Death, Taxes, and Peach Sangria (36 page)

I interrupted her with a soft snort.
Lucky? Good one, Doc.

“Your coworkers found you fairly quickly,” the doctor continued. “There are no other
broken bones, your vital signs have been stable, and the MRI showed little swelling
in your brain.”

Thank heaven for small favors.

The doctor shined a flashlight into both of my eyes and asked me some questions to
check my memory. I gave her my date of birth, current address, hometown, and high-school
mascot, passing the rudimentary test with flying colors.

Though things were looking good so far, she said head injuries could be tricky and
sometimes unpredictable. They’d need to keep me a few more days for observation. I
thanked her and she patted my leg, leaving the room.

I found the controller to adjust the bed and raised the top half until I was in a
more upright position. I glanced around the room. Several houseplants and bouquets
of flowers rested on the tables and countertops. A trio of Mylar balloons filled with
helium floated above one of the bouquets, the inscription inviting me to
Get well soon!

When Lu saw me eyeing the plants and flowers, she rounded up the cards for me to read.
The huge bouquet of mixed flowers was from everyone at the office. The greeting card
was signed with various sentiments, most of which expressed surprise at my skull fracture
given that I had a reputation around IRS Criminal Investigations for being extremely
hardheaded.

The peace lily was from my two brothers and their families.
Dear Itty Bitty, Sorry to hear you’re feeling shitty.
Yep, my brothers got the smart-ass gene, too. Nice rhyme, though.

The card accompanying Christina and Ajay’s ivy suggested I
keep my head together,
while the one attached to the orchid sent by Agents Zardooz and Wang read:
Hooray for ovaries!

Aw, shucks. They’d remembered.

Nick’s mother had sent a vase of lavender gladiolus with a matching bow.
Dear Tara, You’re in my thoughts and prayers, Bonnie Pratt.
What a caring, thoughtful woman.

Nick had brought me an enormous white azalea in a pale-blue decorative tin. His card
read only:
Nick.
It didn’t need to say anything else. Ripping burglar bars off a building said much
more to me than words ever could. I bet his muscles were damn sore afterward. I should
probably treat the guy to a professional massage.

Brett’s offering was a beautiful bouquet with greenery, baby’s breath, and red, pink,
and white roses.

Roses.

When I’d asked Madam Magnolia who had helped the terrorists move their money, she
couldn’t summon a vision, but she’d said she smelled roses. My thoughts had immediately
gone to Brett back then, to the rosebushes he’d planted at my house. But the pawnshop
had a bowl of rose-scented potpourri by the door.

Ugh.
Too bad I hadn’t put those clues together earlier. I could’ve saved myself a real
headache.

“How’d the date go with the basketball coach?” I asked Lu.

“Gerard?” My boss grimaced. “He was another winner. He bent over to tie his shoe and
what did I see sticking out of the back of his gym shorts? Ladies’ panties. Pink lace.”

Definitely a deal breaker. “So Carl gets the prize, huh?”

The Lobo nodded and pointed to the gold Sigma Chi pin on her blouse. “He pinned me.”

“He
pinned
you?” Eddie chuckled. “What’s next, a sock hop?”

Lu narrowed her eyes at him. “What’s next is I assign you all the crummy cases; that’s
what’s next.”

Eddie held up his hands. “I take it back.”

My parents arrived, rushing through the door of my room, both of them looking as if
they’d aged twenty years since I’d seen them mere days earlier. Both had dark circles
under their eyes and appeared pallid, feeble, and utterly exhausted.

My mother gave me a gentle hug, though she had a death grip on my thin hospital gown.
“Don’t you ever put us through anything like this again,” she managed in a choked-up
whisper. “You hear me?”

She spoke as if I’d asked for this. Still, I knew better than to argue with her. “Sorry,
Mom.”

Dad gave me a kiss on the cheek. “How many times do I have to tell you?
Shoot first and ask questions later.
”

Alicia couldn’t talk. She just fluttered her hands around her face, made little kitten-like
mewing noises, and cried.

I reached out, grabbed a fluttering hand, and gave it a squeeze. “See if you can get
the nurse to put some peach sangria in my IV.”

Alicia laughed through her tears, nodding and brushing at her eyes with her bare hands,
smearing mascara all over her cheeks. I handed her the box of tissues.

Brett had been hanging back. He stepped forward now, his face drawn and pensive. He
looked tired and spent, too, but not nearly as bad as my parents and Nick looked.
Then again, Brett hadn’t actually seen me lying in a pool of blood like Nick had.

Brett gazed down at me, as if unsure what to say. I felt awkward, too. Odd, that two
people who’d been so close and intimate could suddenly feel uncomfortable with each
other, as if they were worlds apart.

Brett gave me a soft smile. “I had to cancel our dinner reservations for Saturday
night. I’d planned on taking you to The French Room.”

It crossed my mind that even if I hadn’t been whacked upside the head, he would have
had to cancel those reservations after we had our talk. Too bad. The food at The French
Room was darn good. Far more appetizing than hospital food. No doubt a nurse would
soon bring me a meal of meat with congealed gravy followed by lime Jell-O with mushy
pears inside.

Eddie and Lu prepared to leave.

“Stay in touch,” Lu said. “Let us know when the doctors give you the all clear.”

“Sure, Lu. I will.”

Nick didn’t return to the room. He simply stood outside the door and took one final
look in at me, as if he needed to reassure himself that I was okay. I met his gaze,
picked up the blue stress ball he’d left tucked among my covers, and held it tight
to my heart. He flashed a small, chipped-tooth smile and followed Eddie and Lu down
the hall.

When I returned my attention to those still in the room, I noticed Brett looking at
me with a strange expression. Had he noticed the exchange between me and Nick?

chapter thirty-eight

Negotiations

I woke bright and early the next morning when the nurse brought my breakfast of runny
eggs, soggy toast, and colorless oatmeal. Oh, how I missed my Fruity Pebbles.

My mother had brought me some things from home. My toiletries. The mystery novel I’d
been reading. My house slippers and my Thursday panties, the last clean pair she could
find.

I threw my covers back. Whoa. Nick’s face wasn’t the only thing that bore three days
of stubble. My legs looked like they belonged on a cavewoman.

The nurse helped me into the shower. I bathed, shampooed, and shaved for the first
time in days. When I was done, I slipped into a fresh hospital gown and the fresh
panties. I felt nearly human again.

Ajay and Christina came by shortly thereafter, before regular visiting hours. As one
of my regular doctors, Ajay could come see me at any time. Christina slipped in with
him.

I thanked them for the ivy they’d sent. “The vibrators, though, that’s a different
story.”

“Ooh. I want to hear that story.” Ajay looked from me to Christina.

“None of your business,” she said.

“We’re engaged,” he said. “Everything you do is my business.”

Christina gave him a pointed look. “Oh, yeah? Then you tell me what happened at that
medical convention in Reno.”

“Okay! Okay!” He held up his hands in surrender. “You can have your vibrators if I
can have Reno.”

“Deal.” Christina plunked herself down at the end of my bed. “Are they going to put
a steel plate in your head? That would be cool.”

What could possibly be “cool” about having a steel plate in your head? Then again,
I supposed it would make me less vulnerable. Maybe I could even use it to my advantage
should an occasion arise in which I needed to head butt someone. “Nah. The fracture
was actually relatively small.” Thank goodness Margie hadn’t been any stronger than
she was or she probably would have killed me instantly.

My back hurt and my muscles felt as if they were beginning to atrophy. I suggested
the three of us take a walk around the hospital.

“Good idea,” Ajay said. “It will get your blood flowing, reduce the risk of clotting.”

When I climbed out of bed, Christina shrieked. I turned to find her eyeing the gap
where the back of my gown hung open. “You’ve been wearing those underwear for almost
a week?”

I rolled my eyes. “No. I just put them on this morning.”

She gestured at my ass. “But they say Thursday.”

“Yeah, and my high-school yearbook says I plan to marry Keith Urban.” I rolled my
eyes. “Don’t believe everything you read.”

The first thing I’d do when I was released from this hospital would be to wash my
dirty laundry.

Ajay, Christina, and I made only three rounds of the floor before returning to my
room. Amazing how quickly I tuckered out after having spent several days in bed. The
two left with a reminder about their Halloween party. Hard to believe it was only
a week away.

My parents came into the room not long after Ajay and Christina had gone. Mom had
brought a box of Fruity Pebbles. She sent Dad to the cafeteria to get me a pint of
cold milk.

“You look much better,” she said.

“I feel much better.” The shower had done wonders for me.

“I washed your laundry.” She pursed her lips in disapproval. “All thirteen loads of
it. Took me hours.”

I gave her a big smile. “I love you, Mommy.”

My parents stayed for a half hour or so, then headed out. Dad planned to return to
Nacogdoches to check on things back home, but Mom insisted on staying in town a few
more days until I’d been released and she’d convinced herself I’d be okay on my own.

Alone now, I raised the miniblinds and looked out my second-floor window. Nick’s truck
pulled into the parking lot below. My heart gave a little flutter. When Brett’s Navigator
pulled in directly afterward, that little flutter turned into a major flurry.

No good could come from the two of them showing up here at the same time with no one
else around to run interference for me.

The two pulled into spots not far from each other. Nick stepped out of his truck,
doing a double take when he saw Brett climb out of his SUV. He hesitated a moment
but then stepped toward Brett, his mouth moving to form words I couldn’t hear. Brett
said something back, his posture becoming rigid as Nick removed the white felt cowboy
hat I’d bought him and approached.

The two stood a few feet apart. As Nick spoke, his fingers worked the cowboy hat in
his hands. I supposed I should’ve returned his stress ball to him. Brett crossed his
arms over his chest and stood with his feet slightly apart, a defensive stance.

Oh, no.
Nick wasn’t telling Brett about my plans to bench him, was he?

I rapped on my window, hoping to interrupt their conversation. Unfortunately, my window
was too far away for them to hear me.

Dammit!
What was going on? What were they talking about?

The two spoke for several minutes, Nick doing most of the talking. Eventually Brett’s
shoulders relaxed. His arms moved from his chest to his sides and he shoved his hands
into the front pockets of his jeans.

When Nick finished, he stepped forward and held a hand out to Brett. The two shook
hands. Nick returned to his truck, started it, and drove away while Brett came toward
the building.

What the hell had just happened?

I was still standing at the window when Brett entered my room.

“
Thursday?
” he said.

I turned to find his eyes on my butt, his lip curled back in mock disgust.

“Hi, Brett.”

He sighed, cocked his head, and looked at me for a moment. “You and I need to talk.”

I went to the door of my room and closed it before taking a seat on the edge of the
bed. He opted for one of the chairs, putting some space between us. Under the unclear
circumstances, I wasn’t sure whether that was a good sign or a bad sign.

He looked down at the floor for a moment before looking back up at me. “I saw Nick
in the parking lot.”

“I know. I saw you two from the window.”

Brett looked at me for a moment. “He asked me to step aside.”

My heart pounded in my chest. “Step aside?”

Brett exhaled a loud breath. “He wants a chance with you, Tara.”

And I wanted a chance with Nick, too. I only wished I wouldn’t have to break Brett’s
heart to get it.

Brett stared at me another moment, as if waiting for me to say something. Finally,
he looked down at his tennis shoes. “I’m going to give it to him.”

My head swam. I had no idea what to think about all of this. I hadn’t wanted to hurt
Brett, but hell, here he was shredding my heart like a rototiller. Despite my attraction
to Nick, I still had deep feelings for the guy. Who was Brett to say he’d give Nick
a chance with me, as if the choice were his to make, as if I were something he owned
and could give away? And who did Nick think he was, asking Brett to step aside, butting
in on my relationship with another man?

The thought of the two of them haggling over me as if I were a fish at a market left
me hurt and angry. But I was getting what I wanted, wasn’t I?

Tears welled up in my eyes, partly from the heartache, partly from the relief that
this issue was finally out in the open.

Brett looked back up at me now. “Do you have feelings for him, Tara?”

No sense denying it. I could tell he suspected I did. “I’m sorry, Brett.”

He raised a hand. “No need to apologize. People don’t have control over their feelings,
only their actions.”