Becoming Dr Bellini's Bride. Joanna Neil

      CHAPTER ONE

      KATIE stood still for a moment, her green eyes slowly scanning the horizon. Her nerves were frayed. Perhaps taking time out to look around her at this part of the sweeping California coastline was just the medicine she needed right now.

      She would never have believed she would find herself in such a beautiful place as this small, quiet town, with its charming cottages and quaint shops and general sleepy atmosphere. As for the bay, it was a wide arc of golden sand, backed by rugged cliffs and rocks, a striking contrast to the clear blue of the Pacific Ocean that lapped its shores. Beyond all that was the magnificent range of the Santa Lucia Mountains, lush and green, their slopes forested with redwoods, oaks and pine.

      She drank in the view for a moment or two longer, absorbing the tranquillity of her surroundings. Then she pulled in a deep breath and turned away to walk along the road towards a distant building set high on a bluff overlooking the sea.

      One way or another, it had been a difficult day so far, and she could see little chance of things improving. She still had to meet with her father, and even though she had become used to seeing him over these last couple of weeks, it was always something of a strain for her to be with him.

      ‘We’ll have lunch,’ he’d said, as though it was an everyday, natural occurrence.

      ‘Okay.’ She’d looked at him and his expression had been relaxed and easygoing. He seemed to genuinely want to meet up with her again. ‘I have a half-day on Wednesday,’ she told him, ‘so that should work out well enough.’

      And now he was waiting for her at the restaurant, sitting at a table on the open-air terrace, gazing out over the ocean. Katie guessed he was watching the boats on the horizon. He hadn’t noticed her coming towards him, and she was glad of that. It gave her the chance to compose herself, as well as an opportunity to fix his image once more in her mind.

      She studied him. He was not as she remembered from all those years ago, neither did he bear any resemblance to the pictures her mother had carefully stored in the photograph album. She guessed at one time he must have been tall and vital, a vigorous man, full of energy and ambition, but at this moment he appeared frail, a shadow of his former self. His body was thin, his face faintly lined, and his brown hair was faded, threaded through with silver strands.

      ‘Hi, there….’ Katie hesitated. She was still struggling with the idea of calling this man her dad. It went against the grain to use the word, considering that he was almost a stranger to her. Instead, she asked, ‘Have you been waiting long? I’m sorry I’m a bit late. I was held up at work.’

      ‘That’s all right. Don’t worry about it.’ Her father smiled and rose carefully to his feet to pull out a chair for her. ‘You look harassed. We can’t have that, can we? Sit yourself down and take a minute or two to settle. Life’s too short to be getting yourself in a tizzy.’

      His breathing was wheezy and laboured, and Katie was concerned. She’d heard that he had been ill for some time, but his health seemed to have taken a downturn even in the few days since she had last seen him.

      ‘Thanks.’ She sat down quickly so that he could do the same. Then she gazed around her. ‘It’s lovely to be able to sit out here and enjoy the fresh air…And it’s all so perfect…idyllic, with the tubs of flowers and all the greenery.’

      ‘I thought you’d like it. The food’s good, too.’

      A waitress approached with menus, and Katie accepted hers with a smile, opening it up to look inside and study the contents. In reality, though, her mind was in a whirl and she was finding it difficult to concentrate, so that the text became a blur.

      Her father signalled to the wine waiter and ordered a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, before turning back to Katie. ‘Why don’t you tell me what sort of a day