He’d escaped from the school for a night and just wanted to soak up an hour of setting sun before jumping into the spa on the far side of the pool to boil for an hour or two. Anything to relieve the stress knotting up his shoulders. He figured Meilin and her fiancé were probably getting dressed for dinner by now. All day he’d been following her Facebook updates with their locations. The last had been Mumm Napa, about five hours ago. Was she too distracted being wined and dined to update her status?
He answered his phone on the fourth ring.
“’Allo?”
“Oh, Drew, thank God.”
Drew’s brow’s shot up, his heart kicked into high gear at the breathless sound of Meilin’s voice. Was she crying? He sat up straight, all thought of relaxing vaporizing.
“What’s wrong?”
“Oh my God, Drew, it’s awful. I didn’t want to sleep with him, but I never imagined Fate intervening on my behalf this way! I don’t know what to do. Shan’s making a fuss and being a bully.”
“Slow down,” he said cautiously. “What’s going on?”
By the time she got the story out between sniffles and hiccups, his gut relaxed with relief. The man not only had a concussion, complete with black eye, badly bruised cheek, and a couple bruised—possibly cracked—ribs, but he’d broken his arm and ankle as well. And he wanted to sue everyone from the winery to the nurse taking his vitals. Since Meilin wasn’t there to see him, Drew didn’t hold back his grin. Served the arsewipe right. Still, this he could help with.
“You say he’s threatening to sue everyone?”
“It’s awful. He tripped over a rock, ignoring the path, so it’s his own fault, but really. He was a little tipsy. Not enough for a DUI, the cops did a breathalyzer and the hospital did a blood alcohol test, so he’s not being charged, but those people did everything they could to help him. And now he’s demanding I find his lawyer. He shouldn’t be trying to sue them. Good God, they acted in good faith! I can’t talk him down from it, Drew. Do you think you can talk some sense into him? How fast can you make it up here?”
Drew was already on the move. “What hospital?”
“Queen of the Valley, in Napa.”
“I’ll find it.” He strode into the house and to his room. “I’ll try to make it in an hour. Keep your phone on so I can find you. Do you need help with his car? Should I bring Birdie to drive mine back?”
“No, no, I can drive him home. They want to keep him overnight. He really should stay longer, but, well… The way he’s throwing around his lawyer’s name, everyone will be happier if he’s at home with personal care.”
If the man was being that much of a pain, yeah, the hospital staff would love to see the last of Shan. “What about you? Did you, don’t you, have reservations?” In his room he switched his phone to speaker and tugged off his swim trunks, changing into jeans and a T-shirt, then tucking his wallet into a pocket and slipping his feet into socks and cross-trainer shoes.
“We had, have, reservations in Calistoga. It’s a little far from the hospital. So I probably should call and cancel. He’ll probably expect me to stay overnight…”
“No, don’t stay at the hospital. You’ll need all the rest you can get if you’re to drive him home tomorrow.” Drew grabbed his keys from the dresser and threw open his bedroom door, surprising Birdie, who was leaving the steamy bathroom wrapped in a robe with a towel turban around her head. “I need the car,” he said shortly.
“Wait a minute!” His sister protested. They’d already flipped a coin and she’d won the toss to take the car for the evening. Not that he’d cared much, he hadn’t been in the mood to go out, but they’d had to play the game.
“Emergency trumps fun time. Ask Mum to borrow her car.”
“You ask her.” Birdie stomped behind him to the hall leading to the foyer.
“Meilin.” Drew returned his phone to private. “I’ll call when I get close. I’ve got GPS, so I’ll find the hospital. Just hold his hand”—Drew winced at his own advice—“and try to keep him calm. You’ll have to tell me how to find you when I get there.”
Drew paused at the living room, looking toward the reading nook where the parents were cuddled on a love seat, each with a book in hand, but neither were reading. “Let me get on the road and I’ll call you back.”
“Okay,” she whispered. “And…and thank you.”
“No thanks necessary. I’m on my way as soon as I let the family know where I’m going. Hang in there, love.”
No sooner had he disconnected than his family stood around him demanding answers.
“Meilin’s fiancé, your friend Shan, had some sort of fall, knocked himself wonky, and broke a few bones.”
Silence fell immediately, his father looking at him shrewdly. “And she called you because…?”
“We’ve become…friends. She was the substitute teacher a couple weekends ago. She’s stopped by a few times to tutor and to help with homework. The professor is a cousin of hers. Anyhow, it’s not important. I need to get going. They’re at a hospital in Napa, and she wants my help talking him down from making litigation threats.”
Dad’s eyebrow rose a little more. Randi’s soft hand landed on his arm. Birdie snorted and crossed her arms.
“We had a deal,” his sister reminded him. “You usually get the car. This time it’s my turn.”
“You can take my car, Drew,” Randi said and squeezed his arm. “We’re staying in tonight and not going anywhere tomorrow. I assume at this hour they’re keeping him overnight?” Everyone glanced at the clock on the mantel. Eight o’clock in the evening.
“Yeah, she said they wanted to keep him over,” Drew confirmed.
His father dug out his wallet and separated several bills from it. “Here. You’ll probably need to find a place to sleep or get some food at least. This should get you through the night.”
“Right.” Randi squeezed past him and headed for her purse on the kitchen counter.
“Thanks, Da.” Drew shoved his keys and the money into the front pocket of his jeans. “I’ll be going. I’ll call once I find out something.”
Randi met him in the foyer and passed over the keys to the new car, a gift from his father. One with real power, Mum’s brand new Jag. Birdie hadn’t been given the option of driving it yet, and he could see it roasting her arse that he got to drive it first. Too bad. He didn’t have time to fight about it. “Ta, Mum.” He bent to kiss her cheek, then headed out to the garage.
“Take care of my car,” she called after him. “No tickets!”
He tossed a wave over his shoulder before letting the door bang shut. He’d do his best, but he wasn’t making any promises.
* * * *
Meilin paced the floor outside Shan’s room, impatient for Drew’s call. Yes, she’d asked him for some legal advice, but if she were honest with herself, she just wanted him here. His level head, his calm presence. Everything that Shan had not demonstrated upon his injury. At least Shan was out of it. The doctor had ordered a sedative, and everyone had breathed a sigh of relief when Shan had slipped into sleep.
The fracture of his ankle, while bad enough to hurt, was a simple break easily straightened, then encased in plaster to keep it straight. Same with the broken arm. The worst part was both breaks were on his right side, a double inconvenience he’d already noted. Even without those breaks, the injuries to his head and ribs would have sidelined him from driving anyway. Either he’d have to let Meilin drive his car home, he’d observed sourly, or he’d have to hire a limo and a tow truck. She’d met this comment with a raised brow that had shut him up. For a bit. From there he’d complained of the pain in his head, knee, arms and any other place he could think of. Thankfully the pain pill had kicked in, further pulling him under so he’d mostly sleep through the hourly checks by the nurses.
The simple fact Shan hadn’t yet grasped—but the doctor had been frankly clear about with her—was he would be out of commission for se
veral weeks. He was going to either need to stay in the hospital a few days, or he’d require competent nursing care around the clock. Preferably in bed. And since he couldn’t use crutches with the broken arm and the injured ribs, it would mean using a wheel chair during recovery. The doctor provided her with the name of an ambulance service who could get Shan home, and a nursing service who could care for him once he got there. Obviously the doctor wasn’t going to insist Shan stay for a few days. She didn’t blame him a bit.
What concerned Meilin most was how awful he’d acted to every single person trying to do their job, helping him. From the moment he’d awakened on the ground at the winery, to the moment he’d fallen asleep, he’d grumbled and loudly complained, even snapping at her, brushing her off when she tried to comfort him. Talk about a grouchy patient. Not that she had much experience with trauma that involved ambulances and emergency rooms, but she had a feeling the people staffing the rescue positions didn’t deserve his ire. Not when he’d tripped all on his own.
And then he’d had the nerve to demand the nurses find a cot for her to sleep in his room. The last very thing she wanted to do. Had he been sweet, or at least calm and reasonable, she wouldn’t have hesitated. To be ordered about… No, that she could not abide. If it weren’t in poor taste, she’d set his ring on the table and walk out. But while she wouldn’t stand for his verbal abuse, neither would she dump him while he was down. That wouldn’t be any nicer than how he treated everyone working so hard to see to his comfort and healing.
One thing this day had made crystal clear—she had zero desire to marry the man. She couldn’t see herself spending her life with him. No more waffling on that topic for her.
And if he thought she’d let him bully her about getting back to the city in the morning, he had another think coming. She’d happily stuff him into a limo, then drive his precious car home. By herself. She should have let Drew bring his sister along to drive their car back and he could ride with her for the two hour drive to the city. And that was only if traffic was light.
The more she thought about it, the happier she was she’d called Drew first. Of course she’d also called her parents. Shan’s parents. His assistant and housekeeper, who were both focused on getting home care set up by noon tomorrow. She’d even called Jack because of his recent law degree. If anyone in the family counted as a personal injury lawyer, he sure did. He’d also approved of her calling Drew, as he couldn’t reach the hospital in less than five hours. Another glance at her watch, the clock on the wall over the nurses’ station, and her phone, revealed the same truth. Barely an hour had passed since she’d spoken with Drew. He could arrive at any moment now. Right?
At the end of the hall, she turned around and began pacing back the other direction, wanting nothing more than to fall into a comfortable bed and sleep. The wine buzz had worn off long ago. Right about the time the adrenalin had kicked in as Shan was still falling. A sight and sound she’d never forget. Although it had happened very fast, within a matter of a second or two, it kept playing over and over in her head in excruciating, slow motion.
Hearing the impact of Shan’s head in her own made her wince yet again. The man was lucky to have most of his brains intact. Hopefully he’d see that soon. There was little the medical staff could do for him beyond pain relief. She’d already helped reposition his broken leg and arm a dozen times. Once more she mentally thanked the staff for sending him off to la-la-land.
The opening of the elevator door along with a little ding announcing its arrival had her turning in anticipation. At the sight of a tall man with blond hair, her heart skipped a beat, then jumped into double time.
Drew.
He was here.
One footstep led to another and soon she was close enough to run the last few steps and launch herself into his arms. His very strong arms that caught and held her.
He held her close as she clung to his neck, her face buried there, absorbing his comfort, his scent, the warmth of his body, the way his big hands cupped her bottom as she tightened her legs around his waist.
“I’m here, I’m here,” he repeated over and over again.
“I’m so glad,” she whispered on the edge of breaking down. “I’m so, so glad.” Until this moment, she hadn’t truly realized how tightly wound she was from the stress of the day. She wasn’t one to freak out, but today had pushed so many unknown buttons. If the very strength of her reaction right now surprised Drew, she could only say she was more surprised. Didn’t mean she’d let him go before she had to. He felt so good holding her.
From behind, a throat cleared. “Excuse me? Miss Wu?”
Meilin recognized the night nurse who’d taken the brunt of Shan’s most recent verbal abuse. She unwrapped herself from Drew, and with his hands on her shoulders, turned to face the truly kind older woman. “Yes?”
“Mr. Lin is waking up and asking for you.” Her curious gaze passed over Drew, silently questioning, but saying nothing more.
“Of course. We’ll be there in a minute.”
“Very well.” Professional in the face of her curiosity, the woman held a blank face, although a hint of a twinkle had sparked in her eyes. Most impressive.
The nurse turned on her heel, and Meilin grabbed Drew’s hand like a lifeline.
“I have to tell you,” she whispered, “I can’t marry him. But I can’t tell him right now.” A shudder shimmied down her spine from shoulders to hips. “Please, I may need your support on this. I’m not really sure how he’s going to react to anything. He hasn’t followed my predictions so far.”
Drew squeezed her hand gently. “I’m not going anywhere until you tell me you want me to leave.”
“He’s already bitching about me driving his car home.” She scoffed. “Like I’d ever wreck his precious Aston Martin.”
Drew choked back a laugh, she was sure of it, but his expression was neutral and mild when she glanced at him. “Don’t worry about the car. We’ll figure it all out.”
Meilin paused at the door to Shan’s room, sucked in a deep breath, then marched across the threshold. Shan’s eyes cracked open enough to see Drew beside her.
“Excuse me?” he said in a tone so frosty ice chased down her spine.
Opening her hand, she dropped Drew’s and moved to the side of the bed, leaving Drew at the foot.
“I called Drew. He’s here as a temporary legal counsel until we can find your lawyer. Apparently he’s off climbing a mountain in the Sierras. I couldn’t reach Jack, either.” So she lied a little. “He’s in Tahoe or Vegas, but that’s neither here nor there. His phone is off or out of power. You said you wanted a lawyer, and I didn’t know who else to call.” She took Shan’s hand, as much as she hated doing so, especially in front of Drew. But it seemed to calm Shan, and she sensed he’d been building up to another outburst, something not good for his head, blood pressure, or her peace of mind. “Please, accept Drew’s advice for now. You’re seriously injured and on some strong pain medicine. You shouldn’t be upsetting yourself over liability issues as of yet.” Or at all. He should be worried about his own close call with the law.
Shan’s half-lidded gaze settled on hers. “Why him? Are you sleeping with him?” He ignored her gasp of outrage and focused his glare on Drew. “I told you to stay away from her.”
“You’re not in control of everything, Lin. Circumstances have thrown us into contact. And since you’re drugged, I’ll ignore the insult to her, for now. Make no mistake, the lady is not sleeping with me, or anyone else.”
Meilin looked from one man to the other. Is that what had set both their backs up a few weeks ago?
“Right now, old man,” Drew continued, “you’ll have to make do with me. Meilin and I will get you home tomorrow, and then you can harangue your lawyer to your heart’s content. But for now, this is the way things are.”
Meilin held her breath until Shan blew out his pent up breath. “Fine. For tonight. Tomorrow, when I’m more awake, I�
��ll better be able to locate the necessary people or their backups. I suppose there’s really nothing to be done tonight.”
“No,” Drew said. “There isn’t. You’re injured and medicated and in no condition to make legally binding decisions. Let Meilin take care of you for now. There’ll be time enough to threaten people with malpractice and safety issues later. Let the hangover wear off first.”
Although Drew kept his tone light, Shan’s face flushed red and his breath sounded as harsh as an angry bull. Something in what Drew said pissed Shan off more, if that were even possible. Not for the first time in the last three hours, she wondered if Shan’s cracked veneer was showing his true character. Something he kept carefully hidden? How deep did this unreasonable anger go? Deep enough that one day he might crack completely, enough to physically beat her? The thought that chilled her was a reminder of his black belt.
“For tonight,” Drew continued, “you’re under excellent care. Meilin is exhausted and needs a good night’s rest as much as you do. Possibly even more so, since she doesn’t have the benefit of sedatives to help her sleep. We can do this two ways. I can make sure she gets settled in a hotel, or I can stay here and make sure you don’t say something you’ll regret later. Which would you prefer?”
“Either way she leaves, is that it?”
“Yes. If she has to get you back to the city and set up at home tomorrow, she must get some sleep.”
“I’ve already canceled the hotel in Calistoga you booked,” Meilin added. “I’ll find a motel much closer.”
Shan opened his mouth, she wasn’t sure what he’d say, but then he closed it again and glared at Drew before drawing in a breath. “Take her to a hotel, then come back here. I want to talk to you.”
Meilin glanced over her shoulder to see Drew nod. “Sure thing. Might take about an hour because I’m not sure she got dinner.”
Shan heaved an impatient sigh. “Fine. Get her dinner, settle her in a hotel, then come back here.”
The subtext was he didn’t trust her with Drew. Or Drew with her. Whatever. Them together had Shan getting crankier.
Her Unexpected Affair (The Robinsons) Page 21