by Amii Lorin
“This is great.” Luke spared a quick glance at her. “Do you have any idea how old they are?”
Selena shrugged. “I’ve been told that they have been dated to somewhere around two thousand years ago.
“Incredible.”
“Yes, I—” Selena broke off as Dan’s voice rose to them from the lake.
“Lunch is ready whenever you two are.”
“Coming!” Selena called, then turned to retrace their steps along the fence. Luke followed at a slower pace, his gaze riveted to the cave wall.
Picking his way, Luke descended the bank almost as nimbly as Selena. “We’ve got company,” he said leaping onto the pier next to her. He jerked his head to indicate another boat approaching.
“Hum,” Selena murmured, nodding. “Looks like we’ll have to postpone lunch until Dan locates another place to dock.”
Dan confirmed her opinion when they drew alongside the boat. “We’re going to move out and let them come in,” he said, indicating the newcomers. “If you’ll cast off, I’ll go rev the engine.”
“Right.” Selena moved to the line securing the bow, and Luke turned to the one at the stern.
Instead of standing off, the newcomer kept circling, creating waves that set Dan’s boat rocking. It alternately banged into the pier, then moved away from it. Selena freed the bowline, then, her timing perfect, leaped onto the boat. Luke’s timing wasn’t as accurate. He freed the line and leaped without pause as the boat danced away from the pier.
Luke dropped like a stone into the churning lake,
Selena didn’t think, she reacted. Responding to training and conditioning—and to selfless love—she sprinted to the rear of the craft and dove into the icy water after him.
The scene that ensued might have been funny if Selena hadn’t been so scared...and Luke hadn’t been so angry. Sputtering and cursing, he fought her attempt to help him.
“Dammit, I’m all right!” he shouted, pushing her away. “I don’t need rescuing, you bimbo! I can swim.” Proving his point, he struck out for the side of the boat, where Dan was waiting to hoist him aboard.
“Fine!” Selena shouted after him. “If nothing else, maybe the dunking in this cold water will sober you up!” Ignoring the hand Luke reached down to her, she grasped Dan’s hand and scrambled into the boat
“I didn’t need sobering, damn you!” Luke attacked the minute she was safely on board. “I wasn’t drunk.”
“Says you,’’ Selena retaliated in a sneering voice. “And, for your information, the word bimbo is masculine by definition. Look that up in your dictionary.”
They didn’t stop for lunch. Soaking wet and fuming in chilling silence, they picked at the food during the run back to the marina.
Her emotions as churned-up as the lake waters had been, Selena sat staring through the windshield. She felt sorry for Dan who, by the puzzled glances he shifted from her to Luke, didn’t understand what was going on. But, sorry for him or not, she didn’t feel inclined toward enlightening her friend. Maybe someday she would—if she lived to be about a hundred years old.
The return trip seemed to take forever. Her feelings raw, Selena gnawed on her lips and wished it was over. All she wanted was to get away from Luke, as fast and as far as possible.
Once again, she felt embarrassed and humiliated by a man. The fact that she happened to be in love with this particular man didn’t alleviate the sense of depression blanketing her mind. Instead, it magnified it.
The combination of the hot afternoon sun and the stiff breeze created by the forward thrust of the boat dried Selena and Luke’s clothing. In a rush to get away, Selena helped Dan secure the boat. Then, with a quick hug and a whispered apology, she headed for her car.
“Selena, wait!” Luke called, loping after her. He caught up to her as she was unlocking her car. “Are you going back to the motel?”
Shaking her head, she slipped behind the steering wheel. “I’m going home.”
“But that’s a long drive and it’s already almost dinnertime,” he protested. “Why not wait until morning? I—I think we should talk.”
Selena shook from the battle waging inside her. She wanted to stay with him, longed to be with him, yet knew it would destroy her if he hurt her again. Her pride was stiff. “No, Luke. We have nothing to talk about.” She fired the engine and the car sprang to life with a growl. “I’m going home, and I’d appreciate it if you’d stay out of my way from now on.” Fighting tears, she set the car into motion. The tires spewed a cloud of dust and gravel as she tore away from the parking area.
An unfamiliar feeling of desolation permeated Luke’s being. He stood as if turned to stone, watching Selena’s car growing smaller in the distance.
“What’s with you two?” Dan asked, coining to stand alongside him.
‘The lady doesn’t like me,” Luke replied, turning to give the other man a wry smile.
Dan snorted. “Like hell!”
Luke frowned. “What do you mean?”
“Look, buddy, I’ve known that lady a long time,” Dan said, jerking his thumb in the direction of Selena’s disappearing car. “And I’ve never seen her look at a man the way she looks at you. It was as clear as daylight.”
“What was?” Luke asked, hoping—yet afraid to hope.
Dan grinned. “Buddy, that lady is so much in love with you that it shines like a beacon from her eyes.”
Love.
The word occupied Luke’s mind throughout every one of the long miles from Del Rio to Study Butte.
Was it possible? he asked himself, not once but several times before and after leaving Dan with heartfelt thanks. Could Selena have fallen in love with him so quickly? Or was whatever Dan saw shining from her eyes the delayed aftermath of love-making? The latter seemed more likely, if a lot more unacceptable to Luke.
But why unacceptable? He delved into his own somewhat murky emotions. The last thing he wanted in his life was love. Wasn’t it? Until he’d met a cat-witch woman with green eyes and black hair, Luke had been convinced that he would never again fall into the emotion-mangling trap.
Love turned sour was a killer of all softening, humanizing emotions. And love invariably went sour, Luke assured himself.
But did it? The question whispered inside Luke’s head, bringing a frown to his granite features. Weren’t there individual instances of love that deepened and grew stronger over time, rather than deteriorating?
Luke wasn’t forced to rake his mind for examples of that particular theory. He had personally witnessed strong bonds of love as recently as a few days ago.
His memory flashed a collage—scenes of three long-married couples laughing and enjoying life and each other. They had gotten wet, too, but they had relished the fun, not argued about it.
What had that man said? Wasn’t it something about wringing every ounce of pleasure from life? Yes, that was it, Luke recalled. And, at the time, he had shrugged and muttered, “Whatever works.”
But nothing had worked in any meaningful way for Luke in a long time—too long a time. He had been deeply hurt by his wife’s defection and the subsequent loss of his rights to his daughter. And, because of the depth of his pain, Luke knew he had withdrawn into himself, erecting a protective facade of bitterness and arrogance.
Night was falling, but light was dawning inside Luke. With new insight, he realized that what he had so arrogantly dismissed as middle-aged boredom was in fact loving sharing between three couples who genuinely enjoyed themselves and each other. He had thought that by vacationing together, they no longer desired privacy to be together. He had conveniently forgotten that all they had to do was shut the doors to their rooms to have all the privacy they desired.
Shaking his head in disbelief over his own lack of perception, Luke drove the Jeep onto the driveway of the house he rented from Will, then sat staring at the star-studded sky. Selena had called him a jerk, among other things. A derisive smile tilted his tight lips. She was right. She just hadn’t gone far
enough, he thought wryly. He wasn’t a jerk, or even a bimbo. In his own late-to-the-gate, newly-enlightened opinion, Luke decided he was an absolute jackass.
Did jackasses deserve a second chance? The question kept Luke awake and once again pacing the patio throughout what was left of the night.
Selena had ordered him to stay out of her way, and when she’d said it, she had sounded like she meant it. But did she? Luke knew he had hurt her by not making her an exception when he’d admitted to not liking women.
Spearing his fingers through his hair, Luke circled the patio and strode into the house. Would Selena understand, and perhaps forgive him, if he explained to her why he felt as he did? More importantly, would she even talk to him?
Watching predawn change the darkness into luminescent pearl gray, Luke felt the last barrier crumble and collapse inside him. He had to make her listen to him, had to make her understand and forgive him. For, like it or not—and amazingly, he did like it—Luke knew he was irrevocably in love with Selena.
One memory held out hope for Luke. He heard the echo of his own voice telling Selena that Laura would die for his brother, Hank. Luke clung to the image of Selena plunging into the lake to save him without pausing to consider herself.
He prayed that his memory and Dan’s observation were both correct.
Chapter Ten
The incessant ringing of the phone woke Selena in midafternoon. Although she possessed not an ounce of psychic ability, she knew who was on the other end of the line. Luke had rung her phone at least half a dozen times since first light. She had answered three times. On the third call, she told him succinctly that she had nothing to say to him and asked him politely not to call again. Luke’s response had been to tell her that he would keep ringing until she agreed to talk to him. She retaliated by not answering the phone after that
But Selena was fully awake now and getting madder by the second. Muttering expletives, she reached out and yanked the cord from the wall jack.
Anger sustained her while she showered and dressed. Its impetus waned as she sipped her first cup of coffee. Her eyes haunted, she stared at the kitchen wall phone.
Maybe she should... No! Selena aborted the traitorous thought. She would not give in to her need to see Luke and talk to him one more time. It was over. Done. Finished. And, unless she kept herself busy and moving and away from him, it might very likely be the finish of her, as well.
Acting on that speculation, Selena scraped back her chair and stood up. Busy and moving. That was the answer. Cradling her cup, she returned to her bedroom, connected the phone jack and quickly punched in the number of the tour office, silently praying Luke wouldn’t be there. Relief trembled through her at the familiar sound of Will’s rough voice.
“It’s Selena, Will,” she said, amazed at the carefree tone she managed to produce.
“Oh, back again, are you?” Will growled.
“Back and bored.” Selena laughed, then winced at the harsh sound of her voice. “I need something to do.” At least that was the truth. “Got something for me?”
“Only about three different jobs,” Will retorted. “You can take your pick.”
“Run them by me.”
“I’ve got a half-day float, a full-day backroads tour and an overnight Santa Elena trip, all for tomorrow morning,” he said. “Which one do you want?”
Knowing the Santa Elena trip was for two to four days, Selena didn’t hesitate. “I’ll take the overnight. How big is the party, and which trip did they choose?”
Will answered with his usual economy of words. “One raft, party of six. You’ll be on your lonesome.”
An odd note in his tone alerted Selena. Frowning, she asked, “So what? Is there a problem?”
“I hope not,” he replied. “But, well, there’s been a report of some shooting in that area.”
“Shooting!” Selena exclaimed. “Was anybody injured?”
“No, no,” Will assured her. “The narcotic agents think there may be some fighting among the drug runners.”
Selena sighed. “That’s a relief. For a minute there, I thought you meant that someone was shooting at our people.”
“No,” Will repeated in a soothing tone. “I feel sure this was just an isolated incident, but I thought it only fair to tell you about it.”
“Okay, Will, thanks.” Selena’s jangling nerves calmed down enough to let her concentrate on business. “Is this a mixed group you’ve got for me?”
Will’s gravelly laughter sang along the wire. “All females.” His laughter ended on a snort, “They’re all writers. Said they want to do the tour for research.
The information snagged Selena’s interest. “Writers? What kind, journalists?”
“Nah.” Will snorted. “Fiction writers. Historical.” His tone took on an edge of ridicule. “Or was it hysterical?”
Chauvinist. Keeping her opinion to herself, Selena replied, “I sincerely hope not.”
“And I sincerely believe you’re in for one dandy of a trip,” Will drawled. “Wanna change your mind?”
“Nope,” she answered at once. “I’ll come down to the warehouse in a little while to check out the gear.” Deciding she’d check in with her friend while she was at it, Selena went on, “By the way, is Brenda working this afternoon?”
“No,” Will replied. “Dave took a group on a ten-day trip to the lower canyons. Brenda went along for the ride.”
Lucky, plucky Brenda, Selena thought, smiling at the idea of her flighty friend roughing it with her lover. “I was away only two days, “ she mused aloud. “When did they leave?”
“Yesterday morning,” Will said. “A group wanted to take the tour. Dave offered to do it, and our impetuous Brenda opted to go along with him.”
“Yep, that’s our Brenda.” Selena laughed. “Okay, Will, I’ll stop in at the office after I’ve checked the gear.”
Three hours later, Selena walked into the office and had to fight the urge to turn in her tracks and walk out again. Looking like every maiden’s prayer for a strong, silent someone, Luke was propped against the counter in his now-familiar nonchalant pose. His jeans were tight and faded. His shirt had seen better days. His boots were scarred and scruffy. To Selena, he looked wonderful.
“There’s something wrong with your phone,” he said tersely, without preamble.
Eyeing him warily, Selena stood by the door, just in case she needed to make a quick getaway. “No, there isn’t,” she replied, her expression daring him to refute her.
He accepted. “Must be. I was trying to call you all day and all I got was a busy signal.”
Her sweet smile was taunting. “I didn’t want to be disturbed, so I took the phone off the hook.”
Her tone didn’t faze him. “Won’t do you any good,” he said, with annoying confidence. “You’ll have to agree to talk to me sooner or later.”
“Indeed?” She arched her eyebrows.
“Sure.” He nodded. “Because I won’t quit until you do.” Pushing away from the counter, he took a step toward her. She inched toward the door. “Selena.” Luke’s voice was raw. Heaving a sigh, he backed up. “Okay, I won’t crowd you. But will you let me say just one dung?”
“Make it quick,” she ordered. “I’m in a hurry.” It wasn’t a lie. She felt a sudden urgency to flee, to run away from him—before she gave in to a yearning to run into his arms.
He wet his lips. She stifled a groan. “Look, Green Eyes, this conflict between us is unnecessary. If you’d just listen to me, let me explain, we could put an end to it.”
“I did end it—yesterday,” she reminded him.
His patience snapped. “Dammit, I meant the misunderstanding between us, and you know it.” He paused to draw a harsh breath, then continued more calmly, “It’s not over, Selena, and you know that as well as I do. What we shared was good, too good to toss aside without so much as talking about it,”
What he said made sense. Selena frowned. Why did he have to make sense? She didn’t wan
t to listen simply because she was afraid he’d sweet-talk her into believing anything he wanted her to believe. But, then again, she ached for him so much....
“Selena?” There was a hint of hope in his voice. She was weakening, and he knew it. “Please?”
She gave in with a soft sigh. “All right, I’ll listen.”
Luke’s sigh was louder. “Not here,” he said. “We need to talk in private. Tonight? Your place?”
She shook her head. “No, not tonight, Luke. I’m tired.” A chiding smiled curved her lips. “I didn’t sleep well last night. Someone kept ringing my phone.”
He didn’t appear at all repentant. “Maybe you should have answered. This strain and distance between us might be history if you had.”
His comment jogged her memory. “That reminds me, you’ll have to wait a few days for a meeting, private or otherwise.”
“Why do we have to wait a few days?” he asked, puzzled.
“I have a three-day float to Santa Elena,” she explained. “It’s a party of six, all historical-fiction writers.”
Luke was less than pleased. He scowled. “Can’t you get out of it, let one of the others do it?”
Selena was shaking her head before he’d finished speaking. “No, Will’s shorthanded. I agreed to do it, and I’ll do it” She frowned. “Where is Will, anyway?”
“He had an errand to run. He told me you’d be stopping in.” A tantalizing smile twitched the corners of his lips. “I told him I’d be happy to wait here for you.”
He was getting to her. The liquefying process had commenced inside her. Fighting the feeling—and him—she gave him a droll look. “You’re all heart, Branson.”
“Not quite,” he murmured in a sexy drawl. “But I’ll wait till we’re alone to show you.”
That did it. Grasping the doorknob, Selena yanked open the door and gulped for fresh air. “I’ve got to go,” she said, stepping backward over the threshold. “I’ll see you...ah, talk to you, when I get back from Santa Elena.”
“I can’t wait,” Luke called softly after her.
Damn you, you devil, Selena thought dashing for her car. She couldn’t wait, either.
