by Tori Scott
He suspected it was Sandy herself. Jason wasn't stupid. He knew a good thing when he saw it. Hunter wasn't stupid, either. He might not be looking for a wife, but he wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to explore what was happening between the two of them. Every time he got near her he wished they were alone, so he could do just that.
***
He was grinning when Sandy walked back into the room.
She looked at him suspiciously. "What are you smiling about?"
"My son just gave me permission to ask you out on a date."
"Oh, really? Do I get any say in this?"
"Sure. When I ask, you can say yes, or you can try to say no. But let me warn you ahead of time, I won't give you a chance to say no."
Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. He was perplexed by the anger that simmered in her eyes, then shocked when she stuck her finger into his chest and said, "Let me tell you something, Hunter Thurman. If and when I decide to date again, it will be with a man I choose to be with. I'll decide who it will be, and I'll decide when it will be. And when I say no, I mean no."
With that, she stormed out of the room, leaving Hunter with his mouth hanging open. What did I do wrong now? He'd only meant to explain he thought it was a big step forward in his relationship with Jason. Instead, he'd managed to insult her. But for the life of him, he couldn't figure out how.
***
He found Jason in the deli, looking over the menu. Sandy was nowhere in sight. Hunter pulled a chair out from the table and dropped onto it with a sigh, picked up the menu, and looked it over without saying a word.
Jason watched him for a moment. "Where's Sandy?" he asked, looking out at the empty corridor.
"I don't know, son. I'm not sure she'll be joining us."
"Why not? She said she would come as soon as she told the nurse where we were. You didn't do something stupid, did you, Dad?"
Hunter closed the menu and dropped it on the table with a sigh. "I must have. I told her you said it was okay to ask her out on a date, and she blew up."
"You must have said something more than that. I don't think that would make her mad. Unless…do you think she hates me, Dad? For hurting Melanie?" A troubled expression settled on his face.
Hunter reached across the table and covered his son's hand with his own. "No." He shook his head. "I don't think that's the problem. She reacted to something I said. She seems to like you, and I know Melanie does. Don't worry about it."
"Tell me exactly what you said," Jason said, relaxing a little. "Maybe we can figure it out."
Hunter had to laugh. Now his son was going to offer romantic advice. Maybe it wouldn't hurt. Jason was certainly more experienced in the dating scene. Hunter hadn't asked a woman out in seventeen years.
"I said, and I quote…" He related what he'd told Sandy, word for word. He followed it with what she had said.
"Dad, you're such an idiot sometimes." Jason blew out an exasperated breath and thrust his fingers into his hair. "Haven't you listened to anything Sandy's said over the last few days?"
"Of course I have. What are you talking about?"
"The things she's said about her father and her husband. They were jerks, Dad. Just like you can be sometimes. You don't tell women they don't have a choice. They're liable to scratch your eyes out. Heck, I'm just a kid and even I know not to say something stupid like that."
"I didn't tell her she didn't have a choice. I just meant that I was going to be persuasive, be so nice she'd want to go out with me."
"Well, that wasn't what she heard, evidently. You'd better go find her and clear things up. But hurry, would you? I'm hungry."
***
Sandy paced the floor of the ladies room, fuming. The nerve of that…that man! He wouldn't give her a chance to say no. Like what she thought and what she wanted didn't make a difference. Well, she'd heard that all her life, and there was no way she would ever get involved with another man who thought like that. She'd learned her lesson the hard way, but she'd learned it well. Who wanted to go out on a date with Hunter "me-man, you-woman" Thurman, anyway? Not her, no way.
Liar. You want to go out with him. You want to do more than that with him. "Shut up!" she muttered to herself. "I don't want to want him. I can't go through that again."
A woman pushed through the door and glanced around as if wondering who Sandy was talking to. Seeing no one else in the room, she hurried into a stall, looking at her like the men in white coats ought to be appearing at her elbow any minute. Embarrassed, Sandy left the room.
"Sandy, wait up," Hunter called from the other end of the hallway. She glared at him and turned in the opposite direction. She heard him running to catch up with her and hurried toward the elevators, praying one would open when she reached them. No such luck. By the time she had pushed the button, he was right behind her.
"Go away," she demanded without turning around.
"No, I need to talk to you. I just realized what I said to make you so mad, and I want to apologize."
She still refused to look at him, afraid she might give in if she saw that he was sincere. She'd made that mistake once, believing a man's smooth words and sincere voice. She didn't intend to make the same mistake twice.
When the elevator door opened, she stepped inside, hoping Hunter would take the hint.
He didn't. He stepped right in after her and the door closed behind him. Wasn't this just great? Now they were alone.
Sandy pushed the button for the first floor. Hunter pushed the button to stop the elevator. That did it. She turned around, mouth open to deliver a scathing comment, and collided with Hunter's firm, warm lips. His tongue swept into her open mouth and captured hers, caressing and stroking as he deepened the kiss.
She forgot to struggle. She forgot to breathe. All she could think about was this moment, this feeling of pure excitement that raced through her body.
It took a moment for the ringing in the background to penetrate her fogged brain. The emergency buzzer. She pulled herself away from Hunter's dizzying kiss and pushed the button again to allow the elevator to resume its journey. She leaned back against the wall, chest heaving as she tried to catch her breath, and glared at him. "What was that supposed to prove?"
"It wasn't supposed to prove anything," Hunter replied. "I was trying to show you how I planned to persuade you to go out with me. What I said earlier, about not giving you a chance to say no. I didn't mean that I would force you to do what I wanted. I just meant that I was going to do everything I could to make you want to go out with me. I'm planning to pour on the charm, use every means at my disposal to prove to you that I'm not like your father or your late husband."
When she tried to interrupt, he placed a finger on her lips. "Just a second. Let me finish trying to get my foot out of my mouth. You haven't said that much about either of them, but it was enough for Jason to understand how you feel about being told what to do. He was the one to point out what an idiot I am."
Her lips felt as though they'd been branded. And they had been, first by the kiss, then by his finger. She reached up and touched her mouth. It felt swollen. Hot.
Before he could finish, the elevator reached the first floor and the door opened. As soon as they stepped out, Jason waved to them from the deli, motioning for them to come on. Sandy looked at Hunter. "Can we talk about this later? I'll forget it this time, but Jason's right. I don't like being told what to do."
"Yeah. Let's talk tonight over dinner, okay?"
Before she could answer, he placed his large, warm hand on her back and steered her toward the restaurant. Jason smiled at her and pulled out her chair. She sat, and Hunter helped her scoot the chair closer to the table, then took his own seat.
Jason leaned over to Hunter and whispered, "Everything okay?" Hunter just shrugged and opened his menu. Sandy did the same. "Well, we only have about forty minutes left. Are y'all ready to order?" he asked, his voice cheerful. Without waiting for an answer, he signaled the waitress.
When she came to the table, Jason ordered an Italian sub sandwich and Hunter chose a Philly Cheese. Sandy finally decided on a grilled chicken salad.
"How much longer will Melanie have to stay in the hospital?" Jason asked Sandy.
"I don't know for sure, but the doctor said she might be able to go home tomorrow, if she's doing well. I hope that's the case, because it's hard to keep her occupied here. I think it will be easier at home."
"And that's where Jason comes in," Hunter said. "He's going to help you keep her entertained." Missing completely the irritation on her face, he continued. "We've got a schedule all worked out so you'll have some free time." Jason kicked him under the table. "Ouch! What was that for?"
"Dad, just shut up while you're still behind, would ya'?"
"What did I say this time?" Hunter wanted to know.
Fortunately, the waitress chose that moment to deliver their dinners. They ate in silence, with Sandy's eyes shooting daggers at Hunter, and Jason casting furtive glances back and forth between the two adults. Hunter attacked his food like it was his last meal, not looking up from his plate. They were all relieved when they finished their lunch and could leave.
Hunter decided it was time to go home. Melanie wouldn't be out of recovery for another couple of hours, and Sandy was obviously not in need of his company. He said as much to Jason.
"I'm not leaving, Dad. You can go on and come pick me up later. I promised Melanie I'd be there when she woke up. I'll just hang out in her room and do my schoolwork until they bring her back."
Hunter turned to Sandy. "Is that all right with you?"
"Sure," she said, smiling at Jason. "That's fine. I know Melanie wants him to be here."
"Okay, I guess I'll go, then. I'll be back about four o'clock."
"Bye, Dad."
Sandy gave Hunter a cool smile and said, "Yeah, bye Dad."
She turned her back on him and walked away. Jason hung back for a moment.
"Way to go. Two strikes and it's the bottom of the ninth. If you don't get your act together, you're going to strike out and the ball game's over." Then he, too, turned and walked away without a backward glance.
***
When Jason and Sandy got back to the waiting room, they sat quietly for a few minutes, each lost in their own thoughts. Needing to break the oppressive silence, Sandy asked, "Would you tell me about your mother? I don't want to dredge up sad memories, but I'd like to hear about her, if you don't mind telling me."
Jason looked at the floor for a moment, his hands clasped and dangling between his knees, then finally raised his gaze to hers and nodded. "She was real pretty, small and dainty. She was only five-foot-two, and never weighed over ninety-five pounds that I can remember. She was like a kid, you know? She couldn't seem to do anything for herself. And she wasn't willing to try. My grandfather had always taken care of things for my grandmother. My mom thought that was how my dad should be, too." He paused a moment, a sad expression flitting across his face.
Then he straightened, leaning back in the chair. "Dad tried to teach her how to do things. Like mow the yard, or balance a checkbook. But she didn't want to learn. She'd just laugh and tell him that was why she needed him, to do those things for her."
That explains part of Hunter's behavior, Sandy thought. He'd probably gotten so used to doing everything for his late wife that he thought all women wanted to be taken care of.
"My mother needed a lot of attention," Jason continued. "She wanted it to be from my dad, but he was gone a lot. He was good to her when he was home, but he was usually only there for a month, then gone for two or three. She cried a lot when he was gone. She'd be depressed for the first couple of weeks, then she'd cheer up. After he'd been gone for a while, she'd start crying again. It was kind of hard, sometimes." He shook his head and stopped talking.
Sandy had a feeling that this was the first time Jason had really talked to anyone about what life was like with his mother. He looked so sad when he talked about her it almost broke Sandy's heart.
The poor kid had probably been living with a manic-depressive. She wondered if anyone else had seen that. She was no psychologist, but even she knew the symptoms. Why hadn't Hunter noticed a change in Jason during his leaves? Surely his son had given him some clue that things weren't right at home.
When the boy showed no sign of picking up where he'd left off, she reached over and grabbed his hand and squeezed it. "Jason, I didn't mean to make you sad. But sometimes it helps to talk about someone you've lost recently. And I wanted some clue about what's going on in your father's head. That was selfish of me. But you can feel free to talk to me about anything you want to. And it won't go any further, unless you tell me something I think I need to share with your father for your own safety. If I think I need to do that, I promise to tell you first, okay?"
Jason gave her a grateful smile and squeezed back. "Thanks, Sandy. You're easy to talk to, and I guess I do need to talk about my mom. The counselors tried to get me to but I couldn't tell them about her, knowing they'd be judging her and picking apart anything I said. And Dad doesn't really know what it was like because she was always bubbly and happy when he was home. I don't want him to feel sorry for me, or think I'm trying to make him feel guilty. Although I have put him through hell these last few months. I guess I blamed him for going off and leaving me there to be the man of the house. Especially those last couple of years. Things got kind of rough then."
Just when Sandy was going to question him further, the nurse came in to tell her Melanie was waking up and she could go back to the recovery room. She turned to Jason to apologize, but before she could say anything, he shook his head and told her to go on. They could talk later.
"I'm sorry, Jason, but I do need to go. I'll see you up in the room in a little while."
"Sure. Tell Melanie I'm up there waiting, okay?"
"I'll do that," she said with a smile, then followed the nurse out the door.
CHAPTER FIVE
Hunter walked through the shopping mall, looking in toy store windows without being sure what he was looking for. Then he saw it. A life-sized Winnie the Pooh--or at least Melanie-sized. It stood four feet tall, dressed in a red T-shirt like the smaller version she seemed to cherish.
He stopped long enough to wonder what Sandy would think about it, then decided that, in this case, it shouldn't matter. This was a gift, from him to Melanie. You didn't have to get an okay for a gift, right?
He felt a little conspicuous carrying the giant bear through the mall to the parking lot. Thank goodness he had the Tahoe. The bear would never have fit in the vintage MG he'd owned until a month ago. He strapped the bear into the passenger seat, then headed back to the hospital.
He called the room from the lobby and had Jason come downstairs. During the drive he’d decided it would be better if the bear came from Jason. It seemed Sandy would forgive him anything.
The elevator opened and Jason stepped out. "What's going on, Dad? Why don't you want Sandy to know you bought this?" He cocked his head and narrowed his eyes. "Don't you think you're acting a little weird?"
Hunter shrugged. "Because I didn't check with her to see if it was okay. I figure she won't get mad if you give it to Melanie. But she'd probably kill me."
Jason shook his head in exasperation. "When we get home, you and I are going to have a long talk about women," he said as he pushed the button for the elevator. "You've been out of circulation too long. The world's changed, Dad. You've gotta change with it." The elevator opened and saved Hunter from having to answer.
Hunter waited downstairs long enough for Jason to give Melanie the bear, then waited a few more minutes for good measure. He paced back and forth across the lobby, passing by the gift shop three times before he went inside and picked up a vase of bright orange Gerber daisies for Sandra. A peace offering, he told himself. Surely she couldn’t fault him for that. With more than a little trepidation, he took the elevator to the fifth floor.
Melanie lay on the bed, mos
tly covered by the giant bear. Only her arms, wrapped around Pooh's neck, and her casted leg showed. Sandy sat in a chair beside the bed, an indulgent smile on her face.
So far, so good. He pushed the door open the rest of the way and pasted a surprised look on his face. "What's that bear doing in Goldilock's bed?" he said in his best Papa Bear voice. A small giggle came from beneath the pile of fur.
Sandy quickly joined in the game. "Why, I don't know. Do you think he ate Goldilocks? Maybe you should come see."
Hunter crept quietly to the bed and grabbed the bear by the ear, pulling it back far enough to see Melanie's face. Her eyes danced with glee. "Nope. She's still there. I don't see her porridge, though. I bet he ate it all."
Melanie couldn't hold back any longer. She laughed and said, "No he didn't, silly. He's just a toy bear. Toy bears don't eat porridge."
Hunter wiped his brow. "Whew! That's good news. Where'd he come from? I don't remember seeing him before."
"Jason gave him to me. I love him." She didn't specify whether it was the bear or Jason that she loved, but Hunter suspected it was a little bit of both. The look she gave his son was full of hero-worship. There was the slightest twinge when he realized he wished she would look at him that way. He'd always wanted a little girl. He just hadn't wanted one with Liz, at least not after the first couple of years.
"Well, that was nice of you, Jason," he said with a straight face. He pulled the vase of flowers from behind his back and handed them to Sandy with a flourish. “And for you, an apology and a peace offering.”
Sandy’s eyes went wide. “They’re beautiful. Thank you.” She took the flowers and set them on the window sill. "Could I speak to you outside for a minute?" She took Hunter's arm and tugged him toward the door. "Jason, will you watch Melanie for me? The painkiller will start wearing off soon. If you see she's getting uncomfortable, ring for the nurse, okay?"
"Sure. We'll be fine." He looked at Melanie. "Won't we, squirt?"
