Heartbreak, Tennessee (26 page)

“I don’t understand,”
Claudia interjected. “Bea’s never had arthritis. I mean, she even won second
place in a seniors’ ski tournament a few years back.”

“Three years ago,”
Andy corrected. “As I said, Bea is in terrific health in many ways. Her heart
is strong, and she takes good care of herself. But this condition can develop
relatively rapidly. On average, patients who seek surgery progress to
debilitating pain and loss of function over two years.”

“You mentioned
surgery,” Claudia said quickly. Andy saw the hopeful light in her eye. “So
there is a surgical solution?”

“Well...” Andy
swallowed. From here the waters got rougher. “As I said, I don’t want to
overload you with details now. I just wanted to sketch out the problem.
Tomorrow, or when you’re ready, we can go into more depth.”

“But there
is
a solution,” Claudia insisted, her
voice rising slightly in pitch. Another man might have missed the fear that she
was hiding, the way she pulled her arms a little tighter to her body, the faint
tremor in her chin.

He’d been doing all
right there for a while. Until he saw Claudia’s vulnerability. But now Andy
felt that his control was slipping by the second. Below the surface, in the
dangerously roiling stew of his subconscious, he found himself responding to
Claudia’s voice, her scent, her smallest gestures.

And inexplicably, he
longed to offer her comfort. To take her in his arms and press that soft cheek
against his neck, wrap her hair in a coil around his hands and murmur that
everything was going to be all right.

Not the way a doctor
was supposed to feel about a patient’s family member. Even when things looked
as grim as they did now.

 
Besides, judging from Claudia’s reaction
to him, she was none too pleased to find that he was Bea’s physician. Or maybe
he was overreacting, maybe all he detected in her cool response was
indifference. She wore no wedding ring, but she was no doubt involved with
someone, or else playing the field, toying with the rich playboys who were so
plentiful in her family’s social circle. They probably tripped all over each
other to get close to her.

“There are...a number
of options,” he said, willing his voice to be steady and even.

“Please don’t be
offended by this question,” Claudia said. “But there are other physicians you
are consulting with on this case? Specialists?”

Andy suppressed a
mirthless laugh. Leave it to a Canfield to ask that question.

“I’m working with an
orthopedist, yes,” he said. “Highly respected. If you like, I’ll get you a copy
of her credentials.”

“That won’t be
necessary,” Claudia snapped, the worry in her eyes momentarily replaced by
annoyance.

Andy drew in a breath,
suddenly feeling even more exhausted than when he first entered Bea’s room.
Maybe there was another way. Someone else he could discuss the situation with.
Surely if Claudia was in Lake Tahoe, her father Jack couldn’t be far behind.
They were a tight-knit bunch, those Canfields.

“Look, Claudia. If you
would prefer, I can wait and talk to your father. You said he would be coming
out soon?”

Claudia was silent for
a moment, her emotions scrolling across her face unchecked. Surprise, then
mistrust flashed in her eyes.

“What haven’t you told
me?”

“Just...a few details
about Bea’s condition.”

“So she has this
osteoarthritis. It’s not fatal, is it?”

“No—”

“And I can discuss her
surgery with the orthopedist?”

As she interjected,
Claudia had unwittingly stepped closer, so that Andy could see the fiery glints
of gold in the irises of her eyes, detect the faint ghost of her scent. In the
hours since she’d applied it, the woodsy perfume had mingled with her own
scent, and the result was...intoxicating.

But that sort of
thinking was taking him down a path he was determined not to follow. The affair
that had nearly devastated him had been nothing but a brief diversion for
Claudia, a chance to see how the other half lived, to spend some time with a
boy from the wrong side of the tracks. Sure, she’d talked as though there were
something more, dangling the possibility of a future together like an exotic
trinket used to taunt a dirty street urchin.

He’d been confused,
swimming in a vortex of unfamiliar passions, ready to go anywhere she led,
commit to anything she asked.

But then she’d gone
too far.

A chill quenched the
sensations that seconds before had Andy’s blood threatening to boil. He laid a
hand firmly on Claudia’s arm, closing the gap between them by a few more
inches.

“Claudia,” he said,
his voice low and controlled. “There are some things you need to know about
Bea’s condition. And this time I’m afraid you have no choice but to trust me.”

***

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