The Daughter Dilemma. Ann Evans

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СКАЧАТЬ 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 СКАЧАТЬ