Part 10 (2/2)

She touched her fingers to her mouth as if she didn't believe what they'd just done. Or how he was acting. He didn't care about that. He had to know more. ”Tell me everything. You must have married pretty quickly.”

”We did,” she said slowly. ”We were engaged within the month and married a few weeks after that. Are you all right?”

”I'm fine.” She flinched at his harsh tone. He hated that he noticed the way her hands trembled slightly. ”Go on. When did you first figure out the truth about him?”

”There were clues before we were married, but I didn't put them together until after. I suppose I began to wonder on our honeymoon. At first it was just the two of us.” She folded her arms over her chest and looked out at the sea. ”At first it was exactly what I thought it would be. Then things began to change. More and more people flew in to meet with him. There was always something odd about the way he did business. I couldn't put my finger on it, but I was uncomfortable around his a.s.sociates. Unfortunately they were staying with us at the villa, so I couldn't escape them.”

Jeff heard the words, but he didn't want to believe her. ”At the villa? Here? You honeymooned on St. Lucas with Kray?”

She stared at him. Slowly she lowered her arms to her side,then stiffened her spine. She walked toward him, stopping when she was two steps away. The light from the living room spilled onto her face. ”Yes. What did you think?”

”You've been here before?”

”For six weeks. I left him a few months later, so I never came back. The honeymoon is the reason I knew about the island in the first place. That's why I knew where he would take Bobby.”

He could still taste her sweetness. He wanted to scrub the flavor away. He glared at her, despising her, despisinghimself . She'd been with Kray on this island. She'd touched him and loved him. Jeff clutched the railing, squeezing until his fingers ached. How could he have been so blind? How could he have kissed her?

”Jeff, what's wrong?” She placed her hand on his arm.

He jerked away. ”Go inside.”

”What?”

”Go inside,” he repeated slowly. ”Get some rest. We'll be leaving soon. In the meantime, just stay out of my way.”

”Stay out ofyour way? You're the one who-”

”Don't say it,” he growled, glaring at her. ”d.a.m.n you, don't you say it.”

She stared at him as if he'd gone crazy. Perhaps he had. He'd also hurt her. He read that in the slight slump of her shoulders as she turned away and walked into the house.

Jeff closed his eyes against the memories, but that didn't help. He could still see her and taste her. His body was still hard from wanting her. It didn't matter that she'd screwed his wife's killer. It didn't matter that she'd borne Kray's son.

”I'm sorry,” he whispered to the night. ”Jeanne, I'm so sorry.”

He wasn't sure what he apologized for. The kiss? Or not being the kind of husband she'd needed. Did he wish to atone for a moment of pa.s.sion, or all the years he'd loved his job more?

But it wasn't enough. He still couldn't recall her face. The exact sound of her voice, of her laugh, eluded him, like the echo of a dream he couldn't recall. He could see J.J. easily. The boy lived on in his heart. But Jeanne had faded.

It was a punishment. Once again Kray had won. Jeff wondered what Kray would say if he knew the truth. That Jeff l.u.s.ted after his woman.

Chapter 7.

It was another perfect day in paradise. Andie glanced up at the brilliant blue sky, at the bright sun, and frowned. How did the locals stand so much happy weather? Right now she wanted the climate to match her mood. That meant it should be cold, gray and rainy. Instead she was stuck here on St. Lucas, basking in the tropics.

She reached down and splashed water onto the inflatable raft she and Bobby had found in a nearby storage shed that morning. While her son sat on the steps in the shallow end of the pool and played with his now-amphibious action figures, she pressed her sungla.s.ses more firmly on her face and closed her eyes to block out the sun.

She wished she could sleep. Last night, after she'd fled the porch and Jeff's odd behavior, she'd lain in bed staring at the ceiling. The sound of the surf and her son's even breathing hadn't been enough to block out Jeff's pacing. He'd walked back and forth on the porch for hours. She'd been torn between wondering what he was thinking about, wanting to go and ask if she could help, and staying out of his way. He was the most confusing and exasperating man she'd ever met.

Did he worry about getting them off the island? Was it concerns about his secret mission that kept him awake? Or was it the kiss?

Andie sighed and opened her eyes. Better to stare at the sparkling pool water and the white sand than to relive that kiss again. She didn't want to remember how it had felt to be in Jeff's arms. It had been so long since someone had held her. She could have wept with happiness, not that she'd had a chance to do more than absorb his strength and maleness. It had almost felt foreign. Dormant sensations had awakened painfully. She hadn't felt desire or need in years. She hadn't had the time or even been willing to risk those feelings. They would have meant she was close to someone. Letting a man into her life had been too risky. She'd never known when Kray was going to return, but she'd always known he would. He wasn't the type to let his possessions go, even one he didn't want anymore.

So she'd stayed on her own, because it was safer. She'd been determined not to let anyone past the barriers. With Jeff she hadn't had a choice. He'd surprised her, sweeping her up in a maelstrom of need, touching her, not just physically, but inside. Then he'd pushed her away.

She knew why. It even made sense in a twisted way. Jeff despised her because of Kray. Because ofwho her ex-husband was. Jeff didn't know her, but that didn't matter. He judged her by the company she'd kept. He judged her by Bobby's father. He'd probably been on Kray's trail for years.

”Mommy, I want to swim to the deep end,” Bobby announced, standing up on the second step.

”Okay, honey. I'll watch.”

She sat up, straddling the floating raft. Her legs dangled in the warm pool water. Bobby raised his arms above his head and made an exaggerated dive from the step. He splashed around for a couple of seconds, then found his stroke and started for the far end of the pool.

Andie watched him swim. Her son was a physical creature, preferring to run rather than walk, to bounce instead of sit. At least with the nice weather and having access to a pool, she didn't have to worry about him being bored. He was used to playing by himself. She allowed him to have as many friends as he wanted but somehow he understood her need for them to stand alone against the world. He went to other people's houses for play and parties, but he didn't stay late. He sensed her fear. She hated that. Hated what Kray had reduced them to.

Bobby reached the far end of the pool. He grabbed the side with one hand. ”Look at me.”

”I see. You're doing great with your swimming. I'll bet CoachEarnhart will move you up to the red team this summer.”

Bobby's hazel eyes widened. ”Wow, really? The red team?”

He grinned showing white teeth almost the same color as the zinc oxide she'd put on his nose. Sunscreen wasn't always enough to protect him from sunburn. She'd rubbed the same cream on her own nose. They must look like clowns.

”I think so,” she said. ”Tryouts are next month. You've really improved a lot. You've been working hard, haven't you?”

Bobby nodded,then puffed out his thin chest. ”Watch how fast I swim back!”

He threw himself in the water and paddled toward the shallow end. Andie kept her eye on him, staying upright on the raft until he'd returned to the steps in the shallow end. He picked up his action figures and immediately began a compet.i.tion with them. She smiled and leaned back. She splashed water up onto her legs to keep herself cool. It would be terrific if Bobby made the red team. She wasn't like some mothers she didn't care if Bobby came in first or last when the swim team competed. All that mattered to her was that her son was having fun and that he tried. Bobby had been working hard all winter, swimming several times a week. The lesson and members.h.i.+p dues were one of her few indulgences. It was worth it to see him so happy and successful. If CoachEarnhart agreed with her and- Andie stopped splas.h.i.+ng the water. She raised her head slightly and gazed at her son playing happily. A band tightened around her chest. She didn't know if Bobby was ever going to see his coach or his friends again. For a few moments she'd forgotten that they were on the run. Unless Kray was somehow caught and put away, they wouldn't be able to return to their old life. Nothing was ever going to be the same for them again.

Sometimes she thought she was living in a dream. This couldn't be happening to her. It wasn't real. Nothing had been normal or sane since her parents had been killed in the car crash. The months following the accident were like an old home movie. The memories ran through her brain without sound. Some things she could see clearly, others were foggy with whole sections missing. She didn't remember very much clearly until she met Kray. Those memories were vivid, almost frightening in their intensity. She'd been so sure, so convinced he was the one. She'd squashed any doubts until it was too late. On her honeymoon, she'd had vague feelings of uneasiness, but she'd ignored them. She hadn't wanted to know the truth. Until that afternoon when she'd been unable to deny what had happened.

Andie bit down hard on her lower lip. She didn't want to remember. She didn't want to see it again. But she couldn't stop the past from intruding. She clutched the raft as if she were afraid of being swept up in the storm. The plastic seemed to dissolve beneath her fingers. The water, the bright suns.h.i.+ne, everything faded until she was once again in a long corridor, listening to thetaptap of her high heeled shoes on the wooden floor.

Two fifty-eight. That time stood out in her mind because she'd just glanced at her watch. A slim gold timepiece. Expensive, elegant. Only one of the dozens of gifts Kray had showered her with. She'd been to lunch with an acquaintance. Afterward she was supposed to get her hair styled for a party that night. At the last minute she'd decided to wear a different dress that had a matching hat. She'd canceled her hair appointment from the restaurant and had come back to the apartment.

She remembered the silence, broken only by her shoes. It was as if even the walls paused to listen. Then she'd heard low voices. Men having a conversation. The tone had changed. To anger. They spoke in a language she didn't know, although she recognized Kray's voice. She hurried to tell him she was home.

The door to the drawing room was open. She remembered laughing at him when he'd called it a drawing room, teasing him for speaking as if they were Victorian aristocracy. Kray had pulled her close, whispering she was his lady of the manor. They'd made love on the elegant gold-and-cream settee. Since then she'd always had a fondness for that room.

A length of Oriental carpet covered the hallway floor, m.u.f.fling the sound of her approaching steps. She moved closer, wis.h.i.+ng they would speak in English so she would know what they were saying.

Then the voices got louder, harsher, and she hesitated. It was the sudden silence that drew her closer. She took that last step to the open doorway.

Her husband stood with his back to her. A man she'd never seen before knelt on the floor in front of him. Two of Kray's bodyguards stood a few feet away.

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