by Ann Evans
“I’m sure you’ve seen by now that everyone pulls their weight. I try to keep them from running into roadblocks along the way. I guess I’m the facilitator in the family.”
“Addy says you’re the go-to guy. Your daughter says everyone counts on you to make things right.”
He looked up. She sensed surprise, which seemed a strange reaction. “Tessa said that?”
Kari nodded. “Your daughter’s very bright and sweet. We make a good team, cleaning rooms for your aunt Sofia.”
“You doing all right?” he asked about her hold on the post. When she nodded back, he added with a touch of asperity in his voice, “Tessa’s bright—but sweet? I haven’t seen that side of her lately. In fact, I came out here to work off my latest frustration with her. She was about ready to burn down the cabin with me in it.”
“Nothing serious, I hope.”
“Boy trouble. Which she’s way too young for.”
“Teenage girls can be quite a challenge sometimes.”
“So I’m learning.” He sat back on his heels, glancing up at her again. “You give your dad much trouble growing up?”
“I didn’t see much of my father. He was either off on some adventure or locked in his study, writing.” Now seemed as good a time as any to follow up on his promise. “Uh, I was wondering…”
“If Walt’s back in town yet? Sorry, no. But his wife swears she’ll have him call me the minute she hears from him.”
That would have to do, she supposed, but it was still a disappointment. Still holding the post, she looked away. Right now she didn’t want to think about her father. She wanted to keep the conversation light and friendly. And it was turning out to be easier than she’d ever thought it could be. A stray thought popped into her head when she turned back to face him. “Paglia En Ferno Papalini,” she said, wondering if she’d finally gotten the pronunciation right.
His mouth moved, putting shallow indentions on the sides of his cheeks. “Close. Papalina, not lini.” He rose, stripping off the gloves. “Paglia E Fieno Papalina,” he said slowly. Then he recited the ingredients with such flawless eloquence that it made Kari’s mouth water.
His gaze held hers. Face-to-face with those dark, da Vinci eyes, she found herself nearly speechless. She’d never realized just how black brown could be. She said feebly, “I suppose it’s easy if you grow up eating all those things.”
His mouth relaxed into a small smile. “It didn’t hurt that I was Mom’s head waiter when I was in high school. And it’s not inferno, it’s E Fieno. Bare your teeth a little when you say it. Like this.” His lips twisted. “E Fieno.”
“E Ferno,” she repeated, then shook her head and grimaced. “I can’t. The guests will think I’ve gone rabid if I make a face like that.”
“Try again. Not so wide this time.” His hand came up unexpectedly, and he placed thumb and forefinger against either side of her mouth, pushing back slightly against her jaw. His fingers were still warm from the glove. Or was she just imagining that? “Let your lips spread more,” he instructed. “E Fie…no.”
There was nothing in his face to make her think he found anything strange about this small intimacy. Just a little language lesson, she told herself. Nothing provocative. But she felt the shock of his touch all the way down to the soles of her feet.
She didn’t want to like it. But she did.
And then, for just a flicker of a second, she sensed he felt it, too. He went very still, searching her eyes for more clues to just what was going on here. She couldn’t help him much. She was suddenly having thoughts about Nick D’Angelo that threatened to imperil her immortal soul.
“E Fieno,” she said at last, her voice a little hoarse. She cleared her throat. “Paglia E Fieno Papalina.”
He dropped his hand, nodding approval. “By George, I think she’s got it.”
In spite of those playful words, he seemed more than ready to put that odd moment behind them. His mouth had tightened. Once more he looked like a man who’d been born without smile muscles.
“Just about finished?” She glanced toward the pool of cement. If he’d decided to ignore those few moments of nonsense, she could, too.
“Yes.”
“That wasn’t too difficult.”
“No. That should do it.”
Those crushing monosyllables. Were they deliberate? She couldn’t tell.
She glanced at her wristwatch, though she barely registered the time. “I suppose I should get back. You know those Victorian sweatshops. They whip you if you’re late.”
He placed his hands around the post about the same time she lifted hers. In another few minutes it would probably set well enough to stand alone. Nick didn’t look up at her, as though the fence post had become the most important thing in his universe. “You go on. I’ll finish up here. And thanks for the help.”
She backed away to scoop her book off the bench. “Thanks for your help.”
“You’ll do fine tonight.”
There wasn’t anything left to be said. Back to business, it seemed. Maybe he wasn’t interested in seeing her staked out naked on an anthill anymore, but he didn’t seem interested in seeing her at all, evidently.
She’d just started to make her way back up the trail when Nick’s voice stopped her.
“Kari, hold up.”
She turned, waiting.
“How would you like a different assignment tomorrow?”
“Such as?”
“Vail’s Aspenfest starts this weekend. The whole valley will be swarming with tourists. Addy has this crazy idea that we can drum up a little business for Angel Air if we blitz the town with flyers for helicopter tours. Aunt Sof was going to help us, but she doesn’t like to leave the cleaning crew on their own. Feel like tagging along?”
“I thought the, uh, accident left you short one helicopter?” She didn’t like reminding him of that disaster, but she couldn’t help wondering.
“There aren’t too many tours scheduled at the moment. A friend of mine brought his chopper up to help out, and Pete says he’d rather be kept busy than sit around with nothing to do. Besides, I covered for his vacation last summer, so he owes me. And I don’t want to disappoint Addy’s efforts to make the company money. She feels bad enough as it is.”
“Oh. Won’t the lodge be too busy to spare me?”
“I have some pull with the boss,” he said. Then he shrugged. “I just thought you might like to have a little more time outdoors.”
The offer seemed friendly enough, though his tone was all business. A warning danced at the edge of her consciousness, almost out of reach. Don’t read too much into this, Kari. Don’t.
She shook her head. “I’m not sure…”
“That’s fine,” he said with a shrug, as if her decision didn’t really matter to him one way or the other. “If you change your mind, we’re going to meet in the lobby first thing in the morning.”
CHAPTER TEN
WHAT REMAINED OF THE DAY went quickly after that. Kari was so busy helping out in the dining room that she had little time to think about the interlude with Nick on the trail. By the end of the evening she had offered Chicken Napolelana Alla Natalie and Paglia E Fieno Papalina more than a dozen times, and not once had she stumbled over the words.
Addy spent some time pestering Kari to change her mind about joining them on the trip into Vail the next day. In spite of her bandaged arms, she’d managed to create and copy hundreds of flyers that could be distributed to every shop, restaurant and hotel. She was like a general marshaling troops.
But extended time spent in Nick’s company seemed like a poor idea to Kari. One small argument could destroy a peace as fragile as the one they shared. No matter how much longer she stayed at Lightning River, she didn’t want to go back to those brittle looks, that insufferable attitude of superiority, those embarrassing, awkward moments when she wished she could be any place else but in his presence.
As for that indefinable something that had seemed to flash be
tween them out in that shady oasis—forget it. It hadn’t happened. Too much imagination and too little stimulation in her life lately probably accounted for that fantasy.
After the last of her duties, Kari made a quick escape to her bedroom. She pulled out the Arapahoe National Forest maps she’d picked up at the ranger station and spent an hour studying them. Just when she was about to turn off the light and call it a night, there was a knock on the door.
As soon as she opened it, Rose D’Angelo pulled her into a smothering hug, then held Kari away at arm’s length.
“You poor dear,” she exclaimed. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
Kari struggled not to look thoroughly confused, but it was useless. “Tell you what?”
“That you can’t eat calamari.”
That’s not quite what I said, Kari wanted to say, but she was busy trying to absorb the fact that Nick had ratted her out to his mother. Did Rose think she’d been complaining? Was she upset? Strangely, it didn’t seem that way.
“I didn’t want to offend you,” Kari hedged.
“Oh no, dear, no. Not at all. I shouldn’t have pushed. Nick told me you mustn’t eat it.”
She couldn’t imagine what tale Nick had spun for his mother, but if it kept Kari from coming face-to-face with that disgusting stuff again, she was perfectly willing to play along.
She patted the older woman’s arm. The kind concern darkening her eyes was really very sweet. “It’s all right, Mrs. D’Angelo. I just have to…watch what I eat.”
Rose seemed satisfied. “Bene. In the future, you must say something. I have such an urge to fatten you up. But Nick says to leave you alone, that you’re fine just the way you are.”
Nick D’Angelo said that? Wow. She must have done a better job holding that fence post than she’d thought.
When Rose finally turned loose of her and padded down the hall, Kari remained in the open doorway, still contemplating the conversation.
Nick had actually stepped in to help her with his mother, and without making her look like the bad guy. And that remark about her figure—that was probably as close to a compliment as the man ever came. Nick D’Angelo was one surprise after another.
Before she could give it too much thought, Kari went down the hallway and knocked on Addy’s bedroom door. She opened it with a sleepy yawn. “What’s up?”
“I’ve changed my mind. What time do we meet in the lobby tomorrow?”
THE NEXT MORNING, Kari helped Rose stack stationary boxes filled with bright yellow flyers into the back of the resort van. Addy, still restricted because of her injuries, held the door open with one hip, already issuing instructions on the best way to blanket the festival. When the last box had been loaded, the three women stood under the portico and waited for the rest of the volunteers on this mission.
Kari had been surprised to discover that Rose intended to join them, since she seemed so firmly entrenched in the demands of the kitchen. “Who’s doing the cooking this morning?” she asked Nick’s mother.
“Renata. She likes to take charge once in a while, and I need a day out in the fresh air.”
Kari inhaled deeply, letting the autumn scents—leaves and wood smoke and crisp air—sift into her system. “It should be beautiful today. I haven’t been outdoors much lately.”
Rose looked at her with one brow raised in an arch of concern. “Kari, if you want time off, or feel we have been too demanding, please, you must say so. Sometimes we forget just how time-consuming it can be to run this place.”
“I hope I didn’t sound like I was complaining,” Kari said. “Your family’s been very kind to me. I’m certainly not overworked, and even if I were…” She hesitated, not wishing to bring up memories of the helicopter accident.
Rose was evidently too sharp to miss Kari’s quick glance at Addy’s sling-covered arm. “You are doing us a favor,” she said firmly. “Not doing penance.”
Kari nodded, amazed again at how practical this woman could be. And how forgiving. Remembering her own mother’s intolerant stance on so many things, Kari thought Nick and Addy had been extremely lucky to grow up in the D’Angelo household.
A long minute passed. No sign of Nick, who Kari assumed would be driving them to Vail. When she saw Addy glance impatiently at her watch, Kari couldn’t resist satisfying her curiosity.
“Who are we waiting for?” she asked.
“Nick and Tessa,” Rose responded.
“The day’s getting away from us,” Addy said, clearly eager to get started.
“They’ll be here soon,” Rose said. Kari had learned long ago that Rose D’Angelo was one of the most patient people on the planet.
Addy, however, was not. She made an annoyed sound through her nose. “If Nick can convince Tessa to come out of her room.”
“What’s wrong with Tessa?” Kari asked in surprise.
“Nothing,” Addy said as she slammed the rear door of the van closed with one thrust of her hip. “At least, nothing that having a different mother wouldn’t take care of.”
“Addy…” Rose said, a warning in her tone.
“Well, it’s true, Mom,” Addy complained. “Pulling this latest stunt is really too much, even for Denise. She has to know how much she’s hurt Tessa.” Aware that Kari couldn’t possibly know what she referred to, Addy threw a chagrined glance her way.
“Tessa has a long weekend free from school coming up, and she’s been counting on spending that time in Boston with her mother. It was all arranged. But Nick told us this morning that Denise called last night and canceled. Tessa can’t come because Denise and her husband are going to Vermont. How’s that for motherly love?”
Rose fixed a harsh stare on her daughter. “Denise has tried to be a good mother since the divorce.”
“When it suits her,” Addy said. “Mostly she’s just been selfish and thoughtless, and if you ask me, she doesn’t deserve to have a daughter if she—”
“Adriana!” Rose said more sharply. “Denise is Tessa’s mother, and you should remember that.”
“Well, it makes me mad. The woman needs to get her priorities straight.”
Rose had been using a whisk broom to sweep stray crumbs from one of the front seat cushions. Finishing the job, she stowed the broom under the seat and turned back to her daughter. “Our job is to remain supportive, but impartial,” she told Addy. “It serves no purpose to poison Tessa’s mind against her mother.”
Addy looked sullen. “I never say anything to Tessa. And it seems to me that Denise is doing a perfectly good job of poisoning Tessa’s mind without any help from us.”
“Enough!” Rose said in the strongest tone Kari had ever heard the woman use. “I’m going to check on them. Practice being silent.”
She headed in the direction of Nick’s cabin. They watched her go, and the moment Rose had trudged out of sight, Addy grinned at Kari. “Mom tends to insist on finding the good in people. Even when there isn’t any.”
“Was Nick very angry with his ex-wife?” Kari couldn’t resist asking. Having fallen victim to Nick’s wrath herself, she could imagine the explosive reaction that change in plans would have brought. Especially coming on the heels of his own difficulties with his daughter yesterday.
Addy’s response surprised her, however. “Nick never lets Denise get him worked up anymore. But he was worried about Tessa. Said she was so crushed by the news that she locked herself in her room and refused to come out.” Addy leaned against the side of the van. Shaking her head, she said, “Nick’s certainly had his hands full lately.”
“Tessa seems very troubled sometimes, and your brother doesn’t seem like the kind of man to…” She trailed off, not wanting to voice a complaint against someone so clearly beloved by Addy.
“Put up with a lot of foolishness?” Addy finished for her. She smiled, indicating that she understood completely and even agreed. “He isn’t. I’ve lectured him until I’m blue in the face, but he’ll do it his own way.” She shrugged. “And truthfully, Nick does
try. He really does. And I’ve never heard him say one bad thing to Tessa about her mother.” Addy laughed. “It’s probably hardest for me and Pop to hold our tongues. We both knew that marriage was doomed for failure, but Nick wouldn’t listen.”
Kari brushed a speck of dirt from her jeans, wishing she didn’t feel compelled to ask. Finally she accepted it. She wanted to know. “What drew the two of them together?”
“You mean, besides hormones?” Addy asked with another knowing smile. “Denise was a beauty even in high school. Destined for a career in modeling, or so everyone thought. She never wanted kids, never wanted to settle down, but she did want Nick the moment she saw him. They dated for years, and when he joined the service, I think she saw that as her ticket out of the mountains. Only problem, the life of a military wife isn’t exactly glamorous. Eventually she found someone who could give her what she wanted.” Addy made a face. “I suppose that’s not completely fair. Nick says Denise did try to make a go of the marriage. He was gone a lot, and she was stuck being both mother and father to Tessa.”
Given the dynamic of her own parents’ marriage, Kari could certainly understand the frustration Nick’s ex must have felt, the burden it must have placed on her.
With a glance down the empty path that led to Nick’s cabin, Addy gave Kari a confiding look. “Nick once admitted to me over a bottle of Chianti that he regrets the way he handled things with Denise. He was never completely open with her. After what he’d been through in the Gulf War and Bosnia, he put even more emotional distance between himself and Denise. He says they should have ended it sooner, instead of pretending things could get better.”
“Nick doesn’t strike me as the kind of guy to give up easily.”
“He isn’t,” Addy agreed. “He doesn’t take commitment lightly either, and once he’s made one, he’ll move heaven and earth to honor it.”
“I suppose there are worse traits he could have.” When Addy gave her a sudden, sharp look, Kari added quickly, “I mean, he seems completely committed to making the lodge profitable. And making sure your family is well taken care of.”