the waiting room was already crowded with patients and he saw heads turn and eyes widen as he passed.
Without adjusting his pace, he ignored the reception desk and made for the first consulting room. As he approached the door a patient walked out, clutching a prescription in her hand. She took one look at him and stopped dead, her open mouth reminding him of a baby bird waiting to be fed.
‘Conner MacNeil.’ Her voice trailed off in a strangled squeak and he lifted an eyebrow, a sardonic expression in his eyes as he observed her mounting discomfort.
If he’d been in any doubt as to the islanders’ reaction to his return, that doubt had now gone.
‘Mrs Graham.’ He was cool and polite, his neutral tone a direct contrast to her shock and consternation. He moved past her, knowing that he should cut short the encounter, but he couldn’t quite help himself and he turned, the devil dancing in his eyes. ‘I hope your beautiful garden is thriving. If I remember correctly, it’s always at its best in July.’
Her soft gasp of outrage made it obvious that her memories of their last meeting were as clear as his and a smile played around his hard mouth as he walked into the consulting room without bothering to knock.
Mrs Graham’s garden.
He still remembered the girl…
He pushed the door shut with the flat of his hand and the man at the desk looked up.
‘Conner.’ Logan rose to his feet, welcome in his eyes as he stretched out his hand. ‘It’s been too long.’
‘Not long enough for some,’ Conner murmured, thinking of Mrs Graham who, he was sure, at that precise moment was still glaring angrily at the closed door. ‘Prepare yourself for a riot. The locals will be arming themselves any minute now.’ He shook the hand of the man who had been part of his boyhood.
‘Kate Graham recognised you, then? I seem to recall that you were stark naked the last time she saw you.’
The devil was back in Conner’s eyes. ‘Mrs Graham had extremely tall delphiniums in her border,’ he recalled. ‘She only saw my face.’
Logan laughed out loud. ‘You have no idea how pleased I am to see you. You’re looking good, Conner.’
‘I wish I could return the compliment.’ Conner’s dark brows drew together in a frown as he studied his cousin, taking in the faint shadows and the lines of strain. ‘You’ve looked better. Island life obviously doesn’t suit you. You need to leave this backwater and find yourself a proper job.’ But his tone was light because he knew that the medical care that his cousin delivered on this remote Scottish island was of exceptional quality.
‘There’s nothing wrong with island life, just the lack of medical staff. To run this place effectively we need two doctors and two nurses.’ Logan rubbed his fingers over his forehead. ‘It’s been tough since Kyla and Ethan left. I lost a doctor and a nurse in one blow.’
Conner thought about his cousin. ‘I never thought Kyla would leave this place.’
‘She married an Englishman with itchy feet.’
‘There’s treatment for that.’
‘Yeah.’ Logan grinned. ‘Anyway, it’s only temporary and I’ve replaced Kyla. Now you’re here, so we’re back on track.’
‘If I were you, I’d postpone the celebrations until the whole island gets wind of your little plan. The jungle drums will start beating soon.’
‘They’re already beating.’ Logan picked up his coffee-mug and then realised that it was empty and put it down again. ‘My phone has been ringing and you’ve only been on the island for twenty minutes. You certainly know how to make a lasting impression, Conner MacNeil. What exactly did you do on that ferry?’
‘Travelled on it. Apparently that was more than enough.’ Conner stretched his legs out in front of him and put his helmet down on the floor. ‘There’s going to be a rebellion. If looks could kill, I’d be in your mortuary right now, not your consulting room. The natives will probably return to their roots and take up arms to defend themselves from the unwelcome invader. They’re preparing themselves for rape and pillage.’
‘Ignore them. You know what the islanders are like.’ Logan reached for a pack of papers. ‘They don’t like change. Can you read this lot quickly and sign? Just a formality.’
‘And you know how much I love formality,’ Connor drawled softly, but he leaned forward to take the papers, grimacing when he saw the thickness of the documentation. ‘Life’s too short to wade through that much bureaucracy. What does it say? Conner MacNeil must not steal, destroy property or otherwise harass the citizens of Glenmore?’
‘All that and the fact that all single women under the age of thirty are now considered to be in danger.’ Logan’s eyes gleamed as he handed his cousin a pen. ‘The men of the island are locking up their wives and daughters as we speak and Mrs Graham is probably shovelling fertiliser on her delphiniums to increase their height and preserve her modesty and yours. Sign the back page.’
‘Single women under the age of thirty? Why thirty? That doesn’t give me nearly enough scope. I’ve always preferred experience to innocence.’ Conner flipped straight to the back of the sheaf of papers and signed with a casual flourish.
Logan lifted an eyebrow. ‘Aren’t you going to bother to read what you just signed?’
‘I’m presuming it’s a load of rules and regulations.’
‘And knowing that, you’re prepared to sign? I thought you hated rules and regulations.’
‘I do, but I trust you and I admire what you’ve built here on Glenmore.’ Conner handed the papers back to Logan, a faint smile on his mouth. ‘I promise to do my best for your patients. I’m not promising that I won’t bend the rules a little if it proves to be necessary.’
Logan reached for an envelope. ‘I bend them all the time. It’s the only way to get things done. It’s good to have you here, Conner.’
‘I don’t think everyone is going to agree with you. Judging from the shock on the faces I’ve seen so far, you didn’t warn them in advance.’
‘Do I look stupid?’ Logan slipped the papers into the envelope and dropped it into the tray on his desk. ‘I was waiting until you showed up.’
‘Did you think I wouldn’t?’
‘Reliability isn’t your middle name. I wasn’t sure you’d actually do this when the time came.’
Connor gave a humourless laugh. ‘Then that makes two of us.’
‘But you did, so now I can break the happy news to the inhabitants of Glenmore. How have you been? Tell me, honestly.’ Logan hesitated. ‘It must have been hard…’
‘Coming back? Why would you say that?’ Conner was surprised to find that his voice sounded so harsh. ‘You know how much I love this place.’
Ignoring the sarcasm, Logan watched him steadily. ‘Actually, I was talking about leaving the army.’
