Winners (23 page)

“If this works, maybe we can open one there one day,” he said, smiling at her. “But then you can’t turn me down as medical director.”

“I wish I could do it here,” she said honestly, looking around, “but I can’t. And Jimmy’s not going anywhere for twelve more years. I’ll help you find someone, though.” The right person for medical director hadn’t shown up yet, but she was sure someone would, and Bill was hoping she was right.

Before he drove her back to the hotel, they stopped in to see Lily at Craig. She was on her way to her tutor and couldn’t stay long with them, but she was happy to see Jessie and gave her a big hug.

“I’m so glad you came out here! I missed you,” she said warmly.

“I missed you too.” Jessie smiled at her and could see that she was flourishing. Craig had really helped her, and she looked confident and comfortable with her wheelchair, and her skiing had done wonders for her. She felt like herself again.

“Did Dad take you to see The Lily Pad?” Lily looked excited as she asked her.

“Yes, he did, it’s amazing.”

“I’m jealous. He hasn’t let me see it yet. He wanted to fix up some things first. He’s going to take me there when I come home.”

“You’ll love it!” Jessie said, and meant it. She was enormously impressed by the location and Bill’s plans, and everything he had described to her that afternoon. He was a man with a vision, and the courage to see it through.

Lily had to leave them then to meet her tutor, and Bill drove Jessie back to the hotel.

“Are you too exhausted to have dinner tonight?” Bill asked her when he dropped her off.

“No, I’d love it.”

“I want you to meet our administrator. He’s an old friend of mine from school. He just moved out here from New York last month. He’s been a godsend.”

“I’d love to meet him,” she said as a bellman picked up her bag.

“I’ll pick you up at eight.” She waved and followed the bellman into the hotel.

Jessie lay on the bed and turned on the TV when she got to her room. It was the first time she didn’t have to do anything for anyone, in years, she realized. All she had to do was lie there and relax until dinner, and five minutes later she was sound asleep.

She woke up with a start at seven, took a shower, and dressed. And at eight o’clock she was downstairs, wearing a short skirt and flat shoes, and a white wool jacket. She looked pretty and relaxed, and her blond hair was in the familiar braid. He had seen her so often in Squaw, and talked to her so frequently since, that he felt like he was meeting an old friend, and she felt that way too as she got into his car with a smile. She had called all the kids before she came downstairs, and everyone was doing fine, so she could enjoy the evening.

“Not too tired?” he asked with a look of concern.

“I fell asleep. I feel great,” she said happily. She needed this respite desperately, from all the responsibilities she was carrying alone now. It was the first break she’d had since Tim died. She was on duty all the time, at work or at home.

“Joe is meeting us at the restaurant. He’s been dealing with the planning commission all day. Zoning problems. Thank God he’s good at stuff like that—I hate it. We need a million permits. He’s a genius at getting the minutiae done, and dealing with all the officials. I just get mad when they put up roadblocks. Joe is a magician, and he makes friends with everyone and gets them to give us what we need. I don’t know how he does it. He’s a great guy to have on our team.”

“So are you,” she said with a smile as they drove through Denver to the restaurant where he’d booked a reservation. It was lively and full of young people when they got there. He had taken a date there in the last month and had been surprised to run into Penny. She’d given him a big hug, and the woman he’d been with had looked annoyed. It was the only time he’d gone out since Lily was at Craig, and there was no one he cared about at the moment. His mind was on other things. He had just taken the woman out because she was attractive and he had nothing else to do, but he’d been so bored by the end of the evening, he knew he wouldn’t take her out again. And as much as he’d enjoyed Penny’s company while he dated her, he didn’t miss her either. He had too much else to think about, with The Lily Pad, and Lily almost ready to come home. He was much more excited about having dinner with Jessie and Joe and talking about their plans than going on any date.

Bill introduced them to each other, and they went to their table, as Bill asked Joe how it had gone at the planning commission.

“We’ll get there,” he said calmly, with a confident smile.

“Better you than I,” Bill said as they sat down. “I always want to kill someone when I have to deal with officials like that. They’re so unreasonable.” Joe laughed, they had been just that all day, but he was a patient man, far more so than Bill. And he had discovered that he and the head of the planning commission had friends in common. It never hurt.

They ordered wine before dinner, and Jessie felt very adult being out with two men, in a nice restaurant, wearing decent clothes and not just jeans, or her hospital coat or scrubs. She hadn’t let herself relax in months.

“This is the most civilized evening I’ve had in ages,” she said with a look of amazement. “My poor kids have been living on frozen pizza. It’s been a mess.” Bill couldn’t even imagine what a juggling act Jessie’s life was, especially now alone, with major professional responsibilities and four kids. But he could see on her face how much she was enjoying having a night off. He was sorry they didn’t live in the same city. It would have been nice to see her more often, and talk about their project as it developed.

Joe and Bill talked about Harvard then, since they had gone to business school there, and she to medical school. It was a common bond they shared. And they all had fond memories of school.

“I don’t think I could get in today,” Jessie said modestly. “It’s so much harder to get into decent schools.” But Bill was certain she could have.

“What about your kids?” Bill asked with interest. “Are any of them likely to go east to school?”

“Not a one,” she said honestly. “They’re California kids, and none of them are great students. Except my little one. He says he wants to be a doctor and go to Harvard, but who knows what he’ll want to do by then? Probably be a pizza baker or something. What about Lily? Where do you think she’ll apply next year?” He looked worried when she asked him.

“She’s always wanted to go east to college, to one of the Ivy League schools, and she’s got the grades, but I want her to stay close to home now.”

“What does she want?” Jessie asked gently.

“Probably the same schools she always did, but things have changed.”

“Not academically. There’s no reason she can’t go east to school. She can get the care she needs there. You don’t want her to give up her education because of her injury.” She looked shocked at the idea.

“I want her close to me, and close to home. I’d be worried sick about her there.”

“Then you’re going to have to work on that, aren’t you,” Jessie said firmly, as their dinner came, and she and Joe struck up a conversation about summers in Cape Cod and Martha’s Vineyard.

She brought up the subject of Lily and college again when Bill drove her home. “You’re not serious about making Lily stay in Denver because of her injury, Bill, are you?” She looked worried about it when she asked him, and so did he.

“Yes, I am. This whole thing has been so traumatic, and I want her here where I know she’ll get great care, and I can keep an eye on her. I don’t want something happening to her back east.” He looked terrified as he said it, and she felt sorry for him, and she knew Lily well enough to know that she wouldn’t give in easily. She was too much like him to do that, and she wanted a normal life. That was why she was at Craig.

“You can’t keep her in a bubble. She’d be miserable.”

“So she says,” he said sadly. “It’s bad enough that she’s skiing. I have my heart in my mouth every time she goes up to Winter Park.”

“She’s not a kid you can tie down or confine, or keep in a rocking chair, knitting,” Jessie said wisely, and he knew it was true. He had seen her chair skiing once, and he was so frightened for her, it nearly killed him. And now she wanted to enter the Paralympics, downhill racing. “She’s your daughter, Bill. She won’t give up and sit quietly in her wheelchair.”

“I know. But I think going away to college is too risky for her.” Jessie smiled at him as they got to the hotel.

“I think you’re going to have a big fight on your hands if you try to keep her here. As her doctor, I can tell you she’ll be okay if she goes away to school. And if that’s what she wants, she should do it. She needs to follow her dreams.”

“As her father, I can tell you the stress of it would put me over the edge.” He smiled at Jessie too. “These kids don’t make it easy for us, do they? Yours won’t let you leave Squaw Valley for a great job here, and would rather keep you chained up there. And mine wants to drive me into an early grave, downhill racing with a spinal cord injury. I swear, they’re trying to kill us.” She laughed at what he said—some of it was true.

“They still have to be who they want to be, within reason. I’m not sure how much voice we get in it, or should. It’s our job to let them go when the time comes.”

“Not in a wheelchair,” he said softly. “I can’t do it.”

“You may have to,” she said, smiling at him gently. “I understand, it would scare me too. But you don’t want her living like an invalid, do you?” He shook his head and looked into Jessie’s eyes, wishing she were just a woman he had met. But instead she was someone he wanted to hire, and Lily’s doctor. She was a wonderful human being, and he felt so comfortable with her. And she was so smart, and so wise about many things. If nothing else, she was a great friend.

“Thank you for a lovely dinner,” she said when he dropped her at the hotel. “I had a terrific time. I haven’t had a night like this in years, just talking and relaxing with friends.”

“I felt that way too. It’s a nice break from everything else,” he assured her.

“Yes, it is. What time do you want me at the house tomorrow?” They were going to go through all the CVs he had of therapists and doctors for the center. He trusted her judgment about them more than his own.

“Is ten o’clock too early?”

“It’s perfect.”

“I’ll get some work done that way, and then we can go over all the résumés I’ve been collecting.”

“That’s why I’m here.” She smiled at him. “See you at ten.” She got out of the car and waved as he drove away. It had been a perfect evening.

Jessie woke at six the next day, as she did every day, and went back to sleep, which was a great luxury. She hadn’t been able to do that since Tim died. She got up at nine then, ordered breakfast, and dressed. And shortly before ten she took a cab to Bill’s house. And they spent three hours reviewing all the CVs. And at the end of it, she had four people to interview by phone for him. They were all over the country, and only one of them was from Denver, and used to work at Craig.

They had lunch in his kitchen, went back to look at the property again, just to check out some details, and then they went to visit Lily. But she was always so busy, she barely had time to see them. And an hour later they left when she went to driver’s ed.

“I suppose I have to let her drive too,” Bill said ruefully as he drove Jessie back to the hotel. It was late afternoon, and had been a very productive day.

“That’s up to you,” Jessie said with a quiet smile. “I’m all for her going to college wherever she wants. Driving is another thing. I’m sensitive on the subject. I wouldn’t presume to tell you what to do.”

“I’ve been thinking of buying her a car. But I haven’t decided yet. If I had my way, I’d keep her in her room.” But Jessie knew that wasn’t true. It was just hard to tempt the fates again after they’d been so cruel. She felt the same way about her own kids, after the accident cases she saw every day, and particularly now after Tim died. She knew she’d never have the same faith in life again, nor would Bill. He had seen his daughter off to the ski slopes for an ordinary day of skiing, and she had come home a paraplegic. That was tough to live with, and get over the trauma, not just for Lily, but for Bill too. She had the same feelings herself. Tim had taken Jimmy bowling for her and been killed. It was the unreliability of life. Destiny at its worst. “Can I talk you into having dinner with me again tonight, or is that more than you can stand?” he asked her with a grin as they got to the hotel. She enjoyed his company, and two evenings in a row didn’t seem like too much to her. And they had a lot to talk about, about his project.

“I’d love it.”

“Great. Let’s make it seven-thirty. I know you have an early flight tomorrow.” She did, and was grateful for the early night.

This time he took her to a great steakhouse. It was lively and rowdy, full of young people and old cowboys. It was an easy place to relax and have an old-fashioned steak dinner. He said he came there often, and Lily had loved it as a kid.

They talked about The Lily Pad again and the four candidates they’d pulled out of the stack of résumés that morning. And then, somehow, Jessie got him talking about his youth in a mining town, the extreme poverty of it, the miners dying, including his own father and brother, and how he had fled to the big city to make his fortune and had done well. She could sense that he’d been a risk taker from the beginning, a little bit like Lily. Her downhill racing, even before her injury, had not been without risk, and she loved it, and was passionate about it. They both marveled at how easily he could have given up his dreams and become a miner and had an entirely different life.

“I’d probably be dead by now, if I had,” he said matter-of-factly.

“What a loss to the world that would have been,” Jessie said sincerely. “Look at all the good you’re doing now.” She wasn’t unaware of it, and admired him immensely. In many ways, he was a brave man, even about facing his daughter’s injury, once he knew she would never walk again. He had turned it into a blessing for others, or was about to. He lacked polish once in a while, and he could be tough, as when he’d been so angry at her in the beginning, but he never lacked courage. And she understood why he’d been angry. He was a lion defending his cub, which she considered a quality, not a fault.