need a job.’
‘But I already have a job.’ He lifted his hands. ‘At least I think I do. Is my contract not being renewed?’
His stomach turned over a little. Last night had been a particularly bad night in A & E. His medical skills were never in question but his temper had definitely been short. It hadn’t been helped by hearing a car backfire on the walk home and automatically dropping to the ground as if it were gunfire. His last mission for Doctors Without Borders had been in a war zone. Dropping to the floor when you heard gunfire had become normal for him. But doing it in the streets of Melbourne? Not his proudest moment. Particularly when a kid on the way to school had asked him what was wrong.
Lewis smiled. The way he always did when he was being particularly persuasive. Nathan had learned to spot it over the years. ‘The last few days in A & E have been tough. You came straight out of Doctors Without Borders after five years and started working here. You’ve never really had a holiday. Think of this as your lucky day.’
Nathan lifted the buff-coloured folders. ‘But this isn’t a holiday. This is a form of torture. My idea of a holiday is walking in the hills of Scotland somewhere, or surfing on Bondi Beach. Being stranded on an island with nine B-list celebrities? I’m the least celeb-orientated person on the planet. I couldn’t care less about these people.’
Lewis nodded. ‘Exactly. That’s what makes you perfect. You can be objective. All you need to do is supervise the fake TV challenges and monitor these folk’s medical conditions for the three weeks they’re on the island. The rest of the time you’ll get to sit around with your feet up.’ He bent over next to Nathan and put one hand on his shoulder, waving the other around as if he were directing a movie. ‘Think of it—the beautiful Whitsunday islands, the surrounding Coral Sea, luxury accommodation and perfect weather with only a few hours’ work a day. What on earth could go wrong?’
Nathan flipped open the first folder. Everything about this seemed like a bad idea. It was just a pity that the viewing public seemed to think it was a great one. Celebrity Island had some of the best viewing figures on the planet. ‘But some of these people shouldn’t be going to a celebrity island, let alone doing any challenges. They have serious medical conditions.’
Lewis waved his hand. ‘And they’ve all had milliondollar medicals for the insurance company. The TV company needs someone with A & E experience who can think on their feet.’
‘I hardly think epidemic, natural disaster and armed conflict experience is what a TV crew needs.’
Lewis threw another folder towards him. ‘Here. Read up on snake bites, spiders and venom. The camp will be checked every night but you can’t be too careful.’
The expression on Lewis’s face changed. The hard sell wasn’t working and it was obvious he was getting desperate.
‘Please, Nathan. I agreed to this contract before I knew Cara was pregnant. I need to find someone to replace me on the island. The last thing I want is to end up sued for breach of contract. You’re the one person I trust enough to ask.’
Nathan took a long, slow breath. Working for a TV company was the last thing he wanted to do. But Lewis was right. He was close to burnout. And in some ways he was lucky his friend had recognised it. How bad could three weeks on an island in the Coral Sea be? The celebs might have to sleep by a campfire but the production crew were supposed to have luxury accommodation. He shook his head. ‘Why didn’t you just tell me this was about Cara’s pregnancy?’
Lewis looked away for a second. ‘There have been a few issues. A few complications—a few hiccups as we’ve got closer to the end. We didn’t really want to tell anyone.’ He slid something over the desk towards him. ‘Here, the final sweetener. Look at the pay cheque.’
Nathan’s eyes boggled. ‘How much?’ He shook his head again. ‘It doesn’t matter what the pay cheque is, if you’d told me this was about Cara I would have said yes right away.’ He lifted his hands. ‘I would have volunteered and done it for nothing. Sometimes you’ve got to be straight with people, Lewis.’
Lewis blinked, as if he was contemplating saying something else. Then he gave his head a little shake. ‘Thank you, Nathan.’ He walked around and touched Nathan’s shoulder. ‘I need a medic I can trust. You’ll have back-up. Another doctor is flying out from Canberra to join the TV crew too. Last year I was there I worked twelve hours—tops—over three weeks. Trust me. This will be the easiest job you’ve ever had.’
Nathan nodded slowly. It still didn’t appeal. He had a low tolerance to all things celebrity. But three weeks of easy paid work in a luxury location? He’d have to be a fool to say no. Plus, Lewis had helped him when he’d landed in Australia straight out of Doctors Without Borders and with no job. Of course he’d help. ‘What happens when I get back?’
Lewis met his gaze. ‘You’re a great medic. We’re lucky to have you. I’ll give you another six-month contract for A & E—if you want it, of course.’
He hesitated only for a second. Lewis was one of his oldest friends and he knew they’d waited four years for Cara to fall pregnant. There was no way he could let him down. Even if it was the last place on this earth he wanted to go.
He picked up the pen. ‘Tell Cara I’ll be thinking about her. Okay, where do I sign?’
Rachel Johnson took a few final moments lying on the sun lounger at the pool. She couldn’t believe for a second she was getting paid for this.
She’d been here two days and hadn’t had to do a minute of work. Apparently her job started as soon as she hit the island. Which was fine by her. From what she’d seen of the nine celebrities taking part in Celebrity Island, she suspected they ranged from mildly whiny to difficult and impossible. Her old university friend Lewis Blake had persuaded her to take part and the fee was astronomical. But that wasn’t why she was here.
She was here because her Hippocratic oath seemed to have her over a barrel. Her ex—an Australian soap star—was taking part. And she was one of the few that knew his real medical history. It seemed that one of his bargaining chips had been to ask for a doctor he could trust. And even though there was nothing between them, part of her felt obliged to help.
‘Are you ready, Dr Johnson? The seaplane has just landed.’
Rachel jumped up from the comfortable lounger and grabbed her rucksack packed with her clothes. Two days staying in the luxury five-star resort had been bliss. All the medical supplies she would need had already been shipped. Apparently the other medic was already on the island. And since there was no way off the island for the next three weeks she hoped it was someone she could work with. Between the two of them, they would be on call twenty-four hours a day for three weeks. Lewis had assured her that apart from monitoring the challenges there really wasn’t anything to do. But, as much as she loved him, Lewis had always been economical with the truth.
Rachel climbed into the seaplane that was bobbing on the blue ocean. She’d never been in one of these before and the ride was more than a little bumpy. But the view over the island worth it.
The pilot circled the island, letting her see the full geography. ‘This is the beach where some of the celebrities will be dropped off. The beach on the other side is for the crew. It has umbrellas, sun loungers and a bar—so don’t worry, you’ll be well looked after.’ As he crossed the middle of the island the view changed to a thick jungle. ‘Camp is in the middle,’ he said. ‘Don’t tell anyone but they actually have a rain canopy they can pull overhead if we get one of the seasonal
