Page 46 of Family Bonds- Garrett & Justine

“See you next week, Troy,” Justine said on Friday when she was leaving work. “Or maybe I won’t since I’ll be on nights next week.”

“You might see me coming and going but not working together,” Troy said. “Hey, before you leave, can I ask you something?”

“Sure,” she said. She hitched her purse up on her shoulder more and moved to the side where Troy was standing. “What’s going on?”

“That was going to be my question to you.”

“I don’t understand,” she said.

“With you and Dr. Mills,” Troy said.

“You’ll have to be more specific since there are several of them in the hospital,” she said. She was trying to stay calm but should have realized that this couldn’t stay quiet for long.

She didn’t even know exactly what the two of them had other than a lot of flirting, a few teasing kisses and one that was hot enough on her end that she didn’t want it to end.

But he probably didn’t feel the same way and she didn’t want to come off sounding like an idiot.

Troy just grinned. “Garrett. The one who comes down here with donuts and other morning treats. Who has come down more than twice in the month you’ve been here.”

“He’s being nice,” she said. “He appreciates we take care of his patients quickly. You heard him a few days ago.”

Troy smirked. “I did. And I believe that. But I also heard something last night.”

And here they went. “What’s that?”

“That someone saw Garrett on the ferry on Saturday with a woman.”

“Okay,” she said. She had a good poker face. Or at least she thought she did.

Troy laughed. “They described a woman who looked a lot like you. I don’t know a lot of women with straight blonde hair to their shoulders. The blonde so light it’s almost white. You don’t blend in very well. Oh, and she was tiny.”

Troy’s eyes looked her up and down. “What are you asking me?” she asked.

“Are you dating Garrett Mills?”

She didn’t think he’d be bold enough to ask her that.

“Whether the answer is yes or no, it’s not anything that has to do with work,” she said.

“I know,” Troy said. “And don’t get me wrong. I’m like that cat that is going to get killed with curiosity, but not in a bad way. Garrett, he’s a great guy.”

“So you’re looking out for him?” she asked.

She didn’t know they were friends. But it seemed to her Garrett inspired a lot of loyalty in people so maybe it was nothing more than that.

“No,” Troy said. “He can look out for himself. You never want to hear about the whole island thing.”

She sighed. If she did say yes to tell her, he’d never let her live it down.

She looked at her watch. “Summarize it in two minutes or less,” she said. “You should be working.”

“Oh man. Okay, the lore and legend of the island is love at first sight or fate. That many, many years ago Malcolm Bond was offered the hand in marriage to Elizabeth Rummer if he could find the island in three days. He was the ship’s captain and Victoria Rummer had been left her husband’s shipping empire. She needed a man to help her run it and offered it to Malcolm through her daughter’s hand in marriage.”

“Only if he could locate the island?”

“This island,” Troy said. “He ran into a storm and thought he was lost at sea, but when the storm broke, he saw land. Amore Island. There was Elizabeth. Love at first sight. They were married a long time with five kids.”

“I know the five children’s names,” she said. She’d heard enough about that before she came here. She’d just never heard what this lore or legend was. “So that’s it. People come here to find love?”

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