"We heard you scream, dear. Are you all right?" Lorraine asked, concerned.
Dana sat up, trying to calm her wild heartbeat. Her eyes were full of tears, and she felt sick all over. "It was just...just a nightmare, I'm sorry I disturbed you both."
"It's all right," Lorraine said. "We were worried. Will you be...?"
"I'll sit with her for a moment," Gannon said curtly, ramming his hands into his pockets. "Would you have the maid fix some coffee and bring it up?"
"I'll do it myself," Lorraine said, turning. "I could use a cup, too. Back in a minute."
"You don't have to stay with me...." Dana said tautly.
He felt his way to the chair by the bed and sank into it. His blond hair was tousled, his face was grim, his blind eyes bloodshot, as if he hadn't slept at all. His pajama top and robe had fallen open over a mat of blond hair that seemed to cover his broad chest, and he looked impossibly masculine in her bedroom. He made her nervous.
Oddly enough, he seemed to be concerned about her. He looked toward her, his eyes troubled. "I won't leave you, Dana," he said quietly, and the sound of her given name on his lips disturbed and flattered her.
She pushed back her long hair with a ragged sigh and dabbed at the tears with a comer of the sheet. "I should get up," she murmured, tossing back the covers to reach for her robe at the foot of the bed. It was blue terrycloth, and old, but it made her feel more secure with a man in the room—even a sightless one.
"Self-conscious?" he asked gently. "You aren't used to men seeing you in your nightclothes, are you? Not that I can see...." he growled. "Are you all right? What happened?"
"I had a nightmare, that's all," she said, and the mattress sprung up as she got to her feet and tied the robe securely.
He stood up at the same time, colliding with her. She gasped and clung to him to keep her balance, and the magic of his warmth and strength made her knees even weaker.
"Dana?" he whispered, bending.
Incredibly, he found her knees and back and lifted her completely off the floor in his arms, holding her to his chest.
"Mr....van der Vere..." she protested.
"My name is Gannon," he breathed, searching blindly for her mouth. "Say it..."
"Gannon..."
His lips took his name from hers, and she felt their warm, soft pressure against her own with a leap of her heart. She stiffened, but when the pressure continued with the same tenderness, she let her taut muscles relax.
"That's it," he whispered. "I'm not going to hurt you. I only want to comfort you a little, that's all. Please, don't deny me the one altruistic gesture of my life."
She watched his face as he kissed her again, softly, with the same undemanding pressure as before. His mouth was warm and hard, and she liked the feel of it rubbing against her own. She liked the minty sigh of his breath on her lips and the smell of him and the strength of his arms holding her.
She let her arms slide around his neck and her mouth tentatively moved against his, a tiny movement like a tremor. He stiffened; his arms tightened. Then his brows began to knot and his face hardened. AH at once his mouth burrowed between her lips and the kiss became complete.
She gasped and pushed at his shoulders, and he drew back immediately, breathing hard.
"Predictable, wasn't it, little one?" he whispered with a wry smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to take liberties. I really did mean to comfort you and nothing more."
"It's all right, I understand," she said shakily. She watched his face with awe. She hadn't dreamed that a kiss could be so...frighteningly affecting.
"Perhaps we'd better have our coffee in more sedate surroundings after all," he murmured dryly as he set her back on her feet. "You're a temptation, miss, and you have a very sweet young mouth that I could learn to like all too well. I don't want to see you rush wildly away because I lost my head in the darkness."
She dragged her robe closer. "As you said," she replied, "it was the darkness. And my fear."
He touched her sleeve. "The wreck we saw this afternoon—it brought back unpleasant memories?"
"Yes, sir." She pushed back her hair. "Hadn't we better go? Your stepmother will have a pot of coffee by now, I expect."
"Yes, I expect so." He let her take his arm and lead him out of the room. "And I thought I was the patient,'' he teased softly. "Perhaps we were both mistaken."
She made a tiny sound and smiled as they joined Lorraine in the dining room.
Chapter Five
A minor crisis in Gannon's company kept him occupied on the phone for hours the next day, and an unexpected visitor arrived just as the cook was putting dinner on the table.
"Dirk!" Lorraine cried, smiling. She jumped up from the table and darted toward a tall, dark man while Dana tried to figure out who the newcomer was.
He was as dark as Gannon was fair, and not nearly as big. He had an easy smile and his face was that of a man who laughed a lot. The only Dirk whom Dana had heard mentioned during her stay at the beach house was Gannon's brother, but of course this couldn't possibly be him...could it?
"And who is this?" Dirk asked, when Lorraine stopped hugging him, nodding past her to where Dana sat neatly in her nurse's uniform at the long table.
"Gannon's nurse, Dana Steele. Dana," Lorraine said with a gay smile, "this is my other stepson, Dirk van der Vere."
"I'm very pleased to meet you," Dana said politely.
He grinned, and she realized suddenly that he wasn't much older than she was. And where Gannon's Dutch accent was detectable, Dirk spoke English without the trace of an accent.
"The pleasure is all mine," he corrected. "Am I in time for dinner? Great, I'm starved."
"What brings you down here?" Lorraine asked.
"Gannon. He's in the study, as usual, I take it?" he continued, ramming his hands into the pockets of his gray suit. He sighed. "We've got a strike on our hands, and it's all my fault."
"Is it, or is Gannon just blaming you?" Lorraine murmured with a tiny smile.
He chuckled. "Know him pretty well, don't you? No, I suppose if he'd been in my shoes, he'd have averted it That's true enough." He shrugged. "I wasn't in a position to promise too much until I could talk to Gannon."
"Can you iron it out?"
"That's what he had me fly down here to find out. Two of the union people wanted to come with me, but Gannon wouldn't allow it: He didn't want them to see him...like this."
"If only he weren't so sensitive about it," his stepmother sighed.
"Amen." He turned to Dana. "Making any progress?"
She laughed. "Not too much, but at least I've coaxed him out of the house a few times."
"It's just that we can't mention his blindness," Lorraine added. "He won't even listen when the doctor discusses the reason for it."
"Maybe he wants to be blind: Have you ever thought Of that?" Dirk asked soberly. "No, hear me out," he continued, when the older woman would have interrupted. "You know how hard he was pushing himself before the accident And there was Layn hanging on to him like a leech, dragging him around the world with her.... He was going twenty-three out of every twenty-four hours, and it was telling on him. Maybe his body did it to him to save itself."
"Layn," Lorraine said bitterly. "Where is she now, do you know?"
"Hanging around with a rich sheikh, I hear," Dirk said coldly. "Where I hope she stays. You do realize that if Gannon regained his sight, she'd be back here like a shot?"
"Surely he wouldn't take her back," the elderly woman said.
Dirk laughed. "Are you kidding? You've seen Layn; what sighted man could resist her?"
Lorraine sighed wearily. "I suppose you're right."
Dana was sitting quietly, listening. Layn must have been the woman who had walked out on nun when he was blinded. According to what they were saying, he must have cared for her very much. She stared into her plate. Against a woman like that, what chance would a plain woman have with a man like Gannon van der Vere? She blinked. Why should she have such
an odd thought? She didn't care about him, so what did it matter about the woman from his past?
She became aware suddenly that Dirk was watching her, but when she looked up, he grinned.
"Deep in thought, Miss Steele?" he asked. "How in the world did Gannon manage to find such an attractive nurse? This is a pretty dull place."
She flushed at the unexpected compliment. She'd thought the scar down her cheek would detract from what slight beauty she possessed, but Dirk hadn't
seemed to notice it. "You're very kind," she murmured, "but I love it here."
"Dana isn't like Layn, my dear," Lorraine said with a gentle smile. "She's managed to get your brother out of the house, out of his shell. He's even allowing me to have a small party next month for his birthday—-just intimate friends, you understand, but isn't it a big step in the right direction?"
Dirk chuckled. "Yes, indeed. Miss Steele must be a miracle worker of sorts," he added, winking at her. "Well, let me go and face the dragon. Then perhaps we can sit down to a peaceful meal."
He wandered off toward the study. The door opened and closed, and there was a loud discussion behind it.
Lorraine laughed softly as Dana's head lifted curiously.
"Nothing to worry about, Dana," she said. "They argue constantly, especially when it comes to company policies. Gannon would like to expand the business; Dirk is cautious. Gannon believes in the generous approach to labor negotiations; Dirk is conservative. They're very different."
"I suppose most brothers are," came the quiet reply. "I've always hated being an only child. I used to hope for a brother or sister when I was little."
"Your parents couldn't have other children?"
Dana shifted uncomfortably. "No," she said simply, letting it go at that.
"I'd better have the maid get a room ready for Dirk. No doubt he'll be here at least overnight. I never expect quick solutions when my stepsons start discussing company politics." She patted Dana on the shoulder and left the room.
It was another hour before the men joined them at the table, and Dana was starving. The beef and scalloped potatoes had been kept warm, and now fresh rolls and asparagus with hollandaise sauce was being brought in by the cook.
"That smells like asparagus/' Gannon remarked as he slid cautiously into his chair at the head of the table. He looked out of humor, but Dana noted that he wasn't scowling as fiercely as usual.
"It is," Lorraine said. "Everything settled?"
Dirk only laughed. "If you believe that, I've got some oceanfront property in Arizona I'd like to talk to you about"
"In the middle of the Painted Desert, no doubt," Dana murmured, tongue in cheek.
Dirk's eyebrows lifted. "However did you guess?"
Gannon was listening to their conversation, and his face darkened. "How long are you staying, Dirk?" he asked curtly.
"Oh, a couple of days, I suppose—now mat you've phoned Dobbs and gotten the union off my back," the younger man added wryly.
Gannon made a gruff sound and waited for Dana to fill his plate and tell him what was where. The others watched the small ritual with careful amusement. It was so new for them to have Gannon docile.
Her eyes ran over his hard face like silk, liking its rough contours, the broad forehead and jutting brow over his gray eyes. He was a handsome man. Dana could almost picture him in evening clothes; he'd stand out anywhere.
Dirk, watching, smiled at the look on her face. "Dana, how would you like to drive up to Savannah with me tomorrow and see the city?"
She jerked her eyes up, astonished at the unexpected invitation. She wasn't the only one, because Gannon's eyes darkened menacingly.
"I can't spare her," Gannon said shortly.
"She's been here for several weeks, dear," Lorraine reminded him, "without a single day off. Don't you think she deserves a little recreation?"
Gannon's jaw tautened. "She's been out driving with me, hasn't she? Walking?"
"Really, Mrs. van der Vere, it's all right..." Dana began softly.
"No, it isn't," Dirk broke in. "She isn't slave labor."
Gannon made a rough sound. "All right, take her with you," he said harshly. "If she thinks she needs a day away from me, I can't stop her."
He was making her feel guilty, and she didn't like it.
"She does need a day away from here," Lorraine seconded. "She's young, Gannon; it must be terrible to be shut away from the world Like this."
"But it isn't...!" Dana tried to say, but Gannon's deep voice drowned her words.
"Go, then," he said bitterly. "I don't need you, Miss Steele, and that's a fact. I never have." He tossed his napkin aside and almost knocked over his chair, getting to his feet. "Excuse me, I've lost my appetite."
Dana was painfully aware of the two pairs of eyes watching her, but she was top disheartened to put her thoughts into words. She felt as if she'd betrayed the big Dutchman, and it wasn't a feeling she liked. Perhaps she was getting too close to him and a day away would do her good. After all, this job was temporary. He might regain his sight any day and she'd return to Ashton.
That thought disturbed her very much. She went walking on the beach at dusk, dragging her feet in the sand, her eyes troubled as they sought the horizon across the ocean. Her disorderly mind kept going back to that warm, slow kiss they'd shared the night before, and the strange new feelings it had kindled in her. She couldn't remember ever wanting a kiss to begin again, not with any other man. But, of course, Gannon was an experienced man. She hugged her arms across her chest. She had to stop thinking about it nevertheless. She was his nurse, nothing more; she couldn't afford the luxury of getting emotionally involved with him. He was just passing time, but Dana was far too moral a woman to yield to temptation. Besides that, she didn't want him getting too close. It was a trap that would rob her of her peace of mind, that would make her vulnerable. She didn't trust emotions anymore. Especially she didn't trust her own. Her life, since her mother's death, had dissolved. She felt totally alone, and a part of her liked that aloneness. It would protect her from any more wounds; it would protect her from being hurt again.
"Dana! Wait up!"
She whirled, the wind catching her loosened hair, to find Dirk running along the beach toward her. He was wearing jeans and a knit shirt, and he was barefoot.
"You're fast, lady," he chuckled, sticking his hands in his pockets as he fell into step beside her. "What are you doing out here all alone?"
"Enjoying the view," she admitted. He was easy to talk to, and she smiled. "Isn't it just great? Sea breeze, all that ocean out there, and peace and quiet along with it. People tire me sometimes. I like solitude."
"Don't mind your own company?" he teased lightly. "You're a rarity. Most people can't stand to be alone."
"Your brother seems to like it well enough," she mused, glancing up at him. "Is it only since the blindness?"
"Exactly. Oh, he's been a lone wolf most of his life in that he lives as he pleases." He frowned. "But he's never cared for solitude like this. There were always... friends with him," he added, and she wondered if he meant to say women instead of friends.
"We're all different," Dana sighed. "It's a good thing too. Imagine how dull it would be if we all thought alike?"
"There'd be fewer wars," he reminded her.
"Yes, but creativity would go down the drain."
"As you say." He pursed his lips and looked down at her. "Is he making much progress?" he asked.
She let her shoulders rise and fall. The comfortable jeans and sweat shut she was wearing felt wonderful in the cool air. "I thought so until tonight. I really don't think it's a good idea that I go to Savannah with you— not if it's going to upset him like that. It's been a struggle just getting him out of the house."
He nodded. "I can imagine. But you mustn't let him make you into a puppet, Dana. He can do that, I've watched him."
"I won't. But he does pay my salary, and his track record with his nurses isn't super, I'm told." She lifted a
n eyebrow. "If he throws me out, who'll be brave enough to take my place?"
He winced. "What a horrible thought. Mother told me she begged your supervisor not to tell you everything about Gannon. She was afraid you wouldn't come."
Dana laughed. "I might not have. But once I got here, I wouldn't have left for the world. He challenged me, you see."
"If you want a real challenge," he said dryly, "you ought to wander into his study right now. I barely escaped with my skin intact."
"What did you do to irritate him?" she asked.
He chuckled, watching the ocean begin to darken as the sun set. "I breathed," he murmured. "He's thumping around the room, knocking over furniture and cursing everything from the color of the sky to the carpet that keeps tripping him up."
She drew in a slow breath. "Should I go in and see if I can calm him before your mother jumps off the balcony?"
"I see you've figured Lorraine out very well," he observed. "She's very nervous when he's in a temper— and he hasn't been any other way since the accident."
"At least you believe as the doctors and I do: that it's all a matter of making him realize he hasn't lost his sight permanently."
"Oh, I agree, all right. But Gannon's the one who has to be convinced. And, lady," he added with a grin, "that is going to be a full-time job, and not without hazards,"
"I've already found that out," she said with a sigh.
"Won't you change our mind and come with me?"
She looked up at him thoughtfully. "If you'll take Mr. van der Vere along, too, I'll come."
He lifted his eyes helplessly to the sky. "What a horrible thought."
"Will you?"
He looked down, his head cocked, his eyes twinkling. "For you, lovely lady, anything."
"Not so lovely," she murmured, touching the scar.
"It hardly shows," he argued. "And it's healing. You'll be left with hardly a memory of it in a few weeks."
"I suppose."
"Is that why you came here?" he asked quietly, stopping to watch her expression. "To hide your scars?"
Books By Diana Palmer Page 219
