you. Congratulations on the baby, by the way.”
“Thanks. Emma’s only staying with me temporarily, while she recovers from pneumonia.”
“Oh, okay. Riley thought... Never mind.”
“What did Riley say?”
“Nothing. I was trying to read between the lines.” Paula smiled sheepishly. “I could blame my being a detective, but really it’s me being a nosy although well-meaning friend. I always hoped you and Emma would work things out.”
“Not going to happen, I’m afraid.” Darcy wrapped up the conversation then headed to the pub. Everyone but he and Emma seemed determined to bring them back together. All the cheerleading from the sidelines wouldn’t help them mend their broken relationship unless they could resolve old hurts. He and Emma were stuck in a sort of limbo. They couldn’t let each other go. Neither could they reunite. Well, he was tired of it. It was about time for him and Emma to bring this to a conclusion, for better or for worse.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
EMMA STEPPED OFF the elevator onto Ward 5G North, after seeing Barb in Administration. She hoped she wasn’t inviting trouble by arranging to start working again. She was feeling better, but still prone to fatigue. This bout with pneumonia was a hard-learned lesson not to ignore signs of illness in the future.
“Look who’s walked right out of the frame of my favorite nurse fantasy.” Darcy came out of another elevator. He gave her his most cheeky smile as he lightly touched her back in greeting and his hand brushed her hip.
Seeing him unexpectedly brought a mixture of pleasure and confusion. She fell into step at his side, keeping her gaze straight ahead, even as a warm glow spread through her. She should never have slept with him again. And again. And again. It was like waking a sleeping dog. A very horny dog. “This is my workplace and your fantasies are inappropriate.”
“Oh, but they’re running rampant with all this medical paraphernalia about. I’ll never forget what you can do with a speculum. By the way, whatever happened to your special uniform?”
“It’s hidden at the back of my closet.” Once, for a costume party, she’d altered an old uniform, making it a tight, micromini with thigh-high stockings and garters and showing generous cleavage, a parody of a porn movie nurse. Darcy claimed it was sexier than black lace.
“Now shush.” Two doctors in blue scrubs went past, conferring as they walked. Emma put a few extra inches between her and Darcy.
“It’s fun seeing you squirm, but okay, I’ll leave you alone. I thought you were cleaning your apartment with Alana.”
“We finished. I’ve just been up to see Barb. I’m returning to work in another week and a half, but cutting back my hours. After getting so sick, I’ve realized I need to be more careful.”
“That’s smart. Where’s Billy?”
“I dropped him off in child care so he could get used to the caregivers and the environment while I visited your dad.” She glanced at Darcy. “I put you on the list of people who are allowed to take him home. Just in case. Is that okay? Maybe I should have asked first.”
He looked startled. “No, it’s a good idea. Thanks. I didn’t think of that.”
“Why would you?” It’s not as though she’d ever asked him to pick up Holly from day care. She’d taken it for granted that he wouldn’t want to or wouldn’t be able to. In fact, she’d assumed a lot about his willingness, or lack of it, to help. She felt sad that she’d learned that too late for Holly. But he could have pushed harder. He’d given up too easily.
They turned the corner in the wide corridor. Up ahead was the nurses’ station. “Have you seen your dad yet?” Emma asked.
“No, but my mother was in to see him earlier today.”
“I’ll look at the doctor’s notes and meet you in his room once I’ve checked in at the desk.”
Emma greeted the other nurse on duty, and asked to see the logbook for the resident’s comments about Darcy’s father. As she scanned the terse notes, her frown grew deeper.
* * *
“DAD?” DARCY TOUCHED his father’s arm and got no response. His color was waxy yellow, his eyes closed and sunken. The only clue that he was still alive was the beeping of the monitors and his raspy shallow breathing.
One tube dripped something into him via a needle in the back of his hand. Another tube emerged from beneath the sheets and emptied into a bag dangling from a hook on the bed. A clip