The Daughter Dilemma

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.