Chapter Two #2
“I . . . can’t.” Nervously she moistened her dry lips. “I’m meeting Sally for dinner.” She had only left a message for Sally to meet her if she could, but Skye knew if she were to remain with Jordan it would only enhance this unsettling effect he had upon her.
His eyes narrowed. Too late, Skye realized her excuse had dented his pride. Jordan wasn’t the kind of man women would easily
refuse. She had already tried his vanity before with her deception; to provoke him again would be unkind. Jordan wasn’t like
her neighbor who saw her as a conquest to be made. Billy’s roommate was in pain and lonely.
“Afraid?” he mocked.
“No, of course not,” she denied instantly.
“How about later tonight then?” he said, surprising her by pursuing the subject.
“I don’t think so . . . I sing with the church choir, and we practice on Wednesday nights,” she hurried to explain. She was
making a mess of this. Her whole purpose as a hospital volunteer was to help others. Surely it went against his nature to
even ask her to stay, and she knew she was denying him only because of the strange feelings he stirred within her. Right away
she felt guilty. “I suppose I could stop for a few minutes afterward, but it might be late.”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be awake.” He sounded like he was silently laughing at her.
“It’s spring vacation next week, isn’t it?” Sally asked as the late-afternoon sunshine filtered through the hospital cafeteria.
“Praise God, yes,” Skye rejoiced openly. “I could do with a vacation.” Maybe all this turmoil with Jordan was just the result
of a bad case of spring fever.
Eyeing Skye’s meager dinner, Sally demanded, “How can you survive with just a bowl of soup?”
Skye couldn’t very well admit that her confrontation with Jordan had robbed her of her appetite. “I ate a little something
before leaving the house.” A small deception; she’d had only tea.
Sally pushed the remainder of her salad aside. “I hate dieting,” she declared vehemently. “I could kill for a pizza.”
Skye couldn’t keep from laughing. Sally had been dieting with no real success ever since Skye had known her.
“Losing weight would be easier if you exercised more often,” Skye advised with an encouraging smile. “Why not run with me,
Sally? It’ll help.”
Sally rolled her eyes expressively. “Thanks, but no thanks. I’m not that desperate. You’ve forgotten I’ve seen you run. I
couldn’t keep up with you if I was pedaling a bicycle.” Absently her hand smoothed a nonexistent crease from the skirt of
her uniform. “If you weren’t so easy to like, I could be jealous of you.”
“Me?” Skye was genuinely shocked. “I can’t believe that. I’m the one who steps into a cold apartment every night. I don’t
have a loving husband or a precious baby like Anne Marie. I should be the envious one.”
A full smile teased Sally’s mouth. “You don’t have twenty extra pounds to lose, either. I guess it’s just a case of the grass
being greener on the other side of the fence. But honestly, if you’re lonely, let me introduce you to Andy’s new accountant.”
“Sally, no!” Skye interrupted brusquely. “I’m a big girl now and quite capable of finding my own dates.”
“Jordan Kiley has been asking questions about you.”
“Oh?” Skye took another sip of her coffee, hoping to appear nonchalant and hide her interest.
“You know me,” Sally said, grinning. “By three o’clock in the afternoon I’d sell my soul for a chocolate chip cookie, and
Kiley offered me the whole bakery.” Her eyes sparkled with impish delight. “I spilled my guts.”
“Sally!”
“Oh, all right. I hardly said a word.” She paused, mumbling something under her breath.
Skye couldn’t let the matter drop. “Pardon me?” she asked firmly.
“I said, I didn’t have to say a word. Billy told Kiley everything.”
“Heaven help me,” Skye groaned.
Glancing at her wristwatch, Sally stood. “I’ve got to rush, or I’ll be late. By the way, Kiley is being transferred to the
third floor after dinner. You might stop by and say hello; it’s the only way you’ll be able to clear away any untruths.”
Sally looked surprised at Skye’s laugh. “I just might do that.” Not for the world would she relate what had happened that
afternoon, but by her own admission she was interested in Jordan Kiley.
Flashing Skye an approving smile, Sally said, “You should wear the new blue dress we bought not long ago the next time you
come. You’re quite a knockout in it.”
Skye had no such intention. “Yes, Mother.”
Unaffected by the heavy sarcasm, Sally laughed. “See you tomorrow.”
The church choir was practicing an Easter cantata, and several members of the group were already present when Skye joined
them.
“Here’s our little songbird.” The male director smiled and handed her the sheet music.
“At five foot ten, I can hardly be described as little,” she joked with the ease of familiarity. Others joined in the teasing
banter, and the sound of laughter echoed across the empty church.
The practice proceeded with only a few minor interruptions.
Skye’s solo came before the final reprise; her rich, clear voice vibrated through the room with brilliant bravura.
“I get chills down my spine every time you sing,” Mrs. Peterman, the organist, said as the choir was dismissed. “Have you ever considered singing professionally, dear?”
Skye had been asked the question before and considered it a supreme compliment. But singing for money was something she’d
never consider. She was perfectly content with the uncomplicated pattern of her life, and had no aspirations for fame and
glory.
“Some of us are going out for coffee. Will you join us, Skye?” the director asked.
“Not tonight,” she apologized ruefully. “I’m visiting a . . . friend.” By now she thoroughly regretted the promise she’d made
to stop by the hospital. Any contact with Jordan Kiley was asking for trouble, and it would be far better to avoid him.
Walking swiftly to the hospital elevator, Skye didn’t consider stopping to visit Billy; it was after nine o’clock, and he
was sure to be asleep. Besides, she didn’t feel up to Sally’s curiosity.
Visiting hours had ended an hour earlier, and since she wasn’t well known by the third-floor nursing staff, they were sure
to ask her to leave after only a few minutes anyway. She sighed in relief and stopped just long enough at the nurses’ station
to ask Jordan’s room number and be sure they knew she was there.
“It’s past visiting hours,” the nurse informed her disapprovingly after relaying the information.
“I know. I’ll only be a few minutes,” Skye said, and beamed her one of her brightest smiles before starting down the silent
corridor. About halfway down, raised voices could be heard. The most prominent, deep and rich, rumbled angrily with a cutting
edge. It didn’t take Skye two seconds to recognize the voice as Jordan’s.
“I can see you’re up to your persnickety ways, Oscar the Grouch.” She stood stiffly in the open doorway. Both the nurse and Jordan turned their attention to her. A furrow of painful frustration lined the forehead of the red-faced nurse.
The corners of Jordan’s mouth lifted in a half smile, thawing the cynical curve of his features. “Welcome, Pollyanna.”
“Good evening, miss.” The nurse flashed Skye a grateful smile. “I’m afraid visiting hours are over.” The older woman calmly
stepped to Jordan’s bed. “But I feel we can make an exception tonight if Mr. Kiley can be convinced to accept his medication.”
The line of Jordan’s mouth tightened in grim disapproval. “I refuse to be blackmailed!” he spat.
“In which case I’ll have to ask your friend to leave,” the nurse returned just as sharply.
“Good-bye, Jordan.” Skye turned away from the door.
A disgusted sound of exasperation came from his throat. “All right, I’ll take the darn pill, but I don’t like it.”
Smiling, Skye unbuttoned her coat and laid it across a chair while the nurse handed Jordan the pill and a glass of water.
He had been transferred to a private room. It was spacious, containing two comfortably upholstered chairs and an end table
with a lamp. Skye wondered at the expense. This was probably the only bed available, and she murmured a silent prayer that
his insurance would cover the additional cost.
The nurse winked on her way out the door, and when Skye turned to Jordan, his face was transformed from the heavy scowl to
a welcoming grin. Her unsteady fingers looped a long curl of hair around her ear.
“You should always leave your hair down. It’s lovely,” Jordan said, and watched with amusement as color suffused her face.
Why had she ever let it down? It seemed to welcome comment; several people had mentioned it during the course of the evening, and by now she was thoroughly sorry and vowed it would be a long time before she did it again.
“Thank you,” she replied stiffly, self-conscious and unsure. “Are you eating?” Her gaze followed the pattern of the linoleum
floor.
“No one has offered me any rewards or desserts.” The teasing quality of his voice was a mocking reminder of her game the night
before.
Her deep blue eyes crinkled in amusement and bounced away from the strong lines of his face. “Trickery and extortion seem
to be the only effective means of dealing with that arrogant pride of yours.”
“Ah, but if the food were better, your scheming wouldn’t be necessary.” His eyes held a dancing light. “What I wouldn’t give
for a thick pizza and a cold beer.”
Skye’s gaze was drawn back to him. The light dinner hadn’t satisfied her, and now her stomach growled hungrily. “Pizza does
sound good, doesn’t it?”
“Like heaven,” Jordan returned wistfully.
“Italian sausage, mushroom, and black olive, covered with a thick layer of mozzarella cheese?”
“Anchovies,” Jordan added.
“Okay, but only on your half.” She sat, unzipped her boot, and pulled a small, flat plastic card from the bottom of the boot.
“What are you doing?”
“Getting out the card to pay for the pizza,” she replied, as if he were dense.
“What pizza?” He sounded like an amnesia victim.