Legendary Lover

by Roszel, Renee

  She felt fairly relaxed after about ten minutes. Cord had asked pertinent questions and apparently accepted Kalvin’s answers with interest and even respect.

  “I swear,” Kalvin said, slapping his hands together for emphasis, “Ol’ Champ’s back humped up above the surface. I seen that lots of times. But he was gone too quick for me to get my camera.” He scraped his fingers through his hair in his excitement until the straggly strands stood straight up.

  “I see, Kalvin. Well, that should give me something to go on, at least.” Cord extended a hand. “I appreciate your input.”

  Kalvin rubbed his palm on his overalls before accepting the doctor’s hand. “Sure, thing, Cord. Any ol’ time. I get off work at suppertime.”

  “Thanks. I’ll remember.” He gave Tess a glance that told her he was ready to leave. When they were some distance away, he said curtly, “I’ve got a meeting with Mary and the others at eight o’clock. If you don’t have any more interviews for me right now, I’d like to have breakfast.”

  She caught the edge in his voice, and felt a tinge of guilt for having given him such a bad time this morning. She’d softened a little in the last quarter hour, watching him with Kalvin. It had brought back memories of the Cord Redigo she’d first heard about in high school. A nice guy. Everybody’d liked him. Through all these years filled with resentment, she’d forgotten that had been part of her original attraction to him.

  She’d also admired the way he’d listened, the way he asked questions. There’d been something substantial there—a good mind at work. That, too, had been one of the things that she’d liked about him so long ago. There had been more to him than just his striking good looks. There still was.

  She managed a shy smile, falling into step beside him as he left the wooded area. “That wasn’t such a waste of time, was it?”

  When he met her gaze, there was just a shadow of a frown on his face. “No more than I expected.”

  She stared, surprised. “What do you mean? He had some very convincing evidence, I thought.”

  “Tess,” he remarked softly, but firmly, “he was describing an eight-foot sturgeon rolling on the surface, driftwood caught in a current, a deer swimming across the cove in a fog. This sort of mistaken sighting isn’t unusual. Especially for a monster hysteric like Kalvin. You tell some people there’s a monster in a glass of water and they’ll see one. I’m afraid Kalvin isn’t a very reliable witness. He wants to see Champ too badly.”

  “But you acted like you believed him,” she charged. “Surely you can’t discount every—”

  “Ms Mankiller?” Kalvin called from the edge of the woods. “Want me to pick them bouquets of sweet william for the cottages? Them honeymooners is comin’ tonight.”

  Tess’s panic revved into high gear. It had only taken her a surreptitious glance at Cord to know that the name had struck a cord in his memory.

  Her heart ramming her ribs like a bulldozer, she tried to answer Kalvin with something sensible. The honest truth was, at this horrible moment, she didn’t care if he picked bouquets of sweet william or threw poison ivy through the cottage windows.

  With a tremulous smile, she nodded. “Yes. That’ll be fine, Kalvin, just fine….” When he’d ambled back into the trees, she edged away, hoping to make her escape without speaking to Cord. She wasn’t ready to meet his gaze—his damnable, knowing gaze.

  She’d only made it a few steps when he swore, hauling her around to face him. “I knew we’d met. Good Lord! You’re the … virgin.” The last word had come out in a whisper, sounding as if he’d dragged it through a lot of pain to get it said.

  She wished she were at the bottom of Lake Champlain, her humiliation was so total. Her throat had gone dry as Oklahoma dust and her eyes stung. Feeling frightened and hurt, she mumbled bitterly, “You should be the last person on earth to call me that.”

  His eyes, shades darker, clung to her as she suffered in silence. “I can’t believe you’re here. After that summer, I never expected to see you again. Where did you go?”

  She tugged her arms from his grasp. “What does it matter now? It didn’t interest you then.” His image was shimmering, blurry. She grew furious with herself for allowing him to see her tears and turned away.

  It surprised her when he stepped in front of her, blocking her escape. He touched her cheeks, tipping her face up to meet his solemn eyes. “It mattered. I worried about you … whether you got pregnant—”

  She swung her hand automatically, an act of pure passion. But he was fast. He caught her wrist in a gentle grip and halted her fingers just inches from his cheek. Muttering a curse that was ripe with self-loathing, he asked, “You didn’t get pregnant, did you?”

  Her chest constricted and she felt as if she were choking. “Take your hands off me,” she warned coldly.

  When he reluctantly obliged, she ground out, “No, I didn’t. I hope that ties up any loose ends….” She pushed past him.

  “Let me explain one thing—please.”

  There was something so compelling in his request that she found herself coming to an unsteady halt. Refusing to turn and face him, she rasped, “I’m listening.”

  “I had to leave town the next morning. Mary got me a spot on a research project in the Galapagos Islands. It was the chance of a lifetime for a kid just out of high school. I was gone for three weeks.” He paused. When he spoke again, his voice was low and rough with emotion. “I looked for you, Tessa Jane. No one knew where Joe Mankiller and his daughter had gone.” She felt his fingers curl around her wrist. “I’ve thought about you a lot since then.”

  She jerked back from his touch, her ribbon falling away to leave her hair flying wildly about her as she stumbled away from him. “I’ll just bet you have!” she cried. “I’ll bet it’s given you plenty of great laughs with the boys in the bunkhouse!”

  Her angry, pain-filled eyes stabbed his for only a brief moment, but long enough to wound. The white-hot blade of her fury seared through him, making him wince.

  “Now you know why I don’t like you very much, Dr. Redigo!”

  She whirled away, and blinded by fury and tears, barely missed plowing into a tall, slender woman who had just come out of the kitchen door. The newcomer was attractive, with a no-nonsense head of graying curls. She gave Tess a startled smile and said, “Why, hello, I’m Mary Cash. Remember me? We met briefly last night at dinner.”

  Tess tried valiantly to rein in her temper. This was Cord’s zoologist cousin. The one who believed in Champ. Unfortunately, there was a bit too much family resemblance in her smile to satisfactorily quell Tess’s rage. Drawing a harsh breath, she managed, “Yes, of course, Dr. Cash—Mary—er, if you’ll excuse me, I really need to—”

  “Is anything wrong, Miss Mankiller? You seem upset.” Mary’s smile wilted a little.

  “It’s really nothing,” Tess mumbled, running a jerky hand through her hair.

  Mary’s gaze drifted beyond Tess’s shoulder. She spotted Cord, standing some twenty feet away, his expression grim.

  Encompassing both of them with a curious look, she said, “Well, I see you’ve been chatting with my cousin.” Obviously trying to ease the tension that hung in the air, she quipped, “Darling Cord doesn’t usually make a woman this angry until he dumps her.”

  Gritting her teeth against a curse, Tess remarked shortly, “A fine old Redigo tradition, no doubt. If you’ll pardon me, I must…” She muttered something she hoped sounded rational and hurried away. She didn’t give a damn where she was going, all she knew was that she wanted to be as far away from Cord Redigo as the local geography would allow.

  Mary watched Tess retreat into the inn before turning back to stare at Cord.

  “Well…” She walked over to him, eyeing him suspiciously. “Making new friends, I see.”

  A long silence followed as Cord stood there, images of the young Tessa Jane of his past racing through his brain. The hurt that had glittered in her green eyes when he’d left her standing in that dimly
lit gas station was the same dreadful torment he’d seen a moment ago—still raw, still as fresh and stormy as that night so long ago, when … He suddenly realized his cousin had spoken to him. “What?” he growled.

  “Whoa, don’t bark at me. I’m the innocent bystander here,” Mary chided, touching his jaw. “Why the heavy-duty tic, Cord? What exactly did she mean by ‘a fine old Redigo tradition’? You two know each other before yesterday?”

  He glanced at his cousin through half-lowered lids. Her bright blue eyes were wide with curiosity. Snorting derisively, he said, “You’re a busybody, you know that?”

  She pinched his cheek. “Maybe. But I know you, kid, and I ask again. Did you know the lady before?”

  He shrugged. “Briefly. In high school.”

  “Well, it appears the acquaintance wasn’t brief enough. What did you do to her?”

  Cord passed his cousin a jaundiced look. “I don’t appreciate your assumption that I did anything to her.”

  “Well, did you or didn’t you?”

  He exhaled heavily. “I suppose I did.”

  “You brute!” She cuffed his arm with her fist. “What, exactly, did you do?” Her worried face was tilted up, expectant.

  “Mary?” With a humorless chuckle, he draped an arm around her shoulders. “May I make a suggestion?”

  She sighed as he dragged her toward the kitchen door.

  “If you must.”

  “Mind your own damned business.”

  3

  Mary turned around and stared down at Cord as he followed her up the long wooden staircase from the dock to the inn’s lawn. “You outta breath, big fella?”

  He frowned up at her. “What?”

  “I said, are you—”

  “I heard what you said,” he interrupted. “Do I look out of breath?”

  She shrugged. “Not really. But you look…weird.”

  He laughed without humor. “And people say you have no tact.”

  “Who says that?” she asked, her eyes flashing with mischief.

  “Mainly me—sometimes Jack.”

  “Oh, pooh. What do cousins and husbands know?” Taking his arm, she walked with him up the remainder of the stairs. “No, really, Cord. You’ve been preoccupied all day. Why, you hardly said a word to the other team members while we were out on mid-lake surveillance.”

  “It’s hard to engage in sparkling conversation, drive the boat and watch the sonar chart recorder at the same time,” Cord reminded her evenly.

  “Hard? For you?” Her laughter was quick. “Cord, dear, you could charm the pants off a roomful of scientific types, write a research paper and teach a college level course in ichthyology all at the same time if you had a mind to. I’ve seen you do it.”

  He grunted. “To paraphrase Shakespeare, Mary, you’re full of bull.”

  “That’s the first line of Shakespeare I’ve ever understood.” She laughed through the words. “No, seriously. Is your lousy mood because of what happened between you and the manager this morning?”

  He slanted her a narrowed glance. “Her name’s Tess.”

  Mary nodded. “I know her name. But her name’s not the point. Is it?”

  He looked away. The inn rose before them, glowing brilliantly in the reflected sunset. “No. Her name’s not the point.”

  “Well, what is, then?”

  They’d reached the top of the stairs. Cord turned to face his cousin and smiled wearily. “The point is, I hurt her badly. I didn’t mean to, but I did, and…”

  “And you feel like the back end of a horse about it. And rightfully so,” she added helpfully.

  “You know, Mary. You should hire yourself out to salt wounds.”

  She sniffed, ignoring his gibe. “Are you going to tell her you feel like a jerk? I mean, after all, you’ll be bumping into her a lot in the next month. You ought to try to make amends.”

  He exhaled slowly. “It won’t be easy. She doesn’t want to talk to me.”

  Mary nodded. “I noticed. Well—” She swatted him on his backside. “No time like the present, kiddo. I’ll check on the shore surveillance team while you go eat crow.”

  Apparently she thought that was all that needed to be said on the subject. Cord shook his head at her retreating form. Thin and erect, tart yet tender, Mary was more than a cousin to him. Ten years his senior, she was like a big sister, always mother-henning him. It didn’t look as if she had any plans to stop.

  He turned toward the inn, striking in the setting sun. But at this moment, he could see only angry tears glistening in narrowed green eyes, and bright black hair swirling about the sweet, anguished face of Tessa Jane Mankiller.

  He hoped he could get her to stand still long enough for him to tell her how much he regretted what he’d done that night so long ago, how many times he’d berated himself for it over the years and how often he’d wondered what had happened to her. It would be one of the most belated apologies on record, but it would be no less sincere.

  He looked at his watch. It was after seven. He had no idea where she might be, so he decided to check at the front desk.

  The double doors to the patio were slightly ajar. When he stepped through them into the reception hall, he found himself staring at a couple clutched in an embrace. He felt momentarily anxious. A man, tall and slender, and dressed like a banker, was holding Tess to him, kissing her. Cord frowned to see the long, glorious mass of her hair entrapped within a stranger’s arms.

  He hadn’t expected this. But why wouldn’t she have a lover? Just because her name was still Mankiller didn’t mean there were no men in her life.

  The kiss didn’t go on long, but still Cord chafed at having to watch. It wasn’t his habit to indulge in voyeurism. A little acidly, he reminded himself that they were the ones who had chosen such a public place for their little show of passion, not him. He glanced away, trying to concentrate on the nineteenth-century bird prints that were hung on the paneled walls.

  The stranger’s throaty sigh drew Cord’s attention in spite of himself. When Tess and her companion realized they were being watched, they separated immediately. Cord heard Tess’s breathy gasp as she moved away to straighten her clothes.

  Cord’s grin was deceptive in its pleasantness. He hoped the sudden irritation he felt wouldn’t color his words. “Excuse me, folks. Didn’t mean to intrude….” He began to move toward the hallway that led to the kitchen, having decided that now would not be the best time to engage Tess in a conversation about the night they’d made love thirteen years ago. Before he’d taken two steps, cool fingers brushed his wrist, stopping him.

  “Oh, Dr. Redigo.” Tess smiled up at him. It was a valiant effort, Cord decided, but not very convincing. Her lips trembled slightly at their upturned corners. “I’d like you to meet a close friend of mine. Nolan Lamont. He’s the inn’s CPA.”

  The slim, impeccably dressed stranger held out his hand. As Cord accepted it, he noticed the excellent cut of his tweed sports coat, the maroon-and-navy striped silk tie, snowy shirt, navy trousers and unscuffed oxfords. The man shouted conservatism. Cord hadn’t pictured Tessa Jane Mankiller with that type. He’d always seen her with Indy race-car drivers or one of the air force’s Blue Angels or … He shook off the curious realization that he had, over the years, wondered about the type of man little Tessa Jane Mankiller would end up with. Nolan Lamont, the CPA, had not been one of them.

  “How do you do, Doctor,” Nolan said. “Tess tells me you’re up here to search for Champ.” He smiled and dropped his hand.

  As Cord nodded, he scanned the man’s face. He was nice-looking in a quiet sort of way. His face was long and thin, his forehead high, his dark brown hair very curly and cropped close to his head.

  “Do you expect to find him?” Before Cord had a chance to answer Nolan’s question, the other man laughed. It was a rather high-pitched chortle. “Tess and I have gone around and around on that subject.” He squeezed her shoulders lovingly. “Haven’t we, dear?”

  Tess’
s gaze, which had hovered uncertainly around the edges of Cord’s face, fluttered up to meet her companion’s eyes. “What?”

  His smile faded a bit. “I said, you and I’ve disagreed on the existence of Champ over the years.”

  “Oh, yes.” She looked back at Cord, her face going a little stiffer. “You see, Dr. Redigo, you’re not the only doubter among us.”

  “Oh?” Nolan asked, interested. “You doubt our local monster’s existence, too? I wouldn’t have thought so, since you’re here with a search team.”

  Tess’s boyfriend was toying with the lace collar of her blouse. There was something disquieting about his familiarity with her. Cord couldn’t fathom why he’d feel either protective or possessive of the petite woman. There was no earthly reason why he should. Still, he wished Nolan would slack off on the public stroking. It was annoying.

  He lifted his gaze to Tess’s eyes. Her look was guarded. She seemed so small and vulnerable that he decided not to add to her distress, saying only, “Reality can be every bit as charming as fairy tales. I see no reason to form armed camps either way.”

  Nolan chuckled. “Well put. Don’t you think so, Tess?”

  She was looking at Cord with what appeared to be complete and utter loathing. After a pause that was a little too long, she bit out, “Sometimes reality can let you down.”

  Cord felt the sting of her words, but his gaze held hers steadily.

  Nolan looked down at her, remarking, “Now that’s an odd thing to say.” He rested his hand on her shoulder, his fingers grazing the barest rise of her breast. Nolan was certainly flaunting his proprietorship. To be honest, Cord couldn’t blame Nolan. Tess was lovely.

  “And just how has reality let my little Tess down?” Nolan queried gently.

  She shook her head and smiled wanly up at him. “Never mind. It’s not important.”

  Cord’s mood had been bad all day, and it was getting no better watching the mating dance between these two. He decided to get the hell out of there. His smile was deceptively charming. “Call me Cord, Nolan.” He looked down at Tess, adding, “You, too, Miss Mankiller. I thought I mentioned that before.”