Luke. ‘She faints a lot.’
A lot? Until today, she’d never fainted before in her life! Isobel clenched her teeth, determined not to faint again as Alex probed gently, though at one point it was a near thing.
‘The ankle is badly sprained only, not broken, Miss James,’ Alex assured her. ‘I will apply temporary bandage, then report to Dr Riga, who will take X-rays to confirm. I will also put a dressing on your face, and give you mild painkillers. Take with much fluid.’
‘Thank you.’ She tried to relax as he strapped her ankle. ‘Did you come here in a car, Doctor?’
He looked up in surprise. ‘No, on back of Milos’s motorbike. Why?’
‘I was hoping for a lift back to the cottage,’ she said, disappointed, and eyed him in appeal. ‘Would you be kind enough to arrange a taxi for me?’
Alex shot a startled look at Luke, who showed his teeth in a cold smile.
‘Miss James may stay here as long as she wishes.’
Not one second longer, if she could help it. ‘How kind,’ said Isobel frostily. ‘But I wouldn’t dream of inconveniencing you. So will you sort out a taxi for me, Doctor?’
Alex looked so uncomfortable Luke took pity on him.
‘I will drive you myself, Miss James,’ he said impatiently. ‘But only when you can manage alone. Demonstrate this for us.’
Isobel summoned every scrap of willpower she possessed to sit up straight. She paused for breath, swivelled round until she could put her good foot on the floor and then took the hand Eleni held out to help her as she struggled to stand. ‘You see?’ she said through her teeth. ‘If you gentlemen will kindly leave, I’ll get dressed.’
‘Miss James, this is not a good idea,’ said Alex, plainly expecting her to collapse in a heap at any second.
‘I must try. The cottage is all on one floor. I have food there, so if Mr—’
She glanced at her host. ‘I’m afraid I don’t know your name.’
‘No?’ He raised an eyebrow in scornful disbelief. ‘I am Lukas Andreadis.’
‘How do you do?’ She turned to Alex. ‘If Mr Andreadis will drive me, I’ll be just fine.’ She swallowed hard on rising nausea and wavered slightly, her hand tightening on Eleni’s.
Luke shook his head. ‘I will drive you when you are fine, Miss James, but that is most obviously not today. Put her back, Eleni.’
‘That is best, Luke,’ said Alex, relieved.
Isobel gave up. She let Eleni make her comfortable, then turned her face into the pillows in despair. Her longed-for odyssey had come to a grinding halt before it had even started. She ignored the hushed interchange in their own tongue between the men, wishing they’d just go away and leave her to wallow alone in her misery.
‘Miss James,’ said Alex, coming back to the bed.
Isobel opened her eyes. ‘Yes?’
‘If you allow me to have your keys, I will take my sister to your house to pack for you.’
‘How kind,’ she said unsteadily. ‘The keys are in my backpack.’
‘I am most happy to do this, but it was Luke’s idea,’ he added.
She turned unsmiling eyes on her host. ‘Then thank you, too, Mr Andreadis.’
‘Here in Greece we believe in helping travellers,’ he informed her indifferently.
‘Unless they invade your beach.’
‘True.’ He unbent enough to smile faintly. ‘Come, then, Alex. I will drive you.’
Eleni closed the door behind them, poured iced fruit juice into a glass and gave Isobel two of the tablets. ‘Drink, kyria,’ she said firmly.
Isobel obediently swallowed the painkillers and drank some of the juice. ‘Efcharisto, Eleni.’ She managed a smile. ‘But please call me Isobel.’
Eleni repeated the name shyly, put the glass on the table, then opened the carton of yoghurt.
Isobel eyed it in alarm. ‘I’m so sorry, but I really can’t eat anything right now.’
‘Ochee, not for eating. For your face. It is burning, ne?’
‘Oh, yes,’ sighed Isobel, and submitted to an unexpected beauty treatment. Eleni smoothed the blessedly cool, creamy yoghurt over her face, left it there until it warmed up, then gently cleaned it off with tissues.
‘I will do it more later,’ she promised, ‘but now you sleep, Isobel.’ She smiled and went from the room, leaving the door ajar.
Eventually the pills took enough edge off her aches and pains to let Isobel take interest in her surroundings. Filmy white curtains stirred at glass doors which led on to a balcony, and the room itself was furnished with the type of elegant simplicity that cost the earth. She groaned in sudden despair. She’d come all this way