The Midwife and the Millionaire (11 page)

‘Let me see.'

‘Sort Odette first.' He was still giving orders. Typical.

Sophie scanned his sister quickly. She didn't sound like a woman in the final throes of labour. ‘You OK, Odette?'

Odette spoke from Smiley's arms. ‘I am now.'

She turned back to Levi. ‘Right, now show me.'

He glared at her and held up his arm. ‘We don't have time for this. He could shoot again.'

Sophie busied herself undoing the material. ‘I'm assuming we're on the right side of the tree for safety.' She inclined her head towards the river. ‘And that's not all who's here. The police will protect us from him but not from the couple of salties who fancy a piece of you too.'

He raised his brows at her. ‘It must be your fate in life to warn me about crocodiles.'

‘And yours to keep me in the dark. But we'll talk about that later.'

Gingerly he held his injured arm as she eased the wad away from the skin below his shoulder to expose a neat in hole and a less-neat out hole. The bullet had passed through in a jagged tunnel without causing major damage. Blood oozed as soon as she took the pressure away and hastily she put the wad back. He was right. It wouldn't kill him. Levi's indrawn breath made her wince. ‘Sorry.'

‘It's nothing. I'll heal. Get Odette away from here.'

The man was mad. ‘I imagine the police will get us all away from here.'

Short sharp shake of his head and she felt her own impatience rise.

‘I'm not going anywhere until I find him,' he growled.

She gestured to his shoulder. ‘Not like that surely.'

‘Steve, or someone, shot at us while Odette was saying goodbye. Here. Shot the tyres on the car. Tried to kill my sister. He's still out there, though the police think he's gone.' His eyes burned into hers and she shivered a little at the implacable decision to go after the shooter.

His voice lowered but was no less definite. ‘I'm staying until we get him. Now, please do what I ask and take Odette. If you stay here he'll try to kill you too.'

She glanced at Smiley, who was attempting to disentangle Odette and calm her at the same time. He looked up at Sophie. ‘Let's get 'em out of here.'

The bullet hit the tree beside them a millisecond before the shot rang out.

Smiley scooped Odette like she was a feather and dived around the back of the tree. Levi grabbed Sophie and pushed her behind the tree onto the ground and flattened himself on top of her. The breath whooshed from her lungs and a bunch of dead boab leaves crackled under her. The gunman had moved. She didn't want Levi to protect her with his body. Did he want to get shot again?

She sucked in another laboured breath. He was darned heavy but she doubted he'd listen to her right at this moment. Thankfully, when no further shots rang out, he eased himself off, but kept his body between her and the direction the bullet had come from.

‘You all right?' he said, and she nodded. The fact that he'd cared enough to protect her made her eyes sting. Though maybe he'd have done it for any woman and she shouldn't read anything into his actions.

The hardest part was trying not to remember the feel of his strong chest against her or the male scent that reminded her of other times she'd been in his arms.

As they crouched and dusted themselves off Sophie could see a fresh splash of blood in the dirt beside her. Levi had dislodged the makeshift bandage and his wound oozed sluggishly again. ‘Come here,' she said, and resettled the wadding as she frowned at him.

His eyes caught hers. ‘Thank you.'

She couldn't help the heat that rode in her cheeks. ‘Any time.'

He raised his brows. ‘I might take you up on that.'

‘This guy means business,' Smiley commented grimly when the four of them were crouched behind the thankfully wide trunk of the fat boab. The police had dived behind their own car and one of them fired back.

Levi grimaced. ‘I'm so sorry you two are involved in Steve's plans.'

She looked from one man to the other. ‘Involved in what plan? Now what don't I know?' Sophie demanded.

Levi sighed. ‘You know the helicopter was definitely sabotaged, but I'm now convinced my father was pushed into the river here five months ago. Whoever did that is shooting at us now and I think it's my half-brother, Steve.'

She did not believe this. ‘Steve's your half-brother?' This was outback Australia, not some gangland setting. Who were these people?

Levi saw her confusion. ‘Because of Xanadu. It seems that my new-found half-sibling expected to inherit Xanadu, and he wants it.' He paused. ‘In case we all die here…' He pulled her in close with his good arm and dropped a kiss on her lips. ‘I think you are the most amazing woman I've ever met.'

He'd kissed her. In the middle of a gunfight. And by the look on his face he'd enjoyed it. Yep. He was mad. ‘You must be delirious. We're being
shot at
!'

‘That's why it seemed a good idea to tell you now.' He stroked her cheek. ‘And I'm not lying.'

The sound of a vehicle revving and then driving
away had Smiley peer around the tree. ‘Could have been someone else parked and they got scared,' Smiley said.

Levi hit the tree with the side of his fist and then winced as the vibration ran through his body to his injured arm. ‘Or could be our man.'

The police car started and the officers drove off in pursuit. ‘It seems the coppers agree,' Smiley said.

‘Damn. Wish I'd seen the car.' Levi growled, ‘Let's get the girls out of here and back to Xanadu.'

Smiley nodded, grimly, and went for the truck to reverse it back to Odette.

Sophie slid down the tree next to Odette to see how she fared. ‘You OK, honey?'

The girl's head was down and she held her stomach. ‘I think the baby's coming.'

She whimpered and then a tiny strangled moan had Sophie peer at her with a frown. ‘We might just sit for a minute,' Sophie said to no one in particular, and rested her hand on Odette's arm. ‘What's happening?'

Odette turned agonised eyes to Sophie and whispered, ‘I need to go to the bathroom.'

Sophie looked at Levi. ‘I think she's pushing.'

‘N
O
. N
OT
here.' Levi cast his eyes skywards but all he could see were the sparse leaves of the boab above him. He could handle the idea of being shot at but not the birth of Odette's baby.

He needed her safe, with doctors, and theatres, and sterile surroundings. He couldn't lose Odette like his mother. His worst nightmare. He'd failed in every aspect of keeping his sister safe. He'd involved her in a helicopter crash, a shooting and now this. He wanted her out of here and surely she could stand.

‘Please stand, Odette.'

‘You can't prioritise this.' Now Sophie was shaking her head at him. ‘She's pushing. It's coming.'

Prioritise? He wanted his sister in a nice safe hospital. Preferably a Sydney one. How had it come to this? ‘Come on, Odette. You have to get up.'

Odette looked up at him and he could see the fear behind her tremulous smile. ‘Sorry. Can't do.'

He looked at Sophie and despite the sympathy he
saw in her eyes she shook her head. She was right. Again.

The truck backed up to them and Smiley jumped out. ‘Let's go.'

Levi looked helplessly down at both women, distanced from him by their silent communication. ‘Sophie says Odette's having the baby.'

‘She can't have it here.' Smiley cast a quick glance to the river. ‘The crocs will have the lot of us if we don't get out.'

‘Then make sure they don't,' Sophie said with a touch of asperity. ‘She'll move as soon as the baby's born.'

‘Tell the men to go away,' Odette whispered.

Sophie obliged. ‘We're busy.' Smiley blinked, then nodded and drifted away to keep watch between them and the river. Levi looked down at this woman who'd come into their lives and continued to cope with one disaster after another. Thank God she was here. What would they do without her? What would he do without her?

When had everything changed? When had Sophie become more important than the guilt he lived with when he couldn't help everyone? More important than finding his father's killer. More important to protect than himself. Was she his unforeseen destiny?

Sophie and Odette leaned with their backs against the tree. ‘You concentrate on listening to your body and I'll worry about everything else. Just breathe it out,' she
said quietly and looked up at him. ‘I need the kit out of the truck and the rugs I brought, please.' At least it seemed he could be of use.

He did as requested and then returned with what she'd asked. ‘Where do you want it?'

‘Spread around us and the thin rug over Odette. And pass me the pack and the towel. Thanks.' She helped Odette adjust her clothing under the rug, then undid the delivery pack and laid the cord clamps aside. She drew up the Syntocinon for after the birth, washed her hands with antiseptic, then pulled on the gloves. ‘A little primitive but this tree has great facilities compared to the camp the other day.'

Levi strangled back an inappropriate laugh. He supposed it did and he watched her lean back against the tree next to his sister and wait. Her capable hands were clasped loosely on her lap. As if just another April day in the Kimberleys. How was he ever going to go back to Sydney and leave her? Except for the minor fact she wouldn't have him.

Odette looked up once, an arrested expression on her face as she stared at Sophie. ‘William said you told him birthing a baby was like having a foal or a calf.'

Sophie brushed the hair off Odette's forehead with her finger and smiled. She had a great smile, Levi thought as he pretended not to listen.

‘He's a bad boy for repeating that. I said that because he was scared for you. But you're doing so well it might be true.'

Levi saw the tears well as Odette sniffed. ‘I want to go home. I can't believe it's happening here.' His fault.

‘After meeting you two?' Sophie rolled her eyes and she glanced at him quickly before looking back at Odette. ‘I can.'

Odette's laugh was cut short by the next pain and Levi winced as it dragged a low groan from her as the baby moved down.

Levi twisted his hands; he felt so damn powerless to do anything for either of them.

‘Beautiful,' said Sophie in that quiet, almost hypnotic voice he'd never be able to match in the circumstances. ‘Slow breaths. Not long now.'

She looked up and frowned when she saw him watching her. He stretched his lips into a strained smile but she must have seen his tension. ‘Take a few breaths too, Levi. It's OK.'

He was always in trouble with this woman. ‘Can I get you anything, Sophie?'

‘Sip of water, for Odette, thanks. There's a bottle in the truck. And maybe check on Smiley.' In other words, his marching orders. OK. Maybe he would be better out of the way until it was all over.

‘Call him William!' Odette mumbled through gritted teeth, as she finished the pain and breathed out.

Levi handed her the water and drifted away and Sophie watched him go. He appeared unflappable considering the day he'd had and that his sister was doing what he'd dreaded all along. Sophie couldn't guaran
tee everything would be fine; she could just assume it would, and deal with the variations as they came.

And Levi would be there for support if she needed him. She had enormous faith in him and she didn't quite know where it had grown from. He'd become a good person to have around. She could've become used to that.

Odette gripped her hand and Sophie refocused where she should have been all along.

Odette panted and bit her lip. ‘I don't think I want to do this.'

Sophie closed her fingers around Odette's shoulder in support. ‘I know. Let it happen. Just push your tummy out as you breathe in, and let it fall as you breathe out, and the baby will move down.'

Odette breathed and finally Sophie could see the first signs of descent. ‘I can see some dark hair now, Odette, so he's not bald.'

Odette's eyes stared into hers as she searched Sophie's face. ‘The contraction's gone and it's burning.'

‘As it should,' Sophie said quietly. ‘Everything needs to stretch and the head sitting there is the best way to do that.'

‘I am so not doing this again,' Odette ground out as she panted the pain away. Then her voice changed. ‘Can I touch him?'

Sophie smiled—she loved this bit—and took her hand to guide it down to the baby's head. ‘Of course.'

Odette stretched tentatively until she realised there
was a hard little scalp right under her fingers and her hand jumped away. ‘Oh, my Lord. This is so not right.'

‘Afraid it is.' Sophie smiled. ‘The next pain will move baby out more, just remember to push slowly with your breath. You don't want your baby to come out too fast.'

‘I don't?' She whistled her breath in between her teeth. ‘You've got to be kidding.' Odette closed her eyes and breathed, and by fractions the baby descended.

Sophie stroked Odette's hair out of her eyes. ‘You are amazing, you know that?'

The next contraction built and the amount of the baby's head grew slowly as Odette breathed him out. Wrinkled forehead, eyes and nose, and finally mouth and chin, until the whole head rotated to face his mother's leg. Sophie dried the little face and hair gently as they waited for the next contraction.

‘He's blinking,' she told Odette.

Odette panted. ‘But his body's not out.'

‘He's awake, that's for sure.' And as Odette pushed for the last time, the baby eased into Sophie's hands. She ran the towel over him as he opened his eyes wider—a dark, dark blue—and he blinked as he looked around.

‘It really is a boy? I have my son?' Then, ‘He's not crying,' Odette said as Sophie slid him up his mother's body skin to skin until he lay across Odette's breasts. She covered them both with the rug and tucked the edges in.

‘He doesn't have to, he's breathing. He's pink and happy to be on you. And yes, he's definitely a boy.'

Sophie gave the injection, clamped and cut the cord and waited for the third stage to complete. When it was over she checked Odette's uterus through her soft belly skin, and found it rocklike beneath her fingers. Everything had done as it should. She pulled the rug back again and checked Odette's pulse.

‘It's over.' Odette smiled up at her. ‘I've done it.' Her smile seemed to light up ten feet around them. She glanced down at her son. ‘I can't tell you how having you here helped me do that.'

‘My privilege.' They sat there quietly for a minute or two. Just breathing and allowing the peace of the bush to steal over them. To appreciate the wonder of childbirth in such a primitive setting. The baby squirmed and Odette laughed and stroked his head and she glanced at Sophie. Their eyes met and they both smiled.

‘Can you ask Levi and William to come see him now, please?' The softness in those powerful new mother's eyes made it hard for Sophie to swallow and her eyes stung. This was why she loved this job.

‘Sure.' Sophie tucked a little escaping hand back under the blankets around Odette's new son and stripped off her gloves. ‘Congratulations. You were amazing.'

‘Thank you, Sophie. I just let you worry about everything else.' She stroked the downy head as her son
wrinkled his forehead and blinked up at her. ‘He's so gorgeous.'

Sophie stroked his tiny hand that escaped again and nodded. She signalled Levi over and watched the men fuss over mother and baby. Her face ached with a broad goofy smile that faded with just a tinge of melancholy for what might have been. She walked towards the river to keep watch.

A few minutes later Levi stood and crossed the grass to her side and she moved back to a safer distance. He smiled ruefully, and then stepped forward and deliberately eased in closer to invade her space. ‘You are getting a hug whether you like it or not.'

‘Oh.' She didn't know what to say to that, and in the end she didn't have to say anything as Levi lifted his good arm and drew her against his chest. She sighed against him. She was glad he insisted, she thought as she sighed again.

‘Thank you, Sophie,' he said quietly, and they stood there, with the sound of the river gurgling behind them and the raucous laugh of a kookaburra punctuating their isolation.

His arm was warm and heavy around her shoulders and the amount of comfort she gained was disproportionate to the gesture. She leant her head more heavily against the good side of his body for a few precious seconds and allowed her facial bones to savour the hardness of his chest against her cheek, the feel of his shirt against her skin and to hear his
heart beat, like a rhythmic drum that beat out a cadence of support.

She'd never really been a girl to lean on people. Hadn't really learnt how until now. There was something magic about the way Levi could remove weariness from her like a blanket lifting from her shoulders. He could energise her with a look, let alone the circle of his arms. Shame she'd refused to listen to him when she'd had the chance.

Her nose wrinkled. She could smell his blood. She focused on the damp patch a few inches from her nose and it was as if a beam of stark white light had been switched on in her brain. Her stupid brain that hadn't seen it all before while she'd been distracted by Odette's need. How could she have missed it? Like a splash of cold water from the river, the concept of Levi's death stared at her, shocking and far too real. It had been that close.

He could have died. Been dead right now. The reality squeezed her chest and her throat closed over. She'd been the greatest fool. Imagine if the bullet had been a few inches closer to his heart. For the first time she realised how narrow her escape…to losing the man she suddenly couldn't doubt she loved. Why had it taken her so long to realise?

She loved him. The tears prickled then, and stung, and burned at the thought of Levi in mortal danger. She'd been obsessing about his perceived faults to protect her own realisation. Of course she loved him. What had she been thinking?

‘So here we are again,' he said into her hair, and the vibration, more poignant for his mortality, felt so much more precious than her own pride. If he'd been dead she'd have missed this. Any of this. All of this. Oblivious to her epiphany he went on musingly. ‘I thought I'd seen the last of you.'

Thank God he hadn't. She closed her eyes and two fat tears ran down her cheeks. She swallowed and tried to level her voice. ‘Fate conspires apparently.'

‘Hmm,' he rumbled beneath her. ‘Unfortunately, fate wasn't the only one conspiring. I'm sorry you and William were involved in this mess.'

Then she remembered she'd lied to him too and she hadn't told him. Suddenly it was so hard to start. Funny that. After all her bluster about being kept in the dark and offence at the misconceptions he'd practised, she'd done the same.

‘Congratulations on your nephew,' she said weakly as she pulled away. She turned to surreptitiously wipe her cheeks.

‘Lucky baby to have a new beginning,' he went on drily, and she could feel his eyes follow her as she widened the distance.

New beginnings. Could she do that? ‘What would you do with a new beginning if you had one?' She took her eyes off the bank in front of them to look back at his face. Maybe they could laugh about the irony.

She didn't see the grey crocodile move a foot closer to where they stood on the gravel. The whole world had
condensed down to Levi—the fact that she wanted to run back to his arms and didn't know if she could go through life denying that she'd had the chance and blew it. Now she'd stopped lying to herself.

Motionless, the huge crocodile watched her with unblinking yellow eyes and even Levi didn't see the danger until the reptile moved again.

Levi must have sensed or seen the sweep of the jagged tail out of the corner of his eye as the crocodile moved because he caught Sophie's hand and pulled her back into his arms and back towards the truck. ‘Let's go. The crocs are getting hungry.' She'd forgotten the danger again. When she'd promised herself she never would. Far too close for comfort.