"Noway!"
"I saw her riding on his motorcycle the other day. And this morning I drove by Risson's house on my way to work... Hoffman's car was parked outside."
Harold stood still for a moment, not quite believing what he had heard. Surely they were mistaken.,
"Can you imagine? Risson would have another heart attack if he found out his daughter was dating the same guy he'd been trying to fire."
"What does Risson call him again?"
"An immature kid masquerading as a doctor."
There was laughter, then a man's voice again. "I wish they'd just fire Risson. I'd rather work for Hoffman any day."
"Hoffman?" the woman asked. "You think he'll succeed Risson?" "I think he wants to." The man laughed. "Whether he will or not is another story."
Harold Risson turned away from the pantry and slowly made his way back to his room. Kim and Tony? He refused to believe it. Surely his daughter had more common sense than to be taken in by a man like Tony Hoffman.
He had made it back to the doorway to his room when he heard the woman from the pantry call his name.
Harold stopped, his hand on the doorknob.
"Dr. Risson?" the woman repeated as she ran up to him. She was a pretty nurse in her fifties. Harold had seen her many times before. Never would he have imagined himself as the object of her gossip. "What are you doing?" she asked. "You shouldn't be up walking around."
He touched his throat. "I need a glass of water. Please."
Kim drove the Cadillac into the parking lot, pulling in in front of a large, unruly-looking snowbank. She jumped out of the car and smiled. The sun was shining, the sky was blue, and two large fresh green wreaths had been placed outside the hospital doors in honor of the approaching holiday. Kim had to admit she was enjoying this Christmas season. She was with her family--her dad. And of course, there was Tony.
When she had opened her eyes and seen Tony lying there beside her, his arms still wrapped around her, she had been filled with a warm, calm sense of intimacy. She didn't want the morning to end.
In fact, when Tony left, she had found herself unable to think of anything else. So she had done the only thing she could think of. She had started work on his Christmas present. She had had little trouble deciding what to give him. She would paint him a picture.
Kim stepped inside the hospital, glancing around for Tony, even though she knew that he was in surgery. She took the elevator to her father's floor, clutching the fresh-baked bagels she had brought for him. She knocked on his door and stepped inside. Her father was sitting straight up in bed. When she entered the room, he raised an accusatory eyebrow.
"Hi, Dad," she said, giving him a kiss on the forehead. "How are you feeling this morning?"
"Sit down, Kim," he said sternly. "I want to talk to you."
She put the bagels on his tray. She may not have had any contact with her father in fifteen years, but she still recognized that tone of voice. Not to mention the old hairy eyebrow. "What's the matter?" she asked.
"Why don't you tell me what's going on around here?"
"What?" she asked, confused.
He sighed. "Look, I know that you have not been here all that long, and... well, sometimes it's difficult to ascertain a person's truthful intentions when inundated with--"
"Dad," Kim interrupted him. "Cut to the chase. What's wrong?"
"Tony... Hoffman," he added quickly.
Kim hesitated. "You've heard that Tony and I are friends."
"Friends?"
Kim nodded as she smiled slightly. She was glad that her father knew. "I like him. He's very sweet___and interesting..."
"Oh, for Pete's sake, Kim," her father said angrily. "You don't know him. Tony Hoffman has been a troublemaker around here since he began his internship."
"I don't know about that. But I do know that he's a good surgeon. He did your surgery," she said defensively.
"Any decent doctor could've done it." He shook his head. "Look," he said, softening his tone. "Tony Hoffman dates a lot of women around here. He's immature and... well, I don't want to see you get hurt."
"I know he seems a little wild," she said. "I thought so too. But he's really not..."
"Listen to yourself!" He shook his head. "I don't like my daughter falling into the same traps that I've seen so many other women fall into."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Kim said stiffly. "We're friends."
"I know about motorcycle rides and cars parked outside each other's homes..."
"Dad..."
"He's using you, Kim. He thinks if he's got you on his side, I'll name him division chief..."
"Oh, for God's sake, Dad. He's not using me."
"I'm not blaming you, Kim. I just don't want you dating him..."
"Blaming me? For what? For living my life?" she said incredulously. "You seem to be forgetting that I'm not a little girl anymore. If you wanted to be a parent, you should've been one," she said angrily, her eyes filling with tears. "But it's too late now. Your little girl has grown up--without you. And I'm more than capable of making my own, decisions." She shook her head as she stood to leave.
"Kim," her father began.
"It's too late, Dad," she said, wiping away a tear. "I'm an adult. And I have been for a long time. You missed your chance to be a parent."
The phone rang several times at the house during the day, but Kim ignored it. She didn't care who it was, she didn't feel like talking to anyone. Her argument with her father had upset her so much she hadn't been able to eat anything all day. Her first thought had been to hop back on a plane and leave him there, to run away from the whole mess. She was embarrassed and angry. Her father had treated her like a child who had gone astray, a child that needed strict parental guidance to get back on track.