Knowing Vera (Romantic Suspense, Family Drama) (Chance for Love) Read Online Free PDF Page B

hurt.
    “Am I really the last? I thought you had a lot of them. One or more in every town.” I study the blond hairs on his leg peeking from the liner.
    “You’re the only one who mattered.” He gently lifts my chin, his expression sad. “I’m not exactly a prize catch anymore.”
    “Oh, Zach.” An ache blooms in my chest and travels to my fingertips. “I like you better than before, and I’m sure other women do, too.”
    He tips his forehead toward mine, his eyes delving into my soul. “Don’t lie to me, Vera. Your name means truth. If you like me better, why are you backing away?”
    A suffocating feeling presses my chest and I avoid his gaze. “It’s not you. I’m not comfortable being in anything other than a superficial relationship.”
    It’s my fault his mother’s dead. If I hadn’t brought those orchids home, my parents wouldn’t have fought and my father wouldn’t have snapped.
    Zach takes a deep breath and unpins his artificial leg. “I’ve had too much time with nothing to do but think. No training, no job, no dreams. Superficial sucks. It’s a waste of a life to skim the surface, act like you’ve got it made when inside you’re empty. I can either give up and die, or live life to the fullest.”
    Tears seep under my eyelids. “You’re braver than I am.”
    “It’s not a matter of bravery,” he says. “What are you afraid of?”
    I wipe my eyes and puff my breath trying to dispel the tight sadness in my chest. He strokes the back of my neck, comforting, and I feel safer—at least safe enough to risk telling him. “Do you know who my father was?”
    He presses his lips to the top of my head and holds them there. “You must have loved him a lot. I can’t even imagine how hard it was for you to lose him like that.”
    My fingers clench and I swallow a lump, wishing with all my heart I could have stopped him from jumping. Zach’s waiting for an answer, but there’s nothing to say. It’s harder than hard. It’s impossible to accept.
    I do the only thing I can think of. I turn it around. “Do you miss your mother?”
    “I don’t remember her much. She died when I was five.”
    Something about the way he says it makes me wonder if he knows how she passed. “Is there anything you remember?”
    “Her soft, sweet voice, almost breathless. She sang to me all the time, lullabies, silly songs, happy songs and sad songs. I hear her when I’m falling asleep.”
    His voice breaks and he pinches the bridge of his nose. “But I can’t picture her other than from photos. She was a blonde, very delicate looking, pale blue eyes. She had a heart condition and died young.”
    So, Zach’s father had lied to him. No wonder he had no idea who I was. But his father had known. He was barely civil to me when I introduced myself in front of Zach’s hospital bed.
    My fingers find his hand and I pull him closer. “I’m so sorry. It must have been hard.”
    He attempts a smile. “My aunt raised me. If you ever meet her, you’ll love her. She’s a real firebrand.”
    He’s not letting me feel bad for bringing up his mother. It’s another thing I like about him. Focusing on the positive.
    I pat his thigh. “Let’s check your leg and put on that compression sock.”
    He slides his stump onto the sofa and rolls back the liner. “I should have padded it more. It might have cushioned the fall.”
    I help him roll off the liner sleeve, careful not to flinch at the sight of the ugly scar, the pain and suffering etched on each ridge. The end is red and chafed, but not bruised. Because I helped the nurse in the hospital tend to Zach, he’s not embarrassed about me seeing it. I fetch the moisturizing cream from his bathroom and smooth it over his skin.
    “Ah, Vera, that feels so good.” His muscles soften under my touch, and he exhales peacefully, his eyes half closed. “You said you’re leaving, do you mind telling me where?”
    “I’m going to be a traveling nurse. My first assignment will