Whatever You Like by Smith Maureen

Author:Smith, Maureen [Smith, Maureen]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Romance, General, Contemporary, Fiction
ISBN: 9781426874543
Publisher: Kimani Press
Published: 2010-11-01T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

When Lena’s cell phone rang early the next morning, she was sleeping so soundly that she almost didn’t hear it. When the ringing finally registered in her brain, she felt a dagger of alarm that made her bolt upright, then snatch her purse off the floor and fumble out her phone. Her heart knocked when she saw her sister’s number.

“Morgan?” she answered alertly.

Morgan began, “Don’t panic—”

Which was the absolute wrong thing to say, because it kicked Lena’s heart rate into full-fledged alarm mode. “What is it?”

“There’s been an accident at the retirement home.”

“What happened?” Lena demanded, her voice sharp with fear.

“Poppa’s been injured. He broke his arm and—”

“What! How the hell did that happen?”

“I’m not sure,” Morgan said quickly. “I’m on my way to the hospital right now. I told the retirement home I’d call you myself. For some reason they couldn’t get through to your cell phone. You must be somewhere with spotty reception.”

Guilt assailed Lena. “I’ll meet you at the hospital as soon as I can get there.”

“Okay.” Morgan hesitated. “Where are you anyway?”

“I’ll tell you later,” Lena evaded. “But do me a favor and call me when you arrive at the hospital. I want an update on Poppa ASAP.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Morgan promised.

Lena disconnected, her hand trembling as she clutched the phone, her thoughts racing a mile a minute. “Lena.”

She whipped her head around to see Roderick propped up on one elbow, watching her with a concerned expression. “What happened?” he asked gently.

“There was an accident. My grandfather broke his arm and—oh, God! I don’t even know if that’s the worst of it! I didn’t let my sister finish. I have to call her back.” She was already speed-dialing Morgan’s number. When the call went through to voice mail, she cursed in frustration.

“Calm down,” Roderick murmured.

“Don’t tell me to calm down!” Lena snapped. “My grandfather is an eighty-year-old man who’s already suffered a massive stroke that left him bound to a wheelchair. The last thing he needs is another injury to further weaken his body, not to mention his psyche!”

“I wasn’t trivializing your concern,” Roderick said evenly. “I told you to calm down because having a panic attack won’t do you any good.”

“Since when do you care about what’s good for me?” Lena jeered, her voice filled with bitter accusation. “This whole weekend was all about you, not me. You and your damn needs. I told you I had other obligations, but you wouldn’t listen!”

Instead of defending himself, Roderick gazed at her with those dark, penetrating eyes that discerned way too much. “You shouldn’t feel guilty because you weren’t there, Lena. Unless you attach yourself to your grandfather’s hip—”

Lena lunged to her feet impatiently. “I don’t have time for this! I need to get back to Chicago.”

As she strode toward the bathroom, she suddenly remembered that they were on a boat out in the middle of Lake Michigan. Swearing profusely, she drew up short and whirled around. “How long will it take us to get back to Chicago?”

“Not long,” Roderick assured her, throwing back the covers and rolling out of bed.

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