He shoved off the wall and grabbed the roll of Life Savers. “That’s going to cost you.”
She laughed and then sobered. “This was a totally preventable accident. I hope Mads kicks some as—” she caught herself, looking up at the chapel door, “—some asterisks when she’s better.” She pointed to the sandwich on the chair. “You better eat that. Ma’s orders. Looks like everyone’s coming back. Nick is cute. Don’t you think? Wonder how old he is?”
Alex shook his head and headed toward the group. He adored his sister, but sometimes she made him dizzy, the way she hopped from one topic to another.
“—everything happened so fast,” Andy said to Alex’s father. “She saved my hide.”
“She’s an awesome rider,” his friend Nick chimed in. “And cool, too.”
“Here.” Tim handed him a cup of coffee. “You reach George or her mother yet?”
Alex took a sip of the black coffee, shaking his head. “Couldn’t get a hold of either of them. I’ll try again soon as we hear something.” He sighed. “I’ll let Hollister know, too.”
An elderly doctor in green scrubs with a facemask dangling from his neck walked toward them, looking at the clipboard in his hand. He glanced at everyone. “Mr. Donovan?”
Alex followed him to a private corner near the window. “How did it go? How is she?”
“Ms. Saunders is in recovery.” The doctor removed his surgical cap. “We attempted to fit the radial head in her arm back together, but there was too much damage. We had to remove it. There were also significant injuries to the joint and ligaments.”
The coffee burned a hole in Alex’s stomach at the thought of the unbearable pain she must have endured.
“Because of the damage sustained,” the doctor continued, “we had to insert a prosthetic—an artificial radial head—to prevent deformity. Without the prosthetic, she could possibly have lost the use of her arm.”
Mother of God. Alex felt the blood siphoned out of every vein in his body. He squeezed his eyes shut for a second. If that Reckless parasite were standing beside him he’d rip her a new one. “Did she suffer a concussion or any other injury? I was told she blacked out.”
“A few bruised ribs. Rest and ice will cure those.” He consulted the clipboard. “Dr. Watson performed the neurological exam. No concussion or injury to the head. Report says she was wearing a helmet. She lost consciousness due to a combination of the wind being knocked out of her and low blood pressure caused by severe pain. Her blood pressure will be monitored for a few days.”
“When can I see her?”
The doctor glanced at his watch. “A nurse will let you know.” He nodded toward the group. “One at a time and only for a few minutes. She’ll be sedated for the rest of the day. Don’t be alarmed if she’s incoherent.”
Alex swallowed past a lump in his throat. “She’s not out of the woods yet, is she?”
He put a hand on Alex’s shoulder. “She’s in great shape, young and these surgeries have a high success rate. However, she may need more surgery for another replacement down the road, depending on how she responds to the prosthetic and therapy over time.” He gave Alex a faint smile. “If you’d like to be there when we explain this to her tomorrow, leave your number at the nurse’s station.”
“I’m staying the night,” he answered with a conviction that brooked no argument.
The doctor nodded. “She did fine, considering she has a strong aversion to needles.”
“She can bike over a cliff, but go near her with a needle and—”
“—and she tells you she’s from New York and she knows people.”
Alex couldn’t help but smile. “Classic Maddie.”
“She was frantic during the blood tests and when she learned she’d need another needle to be put to sleep. We had to give her a mild sedative before surgery. It helped. She insisted on singing us a song before going under.” The doctor furrowed his brows. “I’m not up on the latest pop music, but a few nurses hummed along with her. Something about hormones raging.” The doctor reminded Alex of his father. He had an I-don’t-get-women look on his face.
Passion’s in the air. Hormones raging, and baby, you look amazing. Alex could hear her singing. He nodded. “It’s a favorite of hers.”
The doctor shook Alex’s hand. “I’ll see you both tomorrow when I do rounds.”
His parents, Tim, his sisters and the teens approached him. “She’s in recovery,” he told them. He filled them in on what the doctor had said. “Once she’s allowed visitors, it’s one at a time for a quick hello. I’m staying the night.” He turned to Tim. “Before I forget, can you call Reece? They talk daily and she’d want to know—” he stopped mid-sentence as he overhead a familiar voice behind him, asking a nurse how Maddie Saunders was doing. He swung around.
“What the hell?”
Crystal Washington was headed his way.
Tim put his hand on his arm to stop him from confronting her. “I’ll get rid of her,” Tim said. “You go back to the hotel, get a change of clothes for tomorrow.”
He thought about arguing—his gut told him Crystal was responsible for this—but he knew he needed time to think about the best way to bring Reckless, Washington and her fellow tabloid trash down. Way down.
Thanking Nick and Andy again, he bid goodbye to everyone and headed out, but first he needed to make a quick stop. He swung the doors to the chapel open and stepped inside.
The next day, Maddie enjoyed one of the best dreams she’d had in a long time. She dreamt she was rubbing the top of Alex’s head, feeling his thick hair through her fingers. It seemed that all through the night, his soapy citrus scent had surrounded her. She felt his chin’s stubble on her face.
She coughed. Damn, that hurt. It was the first time she’d felt pain in a dream.
“Careful, sweetheart. Don’t force it.” Alex’s voice sounded real, whispering next to her ear.
Alex called her sweetheart. Smiling, she ignored the dryness in her throat and forced herself back to the dream. She wanted to go back to the part where he was brushing her hair away from her face, kissing her forehead, telling her how everything was going to be fine.
Cough. Cough. “Ow!” Damn. She had no choice but to wake up. Her throat was parched for real and her ribs were killing her. She’d have to do some stretches to work out the stitch in her sides, get something to drink and then slip back into bed to recapture that dream.
Yanking herself out of the dream, she opened her eyes. Alex was bent over her—he had that rumpled morning look, all warm and sexy. Cripes, she was in too much pain to enjoy it.
Where were they? Something heavy was weighing her right arm down.
Oh, the pain. Breathing frickin’ hurt. What the hell was going on?
A chair scraped. “Should we let the nurse know she’s awake?” a woman asked.
Maddie lifted her head. Ow! “Felicia?” Damn. Obviously she hadn’t woken up yet. The pain, the strange room and Felicia interrupting them—her dream had turned into a nightmare.
She lifted her hand to rub her aching head. Searing, white-hot pain stopped her. “Damn.”
“Easy there.” Alex gently adjusted the pillow under her right arm. “Nurse will be here with your pain meds.” He looked at his watch. “In about a half hour.”
She coughed again. “Ow. That…frickin’ hurts. Hurts…to breathe.”
“I know, baby.” Alex pressed something cold to her side. “I’ll hold this here for you.”
Felicia stood on the other side, pouring water into a cup. “I’ll go get the nurse—”
“What are you doing here?” She glared at Felicia. Her mother looked pale, her eyes were bloodshot. Maddie turned to Alex. “What is she doing here? What am I doing here?”
Alex was about to answer when two doctors—who looked familiar—walked into the room.
&nb
sp; She squeezed her eyes shut, hoping this was still a freakish dream and any minute now she’d wake up. But when she heard the doctors’ voices, it all came back to her.
Oh, yeah. Now I remember. I was attacked by a runaway bike. But I nailed that jump.
Alex and Felicia left the room while the doctors examined her. They prodded, poked and asked her to rate the pain in her ribs from one to ten, and encouraged her to move her fingers.
Her mother and Alex returned to the room. She was now wide awake and able to absorb the doctors’ explanations regarding the surgery. The doctors asked if she had any questions.
“Alex, what about Nick and Andy?” she asked. “Are they okay?”
“Not a scratch,” Alex said. “They’ll be by later to see you again.” He smiled. “You don’t remember them popping in to say hi yesterday? Tim, my parents and sisters were here too.”
“I thought it was a dream.” Relieved about the teens, she turned her attention to the doctors. “So, it looks like no biking, zip-lining or kayaking for a few weeks?”
Doctor Dimples—she forgot his name—shook his head. “More like months. Could be close to a year before you can attempt those activities again.”
She wanted to cry, but she didn’t. “How about swimming? Golfing?” At Alex’s hiked brows she said, “Hey, I was beginning to appreciate golf.”
The doctor who looked like Michael Caine—she couldn’t remember his name either—answered, “In time, yes. With physical therapy and patience, you’ll be able to do most things you did before.”
“Most things?” A wave of depression seeped into her. Okay, worse things could have happened. She decided to lighten things up. “Will I still be able to bake pies like Maryanne? Be a gourmet cook?”
Felicia looked at the doctors. “My daughter doesn’t bake or cook.” Her voice was panic-stricken. “Maybe she suffered a head injury. Are you sure you checked her thoroughly—”
“No worries.” Alex shook his finger at Maddie. “She’s kidding.”
“What Mommy Dearest is saying is that I swim in the shallow end of our feminine gene pool.” Maddie batted her lashes at the doctors even though they felt like hot shoots spiking her eyelids. “She’s always telling me to be more girly.” She looked at Doctor Dimples. “She’ll pay you top dollar to give me implants.”
“Madison, please.” Felicia gave the doctors a nervous smile. “I don’t want to cause a problem. I think I should leave and come back later—”
“Will you be bringing my daddy for a visit?” Was it fair to be such a bitch to Felicia? Probably not, but it hurt to breathe, and she was agitated and incapacitated. On top of all that, she had to pee, and there was no frickin’ way she was using a bedpan. “And have we figured out who he is yet?”
Felicia’s eyes watered, even though Maddie had seen her mother’s crocodile tears over the years, these seemed different. It was unlike Felicia to wear no makeup in public.
“I think that conversation can wait,” Alex said.
Oh yeah, it was coming back to her now. “Hmmm, I see you’re still on their side.” Scrutinizing him closer, she noticed he looked worn out. She realized she hadn’t been dreaming, he’d been here the whole night and probably hadn’t gotten any sleep.
Ashamed by her outburst, Maddie lowered her head. She should apologize to everyone, and make a joke to thin the air that was now thick with tension. But she had nothing. The doctor’s prognosis had sunk in, and she had excruciating pain in her arm and ribs, so if she apologized to her mother and Alex she’d probably end up blubbering like a baby.
“Mrs. Saunders,” Doctor Dimple said to Felicia, halting her exit. “Morphine can cause some patients to become uneasy.” He glanced at his watch and the chart in his hand. “And her pain medication is wearing off. This can also cause anxiety.” He turned to Maddie. “I hear you had a panic attack when you came in.”
Shit, she remembered that too. Her face heated. Damn memories were crystal clear now. Someone had had to hold her down for the X-rays and blood tests.
“I’ll apologize to any hospital staff that I threatened. But I did mean it in a nice way.”
Doctor Michael Caine put his hand on her shoulder. “Acute pain can cause that reaction.”
“Hey, there’s nothing cute about this pain.” She winced. “Yeah, I know. If you had a nickel for every time you heard that…”
“Right.” Dr. Michael Caine flipped through a chart. “Your vitals are good. Once you’re feeling up to it, you can start eating solids and we can disconnect your IV.”
The rest of his sentence faded into the air. She looked at her good arm and seeing a long, silver, drill bit—well, it did look like a drill bit—inserted into the back of her hand, she fainted.
Later that evening, after a short walk up and down the hospital corridor, Maddie was propped up in bed, finishing a light snack of applesauce and biscotti. Felicia had left, promising to return with Maxwell so they could talk. She said it was Maddie’s call as to when she wanted that to happen.
Alex sat in the chair next to her bed, watching a hockey game on ESPN.
“You don’t have to stay here all night again,” she said. “You’re going to go stir crazy.”
“Returning the favor, Nurse Nightingale.” Smiling, he patted his head. “Remember?”
She rolled her eyes. “At least you got a shower out of it. All I got was a sponge bath.” She stared at the cast on her arm. “You can call me Bionic Woman now.”
“I’m thinking Wonder Woman. Picturing you in those shorts and boots. Smokin’.”
Painkillers and his soothing voice were the only things that made this place bearable. “I’m sorry for being such a bitch the other day. You know, at the hotel.”
He clicked off the TV, stood and leaned over her. “There’s something else I remember my parents saying.” He gave her a gentle kiss on the lips. “Never be too proud to admit when you’re wrong and apologize. I should have remembered that instead of walking away from you.”
She held his tender gaze. “Guess I have a lot to talk about with Felicia and Maxwell, huh?”
Sitting on the edge of her bed, he held her unharmed hand. “Sweetheart, the only thing you have to do is get better so they can spring you out of this place.”
“I’m going to work my butt off with the physical therapy, but I’ve waited a long time to get answers about my father.” She squeezed his hand. “I…I’d like to talk it over with you now. That is, if you want to. I wasn’t exactly in a receptive mood the last time we tried this.”
“We both said things out of frustration. And I screwed up as the messenger.” He caressed her face. “Nothing, and I mean nothing you can say would ever stop me from being there for you. If you want to talk about this now, I’m in.”
She squeezed his hand again. “Do you think Maxwell could be my father?”
“According to the timelines, yes. And remember, Maxwell told me he has no doubt you’re his daughter.”
Her heart pounded with an emotion, but she wasn’t sure if it was relief, fear or both. “It’s so hard to wrap my mind around it. I spent an afternoon with the man. Wouldn’t I have felt something? Like a bond or a pull toward him?”
She shook her head. “I didn’t feel a thing.” She paused. “He did give me some hints. His interest in me. Our conversation about nature versus nurture. And he set me up with eligible millionaires.” She had to smile at Alex’s glower. Sighing, she laid her head back. “The information I received led me to believe I was conceived in a sperm bank. But Felicia isn’t the type of woman to get artificially inseminated. She never craved motherhood that badly. Do you think the PI I hired stiffed me with bogus information?”
“That information had nothing about Hollister or his family? A connection to Felicia?”
She shook her head. “Nothing. It led me to a few clinics. Reece was going to chec
k them out for me.” She lowered her gaze. “I know this is all so bizarre and I don’t know if I even want to be in the middle of this mess. And I’ll totally understand if you don’t want to be involved—”
He lifted her chin. “I’ll get the information from Reece and see what I can find out.”
Smiling, she nodded. “I don’t know how to thank you.”
He winked. “Bake me a pie?”
“Smart ass.” Taking a careful breath, she said, “I’m going to let Felicia know I’m ready to talk tomorrow.”
“They’ll understand if you’d rather wait a few more days.”
“I’m ready.” Holding back tears, she locked her gaze with his. How could she ever have thought he wasn’t on her side? “Will you be here with me?”
He lifted her unharmed hand and kissed her wrist. “Count on it.”
Chapter Thirty
“There are no good girls gone wrong—just bad girls found out.”
—Mae West
“I suppose Tim and Alex are pampering you?” Reece laughed. “Lucky beyotch.”
After a morning of therapy with Jonathan the physical therapist, Maddie had taken a bath with the help of a nurse’s aide, lunch and a nap, and was now enjoying light banter with her friend on the phone. She had kicked Alex out last night so he could get a decent night’s sleep at the hotel.
“Oh, yeah, they fan me, peel grapes and feed them to me one by one while wearing buckskin.”
“Nice fantasy you have going there,” Reece said. “Have they come up with a nickname for you yet?”
“Lefty. What else?” Maddie smiled. It was still too painful to laugh. “Actually, Mrs. Donovan is the one who spoils me. She brings me homemade pasta and cookies. She pinches my cheeks and says, ‘Eat, Madelina, you’re too skinny.’ It’s not good for the thighs but it’s great for my ego. Gotta love her.”
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