She gave the hand that still held hers a gentle squeeze. “See, that’s the thing,” she murmured in a barely audible voice. “I could hear everything, but I was so out of it that I didn’t know if it was real or just a dream. And if it was a dream,” she added softly, “I didn’t want to wake up. Ever. Because everything you just told me – you have no idea how many years I’ve waited to hear it all.”
Whatever he was going to say in response was interrupted by the arrival of a nurse, who looked equal parts relieved that Angela was actually awake, and annoyed that Nick hadn’t immediately summoned her. And then he was being shooed out of the room with the arrival of the doctor and a couple of other staff members, despite his protests to the contrary. But he managed to catch Angela’s eye just before leaving, and grinned as she blew him a kiss. Reluctantly, he made his way back to the waiting room to share the news about Angela waking up and found himself standing in the middle of what sounded like a battlefield.
***
Lauren glared at Deanna as she took a seat next to Rita. “Hey, I’ve made the drive up from Carmel plenty of times over the years and no way does it take
this
long, even in traffic. So what exactly was the hold-up, hmm? Angela’s been out of surgery for almost an hour now.”
Deanna had the good graces to look guilty. “Well, Dad was too upset to drive and Mom refuses to drive in San Francisco. So they asked me to take them and, well, I had some arrangements to make first.”
Lauren pursed her lips in disapproval. “Like what? What sort of
arrangements
take precedence over the fact that your sister was undergoing potentially life-threatening surgery?”
Rita frowned. “There’s no need for that sort of tone, Lauren. Deanna was good enough to miss her daughter’s swim practice this afternoon to bring us here. And of course all of us had to leave poor little Giovanni’s birthday party early. We got here as soon as possible, so don’t you dare criticize us.”
“You’re kidding, right?” gaped Lauren. “Swim practice and a birthday party were more important than brain surgery?” Beneath her breath she whispered to Julia, who was standing right beside her, “And are they joking about the kid’s name? Shit, he must get beat up at least once a day with a pussy name like that.”
Julia, always the peacemaker, gave her sister’s arm a warning squeeze as she explained to Angela’s family, “Lauren’s been here with Angela the whole time, was at the race when she got injured, so it’s understandable that she’s a little stressed. And worried.”
“I am stressed.
And
worried,” agreed Lauren. “But I’m also ticked off that Julia and I are the ones who have been here the whole time, instead of Angie’s family. By my calculations, the three of you should have been here at least two hours ago. And – oh, my God – is that a fresh Starbucks cup you’re carrying, Deanna? Your sister’s just had brain surgery and you stopped to get a fucking latte on the way here?”
Deanna cringed at the threatening tone of Lauren’s voice. “It was – I needed the caffeine. And it just took a few minutes. Besides, it’s not like any of us could have done anything here. She was already getting prepped for surgery when Julia called my sister.”
“Sister. Funny you should mention that word,” drawled Lauren, crossing her arms over her chest. “Because you and Marisa have been the shittiest sisters ever to Angela. Julia and I are more her sisters than the two of you will ever be. Today just went and proved that point all over again, didn’t it?”
Deanna gasped, one hand drifting up dramatically to clutch her chest. “How dare you? You’ve got no right to say those things to me, you don’t know anything about it.”
“Wrong.” Lauren was in Deanna’s face now, pointing a finger at her, and noting with satisfaction that Angela’s sister was quivering in fear. “Julia and I know everything. Every time Angie was upset or sad or lonely growing up, who do you think she ran to? Not you or Marisa, that’s for damned sure. And certainly not her own mother.” She turned accusingly to Rita. “When Angie got her period for the first time, it was
my
mother who explained it all to her. When she got the flu and couldn’t keep any food down for days, it was
my
mom who took care of her and nursed her back to health. And when she got the news that she’d been chosen for the Olympic team, it was
my
mom and dad who threw her a little party, who cooked food and baked a cake and made a big deal out of it. All of you,” she pointed in turn at Deanna, Rita, and Gino, “have done nothing but let her down her entire life. Including today. Deanna and Marisa have been lousy sisters, and you – Rita and Gino – you’ve been really, really lousy parents. On second thought,” she finished bitterly, “maybe you should have all just stayed down in Carmel, eating little Giovanni’s birthday cake. Angela’s
real
family has been here with her the entire time.”
Deanna was sobbing by now, her mouth quivering as tears ran down her cheeks. Rita stood up, her mouth a thin, angry line and her face pale and taut.
“You have no right to say things like that to my daughter. Or to me,” she hissed. “You were always a rude, wild little girl who’s grown up into an ever ruder woman. I should never have allowed Angela to be friends with you and your sister. Both of you have been bad influences on her.”
Lauren, who had faced far more intimidating people than Angela’s petite, sixty-seven year old mother in her life, wasn’t about to start backing down. “Are you joking? You were all too happy for Angie to hang out at our house as often as possible. After all, that pretty much gave you a free babysitter to go do all the things you wanted to do, didn’t it? When we were kids and even in high school, she ate dinner at our house five out of seven nights, did her homework there, slept there a lot, too. And I’m guessing you didn’t even notice she was gone half the time.”
Rita’s eyes were filled with rage and her hands shook. “Our family is none of your business. So stop making trouble where there isn’t any and -”
“Enough!”
Six pairs of eyes turned to stare in astonishment at Gino. He’d been silent up until this point, watching all of the drama unfolding – Lauren getting in Deanna’s face and making her cry, then standing up to Rita as she’d tried unsuccessfully to intimidate her. Julia, meanwhile, had tried valiantly to keep the peace, while Nathan had wisely stayed in the background and hadn’t interfered. As for Nick, no one had even noticed that he’d walked back into the room and remained hidden in a corner, unobserved.
But Gino was definitely making himself heard now, his face ruddy with angry color, and his dark eyes – so like Angela’s – were blazing with fury.
“Now, all of you –” he pointed accusingly at his wife, daughter, and then at Lauren. “Be quiet, will you? This is a hospital, for God’s sake, not a soccer match.”
Rita glared warningly at her husband. “Don’t tell me to keep quiet, Gino. This little troublemaker here is the one who started all of this. Tell her to shut up, not me.”
Gino shook his head. “No. Because everything Lauren just said is the truth. You and I were lousy parents to our Angie, and I can’t think of one person who would say otherwise. And Marisa and Deanna haven’t been very nice to her, either. But all of that, every bit, is
my
fault. Because I should have stood up to the lot of you a long, long time ago. And now my baby girl is hurt, just had major surgery, and I wasn’t even there when it happened. I’m the worst father in the whole world.”
Rita and Deanna were staring at him in shock, too flabbergasted by his uncharacteristic outburst to think of a reply. Lauren was trying very hard not to smile in satisfaction, while Julia kindly patted the visibly upset older man on the shoulder.
“No, you’re not,” she assured him gently. “Angie always knew you loved her. And you’re here now, that’s all that matters.”
Gino nodded, his eyes suspiciously damp. “Thank you, Julia. I know you and your sister, not to mention your parents, have always been good to my Angie. You were there for her when I wasn’t, when I should have been. But I was too afraid of upsetting Rita, of making her angry, and then she’d take that anger out on Angie.”
“I never did that!” screeched Rita. “Gino, don’t you dare discuss our private affairs in front of all these people.”
Gino shrugged, for once not caving in to his wife’s anger and demands. “It’s not much of a secret, Rita. We all failed our daughter over the years, but that ends right now. I don’t care how mad you get, or what other plans you make, from now on I’m going to see my baby as much as possible, call her on the phone every day if I want to. I just hope it’s not too late for her to forgive us. To forgive
me
. It’s a father’s duty, after all, to protect his children, and especially his little girl. And I’m going to try and make it all up to her, whether you care or not.”
Rita opened her mouth to protest, but no words came out and she sunk defeatedly back into her chair. Deanna had retreated to a corner, tears still streaming down her cheeks, and Nick couldn’t tell who she appeared more afraid of – Lauren or her suddenly assertive father.
“Angela’s awake. The doctors are in her room now running some tests, but so far she seems fine.”
Everyone turned now to watch Nick as he walked slowly inside the waiting room. He turned first to Gino, extending his hand.
“We spoke on the phone earlier today, Mr. Del Carlo,” he told the older man. “I’m Nick Manning. And I’m sure as soon as the doctors say it’s okay to go back in her room, that Angela would really like to see you.”
Gino nodded, though he looked more than a little awestruck as he shook hands. “I thought my daughter was pulling my leg when she told me you were the one who called,” he confessed. “I’ve been a 49er fan since I was a little boy. And I was actually there at the stadium when you recorded five sacks in one game. One of the best games I’ve ever seen. This – this is an honor, Nick.”
Nick shrugged, never terribly comfortable when he received accolades from his old fans. “We can talk football some other time, if you don’t mind. I think our focus now should be on your daughter.”
While Gino nodded in agreement, Angela’s sister and mother started advancing on Nick as though they were sharks scenting blood in the water.
“Wow, Marisa really was telling the truth,” said Deanna in amazement. “Why in the world didn’t Angela tell us she was dating someone like you? I mean, I thought she was still with that Dwight guy she went to high school with.”
“Dwayne,” her mother corrected. “And when has your sister ever kept us in the loop about what goes on in her life? It’s all a big mystery with her. I’m Angela’s mother, Rita. And this is her sister, Deanna. And you say you’re Angela’s boyfriend, but if that’s the case, how come this is the first any of us are hearing about it?”
Nick grinned. “Because we used to date a few years ago and just officially got back together – oh, about ten minutes ago.”
Deanna gasped. “Oh, God,
you
were the one, weren’t you? The guy she was seeing back then, the one who bought her all those expensive things. And she never said a word, never even hinted who you were.”
“No one knew,” Lauren interjected. “Not even Julia and I. We just met Nick earlier today ourselves. But it’s been obvious to us for a long time now that Angela never got over him, that he was always the one for her.” She gave Nick a saucy wink. “And now, lucky for him, he’s finally realized that, too.”
Nick was about to offer up a somewhat scathing retort when Angela’s nurse popped her head inside the waiting room, giving a thumbs up.
“Okay, it’s all good,” she said cheerfully. “Passed all of her tests with flying colors and the doctor said she’s going to make a full recovery. You can go in and see her now.
One
of you,” she added sternly, as several people got up at once.
Nick shook his head at Lauren and placed his hand on Gino’s shoulder. “I think that Angela would very much like to see her father at this moment,” he said firmly. “Come on, I’ll show you the way.”
And as much as he wanted to continue the conversation with his angel that had been interrupted by the nurse’s intrusion, Nick was more than content to watch from outside her room as Gino embraced his daughter, his tears mingling with hers. After all, they had time – all the time in the world now – to talk.
November
“Go back to sleep, Angel. It’s pouring cats and dogs out there, and if you think I’m going to let you go run some crazy trail race in this weather, think again. But if you really want a workout later this morning, I can definitely oblige.”
Angela smiled sleepily and cuddled up against Nick’s warm body, more than content to stay put in the big, plush bed when she heard the wind and rain that pounded against the bedroom window. “Hmm, that was a half marathon I was going to do this morning,” she complained. “Thirteen point one miles. I figure I would have burned off more than a thousand calories. Think you can match that?”
Nick growled as he tumbled her onto her back, looming above her as he stretched her arms above her head. “You don’t need to worry about burning calories. In fact, you’re still too skinny for my liking. We’ve got a few more pounds to go before you pass inspection.”
She gave him a playful shove, knowing she wouldn’t be able to budge him even an inch. “I’m only two pounds lighter than when I was at my heaviest a few years ago. And with the holidays right around the corner, and all the events we’ve committed to, I’ll probably have to go up another dress size.”