Undercover Passion (14 page)

He stared at the note for a long time, then swore, crumpled the paper and threw it down on the bed. He was feeling betrayed—by his grandmother, by Abby, by the system that had him going through these hearings that he didn't deserve. If he ended up losing his job, he would have to pull out of the retirement-home commitment he'd made in his grandmother's name. There would be no way they could afford it. And then what? He didn't know, and right now he didn't care. He needed to sleep. Maybe after he did that he would be able to think clearly again.

T
he air was cool enough that Phoebe and Abby needed light jackets, but sitting on their deck chairs, holding umbrella-topped virgin daiquiris and gazing out at the snow-white face of a glacier, they were as happy as any refugees from reality might be. But that didn't mean they were in complete agreement.

“I think you're being bull-headed about this,” Phoebe was telling her younger friend. “Things are not as black and white as you paint them. You
have to listen to other points of view before you make your judgment call.”

“But, Phoebe, he lied to me.” Abby took a long sip of her drink and frowned unhappily. “He had plenty of opportunities to tell me the full truth, but he didn't trust me enough to do that.”

“Listen, honey, you want to know about truth? Here's the truth. That boy's had a hard life and he's done pretty well with the hand he's been dealt. But it's made him wary of life, suspicious of being hurt again. He doesn't trust much of anybody.”

“He only needed to trust one person. Me.”

Phoebe gave a short cough of laughter, then looked at Abby sharply. “Well,” she said, “have you decided whether you love Daniel or not?”

Abby's jaw dropped and her cheeks reddened. “I— Well, I—”

“Oh, come on. We both know how you feel about him.”

“Do we?”

“My dear, you've thought about nothing else since we left Portland.”

“You're right,” Abby admitted mournfully at last. “You know, my whole life I've always been mostly concerned about doing well, being ambi
tious, making the grade. And now, suddenly, all that is out the window and all I can think about is a man who doesn't care a fig about me.”

“Don't be ridiculous. He's as crazy about you as you are about him.”

“No.” She shook her head. “I really don't believe that. He only pretended to be so that he could find out more about Dr. Richie.”

Phoebe sighed. “Don't be a nitwit. I've never seen him so in love as he is with you. Imagine his turmoil as he realized he was falling in love with someone he was basically lying to. What would you have wanted him to do at that point?”

“Just tell the truth.”

“But don't you see, he was in the middle of an investigation. He couldn't tell you.” She threw up her hands, beseeching the heavens. “Didn't he tell you the truth about everything else?”

Abby thought for a moment. “I don't know. Maybe.”

“You're asking a lot from the man, Abby. He played things the way he thought he had to. Cut him some slack. I'll make a wager he'll never lie to you again. To the point where you secretly wish he would save you from all that truth.”

Abby couldn't help but smile at that notion. She looked over at her friend. The woman had come out here to Alaska on a quest, but they hadn't talked much about it.

“And how about you?” she asked Phoebe. “Has this trip done what you hoped it would do? Do you feel Howard out here?”

“Feel him! I see him, I hear him, I dream about him at night.” She waved a hand toward the glacier. “Everywhere I look, in everything I do, Howard is there. And because of him, I remember all the good times. I was so lucky to have had such a good, full life with that wonderful man. I just needed to celebrate it one more time.” Her voice broke and she paused to get control of it, turning toward Abby. “And I have to thank you for helping me make it possible.” Reaching out, she took the younger woman's hand in hers.

“I'm happy to do it,” Abby said warmly, squeezing her hand right back. “Besides, it gave me a chance to get away, which I really needed.”

Yes, she'd gotten away and she'd had plenty of time to think things through as she stared at the beautiful scenery and ate the wonderful food. Still, that didn't solve her problem. She loved a
man who'd let her think he was what he wasn't and who'd used her to his own ends. At one point she'd dared to dream that he might love her. How could she ever know for sure?

Plus she had a job in a clinic where the man who'd hired her was being investigated for fraud. In other words, her job might very well be gone with the wind. Too bad. She'd had high hopes for that job.

And suddenly she realized that she couldn't conjure up the emotion for the job that she had for Daniel. She cared about her relationship with Daniel a lot more than she cared about that darn job.

Wow. This was a first for her. This was totally new. So maybe, just maybe, the man was worth fighting for. That was a new thought and would require some attention.

 

“You're being a great big baby.”

Ella Crown flashed her blue-eye-shadowed eyes at Daniel and skewered him with her intensity.

He looked at her with a frown, but it wasn't as surly as it might have been earlier in the week.
He'd been coming by the hospital every day to find out the latest on the Dr. Richie investigation, which was now official and out of his hands. Ella had her finger on the pulse and he got more up-to-date information from her than he ever did from the department downtown.

Ella had cornered him one of the first times he'd shown up and wrangled all the details of his life out of him. Funny, but she'd been his main confidante ever since. He found himself listening to her advice more often than he would have liked to admit. And now she was calling him names.

“Do you really think I'm being a baby?” he asked, feeling just a bit pathetic.

“You betcha. What you expect from that girl is only the impossible. Set the bar high enough and no one will ever be able to jump over it.” She sighed her exasperation. “And you expect a lot from that grandmother of yours, too.”

They were in the cafeteria and there was always the risk of being overheard, so she leaned across the table and spoke more intimately.

“I've been married enough times, I know these things. You can't dictate other people's happiness for them. They have to make it for themselves.
You can't tell other people what to do or how to react to things. You can't protect them from life. People have to be free to make their own mistakes. And you have to have a big enough heart to accept them as they are.”

She sat back, looking satisfied with her own wisdom.

“Now you take me. Wilbur has been after me for weeks to go out with him. The more he pulled, the more I pushed him away. I had to come to the table on my own terms. And now…” She flashed a smug grin. “Now we're going steady.”

Daniel grinned back at her. “Is
that
what you call it?”

“Certainly. We're seeing each other. We're seeing what might develop between us.”

“I think that's great.” He laughed. “Funny, but great.”

She swatted him. “Get back to the subject at hand,” she ordered him crisply. “Tell me about this retirement home you've chosen for your grandmother. What's this place like?”

He thought for a moment, then scrunched up his face, looking away from her.

“It's perfect,” he said softly. “It will be like
living in a mansion. It's the best place in the Pacific Northwest.” He turned his gaze back on her. “And it took all the money I could beg, borrow and steal to buy her a place there. They don't come cheap.”

And since he wasn't going to lose his job, he might have a chance of paying the price. At least there had been one element of good news—his hearing had gone off well and he'd been completely exonerated. In another week, he would be back at work as though nothing had happened. Sort of. At one time he'd wondered if he would be so bitter he wouldn't be able to go back and act natural. But now he knew differently. Something inside him had calmed down, as though a tension had been released. And it wasn't only because of the results of the investigation into his activities and the good things his superiors had said about him. No, there was more to it than that.

Ella pursed her lips. “Daniel, how do you know she wants to be in this place?”

He stared at her, uncomprehending. “
Wants
to be in this place? It's what she deserves. After all she's done for me, this is the least that I can do for her.”

Ella made a face, dismissing that. “But maybe it's not the right fit for her. I don't take her as the highfalutin' type. What if she's not comfortable there?”

Daniel was horrified by such thoughts. “How could she not be? Her every want and desire will be taken care of by people hired to make sure she's completely happy.”

Ella shook her head despairingly. “Daniel, this is exactly what I've been trying to tell you. You can't do everything for those you love. Some things they have to do for themselves. She may hate this place. You'd better be prepared for a little disappointment.”

He set his jaw. “Don't worry about that,” he told her, letting a little bitterness into his tone. “That I'm used to.”

She was about to say something else, but a young, handsome doctor with a full tray had approached their table and was gesturing toward the open chair.

“Mind if I sit here?” he asked. “The place is getting pretty crowded.”

“No problem.” Ella actually smiled at the man. “You're Dr. Riley Jacobs, aren't you? The one who's taking over the Healthy Living Clinic?”

“That's right.”

Ella introduced herself and Daniel. The doctor was polite but a bit gruff and didn't seem inclined to chat. That, however, was no impediment to Ella.

“So, I guess there will be some changes made at the clinic,” she said hopefully, trolling for information.

The man looked up briefly and shrugged. “I suppose so,” he said. “We'll see.”

Ella made a face at Daniel and went on. “Are you a TV guru, too, like Dr. Richie?”

“Good Lord, no.” She finally got a reaction. “I wouldn't be caught dead on one of those carnival shows.”

“But you are a nutritionist?”

“I can do nutrition,” he said reluctantly. “And all that well-being stuff. If I have to.”

He went back to concentrating on his food. Ella and Daniel exchanged glances and Daniel excused himself.

But he had to grin as he walked away, heading for the entrance, knowing the poor doctor was in for more of the same at the hands of good old Ella. She had a heart of gold but she did like to delve into other people's business.

Still, talking to her all week had really given him a new perspective on things. As time went by, he'd found his anger and sense of betrayal fading. Maybe he had been too hasty about some things. Maybe he ought to consider the opinion of others before he went on and tried to do things for them that they might not even want done.

Squaring his shoulders, he continued out the door, walking toward where he'd parked his car. His grandmother and Abby would be returning tomorrow. And suddenly he decided to go to the airport to meet them. Once he made that decision, his heart began to thump with anticipation, and he knew he was lost.

Despite everything, he was in love with Abby Edwards. What the hell was he going to do about it?

 

Abby didn't know what to expect when she came into the airport from the plane. When she caught sight of Daniel, her heart leapt into her throat. His gaze met hers and she started walking toward him. He was walking in her direction, too. She couldn't take her eyes off him. She felt as though she'd been dying of thirst and he was water for her soul. She forgot all about Phoebe,
forgot there were other people milling about the terminal, forgot everything but Daniel. She began to walk faster, an urgency to reach him taking over, and he was walking faster, too. Another ten yards, another few steps, and then she was in his arms and he was holding her so tightly and swinging her around in a circle and she was laughing and so very much in love.

But he was saying something. She made herself listen.

“Abby, Abby, will you forgive me?”

She wrapped her arms around his neck. “Oh, yes. And will you forgive me?”

He looked down at her. “For what?”

“Anything. Everything.” She kissed his mouth without inhibition. “I want us to start with a clean slate. So forgive me. Please forgive me for…whatever.”

“Okay.” He kissed her soundly. “I forgive you for whatever. On one condition.”

She looked up, startled. “What?”

He stared down at her and suddenly he could hardly breathe. “I don't know if I can get this out,” he muttered, feeling as scared as he'd ever felt in his life.

“What?” she demanded, pulling on his shirt and feeling suddenly scared herself. “What's your condition?”

He took a deep breath and forced it out. “That you marry me.”

He stared down at her, his eyes as wide as hers. He was just as shocked as she was that he'd said it.

“Really?” she said as though she was afraid he'd made a mistake. “Did you mean that?”

He nodded slowly. “I meant it.”

Then he grinned, feeling free. “I didn't know I wanted to marry you until I saw you coming in through that doorway. And then I knew.” He kissed her again. “Marry me, Abby Edwards. Marry me and have my children.”

She lay back in his arms, laughing. “I will marry you, Daniel O'Callahan,” she said clearly. “And I'll have as many kids as you can stand.”

Someone yelled, “Yeah!” and someone else said, “Kiss her again!” and that was the first they realized the clapping they'd heard was for them. They looked around, dazed, and found themselves encircled by passengers waiting for other flights. People were grinning and cheering them
on. They were both bright red in the face by the time Phoebe caught up with them.

“And here you are, making a spectacle of yourselves,” she pretended to scold. “I suppose you've gone and got engaged, haven't you?”

“That we have,” Daniel told her, dropping a kiss on her forehead. “You missed it all.”

“Well, I won't miss the wedding,” she said comfortably, linking arms with them both. After nodding to the crowd and acknowledging the lingering cheers, they started toward the parking area.