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Heat swamped her cheeks to realize she’d almost forgotten about his broken ribs. That was one of the reasons she was here, to provide medical assistance.
By the time she reached him, he’d managed to lie down on top of the queen-size bed. His eyes were closed, his breathing shallow. The long thick lashes lay against his burnished skin. As she drew closer she noticed beads of perspiration along his hair line and black winged brows.
The shadow on his hard jawline and above his compelling mouth reminded her he was a man who could use two shaves a day, though she didn’t imagine he had the time or inclination for more than one. Either way, he was so incredibly good looking her mouth went dry.
Michelle averted her eyes, horrified to discover that she felt an attraction to Zak.
How was that possible?
She moaned deep down as Lynette’s words came back to haunt her. He’s not really my uncle. There’s no blood tie between us.
To her consternation, her body broke out in perspiration.
She placed the ice bags against his left side where she knew several two-by-fours being hoisted at a construction site had broken free to deck him and fracture two vertebrae.
“Ah…that feels good,” Zak murmured.
While she was bent over to listen to his heart and lungs with her stethoscope, an errant strand of silvery gold hair trailed against his hard-boned cheek. His eyes opened.
Through shuttered lids she felt their hazel depths absorb every feature of her face. He seemed to take his time studying her softly rounded chin, the lines of her pliant mouth. His gaze lingered on her finely arched brows and lashes which were darker than her hair.
“Still the same pansy-blue eyes though they’re not drenched with pain anymore. I’m glad to see the worst of your sorrow has passed.”
Shaken by his words, the intensity of gaze, she purposely flashed him her professional smile in an effort to conceal her awareness of him. “I’m much better these days, thank you.”
After she’d finished taking his blood pressure, she stood up and put her equipment away. “You’re the one your sister’s worried about. A collapsed lung is no joke. You shouldn’t have gotten up without someone to assist you.”
“I had my reasons.” That was the second veiled reference to something bothering him.
She felt for his pulse. “And I have mine.”
“Yes, Nurse,” he teased.
In this mood Zak was…irresistible. She was fast losing all objectivity.
“You were struggling in the doorway just now. Your vital signs don’t lie.”
He let out a frustrated sigh. “You’re right. I feel like hell. When do you think I’ll be well enough to get back on the job?”
If only once Rob could have admitted to his misery in front of her like Zak had done just now, they could have shared so much. But he wasn’t the kind of man to let go. His determination to suffer in silence had pushed her away, hurting her and he’d known it.
She let go of Zak’s strong, suntanned arm, noting the cleanliness of his hands and nails. Despite working in construction, he’d always been well groomed. He always smelled good.
Don’t do this, Michelle. What are you thinking?
“I’m not your doctor, but I’d say three to four weeks, barring no complications.”
“I can’t stay away from the condo any longer.”
She leaned back against the dresser with her arms folded. “You don’t have much choice. You need help.”
“I agree.”
His penetrating gaze followed the lines and rounded curves of her slender body dressed in cream linen pants and a sage colored, short-sleeved blouse.
Her pulse raced in reaction. She was helpless to stop it, and that made her more nervous than ever.
“You’ve put on some weight since the last time I saw you, Michelle. It looks good.” His husky tone sent a coil of warmth through her body. “Why don’t you pull up a chair and sit down. I want to discuss something with you.”
Zak hadn’t said or done anything wrong, yet she felt like she was suffocating in the enforced intimacy of the bedroom with him lying there so close and so…
She’d thought the brief feeling of guilt she’d experienced at the funeral when she’d found herself comparing Zak’s openness to Rob’s inability to let her comfort him would be gone by now.
In the interim she’d begun dating again and had met some very attractive men. Mike Francis was a case in point. So why wasn’t she thinking about Mike right now?
“Before I do that, can I bring you something else to eat? Some strawberry dessert maybe? It doesn’t look as if you’ve touched your breakfast.” The tray of food Sherilyn had brought up earlier still sat on the far side of the bed.
“The pills I’m taking have killed my appetite.”
“Then you need some medication to get rid of the nausea.”
“That’s the least of my problems,” his voice grated. “It’s important I talk to you about something else before Sherilyn gets back.”
Suddenly Michelle was transported to the past when a much younger Zak had sought her out to confide something in private.
Anxious to appear at ease around him the way she once was, she complied with his wishes and drew the bamboo chair from the corner of the room.
“What’s wrong?” she asked after subsiding into it.
His eyes were closed again, as if the mere act of talking was an effort for him. It probably was if he felt so sick to his stomach he couldn’t eat. “It’s about Lynette.”
Hearing her niece’s name reminded Michelle of the unpleasantness in the hall earlier. Without being aware of it, she rubbed her palms over her knees. “She wanted to stay home and help you.”
He made a strange noise in his throat. “Three weeks ago she lied to her parents about sleeping over at Jennifer’s and drove to Carlsbad to see me instead,” he explained without acknowledging her remark.
“When I came home for lunch, I found her waiting in my condo dressed, or should I say undressed, in the kind of bikini Sherilyn would never approve of.
“She’d let herself in the back entrance with the key I gave them in case of an emergency. To say I was shocked is putting it mildly.”
“I can imagine,” Michelle whispered. “I’m afraid you’ve been the object of hero worship for a long time.”
His lips twisted unpleasantly. “Throughout the summer she’s been acting out in an attempt to flirt with me. But I never imagined she would go so far as to actually come on to me.”
At that revelation, Michelle’s breath caught.
“When I told her to get dressed and go home before she was missed, she said Jennifer would provide an alibi for her. Then she walked over and threw her arms around my neck. After reminding me that we weren’t really related, she asked me if I was glad to see her.”
Michelle closed her eyes, unable to prevent the quiet gasp that escaped her throat.
“I as quickly removed her arms and told her I was due back to work any minute. After packing up the things she’d left strewn in my bedroom and bathroom, I forced her to give me the key.
“Then I walked her out to her car and told her to drive straight home. If I found out she wasn’t there inside of two hours, I would phone her parents and tell them what she’d done.”
After assimilating everything, Michelle said, “Did she do as you asked?”
“Yes.”
“Under the circumstances, why did you let Sherilyn and Graham bring you here after you were released from Carlsbad Hospital? I understand there are several wom—”
“I need a qualified nurse like you,” he cut in moodily, making no explanation about his personal life. “You’d know the kind of care I require.”
She did. Since his chest tube had been removed, he needed to do regular deep breathing and coughing exercises.
“Sherilyn told me you’re between jobs. That’s why I came home with them, so I could ask for your professional help in person. I’d like to hire you to take care of me at the condo until I’m ready to go back to work.”
What?
“I’ll pay for anything the insurance doesn’t cover. There will be one perk at least. When you’re not busy, you can enjoy the ocean. You’ve never been to my new condo.”
Her heart lurched.
“All you have to do is walk out of your own bedroom and step onto the beach. If you recall, it’s perfect for swimming. How long has it been since you had fun playing in the surf or got a suntan?”
Shock almost forced Michelle out of the chair. It was with the greatest restraint she remained seated so he wouldn’t guess at the true reason for the chaotic state of her emotions.
“The hospital stay has kept me away from my business too long as it is,” he continued. “It’s vital I get back home where my assistant can come over and conference with me in my bedroom if he has to.
“With you there to supervise, Lynette won’t be pulling any more stunts like the last one. Even if I could find another nurse, Lynette would find a way around her. I can’t chance that.
“Let’s pray to God some guy on campus will catch her eye and she’ll be able to chalk this up to growing pains. The last thing I want to do is embarrass her, but I will if I have to.”
A shudder ran through Michelle’s body. He never made idle threats. You always knew where you stood with Zak.
Lynette should have gotten his message loud and clear three weeks ago. The fact that she’d undoubtedly skipped class this morning in the hope of picking up where she’d left off with him, showed how in denial she was, how desperate she was for his attention.
“There’s never been friction with the family,” he confided. “I want things to stay that way.”
“Of course.” She rubbed her arms for want of something to do with all the explosive energy building inside of her.
“I told them in the car I was going to ask you to look after me at the condo. They seemed happy with the idea and urged me to talk to you.”
“We’re thrilled!” Sherilyn backed his statement as she breezed into the room. “No one will take better care of you than Michelle. An injury like yours is something she knows all about.”
Michelle’s head jerked in her sister-in-law’s direction. She hadn’t heard her in the doorway. If she’d come in the room a minute earlier…
Sherilyn, who’d bequeathed the same brown hair and eyes to her daughter, went around the other side of the bed to feel Zak’s forehead. Her concerned gaze strayed to the tray. “Still not hungry?”
“H-he will be after I ask his doctor to prescribe some antinausea medicine for him,” Michelle’s voice faltered.
The second she’d spoken, she realized she’d committed herself to Zak. In the family’s eyes there was no reason for her to turn down his request.
As for Zak, he needed her cooperation to quash Lynette’s fantasies, among other things.
If by some chance Graham and Sherilyn were to find out what had happened at his condo three weeks ago and asked her about it, Michelle feared that in her niece’s present frame of mind, she’d rebel in some way that could only hurt her in the end.
On the same note, it could turn ugly for everyone if she continued to harass Zak.
“I’m surprised the doctor didn’t write something for nausea in the release orders,” Michelle muttered absently. She couldn’t force fluids if he was too nauseated.
When she looked over and saw the satisfied expression that had entered Zak’s intelligent eyes, she started to feel afraid.
He could never find out she was attracted to him.
“Please tell me you two won’t be leaving before tomorrow,” Sherilyn pled. “Graham and I would like one more day to spoil the brother I hardly ever see.”
“Don’t worry,” Michelle spoke before Zak could. “He’s too weak to travel today. Also, Mike is taking me to dinner tonight.”
Hoping the introduction of the other man’s name into the conversation would somehow neutralize Zak’s power over her, she leaped from the chair and pushed it aside.
“I’m going to bring you some ice chips and Coke. While I’m downstairs I’ll phone Carlsbad Hospital and see if the doctor will do something about your nausea today. Hand me the tray will you, Sherilyn?”
Her sister-in-law gave it to her. “Ask Graham to drop by the pharmacy for the medicine. He’s coming home early.”
Michelle was glad her brother, a successful patent attorney, would be joining them soon. She needed space to sort out her emotions and get a grip on the situation.
The revelation about Lynette had been bad enough. By confiding in Michelle, Zak had made her party to certain private information which at this stage she agreed was better kept from Graham and Sherilyn. But Lynette’s infatuation wasn’t going to go away overnight.
As for Michelle’s awareness of Zak, that had to end right now! On her way out the door she heard him say, “Coke sounds good.”
She continued downstairs to the kitchen where she phoned information for the hospital’s number and made the call. After being put on hold several times, she was able to talk with the doctor who’d released Zak.
She explained she was the nurse hired to take of him. They discussed Zak’s therapy and his nausea. The doctor told her to have the pharmacist in Riverside phone him on his cell, and he’d prescribe something.
Relieved for Zak’s sake, she thanked him, then called her brother who said he’d get in touch with their pharmacist and handle things from there. Once she’d given him the doctor’s phone number, she told him she’d see him later.
With that taken care of, she went back upstairs carrying a tumbler of shaved ice and a cold can of Coke. She found Sherilyn seated on the side of the bed talking with Zak about his latest construction projects. His gaze swerved to Michelle’s and he stopped talking.
She approached the bed. “Graham’s on his way to the pharmacy right now to pick up your medicine.”
“Thank heaven,” Sherilyn exclaimed.
“Until he gets here, try alternating ice chips with sips of Coke. Let me prop you first.” Michelle put the things on the side table before showing him how to grip her arm and sit up using his feet and hips rather than his torso for traction.
Since the age of twenty-two when she’d become a registered nurse, and later after she’d gone on to specialize in orthopedics, she’d worked with dozens of male patients both in the hospital and later, after Rob’s death, at her patients’ homes.
She’d dealt with the broken bodies of old people, teens and athletes in the peak of physical condition. With one exception she’d never felt anything but professional concern for her patients’ welfare.
In Mike’s case, his determination to put their relationship on a personal level had won out.
