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It didn’t matter what route they chose to take. Paths that meandered beneath the palms, between accommodation and service bures, past a chapel and even a tiny fire station, eventually all led to the central complex that was the resort’s hub. Neither did it matter how long it took to get there. They were on island time now and Sarah had actually taken off her watch and dropped it into her suitcase when she’d gone inside to shower after her swim.
The sense of escaping more than just a timetable was heady. The atmosphere of this tropical playground offered the promise of finding whatever they might be searching for. They could choose the peace of simply soaking up the sunshine, lazing in water just cool enough to be refreshing or strolling along walkways shaded by exotic trees. Or they could go for the excitement of scuba-diving, windsurfing or parasailing. Right now, peace was something Sarah craved. Time out after a tough year.
The cry that interrupted their ambling progress past the turtle nursery was anything but peaceful.
‘What on earth was that?’
‘Sounds like someone’s been hurt.’
‘Where did it come from?’
‘Just over there.’ Sarah was already moving, heading away from the path and through a thick clump of hibiscus bushes. ‘I think it’s the miniature golf course.’
An elderly woman was lying on the ground. Her companion was holding her hand.
‘Marjorie! Are you all right, darling?’
‘Hi. My name’s Sarah. I’m a nurse. Can I help?’
‘She fell over. Marjorie?’
‘I’m fine, Stanley. Don’t fuss.’ The woman was struggling to sit up.
‘Does anything hurt?’
‘I don’t think so. Help me up, Stanley.’ Marjorie held up her hands but cried out as she tried to stand up. ‘My ankle! Ah-h!’
‘Let’s sit her down,’ Sarah instructed. ‘On that turtle.’ She looked up to engage Tori’s assistance as she helped support the woman, but to her surprise she was alone with the elderly couple. Tori must have gone to find help, she decided. And suddenly her absence wasn’t so surprising. Sarah could guess precisely whose help she would be seeking.
The large concrete turtle crouching over one of the target holes for the golf course made an excellent seat. Sarah was pleased to see some colour returning to Marjorie’s cheeks.
‘Damn and blast!’ the woman exclaimed. ‘I knew these sandals were going to be trouble.’
‘Does anything else hurt?’ Sarah asked. ‘Did you hit your head when you fell?’
‘Would take more than concrete to knock Marj out,’ Stanley said.
Sarah smiled. ‘Can you remember what happened? Were you feeling unwell in any way before you fell?’
‘No, I’m as fit as a fiddle. It was these sandals. I came down that hill too fast and turned my foot.’
‘She was excited,’ Stanley explained. ‘She got a hole in one under that turtle.’
‘I did, didn’t I?’ Marjorie beamed at Stanley. ‘Not so dusty for an old girl, huh?’
Sarah’s smile widened. ‘How old are you, Marjorie?’
‘Seventy-seven.’ Marjorie leaned towards Sarah. ‘Stanley’s only sixty-eight. Take my advice, sweetie. Always go for a younger man.’
‘We’re on our honeymoon,’ Stanley added proudly. ‘We got married here, on the beach.’
‘Oh, how lovely! I’ve always thought that a tropical island wedding would be just perfect.’
‘It was.’ Marjorie nodded. ‘Until now.’ She groaned. ‘Do you think I’ve broken it?’
‘Let’s have a look.’ Sarah eased a sandal with a high cork sole from Marjorie’s foot.
Stanley was holding Marjorie’s hand again and looking very anxious. They both watched as Sarah carefully examined the foot and ankle.
‘Can you wiggle your toes?’
Brightly painted toenails waggled a little feebly.
‘Try moving the whole foot.’
‘Ouch!’ Marjorie exclaimed. Then she tried again. ‘It’s not so bad,’ she decided.
‘I don’t think anything’s broken,’ Sarah told her finally. ‘It looks like a sprain to me. What we need is some ice and a bandage and somewhere for Marjorie to put her foot up for a while.’
Marjorie’s face creased with disappointment. ‘But we were going to go snorkelling this afternoon.’
‘See how it feels a bit later.’ Sarah stood up. ‘I’ll see if I can find someone to help. I believe there’s a doctor on the island at the moment, in fact.’
‘That wouldn’t be him, would it?’
Stanley pointed past her shoulder in the direction of the turtle pond and it didn’t really surprise Sarah at all to see Tori coming towards them with ‘Doctor Ben’ in tow. The boy carrying the kit was still with him but the other children had vanished.
Tori looked very happy. ‘This is Ben Dawson, Sarah. He’s a doctor. Wasn’t it lucky I spotted him after we heard that screaming?’
‘I didn’t scream,’ Marjorie protested. ‘I never scream, do I, Stanley?’
‘You came pretty close the other night,’ Stanley murmured.
‘Stanley!’
‘This is Marjorie, Dr Dawson.’ Sarah was struggling to keep a straight face and Tori’s smothering of a giggle was not entirely successful. ‘She tripped over and turned her ankle. No prior symptoms and she doesn’t appear to have injured anything else.’
‘Call me Ben.’ Dark eyes were twinkling as Ben made no serious attempt to hide his enjoyment of this scene. ‘You got married the other day, didn’t you, Marjorie?’
‘Sure did, Doctor. Best thing that’s happened to me in a few decades.’
‘I saw the wedding from a distance,’ Ben said. ‘Gorgeous dress.’ He smiled at Stanley. ‘I liked the white suit, too. Perfect choice for a beach wedding.’
‘We’ve only got two days of our honeymoon left,’ Marjorie told him. ‘Sarah says my ankle’s not broken and she’s a nurse so she should know, shouldn’t she?’
‘Absolutely.’ Ben smiled at Sarah and then turned to include Tori in the group. ‘This is Sarah’s friend, Tori, and she’s a nurse as well. You’ve just about got a whole emergency department here. Isn’t that lucky?’
Marjorie didn’t seem overly impressed. ‘I don’t need a department. I need to know that I can go snorkelling this afternoon.
‘I suggested ice,’ Sarah said. ‘And a bandage and elevation—at least for a while.’
‘Sounds like good advice to me. How ’bout I check that ankle out?’ His glance at Sarah looked suspiciously like a wink. ‘A second opinion can’t hurt, can it?’
Oh, he was charming all right. How many doctors would be prepared to simply back up the diagnosis of a nurse? He was doing exactly what he should be doing as a more highly qualified professional but he was managing to make it seem like an unnecessary formality.
‘RICE,’ he pronounced a short time later. ‘Rest, ice, compression and elevation.’
‘Exactly what Sarah said.’ Stanley nodded. ‘Except for that compression bit.’
‘That’s the bandage,’ Ben told him. ‘And I expect my assistant, Josefa, knows just where to find one.’
The lanky teenager’s face lit up in a grin. The kit was open in a flash and three sizes of bandage were produced for Ben to choose from. Josefa ran off just as eagerly when Ben explained the need for an ice pack. Tori supported Marjorie’s ankle while Ben did an expert job of the bandaging. Sarah wondered if he noticed, as she did, how often Tori’s hand seemed to get just a little in the way.
‘Now, let’s get you back to your bure for a rest,’ Ben declared finally. To Marjorie’s evident delight, he effortlessly picked the elderly woman up in his arms.
‘I’ve been swept off my feet,’ she cried happily.
‘I thought I did that,’ Stanley grumbled.
‘It’s OK, Stanley.’ Ben grinned. ‘I’m not half as handsome as you and I promise I’ll give her back. Now, which direction is your bure?’
‘Oh, no, you don’t,’ Marjorie said firmly. ‘I might have to sit but I’m not going to waste the rest of my day. I want to sit by the pool where I can look at something more interesting than my foot.’
‘We could have some lunch.’
‘And champagne, Stanley. Don’t forget we’re on our honeymoon.’
‘Lunch sounds like an excellent idea,’ Ben said. ‘I’m heading that way myself so I’ll be able to keep an eye on you, Marjorie. I don’t want to see you dancing on any of those tables.’
Marjorie actually giggled and Sarah fell back behind the group as she shook her head imperceptibly. Ben Dawson was clearly a hit with ladies of all ages. If she had been feeling unkind she would have labelled him a flirt but it was hard to feel unkind with the sunshine and warmth and laughter all around her.
Tori fell back to keep step with Sarah. ‘Lunch,’ she murmured. ‘Told you my idea was the best.’
‘It was the sprained ankle that worked,’ Sarah whispered back. ‘Just lucky it didn’t have to be yours.’
‘Yeah.’ Tori laughed and her voice rose unconsciously. ‘Nothing to stop me dancing on a table or two, is there?’
Stanley and Ben both turned. Both men had an identical appreciative expression and Sarah almost groaned aloud.
‘I sincerely hope you won’t,’ she muttered.
‘Don’t worry.’ Tori ducked to sweep up some hibiscus blooms lying beneath a nearby bush. ‘I’m far too hungry.’ She handed one of the flowers to Sarah and then poked another behind her ear.
‘Is it the left ear if you’re single?’ she asked nobody in particular.
‘Couldn’t say for sure,’ Ben responded. ‘But I think that’s how it goes.’
‘You’ve lost yours,’ Tori told him. ‘Would you like another?’
‘Sure.’ Ben’s pause allowed Tori to stand on tiptoe and position the flower.
‘On the left for you, too?’
‘Absolutely.’
He turned to cast a meaningful look at the flower Sarah held. She blushed, trying to wipe off any ‘here we go again’ expression she had been unconsciously adopting as she watched Tori. She poked the stalk of her bloom through a buttonhole on her soft shirt, the tails of which she had knotted loosely around her waist.
‘Ah...a woman of mystery,’ Ben said.
‘Keep it that way, honey,’ Marjorie piped up from his arms. ‘Keep ’em guessing and you’ll keep ’em interested.’
The laughter covered what could have been an embarrassing moment and then they were in the main complex. Josefa was waiting, having gathered a bag of ice from the bar. A lounge chair was found, as well as cushions to raise Marjorie’s foot, a matching chair for Stanley and a bottle of complimentary champagne from a resort manager who was upset to learn of the accident.
Finally Sarah and Tori were settled at a table shaded by a bougainvillea-draped pergola, plates piled high with samples of the chargrilled chicken and fish from the outdoor barbecues and a range of the most delicious-looking salads. The view was just as enticing, with the pergola framing a section of the lagoon where a group of new arrivals was being welcomed with necklaces of tropical flowers and a traditional song with a guitar accompaniment.
‘Mind if I join you?’
Tori, her mouth full of chicken, kicked Sarah under the table.
‘Please, do,’ she said politely to Ben.
He sat down, immediately spearing a mouthful of perfectly grilled fish from his plate. ‘Mmm,’ he said, seconds later. ‘You made the right choice of resort. They have the best cooks here.’
‘Do you cover all the resorts?’ Tori queried.
Ben shook his head. ‘I happen to live quite close to this one so I’ve become a kind of honorary GP. I do visit a few islands that have larger villages to run the occasional clinic and I’m on call for emergencies, of course.’
‘Like sunburn?’ Sarah wished she had kept her mouth shut as Ben flicked her a surprised glance.
‘It’s quite easy to get seriously burnt in this climate,’ he said. ‘I hope you’re both being careful.’
‘You weren’t here for an emergency today, though, were you?’ Tori was clearly making an effort to distract Ben from any acidity Sarah’s comment might have contained.
‘No. I’m popping in every day to keep an eye on a patient whose blood pressure needs monitoring.’
‘The one due to have the baby?’
Ben looked surprised again. ‘How did you know that?’
‘We heard about you.’ Tori sounded perfectly innocent but her smile suggested that the information had all been good.
Ben returned the smile. ‘You have an advantage over me, then.’ He ate in silence for a minute. ‘So...tell me about you.’
The glance was intended to draw Sarah into the conversation and she was happy to comply.
‘We’re both nurses,’ she reminded him. ‘I’m in paediatrics and Tori’s in the emergency department at the moment.’
‘Where are you from?’
