another woman, even a pair of wellington boots, but as Cameron took hold of her elbow and gently but firmly propelled her out of the kitchen, she decided for the moment at least it was better to take the line of least resistance. There would be time later to show Cameron Stuart she wasn’t a woman who took kindly to being bossed around.
The air smelled of the sea and the sun felt warm on her face as they made their way from the back of the house and headed up the hill. She had tried on Rachel’s wellington boots, but they had proved much too small. Cameron had forced her to try on a pair of his, but just like Goldilocks she had found them much too big. Just when Meagan had thought with a sigh of relief that the walk would have to be abandoned, Cameron had triumphantly produced a pair belonging to one of the farm workers that, while a little large, would do. As Meagan clomped along beside Cameron, she struggled to keep up with his long strides.
She felt the silence between them was awkward. Should she bring up that night they had shared all those years ago? But what would she—could she—say? Perhaps he didn’t want to be reminded of it. Instead, she decided to stay on safer ground.
‘Jessie was telling me a little bit about the house and how it’s been in the family for generations. I had no idea who you were.’
Cameron narrowed his eyes as her. ‘Does it make a difference? As far as you and the locals are concerned, I’m Dr Stuart, or just Cameron. My other life—this—’ he indicated the land with a sweep of his hand ‘—has nothing to do with my medical life. I think of myself as lucky. To be able to do the job I love in a place I love.’
As they reached the top of the hill, Cameron turned to her and said, ‘Enough about me. What about you? I always wondered if you’d succeeded in becoming a doctor, although I was pretty sure that you wouldn’t let anything stand in your way. You appeared to be a woman who knew exactly what she wanted.’ He turned the full gaze of his interested brown eyes on her and gave her an appraising look. ‘I have to say it was a bit of a surprise to find you on the side of the road.’ He grinned then frowned. ‘And an even bigger shock to find out we’d be working together.’
Meagan was relieved that he had brought it up. It saved her from having to decide if, and how, to raise the topic. However, his words were a reminder of how little importance he had placed on their first meeting.
‘You hid it well, then,’ Meagan retorted. ‘Anyway, I’m surprised you remember. It was a long time ago. And,’ she couldn’t help adding, ‘that night obviously didn’t mean much to you.’
He frowned again and rested his hand on her shoulder. ‘That’s where you’d be wrong, Meagan,’ he said softly. ‘You are not a woman a man could easily forget.’
But why did you never contact to me? Meagan wanted to ask. If it meant anything at all? But pride stilled the words. He hadn’t contacted her. She had meant nothing to him. She would never let him see how much it had hurt her.
Cameron watched as the emotions chased across Meagan’s face. He had hurt her, he knew that. She was as beautiful as he remembered but there was sadness and a reticence that hadn’t been there in the younger, passionate Meagan. Life had changed her. He didn’t know how or why, but he knew, in time, he would find out. This woman still had the ability to make his pulse race as no other woman had before or since. And there had been many women. Heaven knew, he was no saint but he had felt all those years before and still felt that there was something different about this woman.
‘I know what I said back then. And I meant it,’ Cameron said softly. ‘I was going to contact you. But then…well, I guess you could say life got in the way.’ He looked into the distance, his eyes bleak. Then it was as if a shutter came down. Almost absent-mindedly he reached for her arm, stroking the soft flesh of her inner arm with his roughened thumb. ‘I never thought I would see you again. Tell me about yourself. You’re married now.’ He paused, almost as if he didn’t want to ask the next question. ‘Are you happy?’ he asked softly.
At his touch Meagan felt a shiver of desire go through her—there was still something about this man that set her nerve endings on fire. He made her feel wanted and attractive again. As if the shock of Charlie’s death in a car accident hadn’t been enough, finding out that he had been killed with his mistress beside him had almost destroyed her. She had known that their marriage had not been happy for some time, but she had never suspected that he was being unfaithful to her. The knowledge had made her lose confidence, not just in her ability to trust people but in herself and her own femininity. Now, for the first time in the two years since Charlie had died, she was aware of herself once more as a desirable woman. Meagan had to admit to herself that it felt good—but it was all wrong. She didn’t want to feel anything for another man ever again. Least of all this one. She seemed destined to fall for the wrong men. Well, she was older and wiser now. She knew better than to give her heart to any man.
In her confusion, Meagan jerked away from him and, catching her foot on a rock, stumbled. Cameron caught her just before she fell and pulled her against him. She could smell the faint tang of his aftershave and feel the rough wool of his sweater against her cheek. For a moment she let herself rest against him, feeling safe for the first time in two years.
‘What is it?’ he asked, tipping her chin up with one finger so he could see more clearly into her eyes.
The kindness of his voice along with the memories of Charlie caused her eyes to fill and he traced the track of a tear down her cheek with his thumb.
Pulling away, Meagan blinked away the tears. ‘I was married—but he died. In a car accident.’
‘Oh, Meagan. I am so sorry,’ Cameron said. ‘Colin didn’t tell me very much about the new locum. All he told me was that you were the daughter of a close friend. He never said much more and I never asked.’
‘I asked him not to say anything. I’ve had enough of people’s pity. Part of the attraction about coming here was that people wouldn’t know anything about me. I wanted it to be a new start…’ She tailed off.
‘Hey, hey,’ he said softly. ‘It’s OK. I won’t tell anyone. We doctors are used to keeping other people’s secrets. Although—’ he shook his head and smiled ruefully ‘—you’ll find out soon enough it’s almost impossible to keep a secret on this island. The locals have a habit of finding things out. And as for us…um…meeting before, I think that’s also best kept in the past and between us, don’t you?’
As Meagan looked into his eyes her thoughts flashed back to their ‘meeting’, as he had put it.
She remembered every detail. She had wondered for years about the man she had known simply as Cameron. Then she had met Charlie and buried her memories. Now, with Cameron here in front of her once more, she let the memories come flooding back.
She had been in her final year of medicine, spending her last free summer sailing around the Western Isles. It had been the last night of the crew’s stay on Uist before they were due to sail home. By chance they had discovered that there was to be a beach barbeque at Coola Bay—a fabulous stretch of golden, sandy beach on the north side of the island.
By the time they arrived at the barbeque, the sun was beginning to sink, turning the sky pink and purple. A large crowd had already assembled and several groups stood around fires, laughing and chatting. Meagan sniffed the air appreciatively as the smell of sizzling sausages and chicken scented the sea air.
Meagan left her circle of friends, wanting to savour her last sunset on the island. As the sun melted into the sea, her attention was drawn to a young man who stood in a group of lively partygoers. It wasn’t simply that he was tall, topping everyone else
