love your parents-and I even love you in a way, but not in the way you figure I should-I need to get on with my life. My life.’

He was staring at her like she’d suddenly turned green and sprouted horns. She must have been really wimpy up until now, she thought. Why had it taken so long to stand on her own two feet?

‘It’s this guy, isn’t it?’ he demanded. ‘This is crazy.’

‘It’s not Dom. I only met him last night, and what I’m saying to you now has been coming for a while. Maybe it’s about twenty years overdue.’ She took a deep breath. ‘Okay. Thank you for coming to get me, but I’m not coming with you. I need to figure myself out first. I’ll ring Mum tonight. Meanwhile tell them I’m fine, but I was put up last night by a doctor who’s the sole medical professional for fifty miles. I’d like to repay him by helping out with his kids and with his practice over Easter. If he doesn’t want that, then I’ll go back to Melbourne.’

‘With him?’ He said him like he was referring to some sort of pond scum.

‘He…Dominic…offered to find someone to drive me to Melbourne. He didn’t offer to drive me himself. There’s nothing between us, Charles. How can there be?’ She took a deep breath. ‘But despite that…Dom’s been wonderful. He’s a…a…really wonderful doctor. I need to make the offer. If he wants me, I’m staying on.’

When she came back inside Dom was sitting in the kitchen munching on another of Erin’s scones. The kids were waving goodbye to Dulcie from the back veranda. Dom glanced out the window and Charles’s Porsche was disappearing down the road. What the hell…?

‘He’s gone without you,’ he said, warily.

‘You said there was someone who could drive me to Melbourne.’ She hesitated. ‘That is, if you don’t want me to stay.’

He’d been about to take a bite of his scone. He didn’t. ‘Um…If I don’t want you to stay?’