A Man Alone. Lindsay McKenna

a moment digesting the officer’s tightly spoken words.

      “Captain, I was once badly injured. When I came to, I was in a foreign hospital surrounded by people who spoke a language I didn’t understand. I had no one. No family. No friends. I remember how alone I felt. How I cried at night in the darkness of that ward. For me, the pain of that was a helluva lot worse than the pain in my head and the rest of my body from the wounds I sustained. Looking back on that period of my life, I’m sure I’d have recovered far more quickly than I actually did, if I’d had people who loved me around.”

      Thane swallowed hard. Pain was arcing through his heart. It felt like a fist was surrounding the organ and squeezing it to death. His nostrils flared. He tried to squelch his feelings. It was no use. “There’s got to be another bone doctor in the U.S. Isn’t there, sir?”

      Morgan heard the desperation in the officer’s tone, saw it clearly in his taut expression. “Dr. Briggs is the best in the country. I want you in his hands.”

      Dammit! “Then, sir, I’ll remain at the military hospital at Camp Reed, instead.”

      Tipping his head slightly, Morgan tried to ferret out the truth behind the marine’s tautly strung words. “When you have a home? A ranch to go to?” There was disbelief in his tone. He saw Hamilton struggle mightily with anger that flashed momentarily in his eyes. His mouth thinned considerably.

      “You spoke to my mother, sir?”

      The words were icy.

      Disgruntled, Morgan said, “Yes. Why?”

      “And she was ready to receive me with open arms?” Thane couldn’t help the sarcasm dripping out of his mouth.

      Uneasy, Morgan said, “Yes. She was, first of all, relieved that you were alive. And when I told her of my plan, she was the one who suggested that she could have your room turned into a makeshift hospital room once you are released from the Red Rock facility. In fact, she said her part-time housekeeper is working on the room as we speak. Clearly, you’re upset, Captain. Care to clue me in on what’s going down here?”

      Anger drifted through Thane. His fists unknotted. He wiped the gathering beads of sweat from his furrowed forehead with a weak swipe of his right hand. Breathing hard, he glared up at Trayhern.

      “Family differences, sir.”

      Morgan knew that whatever the problems, they weren’t any of his business. “Your mother gave no hint of any ‘problems,’ Captain. And based upon that, one of my assistants is working directly with her to get your old bedroom ready to receive you when you get out of the hospital.”

      “Sir…I’ll go anywhere other than home when I get out of the hospital.” Thane nailed Morgan with a deadly look. “Anywhere but there.”

      Morgan grimaced. Great. He hadn’t anticipated this. “I’ll see what I can do, Captain. No guarantees, however. Dr. Del Prado made it clear to me that you were going to need twenty-four hour care once you were out of the hospital. I happen to think that home is a helluva lot better place than some apartment. Besides, you’re going to need a lot of help. Your mother said that the woman who works for her part-time also works at the hospital.”

      “Who’s that?”

      Morgan grimaced. “I think she said her name was Paige.”

      “Paige?” Thane closed his eyes. He remembered that name from his high school days. A beautiful, shadowy, mysterious girl named Paige Black. She was half Navajo and half Anglo. A scared little rabbit of a girl with long, black, shiny hair, a thin, graceful body. As he recalled she was so excruciatingly shy that she always walked with her head down so she wouldn’t have to make eye contact with anyone.

      “Paige Black, by any chance?” he demanded.

      “Yes…I think that’s her last name.” Morgan cleared his throat. “Paige would be charged with your daily care, Captain. She’s a registered nurse and a licensed masseuse. Your mother would not be in charge and she understands that. She approved of Paige taking up residence in her home while you are there. She said it wouldn’t be a problem.”

      Opening his eyes, Thane stared glumly up at the man. “Anything would be better than my mother, sir.”

      “I see….”

      No, he didn’t, but that didn’t matter to Thane. He wasn’t going to air his family’s dirty laundry in front of Morgan Trayhern. Thane also knew he didn’t have enough money to rent an apartment in Sedona for any length of time, as it was expensive real estate. Morgan was being more than patient and generous about this, and fortunate to get him a bone specialist like Briggs. Right now, keeping his leg mattered more to Thane than having to live under the same roof with his mother.

      “I can tolerate the situation if Paige Black is going to be my nurse and take care of me,” he growled.

      Morgan sighed internally. “I’m glad to hear that, Captain. Like I said, it has been my experience that home is the best place to heal.”

      Not in his view, Thane thought, but he didn’t argue. “Thank you, for everything. I’m tired now, sir. I need to sleep.”

      “I understand. Take a nap, Captain. My assistant is getting everything ready for a departure at 0600 tomorrow morning. We’ll be landing back on U.S. soil five hours after takeoff.” He squeezed the officer’s shoulder. “You’re in good hands, so just relax.”

      After Trayhern left, Thane opened his eyes. He was tired, but he wasn’t sleepy. His heart in turmoil, he looked out the window and heard the noise from the traffic below. The sky was a deep blue, with a few wispy clouds. It was around noon, from what he could make out.

      “Dammit…”

      His softly whispered words, filled with pain, drifted eerily around the room. Home. He was going home. The last place he wanted to be. What kind of twisted fate did he have?

      Moving his gaze angrily around the quiet room, Thane felt panic. He wanted to run. And then he laughed bitterly. Hell, he didn’t even have two useful legs to run anywhere on! And now he’d have to face his mother. That prospect made his gut clench and knot. For years he had avoided his mother and the ranch where he’d grown up. Even though he craved to have someplace to call home, he knew that place wasn’t with his mother. Oh, she had tried to instill the love of her family’s ranch and the land into him, but he’d ferociously resisted it. And yet in times of quiet, which weren’t frequent in his hectic life, his foolish heart would crave that place known as the Bar H. Home. And he’d catch himself and instantly deny he had any such longing. The Corps was his home, he reminded himself sternly.

      His mind moved swiftly to thoughts of Paige Black. Instantly, his stomach unknotted. When Thane closed his eyes and pictured her soft, oval face, her skin that sunset-gold color that belied her mixed heritage, the thick, long folds of shining black hair that emphasized her high-cheekboned face, his heart settled a little. The panic he felt began to ease, too. In high school, Paige had been a shadow. Everyone had teased her and her two older sisters about being shy little rabbits. Oh, it wasn’t right that they had been treated like that, but Thane knew why it had happened. The Navajo people too often suffered from prejudice, and since Paige and her sisters were part Navajo, they had been branded by the white kids.

      Sighing, he realized that during his high school years, he’d always been more than a little aware of Paige’s quiet, unobtrusive presence. He’d been too fearful to approach her, afraid she’d reject him outright because he was an Anglo. Not that he’d ever made fun of her. No, Thane’s prejudice didn’t run in that direction. Her large, liquid eyes had always reminded him of a beautiful, graceful deer, and he’d never forgotten them. He’d wondered, from time to time, what had happened to her. Well, now he’d find out because of fate. His life…his leg were being entrusted to her care.

      She must have gone on to Yavapai College to become a registered nurse, he mused. He knew it was a nice little college with a satellite in Cottonwood, which was only thirty minutes away from Sedona. He was glad she’d made