Kerry hadn’t asked her, yet, if she remembered what they were. It was a scary kind of question, and she knew concussions did strange things sometimes. She didn’t think the injury was affecting Dar, but it was hard to say; certainly her lover had been quieter and more withdrawn than usual since she’d been here.
She knew Dar was grateful for her presence. Kerry was equally grateful that she’d followed her instincts and did what she’d done, especially after Dar had told her this morning what had happened to her as a child. “That poor little kid.” She shook her head slowly. “I wish I’d been there for you, Dar. I swear I do.”
The room, of course, was empty except for her and her laptop. Dar had been taken down for another scan of her head and for a visit to the orthopedic surgeon. Kerry had offered to come with her, but it appeared her lapse into needing to be cuddled was getting to Dar, and her natural pride poked its head up in outrage and reasserted itself.
There were two sides to that, Kerry admitted. One, she was a little disappointed in being gently rejected. But two, it meant Dar was feeling better, and that was a good thing. She put aside the laptop and stood up, stretching out her stiff and somewhat cramped body. Sleeping sitting up hadn’t been restful, and the couch was less so. She strolled over to the window and looked out, resting her hands on the sill and leaning on them.
“What I should do is take a break and run the stairs a few times,”
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she decided. “Loosen myself up a little and get some exercise.” With a nod, she went back and closed her laptop down, turning it off and slipping it inside its padded backpack. She looked around, then shrugged and shouldered the pack, shifting it until it was comfortably centered on her back. “A little extra effort won’t hurt me any, either.”
She walked out of the room and straight to the stairwell, opening the door and letting it close behind her. Since they were on the top floor, she really only had one way to go, and so she started down the steps at a rhythmic, even pace. It was quiet in the stairwell, and clean. Kerry decided it probably wasn’t used much, since most of the movement between floors involved wheeled equipment or vehicles, which could get a little tricky going up or down stairs.
Halfway down, at the fifth floor, she met her first fellow walker, a young man carrying a thick bag, who smiled at her as he dropped down the steps alongside. “Hi there.”
“Hi,” Kerry replied, with a friendly smile.
“You new here?” the man asked. “Haven’t seen you around.”
Hmm. Kerry eyed him. He’s a cutie. The man had curly reddish hair and a lithe, athletic build. “That’s because I don’t work here,” she informed him. “I’m just visiting.”
“Oh yeah?” He looked surprised. “I figured you were an intern or something, with that book bag. Sorry.” He flashed her a smile. “Well, that’s too bad. My name’s Curt.” He stuck out a hand.
Kerry took it as they kept walking. “Kerry.” She produced her name. “It’s a computer backpack, actually. I work with them.”
“Yeah?” Curt released her hand. “You don’t see many visitors taking the stairs either.” He looked down and laughed a bit. “Or staff either, to be honest. I think you’re the first person I’ve seen in here in weeks.”
“You take them, though.” Kerry turned the corner on the steps and started down the next set. “Good exercise, right?”
“You bet,” Curt agreed. “I have to get in all the leg work I can. I’m training for the Olympics.” He grinned at her surprised expression.
“I’m a gymnast.”
“Really?” Kerry turned her head to look at him. “That’s wild.”
The man nodded. “Yeah. It is. I’ve been into it since I was a kid, but my folks could never afford me just going to school for that, so I’ve kept at it on the side. I’m going to the trials next year.” He glanced over at Kerry. “You look like you’re into sports.”
It suddenly occurred to Kerry that she was being flirted with. Hmm.
And by a really cute guy, too. It felt...kinda cool, actually. “Oh, nothing official,” she told Curt. “I just do some diving, swimming...climbing.”
She caught his very interested eye. “Martial arts, that sort of thing.”
“I thought so. You’ve got great muscle tone.” Curt grinned at her.
“Ever try gymnastics?”
Kerry suffered a flash of memory of her childhood, the arduous 278 Melissa Good hours spent trying desperately to balance on a four-inch chunk of wood.
“When I was younger, yes,” she admitted. “My parents thought it would make me graceful.” She adroitly dodged a pipe sticking out of one of the stairs.
“They were right,” Curt laughed. “Hey, I just have to drop this bag off...you interested in sharing a pop?”
Fortunately, Kerry was from the Midwest and realized he was talking about a soda, not proposing something indecent. “Wish I could.” She softened the words with an honest smile. “Thanks for asking.”
They’d reached the bottom floor, and he shifted his bag to his other shoulder and held a hand out again. “Maybe next time, okay?”
Kerry took it and returned his firm handshake with one of her own.
“Sure.”
He turned, pulled the door open, then ducked through and let it close behind him. Kerry regarded the door for a moment, then turned and leaned against the wall, folding her arms over her chest as she rested a moment before starting her climb back up. That was interesting, she mused, examining the sensation. It was nice, once in a while, to have someone think you were attractive, wasn’t it?
Other than your partner, of course, Kerry amended hastily. She’d never suspected Dar of thinking otherwise, had she? She thought about that, then blushed a vivid crimson, remembering a certain night not that long ago when she’d looked up from working on a report in her home office to find Dar watching her from the doorway, eyes half-closed, her thoughts very evident by her expression. No, she was pretty confident that they were both very much attracted to each other. But it was nice to have a stranger give your ego a pat on the head once in a while.
Kerry pushed off the wall and started up the steps. Besides, she grinned, he sure was a cutie. In fact, she thought, he reminded her of someone. Now who...ah. She nodded. That’s right—Josh. She’d gotten an e-mail from him that morning, saying he’d accepted her offer and was going to come to Miami.
Sorting through various other issues, Kerry kept jogging upward, catching her wind and falling into an easy rhythm as her body adjusted to the exertion.
THE MACHINE BUZZED softly. Dar kept her eyes firmly closed and spent the moments roundly cursing herself for being a stubborn jerk for not taking Kerry up on her offer of company. This was the third round of scans, and her nerves were beginning to twitch badly, wanting out of the machine and away from the cold, impersonal hands that invaded her personal space and moved her body.
Hands gripped her chin and she jerked, her eyes snapping open and pinning the doctor standing over her with an angry glare.
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“Okay, Ms. Rob—” The tall, willowy woman stopped speaking and removed her hands. “Sorry, did I startle you?”
Dar took a breath and forced her irritation down. “No. I thought this was about done.”