She sighed and sat down again. It was easier than standing. „I didn’t know so many people would actually answer an ad like that.“
„This is California, remember? Put an ad like that in the paper and you’re bound to lure a lot of nuts out into the open.“ He came away from the wall and stalked over to the desk, flattening his palms on its surface as he leaned down to glare at her. „Did you think I’d let you get away with a stunt like this?“
She smiled tremulously. „No.“
He narrowed his eyes. „I’d have been here earlier but the flight was delayed. I’ve been amusing myself for the past several hours thinking of what I was going to do to you when I finally did get to San Diego.“
„I can imagine.“
„I ought to take a belt to your sweet backside.“
„Sounds kinky.“
„Damn it, Sara, what the devil do you think you’re doing?“ He straightened away from the desk and paced to the window. „I’m furious with you.“
„Yes. I’m sorry about that part, but I – “
„Sorry about it!“ He whipped around to stare at her. „Sorry about it!“
„I couldn’t think of any other way to force you into realizing that this stupid courtship has to end. It’s driving me crazy, Adrian.“ She sprang to her feet to confront him. „We’re wasting time and love, and everyone knows those are commodities that are too valuable to waste.“
„What makes you think you’ve achieved anything other than annoying the hell out of me?“
She faced him determinedly. „There’s only one way you can keep me from going to Southeast Asia.“
„Really?“ he asked with soft menace. „And what’s that?“
„You’re going to have to marry me. If you don’t, I’ll be on my way as soon as my passport arrives.“
He looked dumbfounded. „Marry you!“
„This is blackmail, Adrian. Pure and simple. I’m giving you an ultimatum. Marry me or I’ll go off on my own in search of that gold.“
Adrian continued to stare at her as if she’d taken leave of her senses. „You’re serious, aren’t you?“
„I’m serious. This isn’t a game, Adrian. I don’t play games with the really important things in life.“
„And I’m one of those things?“
„Adrian, you are the most important thing in my life,“ she said with simple honesty.
There was a moment of profound tension as he regarded her with an unwavering gaze. Sara had the impression he was seeking the proper words to express his feelings. She waited in an agony of suspense.
„Sara,“ he finally said carefully, „I’m very angry. I can’t ever remember being quite this angry.“
„I know,“ she whispered. „And I regret that, but – “
„But you’re not afraid of me, are you?“ he finished.
„Are you kidding? I’ve crossed all my fingers and toes.“ Her mouth curved in wry humor.
„But you’re not terrified, are you?“ he pressed.
„Not the way you mean, Adrian. The room hasn’t gone cold. The only time it ever did was the time you rescued me from Vaughn. And I knew at the time that the chill was my protection, not something I had to fear. I love you and you love me. How could I be truly terrified of you?“
He ran a hand through his hair and turned back to the window. „I’ve been scared to death,“ Adrian admitted starkly.
„Of loving me?“
He shook his head. „Of worrying that you couldn’t really love me knowing who I am.“
Sara stepped around the desk and walked slowly toward him. „I love you, Adrian. I love you so much that I’ll do whatever I have to do to stay with you. I know all the important things about you. I read Phantom, remember? I told you after I read it that I’d fallen in love with the hero.“
„And I told you that I’d rather you fell in love with me.
„You thought it would be pleasant.“ She nodded.
„I think,“ Adrian said huskily as he turned toward her, „that it would be more than pleasant. I think it’s absolutely essential.“
„Oh, Adrian,“ she breathed, throwing herself into his arms. „I love you so much. Don’t send me away again. I couldn’t bear it.“ She buried her face against his shirt, clinging to him.
„You do tend to dramatize, don’t you? I never sent you away. This past month was supposed to be a courtship.“
„It was a test and I hate tests. I trust you, Adrian. All I want is for you to trust me.“
„Or else you’ll blackmail me into marriage?“
Her nails bit into the muscled back beneath his shirt. „I’ve told you, I’ll do whatever I have to do in order to keep you.“
He stroked her hair, tangling his fingers possessively in the golden-brown strands. „I believe you, honey. After this fiasco today, how could I not believe you? I have to admit you’re not exactly looking for a way out of our relationship. But I thought I had to offer you that escape if you wanted it.“
„So that you could be sure of me. Well, I’m not looking for an escape, Adrian Saville.“
„I love you, Sara.“
She lifted her head, eyes shimmering with emotion. „I love you.“
He smiled and wrapped her close. „Can we go home now?“ Adrian asked.
„Yes.“
„We can stop in Vegas on the way back to Washington,“ he went on thoughtfully.
„You really are going to marry me?“
„I thought I didn’t have a choice.“
„You don’t,“ she assured him.
Adrian thought about being wanted so badly by Sara that she’d do anything to keep him. It was a novel idea. He discovered he liked it. He was suddenly very sure she wasn’t playing games.
The phone was ringing in Sara’s apartment when they walked in the door a few minutes later. Adrian reached for it.
„It’ll be your uncle,“ he explained as Sara glanced at him in surprise. Then he spoke into the receiver. „Hello, Lowell. You can stop panicking.“
„I knew you’d handle things once you got there,“ Lowell said in tones of great satisfaction. „What happens now?“
„We’re going to get married in Vegas on the way up to Washington.“
„The hell you are! Whose idea was that?“
„Sara is blackmailing me into it,“ Adrian explained, watching her as he talked.
„Blackmail, hmm? I always knew the two of you had a lot in common. You both know what’s important in life and you’ll both do whatever it takes to get the job done. You just approach things in a slightly different style, that’s all.“
„Umm.“
„But that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you two get away with a Las Vegas wedding. I’ve been waiting for years for Sara to find the right man. I demand a real wedding. With me there.“ Lowell paused and then said in tones of satisfaction. „I won’t have to worry about shopping, will I? I’ve already given you your gift. That reminds me, I’ll be expecting a thank-you note.“ Lowell Kincaid hung up the phone.
Adrian stood looking at Sara. „Your uncle wants a thank-you note.“
„Don’t worry, I’ll write one.“
„He’s also demanding what he calls a real wedding. He doesn’t approve of the Vegas idea.“
Sara grinned. „He just wants an excuse to wear one of those dumb aloha shirts.“
„Lowell always did like parties.“
Sara smiled. „Well, much as I hate to admit it, we may have to accommodate him. I’m extremely grateful to him. But not for the map.“
„I know what you mean. I feel the same way.“ Adrian moved, sweeping her up into his arms. „You’re the real treasure. I will take very good care of you, my sweet Sara.“
She nestled trustingly against him. „I know. And I will take very, very good care of you.“
It was a long time later that Adrian stirred in the depths of the tangled sheets of Sara’s bed and remembered the question he had wanted to ask earlier. He drew a hand
playfully down her spine until he arrived at her derriere.
„Sara?“
„Umm?“ She was rapidly adopting his characteristic response.
„What did you tell all those candidates before I arrived at the hotel? How did you get rid of them?“
„I told them that there was one important requirement the successful candidate had to meet.“
„What requirement?“
„The successful applicant had to be a vegetarian.“ There were a few seconds of startled silence. Sara turned over onto her back in time to see the laughter dawn in Adrian’s eyes. A moment later it consumed him completely and she was left to marvel at the first full-throated laugh she had ever heard from him.
She decided that a laughing wolf was a very enthralling sight. She would make certain Adrian laughed a lot more in the years ahead.
The wedding reception, held on the ocean-front terrace of the home of Sara’s parents, was a loud and exuberant success. Mr. and Mrs. Frazer were pleased with their new son-in-law. For them, Adrian’s cover was still nicely intact. They thought he would have a steadying influence on their beloved but often unpredictable daughter. They had several qualms about allowing Lowell Kincaid to act as best man, however.
„I knew he’d wear something ridiculous,“ Mrs. Frazer said with a resigned groan as she stood with her daughter near the punch bowl. „Just look at him in that silly shirt. Everyone else is in formal wear! I should have put my foot down right at the beginning and made it clear he would not be allowed to participate in this wedding unless he was willing to conform!“
„You wouldn’t have had much to say about it, Mom.“ Sara laughed at her attractive, worried mother. „The best man was the groom’s choice, not yours.“
„It’s not that I don’t love my brother dearly, it’s just that he’s so…so…“ Mrs. Frazer waved her hand helplessly.
„Have some more punch, Mother.“ Sara leaned over to pick up a fresh glass of the frothy red concoction.
„And that’s another thing,“ her mother went on a little grimly. „Does this punch taste funny to you?“
„Spiked to the hilt, I’m afraid,“ Sara admitted cheerfully. She was watching her new husband as he stood talking to her father. The two men appeared to be involved in a very serious discussion.
„I knew it,“ Mrs. Frazer exclaimed. „I thought I saw Lowell fooling around near the punch bowl an hour ago! The champagne wasn’t enough for him, I suppose!“
„Excuse me, Mom, I think I’d better go rescue Adrian before Dad sells him on the idea of investing all his royalties in long-term certificates of deposit.“
„Adrian is a very stable, very intelligent man, dear. I’m sure he’ll want to hear your father’s advice. He’s a man who will want to plan for the future.“
„Adrian has me to help him plan his future.“ Sara swept up another glass of punch for herself and went off to join her husband.
The look in Adrian’s eyes as she went to stand beside him warmed her from head to toe. He loved her. Above all else, he loved her. His was a total commitment. Just as hers was to him.
„Your father’s been telling me about the advantages of long-term investments,“ Adrian said, putting his arm around his wife’s waist.
„I’ll just bet he has.“ Sara smiled at her father.
„I’ll go over some more details with you later, Adrian. So glad Sara found herself a man who has his feet on the ground,“ Frazer said easily. He nodded in a friendly fashion, leaned down to kiss his daughter and went off to have some more of the heavily spiked punch.
„Feet on the ground, hmm?“ Sara tipped her head up so that Adrian could brush his mouth against hers.
„That’s not where they’re going to be in a couple of hours,“ he warned.
„No?“
„Nope. Unless we decide to try something really unusual in the way of wedding nights, I plan to spend the evening horizontally.“
„Adrian, I must tell you that lately you’ve begun to develop an odd sense of humor.“
„Any sense of humor is better than none,“ Lowell Kincaid declared jovially as he sauntered up to join them. He was holding a glass of champagne in one hand and a glass of punch in the other. „Nice party, Sara. Your mother can throw a decent bash when she sets her mind to it.“ He took a sip out of each glass.
„Glad you’re enjoying yourself, Uncle Lowell.“
„I always enjoy parties. Say, I’m glad I finally caught the two of you alone. I’ve been wanting to talk to you all day.“
Adrian looked at him warily. „Is that right?“
„Yeah, you know, I’ve been thinking.“
„I’m getting nervous already.“
Lowell shook his head. „No, no, this is serious. I’ve been giving some thought to Vaughn’s little plan for getting the gold out through Cambodia. After Sara put that ad in the paper – “
„Don’t remind me of that ad,“ Adrian warned.
„I’m telling you, Adrian, if s given me pause. There just might be a way to do it.“ Lowell leaned forward conspiratorially. „If we put together the right team – and you know we’ve got some good contacts – we could slip in and out of the country without anyone even knowing we were there.“
„Uncle Lowell!“ Sara’s eyes widened excitedly. „Do you really think so?“
„Well, it would be risky, of course. But it just might be feasible.“
Adrian’s gaze narrowed. „The only reason it sounds feasible to you, Kincaid, is because you’ve been drinking too much of that damn punch. Forget it.“
Sara turned to him eagerly. „But, Adrian, just think. What an adventure it would be!“
„I said forget it and I meant it.“ Adrian lifted his champagne glass and swallowed deeply.
„But, Adrian, darling…“
„Don’t ‘Adrian, darling’ me. I said no. That’s the end of it.“
Lowell chuckled. „How about this. Your first marital quarrel.“
„And you started it,“ Adrian shot back.
„You know what I think?“ Sara demanded, glaring up at her husband. „I think Adrian is taking his new sense of husbandly duties a little too seriously. He’s starting to lay down the law and we haven’t even left the reception.“
„Start as you mean to go on,“ Adrian quoted blandly. „And speaking of going on, I think it’s time we said goodbye to all these nice folks. We’ve got a wedding night waiting for us. Are you ready to leave, Mrs. Saville?“
„Yes, Adrian.“
„I’ve never seen her quite so amenable,“ Lowell marveled.
Adrian grinned suddenly. „It won’t last. I intend to take advantage of it while I can. Let’s go, honey.“
Sara caught her uncle’s eye as she obediently turned to leave on her husband’s arm. Kincaid winked. Sara laughed silently back at him. The gold could wait for a while. After all, legends lasted a long time.
Lowell Kincaid’s sister drifted up to stand beside him. She smiled maternally after her daughter. „Well, Lowell, in spite of that idiotic shirt you’re wearing, I have to admit that this time you really came through. I was beginning to wonder if my daughter was ever going to fall in love. But you seem to have found just the right man for her.“
Kincaid raised one of the glasses he was holding and grinned. „The best. A legend in his own time.“
The Waiting Game Page 22
