Dangerous Therapy: O'Connor Brothers (Volume 1) (4 page)

“What are you doing here?” John tried to keep his voice down.

“I wanted to offer my condolences to James and the family.”

“You could have sent a card.” He snapped.

“I know, but I wanted to talk to you.” John rolled his eyes.

“Kim, I don’t know how many more times I’ve got to tell you, but it’s over. I don’t want to talk to you or see you anymore.”

“You won’t even let me explain,” She said.

“There’s no explanation that’s going to make what you did right. I’m done. You’re the one who screwed around before we even slept together.” His voice got louder and no doubt everyone in the house was listening. “Stay away from me, and stay away from my family.”

“I was drunk!” She whined. The front door opened and Nanny Betty stepped out on the porch.

“Now ya listen here young lady, and I use dat term very loosely. Johnny’s had enough of yar shenanigans, and Jimmy don’t need ya here yappin’. He’s trying to rest. Now ya get!” Nanny Betty almost pushed Kim off the step. “And don’t ya go botherin’ Johnny again.” She turned and pushed John inside the house. “Now young man ya needs to grow a backbone.” She turned on her heel and glided down the hall back to the kitchen. The woman was like a tornado.

Now he really needed to clear his head. John let everyone know he was leaving. Of course not before he received another lecture from Nanny Betty about finding a nice girl. His mind flashed to Stephanie. It was so strange he couldn’t get her out of his mind. She took over his thoughts whenever he was alone, and she constantly appeared in his dreams. It was crazy to be infatuated with a woman he spent all of fifteen minutes with. A long drive was exactly what he needed to clear his head.

Even with the sorrow of the funeral, it was still a beautiful day. It was April. There was still a slight chill to the air, but it was obvious spring was just around the corner. As children, they made numerous trips on the Southern Shore Highway. The O’Connor’s were from Cape Broyle and until his grandfather died, it was where Nanny Betty and Grandda Jack lived. When Grandda passed away and Sean convinced Nanny Betty to move to Hopedale to be closer to the family, she gave the whole family their own keys to the house. She refused to sell it and the house was just kept as a summer home. Nobody had been there since October. So it was probably a good idea to check on it while he was up this way. Besides he always felt closer to Grandda at the house.

Jack O’Connor was a big teddy bear, and always had a positive attitude. No matter how bad your day was, he always found a way to make you feel better. There was a silver lining in everything. A self-educated man, and successful businessman, he worked hard for everything he had. The O’Connor’s weren’t millionaires, but Grandda made sure Nanny Betty would never have to worry about money for the rest of her life. When he passed away, it was hard on the whole family. Nanny Betty especially. They were together almost sixty years.

The night he passed away Grandda told everyone to be happy for him. He lived a wonderful life with the most wonderful woman in the world. John still missed him.

He pulled into the unpaved driveway of the navy bungalow. His Legs were stiff after driving almost an hour, he stretched out his back and scanned the horizon across the street. The view of the ocean was always his favorite part. On a clear day, you could see the whales jumping next to the small islands scattered around the coast.

The house looked the same. The hooks where his grandmother’s porch swing had once hung were still there. The sight of the house calmed his frayed nerves and made him feel closer to Grandda.

John pushed open the heavy wooden front door. The musty smell was evidence enough that nobody had been inside for the last few months. Soon the family would start to make frequent trips on weekends for fishing and family fun. They’d had a lot of fun times here over the years. He opened the windows to air everything out. He wasn’t going to stay too long, but it was nice to just look around.

“Grandda, I really miss you.” As children, John and James spent a lot of time with their grandparents during the summer. Grandda would take them fishing and they would help Nanny Betty in the garden. The five younger boys didn’t enjoy the work as much as John and James. On the mantel over the fireplace was a picture of Grandda and Nanny Betty. John took down a picture and stared at it. He was feeling sentimental because of Sarah’s death. “Well Grandda you take care of Sarah up there, and we’ll take care of James and Nan down here.” A tear ran down his cheek.

John spent the next hour wandering around the house or daydreaming on the front porch. By the time he locked up, he was more relaxed. He really should’ve taken an overnight bag and stayed the night, but when he left home he just wanted to escape. Staying tonight wasn’t an option, and he needed to get home before nightfall. The drive was great, but when it got dark the roads could be treacherous this time of year. One last look at the house and he pulled out of the driveway to head home.

A half hour out of Hopedale a light drizzle and dense fog had settled across the road. He could barely see a foot in front of the car’s hood. At least it wasn’t snowing. The road straightened and he increased his speed. He glanced down at the clock and when his eyes moved back to the road a large dark object appeared directly in front of him.

A moose.

Shit!

He slammed on the brakes, but the slick roads made the car fishtail. The car skidded. A hard thud, screeching tires and shattering glass. The sound was deafening. The airbag deployed with a pop. A surge of pain shot through his entire body.

Then everything went black.

It took almost three months, but Stephanie finally got an interview with Nightingale’s. It had taken so long to hear back from them; Stephanie didn’t think she’d get a call. The interview went well, and she was trying to be optimistic. The lady that interviewed her was nice enough, but there was something strange in the way she watched Stephanie. The questions she asked weren’t your typical interview questions either. Mrs. Nightingale was definitely a little eccentric.

Back at home, her nephew was making his presence known and he didn’t sound pleased. Little Daniel Douglas certainly had a healthy set of lungs, especially when he was screaming the roof off the house at four in the morning. It wasn’t that Stephanie regretted her decision to have Marina and Danny live with her. She just liked to sleep through the night once in a while. Danny however, had other ideas.

Marina was talking in soothing tones to the baby. Only three months and Marina was a pro at figuring out what he needed. According to Marina, Danny had different cries. One for when he was hungry, one for when he was tired, one for when he needed to be changed and one for just needing a cuddle. It all sounded the same to Stephanie. Loud.

“Hey!” Stephanie walked into the living room.

“How was the interview?” Marina rocked Danny, patting his little behind and the crying began to subside. Must have been a cuddle cry.

“Good. The lady who owns it interviewed me.” Stephanie flopped down on the sofa.

“Why do you look so unsure about her?”

“I don’t know. She was nice enough, but she kept giving me the strangest looks and asked really personal questions.” Stephanie said.

“Like what?” Marina moved Danny to her shoulder.

“Well, she asked me if I was seeing anyone and if I’d rather live in town or outside of town,” Stephanie said. “Oh, and the best one was if I believed in love at first sight.”

“Weird.” Marina chuckled.

“Yeah, but I guess she was a little distracted. She attended a funeral this morning.” It made Stephanie feel awful that the woman had to perform an interview after going to a funeral.

“I’m surprised she just didn’t postpone the interview.” Marina placed Danny in his bouncy seat.

“I know, but this job would be perfect,” Stephanie said. “I wouldn’t be stuck in a building; I’d be doing a lot more physical therapy as well as personal care.”

“And the money is great!” Marina laughed.

“That too!” Stephanie’s stomach rumbled. She hadn’t eaten all day. On her way to the kitchen, her phone vibrated in her pocket.

“Hello!”

“Can I speak with Stephanie Kelly, please?” It was a female voice with an Irish lilt to her voice. The kind you heard from up on the Southern shore. The same accent as Mrs. Nightingale.

“Speaking!” Stephanie said.

“This is Cora Nightingale.”

“Oh, hello Mrs. Nightingale.” She waved at Marina and crossed her fingers.

“Cora, please! I just wanted to let you know I’m very impressed with you. You’re exactly what we need for our team. I’m calling to offer you a position with us.”

Stephanie danced around in a circle. “Thank you so much, Cora.” She used her most professional voice. “I’d love to work with your team, and I gladly accept your offer.”

“That’s grand, Stephanie,” Cora said. “Can you come by tomorrow so we can get the necessary paperwork completed?”

“I’ll be there first thing in the morning if that’s okay.”

“Wonderful. I’ll see you then.” Stephanie ended the call and danced around the living room waving her arms in the air.

“Did you get the job?” Marina chuckled.

“Yep!” Stephanie said. “I’m so happy right now.”

“Gee, I never would have guessed.” Marina feigned surprise.

Stephanie immediately called her parents to give them the good news. As usual, they decided a celebration supper was in order. Her mother always thought any good news should be honored with a family meal which wasn’t a bad thing because nobody cooked like Janet Kelly.

The mouth-watering aroma of roast beef invaded Stephanie’s nose as soon as they walked into the house. Jigs Dinner with roast beef. The delicious combination of salt beef
boiled together with 
potatoes
, 
carrot
, 
cabbage
, turnip and split peas pudding. It was her favorite meal.
She gave mom a quick hug and found her dad in the living room watching the news. A mangled car flashed across the screen.

“Oh my God! What happened?” She covered her mouth at the horrific sight.

“Somebody hit a moose on the Southern Shore Highway,” Doug said. “Looks like the guy is in rough shape. He’s in critical care at the Health Science Center.”

“That’s awful.”

“Yeah, a lot of fog and drizzle out there today,” Doug said. “It doesn’t matter what speed you’re doing on that road when it’s foggy, you can’t see a thing until you’re on top of it. I hope that young man’s gonna be okay. He’s only twenty-nine.”

Stephanie’s stomach clenched. He wasn’t much older than her. Too many people were hurt or killed on the highways because of the moose. It was becoming an epidemic. She hated the highways and avoided them at all costs. If there was another route to get somewhere she took it.

All during supper and even after, she couldn’t get the sight of the accident out of her mind. She tried to listen as her father talked about business picking up. Construction was pretty slow in the winter time. Her thoughts kept going back to the accident on the highway. She couldn’t shake the feeling she knew this person, but she wasn’t aware of anyone she knew from up that way. Maybe it was because the victim was so close in age. All she hoped was that the poor man was going to be okay.

For the rest of the evening, she did her best to shake the foreboding feeling she had. Her mother noticed her distraction and asked several times if she was feeling alright. What could she say? That she couldn’t get the thought of a stranger hurt in an accident off her mind. It was ridiculous. Still something told her there was a connection.

The next morning, Stephanie sat across the desk from Cora. While Cora explained the policies and procedures of Nightingale’s Private Home Care and Therapy, she kept glancing at her phone laying on her desk with the screen up. Again, Stephanie got that same feeling from the previous night. What the hell was wrong with her? Cora was just probably expecting an important call.

Cora passed Stephanie some papers to fill out and excused herself. A few minutes later she returned, but her eyes looked watery and her cheeks were a little blotchy. Stephanie was naturally curious, and she hated to see anyone upset.

Cora was definitely hurting. “I’m really glad you’re part of our team, Stephanie.” She held out her hand.

“Me too.” Stephanie shook her hand.

“Stephanie, because of your background and experience you’ll be paid more than most of the staff. We’ll be utilizing all of your skills.”

Cora slipped a folded piece of paper in front of Stephanie. “What’s this?” Stephanie picked it up.

“That’s your yearly salary.” Stephanie unfolded the paper and gasped. It was almost double what she was making at the moment. Stephanie looked up and met Cora’s eyes.

Cora smiled, but it seemed forced. “You’ve come to us at the perfect time. I’ve got a couple of clients set up for you already.” She passed Stephanie two files. “Their schedule is in the folder, but they’re only short term. I’m hoping I have a long term one for you soon.”

“That’s great!” Stephanie smiled but stopped herself when she saw Cora’s eyes filled with tears. “Cora, are you okay?”

“Don’t worry about me, ducky, it’s just allergies.” Cora squeezed her hand.

Allergies? Stephanie knew tears when she saw them. Whatever was bothering Cora, she didn’t seem to want to talk about it. Stephanie hoped everything was okay. She hated to see people hurting.

Cora shook her hand again as Stephanie walked out of the office. Several times on the way to her car she glanced back to see Cora watching her. It should make her feel uncomfortable with someone watching her so intently but for some reason it didn’t. It almost seemed like Cora was watching out for her. She climbed into her car and pulled out of the parking lot. Stephanie was so distracted thinking about Cora, she almost ran a red light.

“Damn it! Why do I keep letting my mind wander while I’m driving?” At least this time she didn’t go through it. She smiled. The last time she ran a red light Officer Hunky pulled her over. The hot sexy cop that was invading her dreams ever since. Dreams that made her wake up aching for that hot cop.

Her thoughts of this man were really starting to concern her. She met the man for all of fifteen minutes and hasn’t seen him since. Maybe she had built him up to be her fantasy man. The perfect guy who would never hurt her.

She pulled into her driveway and pressed her head against the steering wheel. Sure he was sexy as hell in that uniform, and unbelievably handsome, but so was Brad. Brad was a fireman and in his uniform he was sex on a stick. Too bad he turned out to be a cheating bastard who took every last cent she had. Thank God for her family. If it hadn’t been for them, she would’ve been out on the street. It was going to be damn hard to trust another man. Especially one in uniform.