Beautifully Unfinished (7 page)

When Lucy woke the next morning, she felt nervous but happier. She had a wonderful time with Tucker the night before. They stayed up till all hours talking about so many different things and for the first time in such a long time, she wasn’t worrying what was going to happen. She just felt comfortable and relaxed in his company.

When she had showered and got dressed, she knocked back a cup of coffee, then headed for the door. She wanted to get up and see her dad as soon as she could, she wanted to clear the air between them.

Tucker had told her that he would meet her at the hospital, but as she opened the door and stepped out, she spotted Tucker’s truck pulling in behind her car.

“Good morning,” he said with a wide grin, as he climbed out of the truck and walked up the pathway. “How are you feeling this morning?”

“I’m good thanks,” she replied with a cautious smile. “Is everything okay?”

“Yeah,” he said, as a look of uncertainty appeared on his face, but he quickly pulled it back. “I was just heading to the hospital, and I was thinking that there was no point in both of us driving there, so I thought I would come by and see if you wanted to come with me.”

“Um…sure,” Lucy said as she suppressed her natural instinct to say no, and drive herself there. “But how will I get home?”

“Well, I was also thinking,” Tucker said, and suddenly he seemed a little less confident. “I know you will probably spend all day with your dad, so I thought maybe you might come to dinner with me later, after the hospital?”

Lucy looked at him for a moment, slightly thrown by his request. Was he asking her on a date? She couldn’t believe he was actually asking her out; she had been sure he was not interested in her. She was about to say yes when Tucker quickly added. “Just as friends, no strings.”

“Oh, okay,” Lucy replied, and was a little surprised by how disappointed she was. Tucker pulled open the truck door, then turned back to Lucy and smiled.

“Your chariot awaits,” he said, and Lucy couldn’t help but smile as she walked towards the truck.

“Thank you,” she said when she reached Tucker, then climbed into the truck. Tucker gave her another smile before he closed the door and hurried around to the driver’s side.

They drove to the hospital in a comfortable silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

Lucy was worried about facing her father and the closer they got to the hospital, the more nervous she became. She had considered calling him the night before, but thought it was better to do this face to face. She wished now that she had made the call.

When they pulled into the car park, Tucker pulled into a space, switched off the engine and turned to face Lucy.

“What’s wrong?” Lucy asked, surprised he didn’t get straight out of the truck. “Aren’t you coming in?”

“I thought you might want a moment to…do whatever,” Tucker replied, while he watched her closely.

“To do whatever?” Lucy asked with a nervous laugh.

“Lucy, you look like you are about to stand in front of a firing squad,” Tucker replied. “He is your dad, and he loves you.”

Lucy didn’t reply and to her horror, she felt like she was going to cry.

Without even thinking, Tucker reached out and took her hand. Lucy froze, but to her surprise, she didn’t feel compelled to pull her hand free. It felt normal, nice even, to have him hold her hand.

“Stop panicking,” Tucker said, giving her a reassuring smile. “Everything will be okay, and I will be with you every step of the way.”

Tucker slowly released her hand then gave her an expectant look. She nodded, knowing he was asking was she ready.

They both climbed out of the truck, and Tucker took hold of her hand again as they walked towards the entrance.

As they reached the elevator in the main reception, Tucker hit the call button before he gave Lucy a sideways glance.

When the doors of the elevator slowly opened, Tucker stepped inside, still holding Lucy’s hand.

As they rode up in the elevator, they stood so close to each other; Tuckers arm was brushing against Lucy’s. She was surprised that she didn’t get that old feeling of complete terror that she got every time someone got too close to her. She could feel her breathing alter as the air became suddenly charged but it wasn’t from fear.

Tucker turned to speak to her but just as he did, the elevator stopped, and the doors opened, and once again, Lucy came face to face with Riley.

This time, he was dressed in scrubs, and this made Lucy smile. Riley always wanted to be a doctor, and she was pleased for him that he had achieved his dream.

“Lucy,” Riley said as a broad, genuine smile, lit up his face. Instinctively, Lucy pulled her hand free from Tucker’s, but she had no idea why. “We have to stop meeting like this.”

“Riley,” she said, and her voice cracked with nerves as she gave Tucker a sideways glance. “It’s lovely to see you again.”

“Tucker,” Riley said as he turned his attention to him, but Lucy could hear an edge in his voice.

“Riley,” Tucker replied through gritted teeth, and Lucy was surprised to hear the anger in Tucker’s voice. Riley cautiously stepped onto the elevator and turned his attention back to Lucy as the doors closed, and they began to move again.

“How’s your dad doing?” He asked, and Lucy was completely stunned when Tucker gave a sarcastic laugh. She looked at him, but he wouldn’t meet her gaze, so she turned her attention back to Riley.

“He is doing much better now, thank you,” Lucy replied feeling very confused by Tucker’s behaviour.

“Well, give him my best,” Riley said, as the elevator stopped on Tom’s floor and Tucker quickly stepped off. Lucy gave Riley a nervous smile before she too stepped off. “Maybe we will bump into each other again.”

“Maybe,” Lucy said as the doors began to close. She lifted up her hand to wave goodbye. “Bye, Riley.”

He smiled, but the doors closed before he could reply.

“Your dad is expecting us,” Tucker said as he turned and headed off down the corridor without waiting for Lucy.

Lucy followed closely behind him, but she had no idea what had just happened. She had no clue why Tucker would dislike Riley so much, but clearly he did.

She remembered the night of the party; they argued in the car as they drove to the hospital. She remembered how angry Tucker was with Riley, but surely that couldn’t be it.

When they reached Tom’s room, Tucker stopped and hesitated before he turned back to face Lucy.

“Do me a favour,” he said, without looking directly at her. “Don’t tell your dad about Riley. I know it’s none of my business, but trust me, if he knows Riley Jones is sniffing around again, he will sign himself out of here in a heartbeat.”

“Why?” Lucy asked, surprised by his request.

“It’s a long story,” Tucker replied, as he glanced at her briefly before he dropped his eyes and turned back towards the door.

“Then why don’t you tell it to me?” Lucy asked, as she reached out and pulled his arm back to her.

“Just trust me on this one,” he replied before he once again turned back to the door and opened it before Lucy could push him further.

Lucy took a deep breath and stepped through the door into her father’s room. The minute Tom saw his daughter, he held out his hand to her. Lucy rushed to the bed, and hugged him tightly.

“I’m sorry, Dad,” Lucy said, as she buried her face in his shoulder and suddenly burst into tears but she wasn’t really sure what she was crying about. Yes, she was upset about what had happened between them, but she was also upset about what had just happened between her and Tucker.

She felt so confused. They had enjoyed a great evening together. Things felt comfortable with him this morning, and in the elevator, she was sure they had a moment.

Then everything just seemed to change; he seemed angry and distant, and she knew she was to blame. She had pulled her hand free from his like she was ashamed, when that was not the case at all.

“It’s me that should be sorry, Angel,” Tom said, and he held her tighter. “I should have never said those things. I had no right…”

“But you were right,” Lucy said as she lifted her head and looked at her dad. “I was so consumed in how hurt I was, it never occurred to me that you were hurting too. I made such a mess of everything…” She paused and glanced over at Tucker, who was standing next to the door, staring at the floor, before she added. “I still am.”

He looked up, and his eyes met Lucy’s briefly, but then he quickly looked away before he stood up straight.

“I need to head into the station,” he said, and Lucy could tell he was lying. Then he added without looking at Lucy. “I…I will come back later to take you home.”

“I thought we were going to get some dinner,” Lucy asked.

Tucker looked up, and his eyes met hers. For a moment, he didn’t speak. Then he looked away from her again.

“I just remembered, I have somewhere to be tonight,” he replied, and Lucy knew he was lying once again. “Maybe we can go some other time?”

“Sure,” Lucy said with a smile, but inside she felt crushed. She was shocked at just how disappointed she felt.

Lucy liked Tucker, probably more than she wanted to admit, but Tucker had made it very clear, he didn’t feel the same. He was just being nice to her because he was friends with her father.

He glanced at her one last time before he turned and left the room. Lucy was aware her father was watching her closely. He had been a police officer now for almost thirty years, and he was good at what he did. So there would be no deceiving him.

She knew if she could tell Tucker was lying, her father knew it too. She turned back to him and gave him a warm smile.

“How are you feeling today?” She asked, hoping she could steer the conversation away from Tucker.

“I am a lot better now you are here,” Tom replied, giving Lucy a strange look. “Has something happened between you and Tucker? Have you two fallen out?”

“No,” Lucy replied honestly. As far as she was concerned, they didn’t have an argument. Okay, she had upset him, but technically they hadn’t had a fight. “I don’t know where you get your crazy ideas from.”

“You like him!” Tom exclaimed with a laugh.

“Dad, get serious,” Lucy said and rolled her eyes. “I don’t even know him.”

“That doesn’t mean you can’t like him.” Tom pushed with a grin.

“Dad, I don’t like him, not in the way you mean,” Lucy insisted, feeling a little irritated. “And Tucker doesn’t like me. He is just being nice to me because I am the boss’s daughter, and you two are friends; that’s it.”

“Lucy, there is something you don’t know about Tucker,” Tom said. “Things happened after you left…”

“Dad, please,” Lucy said. “I don’t want to think about back then. It’s in the past. Right now, you are all I care about. Getting you well and back on your feet.”

Tom looked at her for a moment and Lucy knew there was something he wanted to say, but he bit his tongue and just smiled instead.

Lucy spent the day with her dad, talking about when she was a little girl and they all still lived in New York. She also told him stories about Alison, Lucy’s PA and all the crazy things that girl got up to. Lucy knew Tom liked Alison. He knew she looked out for Lucy and for that, Tom was very grateful.

A little after two, Tom was taken down for some more x-rays and Lucy said she was going to get some coffee.

When she took her coffee from the machine, she turned and walked straight into someone, almost dumping her coffee over them.

“I’m so sor…” she began to say but stopped when she realised she had run into Riley, literally, again. “Riley, I am so sorry.”

“It was my own fault for sneaking up behind you,” he replied, giving her the same old smile he always gave her, the one that made her feel like there was no one else in the world. “I was actually hoping to bump into you again.”

“You were?” Lucy asked, giving him a questioning look.

“I was going to ask you if you would like to go out to dinner with me,” Riley said and for a moment, Lucy could see the look of nervousness in his eyes. “Maybe tomorrow night, unless…”

“Unless?” Lucy asked.

“I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes,” he said, as he looked directly into her eyes. Lucy knew he was talking about Tucker, and she was surprised when she thought she saw a trace of jealousy in his eyes.

“No,” she replied, then quickly added. “You’re stepping on no one’s toes.”

“Good,” he said with a broad smile. “So tomorrow night?”

She looked at him for a moment and Tuckers face immediately jumped into her mind. Her dad had been right, she did like Tucker, more than she cared to admit, but it didn’t matter, he didn’t feel the same way about her.

“I would love to,” Lucy replied, as a nurse walked towards them.

“Doctor Jones,” the nurse said handing Riley a file. “Here is those charts you asked for.

“Thank you, Karen,” he replied dismissively as he took them from her, but his eyes remained locked with Lucy’s.

“So,” Lucy said, when the nurse left them alone once again. “You’re a doctor. Just like you always said you would be.”