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‘You’re staying on the island?’
‘It’s going to be hard to be married to you if I don’t,’ he drawled softly, ‘because it’s obvious to everyone that this is the place you were meant to be. And, anyway, we have a responsibility to the community to have lots of sex.’
She gave a gasp of shock and glanced towards the door, but it remind firmly closed. ‘Ethan!’
‘Stop looking scandalised. You were the one who told me that the population has a duty to have plenty of sex and produce lots of children.’
She started to laugh. ‘Yes, but—’
‘If you’re worried about the school closing, we’d better get cracking. If we start now we can have a child in every class right the way through primary school.’
‘Ann Carne would have an asthma attack if they were all little versions of me.’
‘But their daddy would be delighted. I can’t think of anything better than living my life surrounded by ten little versions of you.’ He bent his head and kissed her. ‘I love you. And I’m looking forward to populating the island with you. Just say the word and we’ll start straight away.’
‘Ten? I don’t think we’ll be having ten.’ She wrapped her arms round his neck, unable to control the happiness that bubbled up inside her. ‘I can’t believe you mean this. We’re so different. You don’t say much. Oh, Ethan!’
‘I’ll try and say more,’ Ethan murmured against her lips with a smile in his eyes, ‘providing you’re silent for long enough for me to speak. Is it a deal?’
She loved the feel of his arms around her. ‘Do you think you’ll be able to stand living here, surrounded by islanders who want to know what you ate for breakfast and a big noisy family who frequently turn up to eat that breakfast with you?’
The smile in his eyes faded. ‘The answer to your question is yes. But you haven’t answered my question yet. Will you marry me?’
‘Yes.’ Her voice was soft as she reached up and kissed him. ‘Of course.’
EVANNA
CHAPTER ONE
A FRESH start.
Evanna Duncan drove her little car off the ferry, hearing the familiar clunk as the wheels left the ramp and hit the concrete of the quay. She waved at Jim, the ferryman, and then drove a little way down South Quay before pulling into a vacant parking space overlooking the harbour.
The city had been hot and sticky, the air trapped between the tall buildings with not a breath of wind to lighten the atmosphere, and she’d crawled through holiday traffic for hours to reach the ferry. She was hot, tired and desperate for the peaceful haven provided by her cottage on the cliffs. But first she had things to do. She was meeting a friend and she was already late.
Climbing out of her car, Evanna breathed a sigh of relief as she felt the wind lift her hair and cool her skin. At last.
Home.
Glenmore Island. Being a practice nurse on a remote Scottish island had its challenges, but she loved it and she could never imagine living anywhere else. She’d only been away for a month but it felt like longer.
‘Good trip, Nurse Duncan?’ A boy of about twelve strolled up to her, licking a towering ice cream in danger of imminent collapse. A baseball cap was pulled low over his eyes and he wore shorts, scuffed trainers and an ancient T-shirt that had been faded by endless washing. Two of his friends hovered in the background.
‘Well, hello, Fraser. Are you enjoying the holidays?’ Evanna slammed the car door shut. ‘How’s that head of yours doing?’
Fraser obligingly whipped off the hat and lifted his hair to show her. ‘What do you think? Dr MacNeil says he thinks it’s going to be the most amazing scar. Wicked.’
It was typical of Logan MacNeil to have turned a negative into a positive. Evanna ignored the way her heart jumped at the mere mention of his name. ‘I’m sure he’s right. Amazing.’ Instinctively she reached out and took a closer look, noticing how well it was healing. Logan had done a good job with the stitches. ‘And I hope you’re staying away from the castle.’
‘Sort of. But you’ll never guess what’s happened, it’s so cool.’ Fraser’s voice was earnest as he filled her in on the local gossip. ‘They’ve decided to open up the dungeons. Some archeologic—archolo—’ He stumbled over the word and then gave up. ‘Someone really important is coming to take a look and poke around. They think there might
be stuff down there. Stuff from the Celts or the Vikings or something, you know? Like treasure. We’re going to go up there and watch.’ His eyes gleamed as he rammed the cap back on his head.
‘That’s great, Fraser.’ Evanna slipped her keys into her bag. ‘Just make sure you’re careful. Those ruins can be dangerous and you’ve given all of us enough grey hairs this year. Your ice cream is dripping. You need to lick. Fast.’
Fraser grinned and caught the drip with his tongue. ‘I’m careful.’
‘I’m sure you are.’ Evanna’s tone was dry as she recalled the rescue effort that had been required to extricate him from the dungeon some weeks earlier. She flicked the brim of his hat with her finger. ‘I’m meeting Nurse Walker. Have you seen her?’
