by Linda Turner
Horrified, Lily couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re making this up, aren’t you? To make me laugh, right?”
Mischief dancing in his eyes, he neither confirmed nor denied it. “Maybe. Maybe not.”
She should have laughed and tossed back a teasing remark, but suddenly, she felt like crying. Her smile slipped, and abruptly, her eyes were once again swimming in te
“Hey, what’s this?” he said in concern, leaning close to catch the tears that spilled over her lashes. “Is your head worse? Do I need to get a nurse?”
“No, no,” she choked out, catching his hand when he would have risen to his feet, then pulling him back down beside her. “I’m fine. Really,” she said when he lifted his free hand to trace the tear that trailed down her cheek. “You’re just being so wonderful to me, and all I want to do is cry.”
“So cry,” he said with a small smile. “I can handle it.”
Lily didn’t doubt that he could. He seemed to be able to handle just about anything that was thrown at him, and that amazed her. She’d never known a man like him. Both her father and Neil had little patience with tears, so she’d learned long ago to control her emotions. But Tony not only didn’t have a problem with tears, he encouraged her to give in to them if she needed to.
And that only made her want to cry again. He was so accepting of who she was. And he didn’t seem to have a clue of how special that made him. Her own father couldn’t accept who she was. Where had Tony been all her life?
Emotions filling her heart, she wanted to turn to him, to tell him everything she was feeling, but it was all too new. Then a nurse stepped into the waiting room and called her name. “Lily Fitzgerald?”
Caught up in the emotions hitting her from all angles, Lily hardly heard her. Then Tony squeezed her hand and gently pulled her to her feet. “Time to see the doctor. Are you all right? I’ll be happy to go with you if you like.”
“What? Oh! I’m sorry—I guess I was drifting. I’m fine,” she assured him. “I shouldn’t be long.”
An hour and a half later, the emergency-room doctor released her to go home. Exhausted, she walked stiffly into the waiting room and greeted Tony with a tired smile. “Well, I don’t have a concussion,” she said wryly. “That’s the good news. But I do have a twisted knee and a sprained wrist. The doctor said tomorrow I’m going to feel like I got hit by a Mack truck. I already do.”
“It could have been worse,” he said sympathetically as he stood. “If you’d really been hit by a truck, you wouldn’t be standing here discussing it. C’mon. Let’s go home.”
Lily had never heard sweeter-sounding words. “You won’t hear me complaining. The doctor gave me a shot for the pain. If I don’t get horizontal soon, I’m going to end up flat on my face.”
“Oh, no, you don’t.” Not waiting to hear more, Tony ushered her outside. “The car’s right here.”
His patrol car, was, in fact, parked in a tow-away zone just steps away from where the ambulances pulled up before the emergency-room doors. When Lily just arched an eyebrow at him, he had the grace to blush. “Okay, so it’s one of the perks of the trade. I should have moved it while you were in with the doctor, but I was afraid you’d come out while I was gone and think I’d left.
“Okay,” he said continued to just look at him with amusement. “I didn’t want you to have to walk any farther than you had to. Happy? I was just thinking about you.”
Her smile weary, she would have hugged him if she’d had the strength. “That was very thoughtful of you. Did I thank you for all your help? I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t showed up this afternoon.”
“You don’t have to thank me,” he said gruffly. “I was happy to help. Here, let me help you into the car.”
She looked so fragile that Tony would have liked nothing more than to scoop her up and settle her in the front seat as if she were a china doll. As tired as she was, however, he wasn’t sure she’d allow that. So he opened the door for her instead and carefully helped her ease down into the passenger seat. Seconds later, they were headed for Georgetown.
“Are you sure you’re going to be okay?” Tony asked with a frown as he walked her to her door. “I don’t like the thought of you being alone. I can stay until you fall asleep…just in case you need something.”
Lily felt her heart catch at the thought of him being somewhere nearby when she fell asleep. Don’t go there, she warned herself, but it was too late for that. Something had changed between them today, something she couldn’t even put a name to, and she didn’t want her time with him to end. Not yet.
She tried to tell herself her defenses were down because of everything she’d been through and the pain pills the emergency-room doctor had given her, but she knew it was more than that. It was Tony himself. For weeks now he’d flirted with her and teased her, and she’d never seen the real Tony Giovanni…until today. He was sweet and protective and caring and nothing like Neil or her father. How was she supposed to deal with such a man? All she wanted to do was step into his arms.
Why, she wondered with a silent groan, had the fates put him in her path now? The timing couldn’t have been worse. She had classes to complete, a new career to establish. All of her energy needed to be focused on that—not a man. Especially a man like Tony. How was she supposed to resist him when he was so wonderful? “If you need anything, just call me,” he said, handing her a card with his home-phone and cell numbers on it. “I’ll be home the rest of the night. Okay?”
“Okay,” she said softly. “I don’t know how to thank you—”
“No thanks are necessary,” he cut in, stopping her. Taking her keys from her, he opened her door for her, then handed the keys back to her. “Go to bed, Lily.” And with that, he kissed her on the cheek and gently pushed her inside her apartment. A second later, he quietly wished her good-night and shut the door.
Later, Lily couldn’t have said how long she stood there, staring at the closed door as if she’d never seen it before. This was the second time he’d kissed her on the cheek. And this time, just as the last, she couldn’t help wondering what it would have been like if he’d kissed her square on the lips as she wanted him to.
The next day she wasn’t fit to kills the emergency-room doctor had warned. The knot on her forehead was a throbbing purple egg, her knee was so stiff that she cringed just at the thought of moving it, and every muscle in her body ached. It was nearly ten o’clock in the morning when she woke up, and even then she couldn’t bring herself to get out of bed when she was feeling so awful. Switching on the television in her bedroom, she lay in bed the rest of the morning and just vegged.
By two o’clock in the afternoon, the walls of her apartment were closing in on her with a vengeance. She had to get out. Changing into a blue-jeaned skirt and her favorite red T-shirt, she slipped into flats and grabbed the keys to her apartment.
The second she stepped into the stairwell, the mouth-watering scents of Angelo’s cooking drifted up the stairs to her and she realized that she was starving. Carefully making her way downstairs, she favored her knee with every step she took.
“What are you doing downstairs?” Angelo said by way of a greeting when she slowly walked into the restaurant. “Tony said the doctor said you were supposed to rest all day.”
“I know,” she said with a grimace. “But I was going crazy just lying in bed. And I haven’t eaten all day. Spaghetti and meatballs sound good.”
“You could have called. I would have brought a plate up to you.”
Not surprised, she smiled. “Now I know why Tony’s the way he is. It must be a genetic thing.”
“You’re hurt,” he said simply. “Of course he would come to your aid. That’s why he’s such a good cop. He really cares about people. But enough about Tony. You need to rest your knee.” Pulling out a chair at a nearby table, he motioned for her to sit, then frowned. “I’m sorry. I should have asked if you’d rather sit somewhere else. The patio’s available—”
&n
bsp; “No,” she said quickly, horrified at the idea. “I don’t think I’m ready to go near the street yet.”
Pulling a chair out for her at the table by the window, he squeezed her shoulder, understanding perfectly. “The memory will fade with time. You just rest. I’ll get your food.”
When he disappeared into the kitchen, Lily glanced around the restaurant and wasn’t surprised to find it nearly empty. It was well past the lunch hour, and the dinner crowd wouldn’t pick up until around five. Content to have the place to herself, she propped her injured leg up on the chair across the table from her and sighed in contentment. Maybe she’d just stay here for the rest of the afternoon. She couldn’t say why, maybe it was the wonderful scents spilling from the kitchen, but the restaurant felt much more like home than her apartment did.
Maybe she needed to get a cat so she wouldn’t be so alone, she thought with a frown.
“Here you go,” Angelo said cheerfully, suddenly appearing at her elbow with a tray that was laden with fresh bread sticks, salad and a steaming plate of spaghetti and meatballs. “Dinner’s on me,” he added as he set the food in front of her. “And that includes dessert.”
“Oh, Angelo, no! This is too much. I can’t possibly eat all th
“Of course not,” he agreed, winking at her. “But you can take the leftovers upstairs with you and heat them up in the microwave later. You shouldn’t have to cook when you’re not feeling well.”
“That’s very sweet of you,” she said. “I don’t know what I’d do without you and Tony. You’ve both been wonderful.”
Color warming his cheeks, he grinned. “We look out for people we like. So…what about your camera? Tony said it was destroyed.”
“Flattened,” she said with a grimace. “It could have been worse, though. I could have been the one who was flattened.”
Angelo nodded grimly. “True. Your angels were watching out for you. A camera can be replaced. You can’t.”
“I don’t think I’ll be taking pictures in the park for a while. Just the thought of going back there…” Images flashed before her mind’s eye, and with a shudder she quickly pushed them away and forced a smile. “I’ve been thinking that I might set up a darkroom in the laundry room of the apartment and spend more of my time working there for a while. There are some things I’d like to try.”
“What do you need?” Angelo said promptly. “A sink? Tables? I know nothing about photography but I’ll help you if I can.”
Touched, she cocked her head at him and studied him with amusement. “If you do this for me, you have to let me do something for you in return. I’d love to take some pictures for the restaurant, maybe do a photographic montage of you and your steady customers. What do you say? We could use that wall over there.”
When she nodded toward the wall opposite the kitchen, Angelo grinned in delight. “Are you serious?”
“Of course. It’ll be fun. So…do we have a deal?”
“Are you kidding?” he said, holding out his hand. “When can you start?”
“Just as soon as I can buy a new camera. How about tomorrow?”
“Sounds good to me,” he said.
Lily placed her hand in his and shook. They had a deal.
Chapter 6
The front door to the restaurant opened then, and Angelo turned to greet the young boy who came charging in like a lightning bolt. “Hey, there’s my boy!” he said with a smile. “How was school? How’d you do on your English test?”
A broad grin flashed across his face. “I aced it! My teacher couldn’t believe it!”
“All right! I knew you could do it!” Pleased, Angelo held up his hand and gave him a high five. “How about your own personal pizza to celebrate? But first come and meet Ms. Fitzgerald. She’s my new renter.”
Turning to Lily, Angelo smiled proudly. “Lily, this is my great-nephew, Quentin. And he really is a great nephew.”
Quentin stepped forward and offered his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Ms. Fitzgerald. My dad told me about you. He said you’re a photographer.”
Surprised, Lily took his hand. Tony had a son? He’d never mentioned it. Why? “I didn’t know Tony had any children,” she told Quentin with a smile. “But I would have known you anywhere. You’re the spitting image of your dad.” When he wrinkled his nose, she liked him immediately. “I bet a lot of people tell you that.”
“All the time,” he confessed. “Especially Aunt Tootsie. Dad’s her favorite. She sneaks me candy when no one’s looking.”
“You’re lucky,” she replied. “My dad wasn’t anybody’s favorite. Of course, he didn’t have much family, so there wasn’t anyone to spoil me.”
“Bummer. What about your grandparents? Did they spoil you? Or wouldn’t your dad let them?”
“They all died before I was born. But don’t feel too sorry for me. My father really believed in education, so during the summers, I went to special camps all over the country. I even went to space camp at NASA one summer.”
“Wow! Did you get to meet any astronauts?”
“Actually, I did. It was great.”
“I’m going to ask Dad if I can go to space camp,” he told his uncle eagerly. “Do you think he’ll let me?”
Angelo smiled. “That’s something you’ll have to discuss with him, hot rod. Maybe you should bring your math grade up before you ask him, though.”
“I’m trying, but I don’t understand what we’re doing right now. Mrs. Green said I need a tutor, but Dad said he’d try to help me. Is he home yet?”
“Not yet. He had to testify at a trial, and you know how that goes. It always takes longer than anyone expects.”
Quentin’s face fell. “Do you think he’ll be back before it’s time for me to go home? Mom’ll help me if I ask her, but she really stinks at math. Whenever she can’t figure out a problem, she asks Larry to help her.” He wrinkled his nose in distaste. “He makes me feel stupid. I don’t want him to help me.”
Taking in the bits and pieces of information Quentin casually dropped, it was clear to Lily that Tony and his wife were divorced and that the boy didn’t care for Larry, who was probably the new man in his mother’s life. Lily sympathized with him. She couldn’t imagine what she would have done if her father had married someone she couldn’t stand after her mother died.
“I’ve got a degree in accounting,” she impulsively told Quentin. “I can help you with your homework if you like…if your dad and uncle don’t mind.”
“You won’t get any argument out of me,” Angelo said with a quick grin. “You need a recipe for scallopini, I’m your man. But math—especially that stuff they’re doing in school today—is a complete mysteryo me. Sometimes I can get the right answer, but I haven’t got a clue how I came up with it.”
Lily understood that perfectly. Her father used to say the same thing when she was in school. “He has to prove how he got the answer, doesn’t he?”
Angelo nodded. “That’s the whole problem. If I can’t prove it, how can he?”
“What about Tony? Maybe he’d rather help Quentin himself. I don’t want to interfere—”
“Are you kidding? Most of the time he has trouble balancing his checkbook. Geometry and algebra are like a foreign language to him. Trust me,” he assured her, “if you can help Quentin, he’ll be thrilled.”
Lily would have preferred to have the okay from Tony himself, but since he wasn’t available, Angelo’s reassurances were the next best thing. Glancing over at Quentin, she smiled. “Well, it looks like the two of us are going to be working together. If you like.”
“Yeah! I mean, yes, ma’am,” he quickly corrected himself, giving her an engaging grin that set his blue eyes twinkling. “I can use all the help I can get.”
“Then pull up a chair and let’s get started,” she said.
She didn’t have to tell him twice. Angelo quickly cleared the table for them, and within seconds Quentin had pulled his chair close to hers and spread his homework out in front of her. Am
used, Lily couldn’t help but like him. He was a cute kid and not a bit shy.
“Okay,” she said, “what seems to be the problem?”
With a grimace of dislike, he pointed to the very first problem his teacher had assigned for homework. “The answers to the even problems are in the back of the book, but that doesn’t help much. In order to solve the problem, I have to get x on one side of the equal sign and everything else on the other. I get that. But how do you get rid of the fraction in front of x?”
“Aha. I see what you mean. If I remember correctly, I had a problem with this, too, when I was your age. Let me show you how it’s done.”
On a piece of scratch paper, she quickly wrote out the problem, then inverted the fractions. “See…once you invert it, and multiply it times the original fraction, they cancel each other out. But whatever you do to one side of the equation—”
“You have to do to the other,” he finished for her. “Mrs. Green says that to us all the time.”
Biting back a smile, Lily said, “That’s because she wants you to remember it. Math is all about rules. Remember the rules, and you should be able to solve whatever problem is thrown at you. Let’s try another one.”
When he quickly wrote down the next problem, then hesitated, Lily didn’t rush him. She watched a frown tug his eyebrows together, then he started talking to himself. Waiting patiently, she didn’t interfere, giving him time to work it out himself. Then, just when she thought he wasn’t going to be able to solve the problem without her help, he mumbled, “Oh, yeah. Dummy. How could you forg
Lily watched his expression change from frustration to comprehension to exhilaration. “I got it!” he told her, shocked. “I can’t believe it! This is easy!”
“It’s all a matter of just knowing the rules and applying them,” she said encouragingly. “See? The next problem is very similar to the one you just did. Just work it the same way.”
“Okay!” Thrilled, he started to work the next problem, only to look up in alarm when she shifted in her seat. “You’re not going back to your apartment yet, are you? Just in case I need more help?”