* * *
AT THE SKATING rink the next evening, Skylar could see what Aaron meant about Karin. Her daughter was distant. Not exactly angry, but acting as if she didn’t know what to make of him.
It was probably to be expected.
Aaron had vocally disapproved of Melanie coming to the Nibble Nook and had a lousy reputation in Cooperton—then all of sudden they were going rafting and taking trips to the zoo? Karin was smart and had to be wondering what was going on.
Skylar tied the laces on her skates snugly, making sure they weren’t loose around the ankles. Karin and Melanie were already circling the ice.
Aaron finished tying his own skates and tried to stand up, only to promptly sit down again.
“Crap. I just remembered that I hate ice-skating.”
She patted his arm consolingly. “You’ll hate it even more the first time you fall.”
“That isn’t funny.”
“Neither is bouncing on your butt. But you’ll survive.”
“Don’t expect sympathy when you go flying,” Aaron said darkly.
“I’m not going to go flying—I’m going to sit here and look cute in my jeans and parka and stay away from the ice. I’ll wobble to the snack bar—that’s it.”
“No, you don’t.” Aaron pulled her to her feet. “If I skate, you skate. And I’ll bet twenty bucks that you fall first.”
Fifteen seconds later Aaron pulled out his wallet and extracted a twenty. He looked quite sexy lying on the ice, and Skylar spun in a circle around him before snatching the bill from his fingers.
“You cheated,” he said crossly. “You can skate.”
“I never said I couldn’t. I used to come here when I was a kid and my...”
He lifted an eyebrow. “And your what?”
“When my parents were fighting. It was safer to find somewhere else to go,” she managed to say matter-of-factly. She gave Aaron a hand to help him up. “We lived a few blocks away, and the owner felt sorry for me. Hank let me skate without paying as long as he didn’t have a private party in the rink.”
“Maybe you should have gone professional.”
“Don’t get any ideas of a great talent gone to waste. I was never in danger of becoming that good. Anyhow, Hank died when I was twelve, and his grandson took over. He didn’t believe in freebies, so my trips to the rink were over.”
“Twelve?”
“Yes. Coincidentally, about the same time I started getting into more serious trouble.”
“You didn’t get any breaks.”
“Yes, I did,” Skylar said seriously. “I had Hank, even though he was just a gruff old guy who didn’t talk much. I’d help clean up the snack bar, and he’d feed me a hot dog or nachos. And later I had the Gibsons and Jimmie and Karin. I don’t feel sorry for myself, Aaron, and I don’t want anyone else to, either.”
“All right.”
They stayed close to the outer edge of the rink, where Aaron could grab the railing if needed. The girls called “hi” a few times as they passed more quickly. And as Aaron got more comfortable, he was willing to go farther out on the ice. He only fell two more times the rest of the evening, which was an accomplishment for a guy who hadn’t worn ice skates in over fifteen years.
Karin seemed to have forgotten whatever was bothering her as they turned in their skates and headed for the Mercedes. She was giggling with Melanie when a dog in the dark cab of a pickup suddenly leaped at the half-open window, snarling fiercely.
Karin and Melanie both let out a shriek, jumped awkwardly and tumbled to the ground.
“Hell.” Aaron got to them first. “Are you guys okay?”
“I think so, ’cept my hand hurts.” Melanie got to her feet and flicked at the gravel stuck in her palm.
“Me, too,” Karin added. She sat up and let out another yelp. “Uh, maybe not.”
Skylar knelt next to her and smoothed her hair back. “What’s wrong, sweetie?”
“My arm.” She held it to her body. “I think it’s broken.”
* * *
BROKEN?
Aaron was horrified, but he could barely hear himself think because the damned dog kept barking its head off and throwing itself against the truck door.
“All right,” Skylar murmured. “Does anything else hurt, like your head or neck or back?”
“Nothing except my pride.”
Skylar smiled faintly and then looked at Melanie. “How about you, hon?”
His sister shook her head. “I fell on Karin.”
“And I just fell on my arm.” Karin was obviously trying to be brave, but her eyes were bright with pain.
Aaron pulled out his cell phone. “I’ll call for an ambulance.”
“No!” Karin shrieked so fast he was astonished.
“I think it’s okay if we take them to the emergency room ourselves, but she needs a splint on her arm,” Skylar said. She stood up, marched to the shiny black pickup, and slammed her fist on the door. “Shut up!” she yelled. “Or I’ll rip your lungs out, you miserable beast.”
The noise switched off abruptly.
“Hey, lady, what the frig are you doing to my truck?” yelled a man as he ran across the parking lot.
Aaron stepped between the irate man and Skylar. “Take your animal and get out of here,” he ordered.
“Who are you, her daddy?”
“No, I’m the guy protecting you from the woman whose daughter just broke her arm because of your vicious dog. Trust me, you don’t want to mess with her. Or me.”
The man backed off. “All right, all right. I’m leaving.”
Aaron got the first aid kit from the Mercedes. “It’s okay, Karin. You’re going to be fine.” He hoped he sounded calmer than he felt.
“Yeah, but it sucks.”
He wasn’t sure it was language Skylar wanted her using, but it did suck. “You bet.”
A small crowd of onlookers gathered as they splinted Karin’s arm and used a sling to immobilize it against her body. Melanie kept saying she was okay, but Skylar insisted on wrapping her hand with sterile gauze before leaving.
Aaron marveled at her composure.
The hospital was just a few minutes away, and he stopped in front of the emergency room door.
“I’ll get them inside while you park the car,” Skylar said.
“I don’t need a doctor,” Melanie protested.
“Yes, you do.”
“Don’t bother trying to get out of it,” Karin told her resignedly. “It’s a mom thing.”
If Aaron hadn’t been so stressed, he would have laughed. But all he could think was that his daughter and sister were injured, and he couldn’t fix it.
By the time he got the Mercedes parked, both the girls were in examination rooms. The martinet at the front desk was sympathetic, but determined to get his information and signature on several forms. How had Skylar gotten in so quickly? He finally escaped and found her sitting with Melanie in the waiting room. His sister’s hand was neatly bandaged and he took off his coat and wrapped it around her. Poor kid, she looked terrified.
“How are you doing?”
“Okay,” she said in a small voice. “The nurse washed my palm with some stuff.”
“Are you sure you aren’t hurt anywhere else?”
“No. They checked me out, like my reflexes and all that.”
“Thank goodness. What’s happening with Karin?” he asked Skylar.
“They sent us out while they’re doing an X-ray.”
“Just an X-ray? It should be an MRI, or a CAT scan at the very least.”
She sighed. “Aaron, they aren’t even sure it’s broken. There wasn’t any obvious bone displacement, and they don’t usually do MRIs or CAT scans on a simple fracture.”
He promptly headed back to the reception desk.
* * *
“I’M SO SORRY,” Melanie whispered when Aaron was gone again. “It’s my fault for falling on Karin.”
“Nonsense.” Skylar put an arm around her. She would have stayed with her daughter, but Melanie hadn’t been allowed to remain and Karin hadn’t wanted her friend to be alone. “It was an accident. If you want to blame anyone, blame that dog for barking.”
Melanie sniffed. “I just never had a real friend before. What if she hates me?”
“She won’t hate you. I know my daughter. Besides, a broken arm heals...if it’s even broken, which they weren’t sure about. They’ll put a cast on, and you’ll probably be the first to sign it unless the doctor beats you to it.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
The teenager rested her head on Skylar’s shoulder, and her slow, silent tears were heartrending. Lord, the child’s parents should be arrested for ignoring their daughter and making her so uncertain and anxious for love—of all people, Skylar knew what stupid decisions could come out of such a basic, desperate need. Slowly, the tears quieted, replaced by the regular breathing rhythm of sleep.
Skylar looked up and saw Aaron watching, and his white, strained face made her ache. If anything, she’d expected him to jump ship at the first crisis. But he was still here, and she didn’t think it was just his concern for Melanie.
Beneath that cool, distant facade he was so good at showing the world, Aaron Hollister had become a pretty decent guy...a guy she’d fallen for, all over again. Except this time it was a love capable of tearing her apart.
It was almost funny. She’d worried about Karin getting hurt, and then about Aaron’s feelings. But she’d forgotten to protect her own heart.
He walked over and sat next to her.
“You’re right—they won’t consider a CAT scan unless there’s an indication it’s needed,” he said softly. “How can you be so calm?”
“Practice. Kids have accidents, and you have to deal with them. When Karin was born I wanted to protect her from everything. But I couldn’t. Banged elbows and knees and broken arms are part of growing up. You do your best and thank God they’re resilient. I’ll go home and fall apart once Karin is in bed—I can’t afford to until then.”
“Well, you were amazing.” Aaron rubbed the back of his neck. “And how did you get past Dragon Lady so fast?”
“Who?”
“The woman at the front desk. I thought she’d have me filling out paperwork for a month.”
“In the first place, this isn’t our first trip to the emergency room. They have Karin’s information and a consent form on file, and I told them you’d be right in to give them what was needed for Melanie. The first paper you signed was the consent to treat.”
“That makes sense. Why was Melanie upset?”
“Worry that Karin would blame her.”
“Not a chance. Here, let me take your place. I’m sure you want to check on Karin. They won’t tell me anything.”
They shifted slowly so that he was supporting Melanie; worn out from emotion, the teenager barely stirred.
Skylar got up. Aaron had admired how she’d handled the situation, but she wondered how parents managed with more than one child in the middle of a crisis. Melanie wasn’t her daughter, but she’d still needed comfort, at the same time Karin was being treated.
She and Jimmie had talked about having more kids, but when Skylar didn’t conceive, they’d learned he was sterile. He’d spent five minutes upset about the news, then shrugged and said that Karin was a gift from heaven and the only child they needed.
The reception desk told her Karin was back in the exam room, and Skylar walked inside to hear her daughter giggling. It wasn’t much of a giggle, but it definitely qualified.
“What’s this?” she asked. “Is somebody a comedienne?”
“Naw,” Karin replied. “Dr. McRoth was saying it was too bad I don’t play volleyball, because I could hit the heck out of the ball with a cast on my arm.”
“Ohhhh, it’s broken, then.”
“Yup.” Karin sounded philosophical about the whole thing. But then, it wasn’t the first bone she’d broken.
“She has a minor fracture and it will need to be in plaster for a few weeks. It’s tight quarters in here with us working on her,” Dr. McRoth said. “You’d be more comfortable waiting outside while we’re putting the cast on. I’ll come out and talk to you when it’s done.”
“Are you okay with that, Karin?” Skylar asked.
“Yeah. I’m not a baby.”
Skylar stepped out and rubbed the back of her neck. At least this particular crisis hadn’t occurred when she had to open the Nibble Nook the next morning. She wasn’t sure she had energy to deal with it at the moment.
Not that the Nibble Nook was her biggest problem...that was Aaron. She couldn’t get away from how she felt about him, or her concerns for Karin. He’d changed, and he hadn’t known she was pregnant all those years ago—that put a different light on things. And no matter how bad it would be for her daughter to learn the truth right now, it was also hard for Aaron not to be recognized as her father.
* * *
MELANIE HAD WOKEN up and decided to lie down on one of the couches, so Aaron was on his feet, pacing the floor when Skylar came down the hallway.
“How is she?”
“Doing well. Laughing at something the doctor was saying. It’s a fracture and they’re putting a cast on—don’t worry, Aaron. She’ll be fine.”
He stalked up and down a few paces. “That’s easier said than done. And on top of everything, I’m the one who suggested ice-skating.”
“Karin didn’t break her arm ice-skating, she broke it in a parking lot. And it could have just as easily been Melanie.”
“I know. That bothers me, too.”
Skylar leaned against the wall. “You can’t wrap them in cotton and hope they’re protected. They’d just smother that way, and resent the hell out of you for trying to do it. I found that out a long time ago.”
Aaron knew she was right, but the enormous responsibility of parenthood had just gotten bigger. And there was no way he could escape it; Karin had captured his heart as thoroughly as Skylar. He was going to fuss and fume and worry about his daughter no matter where he was, or how much he was allowed to see her. The same way he’d worry about Melanie...and Skylar.
Never in his wildest dreams could he have seen this coming a few months ago. He’d avoided commitment his whole life, but now his heart had made the choice. Yeah, it was a risk, but what wasn’t? He didn’t want to live without the three biggest loves of his life—what sort of life would that be?
The trick would be convincing Skylar.
It seemed forever before the emergency doctor came out and Aaron strode forward. “How is she?” he demanded.
The physician looked at Skylar, obviously for permission to answer, and she nodded. “I’m Dr. McRoth. Karin has a minor injury. Nothing to be concerned about. The plaster should be dry soon, and she can go home.”
Aaron wanted to deck him. That’s my kid, he nearly yelled. It mattered that Karin was hurt, and this guy was tossing it off as unimportant.
“Maybe we should get an orthopedic specialist for a second opinion. We could go to Los Angeles or New York for one of those sports doctors who treat professional athletes.”
Skylar and the doctor stared at him.
“Sir, essentially she has a greenstick fracture,” Dr. McRoth explained slowly. “Very easy to treat, no complications expected. In a younger child I’d just put an elastic bandage on her arm.”
“Are you an orthopedic specialist?” Aaron demanded.
“Yes.”
&
nbsp; It took some of the wind out his sails, but he squared his jaw. “I still think a second opinion is warranted.”
“You’re welcome to get one, of course.”
“We’ll talk about it later, Aaron,” Skylar said sweetly. Yet her teeth were bared. “When we discuss overreacting and sounding like a jackass. If you’re this way around Karin, you’ll alarm her for no reason.”
He shut his mouth. He knew he was overreacting, but he didn’t have Skylar’s years of practice as a parent to keep him grounded. Except for the tension around her mouth, she was calm and behaving like a rational person. She asked a few more questions and then nodded.
“Thank you, Dr. McRoth.”
“Not at all. The nurse will bring Karin out soon.”
When they were alone, Skylar planted her hands on her hips and glared. “What was that all about?”
“He was too casual about it.”
“That’s because he didn’t want us to worry for nothing.”
Aaron didn’t know what to say in his own defense, but Karin’s arrival saved him. She was smiling and chattering away to the nurse. And all things considered, she might be in better shape than the rest of them.
CHAPTER NINETEEN
AARON TOOK SKYLAR and Karin home and waited until Karin was settled in bed. She was sleepy from medication the doctor had given her and yawned as he came in to say good-night.
“I’m sorry about your arm, kiddo,” he said, his chest tight.
He wanted to be a real dad and put his arms around her, assuring her everything would be all right. But being a friend wasn’t so bad, either, and if he could talk Skylar into letting them become a family, it would surely work out.
“That’s okay. We have gymnastics coming up, and the doctor says I can’t do any. Gave me a note and everything. It’s great.”
“Oh, well, that’s looking at the bright side.”
“Uh-huh.” She curled up on her side. “G’night, Aaron. I’m glad you’re coming to Thanksgiving dinner with us tomorrow.”
“Thanks, I’m glad, too. Good night.”
By the time he went out to the front room, Melanie had fallen sleep on the couch. “Let her stay—you’re coming over in the morning anyway,” Skylar urged. “And I’ll be up and down all night, checking on Karin.”
Winning Over Skylar Page 27