Australian Affairs: Tempted. Amy Andrews

is for the young and elderly,’ he said, somewhat breathlessly bringing himself to stand upright, which was a bit disappointing for Cate as she’d been enjoying the opportunity of shamelessly looking at his legs. Long and muscular, pale-limbed with black hair and with a weight around one ankle. Briefly she wondered why, but only briefly—because as he looked down and spoke to her there was another image now to add to the Juan file she had stored away in her head. Juan smiled and added, ‘And I am neither young nor elderly.’

      ‘I think it was a given that no one would be crazy enough to go running in weather like this,’ Cate said, trying not to blush, because now he was standing upright he looked amazing—he wasn’t just unshaven, he practically had a beard. Harry wasn’t going to be pleased, though Cate didn’t mind in the least. He looked like a huge sexy god, Cate thought, and then corrected herself, because that was probably a wrong thing to think. He looked like a huge sexy…man.

      It would just have to do.

      ‘If a bit of heat and humidity stopped us, then no one in Argentina would ever run,’ Juan said as they started walking into the hospital.

      ‘So you’re working here today?’

      ‘They caved again.’ Juan grinned. ‘I got a call late last night to ask if I could come in for the morning shift.’

      ‘You’ve been coming here for nearly three months now,’ Cate pointed out. ‘If you’d just signed the contract in the first place—’

      ‘I’ve liked working all over Melbourne,’ Juan interrupted, still slightly breathless. ‘I’ve met loads of great people. It has been good not being confined.’

      ‘Confined?’ Cate frowned. ‘It’s not a prison.’

      ‘Restricted,’ Juan said. ‘I don’t know the word I am looking for in English,’ he admitted.

      ‘Doesn’t it drive you crazy, though?’ Cate asked. ‘Never knowing where you’ll be from day to day.’

      ‘I love it,’ Juan answered. ‘It’s the best thing I could have done.’

      Cate could think of nothing worse and she told him so. ‘I worked for an agency when I was a student. I loathed not knowing where I’d end up, where they’d send me, who I’d be working with…’ She gave a small shrug. ‘Maybe I’m boring like that.’

      ‘You’re never boring.’ He turned and gave her a smile, just enough of a smile to let her know that he was thinking about the other night. ‘Are you going to Christine’s leaving do?’

      Cate nodded. ‘Are you?’

      ‘She invited me.’

      He headed into the changing rooms and Cate went to the staff kitchen and filled a glass with ice from the machine and then poured a cup of black tea with sugar over it and took her drink into the staffroom, where it was lovely and cool.

      ‘Morning…’ Cate smiled at two familiar faces—Charlotte and Adam were sitting dressed in their pyjamas and watching television. ‘Have you two had breakfast?’

      ‘No, we haven’t eaten anything.’ Charlotte was the louder of the two. ‘Daddy said he’d get us something from the canteen before he took us to childcare.’

      ‘Do you want me to get you something now?’ Cate offered, and when they both nodded Cate went back to the kitchen and made them some cereal and juice.

      ‘Christine’s not doing the jump any more,’ Kelly said as Cate came back in and served up breakfast for the twins, ‘so there’s a space if you’ve changed your mind.’

      ‘Not a chance,’ Cate said. Some of the staff had come up with the idea of a skydive to raise some much-needed funds to refurbish the interview rooms—but even if the funds were needed, even if it was for a good cause, Cate could think of nothing worse than jumping out of a plane, let alone paying for it. She much preferred to keep her feet on solid ground.

      In came Juan, with that potent post-shower scent that had Cate’s toes curling in her shoes. He was wearing scrubs, yet he still had on his signature boots and he was simply like no other.

      ‘We’ve got hospital razors, Juan,’ Kelly teased. ‘I can get you a couple if you can’t afford them.’

      ‘Ah, but then you’d have to suture me after,’ Juan said. ‘They are lethal.’ He looked at the twins, who had paused in their breakfasts and were staring up at this very large, very commanding man. ‘Hello,’ he said and then made Adam laugh. ‘Are you the new consultants that are starting?’

      ‘No,’ Cate said, ‘the interviews only started this week. These are Harry’s twins, Charlotte and Adam.’

      ‘Daddy got called in,’ Charlotte said. ‘For a sick boy.’

      ‘Well, that’s no good,’ Juan said, and then looked at Cate’s glass. ‘Did you make me one?’

      ‘No.’ For a moment she thought he was going to take a sip of her drink.

      For a moment he thought about it!

      ‘Hey, Juan.’ Kelly wasn’t going to miss an opportunity for a little extra Juan time. ‘A space has opened up on the charity dive next Sunday. You like all that sort of stuff.’

      ‘I do.’ He went and read the notice. ‘I’ll still be here. I fly out on the Tuesday…’

      ‘We’ll all go out afterwards,’ Kelly said. ‘It could be your leaving do.’

      ‘Another one,’ Cate said, and he turned at the slightly tart note to her voice but just smiled.

      ‘Are you doing the jump?’ Juan asked her.

      ‘Absolutely not.’

      ‘You should.’

      ‘Why?’ Cate challenged, but Juan gave no answer and went to get a pen from his pocket but, as usual, he didn’t have one and he asked Cate if he could borrow hers.

      ‘No,’ Cate said. ‘You already owe me three.’

      ‘Just to put my name down on the list. I’ll give it straight back.’

      She ended up relenting and handed him her pen.

      ‘Where are you going to next, Juan?’ Sheldon asked.

      ‘New Zealand! The south island first.’

      ‘How long will you stay?’

      ‘I’m not sure—I’ll see how it goes, but I’ve heard that the skiing is spectacular, so I might stay there for the winter.’

      ‘Then home to Argentina?’ Sheldon asked as Juan wrote down his name to do the skydiving jump.

      ‘I’m not sure…’ Juan said. ‘I was thinking of Asia.’

      How could he have no idea where he was going? Cate wondered. He was hardly a teenager. He must be in his mid-thirties and just drifting through life, if you could call jumping off bridges and rafting down ravines and biking through the hills drifting. Cate just could not wrap her head around Juan’s way of living.

      ‘Come on, guys.’ Cate glanced at the clock and stood. ‘We’d better get round there.’

      ‘You’re not the boss yet,’ Kelly teased.

      No, she wasn’t the boss yet, Cate thought. She said goodbye to Charlotte and Adam and turned on some cartoons instead of the news, telling them that someone would be around to check on them soon—but she wondered how she could tell Harry that he couldn’t bring in the twins or, rather, if he did that the nurses wouldn’t be watching out for them.

      As they walked through the obs ward on their way, Cate was just about to ask the nurse who was working there to keep an eye out for Harry’s children. But, seeing that the supervisor was there checking the bed status, Cate decided otherwise.

      ‘Last