Daniel's Gift by Barbara Freethy

quiet. It didn't last long.
    "Alan picked up the car you were driving and parked it at your house. He said it wasn't yours."
    "No, it was Barry's. I borrowed it. He's probably wondering where it is."
    "I'll call him for you."
    "He's the bartender at the Acapulco Lounge. You can reach him there." Jenny opened her eyes. "I just remembered I'm supposed to go to work tonight."
    "I'll call them, too. Is there anything else I can do?"
    "I don't think so."
    Merrilee paused for a moment. "Maybe you should go home, change your clothes, get some rest."
    Jenny shook her head. "I'm not leaving. Not now."
    "Danny might be asleep for a long time," Merrilee said, choosing her words with care.
    "He's not asleep. He's in a coma."
    Merrilee looked uneasy. "He's still asleep -- whatever word you want to use."
    "I'm trying not to lie to myself about his condition."
    "It's too soon for the doctors to know anything. Keep the faith, Jenny. Danny will come out of this."
    Of course Merrilee believed her own words. She was a woman who denied the existence of anything negative in her life. Unfortunately, Jenny didn't have the same control over her emotions. When she felt sad, she cried. When she felt happy, she laughed. When she felt scared, she wanted to run away and hide.
    A coward; she had always been a coward at heart. Jenny hated scenes, confrontations. Maybe it was a throwback to her childhood years, when her father had yelled at her mother about stupid things, like socks that didn't match, or a newspaper that had coupons torn out of it. She remembered curling into a small ball in the corner of her bedroom, her stomach twisting into knots as she listened to his anger.
    It wasn't just the fights that made her uncomfortable. It was the times they went out to dinner and her father sent his meal back because it wasn't good enough or asked that their seats be changed, because they were too close to the kitchen. So many little scenes. So many upset stomachs.
    Jenny felt sick right now, because she knew she had to fight for Danny, and she wasn't sure she could do it. What if she wasn't strong enough? What if she failed? Danny's life might depend on her courage or lack thereof.
    "Jenny, I'm talking to you."
    Jenny blinked. "What?"
    "I asked you if Alan has any information on the driver of the car?"
    "I don't know. He left a few hours ago."
    "I'm glad he was with you. He's a good man."
    "Yes." Jenny stood up and paced restlessly around the waiting room.
    "Did you tell him about Luke?"
    Merrilee's question made her pause. Slowly, she turned. "You did that for me."
    "I only said that Danny was looking for his father," Merrilee said defensively. "I wasn't thinking about his reaction at the time."
    "It doesn't matter."
    "Did you speak to Luke last night when you went to his house? You never said."
    "No. I looked through the window. I did ring the bell, but the housekeeper wouldn't let me in. She told me Danny wasn't there, so I left."
    "Don't tell Luke now, Jenny. Keep him out of your life. It's for the best."
    "Believe me, I have no intention of contacting Luke."
    "You won't have to, because I'm already here."
    The voice, so familiar, so haunting, made Jenny whirl around in disbelief. Standing in the doorway was Luke Sheridan, the man who had given her so much joy, so much heartbreak, so much anger.
    Jenny couldn't say anything. She simply stared into Luke's face. He was an older, harder version of Danny, but he had the same blond hair, the same bright blue eyes, the same cleft in the chin. She remembered tracing his lips with her fingers, tickling his nose with her hair, kissing his eyelids, the long curve of his aristocratic nose. He had been her soul mate, her playmate, her lover.
    Luke's face was grim and stern. He didn't have Danny's pug nose, Danny's dimples, or her son's generous mouth. Those features came from her, reminding her with bittersweet irony that Danny came from her as well as from Luke, that this man was Danny's father.
    Why now? Why did he