The Men of Medicine Ridge - Diana Palmer [54]
“You were in love,” Natalie excused her. “It doesn’t exactly make people lucid.”
“Doesn’t it?” Vivian asked pointedly, and with a curious smile.
“Don’t ask me,” the other woman replied, averting her face. “I was only seventeen when I had my first and last taste of it.”
“I know,” Vivian said disconcertingly. She smiled gently. “It was always Mack. And I knew it, and used it to hurt you. I regret that more than anything.”
“That wasn’t what I meant,” Natalie ground out.
Vivian didn’t press the issue. She patted her hand gently. “Everything’s going to be all right. Believe that, if you don’t believe another word I say.”
Natalie shifted to a more comfortable position. “Did all of you come down here together?” she asked.
“Yes. Your surgeon phoned and told us you were fighting for your life and that somebody had to give permission for him to operate.” She grimaced. “Mack had to fax a permission slip to him as next of kin, so if anyone asks, we’re your cousins.” She held up a hand when Natalie started to speak. “If he hadn’t, you might have died, Nat.”
“I had that accident card in my purse, the one you made me fill out with Mack’s name and phone number on it,” Natalie recalled. “I guess they found it when I was brought in.”
Vivian hesitated. “Do you remember what happened?”
“Yes. I saw two boys fighting on a basketball court. Like an idiot, I went in to stop it.” She smiled wryly. “One of them had a knife, and I was just in time to catch it in my chest. Fortunately it only cost me a little bit of one lung instead of my life.”
“Next time, call the police,” Vivian said firmly. “That’s their job, and they do it very well.”
“Next time, if there ever is one, I will.” Natalie caught Vivian’s hand as she moved it. “Thank you for coming all the way here. I never dreamed that any of you would—especially Mack.”
“When the boys heard, the first thing they said was that you belonged to us,” Vivian told her. “And you do. Whether you like it or not.”
“I like it very much.” Her lower lip became briefly unsteady. “I’m glad we’re still friends,” she managed shakily.
“Oh, Nat!” Vivian leaned down to hug her as gently as she could. “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry! I’ll never, never be so selfish and horrible again, ever!”
Natalie hugged her with her good arm and sighed as the tears poured out of her, therapeutic and comforting, hot on her pale face.
Vivian drew back and found tissues for both of them to wipe their wet eyes with, and they laughed while they did it.
“Mack still has his apologies to make,” Vivian added. “I think he’ll welcome the opportunity. But it’s going to be hard for him, so meet him halfway, would you?”
Natalie looked worried. “He looks bad.”
“He should. He’s been driving himself for weeks. I won’t even try to tell you how hard he’s been to live with.”
“That isn’t anything unusual,” Natalie said with her first glint of humor.
“This has been much worse than usual. If you don’t believe it, try looking into the hall when he comes back. You’ll see medical people running for the exits in droves.” She chuckled. “We just stood and gaped at him when he walked into the recovery room and started throwing orders around. The army sure lost a great leader when he was mustered out after his tour of duty. He made captain, at that.”
“Did…Glenna come, too?” she had to ask.
“He hasn’t seen Glenna since you left town,” Vivian said quietly. “He doesn’t talk about her, either.”
Natalie didn’t comment. She was sure that Mack was trying to heal a guilt complex, although he had no reason to feel guilty. He’d made a wrong assumption and accused her of something she hadn’t done, but he hadn’t caused her to be stabbed. That had been her own lack of foresight in stepping into a situation she wasn’t trained to handle. It could have happened anywhere.
For the moment,