‘Saturday.’ Kyla gave a slow nod. ‘That explains everything.’
‘Does it?’
‘Of course it does. Sex changes everything. Up until the sex part she was perfectly able to live with the fact that she loved you and you didn’t love her back. But sex—sex for Evanna is extremely serious. Evanna doesn’t do casual relationships.’
‘I know that. I…’ He frowned at her, trying to decipher the strange conversation they were having. ‘Did you just say that she was able to live with the fact that she loved me, but I didn’t love her back?’
‘Yes. After both plan A and plan B failed, she decided to just give up and live with things as they are.’ Kyla’s tone was conversational and then she glanced up and saw the darkening expression on her brother’s face. ‘What?’
His tone was dangerously soft. ‘I’d like to hear the details of plan A and plan B.’
Kyla squirmed. ‘I probably shouldn’t—’
‘I’ll give you five seconds to start talking.’
Kyla sighed. ‘Oh, well, given that the whole thing is such a mess, I don’t see any harm in it.’
She was going to miss Glenmore Island so much.
Evanna sat on the cliffs and stared across the sea towards the mainland. It was a view she’d grown up with. A view she’d believed she’d grow old with.
She couldn’t imagine not seeing it on a daily basis as she drove to work. She couldn’t imagine not popping into Meg’s café for a coffee and a gossip. She couldn’t imagine not running along the cliffs, swimming in the sea and sharing barbecues in Logan’s garden with all their friends and family.
But she needed to build a new life and that was what she was going to do.
Somehow she’d struggled through her morning clinic, seeing patients on automatic, responding to their questions without even hearing her own answers. She’d intended to go straight into Logan’s room and tell him her plans but instead she’d found herself walking up here to the cliffs for one last look.
Her letter of resignation sat in her pocket like a lump of lead.
After Kyla had left the previous evening, she’d read it over and over again and cried so hard that she’d thought her head might burst.
Then she’d made a supreme effort to pull herself together.
Enough.
Enough crying.
‘Evanna?’
She turned and saw him standing there, his hair lifting in the breeze, his face so handsome that it made her catch her breath. ‘Logan? What are you doing up here?’
His gaze was fixed on her face, his blue eyes sharply questioning. ‘I should be asking you the same question.’
‘Oh.’ She scrambled to her feet and struggled to produce a smile. ‘I just needed some fresh air.’
‘Why would you need fresh air?’ His eyes didn’t shift from hers and she felt her stomach roll over.
Now. She should tell him now. It was the perfect opportunity. ‘I—I’m glad you came up here. I was hoping to catch up with you later. I needed to give you something.’ Her hand shaking, she delved into her pocket and pulled out the crumpled letter. ‘Sorry. It’s been in my pocket.’ She thrust it towards him and he took it and tore it in half in a slow, purposeful movement and then handed it back to her.
She stared at him in confusion and then looked at the torn letter in her hand. ‘You didn’t even read it.’
‘I didn’t need to.’ His voice was steady. ‘I know what was in that letter, Evanna, and the answer is no. You’re not resigning. You’re not leaving Glenmore Island, you’re not leaving the practice and most of all you’re not leaving me.’
She stared at him and felt the emotion surge up inside her again. He was being so unfair. This was hard enough for her without him making it even harder. ‘I suppose Kyla told you. You can’t stop me, Logan.’ She almost choked on the words. ‘I know it’s inconvenient for you, but I’m not the only nurse in the world. You’ll find someone else who can do the job just as well.’
‘That isn’t true. I wouldn’t find a nurse as good as you if I searched Scotland, but that isn’t why I’m not going to let you go.’
She gave a helpless shrug. ‘Are you thinking of Kirsty? Because you needn’t worry about that. I’ll stay in touch.’