by Unknown
“You can’t eat pizza without salad and a drink,” Richard said, his face serious, but his eyes twinkling. “Well, good night.”
“Wait,” she said, then stepped out on faith. “Would you like to join us?”
His hand went into his pocket. “I’d like nothing better if I didn’t have another appointment.”
She wasn’t disappointed, she told herself, but she couldn’t quite make herself believe. “Of course. Thanks again and good night.”
“Good night.”
Naomi closed the door and set the pizza box on the coffee table. “Go wash your hands, Kayla, so you can eat.”
“I wish Dr. Richard could have stayed,” she said and went into the bathroom with dragging feet.
“So do I, Kayla. So do I.”
“I’M READY.”
Luke looked up from where he was sitting on the couch and for a moment his mind went blank. His mouth dried, his body hardened. All he could do was stare. She was breathtaking.
The red dress clung like it had been poured over a hot, bare body. Long-sleeved and stopping just above the knees, it shouldn’t have made his breath catch, his palms sweat.
But it did.
Slowly he came to his feet. “That’s some dress.”
She crossed to him on another pair of killer red heels with a little strap over her toes and one around her ankle. Sexy and bare.
“I wondered if you’d notice.”
His hand settled on her trim waist, felt the heat of her body, smelled the scent that was uniquely hers. “If we wouldn’t be late for the reception, I’d show you.”
“We don’t have to stay long,” she said, her hands sliding up the front of his white shirt. Her red nail played with a button.
“I’m counting on it.”
THE PUEBLO BALLROOM WAS FILLED TO CAPACITY WITH chattering, laughing attendees, spouses, and guests of the American Psychological Association annual conference. Business at the three cash bars was brisk. The crowd around the several buffet tables was four deep.
This was definitely not Luke’s idea of having a good time. But that was the last thing on his mind. There was a strong possibility that a person in the room wanted to harm Catherine.
His intense gaze scanned the room. “See them yet?”
She shook her head, then stepped aside for a couple to pass. “There are a lot of people here.”
“I thought people in your profession were supposed to be somber.”
“Occasionally, so at conferences and out-of-town meetings, we tend to let go.”
“I’ll say.”
“Come on, let’s try over by the buffet line.” His hand in hers, she moved through the throng of people. “Dr. Perkins always makes it a point to hit the buffet table early.”
“He likes to eat?”
“He likes to be first,” Catherine told him, then through a small break in the crowd, she saw them. “There’s Dr. Perkins, and my assistant, Dr. Jackie Sims, is with him.”
“Which ones?” Luke asked.
“She’s wearing the green beaded dress. He’s in the Valentino suit.”
Luke studied the two in the buffet line. Jackie was tall and curveless. In her mid-thirties, she had a short cap of hair. Lee Perkins was of average height and build. Cleanshaven, he had short wavy hair.
Jackie, a wine glass in her hand, saw Catherine and stiffened. The adoring gaze on her face froze, then hardened into solid ice. Lee Perkins’s reaction was the exact opposite. His brown eyes lit. A grin spread across his handsome features. He took Jackie’s hand in his, and they left the line.
“Good evening, Jackie. Lee,” Catherine greeted without a shred of the uneasiness she felt when they neared.
“Catherine,” Lee said, his hot gaze moving over her, stopping a moment at her breasts before lifting to her face. “I wondered when I’d see you. You’re looking lovely as usual.”
“Thank you.” Catherine flexed her fingers to let Luke know he was squeezing her fingers. His grip relaxed. His thumb slid over her knuckles in apology. Apparently he had seen where Lee’s gaze had wandered. “I’d like to introduce a friend of mine, Luke Grayson. Dr. Jackie Sims, and Dr. Lee Perkins.”
Lee, who had barely glanced at Luke, did so now. His gaze became curious. “Grayson, you’re not in academia, are you?”
“No.” Luke had been prepared to dislike the man on contact. That Perkins hadn’t yet given him a valid reason annoyed him.
Dr. Perkins frowned. “What is your expertise?”
“Deviant human behavior.”
Catherine’s lips quivered to keep from smiling. “He’s very good at it, too. Jackie, I didn’t expect you to be here.”
The other woman’s mouth narrowed. “I’m a member of the association and I have just as much right to be here as anyone.”
“I think you know that’s not what I meant.”
Lee glanced between the two women and smiled like a well-fed cat. “Now, ladies.”
Catherine frowned at him.
“You’re staying in the hotel?” Dr. Perkins asked.
“No, with friends,” Catherine said easily. “I came up early to do a workshop.”
“Always our busy little worker, aren’t you, Catherine?”
As a group they turned to see a short, bearded man approach. His hair was as gray as his close-cropped beard and sports coat. He looked every one of his sixty-two years.
“Dr. Tolliver, good evening,” Catherine said, staring down at him from her greater height.
Calculating blue eyes fastened on Catherine. “You won’t find it always so easy, Dr. Stewart. Some of us have to pay our dues.”
“I’ll put my record up against yours any day,” Catherine told him calmly.
“I’ve had thirty-two distinguished years at the university,” he reminded her. “I’ve forgotten more than you’ve ever learned.”
“I seriously doubt that,” Luke said.
“Who are you?” Dr. Tolliver snapped.
“A friend.”
The older man’s lips curled. “Is that what they’re calling it these days?”
Luke reached for the man. Catherine was faster. Five inches taller, she stared down into Tolliver’s startled face. “I’ve had it with you. I’ve tried every way I know how to be professional. You won’t let me be. I can’t help it if the program committee chose me over you.”
He flushed. “How dare you bring that up!”
“You started this, and unless you want me to finish it with a meeting with Dr. Watts, I suggest you drop it here and now.”
“One day you’ll get yours,” he announced, then disappeared back into the crowd.
“Don’t mind him, Catherine,” Lee said. “I think he’s been in his lab too long. Come on and let’s get something to eat.” He leaned over, a persuasive smile on his face. “You can share mine.”
Catherine heard a guttural sound and didn’t know if the source was Luke or Jackie. “Thanks, but I want to see Dr. Watts first.”
“Trying to make points for the department head?” Jackie asked snidely. “The position is as good as Lee’s.”
Lee managed to look confident and embarrassed at the same time. “As much as I hate to admit it, she’s right, Catherine. Besides my outstanding record, I’m a heck of a fund-raiser.”
Catherine was unimpressed. “I’m aware of that, Lee, and you’ll be the first person I ask, after I’m department head, for fund-raising ideas.”
Luke’s laugh was rich and full. “Your mother would be proud.”
“You know Senator Stewart?” Dr. Perkins asked, his brow furrowed.
“I can truthfully say I’m on her list.”
Catherine laughed and leaned into Luke. His arm automatically came up around her.
“My goodness.” Lee’s eyes widened. “Tolliver was right.”
“About time you noticed,” muttered Jackie.
“What about your phone call?” Lee asked.
Tension wiped through Catherine. “What phone call?�
�
Lee cast a worried, sidelong glance at Jackie. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll be going.”
Luke’s hand on Lee’s arm kept him in place. “Catherine asked you a question.”
His head lifted. “If that’s the way you want it. She called me last Monday and told me she wanted to pick up where we’d left off and we could start at the conference.”
“I never called you,” Catherine denied heatedly. “It must have been someone else.”
“Catherine, don’t you think I’d recognize the sound of your voice? It was you.” His gaze grew cynical. He looked at Luke. “Obviously you were trying to better your chances of becoming department head.”
“I didn’t call you,” she repeated, her voice shaky.
“If she said she didn’t call you, she didn’t,” Luke told him.
“And how do you know?” Jackie asked. “You two joined at the hip or something?”
“Let’s go, Catherine.” Luke gently grasped her arm and started to leave.
“Poor Catherine. Maybe she forgot, like she forgot where she left her billfold and her house keys?” Jackie suggested snidely, sipping her drink. “Definitely not the actions of a rational person. Who can tell what someone like that might do or say to harm someone’s career? I’m sure Dr. Watts would like to hear one of his candidates is showing signs of instability.”
“I’m sure he would.” Catching Jackie’s arm, Lee walked off.
His arm sliding around her, Luke led a distressed Catherine out of the ballroom and to his truck. He opened the door for her to get in. Instead she gazed up at him with worried eyes. “I thought it would stop.”
“I know.” He pulled her into his arms. “I promise you I’ll find out who is doing this and stop them.”
Her hands clutched the lapels of his coat. “How?”
Tightening his hold on her, he answered, praying to be right, determined to be right. “By keeping an eye on you, and investigating everyone with an interest in discrediting you. He or she is going to make a mistake, and when they do, I’ll be there waiting.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
NAOMI WAS PREPARING TO GIVE KAYLA HER BATH WHEN a knock sounded on the door. Her heart rate sped up. Turning off the water, she went into the bedroom and glanced at the clock. 7:15 P.M. Kayla was in bed on her stomach, coloring.
She stepped closer, wishing there were a peep hole. “Who is it?”
“Ruth Grayson, Luke’s mother, and Amanda Poole, a friend of mine. We were with Catherine when she met you,” came the answer.
If Naomi hadn’t been so puzzled by their visit, she might have thought her phrasing gracious at best. Slowly she opened the door. She recognized the taller of the two women as Luke’s mother instantly. Not because she remembered her face, but because of the striking resemblance. The big difference was the woman’s smile. She couldn’t recall him ever smiling. Whereas Richard smiled as easily as a nightingale sang. She flushed at the thought.
“Yes?”
“Hello, Naomi,” Ruth greeted with unmistakable warmth. “This is my friend and associate, Amanda Poole.”
Amanda extended her hand and smiled in reassurance. “I’m glad to see you’re feeling better.”
“Thank you,” Naomi said automatically, still unsure of the reason for their visit.
“I hope you don’t mind that we dropped by without calling first,” Ruth said, excitement ringing in her voice. “But we couldn’t wait to show you.”
The bewilderment in Naomi’s face didn’t clear.
The women lifted two bulging shopping bags. “A store in town always gives the Women’s League first crack at its sales items before offering them to their preferred customers, then to the general public,” Ruth explained.
“We made out like a bandit, and we can’t wait to see if these things fit,” Amanda added.
“I’m sorry,” Naomi said, her brow furrowed. “I don’t understand.”
Ruth laughed at herself. “I’m sorry. I should have explained better. You and your daughter’s names were submitted to the Women’s League, a support network, as deserving of our services. And since Dr. Catherine Stewart had taken such a personal interest in you, and since she just completed one of the most successful workshops we’ve ever had, we came right over.”
Although the need was there, so was pride. “Charity, you mean?”
“We prefer to think of what little we do as a bridge to help people over an uncertain period in their lives,” Ruth said.
“We’ve all needed help at times,” Amanda said.
Naomi gazed at the well-dressed women and couldn’t imagine either of them ever being as desperate as she had been. Then she recalled stuffing Kayla’s and her clothes in a sack. Shame hit her. “D-did Catherine send you?”
“Although all referrals are confidential, I can say Catherine didn’t initiate the process,” Ruth said patiently, then held up one of the white shopping bags again. “Don’t you want to see what we brought for you and your daughter?”
Naomi hesitated as she fought a war between need and pride. It hurt to know they looked so needy. Perhaps it was the motel manager who let her keep her car at the motel and use the bathroom facilities. She didn’t think for a second it was Luke or, for that matter, Richard.
Naomi was thinking of a way to refuse, had the words forming politely in her head when Ruth pulled out a darling yellow appliquéd knit top with pants to match. Naomi didn’t have to look around to visualize her daughter in clothes that were clean, but faded, and secondhand when purchased.
Ruth pressed her advantage. “Isn’t this the most precious outfit you’ve ever seen? I bet it would fit your little girl perfectly.”
Without looking at the size, Naomi knew it would.
Amanda was just as persuasive. The long-sleeved dress spilling from her hand was a soft peach knit with a flared skirt. She clucked her tongue. “I moaned when they didn’t have this in my size.”
Ruth chuckled. “You should have seen her going through the racks.”
Amanda’s laughter joined in. “I seem to remember you doing the same thing a couple of times.”
“Nothing like the hunt to find that special something at a sale to get the juices flowing.” Ruth turned to Naomi. “Come on and let’s get started and see what fits.”
Stepping back, Naomi opened the door wider. Pride was one thing, stupidity another. Her daughter deserved a nice outfit. “I’d appreciate a few things for Kayla, but you must have other women on your list.”
“We do, and with the money Catherine helped raise from her lecture, Amanda and I are going to have our hands full for the next couple of days.” Ruth upended the shopping bags on the couch. Clothes in different hues and textures spilled out. “Of course we have a clothes closet, but there’s nothing like a new dress or new lingerie.”
Naomi couldn’t resist picking up a silky-looking nightgown in pale pink. Her “nightgown” was a man’s XL T-shirt she had purchased at a thrift store for twenty-five cents. “If you’re sure you have enough for the other women.”
“We have enough.”
RUTH AND AMANDA LEFT AN HOUR LATER. RICHARD waited for them at his Jeep. His grin broadened on seeing only one shopping bag. “You succeeded, I see.”
“The poor thing. She was so needy and still thought of others,” Ruth told him. “My heart went out to her.”
“Makes me realize how blessed my family is,” Amanda said.
Richard opened the front door, then the back door. “Like I said, I’ll reimburse you for whatever you spent.”
“Like we told you, the Women’s League is sponsoring Naomi and Kayla.” Ruth climbed into the back seat.
Amanda took the front. “Assisting families like Naomi’s is what we’re about.”
“I realize that,” he said, not wanting to offend the two women who had helped him out. The sight of Naomi in the tattered jeans had struck him to the core. Closing their doors, he went around to the driver’s side and slid in.
“Richar
d, the Women’s League has to operate on certain principles. Buying a woman’s clothes with money a man provided would be unthinkable.” Ruth shook her head. “Everything we told Naomi is the truth. If you want to help, make a general donation so the next Naomi and Kayla can feel special with new clothes. We’ll always be grateful for clothing donations, but there is a certain look in a person’s face who has hit upon difficult times when they slip on a coat or a dress that no one else has worn. Or open a tube of new lipstick or remove a razor from the package. It’s almost like a reaffirmation that they’re worthwhile.”
Richard started the motor wishing he could have seen Naomi’s face. “You’ll have that donation, and any time I can be of service to the Women’s League, just let me know.”
The two women exchanged a meaningful look. “Well, we are still desperately in need of bachelors for the annual charity auction the Women’s League has coming up in the fall,” Amanda said, her smile charming.
His shoulders slumped, then straightened on thinking Naomi and Kayla would need more than a sack to carry their clothes in now. “Count me in.”
“Brandon leaves the room every time I mention the auction.” Ruth scooted forward. “Maybe you could casually work on him.”
If he had to be paraded on stage before a crowd of screaming women, he might as well have his good friend with him. “It’ll be my pleasure, Mrs. Grayson.”
She patted him on the shoulder before sitting back. “You always were a nice young man, Richard. I wish Luke and my other children were so agreeable.”
LUKE PULLED UP IN FRONT OF THE CABIN. THE headlights sliced across the front. He cut the motor. Usually Catherine got out with him. This time she remained, head bowed, her hands clamped together. He cursed whoever had caused her pain. Getting out, he opened her door and took her arm.
“Come on, Catherine. Let’s get inside and get you to bed.”
Silently she came out of the truck. His arm circled her waist. Together they started up the short walkway. Two steps later, Luke tensed. Whirling, he shoved Catherine behind him and looked into the inky blackness beyond the perimeter of the porch light.
“Luke?”
