“It’s our turn to help out in the dining room,” Sonya said. They shared communal meals at the artist colony. Everybody had chores.
“I went fishing today,” Boyd said. “I caught the food. I’m not cooking it, too.”
No way was Sonya leaving her money in Boyd’s reach. He could jump up and leave at any time. “I worked last night. Besides, you didn’t fish all day long.” She sidled up to him, slid her body over his. She immediately felt the response of his erection. “We’re supposed to be madly in love. Would a man in love leave his wife for even fifteen minutes?” She unzipped his pants.
“Depends,” Boyd said, his voice strangled.
Sonya licked his lips. “On what?”
“How good the wife is to me.”
Sonya smothered a groan. He was so tired. “I’m better than good, baby.” She turned on the music and started out with a slow strip, teasingly revealing her body with dancing steps until she was completely undressed. Then she undressed him, kissing him as she did so, driving him insane with need. Nobody could say she didn’t know how to please a man. By the time she’d shed his briefs, he was begging for mercy.
“Not quite yet, baby. This is just the appetizer.”
She proceeded to show him just how good she was.
A half hour later, Boyd left the cottage with her. Sonya would send him out later on some ridiculous errand and get her money to her pre-appointed hiding place. She’d worked too damn hard to let it get away from her.
CHAPTER 7
Elliot got Minerva to make her pineapple cake and take it to the Claxtons to thank them for offering them refuge when they were robbed. A good thing, too, because Naomi invited them to dinner and they were happy to accept.
Elliot selected one of his expensive bottles of wine. He hated to give it up, but if they got that bowl, it was worth it.
“Everything smells wonderful,” he said as they sat.
“I’m glad you could join us,” Naomi said. “It’s just everyday stuff.”
Minerva smiled like she was supposed to. “You’ve been such good neighbors. We’re lucky to move next door to kind people.”
Elliot could tell Naomi was melting already. He barely tasted the food as he suffered through small talk. They were on dessert before he broached the topic.
“I hear your family’s been here hundreds of years,” he said.
“Nearly four hundred to be exact.”
“No kidding.”
She started to tell the tale of how her female ancestor got kidnapped by pirates and then shipwrecked. And how the women poisoned the pirates and escaped to the island. It was a fascinating tale.
“How on earth did they make it? Women all alone? No provisions?”
“Oh, they had the stolen spices, cloths, and things the pirates had looted. Even a golden bowl, bullion, and coins.”
He suffered through another tale of how fishermen came the next year and the women soon married. But Elliot was interested only in the goods.
“So they traded all those things for tobacco and supplies?” he asked.
“Some of it. The bowl, some bullion, and coins are still in the family, except some of it was stolen a while back.”
“Stolen?” Minerva said.
“We’re still trying to track it down.”
“Any idea who stole it?”
“I don’t have a clue. But my granddaughter Alyssa is working on it.”
“She’ll find it eventually,” Hoyt Claxton, Naomi’s husband, said.
“I hope you find it. To have it in the family for so many years and to lose it is just awful,” Minerva said.
“Her sister, Anna, put it away somewhere, and when she died no one could find it. That’s another explanation,” Hoyt added.
“It’s stolen. If it wasn’t, we would have found it,” Naomi insisted.
Elliot suffered through another half hour before he and Minerva could leave. So maybe the bowl wasn’t stolen. But he was going to check into it anyway. As soon as he got home, he called Mouse.
“Got another job for you,” Elliot said and explained what he wanted.
“Got a few contacts on the island. I’ll see what I can find out,” Mouse said. “Do I need to remind you of my ten percent finder’s fee on the selling price?”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Elliot said. “Just find it.”
While Elliot was talking to Mouse, Andrew was at a bar in Norfolk. He was depressed about the way his dad was treating him. He decided to call Sonya. His dad thought he had no sense, but he knew where his woman was. Sonya wouldn’t betray him. She was always nice to him. He wished he could be with her right now.
He hoped she answered.
“Hey, baby,” she answered, and Andrew felt better just hearing her voice.
“What’s all that noise in back?”
“Give me a minute.”
He could hear her moving around. A door squeaked open and closed, and there was silence.
“We were having dinner. His family is having a party. They’re a loud group.”
“How is it there?”
“Hot. I’m going to take a dip later on just to cool off.”
Andrew frowned. “They got air conditioning, don’t they?”
“Sure they do, but I like having my windows open to catch a breeze. Anyway, since they have a pool, I’m taking advantage of it.”
“I miss you, baby.”
“You know I miss you, too. I’m waiting for the time your daddy lets us stay together. I hate when he sends me away from you. How’re you holding up?”
“Not too good. Broke my arm.”
“Poor thing. How did that happen?”
“Fell. Daddy’s counting on you to bring in a good amount. Somebody robbed half the money we had.”
“After all that work?” Sonya sounded as outraged as Andrew felt. “How could he let that happen? I thought he was so smart?”
“He’s got some new plan to make up the difference. There’s this golden bowl missing. Old as dirt. From a few hundred years ago. Daddy’s got some man looking for it.” He went into detail about the bowl.
“I hope your daddy finds that bowl ’cause we need that money.”
“Yeah, me, too.”
“Honey, I wish I could talk longer, but I better get back to the party. I’ll call you later on, okay?”
“Yeah, sure. I love you, Sonya.”
“Love you, too, baby.” She gave him those kisses through the phone and he smiled. “I’m gonna take good care of you when I see you again. And, baby, you know I can.”
Andrew felt himself growing hard. Nobody made him feel as good as Sonya. He felt a whole lot better when he hung up. The only reason he went out with Barbara in the first place was because of his dad. She started coming on to him, and his dad told him he had to go out with her. Anybody who retired at forty-five had to have some money somewhere.
Andrew looked at his cast. And look how that turned out. His dad thought he knew everything, but there was a lot he didn’t know. Sonya was a good woman. She loved him.
“You gone play or look at the wall all night?” the guy said, racking up the balls for another game of pool.
“One more game and I’m outta here. Lemme get a drink first.” As he went to the bar he was still smiling about Sonya.
Sonya was thinking about the golden bowl. She was going to have to dig up some information.
“What’re you doing out here?” Boyd asked.
Sonya clutched her chest. “You’re going to get hurt coming up on me like that.”
“Why are you out here?”
“Andrew called. He missed me.”
He grabbed her around the waist, then nuzzled her neck. “You don’t belong to him anymore. You’re mine.” His kiss was long and slow. “All mine.”
In your dreams, buddy. No man owned her, and he was going to find out just how much she was her own person before too long.
“You know I am, sweetie.”
Trent drove slowly aroun
d the island and noticed the sheriff’s car parked in Barbara’s yard. If Barbara had been dating Andrew for a while and she followed him all the way to Paradise Island, why had she broken the guy’s arm and held him for the sheriff? Something didn’t add up.
Most of all, who broke into the Stones’ home? Someone had to be watching them. Someone was there most of the time, which was why he hadn’t broken in yet. Was someone else tracking them? Trent didn’t like too many oars in the water, not when it hampered his plans.
Was Barbara putting on an act? Was she dating the sheriff to keep him away from the Stones? Using sex to keep him off balance? Spreading her stuff around, was she?
Trent shook his head. A woman could turn a man’s head. It was a lesson he’d learned years ago, never to mix business with pleasure. The sheriff was old enough to know better. It wasn’t that Barbara was that much of a honey for the man to lose his head over. But then, the sheriff was old, too. He’d probably go after whatever he could get. To each his own. Heck, he remembered another old saying: “There’s no fool like an old fool.”
Barbara had some redeeming factors. He was sure she was a good cook. And the sheriff looked like he enjoyed good food. Today, many sistas couldn’t cook and others wouldn’t. Maybe food was the sheriff’s inducement.
Maybe he had something on the side for an arm piece. Not on the island, though, or else the sheriff would be the one walking around with the broken arm. Barbara didn’t take crap. And she could certainly handle herself. She’d put the sheriff in his place the other night.
Trent didn’t like the idea of having to cross Barbara. He hoped it didn’t come down to that, but if it was the only way to get his mother’s money back, he was up to taking care of business.
There were a lot of fine single sistas on the island. Of course, he wasn’t sampling any. Although if he had to stay too long, he might get desperate and have to trek to Norfolk. A man couldn’t go but so long without hitting something.
Barbara set the table with fine china. Candles flickered around the flowers. The aroma of mouth-watering food added to the setting. Barbara asked Harper to say grace and afterward he dug in.
“It’s all delicious,” he said after sampling each item. “I’ve never tasted scallops cooked this way before.”
After dinner, Harper helped Barbara clean up the kitchen.
“I’ll pack some of the leftovers for you,” she murmured.
“I won’t turn it down,” Harper said on their way to the living room. He tried to put the case on the back burner in his mind. He would drive by the Stones’ house after he left.
There was a Russian samovar on a side table, along with figurines of a large bird. It was a formal room, yet comfortable, too, with Persian rugs and oversized furniture. Sitting side by side on the burgundy couch, they listened to music and Harper felt a warm glow of contentment.
“They’re from Italy,” she said, referring to the birds. “We got them when my grandmother and I traveled there fifteen years ago. The trip was my reward for my divorce.”
“Is that what women do now? Instead of the honeymoon, they do the celebrating after the divorce?”
“I did.”
Harper chuckled. “I still can’t figure out how a woman with a thriving career in New York ended up on our little island.”
“New York is too busy. I’m trying to decide whether I can live here for the rest of my life.”
“Have you ever lived in a rural area?”
She shook her head.
“When I moved back here from Baltimore, it was hard leaving all the conveniences behind. Mostly pizza delivery and a whole range of restaurants. I’m not a shopper, but I imagine you miss having stores nearby.”
“Tell me about it.”
“But you’ll acclimate. I did. And it’s not like you can’t visit New York.”
“True. But it’s a good thing I love to cook. Some of the foods I could buy at the corner store aren’t available here. Not even in the grocery stores in Virginia Beach.”
“I bet if you asked Cornell for a special item, he’d make it for you, or order it.”
“That’s a thought.”
And so their night went. Talking about inconsequential topics, with Barbara enjoying Harper’s company.
“My friend is bringing my favorite cheeses with her when she visits at Thanksgiving,” she said later.
“Your friend is from New York, too?”
“Connecticut. She moved to New York the same time I did. She hasn’t decided where she’ll retire.”
For a moment, something flashed in his eyes. If Barbara hadn’t been watching him closely she would have missed it completely. Did she say something she shouldn’t have? Then a mischievous smile softened his lips as he stretched his arm over the back of her seat. Barbara relaxed. She was just being paranoid.
“So do you think I’ll get some insight into you when I meet your friend?”
Barbara hadn’t thought about that. “I’m an open book. What you see is what you get.”
Amusement flickered in his eyes. “I doubt that. Is she a hairdresser, too?”
“She’s my stockbroker.” That was true enough.
“Interesting. Think she’d take a look at my portfolio?”
“I’m sure she would.”
Although the curtains were open, it was dark outside. The CDs continued to play, and as they talked, the soft music penetrated the intimate setting.
“Any progress on Sarah’s murder?” Barbara asked, changing the mood.
“We’ve done quite a few interviews, and the Norfolk PD interrogated the old boyfriend there.”
“Do you really think one of them killed her?”
“We can’t rule out any suspects yet.”
“Well, I don’t know her, but I wonder what the real motive is? Who gained by her death? Did the boyfriend take out an insurance policy on her?”
“You’re thinking like a detective,” Harper said. “Pretty soon you’ll be doing my job for me.”
“The murder happened so close to me, I’ve been thinking a lot about it. I imagine she didn’t make a fortune working for Mr. Hughes as a companion. Doesn’t Minerva work for him now?”
“Yes, she does,” Harper said, wondering where Barbara was going with this. “But you know, I really don’t want to talk shop tonight unless you know something about this murder?”
“Who, me? I don’t know a thing.”
He shifted. “So tell me, Barbara, did you own a hair salon in New York?”
“No, but I’ve always worked with hair. I got my beautician’s license when I was in high school. My grandmother insisted that a woman always needed something to fall back on.”
“Smart woman.” He leaned forward to kiss her, but she pressed a hand to his chest.
“Harper, we need to talk first. I can’t promise you anything.”
He brushed her hair from her face and tilted her chin so that he could look in her eyes. “What are you afraid of?”
“It’s not fear. It’s just…I don’t know what the future holds. I don’t know if I’m going to even stay here,” she said. “I just don’t want you to get your hopes up for something that might never happen.”
“I’m just going with what I feel. And that’ll have to do.”
“You don’t know me,” Barbara said softly.
Harper stroked his hand over her chin. “That’ll change.”
“But I just don’t want you to be disappointed.”
He regarded her closely. “Again, what are you afraid of?”
“Expectations.”
“Tell me about your ex.”
“That was so long ago. And what’s happening now has nothing to do with him.”
“Did you see him when you were in New York?”
“We both worked in Manhattan, so we crossed paths now and then. I think he even remarried a couple times.”
“But you’ve never trusted yourself enough to take that step.”
She glanced at him.
“We have something in common, then, don’t we?”
“You know, by the time I caught my wife with that SOB, my marriage was already disintegrating. It hurt, but deep down I knew it was over long before we actually said the words. We were just prolonging something that needed to end. And I’m philosophical about it. In that atmosphere I probably wasn’t the best husband. The divorce rate’s pretty high in law enforcement—especially in big cities.”
“But to end in that way…”
“Yeah, well. Life isn’t perfect, Barbara. But I’ll always be truthful with you and I expect the same from you.”
Barbara nodded, knowing she’d already failed that test by lying by omission.
He took a long finger and turned her head toward him. “You’re special.”
From the beginning this thing had started on the wrong foot. It was doomed to disaster, but how could she get rid of any suspicions Harper had? How could she make him back off? And did she really want to? She felt something for him, too. The spark was getting too strong. Definitely a small blaze now. If only. She sighed. If only.
He was going to kiss her. She swallowed tightly as he closed the distance between them. One hand caressed the side of her face, then cupped her chin, stroking her gently.
She ached for his touch and leaned into him, the muscles in her stomach tightening in anticipation. Her heartbeat throbbed in her chest as their lips touched.
He nibbled at the corner of her mouth before his lips brushed softly across hers. When his tongue ran in a leisurely crawl over her mouth, Barbara moaned and opened fully to him. He covered her mouth completely and greedily, delving his tongue deep within her, tasting her. He drew her tightly against him, sucking every bit of the air from the room and from her lungs. Barbara’s stomach undulated like waves on the ocean.
She felt burning need consuming her as he cocooned her in his embrace. His heartbeat thudded against her chest.
Suddenly, he pulled back and Barbara felt bereft, lost. She reached out to draw him back, but he clasped her arms, holding her still.
Island of Deceit Page 12
