by Eve Gaddy
Levi had lived with his abusive father and younger brother. Tobi knew that rather than grounding him, Levi’s father would have beaten the crap out of him. Tobi, Travis and Zack had all known and tried to help Levi. But nothing had helped until the man died in a car wreck when Levi was seventeen and his brother was fifteen.
“But you and Shannon hit it off right away.”
“Yes, we did. Shannon’s death changed me. After that I couldn’t get close to anyone. Male, female, it didn’t matter. I was afraid it would hurt too much if I lost them.”
“You were engaged.”
“And it didn’t work out. My fault more than his.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“That it was more my fault?” She thought about that a moment. “Maybe it wasn’t. Steve convinced me that I was the problem, but that could have been him playing on my guilt.”
“I’d take whatever he said with a healthy dose of skepticism. You broke it off, right?”
“Yes. But he wasn’t happy either. And don’t forget, he married someone else three months later.”
“Still, some people have a hard time admitting when they’re at fault. Don’t take everything on yourself.”
After that Travis started talking about other things. Lucky, the clinic, Zack and Levi, Whiskey River gossip. Clearly, he was doing his best to keep her mind off flying. And the crash.
“Almost there,” he said after a while.
“Good. I want to call and see if my mom knows any more.”
“I told you it was okay to use your phone in flight.”
“And I told you I wouldn’t do anything that could possibly cause a problem.”
Travis radioed the tower, gave his call sign and location, and received landing instructions in return. Tobi was tempted to hold her breath during the landing, but she forced herself to breathe in long, steady breaths. Pretending a calm she didn’t feel. And then they were down and taxiing to a hangar.
She climbed down from the cockpit. Travis waited for her, giving her a hand as she got out.
“You did it,” he said.
“I can hardly believe it. Thank you. I don’t think I could have without you to calm me down.”
“Yes, you could have. You’re stronger than you know.”
“I don’t feel very strong right now.”
“You’ll feel better once you see your parents. Do you want me to drive you to the hospital?”
“No, I’ll rent a car. I’m sure I’ll need one. But thank you for offering.”
He looked at her with a wry smile. “You should know I’d do anything for you. That hasn’t changed.”
Tobi sucked in her breath, wishing she could throw herself into his arms and let him make her believe that everything would be all right. But she couldn’t.
“I don’t know what to say to you other than thank you. For everything.”
“Forget it. I’ll need your key so I can take care of Lucky.”
He’d given her back his key when they broke up. “You really don’t have to do that. He’s fine at the kennel.”
“He’ll be happier in his home. If I get back in time, I’ll pick him up today. Otherwise I’ll go get him in the morning.”
She started to argue but Travis held out his hand. “Give me the key, Tobi. I want to do it.”
“You’ve already done far too much.” But she dug around in her backpack, found the key and handed it to him.
“Let me know how your dad is. And when you know when you’re coming home. Do you want me to fly you back?”
She gave him a rueful smile. “I think one flight is enough for now. I’ll drive back to Texas.”
“Call me when you know when you’re coming back.”
“I will.” She turned to walk away.
“Tobi?” She looked back at him. “You realize accidents can and do happen all the time. In an airplane, in a car, walking across the street, in the ocean, in a lake, or just being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Everything we do carries a risk.”
“I know.”
But she didn’t really believe it. Not in her heart.
Chapter Twenty-One
By the time Tobi reached the hospital, her father was back in his room in the Cardiac ICU. He’d had the angioplasty and the stent put in and according to his nurse, was doing well.
Tobi talked to the nurse rather than her mother, since her mom had burst into tears upon her arrival and wasn’t in any shape to answer Tobi’s medical questions. The doctor would make rounds later in the day and she intended to be around for that.
But first she’d seen her father. Mac Robinson didn’t do hospitals. He looked pale and not like himself, wearing a hospital gown and with wires hanging from various places. But his face lit up when she walked in. Her poor mom was incoherent.
“What’s this I hear about you already giving the nurses hell?” She leaned over and kissed his cheek.
“No such thing. I’m glad you’re here. Your mother’s about to drive me crazy. She’s been crying since I woke up. Probably before that, too.”
“I have not. Mac, you’re exaggerating.” But her red nose and puffy, red eyes gave lie to her protest.
“It’s okay, Mom. Of course you were scared. Don’t do that again,” she told her father with mock severity.
“Believe me, I don’t want to. Your mother did just fine until the paramedics showed up.” He reached for his wife’s hand and squeezed it. “Lucky for me.”
Her parents exchanged a look that she’d seen many times over the years. Love and understanding.
“But, Tobi,” her dad said, “you didn’t need to come. I’ll be fine.”
“Don’t be silly. I wanted to be here. And I’m sure you’ll be fine.” She didn’t add that her mother had begged her to come. She was still trying to digest her strong, confident mother becoming a basket case when her husband had a heart attack.
Her father was discharged after three days in the hospital. Tobi planned to make sure her parents were okay and leave for home the following day.
“Did you get Dad to bed?” she asked her mother the evening he came home from the hospital.
“I did. Now I’m going to have a glass of wine. Would you like one?”
“Absolutely.”
After pouring the wine and handing Tobi her glass, her mom said, “I’m so glad you came. It meant a lot to your father and me.”
“Of course I came. Did you think I wouldn’t?”
“No, but I’ll admit to being shocked that you flew.”
“I wanted to get here quickly.”
“You haven’t talked about Travis at all since you’ve been here. Are you and he all right?”
Damn, she thought she’d dodged that particular bullet. “No. We broke up. Weeks ago now.”
“I’m sorry to hear that. I’ve always thought you two belonged together. What happened?”
Tobi told her the whole story. When she finished Irene asked her one question. “Do you love him?”
She nodded miserably. “Yes, but that’s the problem. I can’t live with the constant fear that once he walks out the door I’ll never see him again.”
“You’d rather live without him completely?”
“No, but I don’t think I can live with his career. And Travis can’t live without it.”
Her mother regarded her with a disapproving expression.
“What?”
“I was petrified that your father would die. I couldn’t imagine my life without him. But even if he had, I wouldn’t have missed one minute of our life together. Not one.”
“It’s not the same.”
“Ask yourself this. If something terrible were to happen to Travis tomorrow, or to you, for that matter, how would you feel knowing that you lost time you could have spent together because you were too scared to go for it?”
“I’m not sca—” she started to say, then stopped. Of course she was scared. She’d been scared of letting anyone get too close since the crash. Wo
rking in the ER, she’d seen how fragile life could be. But she’d also seen how resilient people were.
“You’re right. I am scared. I’m scared of how I’d feel if I lost Travis.”
“Honey, don’t you see, just because you broke up doesn’t mean your feelings for him will disappear. If you really love him they won’t. And you’ll have made both of you miserable for nothing.”
Was her mother right? Her feelings for Travis hadn’t changed. Neither had his feelings for her. They still loved each other. Could she learn to live with his career? Maybe she could. After all, she hadn’t believed she could ever fly again until she hadn’t been given a choice. But she’d done it. Honestly, the anticipation had been worse than the actual flight.
Didn’t she owe it to herself and Travis to at least try?
*
Travis was sitting on the couch with Lucky beside him, watching TV when they heard a car drive up. Travis didn’t get too excited because Lucky had been haunting the window and barking at everything all evening. Sure enough, he bounded off the couch but this time he went to the kitchen door, barking loudly, tail wagging madly.
Tobi walked in and Lucky immediately jumped on her, paws on her thighs and bouncing up trying to lick her. “Down, Lucky.” She was laughing, trying to calm down the dog, but finally had to drop her bags and give him all her attention.
Travis watched the two with a smile. Lucky liked him but he totally adored Tobi. “I think he missed you.”
“Yes, I missed you,” she told the dog, patting his head and scratching behind his ear. She looked at Travis and said, “I missed you too.”
Unsure how to take that, he raised an eyebrow at her. “Oh, yeah?”
“Yes. I’m going to take my bags to my room. I’ll be back in a minute.”
She missed him? What had she meant by that? Maybe nothing. He was reading too much into a simple ‘I missed you.’
A short while later she returned, with Lucky prancing beside her.
“How’s your dad?”
“Much better, thanks. He’s going to be all right. He’s starting rehab tomorrow and Mom is all gung ho about cooking healthy for him.” She sat on the couch beside him. “I’d offer you a beer except I have no idea if there’s any here or not.”
“Actually, there is. I brought over a six-pack. Why don’t I get us both one?”
“That sounds great.”
He went to the kitchen and returned with the beers. While Tobi had been in New Mexico, Travis had researched everything he could find on her plane crash. From what he read, particularly in the official report, the crash had been classified as pilot error. That wasn’t unusual, as over half of airplane accidents were attributed to pilot error. But the pilot of her flight had flown while disregarding the weather warnings, and had paid for it by flying into a blizzard. And crashing.
He wanted to tell Tobi about it, but for all he knew she was already aware of the facts. And if she wasn’t, she probably didn’t want to be.
“Did I see a completed fence outside?”
He nodded. “Harlan’s crew finished it while you were gone. They’ve also been working in the kitchen.”
“I thought it looked different but the refrigerator was still in the middle of the room, and I was so happy to be out of the car I didn’t pay attention beyond that. I’m going to look.”
She went in the kitchen and Travis followed her. “I hope you don’t mind, but I figured you’d like your kitchen finished sooner rather than later. Don’t worry, I let them in and locked up after they left.”
“Of course I don’t mind. But you didn’t need to do that. It was very sweet of you. What did you do with Lucky?”
“He came out to the airport with me. He seemed to like it. He made friends with everyone.”
“The kitchen looks great. I wonder how much is left to do?”
“I talked to the crew chief and according to him, a day or two at most.”
Lucky scratched at the back door, so Tobi let him out. “It’s nice not to have to worry about him running off.”
Travis laughed. “He won’t run off. He likes it here too much.” As if to prove his point, Lucky came charging back ready to be let in.
“I had a lot of time to think while I was gone,” Tobi said. “I thought about you and me.” She reached for his hand. “I still love you, Travis.”
“I’m still a pilot. Are you telling me you’re suddenly okay with that?”
“I want to be. I’m trying.”
He pulled her into his arms and rested his chin on her head. “You have no idea how much I want to believe that.”
“But you don’t,” she said, the words muffled against his chest.
“No, I believe you want to. I’m just not sure it’s possible. I thought about giving up flying.”
“You can’t. You love it. I would never ask you to give up a career you love for me. You’d hate me. Maybe not right away but it would never work.”
“Flying is what I do. It’s as much a part of me as being a doctor is a part of you.”
“So you’re saying we can’t be together. Ever.”
He put his hands on her shoulders and pushed her away so he could look at her. “No. I’m saying this is something you need to think about long and hard before we try again. I can’t change who I am and you can’t change your past. Can you overcome your fear? I think the jury is still out on that.”
He kissed her, putting all the pent-up longing into the kiss. His lips on hers, tongues tangling, straining to get closer.
He ended it, let her go, and walked out the door.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Three days after she’d come back from Taos, Tobi still didn’t know how to convince Travis they should be together. To tell him that she was ready and willing to accept what he did for a career. Could she promise never to worry? Of course not. But the alternative, never being with Travis again, was not the solution she wanted.
The rest of the staff had left the clinic and Tobi had just finished some paperwork and was about to walk out when a man accosted her. “Can I help you? I’m sorry but I was just closing up.” He didn’t look good. Judging from his wild, bloodshot eyes and his hyped-up demeanor, he was either high or he needed a fix. Either way it wasn’t good.
“Get inside, bitch,” he snarled, and pulled a knife.
Shit, shit, shit, shit. Why hadn’t she kept up her self-defense training? She hadn’t been to a class or even practiced her techniques since she left Dallas. She hadn’t thought she’d need it in Whiskey River. More fool her.
She’d been drilled over and over with how to disarm someone with a gun or a knife. She’d never had to do it for real, though. As he stepped forward, knife held out, she stepped forward, blocking his knife hand with her arm and gouging his eyes with the other hand. He dropped to the ground as she pressed her advantage, digging her thumb and fingers into his eyes. She followed and landed with both knees on his arm and the knife fell beside his hand. She picked it up and tossed it far away. He began to struggle, cursing her, trying to punch her with his other fist, but she stayed where she was, wishing she had a way to get to her phone.
“Dr. Robinson! Are you okay?” Craig Simmons, one of the high school boys she knew from patching him up a couple of times, came running toward her.
“Call 911,” she told him. “And if you could help me keep him pinned down that would be great.”
Craig, a hulking senior football player, said, “You’d better let me hold him, Dr. Robinson. He looks like he’s hyped up on something.” He pushed her aside and took her place, adding, “Why don’t you call 911?”
If the situation hadn’t been so serious she’d have laughed at the boy for assuming the protective function and relegating her to a secondary role. “Thank you, Craig. I think instead of being hyped, he’s crashing and that’s why he’s here.” She called 911, told them the situation, and they promised to have the police dispatched as soon as possible.
The attacker was jerk
ing, cursing, writhing, and trying to throw Craig off of him, but he was no match for a healthy young man who outweighed him by at least fifty pounds.
“Where did you come from, Craig?”
“Oh, I was leaving the library when I saw you and this guy struggling.”
“I’m glad you were there. I needed the backup.”
He grinned. “Anytime, Dr. Robinson.”
After the police came and talked to her and Craig, they took the attacker away. Tobi went to her car. But instead of driving home, she sat there because she was trembling too hard to drive. She knew exactly what was happening. Adrenaline rush while everything happened. But once the danger was past, the reaction set in.
She could have been killed. Or at least badly injured. If she hadn’t remembered her self-defense, if her moves hadn’t worked, if the attacker had been stronger, and higher rather than needing a fix, if Craig hadn’t been nearby and come to her aid, the situation could have turned out vastly different.
The bottom line was, she’d been lucky.
*
When Travis showed up at the airport the next morning Zack was already there talking to the runway contractor. Runway construction involved much more than just pouring some concrete. Harlan’s firm, Whiskey River Construction, who was handling the other renovations, had subcontracted a specialist both to expand the runways and build a new one.
Travis was checking on his plane prior to his lesson that morning when Zack came over to the plane. “What’s this I hear about Tobi?”
“What about Tobi?” Travis asked.
“About last night. Is she all right? She’s bound to be shaken up, at the least.”
“What happened last night and why wouldn’t she be all right?”
“Oh, shit, you haven’t heard. I figured she’d tell you. It’s all over town.”
“Do you want me to punch you? What happened to Tobi?”
“She was attacked last night.”
“What?” he shouted.
“Calm down. I’m sure she’s okay or we’d have heard. Somebody with a knife jumped her as she was coming out of the clinic. They think he wanted drugs. But she disarmed him and he’s in custody now.”
