Barbara Boswell - That Marriageable Man!

“Stop stalling and get to work, Camryn,” Rafe called, feeling his anger rise.

He never discussed private family matters with anyone. And Holly was a shrink! That was easy to forget when his mind was fogged by her potent allure, but the appearance of his half sisters had cleared his head as effectively as a whiff of old-time smelling salts.

“I don’t have to!” yelled Camryn as Rafe lugged the suitcase into the condo. “And I’m not throwing a pity party for myself, either,” she added, as if to fend off that particular accusation.

Holly had no intention of making it. “From what I’ve heard so far, you have every right to.” She lay her hand on Camryn’s forearm. The girl was trembling. “I’m sorry to hear about your mother’s death.” Her training and her own natural instincts kicked in; she wanted to interpret and diffuse the rage and discord plaguing this family.

“Our dad is dead, too,” Camryn said flatly. “Kaylin and me didn’t know him at all. He got divorced from Mom when we were one and two years old and we never saw him again. We didn’t see Rafe or the others again, either, not till last year after Mom died.”

Holly found the information tragic and disconcerting but was skilled enough not to show it. “You and Kaylin hadn’t seen your brothers and sister from the time you were one and two years old until last year?” she calmly restated the essential facts she’d been told.

Camryn nodded. “And now I’m seventeen and Kaylin is sixteen, so you do the math.”

Holly accepted the challenge. “You hadn’t seen them in fourteen years.”

Which meant Rafe had last seen his half sisters as babies, but had taken in two distinctly individualistic teenagers. No wonder he’d stared at them as if they’d been dropped from outer space!

“Yeah, fourteen years. You’re a regular math genius,” Camryn drawled. “Color me impressed. But they’re our half brothers and half sister, don’t forget that. They never do.”

“Do you sometimes wish they would?” asked Holly.

Before Camryn could answer, Rafe was back, having deposited the suitcase inside the house. “Camryn, it may interest you to know that Dr. Casale here is a psychiatrist.”

Camryn’s expression was instantly thunderous. “I refuse to talk to any shrink! I’m not crazy.”

“No, you’re not,” agreed Rafe. “Don’t let her fool you, Doc. Camryn Paradise is no pitiful Little Orphan Annie. Vampira is closer to the mark.”

“What I am is a wild, in-your-face-brat with a bad attitude,” Camryn proclaimed. “Right, Rafe?”

“So we’ve been told.” Rafe sucked in his cheeks. “Some have claimed you’re the most monstrous brat ever to set foot in the city of Sioux Falls—or maybe the entire state of South Dakota.”

“That’s exactly what my history teacher said and the music teacher agreed!” Camryn was gleeful. “And how about my French teacher?”

“Let’s not get into that.” Rafe remembered the scene with the French teacher. It had gotten ugly; Camryn would not be taking French when she started her senior year the day after Labor Day, just a few weeks away.

“Aren’t you scared I live next door to you, Dr. Nutburger? You should be! You better not try to trick me into any stealth therapy because I’m capable of anything!” boasted Camryn.

Rafe tried to remember who’d made that last quote—“The little fiend is capable of anything!” The outraged home ec teacher? The hostile volleyball coach? Everybody in Riverview High had something to say about Camryn. None of it good.

“I’m not afraid of you and I wasn’t trying to trick you in any way, Camryn.” Holly remained unruffled. “But I am curious as to why both you and your brother are so opposed to the idea of any kind of—”

“Family therapy?” Camryn interjected. She made it sound as appealing as imbibing rat poison.

“So you’re familiar with the concept,” said Holly. “I wish it had been presented to you as a positive aid instead of a negative threat.”

“Forget it, Dr. Headshrinker. I won’t talk to you.”

“Nobody in the Paradise family has ever gone to a psychiatrist,” Rafe added.

“Watch out, Rafe, there are sooo many comebacks to that one!” Camryn was suddenly all smiles again. “She could really zing us good.”

Holly wondered if the duo realized they were both on the same side; she doubted that occurred very often. Unfortunately, they were allied against her and her profession. Still, she was accustomed to looking for strengths to work with and for the first time she saw a bond, however tenuous, between Rafe and his little sister. The insight cheered her.

“Too easy. I think I’ll pass.” Holly grinned.

Rafe found himself staring at her again. When Holly Casale turned on the full force of her smile, her whole face lit up and she was downright irresistible. He swallowed. Incredibly enough, he was starting to get turned on all over again, simply standing there gazing at her.

“Well, I’m not going to help you unpack your car, Dr. Head-case,” announced Camryn. “I have other plans.”

Rafe wondered if he should demand that she stay and help. He hadn’t heard of any plans she’d made for this afternoon—not that he was ever consulted first by either girl. Their modus operandi was to do what they pleased, hope they didn’t get caught, and show no remorse if they did.

His eyes met Holly’s, and he knew that she knew he was totally at a loss in dealing with his young half sisters. Part of him was angry, the other part relieved. He needed help but was loath to seek it, wasn’t sure how and where to look. He guessed that Holly probably knew all that, too.

They both watched Camryn stroll back into Rafe’s side of the condo.

“Don’t say a word,” warned Rafe.

“Who me? I wouldn’t dream of it I already promised I don’t troll for prospective patients.”

“Even though you think we’re a prime collection of basket cases.”

“I don’t think that at all, I just—”

“Uh-oh, this is awful heavy!” Kaylin called from the car. She had managed to get Holly’s television set out of the back seat and stood holding it—while tottering precariously.

“Kaylin, put that down!” commanded Rafe. “It’s too heavy for you to carry. I’ll get it.”

“Okay.” Kaylin panted. She swayed backward, rendered off balance by the television’s weight, then leaned forward in an attempt to put it down.

Holly and Rafe were both watching at the crucial split second when Kaylin’s arm strength completely gave out.

The television set crashed onto the cement driveway.

Three

Kaylin burst into tears. “I’m sorry! I didn’t do it on purpose! It just fell!”

Rafe picked up the set, which had hit at an angle and then bounced to a facedown landing. The double impact caused the screen to shatter and the back console to split open. Inside parts began to spill out.

“Looks like a gutted trout,” he observed grimly.

“Stupid piece of junk!” wailed Kaylin. When Rafe placed the wrecked set upright on the ground, she gave it a furious kick, inflicting even more damage, though it was already plainly irreparable. “It only fell a little way and it broke into a zillion pieces!” She kicked it again. “Crummy old trash!”

“I’m inclined to agree with you.” Holly calmly surveyed the wreckage. “They obviously don’t make these things good and sturdy like they used to.”

Kaylin stopped crying and caught her breath. “Yeah,” she agreed, her voice tremulous. “If it was good and sturdy, it wouldn’t be so smashed.”

“It wouldn’t be so smashed if you hadn’t dropped it,” Rafe noted pointedly. “For crying out loud, Kaylin, you—”