1. That's What Friends Are For (7 page)

❧

Penny tiptoed into the room. The shades were drawn and it was dim. The doctor snapped on a night-light and she could see Brad lying there, his head swathed in white bandages. His eyes were closed and he looked so pale. Penny bit her lip to keep from crying out.

She glanced around and discovered the doctor had left the room. Hesitantly she approached the bed. Brad was in a hospital gown and the sheet was folded neatly over his chest. His hands rested on either side of him. She took his hand and slowly lifted it to her mouth, brushing her lips across his knuckles.

Brad's lashes fluttered, then he slowly opened his eyes. "Penny?" His lips moved but there was very little sound.

"I'm here, Brad."

"You okay?" he managed to say. He was having trouble moving his mouth.

''I'm fine. It's you we've been worried about."

"What happened?"

"A boat almost rammed us. I dodged to miss them and threw you halfway across our boat." Tears began to stream down her face once more. "Oh, Brad. I'm so sorry."

"Wasn't your fault," he said drowsily.

"I'm sorry I got so mad at you. I was afraid you'd been killed and I would never be able to tell you how sorry I am."

"I'm... too hard-headed... to be hurt... by a blow...to my head," he said haltingly, trying to smile. She could see the pain in his eyes and she ached with shared pain. "Besides, you had a right.. .to get angry at me. Trying to break... engagement... was... childish thing to do."

She smiled. "I'm afraid I have to agree with you there, my friend."

"I'm sorry... forgive me?"

She stroked his cheek with her free hand. "You know me, Brad, I can never stay mad at you for long. I never could."

"Good thing," he replied, his voice slurred. "Or you'd... be angry... all... time."

"Fm sure the doctor wants you to rest," she said. "Your folks are waiting outside. I know they want to see you."

He smiled, a slow, sleepy smile that seemed to increase the ache in her heart.

She leaned over and kissed him. "I'll see you tomorrow, Brad." She laid his hand on his chest, but she didn't let go immediately.

He squeezed her hand but didn't say anything. She patted the hand she still held and slowly released him, suddenly feeling awkward.

Then Penny turned around and left the room.

G
regory was quiet on the way home and Penny felt too drained to try to make conversation. He followed her into the house and she went to the kitchen to make coffee, motioning him into the living room.

Her parents had stayed at the hospital with the Crawfords. No one had expressed an opinion as to when they'd return.

When she brought the coffee into the living room Penny suddenly realized she had never asked Gregory why he'd been there that afternoon.

"I'm so glad you came today," she said, handing him his cup and settling beside him on the couch. "I'm just sorry I wasn't here. I thought you said you were going to spend the day working."

He looked at her and smiled, a wry smile that she found endearing. "Actually, I had no intention of leaving the office until I had made a dent in the pile of files and papers on my desk." Gregory settled back on the sofa with a sigh." After a few hours I noticed there was no appreciable difference in the amount of work in front of me." He took a sip of coffee. "I kept thinking of you and how much I wanted to be with you."

Gregory peered into his cup as though looking for an answer to a thorny question. "As a matter of fact, I decided to forget about the work for a while and come get you. I thought we could spend some time together out on the lake."

His eyes met hers. "When I got here your parents mentioned that you and Brad had gone out a few hours earlier.''

Penny touched his cheek lightly with her hand. "I wish I'd known. I could have waited."

"Spending the day with you and Brad wasn't what I had in mind."

"What I meant was that if I'd known, I would have waited and gone out with you. Brad would have found someone else to spend the day with."

Gregory studied her face, enjoying the candid expression in her blue eyes, the way her flyaway curls clustered on her forehead. Most of all he enjoyed the unconscious innocence she projected, not so much a sexual innocence, although he was willing to bet that was the case. But Penny had a wholesomeness, such a trusting nature that he sometimes felt he was hundreds of years older than she. The ugliness of the world seemed to have passed her by, as though, like a princess in a fairy tale, she had been locked away and protected from some of the harsher realities of life.

"You mentioned earlier that you and Brad had been arguing," he said with a slight smile.

Penny felt her face flush. "Yes."

''About what?"

She stared at him in dismay. She had no idea what Gregory thought of Brad. He was an expert at keeping his thoughts and opinions to himself. For some reason she didn't want him to know about Brad's intention to break them up. The point was, he hadn't and he was sorry. There was no need to share the details with Gregory.

"I can't even remember," she said, not meeting his eyes. "Brad and I seem to argue every time we're around each other."

''I still find that surprising in you."

"I know. Some people have that effect on others."

He nodded thoughtfully. "Yes, that's true. Sparks fly."

She laughed. "They definitely fly whenever Brad and I get together." She hugged Gregory. "I'm so glad you and I don't react that way to each other. I much prefer our comfortable relationship." When he didn't reply she went on to say, "I never got around to thanking you for your help today. I don't know what I would have done without you."

He held her hard against his chest, unable to resist her lips so close to his. Gregory kissed her, feeling her warmth pressed against him.

When he finally released her he smiled at the picture she made—her cheeks flushed, her eyes sparkling, her mouth slightly swollen. "I was glad to help, but you would have done just fine without me. You handled yourself extremely well in the emergency, never losing your head."

"Oh, no. I almost drowned you in my tears at the hospital."

"Yes, after the crisis was over. But when you needed to be strong you managed to give Brad first aid, then got him home. I was very proud of you today. I want you to know that."

"Oh, Gregory. Your ability to understand me is one of the things I love about you," she said, her arms still around him.

He was quiet for a few moments, then said, "It's interesting, isn't it, the many different ways we can love. Some people seem to have a larger capacity for love than others. You seem to have grown up giving your love to people—your parents. Brad, his parents; later the people who live in Payton. Now me."

She smiled at him.

"I always had trouble understanding that emotion they called love. I've seen some of the tragedies that have occurred in the name of love, witnessed selfishness and possessiveness that have been given the label of love, but until I met you, I never truly experienced what it all meant—the generosity of love for its own sake, and what a difference it could make in life." He looked down at her, trying to memorize the beauty that was in her. "Thank you for showing me how unselfish love can be, how generous."

"It was my pleasure," she said with a mischievous grin. "You've shown me a great deal, too, you know."

"Have I?In what way?''

"You didn't treat me like some fragile doll sitting on a shelf. You've always treated me as an equal, with respect and admiration."

"Hasn't everyone?"

"It's hard to explain. But living in the same small town all my life has meant that everyone has preconceived ideas about me. Until you came along, nobody would even ask me out for a date!"

"Why do you suppose they didn't?"

She grinned. "Because all the eligible men already knew me too well, I guess.''

"It couldn't have anything to do with Brad, could it?"

She frowned. "What does Brad have to do with my not being asked on a date?"

"Perhaps everyone thought you two were a pair," he suggested.

Penny rolled her eyes. "That's quite possible. I know everybody acted surprised when you and I announced our engagement. I just assumed they thought you'd been tricked into proposing to me."

Gregory threw his head back and laughed and she began to laugh with him. "Oh, Penny, what an innocent you are!" He studied her for a moment, the light of laughter gradually disappearing out of his eyes. "Then you admit that people saw you and Brad as a couple."

She shrugged. "I can't very well deny it. Since he's been home everyone I've seen has made some comment. But that's their problem. It doesn't really concern you and me. Once we're married, they'll get those silly ideas out of their heads."

"So you don't really wish that it were Brad you were marrying instead of me?"

"Brad and I don't have that sort of a relationship. We never did. You are the man I'm going to marry." She sounded very final.

Gregory smiled. "I'm glad to hear it." He carefully unwrapped her arms from around his neck. "However, at the moment I think I'd better let you get some rest. I've still got to pack and get ready to return to St. Louis."

Penny hated to see him leave. She enjoyed his companionship so much. She felt safe and secure whenever he was around. In particular, she needed his presence this final week before she married him, especially now that Brad was here. She couldn't explain it. She just knew it was true. But she knew she mustn't be selfish, so she walked him to the door in silence.

He paused at the door and looked down at her. "I'm going to be extremely busy, so don't worry if you don't hear from me. I'll be back in time for the rehearsal Friday night. You can count on it."

She nodded. "I'll just think about this time next week when we'll be on our honeymoon," she said with a grin. "That should help fill the next few days."

"I'm sure you'll want to spend some time with Brad while he's recuperating." Gregory waited for a denial, for some sign that, despite everything he had seen and heard, Penny wasn't as attached to Brad as Gregory was finally coming to accept.

"Yes, that's true," she said, unaware of what he was thinking. "You know his television character is supposed to be in a coma. He almost had a chance to find out what that was like firsthand." She shook her head. "I bet he's already regretting having come home for the wedding."

"Then again, it might have been a very crucial decision for his future. Who knows?" Gregory said, leaning over and kissing her softly on the mouth. "I suppose only time will tell."

I wonder what he meant by that? Penny asked herself when she went upstairs and began to prepare for bed. Gregory could certainly be enigmatic at times. No doubt that trait was one of the reasons he was such a brilliant attorney.

❧

"Oh, how sweet," Brad cooed in a cloying falsetto voice, clasping his hands under his chin and giving her an idiotic smile. "You brought me some candy," he said as she walked into his hospital room the next morning carrying a gaily wrapped package.

Penny was relieved to see him looking so much better. His color had improved considerably since the day before. Today he looked almost rakish with his head bandaged, but there were still deep bruises under his eyes.

"What I have is much better for you than candy," she informed him, walking over to the bed and handing him the package. '"I've brought you a coloring book and some crayons." It was worth the search she'd gone to that morning to see the expression on his face.

Without missing a beat he said, "Fantastic, what kind?"

"Only the best for you, my friend—a book immortalizing the characters from Star Wars."'

Brad started to chuckle, then gently touched his head. "Please don't make me laugh. My head feels like it's going to topple off my shoulders when I so much as move it. Laughter would destroy me."

She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Poor baby. And here I thought you'd be so pleased."

"I am. I am. You're the only one who knows about my secret passion for the Star Wars trilogy."

"Oh, I don't think you managed to keep your deep, dark secret from your mom. Remember, she was the one who attempted to keep order in your room for years."

He smiled. "Yes, but I've learned that I can trust the two women in my life to keep my deeply-guarded secret."

"So how are you feeling?"

"Like I've spent a week wrapped around several bottles of booze and just surfaced."

"That bad, huh?"

"I knew there was a reason I never drank much. Can you imagine someone paying to feel this bad?"

"Who are you kidding? You never wanted to lose your wholesome kid image and you know it."

"Wholesome? Me? Don't let my producer hear you say that. He's convinced I look like the sort who'd start seducing maidens before breakfast and continue throughout the day without pause."

She grinned. "Are you sure that's the appeal? I always thought you looked like the sort women dreamed of being seduced by."

He eyed her speculatively. "Oh, yeah? Tell me more."

''Nothing doing. You're too vain as it is."

Brad patted the side of his bed and she perched on it. "I don't think I remembered to thank you for your help yesterday," he said.

"My help! That blow to the head must have really befuddled you, my friend. I'm afraid I was the one who caused it."

"That's not the way Dad explained it. You probably saved us both from a serious, perhaps even fatal, collision."

Penny couldn't think of anything to say. She glanced around the room, then back at him. "Has the doctor said when you're going to be able to get out of here?"

"Hopefully tomorrow. He said I would have to take it easy for a few days, but since that was the way I'd intended to spend the week anyway, I'm not going to have much trouble following the doctor's orders."

"Are you sorry you came back?" she asked quietly.

He waited until her eyes met his. They stared at each other for an indeterminable length of time. "No, I'm not sorry. My only regret is that I didn't come back sooner."

"Why do you say that?"

"It doesn't matter. Now you're deliriously in love with your handsome lawyer and soon you'll be a blushing bride and will live happily ever after." He took her hand and held it between both of his. "You know, Penny, that's all I ever wanted, for you to be happy. I've enjoyed our time together this week—the visit to the park, the fun we had yesterday."

"Some fun."

"It was, most of it. Sharing those things with you, one last time, helped me to say goodbye to our shared past. I needed the transition time, a chance to be with you before you become the oh, so proper wife of the esteemed and honorable Gregory Duncan."

"Now you're making fun of us."

"Not at all. I'm trying like hell not to envy what the two of you have."

"You'll find it for yourself, someday."

He nodded. "Of course I will."

She made a face. "And I'll hate her on sight," she admitted with a slight smile.

His eyebrows arched slightly. "Without even knowing her?"

"Without a doubt. You always had such lousy taste in women, you know."

"Oh, really?" he said in a dangerous tone.

"Yes, really! Have you forgotten dating Diana during our second year at college?"

"How could I ever forget the lovely Diana? She was a knockout."

"True. And she was also sleeping with every guy on the campus."

"Yeah, well, no man's education is quite complete without a Diana in his life," he said with a grin.

"What about Beth?"

"What was wrong with Beth?" he asked with surprise. "I thought you liked her."

"Liked her? I felt sorry for her. How she ever managed to get out of grade school, much less find her way into college, always remained a mystery to me."

"So she wasn't the brightest person we've ever known. She was very sweet."

"Yes. And she adored you."

"Can't fault her taste."

"Only her intelligence."

They paused and grinned at each other.

Brad squeezed the hand he still held. "God, I've missed you. Nobody has ever given me such a bad time, or led me in such intricate circles as you."

"Moi?" she asked in mock surprise. "Surely not."

"Why didn't you ever come to New York to see me, like I wrote and asked you to?"

Penny gazed out the window, thinking back over the years. "Because I was still too angry with you."

"Angry! What had I done?"

"You left me here and went off to continue playing at life."

"Is that what it seemed to you?"

She nodded. "I guess I had always assumed you'd come back to Pay ton and go to work with your dad. It never occurred to me that your talk of New York was anything but the usual chatter we all had. About the time when we'd be discovered and cast in a starring role. Or being understudy one night, stopping the show as the lead the next."

"You could still do that, you know."

"Not me. I can't see Gregory content to have a wife living half a continent away."

"There is that."

Penny slipped from the bed and brushed the wrinkles from her skirt. "I don't want to keep you from your coloring, my dear. Maybe the nurse will help you if you get too tired to finish by yourself."

Brad didn't smile but continued to look at her. His hand still grasped hers and he slowly loosened his hold. "I love you, Penny," he said, his voice so low she almost didn't hear him. "Thank you for being a part of my life."

In all the years she had known him, he had never said those words to her before. Hearing them now did something strange to her. She wanted to laugh. She wanted to cry. She wanted to throw her arms around his neck. She wanted to go running down the hall.

"I love you, too. Brad," she finally replied.

"Now's a hell of a time to let me in on that little secret," he pointed out rather grimly.

"You haven't exactly been forthcoming yourself, you know."

"I know. Words of love are too special to use lightly. But then, you're a very special person in my life. You always will be."

Penny couldn't control the tears that suddenly flooded her eyes. "You are, too."

"Remember, if you ever need me, for anything, I'll always be there for you. That's what friends are for."

She couldn't say a word. Not one. For if she did, she would end up making a complete fool of herself. So she squeezed his hand, then turned away and walked out of the room.