LITMIR.BIZ

Скачать книгу

to the boat, raised anchor and set sail for home. Although the wind had picked up enough to use the sails, the late afternoon sunshine was still warm and Cameron stayed in his jeans and Meagan in her bikini. As she held the tiller, Meagan sneaked glances at Cameron. Every time she looked at him she felt her heart thrill. How she would love him to stay with her tonight. Maybe, despite the promise he had made to Rachel, they could just enjoy whatever time they had together. For a moment she let herself imagine the two of them snuggling in front of the fire against the evening chill, and then… She felt a shiver of desire. She wanted him again. He must have felt her eyes on him because he looked up and catching her eye, smiled bleakly. She felt her heart sink. Would she be prepared to sneak around, hiding their relationship from everyone? Immediately she knew the answer. If Cameron wasn’t free to love her, openly and proudly, she couldn’t be with him.

      As they approached the bay, Meagan could see that there was someone standing outside her house, shielded eyes looking out to sea. Catching a shimmer of red she recognised the figure as Jessie. She could see from the way Jessie was pacing that something was wrong. She felt a flicker of anxiety. Was something wrong with Effie?

      Cameron noticed Jessie at the same time. He stood, pulling on his T-shirt. ‘Something’s up,’ he said. Quickly he took down the sails. He jumped out leaving Meagan to finish sorting out the boat. As she worked she watched Jessie run towards Cameron. She was gesticulating and clearly agitated. Moments later Cameron jumped into his car and sped off.

      Hastily, Meagan finished securing the boat and ran towards Jessie.

      ‘What is it, Jessie? What’s wrong?’

      ‘It’s Ian. He was complaining of stomach pain this morning. I wasn’t too bothered at first. I thought he had probably caught the same bug Effie had. But now he’s in real pain. I think it’s more serious. When I couldn’t get hold of Cameron, I tried the practice in the south, but I couldn’t get them either. Then I came down here just as you were coming back in.’ The words came out in a rush.

      ‘I’ll just grab my bag, Jessie. Then I’ll go back with you to Grimsay House.’ As she spoke, she ran towards her house, Jessie following. Once there, Meagan darted into her bedroom and pulled a pair of jeans and a top over her bikini. Scooping up her medical bag, she took a distressed Jessie by the arm.

      ‘C’mon, Jessie,’ she said, ushering her into her car. ‘Try not to worry. Kids can seem very ill and then the next minute they’re as right as rain.’

      But she could see that Jessie wasn’t convinced. In a few minutes they were inside Grimsay House. Meagan followed Jessie as she ran up to Ian’s room. There they found Cameron examining his son, a worried look on his face. He turned towards Meagan, frowning.

      ‘I think it’s appendicitis. In fact, I know it’s appendicitis.’

      Ian, his little face pinched, moaned softly.

      ‘I want Mummy, Daddy. Where is my mummy?’

      ‘Shh, my darling. She’s in London. She’d be here if she could. In the meantime, you have to be a brave boy and let Daddy look after you.’

      As he looked away from his son, Meagan could see anguish written all over his face. She touched his shoulder. He flinched away from her touch as if he’d been burnt. She dropped her hand to her side.

      ‘Let me look at him, Cameron,’ she said quietly.

      Cameron stood aside while Meagan examined the little boy. When Ian cried out when she pressed the right side of his abdomen, she knew that Cameron’s initial diagnosis was correct.

      She took Cameron by the arm and, leaving Jessie to comfort the boy, took Cameron to one side.

      ‘I agree,’ she said. ‘It’s appendicitis. What do you want to do?’

      ‘He needs surgery,’ Cameron said. He pulled a hand through his thick dark hair and Meagan’s heart went out to him. She longed to put her arms around him and comfort him, but here in front of his child wasn’t the place.

      ‘Have we time to send him to Stornoway?’ she asked.

      ‘I don’t think so,’ Cameron replied. ‘I think we should go ahead and operate at the hospital.’

      ‘In that case, I’ll do the surgery,’ Meagan said firmly. ‘Could you get hold of someone to anaesthetise?’

      Cameron looked at Meagan. ‘I don’t know. Maybe we should get him airlifted to Glasgow? They have surgeons there who do this every day of the week.’

      He didn’t trust her to operate on his son, even after all they had been through. But could she blame him? They were talking about his child. But neither could he operate on Ian. A doctor needed a certain distance from his patient.

      ‘If you think there is time, yes,’ she said. ‘That’s what we will do.’

      Cameron rubbed his jaw. It was the first time she had seen him look indecisive.

      ‘Cameron,’ she said, ‘whatever we decide to do, we need to make a decision now.’

      ‘You’ve examined him. What do you think?’

      ‘I think the risk of waiting until we get him to Glasgow is far greater than operating here. The surgery is fairly routine. I can handle it, Cameron. I would tell you if I had any doubts. I told you before, emergency surgery is where I have a lot of practice. You have to believe me when I say I have more surgical experience than general practice.’

      ‘But what if there are complications? No disrespect to you but anything could happen. If the appendix ruptures before we remove it, he could die.’

      ‘And the longer we wait, the greater chance there is of that happening.’

      Cameron stared at his son for one long moment. He seemed to make up his mind.

      ‘Let’s call in the air ambulance. They’ll be able to give us a rough time of arrival. In the meantime, let’s get the theatre in Benbecula organised. That way, if it looks as if his condition is deteriorating rapidly, we can go ahead with surgery.’

      ‘That sounds like a plan. Let’s get going.’ Meagan turned to Ian, crouching by his side.

      ‘Ian, you need an operation on your tummy,’ Meagan said. ‘It won’t hurt because you will be fast asleep. But we need to get you to a hospital so we can do the operation. Do you understand?’

      ‘Are you going to do it, Daddy?’ the little boy asked his father.

      ‘No, mo ghaol,’ his father said. ‘It’s not a good idea for fathers to operate on their little boys. But, I’ll be right next to you all the time. And I’ll be there when you wake up.

      ‘Will Mummy be there too?’

      Cameron shook his head. Meagan could see from the way he clenched his jaw that he was trying hard not to let his child see his pain. Tears filled Ian’s eyes.

      ‘I wish Mummy never had to go away, Daddy. If you were still married, she’d always be here when I need her, wouldn’t she?’

      ‘I’m going to phone her and I know she’ll want to be with you as soon as she can. She loves you very much—you know that, don’t you?’

      Cameron squatted next to Ian and pulled him into his arms. He whispered something in his ear. Whatever it was, it seemed to have the right effect. Ian smiled and relaxed into his father’s embrace.

      ‘Could you phone the hospital, Meagan, and the air ambulance?’ Cameron said, lifting his son in his arms. ‘I’ll take him to the hospital in my car. Luckily the hospital is near the airport. We need someone standing by ready to anaethetise. I’ll get them on my mobile.’

      ‘OK. I’ll be right behind you,’ Meagan said. She touched his shoulder. ‘It’s going to be all right,’ she said gently.

      Cameron looked right through her.

      ‘Jessie,

Скачать книгу