Despite the tension in his body, she felt Conner’s mouth move under hers and then felt the skilled stroke of his tongue. It was as if he couldn’t help himself and, as always, the chemistry flashed between them. But his lapse was short-lived and this time when he pulled away he removed her hands at the same time, clasping her wrists firmly.

He stared at her, his blue eyes blazing. ‘What do you think you’re doing?’

The noise around them had ceased. The low hum of chatter had died, the laughter was silenced and there was no clink of glasses.

‘I’m kissing you, Conner,’ Flora said clearly. ‘I’m kissing you, just as I’ve kissed you every day for the past month. Only this time I’m doing it in public, so there’s no confusion about the facts.’

His mouth tightened and he muttered something under his breath, but she covered his lips with her fingers.

‘No. You had your say the other night. Now it’s my turn to talk,’ she said calmly, and then she slid off his lap and turned to face everyone. And for a moment her courage faltered because what seemed like a million faces were staring at her.

Her gaze slid over the crowd.

She saw Nick and, behind him, Meg. She saw Janet and Jim.

It seemed that everyone was in the Stag’s Head.

‘You’ve all been wondering who Conner has been seeing for the last month. Well, it’s me,’ she said simply, speaking clearly and raising her voice slightly so that everyone could hear her. ‘I’m the lucky woman.’

‘Flora, for crying out loud.’ Conner rose to his feet, dislodging her arm from his shoulder. ‘Have you been drinking?’

‘No. I’m completely sober.’ She smiled up at him, aware that everything she felt shone in her eyes. Then she took his hand and turned back to face the islanders—the people she spent her life with. ‘I know what you’re all thinking. You’re thinking that Bad Conner has lived up to his name again, that obviously he seduced good, sensible Flora because she’d never do anything as reckless as have a wild, passionate affair with a man who is obviously going to walk off into the sunset, leaving her broken-hearted and very possibly pregnant.’

The locals were too shocked to respond so Flora just ploughed on.

‘You’re wrong. I seduced him. And I’m not embarrassed about that because I’ve discovered that—’ She broke off as the door to the pub opened and Evanna walked in, holding the baby.

‘Charlie and I suddenly had a horrible feeling that we were missing something important so I called a babysitter for Kirsty.’