Pushing His Luck - Rhyannon Byrd Page 0,19

her shoulder as he said, “Hey, Jase. Cool brace.”

The kid held up his arm like he was showing off a priceless award. “I know. I get to wear it to school and everything!”

“Oh to be seven again,” Karin murmured under her breath, sending him a crooked little smile that made him want to kiss the hell out of her. He laughed under his breath, both at her words and how easily she could turn him on, and they all fell into step with each other as they started heading toward the exit.

“When I told Jase that you were waiting for us, he got so excited,” she said softly, careful not to let Jase overhear her, obviously not wanting to embarrass him. “I think somebody’s got a hero.”

His lips twitched with a grin. “I don’t think I can take any credit for that. Kids usually love cops.”

“I actually think it’s your surfing.” She gave a quiet laugh at his look of surprise. “He sometimes watches you and Sean from our balcony.”

“Has Chris ever taken him out on the—?” he started to ask, when someone suddenly shouted his name behind them, the three of them jerking to a startled stop.

Paul turned to look over his shoulder, and was pretty sure he blanched when he caught sight of Lisa Hartnet hurrying toward them in her nursing scrubs. He’d forgotten she transferred to this hospital from downtown, his gut instantly cramping at the thought of what she might say in front of Karin and Jase.

“Paul, hey, I thought that was you,” she said when she reached them, giving Karin and Jase a quick smile, before bringing her dark gaze back to his. “I just… I wanted to apologize for how I acted when you brought Jenna in that night. It was entirely unfair of me to blame you for her overdose.”

As surprised as he was by Lisa’s apology, he was painfully aware of Karin hanging on to the nurse’s every word. Even though Lisa had dropped her voice there at the end, probably for Jase’s benefit, he had no doubt that Karin had caught every part of the apology.

Before he could say anything, or get them the hell out of there, Lisa went on. “Honestly, it was so unfair of me, and Jenna was so furious when I confessed how I’d acted. She told me that if it wasn’t for you… Well, we all would have been too late to help her.”

Quietly, he said, “I’m just sorry she ended up in that situation.”

Lisa gave him a sad smile as she nodded. “We all are. But it was wrong of me to put that on you, Paul, and I hope you’ll forgive me. Jenna’s problems go back to when we were teens, but my parents were too embarrassed to put her into therapy, so… Well, I’m sure in your line of work you’ve seen what can happen when things go that way.”

“Too many times, unfortunately,” he said, his throat tight. He was about to introduce Karin and Jase, since he still hadn’t done it, when Lisa started talking again.

“Anyway, I just wanted to apologize. And to let you know that what happened was finally a wake-up call for my family. Jen’s getting the help she needs, and we’ll be there for her when she’s ready to head back home.”

“That’s good, Lisa. I’ll be wishing her luck.”

Stepping closer, Lisa put her hand on his arm and flashed a contrite smile at Karin, before bringing her sincere gaze back to his. “I know you’re on your way out, and I’m sorry for blindsiding you like this, but it’s been eating me up for weeks. I just… I hope you’ll accept my apology. You’re a good man, Paul, and I… I’m sorry for ever saying differently.”

Chapter Five

By the time they’d hit the freeway, Jase was somehow already asleep in the backseat in the way that only children could manage, going from full-speed to conked-out in less than a minute, his little head lolling to the side when Paul glanced in his rear-view mirror. He pulled in a deep breath, knowing it wouldn’t take long for Karin to ask him what the hell that had been about with Jenna’s sister. Hell, she didn’t even know who Jenna was.

“So…?”

“Yeah,” he sighed, shifting uncomfortably behind the wheel.

Carefully, she said, “I take it Jenna was your girlfriend. And she recently…overdosed?”

“She works for the DA’s office, and I dated her for a month or so last year. She was never my girlfriend, but