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Greg had never been like that. There had been no question of any meltdowns in their physical relationship. Was that why it had seemed more real? More likely to stay the distance? OK, so it had never been earth-shattering, but it had been...nice. Companionable. Comforting. Like their friendship. A friendship that could never be the same and one that Sophie was missing very badly by Monday morning.

Sophie Bennett felt more alone than she ever had. Cast adrift with nothing substantial to aim towards. Her whole life had been aimed towards the future she had mapped out so clearly. Now that was gone and she had eliminated it by her own choice. Had she given enough thought to dealing with the consequences? Sophie hadn't expected this aftershock of guilt and grief over the termination of her engagement. Had Oliver's kiss been enough to release that as well? Had she tipped her whole life upside down purely because of sex?

How could she possibly have imagined that she was in love with Oliver Spencer? It was just as well he'd stepped behind his invisible barrier. Sophie was in no mood to deal with even another verbal advance. She marched into the medical centre first thing on Monday decidedly out of sorts.

Toni's enthusiastic greeting might have helped if it hadn't been for the huge stack of magazines she excitedly handed over to Sophie.
^;

'There are so many articles on weddings and some of the most gorgeous dresses you've ever seen.' The plastic shopping bag Toni presented her with was remarkably heavy. 'If you haven't already finalised all the details, they'll give you some wonderful ideas.'

'Thanks, Toni. You shouldn't have gone to so much trouble.'

Toni gave a dismissive wave at the bag. 'No trouble at all. I was stuck in an armchair all weekend, resting, and I needed to sort out the magazine rack. It took my mind off my eye very nicely, imagining your wedding.'

Sophie grasped the new conversational direction eagerly. 'How was the surgery?'

'A bit scary, but it didn't take that long and the surgeon was very pleased. The pain's virtually gone now. I'll be able to take this eye patch off in a day or two.'

Josh looked very concerned as he arrived for work. 'Toni! What have you done to yourself?'

'Just a bit of corrective laser treatment,' Toni said breezily. 'I decided it was time for some repair work while I'm still young enough not to need reading glasses.'

Josh frowned. 'Why didn't you talk to me about it first? Have you been properly informed about possible risks? Who did the procedure? You should have checked with me about their qualifications. Your eyes are too important to meddle with lightly, you know.'

'I make my own decisions, Josh.' Toni sounded unusually sharp. 'It's my life and I intend to make the most of it. Just like you do with yours,' she added defiantly.

Josh took a step back and saluted. Then he grinned. 'I quite like the look,' he decided aloud. 'Yo, ho, ho and a bottle of rum. Where's the parrot?'

'Go away,' Toni ordered. 'Go and get on with some work.'

Sophie responded to the direction as well. She dumped the bag of magazines under her desk just as one of the handles gave way with the strain. She shoved the bag further out of sight with her foot. Looking at pictures of wedding gowns and articles on the perfect make-up for the big day, was the last thing she wanted.

It didn't help that Ruby Murdock was Sophie's first patient for the day either.' She slapped the file onto the desk top and then ignored it as she stared out of the window. It
still
hadn't stopped raining. The weather over the weekend had probably been a contributing factor to how down she was feeling this morning. The glorious April weather of calm, sunny days, which were typical of Christchurch, had been obliterated by a wicked southerly blast. The torrential rain, sleet and bitter temperatures had kept Sophie cooped up in the small house she rented on the hills only a mile or so from St David's.

The house was old. The view of the Heathcote River and the character of the house had charmed Sophie when she'd seen it at the height of summer. Now it felt damp and cold, and the fact that she had completely forgotten to order in a supply of firewood became a major omission. The weather wasn't the real problem, however. Nor was the house. Or even the magazines. Sophie knew quite well that the real problem was inside herself. She was lonely.

Her consulting room was already quite tidy but Sophie fussed around. Ruby Murdock's file lay in splendid isolation in the centre of her desk. She moved the ballpoint pen a little closer and then lined up her prescription pad beside that.

It would be nice, she mused, to be able to talk to someone about it. This unexpected grief at the termination of her engagement. Greg would understand. He might even be feeling the same way. No. Sophie flipped her white coat off the back of her chair and shoved her arms into the sleeves. She had tried to ring him on Saturday evening at 8 o'clock. And at 10 and even at 11.30. Deciding that he was probably on call, she had waited and tried again on Sunday evening, with no more success than before.

All she had wanted had been some sort of reassurance that their friendship was still intact. That there was at least one person who would understand and sympathise with her. If Greg was feeling lonely he was clearly following a much more aggressive plan
in dealing with it. Good on him, she had decided, trying to feel sincere in her appraisal, but it didn't quite suppress the resentment the abortive phone calls had produced.

Sophie pulled a peak-flow meter and a clean mouthpiece from her desk drawer and positioned it beside the prescription pad. The tick of the wall clock caught her attention and Sophie sighed. Maybe a quick coffee would restore her usual enthusiasm for her job.

Josh was in the staffroom. He was staring into the specimen fridge.

'Hi, Sophie.' His smile was cheerful. 'Do you have any idea what this thing is in the jam jar?'

'It came in with Mr Collins. I think Oliver is the person to ask.' She braved a look over his shoulder. 'Yuck!'

They both eyed the shrivelled brown item lying on the bottom of the glass jar. It appeared to have some kind of mould forming around its edges.

'Perhaps Mr Collins has a genuine problem at last,' Josh observed.

'I'm not sure I want to know about it,' Sophie murmured. She gave herself a mental shake and smiled brightly. 'How was your weekend?'

'Fantastic.' Josh stretched his back as he straightened. 'And yours?'

'It was OK. Pretty quiet,' she added nonchalantly.

'I expect you're missing Greg.'

Sophie's hand shook at the unexpected sympathy in Josh's tone, and the instant coffee spilled onto the bench. She grabbed the dishcloth. For a wild moment Sophie considered confiding in Josh Cooper. Instinct persuaded her otherwise. Josh had a close friendship
with his professional partner. His own off-duty lifestyle appeared to be dedicated to squeezing the maximum possible enjoyment out of life—and women. Fun times only. Anything serious had to be fobbed off, usually via the long-suffering co-operation of Toni Marsh. Josh had been horrified by Sophie's lack of experience in relationships and would probably cheer Oliver on in offering to provide a comparison. Perhaps they got on so well because they were two of a kind.

Oliver entered the staffroom just as Sophie finished wiping down the bench and had managed a slightly embarrassed smile in response to Josh's concern. But Josh didn't see the smile. He was looking at his partner.

'Our Sophie's not too happy this morning,' he informed Oliver.

'Really?' Oliver's concern was quite genuine. He hadn't meant to frighten Sophie by kissing her. He could have kicked himself for giving in to that overwhelming compulsion, but he'd done his best to back off and lighten things up. That sniping comment about his marriage had helped quite a lot at the time but it was becoming difficult again. Damned difficult. He couldn't look at her for more than an instant or two, and when they were alone he tried to imagine Greg standing protectively beside her. That wasn't easy as he had no idea what the man looked like. Probably seven feet tall with a red cape and knickers on the outside of his trousers. Surely Sophie wouldn't settle for anyone less compelling?

Sophie could feel the laser-like beam of Oliver's full attention coming at her. She refused to respond and concentrated carefully on spooning coffee into her mug.

'She's missing Greg,' Josh explained kindly.

'Are you, Sophie?' Oliver's quiet words had all the effect of mortar shells. Sophie had to move. She had to try and decrease the sense of awareness his proximity raised in her body. Sophie tried to summon some of the anger left over from the weekend's emotional turmoil before she made eye contact.

'Yes,' she admitted calmly. 'I am missing Greg.' She picked up her mug. 'I'll take this with me,' she announced. 'It's time I started earning my keep.'

It hadn't been a dishonest statement. Sophie left her mug on her desk and headed for the waiting room. She
was
missing Greg. She was missing the comfortable security of their relationship, the knowledge that she had a declared ally, no matter what life might throw at her in the future. A good friend. A
really
good friend. Was she really so sure it wasn't enough of a base for a good marriage?

'Mrs Murdock? Would you like to come through now?'

Ruby Murdock was looking very pleased with herself. 'I've kept up my diary every day and I've taken my puffer every morning. I get Felicity to check up on me when she comes.'

'How often have you needed to use your Ventolin inhaler?'

'Oh, a few times. But things are a lot better.'

'You haven't made a note of when you've needed the Ventolin in your diary.'

'Didn't I? Oh, I'm sorry, dear.' Ruby looked apologetic. 'It must have slipped my mind.'

'You've done very well, keeping up your peak-flow chart,' Sophie said encouragingly. 'We can work out an asthma action plan for you now and give you some guidelines on what treatment you might need and when. It'll mean you'll be able to manage your own asthma much more effectively.'

Ruby looked doubtful. Then her gaze shifted to Sophie's coffee-mug and she licked her lips. Sophie pushed her mug further away.

'Do you know, I've had four cups of tea already this morning and I'm still thirsty?' Ruby was still watching the mug.

'Really? Do you usually drink so much tea in the mornings?'

'I have lately but I really must stop.' Ruby sighed. 'It's getting annoying, having to get up so many times at night.'

The possibility of diabetes was Sophie's first thought. 'I want to test your blood-sugar level,' she informed her patient as she lifted a blood-glucose testing kit from her cupboard. 'I'll just need to prick your finger.'

Sophie ran through the appropriate history-taking, examination and lab tests she might need to instigate while she waited the sixty seconds for the meter to finish counting.

'Nineteen mmol per litre,' she read out. 'That's rather too high, Mrs Murdock.'

'Is that because of my asthma, dear?'

'No. High blood sugar is usually indicative of diabetes. I'm going to check you out thoroughly and then we'll have a chat about your diet and exercise routines. Come and stand on the scales for me.'

'Oh, dear.' Ruby moved reluctantly towards the scales. 'I do hope you're not going to tell me I have to eat salad.'

An hour later, Sophie had told Ruby Murdock a great deal about her diet and the need to start some exercise.

'I'm going to write you out what we call a green prescription. You don't take it to the chemist but it's still very important,' she told Ruby firmly. 'It's going to be for a ten-minute walk once a day. Do you think you can manage just ten minutes?'

'I expect so, dear.' Ruby nodded bravely.

'And you might even think about your housework. Vacuuming is very good exercise.' Sophie tried to keep her tone professional. 'Felicity does that for you, doesn't she?'

'Oh, yes. She's doing it right now. I'm going to ring when I'm ready to go home. My wrist is still very weak,' Ruby continued anxiously. 'I couldn't possibly manage the vacuuming.'

Sophie made a note to refer Ruby to a physiotherapist. She wouldn't mention it today. They both had quite enough to think about. Sophie hunted Oliver down between his patients. She was concerned enough about Ruby to put her personal agenda with her supervisor entirely to one side. Oliver responded in kind. He appeared to be listening carefully to Sophie but she couldn't help noticing that he tended to look to one side of her. It gave her the eerie feeling that she had someone standing beside her. She took a quick glance herself. No one else was waiting silently for Oliver's attention.

'I've ordered fasting glucose tests, a lipid profile, serum creatinine, haemoglobin and a urine analysis,' Sophie told him briskly. 'Have I missed anything?'

'What's her blood pressure like?'

'Borderline. One-forty over ninety.'

'Asthma control?'

'Improving.'

'What's her BMI?'

Sophie shook her head. Ruby's body mass index was clinically obese. 'Thirty-one,' she told Oliver. 'Her weight's been going up steadily for years. Should I have started her on active treatment? Like metformin?'

'Not yet. When's she getting the lab tests done?'

'She's going to see if Felicity can take her in tomorrow.' The glance Sophie shared with Oliver acknowledged the increasing pressure on Ruby Murdock's daughter.

'Wait for the results,' Oliver advised. 'I'll go through them with you and I might sit in on the next visit. It's turning into quite a complicated case for you.'

'It's good practice.' Sophie smiled, partly from relief that she could still interact on a professional level with Oliver despite her mixed personal feelings. 'But I've spend far too long with one patient.'

'That's exactly why we don't give you too many,' Oliver reassured her. 'So you can take whatever time you need to be thorough. You've done well, Sophie. Diabetes is an important problem to have picked up on.'

Sophie carried her cold cup of coffee to the staff-room and tipped it out. Janet was sitting on the couch with Toni.