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PROLOGUE
‘I DON’T believe in love. And neither do you.’ Alice put her pen down and stared in bemusement at her colleague of five years. Had he gone mad?
‘That was before I met Trish.’ His expression was soft and far-away, his smile bordering on the idiotic. ‘It’s finally happened. Just like the fairy-tales.’
She wanted to ask if he’d been drinking, but didn’t want to offend him. ‘This isn’t like you at all, David. You’re an intelligent, hard-working doctor and at the moment you’re talking like a—like a…’ A seven-year-old girl? No, she couldn’t possibly say that. ‘You’re not sounding like yourself,’ she finished lamely.
‘I don’t care. She’s the one. And I have to be with her. Nothing else matters.’
‘Nothing else matters?’ On the desk next to her the phone suddenly rang, but for once Alice ignored it. ‘It’s the start of the summer season, the village is already filling with tourists, most of the locals are struck down by that horrid virus, you’re telling me you’re leaving and you don’t think it matters? Please, tell me this is a joke, David, please tell me that.’
Even with David working alongside her she was working flat out to cope with the demand for medical care at the moment. It wasn’t that she didn’t like hard work. Work was her life. Work had saved her. But she knew her limits.
David dragged both hands through his already untidy hair. ‘Not leaving exactly, Alice. I just need the summer off. To be with Trish. We need to decide on our future. We’re in love!’
Love. Alice stifled a sigh of exasperation. Behind every stupid action was a relationship, she mused silently. She should know that by now. She’d seen it often enough. Why should David be different? Just because he’d appeared to be a sane, rational human being—
‘You’ll hate London.’
‘Actually, I find London unbelievably exciting,’ David confessed. ‘I love the craziness of it all, the crowds of people all intent on getting somewhere yesterday, no one interested in the person next to them—’ He broke off with an apologetic wave of his hand. ‘I’m getting carried away. But don’t you ever feel trapped here, Alice? Don’t you ever wish you could do something in this village without the whole place knowing?’
Alice sat back in her chair and studied him carefully. She’d never known David so emotional. ‘No,’ she said quietly. ‘I like knowing people and I like people knowing me. It helps when it comes to understanding their medical needs. They’re our responsibility and I take that seriously.’
It was what had drawn her to the little fishing village in the first place. And now it felt like home. And the peo
ple felt like family. More than her own ever had. Here, she fitted. She’d found her place and she couldn’t imagine living anywhere else. She loved the narrow cobbled streets, the busy harbour, the tiny shops selling shells and the trendy store selling surfboards and wetsuits. She loved the summer when the streets were crowded with tourists and she loved the winter when the beaches were empty and lashed by rain. For a moment she thought of London with its muggy, traffic-clogged streets and then she thought of her beautiful house. The house overlooking the broad sweep of the sea. The house she’d lovingly restored in every spare moment she’d had over the past five years.
It had given her sanctuary and a life that suited her. A life that was under her control.
‘Since we’re being honest here…’ David took a deep breath and straightened, his eyes slightly wary. ‘I think you should consider leaving, too. You’re an attractive, intelligent woman but you’re never going to find someone special buried in a place like this. You never meet anyone remotely eligible. All you think about is work, work and work.’
‘David, I don’t want to meet anyone.’ She spoke slowly and clearly so that there could be no misunderstanding. ‘I love my life the way it is.’
‘Work shouldn’t be your life, Alice. You need love.’ David stopped pacing and placed a hand on his chest. ‘Everyone needs love.’
Something inside her snapped. ‘Love is a word used to justify impulsive, irrational and emotional behaviour,’ she said tartly, ‘and I prefer to take a logical, scientific approach to life.’
David looked a little shocked. ‘So, you’re basically saying that I’m impulsive, irrational and emotional?’
She sighed. It was unlike her to be so honest. To reveal so much about herself. And unlike her to risk hurting someone’s feelings. On the other hand, he was behaving very oddly. ‘You’re giving up a great job on the basis of a feeling that is indefinable, notoriously unpredictable and invariably short-lived so yes, I suppose I am saying that.’ She nibbled her lip. ‘It’s the truth, so you can hardly be offended. You’ve said it yourself often enough.’
‘That was before I met Trish and discovered how wrong I was.’ He shook his head and gave a wry smile. ‘You just haven’t met the right person. When you do, everything will make sense.’
‘Everything already makes perfect sense, thank you.’ She reached for a piece of paper and a pen. ‘If I draft an advert now, I just might find a locum for August.’
If she was lucky.
And if she wasn’t lucky, she was in for a busy summer, she thought, her logical brain already involved in making lists. The village with its pretty harbour and quaint shops might not attract the medical profession but it attracted tourists by the busload and her work increased accordingly, especially during the summer months.
David frowned. ‘Locum?’ His brow cleared. ‘You don’t need to worry about a locum. I’ve sorted that out.’
Her pen stilled. ‘You’ve sorted it out?’
‘Of course.’ He rummaged in his pocket and pulled out several crumpled sheets of paper. ‘Did you really think I’d leave you without arranging a replacement?’
Yes, she’d thought exactly that. All the people she’d ever known who’d claimed to be ‘in love’ had immediately ceased to give any thought or show any care to those around them.
‘Who?’
