Wicked Forest (DeBeers 2)

"Oh. Of course you do," I said. "How selfish of

me to think of myself as the only one here who's been

involved in a secret romance. You, of all people,

know exactly what I mean. How did you and Daddy

keep it so special, worrying about every look, every

sound in that clinic?"

"I wouldn't say we had a routine, but we did

have the benefit of cloaking everything with our

clinical relationship. A patient fixating on her doctor

is not unusual, don't forget; so that was easy to

excuse, and your father..."

"What?"

She smiled at the memory.

"Your father could be the doctor' at the blink of

an eye. The tone of his voice deepened. His eyes

became those penetrating, perceptive orbs resembling

two small X-ray lights. His posture fumed and

straightened into his formal demeanor. Why, the very

air around him changed,"

I smiled, remembering, "Yes, that was Daddy." As you know, there was only that nurse who

had once come here. that Nadine Gordon who tried to blackmail us. She was the only one who knew or suspected anything. If anyone else did, he or she kept

it under lock and key."

"I'm not as good as my father when it comes to

hiding my inner feelings." I said. And the difference

is. I don't respect the reasons to hide them. I can tell

you this-- I won't be doing it very long. Either

Thatcher gets up the courage to face his parents, or..." He will," she assured me with a pat on my

hand. "That's one very capable young man. I would

trust his judgment."

"Maybe," I said. I skipped a beat and then