Rescue My Heart (20 page)

A
t the low, sexy voice in her ear, Holly closed her eyes but not before she gave him an elbow to the gut. Then she huddled closer to the fire, staring into the flames.

Adam flashed her a rare two-hundred-watt smile but backed up a step, giving her some room. Not, she was quite certain, because she’d actually hurt the big oaf but because he
wanted
to move. Adam didn’t do anything he didn’t want to do.

And just like that, unbidden, came a flash of what he’d wanted to do last night. Or rather,
who
he’d wanted to do.

Her.

She shivered before relegating the erotic images to the back of her mind, where she could pull them out later, when she was alone. Because right now her dad was watching her carefully, a small frown on his face. Though he was generally clueless to the workings of a woman’s mind, he was clearly getting a vibe from her.

“You really thought something bad had happened to me,” he said.

Holly sighed. “It could have.”

“You need to worry more about yourself.”

She slid him a look.

“You’re across the country from your husband, who, by the way, never appears to call or check on you. What is he so busy doing that he doesn’t have time for you?”

His new TA, no doubt. Worse, she was thrown off by her father’s reference to her marriage. They
never
talked about her marriage. “We’re talking about you,” she reminded him. “This whole thing is about you.”

“Well, now we’re talking about
you
. You had to have that guy, remember? There was no talking you out of it. So what the hell good is he if he’s not ever at your side?”

She shook her head, discombobulated. “In all this time, you’ve never asked about him.” She felt Adam’s gaze heavy on her. “Which means that this is nothing more than your latest distraction technique. But you can’t distract me, Dad. You nearly killed me with worry.”

Her father couldn’t be distracted, either. “What the hell is going on with you, Holly? And don’t say nothing. It’s about Derek, right?”

She narrowed her eyes. “Why are you suddenly asking about him?”

“Call it a gut feeling.”

She sighed. “Fine. He’s no longer my husband. Happy?”

“Ecstatic. But what the hell?”

“I left him, Dad. I left him a long time ago.”

“And you didn’t think this was pertinent information?”

“You never asked. You never even talked about me being married. And as far as pertinent, it’s no more pertinent than you and Mom giving lip service to being married when in reality you were separated almost all of my childhood.”

He blinked. “At least we didn’t traumatize you and Grif with fighting, like so many other couples do.”

“You were three thousand miles apart. I don’t think that proves much. Plus, it was all pretend. You both hid all your
feelings. The calm front was just a façade.” She crossed her arms and turned away. She wasn’t doing this now. Not in front of Adam, who was watching their bickering session with carefully hooded eyes.

Donald rose and grimaced but then wavered. He paled and put a hand to his heart. Holly’s heart stopped and she rushed over to him.

Adam got there first, pushing Donald back down to the chair with surprising gentleness, hunkering before him, looking into the older man’s face.

“Dad,” Holly said urgently. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. I’m fine.”

He wasn’t fine. He looked clammy, sweaty. And he was breathing erratically. “Dad—”

“Don’t fuss,” he snapped, and waved her away.

Stung, Holly backed up, then watched in disbelief as Adam reached in and took her dad’s pulse, getting a weak smile out of him in the process.

“The low blood pressure again?” Adam asked quietly.

“Yeah, the fucker.”

Adam rifled through his pack and pulled out a bottle of sports water.

“Not thirsty,” Donald said.

“Drink it. You’re probably dehydrated and the electrolytes will help the hypotension.” He unwrapped a snack bar. “And eat this.”

“Those are disgusting.”

“It’s got salt in it. That will help, too.”

Under Adam’s watchful eye, Donald drank and then ate, and then drank some more.

“Better?” Adam asked.

“Yeah.” Donald sighed and looked slightly sheepish. “I hate this shit.”

“What shit?” Holly asked. “What’s going on?”

Adam never took his eyes off Donald. “You need to tell her. She deserves to know.”

“Deserves to know what?” Holly demanded, her gut tight. “Dad, tell me.”

“I had a little problem a few months back. You were in New York. With your non-husband.”

“I was procuring my divorce,” she said tightly. “What kind of problem?”

He paused. “A heart attack problem.”

Holly gaped at him.
“You had a heart attack and didn’t tell
me?”

“It was a
little
one. A
very
little one. And I’ve completely recovered. It’s just that some of the meds I’m on now to lower my blood pressure have some side effects, that’s all.”

“That’s
all
?” she repeated, her voice cracking. “You had a heart attack and you didn’t tell me? Did you tell Griffin?”

The guilty look on his face said it all. “Oh my God. You didn’t tell either of us,” she said, shaking her head in disbelief. “Dad. How could you?”

“Because you would have worried. You’d have nagged me about my eating habits, about the too-young girlfriend, about going out on hunting trips alone—”

“You think?” Devastated, she pushed her glasses up and pressed her fingertips to her eyes, drawing in a deep breath. She dropped her hands and tried to make him understand. “Dad, you can’t do this anymore. You can’t take off on your own like this.”

“I’m telling you, I’m healthy as a horse.”

“Except for the heart attack and the low blood pressure.”

He waved that aside. “I’m taking my meds. Exercising. Doing everything I’m supposed to. I’m not going to change, Holly. Not even for you.”

She looked at Adam, who wasn’t giving much away, except for maybe regret.
He’d known
. She couldn’t stop thinking about that. He’d known about the heart attack, which was undoubtedly why he’d come in the first place.

She drew in a deep breath and shook her head. She’d have to deal with him later; her father’s health was far more
important. “How are we going to do this?” she asked him. “Get him back?”

“I’ll get myself back,” Donald said indignantly.

“You’ll be more comfortable in the Ranger,” Adam said.

“And I’ll drive his ATV,” Holly said.

Donald shook his head. “You’re not driving my ATV.”

“And why the hell not?” Holly demanded.

“Because you drive like your grandmother.”

Holly felt her own blood pressure rise, but it didn’t start to boil until she met Adam’s gaze. His dark eyes were warm and filled with humor, the ass. “Deal with it, Dad,” she said. “Because
you’re
not driving back. Now let’s go.” She didn’t want to risk getting stuck up here for another night. She could handle no running water, not to mention the lack of a toilet or electrical outlet for her hair straightener. What she couldn’t handle was another night with Adam—and now also her father—both of whom she was afraid she loved dearly in spite of their many,
many
faults. “Dad, tell me the truth—are you really okay, or should we call for help to get you out?”

Her dad laughed. “You’ve got the best S&R guy right here. I think he can handle me.”

“
You
can handle you,” Adam told him. “Hell, you can probably still outdo me.”

Her dad smiled, pleased at that. But Holly met his gaze and saw the truth. That he
was
aware that he was getting older, that he’d had a health scare, and it had done just that—scared him. But he wasn’t the sort of man to go out without a last fight. He always said he’d never be the sort of man to lie down and let old age catch him. “Okay,” she said softly. “Let’s go. But do me a favor and take it easy on your S&R guy. He’d just gotten back from a rescue when I dragged him out here. He’s injured and probably exhausted.”

Donald flicked a glance at Adam.

Adam shook his head. “I’m fine.”

“Hear that?” Donald asked Holly. “He’s fine.”

Men. “He’s got a bunch of stitches in his shoulder.”

“That’s nothing,” Donald said.

Holly just stared at him, and her dad patted her leg. “Honey, after the things he’s seen and done, these past few days have probably been a picnic in the park. Isn’t that right, boy?”

Adam’s mouth quirked slightly, as if the thought of being a boy was amusing to him. And hell, it probably was. Even when he’d been young, he’d never really had the luxury of being a child. As long as Holly had known him, he’d always had that air of tough readiness. But surely he wanted to get back as badly as she did. Even badasses needed rest.

Adam repacked his gear to add some of Donald’s load to his, and then they left. Holly started down the trail ahead of them. Adam watched her go for a minute, then slid his gaze to Donald. Who was eyeballing him blandly. Like a rattler at rest. Or the father of a beautiful woman…

Yeah. There was nothing more dick shriveling than lusting after a woman and being caught at it by her father. No matter if the father was a man who’d been there for him more than once.

Saying nothing, Donald began walking, keeping the pace slow. Adam accommodated him, thinking maybe the guy was feeling more weak than he’d let on.

“What’s up between you two?” Donald asked bluntly, not sounding old or particularly weak at all.

Adam thought about pleading the Fifth and not answering, but he respected Donald too much for that bullshit. “None of your business.”

Donald stared at him for a long beat, then let out a bark of laughter that had Holly turning around to look back at them. She narrowed her gaze on them both, but then faced forward again, continuing on at the same pace.

Donald shook his head at Adam and kept walking. “You’re not her type.”

This was undoubtedly true, but for a little while last night he’d felt a whole hell of a lot like her type.

“She likes them older, sophisticated,” Donald said. “The cerebral type. I told you this years ago. You don’t listen.”

Once again, Adam’s gaze locked on Holly walking ahead. She had her ear buds in, iPod in hand, clearly over the both of them. “I listened,” he said. He just hadn’t necessarily agreed.

“Yeah,
after
you got yourself in trouble,” Donald said. “If it hadn’t been for that, I’d never have been able to talk you into getting the hell out of Dodge and into the military—where I knew you’d learn what you needed to learn.”

“You mean how to be a functioning member of society instead of a drain on the system behind bars?” Adam asked.

“Well…” Donald rubbed his jaw ruefully. “Yes.”

Fair enough. Adam had definitely been on a one-way track to the wrong side of the law. “It worked.”

Again, Holly whipped around, eyes narrowed right in on Adam.

The minx hadn’t been listening to music at all. She’d been far too busy eavesdropping. She glared at him and then stared at her father. “
You
talked him into going into the military?”

Adam grimaced. “Listen, we’re going to lose daylight if we don’t keep moving—”

Holly lifted a hand in the direction of his face, the universal sign for him to
Shut
it
.

Adam shoved his hands in his pockets. This wasn’t going to go well. For any of them.

Holly stalked back toward them. “What do you mean,
you
talked him into going into the military?” she demanded of her dad.

Well, shit.

“You remember the trouble the boy got himself into there at the end,” Donald said.

“Yes,” Holly said. “He was always in trouble. That was nothing new.”

“Not like that last time,” Donald said. “He could have ended up in jail.”

“But he didn’t.”

“Because it was suggested that if he went into the military, it would be a better course of action.”

“Suggested by you,” Holly said, clarifying.

“Yes,” Donald said.

Holly turned to Adam, emotion blazing from her eyes. He could have dealt with that—except for the hurt. Christ, so much hurt.

“So you didn’t
have
to go into the military,” she said. “The judge didn’t make you. You chose to leave.” Not a question but a statement.

It hadn’t been the biggest lie he’d ever told her but definitely the harshest. “Yes,” he said quietly. “I chose to leave.”

She blinked once, then looked at her father again. “And you had a hand in it. It was your idea.
You
talked him into going into the military, which could have cost him his life.”

“At the time I thought it was best.”

Holly lifted a hand and rubbed it to her chest as if it ached. “You took him from me.”

Donald’s gaze never left her face. “Well, to be fair, I didn’t know there was a you and him. If I’d known, I’d have sent him a lot farther. Like to fucking Mars.”

Adam gave a wry smile. It was true. Donald was notoriously protective of his only daughter. When she’d run off to New York and gotten married at nineteen, it had nearly killed him. If Donald had been aware back then that Adam had taken his precious daughter and shown her a walk on the wild side—for an entire summer, in fact—it was questionable as to whether or not Adam would still be breathing.