Klondike Doctor

"All you have to do is pretend I'm your sister," she said. Frustrated, Sergeant Colton Hunter of the North-West Mounted Police stared at the bold young woman sitting across from him in the first-class compartment of the train. Her posture stiffened. Colt pressed his shoulder to the velvet drapes of the rumbling window and assessed her money-bought looks. "Miss, I can no more pretend you're my sister than I can pretend you're my maid." "Try harder. You can start with the name. It's not Miss. It's not Doctor. It's Elizabeth. Just plain Elizabeth." There was nothing plain about her, yet there was no way on earth he wanted to be stuck with Dr. Elizabeth Langley. to her father, knew otherwise. He would never trust her again. What she'd done to him in his personal life had been reckless. Maybe accidental, but reckless nonetheless. And nowthis. The morning sun billowed over the Coast Mountains of British Columbia, through their window, and lit the red sleeve of his Mountie uniform. They'd only been riding east for fifteen minutes and were still making stops on the outskirts of Vancouver when Colt stood up and slid the aisle door closed to prevent anyone from overhearing. He had one last chance at trying to convince her. "Listen, miss, I don't know why you think I'm supposed to be your savior. Take this train across the country like you planned. Take that ship to England. They're expecting you." He tossed his Mountie Stetson to the seat and eased in beside it. "I have no intention of doing that," said the young doctor. "I'm getting out at the next stop with you and your men. Furthermore--" "Why do you always make things difficult?" "They don't have to be. Just escort me to the Klondike. You're going anyway--" "Sh." Exasperated, he leaned forward on the cushion. His long legs, straining beneath dark breeches, penetrated the swirl of her gray satin skirts. "Miss, I beg of you, lower your voice. Or better yet, pinch your lips together. You're jeopardizing my mission and the safety of my men. Surely even you can understandthat." Her face colored as ripe as a berry. Her dark blond hair, pulled tight above her ears, exposed flushed cheeks and searching brown eyes. Soft amber stones dangled off her ears. It was hard to believe she was a newly graduated doctor. Her youth--midtwenties--and her gender contrasted sharply with the gray-haired doctors most folks were accustomed to seeing. Dressed from head to toe in shiny gray satin, she looked untouchable. But then, she'd always been above his station. Lace and satin were buttoned up to her throat. They might rouse another man's curiosity as to the spoils that lay beneath, but Colt would be damned if he'd give in to those thoughts. Nonetheless, he tugged at his hot collar. A small gray hat, adorned with a burgundy feather that plucked the air as she spoke, topped the blond curls pinned on her head. A highly ridiculous outfit for traveling. "My father doesn't think I'm jeopardizing your mission." Elizabeth straightened her spine again on the red velvet seat. "When you get to the Yukon border where the crimes are occurring, you're to escort me to my grandfather's door while the rest of your men finish the investigation." "Perfect," he said with sarcasm. "Just what every officer wants to hear. To be on the brink of adventure and freedom. To head the team directly into the heart of danger, only to be cut short and forced to escort a..." His gaze swept over her. Her lips pressed together. Her cheeks grew taut. "Awhat?" "A coddled young woman to Dawson City." She gasped. "I'm a doctor." "Of what?" The light in her eyes flared. "I beg your pardon?" "You're a doctor of rashes and fevers...or whatever else ails the female population of high society Vancouver." He wondered what else she spent her time on, when privately summonBridges, Kate is the author of 'Klondike Doctor ', published 2007 under ISBN 9780373294480 and ISBN 0373294484.