Joyce and Ed came back into the hallway appearing much more relaxed, and Travis smiled.
“He was awake? He knew you?”
“Oh, yes. Right away. Though he couldn’t say much. When will you be releasing him? He can come home and we’ll take care of him.”
“You know, Randi here tells me you two had a trip planned. As long as nothing else happens tonight or tomorrow—which it likely won’t—” he added at the sight of Joyce’s suddenly worried expression “—he’ll be fine to get up and go home after a day of observation. The best thing for him to do, and for his memory, is to get back to his normal life as soon as he feels up to it. With no major injuries, he’ll probably want to return to work and a normal routine.”
Joyce was doubtful. “Oh, I don’t know. I think he should…”
“Hey, now, you may be the best cookie-baker this side of the planet, but I’m the doctor, right? Just go home now, and relax. He’s fine. He’s lucky.”
Ed nodded and shook Travis’s hand before leaving. Miranda watched them, then turned to Travis.
“Do you mind if I go in for a moment? Alone?” She slid an apologetic look at Penny, who, with her hands, motioned her to go along.
“You go on in. I’m fine. I’ll see him tomorrow when I can talk with him more. There’s no point in tiring him out now.”
Miranda nodded and, with her heart in her throat, walked into the room, unsure of what she would face there.
THE HALL, WHICH HAD BEEN crowded and noisy, was suddenly extremely quiet. Penny peeked up at Travis as she kicked at the corner of the wall.
“So he really is okay? You weren’t just trying to make them all feel better?”
“Penny, doctors really aren’t allowed to be less than completely honest. Unfortunately, even when the news is bad, we have to tell it like it is. So yes, unless something wildly unusual happens, he really is going to be fine. We’re keeping a close eye on him so don’t worry.”
She smiled, relieved, and suddenly felt awkward standing so close to Trav. He’d always been skinny and gawky, freckled and redheaded. She’d called him “Opie” and “chicken legs” and a bunch of other names for as long as she could remember. The teasing was an equalizer between them. It helped erase the fact that Travis’s life had been so different from her own.
Travis had been the last of their little group to appear, his parents moving to Portland from New York City when he was seven. His father was a well-known attorney and, though the group lived within blocks of each other, Travis’s home was much more luxurious than the rest of theirs. He’d traveled all over the world, spoke two other languages and could discuss topics she had no idea about.
Getting stuck in public school for a year because his parents had missed registration when they moved, Travis was out of his element, away from the posh private schools he had attended in New York. He’d been small, skinny and smart—a prime target for bullying—until Penny, Colin and Miranda had rallied around and taken him into the fold. Travis had completed the group. Colin was the intellectual, Miranda was the adventurer, Penny was the no-nonsense one, and Travis was the clown.
She still recalled how when his parents had tried to register him for private school, he’d pitched a fit to stay where he was, and they’d let him. The Monroes were great. Penny had to admit they had never made her feel out of place or like they were rich and she was poor, though that was the truth of it.
When the four of them played, had parties, or otherwise got together, it was always at one of the others’ homes or some other location. The small apartment her mother had just didn’t have room for visitors, and besides Penny hadn’t really wanted anyone to come over anyhow. She’d slept on the sofa bed in the living room, and her mom in the too-small bedroom. There had been barely room for a desk and a secondhand computer for Penny out in the living room. Miranda had been the only one who ever had visited.
Penny had never wanted Travis to see where she had grown up, though now her mom lived in a modest but pretty home that Penny had helped her buy. It was the least she could do for all the sacrifices her mother had made for her.
She nudged her toe against the wall again and looked at Travis from beneath her long lashes. He was still skinny, but now it was in that lithe I-want-to-start-at-your-ankles-and-crawl-my-way-up-to-your-lips kind of way. His hair fell adorably over his forehead and he was always batting it away from his friendly blue eyes. She loved the color of his hair. Penny was also a redhead, but hers was more strawberry blond, where his was a deep copper. She tried not to notice—honestly she put forth her best effort—but he was just so hot.
She also had to put forth her best effort to hide her feelings when other women noticed him—every time they were out in a public place. Travis hadn’t been a monk, she knew, but most of his relationships hadn’t been under her nose, occurring when he was away at school. He always said residents didn’t have time for romance, which must be true, because she hadn’t seen him with anyone in a while.
She came back into the moment, grinding her teeth when she saw him grinning at her in that “Ha! You think I’m gorgeous” way that burned her butt. She put her hands on her hips, and faced him squarely.
“What?”
“You know you want me. Why don’t you just give in to your desires. Pen? Treat yourself. You deserve it.”
She barked out a laugh and rolled her eyes.
“Hey, maybe you can get one of your doctor friends to check out your ego, it seems to be a little swollen.”
He simply smiled wider and took a step closer. God, the one thing that hadn’t changed was what an annoying smart-ass he could be.
“That’s not exactly where I’m feeling some swelling at the moment.” His eyes were wicked, and she had to fight a smile.
“You’re disgusting.”
“C’mon, Penster. Go out with me. How many times are you going to shoot me down?”
Nervously jamming her hands into her pockets, she scowled. “Give it up. I’m never going out with you, Travis. You’re not my type.”
Those friendly blue eyes took on a little edge, and she tipped her face up, facing off with him boldly as he stepped even closer until he almost had her pinned against the tile wall.
“And what type would that be?” he asked, his voice low so only she could hear.
She craned her neck to look past his shoulder. “Randi will be back out any second. I wonder how she’s doing.”
Travis only extended one arm, planting his hand on the wall aside of her, leaning in.
“I’m sure they’re fine. What type of man do you want, Penny? I’m sure we could work something out.”
Penny inhaled sharply, which was a totally stupid thing to do because even in the antiseptic atmosphere of the hospital ward, Travis’s fresh, clean scent was heavenly.
“Back off, will ya?” She pushed forward, planting her hands on his shoulder, only to have him pull her up close, sliding a look from side to side to make sure they were alone. Then, before she could wrestle free, he swooped in and covered her mouth with his, one fast, hot kiss that shot heat straight to all the places that counted. Places that hadn’t received much attention lately.
He let his mouth linger on hers for a minute, then he backed away slowly, satisfied as he took in her flushed cheeks and dazed eyes. The night-duty nurse clattered down the hall with the medicine tray, rolling along in between them, but even that didn’t break the spell.
“Just something for you to think about, in case you decide I might be your type after all.”
Travis