The Heartbreaker (15 page)

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Authors: Vicki Lewis Thompson

BOOK: The Heartbreaker
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“Life's too short to hold grudges,” Alana said, turning toward Mike. “Right?”
“Right,” Mike responded.
“How are you feeling?” Beth asked, coming to the foot of the bed.
“Tip top, now that you three are all here.”
“Nifty jaguar tooth you're wearing,” Beth said, as she tried to tell herself Ernie was looking better, even though in her heart she knew he looked more tired than ever.
“Yeah, the nurses are callin' me Crocodile Dundee,” Ernie said with a smile.
“Wait'll you see a jaguar in the wild, Dad,” Mike said, moving up beside Beth, his body just barely touching hers. “It's an awesome sight.”
Beth knew she should move away, but the underlying note of anxiety in Mike's voice made her stay near him. She could tell he was worried, too.
“I'll just bet it is,” Alana said, turning toward Mike. “By the way, I was just telling your dad about my new brainstorm. I told Beth about it earlier, but the funny thing is that I haven't told you, and you're the key party in this.”
“In what?”
Standing so close beside him, Beth felt Mike tense. She gripped the end rail of the hospital bed as a premonition of disaster swept over her:
“I think you should come into business with me,” Alana said. “I've tapped into a lucrative market, and I need a good sidekick who's up for adventure and travel. I've been wanting to expand into rain forest treks for families. Your life-style would be about the same as it is now, but you'd be building something for yourself, financially. What do you think?”
In the agonized few seconds of silence that followed, Beth wished a tornado would come through and suck her right out of the room. That almost seemed like a possibility with the way the rain pounded against the window and lightning crackled outside.
“It's a gully-washer,” Ernie remarked.
“Looks like it,” Beth agreed.
“Well, Mike?” Alana prompted. “This business is really going places. I'd like you to be part of it.”
“It's an interesting idea,” Mike said at last. “I'll give it some thought.”
“She might make you live in Phoenix,” Ernie said.
“Oh, I know Mike wouldn't want to live in a big city,” Alana said quickly. “That wouldn't be a requirement.” She gazed at Mike. “Just promise me you'll think about it, okay?”
“Okay,” he agreed, his tone neutral. “And I appreciate the offer.”
“We'll consider it a standing one,” Alana said. “You'd be good at this, Mike.”
“Maybe so.” He cleared his throat “Listen, you haven't had as much time with Ernie as Beth and I have recently. Why don't you stay here and tell him about your canoe trip while Beth and I go out in the hall and talk? Something came up today at the shop about the cutter design, and I want to ask her a few things so I'm clear about the process for tomorrow.”
“Sure,” Alana said. “It's hard for me to picture you laboring away in that machine shop, though.”
“I've sort of enjoyed it, to tell you the truth.”
“Then you've changed a lot, Mike.”
“I probably have, at that Come on, Beth. Let's let them swap tall stories while you and I get some business accomplished.” He took her arm and led her out of the room and several feet down the hall.
“How long have you known about this idea of Alana's?” he asked her once they were out of hearing range.
“She just mentioned it this afternoon.” Beth gazed up at him, her stomach a nervous twist. “To be honest, it sounds perfect for you.”
“There you go again, assuming you know what will make me happy. But I can tell you that this isn't it.”
“Why not?”
He took her by both elbows. “Because I'd be dealing with the wrong sister, that's why not. Because I've always loved you, and you've always loved me, and it's finally dawned on me that I can have you and my adventures in the rain forest. You can have me and your stained-glass studio. We can make it all work—marriage, travel, children, happily ever after. That doesn't fit too well with being a partner in Alana's business.”
Her chest felt tight. “You want to m-marry me?”
“Somebody should.” He smiled down at her. “Or you're liable to turn into a shriveled-up old maid type who putters in her glass studio and has no life.”
“But I'm too quiet, and I think too much about everything! Alana's like you, decisive and ready for action.”
“Maybe that's why she's never excited me very much. I love those differences of yours. Alana's passion is all on the outside, for everybody to see. Yours is hidden away, and I'm the only man who knows just how deep it runs. I've been fascinated by the rain forest because it's secluded and mysterious. I'm even more fascinated by the mysteries of Beth.”
She began to tremble, and her heartbeat sounded loud in her ears.
“I can read your answer in your eyes,” he murmured. “All you have to do is say it.”
“Oh, Mike. It sounds so wonderful, but—”
“Of course, sometimes you do think too damn much,” he muttered. He pulled her to her tiptoes and settled his mouth over hers.
“Beth,” Alana called.
Beth quickly whirled away from Mike, but the minute she saw Alana's face, she knew it hadn't been quickly enough.
14
B
ETH REMEMBERED how Alana had looked when their father died, as if she'd imploded and all her energy had been sucked out, leaving a lifeless shell. She looked the same way now. Beth ran toward her, but Alana backed up, her expression beak.
“Stay away!” Alana took another step backward. “Don't come near me! Neither of you!”
“I tried to think of how to tell you!” Beth cried out “I didn't know how!”
Alana shook her head, as if to deny what she'd seen. She continued backing down the hall, and a nurse had to sidestep her in order to avoid a collision.
“We have to talk!” Beth pleaded, edging forward.
“No.” The sound was a hoarse croak, barely audible. Then Alana turned and bolted down the hall.
Numbed by Alana's rejection, Beth could only stare helplessly after her.
Mike grabbed Beth's arm. “Come on. We have to go after her.”
Beth hung back. “But she doesn't want us.”
“That doesn't matter. It's pouring outside. If she decides to drive—”
“You're right.” Fear chilled her blood. “You're faster. Go catch up to her. I'll tell Ernie we'll be back in a minute.”
As Mike sprinted down the hall, Beth leaned in through the doorway of Ernie's room. He was staring out into the hall, his expression worried, and she wondered how much he'd heard of what had taken place. “Something's come up,” she said. “We'll be right back.”
“Don't let anybody get hurt,” Ernie said.
Too late
, Beth thought, but she reassured Ernie anyway. “We won't.” Then she ran down the hall after Mike.
 
ERNIE LISTENED to her run down the hall and closed his eyes in weary frustration. “The kids need help, Pete. Whatcha got for me?”
I'll keep an eye on them. Still don't know if I'll be able to do a darned thing except watch. I filled out all the applications, but nobody's approved anything.
“Danged red tape. I feel like just getting up out of this bed. But I think they took my clothes.”
There's only one way you can leave that hospital tonight and do them any good. And nobody'll let me see the schedule, so I don't have the foggiest idea what's happening.
“Don't anybody up there understand we got us a crisis?”
I don't know, buddy. I'll keep trying
.
 
BETH DIDN'T SEE Mike in the lobby but finally she spotted him standing beneath the overhang outside the main entrance. The heavy rain had created a waterfall in front of him.
She hurried out to join him. “Where is she?”
“I lost her. I got caught behind three people in wheelchairs and by the time I got out here she'd disappeared. I didn't know which way to go because I didn't know where you'd parked.”
“Over there.” Beth pointed in the direction of where she remembered leaving the Jeep. “Mike, I see her! She's pulling out, right there!”
“You're right.” He grabbed her hand. “The truck's not too far from there. Come on.”
They ran through a downpour that soaked them to the skin in seconds. Beth splashed through puddles, sending sprays of water up her bare legs. And all the while she kept glancing at the Jeep headed for the parking lot exit. Fortunately a car had pulled out in front of Alana, which slowed her down.
“Keep an eye on her,” Mike said. “See which way she turns while I get the truck started.”
Beth's hopes faded. “You brought that old clunker? We'll never catch her in that!”
He unlocked the door and flung it open. “It's all we've got.”
As he tried to coax the sputtering engine to life, Beth eased around to the passenger side while still watching Alana, who'd made it to the exit. When Beth heard the engine catch and the lock click open on the passenger door, she leaped inside. “East on Grant,” she said.
Mike headed for the exit “See if you can tell whether she turns right on Craycroft.”
As Mike pulled out onto Grant, Beth could see the Jeep go straight through the intersection at Craycroft. “She's still driving east.”
“Then she's not heading for the freeway. Which means she's not bound for either Phoenix or Bisbee. I wonder where the hell she's going?”
“She may not even know herself,” Beth said quietly.
“After Dad died, she drove out into the desert. I tried to follow her, but I didn't have four-wheel-drive, so she lost me. Finally she came back hours later and wouldn't talk to me about it. The next day she admitted not even remembering where she went. She just spaced the whole drive.”
“Great” Mike barreled east on Grant toward the Rincon Mountains as lightning slashed through the clouds and thunder rolled overhead. “Let's hope traffic's held her up.”
Beth peered through the heavy rain. The advancing darkness wasn't helping, either, but at least the Jeep was distinctive. At last she spotted it. “There!” She pointed out the Jeep. “Get in the left lane. She's turning on Tanque Verde.”
“Okay.” Mike glanced in his rearview mirror. “Damn, but I can't tell who's behind me in this glop.” He rolled down his window and stuck his head out to check when it was safe to change lanes. By the time they made the turn they were two cars behind Alana.
“Assuming we can get behind her, how will we get her to pull over?” Beth asked. “She won't want to.”
“I'm working on that.” Thunder rumbled over the mountains ahead of them. “If the shoulder looks decent, I may try to force her off the road.”
“Oh, Mike. That sounds too dangerous.”
“So is driving spaced out through a rainstorm. We need to get her out of that Jeep.”
“You shouldn't have kissed me!”
“You should have told her right away!”
She shouted to be heard over another peal of thunder. “I couldn't! You saw the way she leaped in to save me on the lawsuit thing! How could I tell her we were involved, after that?”
His voice rose a notch. “How could you let her think I would want to work for her?”
“How did I know you didn't?”
“Because I love
you
, dammit! And I wish you'd get it through your thick skull!”
“I
have a thick skull? How about—Mike! She's going around that delivery truck.”
“I see her. Hang on.” Mike whipped the wheel to the right, and the truck fishtailed as he worked to keep the Jeep in sight.
“Can you catch up to her?”
“I've got it floored.”
Beth groaned as another bolt of lightning lit up the sky. “If only you'd brought the rental car.”
“How did I know I'd be involved in a high-speed chase?” He swore under his breath.
“Just swear out loud, Mike. I've heard all those words. From you, as a matter of fact. You taught them to me when we were kids, remember?”
“And that's about how we sound, arguing like this.” The temperature had plummeted with the coming of the rain, and Beth began to shiver in her wet clothes. “I wish we were still kids, and we were chasing Alana on our bikes, instead.”
Mike flicked on the truck's heater. “We might as well be, as fast as this truck is. Thank God. She just got a red light. That'll help.”
“I don't know how many more lights there are on this road. It's starting to get pretty desolate out here.” Beth rubbed her arms to work away the goose bumps. “What if she takes off cross-country?”
The set of Mike's jaw became more determined. “We'll follow as long as we can, until we get stuck in mud or break an axle or blow a tire.” He braked the truck as it came up behind Alana's Jeep at the light. “I'm going to honk the horn and let her know we're back here. Maybe she'll realize this is ridiculous and pull over.”
“I doubt it, but go ahead and try.”
Mike tapped the horn twice.
“I can't see her very well through that plastic window,” Beth said. “Especially with the rain all over it.”
“But she sees us, I'll bet.”
Like a shot the Jeep spun away from the intersection.
“Damn! She ran the light!” Mike looked quickly both ways and stepped on the gas. “Too bad we weren't lucky enough to have a cop catch her doing that.”
“I guess you have your answer as to whether she'll just pull over once she knows we're here.”
“Crazy woman,” he muttered, shifting quickly through the truck's gears.
“I
knew
she was going to react like this. I just knew it.”
“Yeah, and I kept hoping you were exaggerating.”
“Think about it from her standpoint, Mike. She's had her heart set on you since she was six years old. She said that today, in fact. You didn't tell her you weren't in love with her. You just left. That meant she was free to imagine anything, like, for example, that you'd get over your wanderlust and come home to her.”
“That's true, but we could have cleared up that misconception as soon as she came home this time.”
“We should have. I see that now, and it's my fault”
He reached over and gave her knee a quick squeeze. “It's been tough for you.”
“I should have been braver about this.”
“You might have been, if you'd really believed how much I love you.”
She remained silent as she watched the taillights of the Jeep disappear into a dip in the road. The truck and the Jeep were the only two vehicles on this lonely stretch, and Alana seemed to be gaining ground.
Mike glanced at her. “You're still having trouble with that concept, aren't you?”
“I saw you break Alana's heart,” Beth said carefully. “I don't want you to do the same thing to mine.” She noticed that way out here on the desert the thunder seemed louder, the lightning more savage. She shivered.
“I broke her heart because I've always been in love with you. Nothing about you and me is the same as it was with Alana and me. Nothing.”
“Except that we've both been in love with you for years.”
Mike gave her a sharp glance. “So you have been in love with me for years? You never admitted that before.”
“I never wanted you to know. It made me too vulnerable.”
His voice grew husky. “Be vulnerable for me, Beth. I swear I won't hurt you. You said you've loved me for years. For God's sake tell me you love me now.”
“I—” She stopped speaking as the Jeep's taillights glowed brighter in the distance. “Mike! I think she's putting on her brakes.”
“Looks like it. Hot dog. Maybe she's sick of this rollercoaster ride.”
“No, I think it's the wash up ahead that made her stop. Look at the current of that water going across the road. Nobody's been out here yet to put up barricades, but that doesn't look passable to me. I'll bet she's deciding whether or not to drive through.”
“She sure as hell better not That's a bad crossing if I ever saw one. Listen, when we get closer to her, I'm going to swing the truck sideways across the road, to block her in case she tries to double back.”
“I can't believe she'd drive through that wash,” Beth said, trying to convince herself.
As they drew closer Beth estimated that the Jeep sat about ten feet from the edge of the stream that churned over the road. The Jeep's headlights illuminated the gray water, swift and filled with debris, but gauging its depth was impossible. A pack rat clung to a paloverde branch that swirled past.
“She's always talking about the fools who underestimate a desert wash when it's running,” Beth said. “She knows it would be dumb to try. Even four-wheel-drive wouldn't guarantee anything.”
“I hope she's remembering all that. Well, here goes.” He slowed the truck and swung it in a wide arc to the left so it blocked both lanes.
Even before the truck stopped completely Beth opened her door and jumped out into the rain. She ran toward the Jeep, but before she could get there, it lurched forward, headed for the stream.
“No!” Beth screamed, running faster. “Alana, don't!”
The Jeep plowed into the water, sending geysers up past the tires. Beth didn't stop running or shouting until she was ankle-deep in water and almost lost her footing.
Mike grabbed her and yanked her back. “What're you going to do, hold onto the bumper?” he yelled into her ear.
Beth opened her mouth, but all that came out were ragged sobs. She swiped at the rain and tears in her eyes so she could watch the progress of the Jeep.
Please let her make it
, she prayed.

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