be alive, and if I hadn’t been wearing my seatbelt, I wouldn’t be.”
“You are lucky. Probably is better than definitely.” She patted Ethan’s thighs. “No catheter or colostomy bag?”
Ethan reddened at the suggestion and shook his head vehemently.
“Look, if you’ve still got control of your mind and your bowels, you’ve got nothing to complain about.”
“Are you always such a goddamned optimist?”
“Comes with the job. You want someone to listen to you whine? See a shrink.”
“I don’t need a shrink.”
“Okay then. Time to buck up and get your ass to work.”
Chapter Two
The papers covering Ethan’s desk had reached mountainous proportions. He struggled to get his old office chair out from behind the desk and squeeze his wheelchair into the vacant space. Of course, things would have been much easier if he hadn’t snapped at his assistant when she tried to help, but accepting help was hard for him. Flowers and an apology for Marie were added to his ever-growing to-do list.
In the months since the accident, everyone at the company had scrambled to cover for Ethan. They’d been out on back-to-back tours without even weekend breaks in between. All of them were exhausted, and Ethan didn’t know how he could ask them to do any more.
He was busy signing payroll checks and authorizing expenses when Tony Charles, his top guide, walked in and plopped down on a chair.
“Welcome back.” Tony whistled at the stacks of paperwork. “You home now?”
“The hospital cut me loose this morning. I came straight here. Haven’t even been by my place yet. How you been doing?” Ethan noticed the dark circles under Tony’s tired eyes, circles that hadn’t been there before.
“Oh you know me, I’m just coasting.”
Ethan ran both hands through his hair. “Listen, Tony, I’m so sorry about all of this. About all I’ve put you guys through. It’s a clusterfuck.”
“What are you sorry for? How many people get paid to go spelunking and scuba diving? Vacationing is my day job. Can’t complain.”
Tony’s endless gratitude eased the tension in Ethan’s shoulders. Tony hadn’t seen the inside of his house in nearly two months, and instead of getting pissed about it, he was thanking the man who’d made it happen.
“I don’t know what to do. I can’t keep asking you guys to cover for me, and I don’t think I’m going to be in any shape to lead a tour anytime soon.”
“Did they say how long you’re going to be stuck in that thing?” Tony nodded down toward the wheelchair.
“Hard to say. These things, nobody can tell.” Ethan couldn’t bring himself to say the thing that he hadn’t yet accepted, which was that he’d probably be in the wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Tony looked worried, but didn’t press for details. “I hope it’s a really long time. You always did Bogart the best tours for yourself. Now I get first dibs.”
Damn it felt good to be picked on, to be treated like the person he was…even if he wasn’t anymore. He would have liked to give Tony a hug, if he could have gotten up. He tried to distract himself by turning the conversation back to business. “I’ve got ads out. I’m trying to hire more people, but the response has been pretty thin.”
“Seriously? People aren’t banging down your door for a job?”
“You’d think so, but it’s not that simple. Even in a down economy, it’s hard to find people to do this kind of work. When it comes down to it, most folks don’t want to spend half their lives away from home. And when you find someone who does, more often than not, they aren’t physically capable of performing the job.” He gave a disgusted laugh. “How’s that for irony? I turn people away for not being able to swim or climb mountains, and look at me. I’m a goddamn cripple. I should just go ahead and sell. Find someone who can do the work.”
“No.” Tony’s demeanor had turned serious. “You shouldn’t. We can
“You are lucky. Probably is better than definitely.” She patted Ethan’s thighs. “No catheter or colostomy bag?”
Ethan reddened at the suggestion and shook his head vehemently.
“Look, if you’ve still got control of your mind and your bowels, you’ve got nothing to complain about.”
“Are you always such a goddamned optimist?”
“Comes with the job. You want someone to listen to you whine? See a shrink.”
“I don’t need a shrink.”
“Okay then. Time to buck up and get your ass to work.”
Chapter Two
The papers covering Ethan’s desk had reached mountainous proportions. He struggled to get his old office chair out from behind the desk and squeeze his wheelchair into the vacant space. Of course, things would have been much easier if he hadn’t snapped at his assistant when she tried to help, but accepting help was hard for him. Flowers and an apology for Marie were added to his ever-growing to-do list.
In the months since the accident, everyone at the company had scrambled to cover for Ethan. They’d been out on back-to-back tours without even weekend breaks in between. All of them were exhausted, and Ethan didn’t know how he could ask them to do any more.
He was busy signing payroll checks and authorizing expenses when Tony Charles, his top guide, walked in and plopped down on a chair.
“Welcome back.” Tony whistled at the stacks of paperwork. “You home now?”
“The hospital cut me loose this morning. I came straight here. Haven’t even been by my place yet. How you been doing?” Ethan noticed the dark circles under Tony’s tired eyes, circles that hadn’t been there before.
“Oh you know me, I’m just coasting.”
Ethan ran both hands through his hair. “Listen, Tony, I’m so sorry about all of this. About all I’ve put you guys through. It’s a clusterfuck.”
“What are you sorry for? How many people get paid to go spelunking and scuba diving? Vacationing is my day job. Can’t complain.”
Tony’s endless gratitude eased the tension in Ethan’s shoulders. Tony hadn’t seen the inside of his house in nearly two months, and instead of getting pissed about it, he was thanking the man who’d made it happen.
“I don’t know what to do. I can’t keep asking you guys to cover for me, and I don’t think I’m going to be in any shape to lead a tour anytime soon.”
“Did they say how long you’re going to be stuck in that thing?” Tony nodded down toward the wheelchair.
“Hard to say. These things, nobody can tell.” Ethan couldn’t bring himself to say the thing that he hadn’t yet accepted, which was that he’d probably be in the wheelchair for the rest of his life.
Tony looked worried, but didn’t press for details. “I hope it’s a really long time. You always did Bogart the best tours for yourself. Now I get first dibs.”
Damn it felt good to be picked on, to be treated like the person he was…even if he wasn’t anymore. He would have liked to give Tony a hug, if he could have gotten up. He tried to distract himself by turning the conversation back to business. “I’ve got ads out. I’m trying to hire more people, but the response has been pretty thin.”
“Seriously? People aren’t banging down your door for a job?”
“You’d think so, but it’s not that simple. Even in a down economy, it’s hard to find people to do this kind of work. When it comes down to it, most folks don’t want to spend half their lives away from home. And when you find someone who does, more often than not, they aren’t physically capable of performing the job.” He gave a disgusted laugh. “How’s that for irony? I turn people away for not being able to swim or climb mountains, and look at me. I’m a goddamn cripple. I should just go ahead and sell. Find someone who can do the work.”
“No.” Tony’s demeanor had turned serious. “You shouldn’t. We can
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