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  ‘Reg.’ He turned right and started to slow the car.

  ‘I told you not to call me that. I can’t believe you thought you could just waltz back into my life and be so…so…familiar. We are not friends, Flynn. Far from it.’

  ‘Reg.’

  ‘All we are is colleagues. Nothing more. There will be no cute looks from you, no flirting, no “Do you remember when?”, no—’

  ‘Reg.’ He slowed the car to a crawl, peering through the windscreen.

  ‘No “no patients died” type of thing. OK? We are not a couple and we never will be,’ she huffed.

  ‘Regina! Shut. Up.’ He brought the car to a stop and pointed to the front windscreen. It was then she did as he’d suggested and what she saw made her eyes go wide with horror.

  ‘That’s my apartment building. My building…it’s on fire!’

  Reggie opened the door and was out of the car like a shot. ‘Reg! Wait!’ She heard Flynn’s voice in the distance but couldn’t wait. Her building was on fire. Her apartment. Her neighbours’ apartments. Her neighbours.

  ‘Melva! Melva!’ she called, as she ran down the street. There were police, flashing lights and people everywhere. The firefighters were doing their job, working hard to take control of the angry orange flames that were engulfing the home where she’d managed to carve out a new life for herself.

  In a state of shock she continued to call out Melva’s name. Her elderly neighbour would have been getting ready for bed. What if she hadn’t been able to escape? What if she was still in there!

  ‘Whoa! Reg!’ Flynn was right beside her, grabbing her arms as she barrelled headlong towards the area the police had cordoned off. ‘You can’t go in there.’

  ‘But she needs me.’ Reggie tried to shake loose from Flynn’s grasp but he was hanging onto her with a firm grip. ‘Melva!’ she called again.

  ‘Stop.’ A policewoman came across and stood in Reggie’s path, effectively blocking her. ‘That is a burning building.’

  ‘That’s my building,’ Reggie begged. ‘Please? Melva. My neighbour—’ Reggie broke off as she saw a fireman coming out of the building with a woman over his shoulder. ‘Melva!’ She choked on the word and it was only then she felt the soothing and strong presence of Flynn right next to her, his arm around her shoulders, not only holding her back from rushing headlong into a burning building but also providing her with strength and comfort.

  ‘We’re both qualified surgeons at Sunshine General.’ His words carried authority as he spoke to the policewoman. ‘As the ambulances are…’ he paused for a second and listened, the sirens easily heard in the distance ‘…still on their way, and you have a woman there who needs medical assistance, why don’t you let us help out?’ As he spoke, he pulled out his hospital identification, proving he wasn’t lying. The policewoman checked it thoroughly and nodded.

  ‘What about her?’ She gestured towards Reggie, who was watching the fireman gently place Melva on the ground a safe distance from the burning building. His fellow firemen were already calling for his return to the building.

  ‘Let her treat her neighbour and she’ll be fine,’ Flynn said.

  The policewoman seemed to dither for a second but when Flynn smiled reassuringly at her she nodded. ‘All right. We’re already short-staffed. Medical kits are over there next to the police cars,’ she said, pointing. The policewoman’s partner was already kneeling by Melva’s side, pressing his fingers to her carotid pulse then shaking his head.

  At her words, Flynn removed his arm from Reggie’s shoulders and like a racing horse bursting from the barriers Reggie was at Melva’s side like a shot.

  ‘Melva. Melva, it’s Reggie. Can you hear me?’

  ‘You know her?’ the policeman asked, moving back before Reggie could shove him out of the way. Her hands were busy, checking Melva’s pulse, leaning down to see if she was still breathing.

  ‘She’s my neighbour.’ Now that Reggie was actually able to be doing something, she was much calmer, just as Flynn had predicted. She glanced up to find Flynn returning with the medical kit and oxygen mask, as she continued her attempts to get a response from Melva.

  ‘You live here?’

  ‘Lived. Past tense.’ Reggie couldn’t even think about everything in her apartment that was in the process of burning. All she cared about was Melva. She kept calling to her, willing her to open her eyes. Her breathing was definitely restricted. Reggie didn’t like it.

  ‘Quick. The oxygen,’ she said, holding out her hands towards Flynn.

  ‘What about your other neighbours?’ the officer asked. Reggie just wanted him to keep quiet but she also knew that he had a job to do.

  ‘The family in number two, upstairs, are interstate. The young couple in the other upstairs apartment should still be at work.’ She reached into her pocket and pulled out her cellphone, tossing it at the officer and telling him the names of her neighbours. ‘Search through my directory and find their information.’ Reggie turned her attention to Flynn. ‘Melva’s pulse is faint. Her breathing is definitely restricted. We may need to intubate. No patient response.’

  No sooner had the words left her lips than Melva stopped breathing.

  ‘She’s stopped,’ Flynn reported. He opened the medical kit and reached for a face shield and gloves. In another instant he had checked Melva’s mouth was clear and had her head tipped back, ready to perform expired air resuscitation.

  ‘Come on, Melva. Breathe.’ Reggie’s words came through gritted teeth as she counted out the breaths, readying herself in position for cardiopulmonary resuscitation. She kept counting, Flynn kept checking for a pulse.

  ‘Come on, Melva. This is getting beyond a joke, and I’ll tell you right now,’ she said in time with her movements, ‘you are not dying tonight. Not if I have anything to do with it.’ Her words were clear and determined and filled with promise.

  Flynn did another two breaths then checked for a pulse. ‘It’s there.’ He looked over at Reggie, noting the look of relief cross her face.

  ‘Atta girl, Melva.’ She rested back on her heels for a second before helping Flynn to secure the oxygen mask over Melva’s mouth and nose. The ambulance sirens had drawn closer and in another moment they were silenced, but the blue and red flashing lights filled the darkness of the night as whoever was driving came up the kerb and onto the grass, getting as close as possible to where they were treating Melva.

  ‘I’ll speak to them,’ Flynn said, standing up and striding purposefully towards the paramedics.

  ‘She has a few burns to her arms and legs,’ Reggie pointed out, and reached for the medical kit. ‘Melva,’ she called again, still watching the rise and fall of the other woman’s chest. ‘We’re going to take good care of you,’ she said, as the paramedics came over to give them a hand. They wrapped wet towels around the burns on Melva’s arms and legs, Reggie very happy when Flynn reported that her breathing was improving.

  ‘Do you know if she has any allergies?’ Flynn asked.

  ‘Not that I know of.’

  ‘OK.’ He spoke to one of the paramedics. ‘Can you get me some midazolam so we can get Melva here ready for transfer?’ He returned his attention to Melva as she started to cough a little more.

  Reggie quickly hooked a stethoscope into her ears and listened to Melva’s breathing. ‘Still rasping. Let’s give her some salbutamol via nebuliser just to open those lungs.’

  ‘Yes, Doctor,’ the paramedic replied.

  ‘Reggie?’ As Melva said her name she coughed and Reggie immediately took the other woman’s hand in hers.

  ‘Yes, it’s me. I’m here. You’re going to be fine.’

  ‘So much smoke. Couldn’t see.’ Melva’s words came out broken but there was also a hint of panic in her voice and the last thing they needed right now was for Melva’s anxiety to rise.

  ‘It’s OK now. Shh. I’m here. I’ll take care of you.’

  ‘But the apartments…’

  ‘I’ll take care of it. You just r
elax and leave everything to me.

  Flynn looked across at her. ‘Reggie, if you need any help—’

  ‘I said I’d take care of it,’ Reggie returned, her words a little crisp.

  ‘Of course.’

  She frowned for a moment. Flynn? Backing down? Not insisting on being the big, strong hero, coming to the rescue of the damsel in distress? She met his gaze for a split second and saw nothing There but reassurance. Perhaps he had changed. Perhaps he was different from the way he’d been six years ago. There was truth in his eyes, as though he was desperate to let her know that he meant what he said.

  Could she really trust him again? Reggie couldn’t deny she was relieved he was with her, somehow empowering her with the strength and professionalism she needed to help her elderly neighbour.

  Reggie pressed her fingers to Melva’s pulse and was pleased to find it a little stronger than before. ‘You’re doing just fine, Melva.’ Reggie held the other woman’s hand and kissed it. ‘You have an oxygen mask on so just lie still. I’m looking after you.’

  ‘Good. Means I’ll be OK.’ Melva managed a weak smile beneath the mask, her eyes opening only for a second before she closed them again then started coughing.

  ‘Relax. Breathe easy,’ Reggie encouraged, and looked up to see just where Flynn was with getting that salbutamol organised. ‘Flynn?’ she called.

  ‘Right here, Reg.’ He was walking towards her, carrying the portable nebuliser. Soon they had Melva settled, with the salbutamol easing the pressure in her lungs as the paramedics transferred her to the stretcher.

  ‘You’ll come with me?’ Melva asked, her voice still a little raspy.

  ‘Try to keep me away,’ Reggie said with a smile as Melva was settled into the ambulance. She stopped for a moment then turned and looked at their building. Smoke was billowing out but thankfully the firefighters had managed to contain the raging flames, protecting the properties on either side. People were everywhere, being kept at a distance, more police had arrived to assist with crowd control and another fire engine was just pulling up so the men and women who had already been battling the blaze for quite some time could rest and recuperate.

  She knew the drill. She’d been involved in many a rescue situation over the years but now, as she continued to watch the place she’d called home become nothing more than a wreck, she couldn’t help an overwhelming sense of helplessness engulf her.

  Her eyes filled with tears and although she tried to blink them away, knowing she needed to remain strong, to be there for Melva, she couldn’t shift them. Sniffing, she raised a shaking hand to her lips as the scene before her blurred into a watery mess. As a tear dropped from her lashes and rolled down her cheek, she almost jumped when Flynn’s warm and comforting arms drew her close.

  She knew she should resist. She knew she should push him away, keep her distance from the man who had broken her heart beyond repair, but she couldn’t. She wanted his comfort, needed his strength, and for the first time in years Reggie gave in to the vulnerabilities she’d successfully kept at bay for far too long.

  ‘Oh, Flynn,’ she murmured against his chest, hating herself for loving the comfort he offered. ‘What am I going to do now?’

  ‘Shh,’ he crooned, resting his chin on her head and tightening his hold on her. ‘We’ll figure it out.’

  ‘We?’ The word was barely a whisper as she snuggled in a little closer to him, her ear pressed to his chest, and there she could hear that his heart was beating a lot faster than it should. ‘We?’ she asked again, a little louder, and as she edged back just a touch, lifting her head so she could look at his face, she saw in his eyes determination mixed with a healthy dose of repressed desire.

  ‘We,’ he confirmed with a definitive nod.

  CHAPTER THREE

  ‘REGGIE?’

  She felt a hand on her shoulder rousing her from her light doze. Someone was gently shaking her awake, their deep voice tender and soothing.

  ‘Reg?’

  She breathed in deeply, recognising the sound of Flynn’s voice. Oh, Flynn. How she’d missed him. The way he’d always held her close, supporting her, listening to her, comforting her. She’d loved the way he’d called her ‘Reg’, the one syllable sounding so special and unique and perfect from his lips. She sighed with happiness, letting the dream of his presence wash over her.

  She remembered the first time he’d kissed her, really kissed her, not just a quick peck on the cheek. She’d all but melted into his arms and kissed him back with equal abandonment. Until that moment she’d never known kissing someone could feel so real, so right, so romantic.

  They’d known each other for only two weeks and she’d been astounded at how his thoughts had been so aligned with hers. ‘I just knew it would be perfect between us,’ he’d whispered against her mouth when they’d finally come up for air. As though by unspoken mutual consent, from that moment onwards they’d been a couple. They’d strolled hand in hand along the beach at sunset, worked side by side at the hospital, gazed longingly into each other’s eyes. She had accepted his words, his touch, his love, and she’d thought it would last forever.

  Sadness crept into her soul and she started to rouse from the dream, wishing she had the chance to go back and rewrite her past. Oh, Flynn. Why? Why? She shifted, trying to shake off the tender hand on her shoulder…the one that was trying to wake her.

  ‘Reg?’ She heard his voice, more clearly now. She felt his breath fan her face and slowly her mind lifted itself from the fuzziness of that state between dreams and reality. Reggie opened her eyes and looked around, taking a moment to remember exactly where she was.

  She was in the female ward, sitting in a chair by Melva’s bedside. She’d obviously fallen asleep, the exhaustion of the day having finally caught up with her. A busy day at the hospital and then…and then the fire. The fire that had burned her apartment and all her belongings to the ground and had almost taken Melva’s life. She looked at Flynn, realising he was crouched down beside her chair, his lips curved in a small smile.

  ‘Hi, there.’

  ‘Was I snoring?’ she asked, and was delighted when his smile increased.

  ‘Not that I can report. I’ll have to check with Ayana, though,’ he said, indicating where the night sister was seated at the nurses’ station, writing up some paperwork.

  Reggie looked back at Melva, pleased to see her friend sleeping soundly. The echo-cardiograph was still monitoring Melva’s heart rate and from what Reggie could see, everything looked to be within normal parameters.

  ‘She’s doing well,’ Flynn confirmed, and stood when Reggie eased herself out of the chair, wanting to read Melva’s latest set of observations. Feeling stiff from sitting too long, Reggie stretched her arms up over her head, shifting slightly from side to side as she worked out the kinks in her back. As she lowered her arms she glanced at Flynn, surprised to find him watching her every move. She blushed and straightened the hem of her knit top, which had ridden up a little.

  ‘Er…’ She cleared her throat as she tried to focus on the information on the monitor. Come on, Reggie. Pull yourself together. It’s not as though Flynn hasn’t admired your body before. Good heavens, she used to go swimming with him in the sea wearing a bikini. But that had been then, when they’d been together as a couple. This was now, when he was nothing more than a colleague…and possibly a friend?

  He had stated he was going to help her out and he’d held her so tenderly, so carefully, so…lovingly? She pushed the thought away and gave her thoughts a mental shake.

  ‘All her vitals are steady,’ Flynn continued. ‘Her heart is strong, the burns on her arms and legs are bandaged and will eventually heal,’ he continued.

  ‘And on top of all this she now has the emotional trauma of dealing with losing her life-long possessions, reminders of her husband and family and all those trinkets she’s collected over the years. She shouldn’t be forced to start again, not at her age.’ Reggie reached for Melva’s hand and held it
in hers. ‘She has been such a good friend to me since I moved into the apartment block. I need to do whatever I can for her…and for the other tenants.’

  ‘The fire wasn’t your fault, Reggie,’ he pointed out. ‘Preliminary findings show there was a fault with the wiring.’

  ‘Then I should have been more diligent, forcing the landlord to check these things out more thoroughly.’ She pressed a kiss to Melva’s hand before she turned and walked to the end of the bed. ‘I feel as though I’ve failed her. What sort of Christmas is she supposed to have now?’

  Flynn put both hands on her shoulders then turned her to face him. When she didn’t immediately look at him he placed his fingers gently beneath her chin and lifted it so their gazes could meet. ‘It’s not your fault.’ His words were earnest and intent.

  ‘But—’

  ‘It’s not your fault.’ He spoke with carefulness, as though he was desperate to get the words to sink in.

  ‘Still, there has to have been something I could have done to prev—’

  He silenced her by pressing his index finger tenderly to her lips, knowing the touch would effectively silence her. He leaned in closer, bringing his mouth closer to her ear so she could hear him when he whispered clearly, ‘It’s not your fault.’ Then he gathered her into his arms and held her tightly. ‘You’re not going to do yourself any favours by playing the what-if game, Reg.’

  She closed her eyes as his message finally began to penetrate through her thick skull. ‘I know you want to rewind time, to do anything you can to spare Melva the emotional upheaval she’s going to go through, but you can’t.’ His words were barely above a whisper as she once more allowed herself to rest within his arms.

  How she’d missed this. Having someone with big strong arms hold her, comfort her, support her in times of need. How she’d missed Flynn. She felt so comfortable and secure in his arms that a moment later, she yawned, a big, long yawn.

  ‘You’re exhausted,’ she heard him murmur, but now that she’d mentally accepted there was nothing she could have done to alter tonight’s outcome of the fire, it was as though her entire body was starting to shut down.