Part 12 (2/2)

Caroline turned to look in the direction Rheyna was referring to, just as a horn blared. Annie's ears perked up, and she barked at the darkly tanned man in swimming trunks waving from the bow.

”Hey, Caroline!” he yelled as the boat came to a stop less than ten feet away from them.

She smiled with recognition. ”Hi, Phil. What are you doing out here?”

”Same as you, honey-working on my tan.”

Caroline frowned. ”Where's Jesse?”

”Speak of the devil,” Phil said, smiling at the gorgeous young man with blond highlights, coming from the other side of the boat.

Rheyna felt relief the minute she saw him. Her gaydar went off in full force. She had no doubt they were lovers.

”Hi, Caroline,” Jesse said cheerfully with a wave of his hand.

”Hey, Jesse.”

”Who's your friend?” Phil asked, looking directly at Rheyna.

”Oh, I'm sorry. Phil, Jesse, meet Rheyna Moretti.” She turned to Rheyna. ”Rheyna, I'd like you to meet two of my dearest friends. Doctor's Phillip Lowry and Jesse Kar.”

Rheyna found it hard to hide the smile creeping at the corners of her mouth. ”I'm pleased to meet you both,” she said.

Jesse smiled at Rheyna. ”I love your name. I don't think I've heard it before.”

”Thank you. I have my grandmother to thank for it.”

Rheyna knew they were sizing her up, and from the look on their faces, she was sure their gaydar had gone off as well.

Caroline lifted her gla.s.s to them. ”Wanna join us?”

Phil shook his head. ”I wish we could but we have to head back.”

”We're both on call tonight,” Jesse chimed in and then asked, ”Why don't you two join us for dinner sometime next week?”

Caroline looked at Rheyna. Rheyna shrugged. ”Sounds great to me.”

”Okay, then. I'll give you a call later,” Jesse said over his shoulder before ducking back into the cabin.

Phil winked at Caroline. ”You'll have to bring Rheyna with you to our party.”

”Oh, Phil, that's three months from now,” she teased.

A big smile crossed his face. ”Since when is it too soon to plan for a party?” he asked.

”You're incorrigible,” Caroline laughed.

Phil smiled and put the boat in gear. ”See ya soon!” he yelled as the boat took off toward the Yacht Club.

”They seem very nice,” Rheyna said.

Caroline sat back down in her lounger. ”They are.”

”Have you known them long?” Rheyna asked after Caroline refilled their gla.s.ses.

”Since I was seventeen. Jesse and Phil encouraged me to become a veterinarian.”

”They must be very good friends,” Rheyna said as she watched their boat get smaller and smaller.

”The best anyone could ask for.” Caroline took a sip of wine. ”The party Phil was talking about is one they do every year to raise money for the Pediatric Aids wing at Children's Hospital.” She set her gla.s.s on the table and stood up. ”I'll be right back. I have a surprise for you.” After a few minutes, she reappeared with an ice-cream cone and handed it to Rheyna.

Rheyna involuntarily groaned when she realized what flavor it was. ”Moose tracks is my absolute favorite,” she managed to say between licks.

”I know,” Caroline said smugly.

”How do you know?” Rheyna asked, surprised at the revelation.

Caroline shrugged. ”I overheard you tell Mom.”

Rheyna tried to keep up with the ice cream, but the sun was melting it faster than she could lick it. Annie, on the other hand, was not minding it a bit. A steady stream ran down Rheyna's arm, falling off her elbow to the deck below, where Annie happily slopped it up. Rheyna grabbed the sides of her temple. ”Oh ... brain freeze. I can't eat anymore,” she said, giving the rest of the cone to Annie.

Caroline picked up a napkin and leaned toward Rheyna. ”You missed some,” she said softly, gently wiping off a small bit of ice cream near the corner of Rheyna's mouth.

The act froze Rheyna to the spot. Her heart raced into overdrive. The roaring in her ears was so loud; she was convinced that Caroline could hear it. I really need her to stop touching me, she thought, raising her head to look at Caroline. Something was telling her that Caroline was feeling it, too-she could see it in her eyes.

Caroline was the first to break the contact. She got up and walked to the helm.

Maybe I just imagined it. Maybe it's just wishful thinking on my part. Just maybe Caroline really didn't know the effect she was having on me. Maybe you have a little too many maybes, she told herself. Maybe you should try focusing a little harder on the job you came here to do. ”What's happening to you, Rheyna?” she asked herself. You need to stop s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g around and act like the FBI agent that you are. The roar of the engine forced her to stop talking to herself.

”We need to get going because the sun will be setting soon,” Caroline said as she raised the anchor and put the boat in gear.

It took them a full hour to get back to the Yacht Club, and ten minutes after that, Rheyna and Annie were on their way home. She tried not to think about Caroline. She was fighting a losing battle. She had such a great time being alone with Caroline, and she hated for it to end. Once again, her thoughts turned to Jenny. ”What am I gonna do, Jen?”

Don Carlos Ma.s.sino, the head honcho of California's crime family, was sitting at his favorite table in the back room of Barecci's Restaurant. He listened intently to the voice on the other end of the telephone. His brow furrowed into a frown, his face and body visibly stiffened.

”I thought you should know,” Don Vitto Lucchese said through the other end of the phone.

Roberto watched Carlos shake his head, his anger very much evident by the stern set of his jaw.

”I thought as much. Thank you, Vitto. I won't forget your loyalty,” he said, slamming the phone down on the cradle. He looked at Roberto. ”Can you believe the nerve of that man? How can he possibly be stupid enough to think that the Commission, the Commission I chair, would take sides with him over me?”

Roberto nodded his head. ”Yeah, he's pretty ignorant and Henry told one of the boys he's getting worse. You not attending Anastasia's funeral has pushed him over the edge. He thinks you were disrespectful.”

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