One More Dance by Roxanne Rustand (best ebook reader for pc txt) 📗

back ramrod straight in preparation for the worst possible news.

“Critical.” Sylvia knotted her fists at her sides. “Clarify that, please.”

“You are...”

“His mother, naturally. Sylvia Mathers.”

Sympathy warmed Jacobs’s eyes. “Your son is a lucky man. In cases like this we need rapid assessment and immediate evacuation to an appropriate medical facility—within an hour or less. He was here within that golden hour, and fortunately, surgeons experienced with his types of injuries were available.”

“Thank God for that,” Kate whispered.

“With hematomas or depressed skull fractures, the immediate risk is dangerously elevated intracranial pressure and brain damage. We’ve placed a temporary catheter to help drain excess fluids, and so we can closely monitor him for rising pressure.”

“And if that happens?”

“We’ve already started IV Lasix, but we’ve got other options... We’ll just have to see how he does. We’ll also be monitoring him for blood clots. I promise you,” Dr. Jacobs said with a ghost of a smile, “that he will have the best of care.”

Sylvia frowned. “When can I see my son?”

The doctor glanced at the clock on the wall. “He’s in recovery now, then he’ll be transported to the ICU. Maybe you two can go home and get some rest, and come back in a few hours? You’ll only be able to sit with him for a few minutes every hour, anyway.”

Anxiety rippled through Kate at the thought of leaving the hospital—leaving Jared here without family—even for an hour. She turned to Sylvia. “I’ll stay, if you’d like to go out to the house. I can give you the keys.”

“I called for hotel reservations on my way here.”

“But—”

“I think it would be best, don’t you?” The frosty tone in her voice gave no room for discussion. “We’ll all be more comfortable.”

Dr. Jacobs looked between them and cleared his throat. “If you’ll excuse me, ladies, I need to check in on Jared and write my surgical report. You can ask the nurses to contact me if you have any questions.”

As soon as he was gone, Kate tried again. “Are you sure you want to be alone? Casey will be home tomorrow, and we have two empty bedrooms. It would be nice for you two to have some time together.”

Sylvia turned to gather her purse and a light jacket she’d draped across the back of a chair. “Perhaps you’ll have some time to spare. But I assure you, this hospital is where I plan to spend my time. I’m going to settle in at the hotel, and I’ll be back in an hour.”

Kate listened to the sharp staccato click of her high heels fading down the hall, the oppressive weight of two difficult decades descending upon her. As she slowly made her way to the ICU in the east wing, Kate tried to focus on positive thoughts. Tried to sympathize with an old, bitter woman still dwelling in the past and too caught up in her anger to set aside her differences with her son’s wife, even in the face of Jared’s critical injuries.

But Sylvia had rejected every opportunity for opening herself up to a loving relationship with her son’s family. She’d suffered for it, Kate was sure...and so had Kate and Casey and Jared. Feel sorry for her, Kate muttered to herself as she waited for the elevator. She must be terribly lonely.

But sympathy was hard to gather.

Her mother-in-law’s parting barb had hit the mark with perfect accuracy as always, conjuring up the memories of too many cutting remarks to count...

And the one Kate had never been able to forgive.

CHAPTER SEVEN

THE PAST

Studying lipid metabolism and neuro-spinal pathways was an excellent antidote to any propensity to dwell on the mysterious Jared Mathers, who had seemed so interested and then managed to drop off the earth.

Which was just as well.

Kate flicked a glance at her watch and drew in a sharp breath. Between her temporary part-time job in a bovine mastitis research lab, a tight schedule of classes and long labs, there wasn’t enough time. There was never enough—and nothing mattered more than acing her exams and staying near the top of her class.

Her scholarships and plans to go on to surgical residency depended on it.

Sometime, maybe in five years, she’d be able to slow down and try for some semblance of a social life. Until then—

“Hi, there.”

Startled, she looked up and saw Jared standing at the other side of the table. A thick dusting of early-November snow clung to the deep waves in his hair and to the shoulders of his navy ski jacket.

“I...wondered if you might have time for a cup of coffee somewhere.” A self-conscious smile tipped one corner of his mouth. “I know it’s been a while...”

He had the most mesmerizing eyes. Smoky gray and sensual, yet with a glint of humor that captivated her every time. She averted her gaze. “I can’t.”

“Maybe another time?”

The temptation before her was like facing a display of her favorite caramels and milk chocolates in a candy store window—an all-too-enticing opportunity that could lead to her downfall. “Honestly, I am so swamped with classes and homework right now that I barely have time to sleep.”

He pulled out a chair and settled into it, folding his arms on the table. “I want to apologize for not showing up a few weeks ago. I’d forgotten about a family commitment, and there was no way I could back out of it. I tried calling you, but the line was busy every time.”

“I was home.” Kate shrugged. “But I don’t remember—maybe Leesa’s new cat was playing with the phone again and knocked it off the hook.”

Could that have been the case? Probably not. There was no point in being difficult, but that didn’t mean she was going to be available just because he now had some time on his hands. And she couldn’t afford to stop cramming for her test, either.

He reached into his jacket pocket, pulled out a small brown paper sack and pushed it across the table toward her. His smile turned sheepish. “I saw this at my