Promise Canyon (Virgin River #13)(80)

"This has to stop!" Dane said. Lilly looked at him, stunned. "How long do you plan to keep that tired old heartache alive? You were a little girl! You're a woman now. Grow up!"

She stared at him in wonder, shaking her head. "You can't really be saying this to me...."

"I love you, Lilly. Listen to me for once--you're not the first person to have a broken heart. You're allowed to feel sorry for yourself for a little while, but you've licked that old wound so long it's festered! For God's sake, no wonder you can't deal with Clay, can't let yourself face the truth. That would take strength and courage--and you're more comfortable acting like a whipped little victim!"

She withdrew from him, leaning back. She shook her head because she was speechless.

"A victim with enough self-pity to sink a ship," he went on. "You have to get over yourself, little sister. If you need help to do that, get it. If you keep this up, not only will you lose Clay before you even know if he deserves to be kicked to the curb, you will never allow yourself to find a good man! If you die old and all alone, it will be no one's fault but your own."

She was silent for a moment. Her eyes grew liquid and a tear slipped down her cheek. "How dare you!"

He leaned toward her. "I dare because I'm your best friend and I love you. It's time, Lilly. If you're ever going to be in a grown-up relationship, you're going to have to ditch the little girl self-pity, straighten up and face your situation like an adult. I'd like to tell you that once you find The One you'll never have problems, never face complications, never have to deal with a guy's f**k-ups. Oh, hell, no one can get through a serious relationship without contributing their own mistakes to the mess. It's never going to be easy, Lilly! People are flawed! Imperfect! They make mistakes! You have to be strong enough to face them, know when things can be worked out and when they can't."

Another tear ran down the other cheek; she felt the hair on the back of her neck prickle as if there was danger. Not knowing what to say, what to do, she grabbed her purse and whirled off the stool, heading for the door.

"Go ahead," Dane yelled after her. "Run away! It's the only thing you're brave enough to do!"

Out the door she went.

Dane leaned on the counter, looking down, almost trembling. He'd taken a huge chance...and might have lost his best friend forever. It took him a minute to regain his composure and straighten. When he did, he found the eyes of four patrons staring at him from across the room. He ran a hand nervously through his blond hair. "Sorry," he said. "Lover's quarrel."

Luke Riordan grabbed the phone on the second ring; baby Brett was sleeping and Luke wasn't in the mood to go another round of trying to get him down.

"Hey," Patrick said.

"Hey," Luke returned. "What's up?"

"Well, I got a couple of days in with Colin, but that's all. He invited me to leave. So...I'm in the inn suites up the road from Fort Benning."

"He's not in the best mood," Luke said. "I get that. His body hurts, rehab is killing him. He had a lot of company--Mom was there for two weeks...."

"I think we might have other issues, Luke. He's popping pain pills like they're M&M's."

"Well, they're prescription, right?" Luke asked.

"I took him to physical therapy a couple of days ago, then to the clinic. The doctor told him it was time to wean off the good stuff and go with some anti-inflammatory and ice, but I don't see that happening. He's still on the strong stuff."

"Is he still in a lot of pain?" Luke asked.

"His leg aches because he's putting some weight on it now, but he's making good progress, according to the PTs. It's been a month. His elbow is killing him and the PT says that's a tough one to rehab, real painful. Luke, he's not using anti-inflammatory and ice. When I got on him about the drugs, he threw me out."

"Let me think," Luke said. Colin had been in the hospital at Fort Hood, where the accident had taken place, for ten days. He went back to Fort Benning to the Wounded Warriors Support Center, a convalescence center, for about a week and then he was cleared to go home--a small, comfortable house near Fort Benning. Their mother was there to help him get to physical therapy and clinic appointments; there were guys from his unit to chauffeur him, but he could also drive the short distance on his own, though it was recommended he get a ride as long as he was on heavy pain medication. He'd been home about a week when Patrick got back from his Gulf mission and had gone straight to Colin. "It's been a month since the accident," Luke said. "That doesn't seem like much for what happened to him."

"Maybe not," Patrick said. "But I'm a little freaked out by this--I heard the doc tell him it was time to get off the narcs and I heard Colin agree. But that's not what's happening. He glazes right over about five minutes after popping a pill, and, man, all is right with his world. But just suggest he might be taking too many pain pills and look out! He can't hardly move in PT, but if you piss him off, he can throw all your shit on the lawn without any trouble."

"He didn't do that," Luke said.

"He did."

"Aw, f**k. How long does it take to get totally hooked on pain pills?"