Читать книгу Sarah Morgan Summer Collection - Sarah Morgan - Страница 23

‘CAN you sign this prescription for me? I’ve changed Ann Carne’s inhaler. I think she’d be better controlled on this.’ Kyla stuck a prescription in front of her brother. ‘I gather you had a busy Sunday.’

‘Yes.’ Logan signed with a flourish. ‘Snake bite.’

‘Good job Evanna was there to help.’ Kyla took the prescription from him, her movements brisk and efficient. ‘Would have been hard handling that on your own.’

‘Yes. She was brilliant, as always. And then she took Kirsty for me while I went to the hospital.’ Logan tucked his pen back in his pocket and looked at his sister. ‘I wanted to ask you about her. Is she all right?’

‘Why ask me? Why not ask her?’

‘I did. I got the distinct impression that she was hiding something.’

‘Like what?’

‘I don’t know.’ Suddenly exasperated, Logan kept his eyes on his sister’s face. ‘Yesterday she looked pale. Tired. And she left the barbecue early. I just have a feeling that something is not right. She seems different. Jumpy.’

Kyla’s gaze was direct. ‘Well, you’re the genius with women. I’m sure you’ll figure out what’s wrong.’

‘That’s why I’m asking you,’ Logan said patiently. ‘I thought you’d probably know. She’s your best friend after all.’

‘And best friends don’t betray confidences.’

So there was something wrong. Logan sat back in his chair, genuinely concerned. ‘If you know something, tell me. You have a duty to the practice to inform me of anything that affects my staff.’

‘Your staff?’ Kyla gave him a look of ill-disguised impatience. ‘For goodness’ sake, Logan, don’t be so high and mighty! And try thinking about something other than work for five minutes, will you?’

He felt his shoulders tense. ‘I’m not in the mood for a row, I just care about Evanna.’

‘Do you?’ Kyla looked at him, her gaze disturbingly direct. ‘Really?’

Logan felt his own temper rise. ‘Well, what sort of a question is that? Of course I care about her. Evanna has lived on this island all her life. She’s a fantastic nurse and a really good friend. Frankly, I’m surprised you’re not more worried about her yourself.’

‘I’m worried,’ Kyla said flatly. ‘I’m very worried.’

‘So you do know something.’ Logan leaned forward, his voice a low growl. ‘Tell me what’s going on.’

‘I dare say if Evanna has something she wants you to know, she’ll tell you in good time. Thanks for the prescription.’ Kyla walked towards the door and Logan stood up, his expression grim.

‘Don’t you dare say something like that and then leave the room.’

Kyla paused with her hand on the doorhandle. ‘There’s nothing I can tell you, Logan.’

The week flew by and by Wednesday afternoon Evanna was ready for a rest.

‘I can’t believe he’s asked you to look after Kirsty,’ Kyla grumbled as they exchanged notes after a busy clinic. ‘What a nerve.’

‘It isn’t a nerve,’ Evanna said calmly, dropping a soiled dressing into the correct bin. ‘He needs someone that she’s comfortable with. And, frankly, looking after Kirsty will be a pleasant change from looking after the rest of the population of this island. My feet are killing me and if I have to look at another case of sunburn I’m going to scream. It’s the middle of August and it’s blazing hot! Why don’t people use sun block?’

‘Because they’re stupid,’ Kyla said cheerfully. ‘I’ve told Nick Hillier to arrest anyone who isn’t wearing at least a factor twenty-five and lock them up until the sun goes down. And stop changing the subject. You’re letting my brother take advantage of you.’

Evanna washed her hands and dried them. ‘That’s not true,’ she said quietly, turning to face her friend. ‘Logan and I have been friends for as long as you and I. He needs help and that’s what friends are for. And anyway, if you saw the state of my house at the moment you’d understand why I’m only too happy to spend that afternoon at someone else’s place.’

‘You’re too generous.’

‘It isn’t Logan’s fault that I feel the way I do about him.’

‘He asked me what was wrong with you.’

‘Really?’ Evanna stopped what she was doing. ‘And what did you say?’

‘Relax, I didn’t tell him the truth, if that’s what’s worrying you, although I was very tempted. I told him that he should work it out himself. But obviously we’re not going to hold our breath on that one because you’ve been in love with him for twenty-six years and he hasn’t worked it out yet.’ Kyla suppressed a yawn and made for the door. ‘I’m still thinking about plan C.’

‘What’s plan C?’

‘Hitting him over the head with an extremely hard object. I thought it might bring him to his senses.’

Evanna managed a smile. ‘I’m relieved he doesn’t know. Can you imagine how awkward it would be if he found out how I felt?’ She gave a shudder and Kyla looked at her thoughtfully.

‘Maybe it would just be a relief.’

‘I don’t think public rejection could ever be a relief,’ Evanna said flatly. ‘It’s bad enough loving him, without him knowing. At least spare me that.’

‘But if he knew, maybe he’d—’

‘Don’t.’ Evanna interrupted her with a lift of her hand. ‘Just don’t even go there! You can’t change a man’s feelings. I’ll see you tomorrow.’

She let herself through the door that connected with Logan’s house and relieved Meg, who had been looking after Kirsty all morning.

The weather was stifling and Kirsty hot and short tempered and they spent the afternoon playing and reading books under the shade of the weeping willow.

Once Logan arrived home, Evanna made for the door, ruthlessly squashing the temptation to linger and chat. And be with him.

‘Craig is tearing my bathroom to pieces so I need to go and scowl at him just to be sure he doesn’t get too carried away. Looking at the mess at the moment, I can’t believe it’s ever going to look even half-decent.’

She arrived home to find her cottage in chaos. The front door was open and half her old bathroom was lying in the front garden.

‘Remind me never to contemplate having anything more adventurous than the bathroom done.’ She picked her way through a pile of dust and rubble. ‘Craig, tell me that this is going to look good when you’ve finished. Please, tell me that.’

He pushed his hair out of his eyes with a grubby hand and grinned. ‘It’s going to be stunning. The taps arrived today. They’re great. You’ve got good taste, Nurse Duncan.’

Evanna sighed and tried not to look at the mess. ‘So how long am I going to be without a bath?’

‘A few days. I hear the helicopter was out twice on Sunday.’

‘Yes.’ Evanna tried not to look at the mess. ‘Typical August, really.’

‘And you’ve been helping Dr MacNeil with the little one.’ Craig rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand. ‘The man needs a wife. I dare say he’ll meet someone else soon enough.’

Was it her imagination or was he giving her a funny look? ‘Very possibly, but in the meantime he’s managing perfectly well on his own.’ Evanna remembered what Logan had said about everyone telling him he’d meet someone else. ‘He’s doing fine.’

‘Still—nice of you to help him.’

‘I’ve known Logan since I was born,’ Evanna said evenly. ‘He’s one of my closest friends.’

‘Of course he is. And you and Kyla have been thick as thieves since you were both in nappies.’ Craig stared out across her garden. ‘Sometimes you don’t notice something when it’s been in your face all your life.’

Was it that obvious to everyone? ‘Craig—’

‘He’s single. You’re single. Seems perfect to me.’

Evanna stared at him with a mixture of exasperation and embarrassment. Was everyone thinking the same as Craig? ‘Anna Brice is single, too, Craig,’ she said in a tart voice. ‘Why not just pair her up with him.’

‘Possibly because she’s eighty-six on her next birthday.’ Craig scratched his arm. ‘It isn’t just because you’re both single that I think you’d be good together. You’re friends. Everyone can see that.’

‘Marriage is about far more than just friendship,’ Evanna said briskly, and Craig gave a nod.

‘Perhaps. But it’s a good start.’

Evanna thought of the passion that Kyla and Ethan shared. She thought of the looks they exchanged and the way that they touched all the time. It was as if they couldn’t be near each other and not be joined.

She wouldn’t settle for less.

‘I need to get on, Craig.’

‘Of course you do, what with a busy morning in the surgery and a busy afternoon at Dr MacNeil’s. I’ll just finish up here and get out of your way.’ He beamed at her. ‘Is seven too early to start tomorrow? I like to get the heavy stuff done before the sun comes up.’

‘Seven is fine. Thanks, Craig.’

One of the problems of living in a small community, Evanna reflected as she stepped over the rubble and walked into her kitchen, was that everyone was far too interested in everyone else.

She just hoped that no one said the same thing to Logan.

The next week passed in a blur as the surgery handled an unprecedented number of tourists.

‘I feel as though I’m running an A and E department,’ Logan grumbled as he and Evanna cleared up after stitching yet another child who had slipped on the rocks. ‘That was a nasty cut.’

‘He was rock-pooling and he should have been wearing shoes and not flip-flops. I suppose he just didn’t have any grip, which was why he slipped.’ Evanna dropped the stitch cutter into the sharps box. She’d been making a supreme effort to behave naturally with Logan and it seemed to be working. At least he’d stopped asking her if anything was wrong.

‘People leave their brains behind when they’re on holiday. I heard from the hospital today about Alison Winchester. They kept her in for a night and then followed her up before she went back down to London. She was still suffering aches and pains but no other effects that they can see. They’ve written to her GP.’

‘That will be a first for him. I bet a GP in London would know even less about an adder bite than I did.’ Evanna walked across the room and washed her hands. ‘Did they manage to find the snake, by the way?’

‘Funnily enough, yes. The park ranger rang me last week. They’ve relocated the family.’

‘Mr and Mrs Adder.’ Evanna laughed, yanking paper towels out of the holder. ‘Somewhere homely with a nice view, I hope. Hot and cold running water.’

‘Somewhere that no one is going to tread on them again, I hope,’ Logan said dryly, sitting down and hitting a key on the computer. ‘Am I finished here?’

‘For now. Janet told me that you have three house calls. Doug is feeling really dizzy and wondered if you’d call on your way home. I suspect it’s the heat or maybe his tablets, but it’s worth checking. You know how worried he’s been since they discharged him from the hospital.’

‘Patients are always worried after a heart attack and it’s still relatively early days for Doug.’ Logan picked up a set of results and scanned them. ‘How’s Sonia’s blood pressure at the moment?’

‘It’s still on the high side but her urine is fine and she has no swelling.’

Logan pulled a face and leaned back in his chair. ‘I still feel uneasy about her, Evanna. I’d rather she was in hospital.’

Evanna felt a twist of sympathy. ‘It’s natural that you’d worry after what happened with Catherine, but so far there isn’t an indication to admit her. I’m calling on her every day and if there’s any change, we’ll transfer her to the mainland in plenty of time.’ Her eyes met his and she knew what he was thinking. That night, the horrible storm, losing Catherine because the helicopter hadn’t been able to reach the island.

‘Logan …’ She hesitated, unsure whether to speak or not. ‘You know that there was nothing else you could have done, don’t you?’

‘Yes.’ His voice was harsh. ‘But knowing that doesn’t make it any easier to live with.’

‘I know that. I was there, too.’ Evanna swallowed, remembering the night with a shudder of cold panic. ‘And I ask myself every day whether I could have done something different. Whether I should have spotted something.’

He ran a hand over his face and let out a long breath. ‘There was nothing, we both know that. Catherine had an undiagnosed cardiac problem. Even if she’d been in hospital, the outcome would have been the same.’

‘You were amazing, Logan.’ She bit her lip, desperately wanting to comfort but not knowing how. ‘You saved Kirsty and look how bonny she is.’

‘Yes.’

Evanna hesitated. ‘You should go out more, Logan. I’ll babysit for you so that you can have dinner or something.’

He lifted an eyebrow, a flicker of humour in his blue eyes. ‘With whom, exactly?’

‘I don’t know.’ Evanna blushed, wishing that she’d never brought the subject up. It was bad enough thinking of Logan with another woman, without actually putting a face and name to someone. ‘I just think you need to get out. Have a social life.’

He frowned. ‘I have a social life. I see Kyla and Ethan. Meg and the cousins. You. We’re always eating together and spending time on the beach.’

Her heart skipped. ‘I know that. I was talking about. romance.’

‘I’m not interested in romance.’ His gaze was steady. ‘Maybe I will be one day, but not at the moment.’

‘Then that’s fine. I’m not pushing you. I’m just saying that whenever you’re ready, I’ll help. I just want you to know that I’ll babysit.’ She decided that it was time to change the subject. ‘You’ve been great with Lucy. She tells me that she’s always ringing you in a panic about something and that you’re incredibly patient.’

‘She’s a new mother. It’s natural to worry. I keep meaning to pop in and see her but Ethan and I have just been too busy.’ His eyes lingered on her face for a moment. ‘How’s she getting on?’

‘Fine.’ Evanna nodded. ‘Sweet, actually. She’s so in love with that baby.’

‘Lucy is a nice girl. No problems, then?’

‘No. The feeding is going well, the baby is starting to sleep a bit longer and I’ve seen Lucy out and about, pushing her in the pram, several times this week.’

‘Good.’ Logan glanced at his watch and stood up. ‘Right, then. I’ll get on with my house calls. It’s Wednesday.’ He frowned as if he’d only just realised that fact. ‘Are you all right to look after Kirsty again this afternoon?’

‘Of course. It’s what we agreed. I hadn’t forgotten. Believe me, it’s a relief to escape from the banging and the blaring radio in my house. Why do builders always need the radio on full blast? I’ve eaten my way through two packets of paracetamol since they started and I’m sick of making bacon sandwiches for hungry men.’

Logan picked up his bag. ‘You spoil people, that’s your problem. Most builders are lucky to be given a dry biscuit.’

‘I suppose I always feel that they’ll do a better job if I’ve fed them properly,’ Evanna said gloomily. ‘I still can’t quite believe that this bathroom is going to look nice when it’s finished. There’s dust everywhere and the walls are full of holes.’

‘Craig is a reliable guy. And if he messes up your bathroom, I won’t sign his repeat prescriptions.’ Logan walked towards the door and then turned. ‘By the way, the cleaner cancelled this morning so my house is going to be a complete mess, but just ignore it. Hopefully she’ll be able to make it tomorrow. Anyway, by the time Kirsty has finished throwing her toys around, you’d never know a cleaner had been near the place. It always strikes me as a complete waste of money.’

‘Spoken like a true man. I’ve bought a couple of new books for her. I thought I’d take her down to the beach for a picnic tea once it gets a bit cooler.’

‘Good idea. If I finish my surgery early enough, I might join you down there.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘I’d better dash. Thanks, Evanna.’

‘You’re welcome.’

She watched him go and then lifted a hand to her ponytail. It was a good job he didn’t notice her as a woman, she thought wryly, glancing at her reflection in the mirror. She hadn’t been able to wash her hair for two days because Craig had turned the water off and now there was some problem with the plumbing that wasn’t likely to be fixed for at least another day.

She was desperate for a shower or a bath but Kyla had a houseful of guests so she hadn’t liked to ask.

And then a thought occurred to her.

What was stopping her having a shower at Logan’s? She had a change of clothes in her bag ready for the afternoon, and Kirsty would be perfectly happy to play in the bathroom for five minutes while she washed her hair and scrubbed off all the dust and dirt that seemed to have stuck itself to her during the bathroom renovation.

She walked through the door that connected the surgery to Logan’s house and smiled at Meg. ‘My shift.’

‘I don’t know how you manage her,’ Meg said wearily, handing over a wriggling Kirsty. ‘All I do is spend the morning pulling her away from danger. I had all sorts of plans for cleaning and ironing and I’ve done nothing except wrestle with her. And as for feeding her—I’d swear that girl doesn’t know where her mouth is. I had to change her twice during breakfast. There was porridge on the walls and the ceilings.’

‘Have you been a handful?’ Evanna kissed Kirsty’s cheek and popped her down on the floor. ‘Don’t worry about the house, Meg. She’ll probably have a nap in a minute. I’ll try and catch up on a few things while she sleeps.’

‘Don’t you go doing Logan’s cleaning.’ Meg frowned her disapproval as she gathered her things together. ‘It’s good of you to look after Kirsty, without sorting out his mess.’

‘I’m happy to help, Meg,’ Evanna said softly, smiling at Kirsty who giggled and clapped her hands. ‘I know it isn’t very fashionable to admit it, but I love cleaning and keeping house.’ Only she didn’t have anyone to do it for, except herself.

‘Well, if Kirsty lets you so much as lift a teatowel, it will be a miracle. I need to dash because apparently the café is heaving with tourists.’ Meg leaned towards Kirsty and waved a finger. ‘Now, you be a good girl!’

Kirsty beamed and waved. ‘Byee-ee.’

‘Oh!’ Evanna gasped with delight. ‘I didn’t know she’d learned that!’

‘Now, don’t you go being soppy about her—she’s a cheeky monkey. And she knows exactly how to get round you.’ Meg slipped her bag onto her shoulder and made for the door. ‘Have a good afternoon. Pop in for an ice cream if you feel like it. I’ll make her one of my specials.’

Evanna waited for the door to close behind her and then settled down on the floor next to Kirsty, who was rubbing her eyes. ‘You’ve had a busy morning. Are you tired, pickle? Where’s your blanket?’ She looked around for the little pink blanket that Kirsty always slept with and spotted it lying over the back of a chair. ‘Let’s take you up to bed and see if you feel like a nap.’

She changed Kirsty’s nappy, gave her a drink of milk and then settled her in the cot with her blanket. Immediately Kirsty’s eyes drifted shut.

‘Creating trouble for Meg obviously wore you out,’ Evanna murmured with amusement, creeping out of the room and leaving the door open a crack.

She glanced longingly at the bathroom but then decided she may as well tidy the house before she finally had the wash she’d been fantasising about for hours.

For the next hour she worked like a demon. She neatly stacked all Logan’s medical journals, she scooped clothes from the floor and put them in the washing machine, she tidied and scrubbed the kitchen until all the surfaces were gleaming, she mopped the floor, ran the dishwasher and emptied all the bins.

Then she threw open all the doors and windows to air the place. Logan’s house was lovely, she reflected as she plumped the cushions on his soft, comfortable sofa. So airy and light. It was a little further from the beach than hers, but she loved the space and all the windows and she adored his garden. As well as the weeping willow there were four huge apple trees that provided plenty of dappled shade. A large white hammock was strung between two of the trees and a children’s book and several toys were lying abandoned on the grass. Logan had obviously been out there with Kirsty. Evanna looked at the hammock longingly. Later, she promised herself. Maybe she and Kirsty would curl up in the hammock to read books.

She chopped vegetables ready to add to the casserole that she planned to make later and then looked at the clock. Kirsty had been asleep for an hour and a half.

Feeling horribly hot and sticky after her efforts on the house, Evanna dragged her forearm over her forehead and decided to check on the child.

She crept upstairs and peeped around the door but the little girl was still fast asleep, the tip of her thumb in her mouth.

Evanna closed the door again and decided that she just about had time for a quick shower before the toddler woke up. Then she’d make the casserole for supper. She could give it to Kirsty for tea and Logan would be able to eat the remains when he finished work.

She walked into the bathroom that she’d cleaned earlier. Oh, the bliss of not having to pick her way through rubble! Swiftly she stripped off her clothes and stepped under Logan’s state-of-the-art power shower. Five minutes. That was all it would take. And, by then, Kirsty should be ready to wake up.

Logan opened the front door and walked into his house. Bracing himself for the usual noise and activity, he was surprised to find the house silent. Then he remembered Evanna mentioning that she might take Kirsty to the beach.

The morning post was neatly stacked on the hall table and he could see at a glance that both the kitchen and the living room were immaculate. Meg had already called him to apologise for the fact that she hadn’t managed to touch any of the housework, thanks to the demands of his daughter, so he knew that only one person could be responsible for the sudden transformation of his house.

Evanna.

She must have cleaned for him. She was a born nurturer, he thought as he noticed the polished kitchen floor and the vegetables chopped ready for a casserole. Always caring for people whether she was on or off duty. Feeling a twist of guilt, he ignored the post and walked upstairs towards his bedroom. He’d just find the textbook he needed, make himself a cup of tea and then get back to the surgery and tackle the mountain of paperwork that awaited him.

As he reached the top of the stairs, the bathroom door opened and Evanna walked out.

Naked.

And dripping wet.

Logan stared and then he almost swallowed his tongue.

Her legs were long and slender, her hips wonderfully curved and her breasts full and crowned by rosy pink nipples which glistened with drops of water from the shower.

‘Evanna!’ He croaked out her name and she froze to the spot and her eyes widened and locked with his.

For a long, pulsing moment they both stood. Staring.

The atmosphere crackled with tension and then she came to her senses, gave a squeak of horror and looked around desperately for something to cover herself up with, but there was nothing. ‘I forgot to grab a towel—I—I was—You can’t look—Logan!’ Her voice was tortured with embarrassment as she glared at him. ‘Stop looking at me! It’s not very gentlemanly.’

Gentlemanly?

At any other time Logan would have laughed at her use of such an old-fashioned word but he was too busy being thoroughly ungentlemanly to respond. In fact, he didn’t really know what he was doing. His brain had ceased coherent thought and his eyes were definitely under independent rule. It wasn’t until she moved her hands down to cover herself that he realised his gaze had been firmly fixed on the tempting shadows between her legs.

All the oxygen seemed to have been sucked out of the air and Logan suddenly couldn’t breathe properly.

She was still trying to shield herself with her hands but he already had an all too clear image of her lush feminine curves imprinted on his brain.

He’d known Evanna for his whole life and he’d thought that he knew everything there was to know about her. He knew that she was kind, endlessly patient and had a good sense of humour. He knew how she liked her coffee, he knew that she liked to run and swim. He knew that at school she’d been top in English but hopeless at maths. She was his sister’s best friend and he knew her well. Really, really well. Up until today he would have said that there was nothing about Evanna that he didn’t know.

So why hadn’t he known that she had a body straight out of a hot male fantasy?

Gripped by lust, he closed his eyes briefly to try and erase the image and dragged a towel from the cupboard.

‘Here …’ His voice hoarse, he clutched the towel, intending to hand it to her and move away, but he couldn’t prevent himself from taking one more look and then found he couldn’t stop looking. The creamy skin of her shoulder and the tempting swell of her breasts were more addictive than any drug.

She had fantastic breasts.

Had she always had those breasts or had she suddenly grown them?

Why had he never noticed her breasts before?

Jabbing his fingers through his hair, he tried to look away but his eyes just wouldn’t obey his brain. Her hair was soaking wet and hung halfway down her back, and she was deliciously slippery and gleaming wet after her shower. His mouth dried and he realised that any moment now he was going to power her back against the wall and take her. Hard. ‘I—You—’

‘For crying out loud, Logan, stop staring!’ Her voice sounded strangled and her expression was horrified as she snatched the towel and held it in front of her. ‘You’ve seen me in a bikini a million times so I don’t see why seeing me naked is such a big step.’

Had he seen her in a bikini? His mind dulled by lust, Logan struggled to think. Yes. He had seen her in a bikini. So why hadn’t he ever noticed her body before? Was he blind? Stupid? Both? Lost in an explicit fantasy involving his hands and mouth on those delicious curves, it took him a minute to realise that she’d asked him a question. ‘What? Sorry?’

She stared at him in exasperation. ‘What is the matter with you? I asked you what on earth you were doing here, anyway.’

Taking a fast ride to paradise? ‘I live here. I think.’ He wasn’t sure of anything any more.

‘Well, I know that you live here. I’m not stupid.’ She tightened her grip on the towel, trying to hold it in place. ‘But I wasn’t expecting you home. You’re supposed to be working.’

He’d never heard Evanna snappy before but she was decidedly snappy and he found her efforts to maintain her dignity and privacy incredibly endearing. Water clung to her dark lashes and her cheeks were pink with embarrassment.

‘I was working,’ he drawled softly, ‘but I wanted—I needed.’ He couldn’t remember what he wanted or needed because it had been superseded by something else entirely. Her.

‘Oh, forget it! It doesn’t matter now.’ She interrupted him and backed into the bathroom, glaring at him as if he’d committed a terrible sin.

And he hadn’t. Not yet.

But in another moment he might do just that.

The temptation to just grab her and bring his mouth down on her soft, pink lips was so overwhelming that he clenched his fists by his sides, just to make sure that he wasn’t tempted.

‘Oh, this has got to be the most embarrassing moment of my life,’ Evanna muttered, pushing the door closed between them and leaving it open just a crack. ‘Stop staring and pass me my clothes.’

‘Clothes?’

‘Yes, Logan,’ she snapped. ‘My clothes! They’re in a pile on the floor outside the bathroom door. Get a grip! Did you leave your brain behind at work?’

In all the years he’d known her, he’d never heard Evanna irritable before. She was the most tolerant, patient person he’d ever met but suddenly she was behaving as though he’d done something grievously wrong.

‘Evanna.’ He tried to keep his tone mild. Tried to sound indifferent. ‘There’s no need to be embarrassed. I’ve known you all my life.’

And he’d obviously been walking around with his eyes shut!

‘Well, that doesn’t mean I want to stand in front of you stark naked! My clothes, Logan! They’re in the bag by your feet. And don’t you dare ever breathe a word of this to anyone. If I am on the receiving end of a single knowing wink when I walk into the pub, you’ll be finding yourself a new practice nurse.’

Logan dutifully found the bag and handed it to her. She virtually dragged it from his hand and closed the bathroom door firmly in his face.

Logan stared at the wood. He could have told her that it didn’t make any difference, hiding behind a door or a towel. He could have told her that the image of her lush, naked body was now firmly fixed on his extremely over-heated brain. But he thought that in her current mood she just might hit him so he stayed silent and tensed slightly when she dragged open the door and faced him.

She was wearing skimpy shorts and an ancient T-shirt in a washed-out, faded blue and her long, damp hair was caught up in a ponytail.

She looked like the old Evanna. Except that she didn’t. Because now he knew.

He knew what was underneath the clothes.

‘I’m dressed,’ she said through gritted teeth, thrusting the damp towel into his hands, ‘so you can stop standing there, gawping.’

‘Evanna—’

‘Oh, grow up!’ Her cheeks flushed a deep shade of pink and she scurried into Kirsty’s room, leaving Logan staring after her.

Aware that he needed to pull himself together, he drew in a deep breath and tried to think about something boring and inconsequential.

Anything that would take his mind off the vivid image of Evanna’s naked body. Since Catherine’s death he hadn’t thought about a woman—hadn’t wanted a woman.

Until now.

Frustrated and taken aback by the strength of his own reaction, he suddenly knew that he had to get out of the house before he did something that would embarrass both of them. This was Evanna. They were friends, for goodness’ sake. Somehow he had to erase that image from his mind and go back to the way he’d seen her previously—as a colleague and a lifelong friend. The best friend he had. Thoughts of sex had never intruded on their relationship before and he couldn’t let it now.

If she knew just how much she’d affected him, she’d feel awkward. Their entire relationship would change. They wouldn’t be able to work together properly. They.

Swearing softly, he retreated back downstairs, pushed open the door that connected his house to the surgery and walked back to his consulting room without any hope of being able to concentrate.

Evanna held her head in her hands and tried not to scream.

How could she have been so stupid?

Wasn’t it perfectly obvious that he’d come home the minute she’d chosen to take a shower in his bathroom? Wasn’t life always like that?

Tortured by embarrassment, Evanna resisted the temptation to hide under Kirsty’s cot and never come out again.

The little girl was wide awake, lying on her back, hugging her blanket and sucking her thumb, oblivious to the turmoil that Evanna was suffering.

Why hadn’t she at least remembered to take a towel into the bathroom with her?

What had possessed her to walk out of the bathroom, naked?

And why hadn’t he just done the gentlemanly thing and looked away? Why hadn’t he given her one of his cheeky smiles and covered his eyes?

It didn’t even help to tell herself that he’d seen her in a swimming costume a million times because never, when he’d seen her on the beach, had he ever reacted with such stunned amazement.

Did she really look that awful?

Anyone would think he’d never seen a naked woman before, she thought crossly, lifting Kirsty from her cot and giving her a hug. Which was nonsense, because everyone knew that Logan Alastair MacNeil had had a fearsome reputation with women until he’d met and married Catherine. There were some on the island who’d thought he’d never settle down. So, for him to stand there with his mouth open as if he were shocked to see a naked woman was ridiculous, because she happened to know that he’d seen more than his fair share of naked women in his time.

‘Oh, Kirsty, I’ve never been so embarrassed,’ she whispered, delaying the moment until she had to leave the safety of the bedroom. But Kirsty was full of energy after her sleep and dying to play so she had no choice but to take her downstairs.

Determined to behave as though nothing had happened, Evanna lifted her chin and carried the toddler into the kitchen.

But there was no sign of Logan.

Unnaturally jumpy, Evanna looked around, called his name and then peeped out of the front door, but there was no sign of his car.

He’d gone.

Without even saying goodbye.

‘Nice to know that seeing me naked had such an amazing effect on him,’ Evanna grumbled as she pulled a fromage frais out of the fridge for Kirsty. ‘Did he grab me and kiss me senseless? No. Was he so overwhelmed by the sight of my wet, naked body that he couldn’t keep his hands off me? No. What does he do? He just stares, stammers like an idiot and then walks off without even bothering to say goodbye. I tell you, Kirsty MacNeil, you should have been born a man. It’s a lot easier than being a woman, believe me.’