other. Having them at the hospital would have been a nightmare of drama and accusations. He could have called Cara, of course, but this was only a minor injury and he didn’t want to bother her.
When he told Megan he didn’t need her to call anyone, she had become even more solicitous and kind. He’d noticed she wasn’t wearing a ring and at some painkiller-induced moment had asked if she was dating anyone. She’d blushed in a way that had completely charmed him, and said that she was divorced but she didn’t have time to date.
He’d never thought to ask if a couple of cute twin girls were the reason she was so busy.
“Was it something to do with hospital policy?” he asked now. “Are nurses not supposed to date patients?”
“I wouldn’t strictly be breaking any rules. But that wasn’t it. Not really.”
She glanced briefly at her daughters—the smaller one with the twisted limbs and her active, inquisitive sister—and then back at him. “As you’ve probably figured out, my life is...complicated. I haven’t dated anybody seriously since the divorce. I’m out of practice and, I’ll admit, I panicked.”
He shifted his long legs in the uncomfortable space, surprised at her candor. “I can be a scary guy, I guess. That’s not necessarily a bad thing when you need to get information out of a perp, but it has its disadvantages when it comes to the dating scene.”
A hint of a smile peeked out at him. “You didn’t scare me. I liked you. A little too much,” she confessed.
“I felt the same way,” he answered. “Which is why I hounded some old guy in Irving Park three times, hoping I’d only misdialed.”
She sighed, and he saw more of that entrancing blush seep over her soft features. “Please, can’t we start over? I’m so embarrassed about the whole thing. It would be great if we could pretend we only met at the gate before boarding the plane. I really don’t want to have to spend the whole wedding trying to avoid you.”
After a moment’s thought, he stuck out his hand. “Hi there. I’m Shane Russell, brother of the bride.”
She gave him a relieved smile and held out a small, capable hand. “I’m Megan McNeil. I, er, used to be married to the groom.”
They shook hands briefly, before her attention was diverted by a question from her daughter.
Shane picked up his book again, aware of a strange mix of relief and disappointment. While his ego was a little appeased to know he hadn’t been completely wrong about the attraction that had simmered between them, it was more than a little disappointing to discover that attraction was doomed to die a fruitless death.
As much as he was drawn to her lush mouth, those blue eyes, those lovely, sweet features, he wouldn’t do anything about it. A month ago, he might have, but she was right. Her situation had just become too complicated.
* * *
THE FLIGHT BETWEEN Chicago and Los Angeles was far easier than Megan expected. The girls were both relaxed and comfortable. She read to them for a while, they watched a movie, they played a game or two, and before she knew it, the flight crew announced they were preparing to land.
“What can I do to help?” Shane asked as they taxied to the gate.
While Nick was a great father, she handled most things on her own these days. The chance to lean on someone else was as novel as it was welcome. “If you could help me with the bags, that would be great. It might take a while, though. I’m afraid we’ll have to wait for the wheelchair to be brought up from the cargo hold.”
“I don’t mind.”
He traded knock-knock jokes with the girls while the rest of the passengers filed out. When they left the plane, the wheelchair was waiting for them.
“This is quite a complicated procedure,” Shane said, as Megan pushed Grace into the terminal.
“I guess you can see why we don’t travel much. The kids and Nick and I went to Disney World a few years ago, but that’s as brave as I’ve ever been with them. Car trips are actually much less complicated than flying.”
“Except we can’t drive to Hawaii,” Grace offered. “Grandma said so.”
“Unless you’re a really good swimmer,” Shane said. “Or know how to ride a dolphin.”
“I rode a horse, once,” Sarah chimed in. “It was brown and had a black tail and mane. It was super fun, but we didn’t go swimming.”
He grinned at her daughter, and Megan’s stomach started whirling as if she were riding a dolphin in wild circles. He really was gorgeous, with sun-streaked brown hair and eyes the deep green of a mossy forest. Add to that how sweet and charming he was with her daughters, and she was in serious danger of making a fool of herself.
They made it to their gate just in time to board the connecting flight that would take them to Lihue.
He again stepped in to help her stow their bags in the overhead bin and settle Grace into her seat.
“Looks like I’m behind you a couple of rows for this leg of the trip. If you need my help on the flight, I can see about trading with someone to be closer.”
Megan told herself she wasn’t sorry for a little space to catch her breath, regain equilibrium. “You’ve done more than enough already. Thank you for all your help. I would have been sunk without you. Girls, can you tell Cara’s brother thank you for helping with our bags?”
“Thank you,” Grace said, her voice soft but her smile genuine.
“Thanks!” Sarah held out a little fist to give him a bump, something she did with Nick all the time.
He chuckled and obediently pressed his knuckles against hers, then added a complicated little side twist and top pound that made Sarah grin.
“Safe flight,” he said, before moving a few seats behind them to allow the other passengers to board. She did her best not to feel a little bereft.
“He’s nice, Mom,” Grace said. Her eyes drooped with fatigue, and Megan hugged her close, making room for her daughter to rest her head in the crook of her arm.
“Yes. Yes, he is.”
To her relief, Jean again sat near them to help entertain the girls on the long flight. By the time the captain turned off the seat belt sign, though, it was obvious the excitement and anticipation of the day were taking their toll on the girls.
They started to become petulant and cranky with each other and with her. The mood might have shifted quickly into frustration if she hadn’t pulled out their story again, ducked her head to theirs and read quietly to them. After only a few pages, both girls’ eyelids grew heavy. They fell asleep at almost exactly the same moment, as they often did.
She decided to follow their lead and steal a moment to close her eyes while she had the chance. When she awoke, she found the girls playing quietly with their Barbies, and she realized they would be reaching Lihue in only an hour.
There. Like so many other things in her life, the reality of a transoceanic flight had turned out to be far less painful than
