Chapter 1
Two hours of pep talks, a dozen whispered mantras, and five
sets of calming breaths, failed to settle Carrie Graham’s acute case of nerves.
Get a grip, she told herself. She was going to see Tony, childhood defender,
teenage ego booster, and the one person who’d always listened. Besides, she’d
already eliminated every other candidate for the position.
Who are you
kidding?
Myself?
From the moment
she’d been presented with her current dilemma, he was the only possibility. All
she had to do was convince him… But could she?
Sure Tony listened, but he didn’t talk about his problems, or his
feelings.
The fading light of
dusk made her slow the car in order to read the street signs. She’d planned to
leave the apartment at noon, but the short nap after her night shift stretched
until late afternoon.
She made the final
turn into Fourth Street
in a small West Virginia
town established in the days when coal mining dominated the area. She shook her
head. Rundown houses and boarded storefronts were the norm along the town’s
main street. Why was Tony practicing medicine in this end-of-the-road place?
She hadn’t seen him
for years, not since several months after his marriage, an event that had
shaken her life. His wife hadn’t understood the friendship, or Tony and
Carrie’s mutual interest in medical mysteries. With a flash of anger, Carrie
recalled the night that woman stormed into the hospital cafeteria and spewed
jealous accusations.
Carrie’s hands
tightened on the steering wheel. She’d been embarrassed, hurt, and angry enough
that she’d walked away from her best friend.
She’d heard rumors
Tony’s wife had taken off for greener pastures. At least that’s what the
hometown gossips said. Not that Carrie believed in gossip, especially after the
news of her inheritance brought the tongue-waggers out in force.
She slowed the car
to a crawl. Waves of panic lashed against her momentary calm. The place in her
head where she’d filed his address was empty. She braked. The paper with the
directions fluttered from the dashboard. She bent and grabbed them.
One glance was
enough to retrieve the forgotten data. She eased off the brake and cruised the
street. Half the houses were missing numbers. What now? Then at the foot of the
dead end street, she saw the ones she’d memorized displayed in shiny brass on a
massive gray house that looked like the setting for a Gothic novel.
A broad lawn fronted
the house. The tailored grass stood in contrast to the tangles on either side.
“This is the place.”
She gulped a breath.
After parking at the
curb, she slowly released a held breath. She strode up the walk and onto the
wide porch. Muffled shouts and noises came from inside. She rang the bell. What
sounded like a slammed door nearly sent her back to the car. Who was staging a
major temper tantrum? She thought Tony
lived alone.
She rang the bell again, this time holding it for several
peals. The door opened and she forgot why she’d come. She forgot to breathe.
Her eyes widened and her heart pounded in a staccato rhythm until she thought
her ribs would crack.
He was more than she remembered.
Are you sure you want to be here?
“Tony.” His name escaped on a sigh. She felt like a teenager
come face to face with the latest movie hero. This was the man she planned to
ask…She changed her mind. Time to retreat. The plan wouldn’t work, not with the
things he made her feel, and what he made her want.
“Carrie...Oh lord, it’s been ages. What are you doing
here? You look terrific.”
She did? He must be
blind. Even her coworkers had made comments about the deep smudges beneath her
eyes. Most days, she felt as though she was suffering from terminal exhaustion.
“Come in.” He took her hand.
Exhaustion vanished. He’d always made her feet great, but
this instant tonic-effect startled her. Coming to see him had grown corners she
couldn’t see around.
“I can’t believe you’re here.” He drew her inside. “What
brings you to town?”
She wanted to tell him, but the words caught in her throat.
“Would you believe I was in the neighborhood?
Tony laughed. “No.”
She inhaled and the spicy scent of him invaded her space. “I
came...” She couldn’t finish the sentence. He’d been her hero, her prince, her
fantasy lover. In the flesh, he relegated those images to black and white.
“I bet you came to apply for the nursing position at the
clinic.” He steered her down a hall that needed paint into a large living room.
“Did you get lost on the way there?
Unfortunately, I’m not the one you need to see.”
She shook her head. “Another job is the last thing I need. I
already have two.”
“Why?”
She shrugged. “Necessity.”
“I don’t understand.”
“It’s a long story.” She sighed. “I shouldn’t have come.”
“What’s wrong? Sounds like you need a shoulder.”
The entire body, she thought. “You could say...It’s like
this...I have a problem that needs a solution...It’s sort of...” Her throat
closed. Maybe she should leave. Go home. Forget the plan. Find a new one.
Except, he was her first, last, and only choice.
“Be glad to listen.” He patted her hand. “Are you saying in
all these years, you haven’t found anyone else to listen?
I haven’t looked, she thought. There couldn’t be a
replacement for Tony. She couldn’t tell him that. “I thought...Maybe you can
help.”
“Be glad to try. Go ahead.”
A crash resounded. Carrie jumped. “I think you’re the one
with the problem.”
“You could say that.” Tony rolled his eyes upward. “My son’s
protesting his punishment for his latest series of pranks. He’s grounded with
no TV and no phone.”
“What did he do?” She sat on one end of a shabby brown
couch.
“Do you really want to know?”
She nodded. Hearing about Tony’s problems could give her
time to gather her courage.
He slumped beside her. “He glued the sitter’s clothes
together. She left in a huff.”
“Don’t blame her.” Carrie frowned. “I thought your son lived
with his mother.”
“He did until July. She’s remarried…to one of the Brinkers.
She and her new husband are on a world cruise honeymoon. They didn’t take Chad.”
His blue eyes were bleak. Was his pain for his son or
himself? How badly had his failed marriage hurt him? “Are you all right with the idea?”
He shrugged. “I’ve mixed feelings.”
His expression showed hurt and anger, not ones she’d
consider mixed. “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. It’s great having Chad here, but he’s angry about the
divorce, about living here, about his mother’s new husband. Wasn’t a great
summer. Even with him in school, there are problems.”
“Maybe I can help.”
“Don’t know how.” He winked. “I’m not without experience in
dealing with angry kids.
“Remember…”
“Yes, and don’t even mention the first time we met.”
“Or my black eye? Lord, it’s great to see you again. Why
don’t you tell me why you came all this way?”
She ran her tongue over dry lips. She searched for an answer
and couldn’t find one he would believe. If she asked him, he would think she was
crazy.
Good grief, my thoughts are scrambled. He is too…too…
male.
And your feelings for him haven’t changed.
“Carrie.”
The demand in his voice made her feel like a child facing an
adult. “It’s...” What sounded like glass shattering brought her to her feet.
“Chad!”
Saved, she thought. “Don’t you think you’d better see what
he’s doing before he trashes the house?”
He raked his ebony curls with his fingers. “You’re right.”
He headed to the door. “Promise you’ll stay ‘til I settle him. Then we’ll
talk.”
“I’ll be here.”
She sank against the cushions. Maybe he would need the
entire evening to deal with his son. This visit was an act of desperation.
After all, it had been years. Maybe he’d changed.
She looked around the sparsely furnished living room. Most
of the pieces looked like refugees from second-hand stores. What had gone wrong
for him? He’d been on the fast track. He’d entered practice with one of the
largest medical groups in Pittsburgh.
From some of her classmates, she’d heard how wonderful he was, what a caring
doctor he’d become, and how loyal he’d been to his wife and child. Had the end
of his marriage caused him to turn his back on success? She hadn’t heard, and
she hadn’t asked until two months ago. Her jobs had been in hospitals where he
hadn’t been on staff.
The sound of a throat being cleared made her jump. A woman
with streaks of gray in her brown hair stood in the doorway. Who? Carrie
wondered. Hadn’t Tony said the sitter had quit?
“Dr. Flynn wondered if you would like something to drink?”
Carrie covered a
yawn with her hand. “Coffee if you have some made. I’m Carrie Graham, an old
friend of Tony’s.”
“Hazel Smithton,
housekeeper, and reluctant sitter for a spell. Be right back.”
A short time later, Carrie sipped the strongest coffee she’d
ever tasted. Two iced cinnamon rolls helped her swallow the bitter brew.
The hollow feeling in her stomach vanished, but the matching
sensation in her chest expanded. She closed her eyes and planned explanations
for the question she’d come to ask. No matter how she phrased her reasons, the
words sounded like a desperate plea. Over the years, she’d learned begging
never worked. Would this time be any different?
* * *
