The Reluctant Bachelor by Syndi Powell Page A

watched for his chest to move. “What can I do?”
    “Time my compressions.” She glanced behind them at the wall of people and turned to Lizzie. “Think you can get them to give us some room?”
    Lizzie nodded and started crowd control while Rick watched this amazing woman will the old man back to life. She closed her mouth around his and blew air into his lungs. Paused. Blew again. And sighed when the man started breathing on his own.
    Mr. Jackson looked up at her. “Are you an angel?”
    The young woman shook her head, but Rick had to disagree. He found himself grinning at her.
    She moved slightly out of the way as paramedics entered the room with a gurney. Rick stood and held his hand out to her and helped her to her feet.
    Here’s a woman any man could fall for without hesitation.
    “I’m Rick.”
    “I know. I’m Melissa.”
    He leaned in closer. “Are you sure it’s not Missy?”
    She blushed and looked down at the floor. It only made her look more lovely. “Only my dad calls me that.”
    Rick held out his hand to her again. “Well, Missy, it’s an absolute pleasure to meet you.”
    The moment broke when the paramedics moved them so they could take Mr. Jackson out to the waiting ambulance. Rick watched, debating whether he should go with them. He turned back to Melissa. “I think I should...” He motioned to the door.
    She nodded. “You’ll let me know how he is.”
    Rick leaned over and kissed her cheek. “You betcha.”
    * * *
    E LIZABETH NURSED a coffee that had long grown cold as she waited in the emergency room lobby for word on Mr. Jackson. A slight dip in the Naugahyde sofa told her Rick had joined her. He sighed. “Some night, huh?”
    She nodded and kept her focus on the television tuned to the late show. “We made the eleven o’clock broadcast.”
    “Already? But it just happened.”
    Elizabeth shrugged and took a sip of coffee. Shivered at the bitterness. “It happened on live television.” Her phone buzzed on the sofa between them. “That’s been going off the hook ever since.”
    Rick picked up the phone and glanced at the caller ID. “It’s a local number.”
    “You could answer it and give them a quote.” She turned and finally looked at him. His tie was loosened and askew. His hair looked as if he’d run his hands through it more than once. He looked rumpled. Exactly the way she felt. “They’re going to want to know why it took us eleven minutes to get an ambulance. Why we continued to film as a man fought for his life.”
    Rick groaned and ran his hands through his hair. “I didn’t think of the cameras. I was focused on helping Harry.”
    “That’s a great sound bite, but you should be prepared for some backlash.” Elizabeth rose to her feet and walked to the trash can to toss her coffee cup inside. She turned back to Rick. “I couldn’t have planned what happened. I couldn’t have known...”
    Rick approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder. “No one could have.”
    “But I should have. It’s my job to prepare for the unknown.” She wrapped her arms around her middle. “Tonight I failed.”
    Rick leaned down to look directly into her eyes. “Mr. Jackson is going to live. That’s what’s important here. He’s going to get another chance.”
    “Through no fault of my own.” She walked back to the sofa and collapsed on it. She rested her neck on the back and shook her head from side to side. “I should have known. I should have—”
    “Don’t get stuck on the should haves, Lizzie. Stop beating up on yourself.” Rick took a seat next to her and held her hand in his. “You did good.”
    “By casting a nurse?” She shivered again. “My job is not to just produce this show. It’s to protect it. At all costs. When you mentioned the nursing home, I should have planned all contingencies. Instead I got caught up on...” She glanced at him. “I wanted to find the perfect wife for you.”
    Rick gave her a tiny shrug. “Maybe you