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his face lighting up with that enigmatic look that sent rafts of tingling all the way down to her toes, making them curl.
    She was going mad. This reaction was completely over the top for a guy she’d only met two hours ago, even if he was an enigmatic bad-boy—her type of man. Was this what happened to women who hadn’t had sex in a long time? When the pressure of not knowing if you’d live another day was removed? She felt her fingers dig into her palms, trying to shock herself back into control with some physical discomfort. She’d never experienced such overwhelming need before and she was used to long periods of time between boyfriends. It came with theterritory when you took contracts with Frontline Aid. Liaisons were actively discouraged because they could fracture the way the Frontline team worked, and it was enough just to stay safe and keep the nationals alive.
    But living with death every day made you want to grab onto life and her body seemed to be doing that. She tucked an annoying curl of hair behind her ear and tried concentrating on geography rather than the fact that her body had totally disconnected from her brain and common sense, and was careering off the rails like a runaway train. ‘True, England’s small and green, but I’ve just come from working in north-west Pakistan, and when I was looking at its beautiful, snow-covered, jagged mountains and glacial lakes I thought I was in Switzerland.’
    He raised his brows. ‘Except for the mortar fire?’
    She gave a tight laugh. ‘Yes, well, there was a lot of that, which made it very un-Switzerland.’
    He folded strong arms across his broad chest. ‘I think you might find the silence of Barragong a bit unsettling.’
    The concern in his eyes was unsettling. It was as if he saw way past the persona she showed the world. She much preferred the open admiration and banked heat.
    She flicked the folder shut. ‘Dr Armitage—’
    â€˜Jack.’ The heat in his eyes flared again.
    Her muscles liquefied and she clutched the folder tightly to her chest. ‘I’ve done locum work all around the world and this—’ she tapped the folder ‘—is the most comprehensive handover I’ve ever had. Between the staff and the flying doctors, not to mention the virtual consultations available with specialists in Adelaide, I’m sure Barragong and I will muddle through.’
    â€˜With your experience in the world’s trouble spots, I think you’ll do a lot more than muddle.’
    The deep resonance of his voice cloaked her like velvet and she fought every instinct to close her eyes and lean into him. But this wasn’t a smoky bar or a low-lit dance floor. This was a hospital, and she’d arrived in Barragong so he could leave.
    It’s such a shame he’s leaving. She ignored the traitorous and tempting voice. ‘So, if you can just show me where the hospital flat is, you can start your holiday.’
    â€˜Sophie, you’ve no idea how much I’ve longed to hear those words.’ This time a long, lazy smile rolled across his jaw, up along his cheeks and straight to his eyes, giving him a simmering edge of raw appeal. The bad-boy appeal called to her like a siren.
    Except for the dimple in one cheek. A dimple! None of her previous bad-boy boyfriends had dimples, and it certainly wasn’t a look she associated with a biker.
    But the thought vanished when, with one flick of his long, strong index-finger, he pulled his leather jacket off the back of a chair and swung it over his shoulder.
    â€˜The flat hasn’t been lived in for years, and it’s currently full of old files, so you’re staying out at my house.’
    A house. Delight spun through her. It had been two years since she’d lived in a house. Two years since she’d left Simon and most of her possessions, everything that had tied him to her. Since then she’d lived in