Maya leapt in with, ‘I’m not a nurse, but?—’
‘I’m sorry I upset you,’ he interrupted. He actually was. He had mouthed off and his words, his judgement really, had been more about him than anyone else. ‘I hope Julie is home with you all soon.’
Her dark eyes and glossy hair drew him in all the more as they stood there facing off in the middle of the room until Kate prompted him to get a move on.
Noah followed Kate outside and down the steps to the grass level and the helicopter waiting on the lawn, which in size seemed more like a football pitch than one family’s outdoor space.
Kate began to laugh as they walked, packs on their backs, back to the helicopter. ‘I can’t believe you’ve been here five minutes and already clashed with Maya.’
‘How well do you know her?’ he asked.
‘Pretty well,’ she yelled as the noise of the rotor blades grew louder as the aircraft started up, ready for their departure. ‘Maya’s the pilot on the red team,’ she said with a wink before they stowed the kit bags and the drugs in the back of the aircraft.
‘Shit. You’re joking, right?’
She shook her head before she climbed into the front of the helicopter. ‘Nope.’
Noah closed the rear sliding door and pulled on his headset. He’d been in town less than forty-eight hours, this was hardly the best start, was it?
They lifted into the air and the mansion became a much smaller version of itself below them. Once they were on their way back to base, he heard Kate pass on Maya’s regards to Vik before she explained that Noah had met Maya too.
Of all the jobs to get as his first one with The Skylarks, why did it have to be here where he’d opened his big mouth and put his size tens right in it, offended someone he’d be working with closely very soon?
Sod’s law, that was why.
And because for some reason, life just kept wanting to slap him in the face.
4
Noah was in the kitchen at the base making mugs of coffee all round. The caffeine was welcome at any time, especially the late evening and early hours of the morning shift that he was working now.
They’d not been out of the helicopter five minutes when Kate shared the story of his run-in with Maya with Rita, one of the Whistlestop River Freewheelers, the group of volunteers who offered a courier and transport service between medical establishments including hospitals, surgeries, ambulances, air ambulances and the community. Rita introduced herself as she handed over the fresh supplies of blood and plasma which had to be replaced every forty-eight hours. Keeping supplies on board was an absolute game changer for air ambulances because it meant that if a patient was bleeding at the scene, they didn’t have to wait to get to hospital for lifesaving treatment.
‘Lovely to meet you,’ Noah told her as he took the cool box containing fresh supplies.
He’d already met Mick and Alan, two other members of the Whistlestop River Freewheelers who’d brought medical supplies for the crew to transport to a couple of the local hospitals and itfelt good to get to know more and more people and feel a real part of things so quickly.
‘I hope Maya takes it easy on me when I start with the red team,’ Noah told Kate as they drank their coffees at the kitchen table. Maya might be the pilot rather than his boss but they still had to work together. Even more of a worry was that his life was literally in her hands and it would be reassuring to know she didn’t harbour any ill feeling.
Kate took a sip from her mug and nodded her approval. ‘Well, at least you’ll be able to get her on side with a great cup of coffee.’
They took their drinks into the main office where calls came in, incidents were logged and paperwork updated, where the pilots could use technology to assess weather and conditions.
‘Maya’s great, you’ll love her. But don’t accuse her of being rich and entitled and taking valuable resources.’
‘I messed up big time shooting my mouth off. But I didn’t accuse her of anything. It wasn’t her house.’
‘No…’ Kate paused before taking a sip of her drink. ‘It’s her father’s.’
His face fell. ‘Tell me you’re joking.’
‘Julie is her sister, you know that, right?’
‘I missed that part.’ He was a good critical care paramedic, he knew when to focus, and there wouldn’t have been any need for anyone to update him as to the relationship between the women and if they had, he’d not taken it in.
They went through the notes on today. His interaction with Maya was still playing on his mind when they finished up the paperwork and returned their empty mugs to the kitchen. ‘I only arrived in town very recently,’ he told Kate as he washed up the crockery, ‘I don’t want to seem like a total arse to Maya or anyone else.’
‘If it helps, you don’t seem like an arse to me. Chin up, Maya’s cool.’ And off she went.
