Читать книгу The Daughter Dilemma - Ann Evans - Страница 10

“JUST TELL ME you’re not mad,” Addy pleaded around another sniffling sob.

“I’m not mad,” Nick repeated for the third time.

Addy’s face crumpled and she bit her lip. “I don’t believe you.”

Oh, brother. Somebody get me out of here.

Addy looked pale and miserable against the stark white environment of the emergency examining room. Nick hadn’t left her side since the ambulance had brought both women into the small hospital. His fear for his sister’s injuries had subsided and his heart no longer beat as if he’d been running. But his nerves—his nerves were still jangling.

He almost wished the doctor would order him out of the room and back to the anonymous safety of the waiting area. Not much chance of that. The fresh-faced resident looked pretty meek, no older than Tessa’s biology partner in school.

His sister, usually relentlessly upbeat, was an emotional mess. She didn’t seem to mind the pain of a broken left arm and a sprained right wrist. She hardly looked at the nurse slipping an Ace bandage over her fingers. But she’d been crying off and on for five minutes—five long minutes—and nothing Nick said seemed to help. Frankly, he was running out of reassuring words and sympathetic looks.

This is all that Churchill woman’s fault.

The doctor had told him that the woman was going to be fine. Lucky lady, the doc had said. No more than a small bump on the head.

I ought to go down to the end of the hall and throttle the life out of her.

He wouldn’t do it, of course. How could he when his own guilt was eating away at him like battery acid? Because when it came right down to it, he was the one responsible for this latest disaster.

He should have known his headstrong sister would be looking for any excuse to take up one of the Ravens. All it had taken was a little friendly persuasion from a smoothie like Kari Churchill to push her into defying him.

He should have brought Addy along faster in the business. He should have made her understand that all the “ground school” flying time in the world didn’t mean diddily if she couldn’t read the sky, didn’t know how to smell a stormfront just by sniffing the air. Her instincts needed to be honed until they were razor-sharp.

But he’d been dragging his feet. All the annoying little problems he’d had to deal with lately, plucking at him like greedy children. Zapping his time and energy. It had been easy enough to fall into the comfortable pattern of treating Addy more like a secretary than a fellow pilot. No surprise that she’d gotten tired of waiting and jumped at the first opportunity that presented itself.

With nearly tragic results.

“I know you’re mad,” Addy croaked. “That’s why you look that way.”

“What way?”

“Like you’ve been sucking lemons.”

Nick blew air through his cheeks. He rolled his eyes in the doctor’s direction, but the man just gave him a sympathetic smile and continued scribbling on Addy’s chart.

“All right,” Nick said in a firm voice. “I am mad. Don’t think you’re getting away with this stunt. You and I are going to have a long, serious conversation about who’s in charge at Angel Air.” He softened his words by running the back of a quick, affectionate finger down her flushed cheek. “But not right now. Not until you’re healed and feeling yourself again.”

Sobering momentarily, Addy nodded. “I understand. I take full responsibility for what happened, Nick.”

“Oh, believe me, there’s plenty of blame to go around.”

“You mean Kari?” his sister protested. “She’s not at fault here. It was my idea. After we were up and saw the first signs of rough weather, she even suggested we turn around and come back.”

Addy had misunderstood just who he really blamed, but right now, it was easier to find fault with their customer’s pushy approach than to admit his own part in tonight’s near-catastrophic events. “I’ll bet she did.”

“I’ve ruined everything,” Addy said, looking very young and vulnerable again. Like a child, she ducked her head to wipe her nose against the shoulder of her hospital gown.

The doctor caught Nick’s eye and gave him a reassuring smile. “The meds will kick in soon.”

Thank God.

He leaned closer, taking Addy’s face in his hands and turning her head to make her meet his eyes. Beneath his hands, her bones felt small and fragile. He realized once again how incredibly lucky they were that she hadn’t been seriously hurt. A warm tear slipped beneath his fingers and he wiped it away as gently as he could. “Come on, Addy. Quit crying. You know I can’t take weepy women. Everything’s going to be all right. Mom and Pop will be here soon.”

“I can’t seem to help it. You know how your whole life is supposed to flash before your eyes when things like this happen?”

“Yours didn’t?”

“It did.” She grimaced. “And it was so boring, Nick. My life has been one big snooze fest. I’ve made one bad choice after another. I’m nothing but a small-town girl with small-town ideas, and I’m destined to live and die a small-town life. David was right.”

“David who?”

“McKay,” Addy said with a put-upon voice. “Who else would I mean?”

“Your old boyfriend from high school?” Nick frowned. God, if she was going to dredge up ancient history from ten years ago, they were going to be here forever. “I thought you hated him.”

Addy started to sob again. In an effort to sidetrack her, he touched the edge of her bandaged arm. Her fingers stuck out from the end like undercooked sausages.

“I don’t know why you’re crying,” he said in a lighter voice. “This is going to keep you out of work at the lodge for a few weeks. We’ll all be waiting on you hand and foot.”

“I must have been bracing too hard for the crash. How bad is the damage to Raven One? Tell me the truth. Did I split the skids?”

“Harry’s going to tow it over to the airframe techs tonight. I’ll get a better look in the morning.”

“What are you going to do about the rest of the week’s tours? Me out of commission, and down one chopper?”

“Let’s not worry about it right now.”

She shook her head. “Why did I think I could actually fly your birds? Maybe flying isn’t my forte. Maybe I don’t even have a forte.”

“Of course you do. If you’re going to criticize your ability to fly, then you’re criticizing my judgment to take you on as a partner.” He reached out to flick a stray tear off the end of her nose, giving her a smile. “And I’m never wrong about things like that, am I?”

“No.”

“You’d have been fine if you hadn’t taken that lightning strike. I was listening on the radio, remember? You were outrunning it. Doing great.”

“I did have everything under control up until then…”

That was more like it. The old Addy was returning. Nick ran a hand over the top of her head. Her hair was a tangled mess. “What you haven’t got under control is your ability to keep people from taking advantage of you. I know that sob-sister played on your sympathy to get you up there.”

Absently his sister shook her head, then sniffled around a yawn. “She didn’t. Not really.”

They both watched the nurse work on her arm a few minutes. Finally the woman tucked the last bit of bandaging into place. “Did you know Kari is Madison Churchill’s daughter?” Addy asked.

“No, and I don’t care if she’s related to Winston Churchill.”

“She was awfully calm after we crashed. Didn’t panic. She handled the fire extinguisher when I realized I couldn’t. She even found a way to splint my arms.”

“Which wouldn’t have needed splinting if she’d taken no for an answer in the first place.”

“You should talk to her.”

“Not in the mood I’m in.”

“She’s just down the hall.”

“Good. She should stay there.”

She gave him a frowning glance. “You’re being completely unreasonable.”

Nick didn’t need Addy to tell him that. But every time he thought about trying to talk to that woman, he could feel his blood pressure take a leap. He grunted. “I get that way when people put my family in danger.”

Addy just looked at him in rueful silence. The nurse’s eyes flitted back and forth between them. He could tell that even she thought he was being unreasonable.

He rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. “The FAA reports I’m going to have to fill out, the cost of repairs, the lost revenue… If I don’t end up suing her sorry ass for her involvement in this, she should consider herself lucky.”

His sister ducked her head and swallowed hard. Then her dark eyes found his once more. “Have you considered the possibility that she could…that she might be the one to—”

“Sue us?” he finished for her.

Hell, somewhere in the back of his mind he hadn’t been able to think of much else. For all her youthful inexperience, Addy was an adult. An employee of Angel Air. The company had a responsibility to its passengers to keep them safe.

The Churchill woman could probably make a case if she wanted to—no telling what missteps Addy had already admitted—but he wasn’t willing to think about that right now. Addy would open a floodgate of fresh tears if she thought there might be that kind of trouble ahead for the family.

“Adriana!”

“My baby!”

“Adda-girl!”

The family had arrived. He’d hoped he and Addy could get out of here soon, but he should have known better. The D’Angelos—Mom, Pop and both aunts—surged into the room to descend on Addy like a wave. Nick stepped back. Even the nurse stepped back. You didn’t stand in the way of a D’Angelo tidal wave.

“I thought we’d never get here,” Nick’s mother cried. She pressed both her hands to her daughter’s face as though feeling for fever. Aunt Renata and Aunt Sofia were like bookends on either side of Addy, full of commiserating sounds at the sight of her bandaged arms.

Unable to get any closer because of the cluster of people and his wheelchair, Nick’s father settled for placing his hand along Addy’s blanket-covered ankle. “What happened?” Sam demanded. He touched the nurse’s arm. “Get the doctor. I want to know about my daughter’s condition.”

Nick stood back and listened while Addy briefly described the circumstances of the crash. The resident came in and explained about her injuries. The family gasped and made little worried sounds throughout it all, but were finally satisfied to hear that Addy wouldn’t even have to spend one night in the hospital. Now that the medication had taken the edge off the pain, she had stopped being so weepy, thank goodness. She would, however, find it difficult to use anything but the tips of her fingers for a few weeks.

“You’re sure it’s nothing more than that?” Sam asked the doctor, obviously making no effort to hide his frowning assessment of the younger man.

“She’ll be back up in the air before the month’s out,” Nick said for his sister’s benefit. Addy gave him a hopeful smile.

“This other woman,” his father continued. “She’s all right, too?”

It was a surprise to Nick, but evidently no one in the family seemed to find the Churchill woman’s part in the accident objectionable. “She’s fine,” he said in annoyance. “Women like that always land on their feet.”

His father’s brows shot upward. “That’s a pretty strong statement. What’s got you so wrought up?”

“None of this would have happened if she hadn’t been so pushy.” Nick turned his attention back to his sister. He nodded toward her bound forearms. “Looks like those are going to make things awkward for a while.”

“Don’t you worry,” Aunt Renata said to Addy. “We’ll feed and dress you, and even bathe you if we need to. Won’t we, Sofia?”

“Just like when you were a little baby,” Aunt Sofia told her.

At that promise, Addy threw a look of desperation Nick’s way. He just grinned and shook his head at her. She deserved it after scaring the hell out of him.

“Who’s watching the lodge?” Nick asked. He glanced at his watch. Nearly nine-thirty. The hired help would be long gone by now.

“Tessa’s at the front desk,” his father replied. “It was quiet when we left. This may be a good time for her to get more involved in the business. Perhaps she can take on some of Adriana’s responsibilities. The dining room, laundry…”

Aunt Sofia glanced at Nick. “She could clean late checkouts after school and do turn-down service in the evening.”

Nick frowned. “I don’t want her doing anything that interferes with homework.”

“We’ll need some temporary help,” his mother said. The consummate field marshal, she was already planning ahead.

“Clay Watts at Eagle’s Rest owes me a favor,” Nick said. “I’ll see if he can send over a couple of housekeepers tomorrow until I arrange something with a temp service.”

Nick had started to head out of the room when he nearly collided with one of the nurses. He thought her name was Sharon—a roommate of one of the nurses he’d dated a few years ago. She’d previously come in to tell them that Kari Churchill was doing just fine down in Exam Room One.

Now she tapped the chart in her hand. “Miss Churchill’s going to be discharged in a few minutes. She’s asking to see your sister before she goes. Or you.”

Nick shook his head. “Tell her that’s not necessary.”

“Nick!” Addy exclaimed with some of her old spirit. “Don’t you dare speak for me.”

Nick ignored her. “Tell her if she wants to leave an address, I’ll see to it that her stuff on board the chopper gets sent to her.”

“After what she’s been through, that’s no way to treat a customer,” his mother scolded.

“And I want to see her,” Addy said.

His father looked at him sharply. “You have a responsibility to make sure she’s all right, Nick. You know that.”

Aware that every eye in the family was on him, Nick lifted his hands in a gesture of surrender. “Fine. I’ll check on her before I call Clay.”

Dead silence followed. Before anyone could comment, Nick stalked out.

He glanced down the corridor toward Exam Room One. He didn’t want to go there. “Play nice with the customers,” his sister was fond of saying, but he didn’t feel like coming face-to-face again with the woman who had helped bring such trouble to their door.

On the other hand, if he didn’t, there could be consequences. The family counted on him to put things right. In all the years the business had been operating, there had never been a single lawsuit brought against the company. His father was especially proud of that fact.

Muttering a curse under his breath, Nick wove down the hall, past harried nurses and around complicated-looking equipment.

Civil, but not subservient. Solicitous, but not admitting to any culpability. He knew how to handle women like Kari Churchill. He scrubbed a hand over his face, annoyed with his own need for an internal pep talk. Come on. Just get it over with.

When he walked into the room he didn’t see her right away. The doctor was busy giving last-minute instructions. “So don’t be surprised if you have an occasional headache over the next few days.”

“All things considered, if that’s all I have to deal with, I won’t complain,” Kari replied softly.

Nick moved into her line of sight, positioning himself at the end of the gurney. She turned her head in his direction as the doctor moved away.

He realized suddenly that he hadn’t remembered her right. He mentally cataloged her appearance all over again, searching for the hard, tough broad he’d built her up to be in his mind. Right now all he saw was a woman who looked pale and tired and a little shaky. Probably trying not to think too much about what a close brush she’d had with death this night.

She sat up straighter, and he noticed.

Nervous? he wondered. Good. He stopped seeing how sweetly appealing she looked lying there and thought about how pleased she must have been when she knew she’d successfully manipulated Addy.

“Hello,” she said, her voice full of wary restraint.

He gave her a short nod of acknowledgment, crossing his arms over his chest. He knew his features were too stern, but his willpower was in full force. “You asked to see one of us?” he stated.

“How’s Addy?”

“She’s tough. She’ll mend.”

“Her arms…?”

“The left is broken. The other one’s a sprained wrist.”

“Oh, thank goodness,” she said. “I mean, I hoped it would be nothing more serious than that.”

The look of relief in her eyes was touchingly real. He indicated the small bandage covering Kari Churchill’s right temple. “I hear you’re going to be all right.”

She fingered her forehead as if she’d already forgotten the injury. “Yes. It’s nothing, really.”

“Good.”

There was an awkward, tense silence then. He didn’t know what she was thinking, but he knew his own thoughts were more charitable than he liked. It had been easier when he’d thought of her purely as Satan’s sister.

She licked her lips and offered him a small smile. “We were both very lucky.”

“Yep. Definitely a lucky day, I’d say.”

As he’d intended, she caught the sarcasm. “Look, I don’t want you to think…I realize you didn’t want…I guess what I’m trying to say is…I apologize.”

He narrowed his eyes and cocked his head at her. “Why would you feel the need to do that, Miss Churchill?”

Her cheeks went a pretty shade of pink under the harsh hospital lighting. “You know perfectly well why,” she replied.

“You mean, because you managed to talk my sister into taking you up? Because your determination to get your own way nearly got the both of you killed? Yeah, that might be a reason to apologize.”

The pink turned to red, twin flags of annoyance. “Now wait just a minute,” she said. “I admit I shouldn’t have coerced your sister into taking me. I feel horrible about that. But she’s a grown woman. I didn’t trick her into anything.” She chewed her lip a moment, then, as if deciding what she’d been thinking deserved to be said, she gave him a hard, hostile look of her own. “Did it ever occur to you that if you weren’t such an overbearing dictator, Addy might not have felt the need to prove herself? She did great up there. Even after the lightning hit us, she was in control. You underestimate your sister, Mr. D’Angelo. If you treated her with a little respect, she might surprise you.”

He stared at her, letting the words settle in his gut. It would serve no good purpose to heave into further argument. Truthfully, he couldn’t say that he totally disagreed with her. But that didn’t mean he had to like it.

Expelling a slow, deliberate breath, he came around the end of the gurney and approached her. She watched him move without flinching, chin tipped up, and if it hadn’t been for her white-knuckled grip on the sheet, he’d have bought this defiant, steely charade.

“I’m not here to talk about my relationship with Addy,” he said in a quiet, terse voice. “I’m here to make sure you’re all right.”

“Yes, I can see you’re eaten up with anxiety,” she snapped.

He counted to ten and tried to wrangle his patience under control. “As the head of Angel Air, I’m naturally interested—”

“Oh, I think I understand what you’re interested in,” she cut in, giving him a narrowed glance. “What you’d really like to know is if I intend to take this little accident any further. Like to court.”

“Do you?”

She looked away for a moment. He had to admit, she had a damn fine profile, all haughty elegance and sleek lines.

“I don’t think…” She took a deep breath, turning back to look at him with cold disdain. “I like your sister very much. I don’t want to hurt her by causing trouble for her family. My injuries are minor, so there’s no reason to blow this out of proportion. Accidents happen. Why don’t we leave it at that?”

The words were flat, though heat wove through them like a thin ribbon. He stared at her, wondering if he could believe her. No way to tell, really. As sneaky as she’d probably been with Addy, he wasn’t sure her signature in blood would suffice.

And then she did a strange thing. She laughed.

Nick frowned at her.

She shook her head. “You know, I don’t think I’ve ever met a man as openly skeptical as you are. If I told you the sky was blue, would you insist on going outside to check?” Without waiting for a response, she waved a slim hand toward the outer corridor. “Find a lawyer out there. As busy as this place is, there’s bound to be some ambulance-chaser hanging around who can draw up an affidavit for me to sign.” She cocked her head at him. “Just tell me one thing. Are you like this with everyone, or is it just me?”

It was crazy, considering the fact that he was being insulted, that he felt the urge to smile. In spite of the fact that she’d been trouble from the get-go, she had a lively, sharp assertiveness that made him realize that her strong chin and intense gaze weren’t to be taken lightly.

Definitely not a desirable response. He searched through the debris of his anger to find a more comfortable reaction. He knew one thing. He wasn’t about to discuss his character traits—good, bad or otherwise.

“Let’s just agree that this entire experience has been…unpleasant for everyone concerned,” he said, trying for a reasonable tone. “But it’s over and we can all move on. My company will take care of the hospital bill, of course. If you’ll leave word where you’d like your things sent, I’ll have them delivered to you first thing in the morning. Will that suffice?”

She looked as if she might object, then took another deep breath. “Fine.”

“Good. That should be about it, then.”

“Any reason why I can’t stop in to see Addy before I leave?”

“I’m sure she’ll want to say goodbye. But not too long, if you don’t mind. She’s very tired.”

She frowned, clearly annoyed that he would think her that insensitive. “Of course.”

He held out his hand. “I hope the rest of your trip to Colorado is enjoyable, Miss Churchill. Good luck.”

She lifted her chin again and took his hand. “Thank you, Mr. D’Angelo,” she replied in a tight tone that bore no warmth. Not a flicker. “I’m sure whatever happens during the rest of my stay, it can’t possibly compare to what I experienced today.”

Nick had a feeling she was referring to more than just the accident, but he wasn’t about to comment. He nodded and made his escape.

KARI HAD JUST SLIPPED into her jeans when the nurse came back to the room. Except for a killer headache and some stiff muscles in her back, she felt fine. Maybe a little drained from the ordeal she’d been through, but who wouldn’t be? The fact that both she and Addy D’Angelo had managed to come out of the crash in one piece was pretty amazing.

Even more amazing was the fact that she’d kept her conversation with Nick D’Angelo semi-civil. If ever there was a man who could make a woman scream in frustration, he was it.

Of course, she had to concede that he had some right to be angry with her. She had taken advantage of Addy, and that knowledge had left her struggling with enough guilt to choke a horse. Her mother had always complained that she was too much like her father. When Madison Churchill set his sights on something, he went barreling in and damned the consequences. Kari had certainly inherited that trait.

The nurse who’d assisted the doctor came into the room. She handed Kari a prescription for a muscle relaxer and a mild pain reliever. “You’re all set to go,” she said. She handed Kari a third piece of paper. “Nick said to give you this. It’s the phone number for a couple of motels down by the interstate.”

Kari slipped the prescriptions and the phone numbers into the back pocket of her jeans. She realized suddenly that the nurse, a pretty brunette about her age, had used D’Angelo’s first name. “You know Mr. D’Angelo?” she asked.

The woman had already begun to strip the hospital gurney of its sheets. She glanced back over her shoulder. “Everyone around these parts knows Nick. He’s been baby-sitting Lightning River Lodge for his family for five years now.”

“Has he always been so…”

“Sexy?”

“No!” Kari nearly gasped. That thought hadn’t entered her mind. “I was going to say…dictatorial.”

The nurse’s eyes flickered with honest amusement. “Honey, you’d better have the doc check you over again. Make sure your brain didn’t get scrambled. Every woman in the Lightning River area would like to lasso Nick D’Angelo. Myself included.” She dumped the soiled sheets into a hamper and smiled at Kari. “I haven’t seen him look this grim since his dad had his stroke. You certainly seem to have gotten on his bad side.”

“Oh, you mean there’s a good side?” Kari said. “I sure didn’t see it.”

“Nick’s just protective of his family. He takes his responsibilities very seriously. But he can be a real sweetie.”

“I must have missed the sweetness in between all the yelling and threats,” Kari said with a laugh. “In fact, are you sure we’re talking about the same Nick D’Angelo? The guy I know is the most arrogant, annoying, rock-headed man I’ve ever met.”

“One and the same man, I’m afraid.”

That slightly rough-voiced response came from behind Kari, and she started. She turned to find an older man in a wheelchair parked in the doorway. His features were worn and tired-looking, but a spark of vibrant life burned in his dark eyes.

Kari swallowed hard. This had to be one of the D’Angelos. He had the same direct way of looking at a person that Nick had. The same commanding presence in spite of whatever illness had put him in that chair.

But did they share the same temper, too?

The man moved his chair forward, until he sat right in front of her. “I’m Sam D’Angelo,” he said in a calm voice. “Nick’s and Adriana’s father.”

She’d been afraid of that.

She wet her lips. “Mr. D’Angelo, you have a perfect right to be upset about what happened. I’d like to explain—”

He held up one hand. “That isn’t really necessary. I think I have a clear picture. Adriana shouldn’t have taken you up, but she can be very…single-minded and impetuous sometimes.” He grinned. “She gets that from her mother’s side of the family, I’m afraid.”

A little of Kari’s anxiety settled. This man wasn’t nearly the ill-tempered grouch his son was.

But then he tilted his head at her, as though seeing a very unusual bug for the first time. “Besides, I wanted to meet the woman who has my son in such an uproar. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen him like this.”

“Like what? You mean, angry enough to drop me from the nearest cliff?”

“Yes. That’s one emotion you seem to have brought out in him. Perhaps there are others.”

She frowned, not sure what he meant by that. “I’m dreadfully sorry about all this. I really wish I could turn back the clock twenty-four hours. Addy told me everyone in your family is working double-time in preparation for some wedding your resort is catering. Will you be terribly short-handed without her help?”