Vivid Temptation (Touched By You) (8 page)

The next day Tanner left for work early, and Natalie sat at her desk trying to get into a designing mood. The truth was that she missed her husband, and had to admit she was spoiled. So often they traveled together, spending days, even weeks, alone. Sharing him with work was surely a reasonable request, but still she felt a bit low.

Needing a distraction, she went into the kitchen to see what Sara was planning for lunch. “Glad you are back. I missed having you around,” Natalie said, sitting on the stool at the breakfast bar. “Did you have a good time?”

“Wonderful,” Sara said. “I don’t have much family, but I wanted my parents to meet Andre. And they loved him, of course. He’s such a wonderful man.”

Natalie smiled. “Yes, he is. I agree.”

“And I have news,” Sara said, conspiratorially.

“What? Tell me.”

Sara flushed and her eyes shone with happiness. It had to be something good. If only it was what Natalie hoped it was.

“Andre asked me to be his wife.” She beamed.

“Really? That’s wonderful. He asked you to marry him while you were visiting in your parents in Montana?”

“Yes, it was so romantic. We went for a walk alone. Beautiful, majestic mountains were all around. He got down on his knee in the snow, got soaking wet. He told me he loved me and he couldn’t bear to live without me. He would be honored if I would be his wife.” Sara laughed and blushed at the same time. “He’d been planning to ask me for a while. He already had the ring.” She removed her left hand from the apron pocket where it had been hidden, and stuck it out to show off her lovely diamond engagement ring.

Natalie shrieked and leapt from the chair to rush over and give her friend a hug. They giggled and danced around the kitchen like schoolgirls. “Wow, Sara. I’m so happy for you. When? When is the wedding?”

“We are going to Las Vegas this weekend, when I’m off. We don’t want a big wedding. His family is in Paris; they wouldn’t be able to fly over. And my parents are aging; the trip would be too hard. But everyone is happy for us.

“We are going to have an intimate wedding, just the two of us, and a long weekend in Las Vegas. Andre talked to Tanner, and he’s letting us take the private jet, which will be an experience in itself for me. That way the trip will be faster and we’ll have more time together.”

“Yes, and anything else you need. We want you to be happy.
And Andre too.”

“We are, truly. I’ve never been happier.”

Natalie’s phone rang, shattering the joyous moment. “Yes, this is Natalie Baker.” She was puzzled. “The hospital?” She felt the blood drain from her face and her limbs get weak. “I’ll…yes, I’ll be right there.”

Stunned, Natalie looked at Sara, seeing her concern but unable to react. She made no attempt to explain, not then.
“Call Andre. I need him to take me to the hospital. Right away.”

*****

Natalie had a vague sense of being in shock. Nothing seemed real. As the city sped by outside the window, she thought only of getting there in time. They parked by the emergency entrance and Andre escorted her to the desk to get the room number. “Call Tanner for me,” she said, heading for the hallway.

Andre nodded.
“Right away. I’ll be right here if you need me.”

Her heart pounded and a confusion of emotions fought inside her. At the nurses’ station, she looked around for room numbers on the door. Spotting the one she looked for, Natalie put
her hand up to pull it open. At the same moment, a doctor in a white coat stepped out. “Are you Natalie?” he said.

She nodded.

“May I speak with you for a moment?”

She nodded again.

Guiding her away from the door, the gray-haired doctor asked, “Are you a relative?”

“He’s my father.”

Satisfied with that answer, he continued. “We found your name and number in his pocket.” Natalie recalled giving Nicolas one of her business cards when she’d last seen him. It had her cell number. “We will need you to fill out some paperwork. Your father was in no shape to do so.”

“Is it serious? What’s wrong with him?”

“He was transported by ambulance. The paramedics said a neighbor found him and called. It appears he fell down the stairs at his apartment and hit his head. He’s been in and out of consciousness.”

“Will he be okay?”

“That I don’t know. I should have the tests results back in a few minutes. My concern is that there might be bleeding in the brain. It’s hard to tell at this point.”

“Can I see him please?”

“Only for a minute. I don’t want him disturbed. We have him calm, and this may require emergency surgery.”

“Just for a minute.
I just want to let him know he’s not alone.”

The doctor gave his approval and Natalie went swiftly to her father’s room, afraid she’d be too late. There he was in the white-sheeted bed, looking as white as the walls around him. In the hospital environment, he looked small, forlorn. It wrenched her heart; it would to see anyone like that.

Quietly, she stepped over to the bed and Nicolas opened his eyes. “Father,” she said. “I’m here.”

At first there was no reaction, and Natalie wasn’t sure he recognized her. She touched his shoulder. “The doctor is taking good care of you. Don’t worry about anything.”

“Thank you,” he said in a tiny whisper, his lips moving in a labored fashion. He opened his mouth as if to say more, but no words came at first.

Natalie reached down to take his hand. Her father, who had been missing most of her life, had finally appeared. It hadn’t been an emotional reunion, but deep inside she thought it was possible to have some sort of relationship with him. He seemed so sad, and whatever damage he’d done was over. Guilt and remorse did no good.

A tiny gasp of air came out before his words could be heard. Natalie leaned closer so as not to miss what he said. “Your mother and I made peace with each other. Everything’s okay.” She thought she saw the hint of a smile, and then his eyes closed. Watching to his chest rise and fall to make sure he was still breathing, Natalie was relieved to know he was still alive, though passed out.

She left the room, unsure of the meaning of his words. Had he seen Emma?
Recently? How could that be? Natalie sank into a chair in the waiting lounge and stared into space, seeing nothing.
Hurry
, she thought
. Help him
.

How much time went by, Natalie didn’t know. Life seemed held in abeyance; only her father’s condition was important. Looking up, she saw Tanner stride over to her. She stood and he wrapped his arms around her.

“How is he?”

“I’m not sure. He hit his head. The doctor has to see the test results before he knows the extent of the injury. He might have to do surgery.”

“I got here as fast as I could. When did you talk to the doctor?”

Natalie felt dazed. “I’m not sure.
A while ago.”

“Maybe I should try to find out something.” But Tanner didn’t release her, and Natalie was so glad to have him there.

The doctor stepped through the swinging door, his expression serious. Natalie and Tanner looked up expectantly. “I’m sorry.”

That was all he said, and Natalie wasn’t sure what he meant. Was he sorry her father fell? Sorry he took so long to come back? Then the impact of his words pierced through her numbness and she felt tears spilling down her cheeks. Tanner squeezed her tighter.

“Your father passed away. From what I could see in the films, it was too late by the time he got here. I don’t know how long it was before the neighbor saw him. He could have been injured long before the ambulance arrived.”

All Natalie heard was “your father passed away.”
No
, she thought,
no
. The sound of her sobs surprised her, like someone else was crying and she was far away.

“When you are able, please stop at the desk. He was unable to give us any i
nformation,” he said to Tanner.

Tanner nodded. He kept a tight hold on Natalie while dealing with details at the hospital. Words buzzed around her, meaningless. She moved along with Tanner at his direction, and somehow they made it home. Beside her on the bed, he held her in his embrace until mercifully she fell asleep late in the evening.

When she woke up, Natalie had an immediate feeling of panic, but she couldn’t say at first what it was about. Then the memory rushed back. One minute her father was there, and the next he was gone. Gone.

She struggled to her feet and went to the bathroom. Looking in the mirror, Natalie could see she wasn’t quite herself. Her skin was ashen, her eyes swollen and puffy. But what did it matter? She was alive. Her father was not. It didn’t seem to matter that she knew so little about him. The shock of his sudden death shook her severely.

One thing she was glad of was that she’d had that one outing with him. Just once, Natalie had been able to talk to him, trying to understand. For so long, she’d agonized over how his actions had affected the family. But Emma was fine now; Jazzy was happy. It was really Nicolas that had led an empty life.

Dread washed over her at the thought of telling Jazzy. But she’d have to. It would be easier for her sister, having only seen him the one time. There was a very weak bond between them, if at all. But Natalie felt grief. She’d lost her father, and it hurt. At least he hadn’t seemed to be in pain when she’d seen him. The horrifying thought of how long he might have been suffering before someone found him, haunted her.

Day by day, Natalie recovered. It had been a devastating occurrence, so unexpected. Little by little, she’d get over it. But she would remember him. At least that. Weeks went by before she felt up to telling Jazzy. Of course it was upsetting, but she took it well. They hugged and cried, as any women would after losing their father. The bond between father and daughter was there, despite the neglect.

Tanner didn’t know if Nicolas had any friends, and couldn’t find any other relatives. He made sure the hospital was paid, and handled the other arrangements. There was no one to invite
to a funeral service. But Natalie went to the mortuary with Tanner to show respect. Then it was over, and there was nothing more she could do.

Except one thing—she had to talk to Emma. Putting it off out of fear of causing her mother distress, Natalie had stalled long enough. She had to know what her father’s last words meant. Sitting across from Emma, she asked, not knowing if she wanted the answer or not.

“Mom, I have to talk with you about something.”

“Sure. What?”

“Nicolas.”

Emma didn’t react adversely; she just waited to see what Natalie had to say. Each word torture, Natalie told her mother of her father’s appearance, that she’d met with him once, and of his sudden death. She omitted mentioning that he’d begged for money. What would be the point of bringing it up then?

“And when I saw him, just for a minute…the last time I saw him in the hospital…he said something I didn’t understand.”

“What, honey?”

Natalie repeated his words: “‘Your mother and I have made peace. Everything is okay.’”

Emma’s eyes welled with tears.

“What did he mean?”

Emma put her hand at her neck as if to hold back emotion. “I knew he was in New York.”

“You saw him.”

“Just once.”

“But how?”

“Honey, I heard about him from time to time, through friends. For a long time after he left I didn’t hear anything. But I cared. I wondered. Every once in a while I’d hear something about him and I’d know he was okay.”

“But you didn’t contact him?”

“No, honey.
There was no need to. You see, I loved the man he
was
, when I knew him, when he was with us. I cherished that. He was a good person inside. Yes, irresponsible, but not a bad person.

“I didn’t want to ruin the memory I had. It was all I had. We were in love…once. He was handsome and I fell for him hard. And I know he loved me, at least for a while. It was wonderful then. That’s something I’ll always have…that memory.

“
That
was the man I loved and never stopped loving. Not the man he became. Oh, I know he was a womanizer and a bum, I guess. But when we were in love, there was hope. It didn’t work out, but that never changed how I felt.

“And I had you girls. You and Jazzy mean everything to me. It was all worth it. I’m blessed in so many ways, and now I have a grandson to love. I could never find it in my heart to hate your father.”

“Did he contact you when he came to New York?” Natalie wondered, since she’d told him not to contact the family in that first meeting.

“No, he didn’t. I found out where he was staying and went by. I just th
ought after all this time, well…I didn’t want to leave things unfinished.”

“What did you talk about?” Natalie knew she was prying but she wanted to know. She loved her mother and it amazed her that Emma knew about Nicolas but had never mentioned it.