Playing for Love (Summer Beach Vets 1) - Escape Down Under Read Online Free PDF

Ellie’s house.
     
     
    “Here… have a coffee.”
    Craig looked up gratefully as Megan, the receptionist, handed him a mug. This was the first time he had stopped all morning. The backlog in the waiting room had finally been cleared and there seemed to be a lull in the steady stream of patients coming through the front door. They might get an hour of relative peace now before the mayhem started again with the afternoon clinic.
    Craig rubbed his neck, trying to ease the tension in his shoulders. He had just finished a difficult laparotomy to relieve a bowel obstruction in a young Staffie and completed the post-operative care orders. Now he hoped to grab some lunch before tackling more admin.
    Friday mornings were often hectic but today had been especially bad, with a number of sudden emergencies straining the already heavily booked clinic. At the thought of the emergencies, Craig remembered the woman who had brought in the lost Beagle and felt his pulse quicken. She had been beautiful, in that simple, fresh-faced kind of way. Like a glorious summer’s day. Soft blue eyes, a smattering of freckles across a pert nose, and full, pouting lips that had been seriously distracting. He had felt his body temperature rise several degrees when she had bitten her lips, catching the bottom swell with her tiny white teeth. As for the rest of her… Craig shook his head. Crikey, she should have been arrested, walking around in clothes like that! That wet T-shirt had clung to every curve on her body and those shorts didn’t just tease—they tormented the imagination.
    He had been so taken aback by his sudden attraction to her that he had been much curter than he had intended. He winced now as he remembered the expression in her soft blue eyes. She had looked like he had slapped her. She had been a bit hysterical, yes, but he knew it was only out of genuine worry for the Beagle. Besides, he had seen often enough how emotional people could get when their beloved animals were hurt and in pain. I shouldn’t have been so sharp with her , he thought regretfully.
    Her name was Sara. He had made an effort to look up the form she had filled in—telling himself that he was just checking in case he needed to contact her again to ask more questions about the Beagle. But who was he kidding? He had wanted, needed to know her name. In fact, he wanted to know more than her name. He wanted to know everything about her.
    Who was she? he wondered. She had sounded American—there had been a definite twang in her soft voice. She had given Ellie Monroe’s name and address in her contact details. Craig had met Ellie a few times and liked her. Ellie was American too—was Sara a visiting friend? He was sure he hadn’t seen her around before. Summer Beach was a small place and there was no way he would have forgotten Sara if they had met.
    He sighed and stood up, stretching. It was time he stopped daydreaming and got on with work. Still, he couldn’t quite stop himself walking out to reception and saying to Megan:
    “If the woman who brought the lost Beagle this morning calls to check on him, put her through to me. I’ve… uh… got a few things I want to ask her.”

CHAPTER 5
     
     
    For the rest of the day, Sara didn’t let herself think about Dr Craig Murray again. Whenever her thoughts began to stray towards him and their encounter that morning, she would give herself a mental slap. When Ellie came home late that night, Sara told her cousin about finding the Beagle, but kept her description of the vet encounter light and impersonal.
    Ellie was tired from her long day so they went to bed early. Sara had no trouble falling asleep, but she found herself wide awake as dawn crept in through the curtains. Maybe I haven’t managed to escape the jet lag as well as I’d thought , Sara reflected wryly. She tossed and turned for an hour before giving up. She sat up and peered at the clock on her bedside table. 6:30 a.m.
    The picture of the beach rose in