Second Chance with the Billionaire. Janice Maynard
Читать онлайн книгу.
tan and more-than-a-C-cup breasts. “I’m here for his cane,” he said. “Superman out there is trying to prove something, but I want to get him home in one piece.”
Ellie nodded, relief on her face. “He’s stubborn.”
“I’d be the same way. In fact, I was,” he said, thinking back to the long months after his skiing accident. “I was determined to show everybody that I was okay. That things were back to normal.”
“And were they?”
Though he saw nothing but simple curiosity on her face, the question stung. “No,” he said bluntly. “They weren’t.” He wanted to drag her into his arms and kiss her. But he couldn’t. He shouldn’t. Even though she smelled like vanilla and temptation.
He took the carved walnut cane and left without saying goodbye. He could barely look at Ellie now. All he could see was an image of her in another man’s arms, another man’s bed.
When he got back in the car and tossed the cane in the backseat, Kirby had recovered enough to give him a wry smile. “They tell me not to push it...that time is what I need. But I’m damned tired of feeling like a cripple.”
“Is that how you would refer to one of your patients?” Conor started the engine.
Kirby’s head shot around so fast it was amazing he didn’t get whiplash. “Of course not.”
“Then quit whining. Life sucks. Sometimes more than others. You’ve made it through the worst part. You might as well concentrate on having fun once in a while.”
Kirby fell silent for the remainder of the trip to the ski resort. Had Conor offended him?
Once they arrived at the lodge, Conor was stymied at first. In ordinary circumstances, he would have asked Kirby to hike the perimeter of the property with him. As high school kids, fitness had been everything to them. That was a long time ago, though, and Kirby faced a new reality.
Kirby was a doctor, a pediatric specialist according to Ellie. All Conor had to do was persuade him that losing a foot didn’t negate his training and his future.
Easier said than done. But Conor was determined to ease the grief in Ellie’s eyes. She had come to Conor for help, and he would give it, even if it meant keeping his physical needs in check. He was no longer an adolescent boy with a crush on a girl. Still, his need to make Ellie happy had apparently survived the years of separation.
After a quick tour of the lodge, Conor made a snap decision. If they couldn’t hike the property, they could at least see it from the air. “How about riding the chairlift with me?” he said. “We run it at least once a week to see if any problems crop up.”
Kirby nodded, his mood hard to read. “Sure.”
At the top of the lift, Conor elbowed his friend. “If that foot falls off, I’m not crawling all over this mountain to find it.”
Apparently he hit just the right note, because Kirby chuckled. “Is nothing sacred to you?”
“If you were expecting me to baby you like Ellie does, you’re in for a disappointment. You lost a foot. But you’re still Kirby Porter. So get over yourself.”
Truth be told, Conor was a bit anxious about how Kirby would hop up on the lift. But the other man managed the quick maneuver without incident. Once they were airborne, Conor relaxed.
Except for college, Conor had spent his entire life in Silver Glen. He loved the town, the valley and especially this mountain. He’d skied his first bunny slope the winter he was three years old. After that nothing had stopped him. Until the accident over a decade later.
When the doctors told him he could no longer compete, Conor had been wrapped in a black cloud of despair. He liked nothing better than pitting himself against an unforgiving mountain. Better yet, alongside other guys just like himself who had something to prove. Skiing was the way he released the fount of energy that kept him restless and active.
Ellie had visited him in the hospital and given him a choice. Either give up skiing, or give up her. They’d been on the verge of making their mutual attraction an official dating relationship.
In the end, though, Conor had lost almost everything. He’d had no choice but to adapt. No more black diamond descents. No more breakneck speeds. He’d had to find another outlet for his competitive nature.
Conor didn’t think he was the only one who relaxed as they rode. But it was all the way down and back up and down again before Kirby spoke.
“Thank you, Conor,” he said.
“For letting you ride the lift without a ticket?”
Kirby grinned, his face in profile. “For reminding me not to be a jackass.”
“I don’t mean to minimize what you’ve been through. I know it’s been hell.”
Kirby sobered. “I thought I understood the will to live. My parents are doctors. I’m a doctor. But it wasn’t until I spent two entire days thinking I was going to die that I truly grasped what it means to fight for life.” He paused. “I still have nightmares. It scares Ellie.”
Conor inhaled sharply, imagining softhearted Ellie bearing witness to her twin’s demons. “She’s a strong woman.”
“You have no idea. In those early days she never left my bedside. Sometimes she would throw up in a trash can because the morning sickness was so bad.”
“And the funeral? Her husband?”
“His parents planned the whole thing. Ellie left the hospital...attended the service...and immediately came back to my room. It worries me that she hasn’t had a chance to grieve. I’m afraid that one day she’ll wake up and everything will come crashing down on her. Postpartum depression alone is dangerous. Ellie lost her husband on top of that.”
“Does she talk about him?”
“Never. At first I thought she was angry because I invited Kevin to go on the climb with me. In fact, I even asked her if that was true.”
“And what did she say?”
“She never answered me. It’s like she’s shoved his memory into a box she won’t open.”
“So she can concentrate on you.”
“Exactly. We’re close, Ellie and I, but you know that already. I’ve always been able to understand what she’s thinking. Until now. Suddenly it’s as if she’s determined to forget the accident completely.”
“Maybe that’s the only way she can cope. Maybe it’s too painful.”
“I suppose so. But it’s not good for her. She’s given up her career. She’s lost her marriage. And Lord knows, babies require the ultimate self-sacrifice. I’ve tried to get her to take some time for herself. To go away for a few days or get a massage. Anything. But she won’t listen.”
“Maybe I can think of something.” Conor winced in astonishment as the impetuous words left his lips.
Kirby turned his head. “Like what?”
“Well...” His brain scrambled for answers. “In two weeks Mom and Liam are hosting a Christmas in August ball at the Silver Beeches Lodge. It’s a fun thing they started doing three years ago. Brings in tons of extra visitors, plus, the townspeople are invited. Everyone dresses up. They’ll have a 1940s band that plays Christmas songs. It’s actually pretty fun. You could both come with me.”
Kirby shook his head. “I want to do this for her—I’ll stay at the house and look after Emory and Grandpa. That way Ellie will be more inclined to have a good time.”
“Okay.” Damn. Conor didn’t want this to look like a date. Several times in his life he’d jockeyed with another guy to win a girl’s affections. Sometimes he won, sometimes he lost.
But he was