Chapter 9
“What the hell do you mean, you can’t repair that railing today? Tomorrow is Thursday, remember? By tomorrow this place will be crawling with cruise-ship people. We’ll need all the extra bar seating we can get. I don’t want to have to block off this area just because you couldn’t get the damned railing fixed in time.” Fists on his hips, Jared confronted the two workmen in front of him. They both shrugged.
“Take it easy, boss,” said the taller of the two. “Not much we can do without the teak. You know that. Hank said he checked over on Ruby this morning ‘fore he left and it hadn’t come in from Hawaii yet.”
“That teak was due two weeks ago.”
“Island time, boss,” the second man said philosophically. “Hey, you know how it is out here. Two days, two weeks, two months. Don’t make much difference. It’ll get done one of these days. No hurry.”
“I don’t want that railing repaired one of these days, I want it fixed by this time tomorrow. I didn’t get this place built by running it on island time, and I’m not going to lose the seating capacity on that terrace tomorrow just because the damned teak didn’t leave Hawaii yet.” Jared studied the broken section of terrace railing. He was used to improvising. Out here in the islands, a man either learned how to get creative or he didn’t survive in business.
The two workmen stood on either side of Jared, examining the broken railing with grave concern.
“Okay, Mark, I think I’ve got an idea,” Jared finally announced. “Remember the lumber we had left over after we finished the new changing rooms?”
“Sure. We stored it in the back of the maintenance shed.” Mark’s face lit up. “Think there’s a piece that’ll fit?”
“Go check. It’s not teak, but who’s going to notice?”
“Right, boss.”
The two men ambled off the terrace just as Letty and David came around the corner. Letty smiled.
“Still waiting on the teak for the railing, Jared?” Letty surveyed the broken section.
“Hi, Letty. Yeah, still waiting. Far as I can tell it hasn’t left Hawaii. The usual story. It’ll get here one of these days.” He looked down at his son. “How was school?”
“Same old thing. You seen Kate?” David’s face was screwed up with concern. “I’ve been lookin’ all over for her. We were gonna practice my kicks again today and then go snorkeling.”
“Haven’t seen her since lunch,” Jared said, deliberately quashing the memory of Kate’s oddly distracted air earlier. It had irritated him because he was almost certain she was already starting to make plans for her trip back to Seattle. This was the final week of her stay and that fact was eating at him. Thus far, neither of them had brought up the subject of her imminent departure.
“Maybe she went swimming,” Letty suggested.
“She wouldn’t have gone down to the beach without me,” David said, obviously certain of that much. “She promised she’d wait for me. She always keeps her promises.”
His son was right about that, Jared thought. If Kate made a promise, she would keep it. He wondered what it would take to get Kate to promise she’d wait for him.
Then he wondered for the hundredth time how a supposedly intelligent, mature woman could entertain the silly romantic notion that she would recognize her perfect mate the moment he walked into her life. It was a particularly ridiculous and infuriating example of feminine logic and he intended to point that out to her again tonight. He himself was rapidly learning that the right person didn’t always show up packaged as expected.
“She’ll turn up soon. Don’t worry about it,” Jared told his son.
Letty smiled at David. “Your father’s right. If Kate said she’d be around to work on those kicks this afternoon, then she’ll be here. Why don’t you go try her room again?”
David brightened. “I will. See you later, Dad.”
Jared nodded. “Right. Don’t forget we’re going to have dinner at home with Kate tonight.”
“I won’t. Is she cooking again?”
“Uh-huh. Said she’d make tacos.”
“Oh, boy!” David whirled and dashed off the terrace.
Letty’s mouth curved in amusement. “First pizza, then hamburgers, then macaroni and cheese and now tacos. Kate certainly knows the way to a little boy’s heart.”
“You can say that again. If she hangs around long enough we may get hot dogs and peanut butter sandwiches.” Jared made a production out of studying the broken railing. “Ten to one that’s the only kind of stuff she knows how to make.”
“I doubt it. But Kate’s too smart to fix coq au vin or rabbit provençale for a kid.”
“She’s smart enough, all right. About some things.”
“Speaking of little boys’ hearts, how is yours doing?”
“I’m not a little boy, Letty.”
“Oops. Sorry. Didn’t mean to stomp on any toes.”
“Don’t worry about it.” Jared heard the roughness in his own voice and stifled an oath. “My toes are tough.”
“I won’t worry a bit about it. You’ve always been very good at taking care of yourself. Time’s running out, though. Are you really going to let her just up and leave in three days, Jared?” Letty wandered over to the unbroken portion of the terrace railing and leaned her elbows on the teak.
“If she wants to go home like all the rest of the tourists, there’s not much I can do about it.”
“I guess not. Pity, though.”
“I don’t need your sympathy, Letty.”
“I know.” She gazed out to sea. “I’m not sure it’s you I was feeling sorry for. I think Kate is going to miss Amethyst. She fits in well around here, doesn’t she? She’s adapted very nicely to island life.”
“She’s stopped complaining about the lack of air-conditioning, if that’s what you mean.”
“Not quite. I think it goes deeper than that. The island suits her. But I suppose that’s only to be expected from a woman who writes so many books featuring pirates and tropical islands.”
Jared gripped the railing. “I’ve heard about her pirates.” He paused and slanted Letty a close look. “You ever read any of her books?”
“Oh, yes. All of them. I just finished her last one, in fact—Buccaneer’s Bride. It was wonderful. I’ve still got it in my purse.”
Jared found himself staring at Letty’s colorful, oversize canvas bag. “You do?”
Letty smiled slowly. “Umm-hmm. You know, they say you can tell a lot about an author by reading her books. A perceptive person could probably get a feel for how Kate thinks and what she fantasizes about by reading her work.”
Jared swore and stretched out his hand. “Okay, let’s see it.”
Letty slowly unzipped the canvas bag and reached inside. “You sure you want to read a historical romance novel, Jared?”
“No, but I’m getting desperate,” he admitted. He gazed down at the couple on the cover. The heroine has red hair. Kate doesn’t have red hair. She said she had something in common with all her heroines.”
“Obviously it isn’t her hair color,” Letty said dryly. “At any rate, that’s not important. Take a look at the hero and then read the first couple of paragraphs.”
Jared studied the hero without much enthusiasm. “The guy needs a haircut.” He opened to the first page and started to read.
His eyes were the color of the evening mist, and his hair was as dark as midnight shot with silver. There was a cruel twist to his mouth and an elegant knot in his cravat. He moved easily among the glittering guests, secure in the knowledge that Society accepted him for what he claimed to be: the wealthy, powerful Earl of Hawkridge.
But Elizabeth knew the truth about the cold and arrogant Hawkridge. Beneath his fine evening clothes the man was a pirate. Three days ago he had vowed to make her his prisoner.
Kate held her breath as she stood at the foot of the stone staircase. This was the first time she had dared to sneak back to the castle after her initial foray ten days earlier. Jared had been keeping such a close eye on her lately that Kate had begun to feel like a goldfish in his private bowl. But today he had finally been distracted by a problem with the terrace railing. She had seized the opportunity.
She let the flashlight beam dance briefly around the small room, checking for any obvious sign that someone else might be nearby. A heavy stillness greeted her. Then, very cautiously, she followed the instructions in Amelia Cavendish’s diary and pushed the metal baluster on the third step from the bottom. It gave easily—so easily that Kate knew it was kept well-oiled. But that made sense, she reminded herself. Jared apparently used the secret room frequently.
There was a soft, mechanical grinding sound from deep within the stone walls and very slowly a small section opened up to reveal inky darkness.
Along with the darkness came a rush of cool air, the tang of the sea and the sound of water lapping at stone. Kate edged forward and aimed the flashlight into the hidden room.
The light bounced on the rippling surface of dark seawater then skidded a few feet to the right to reveal a short stone quay. Several large cartons were stacked beside the water. Kate stepped through the entrance and peered around with the aid of the flashlight.
She was looking at the inside of a natural cavern that had been formed aeons ago out of cooling lava. The room, as Amelia claimed in her diary, had been converted into a docking facility. She knew the chamber had an opening to the sea, but when she aimed the light at the far end of the cavern she saw only solid stone. Amelia’s diary had not mentioned where to find the mechanism that opened the stone wall at the far end of the room.
It was clear there was plenty of room to tie up a small cruiser or similar boat here inside the hidden chamber. Back in Amelia and Roger’s day, a row boat, an outrigger canoe or a sailboat could have been kept inside, ready for an emergency escape. Especially sensitive cargoes could be stored here, far from prying eyes.
There was a chill in the dark room that was not entirely from the sea. She did not want to hang around here for very long, she decided. There was something eerie about the place.
It didn’t take long to convince herself that there wasn’t much more to see. She darted the flashlight beam over the twisted lava walls and along the far side of the manmade quay and was about to turn back into the stairwell when she caught a glimpse of yellow at the edge of her light.
For an instant Kate went very cold. She had a sudden vision of someone lurking in the shadows of the hidden room, waiting to pounce on her. The memories of Jared discovering her the last time were all too clear.
But a few seconds later, as she still stood motionless in the opening, she realized the bit of yellow was not moving. She aimed the beam directly at it and saw a bright yellow stripe that was very familiar. It was part of a black-and-yellow wet suit.
Jeff Taylor’s tanks and the remainder of his gear lay nearby.
Kate waited no longer. She backed out of the room, ran to the stone staircase and shoved hard at the baluster. The opening in the wall creaked shut.
She switched off the flashlight and bounded up the stairs.
It wasn’t until she was safely outside and on the path that led back to the resort that Kate’s jumbled thoughts finally slowed and settled down into meaningful patterns.
Trusting Jared was one thing. A part of her was surprisingly willing to do exactly that, though that same part did not approve of the mystery. But surely she was not obliged to blindly trust all these other people who appeared to be involved in whatever was going on around here.
Jared inhaled deeply as he walked into the cool tiled hall. The aroma of simmering taco filling emanating from the kitchen was delightful. He hadn’t had tacos in ages. It made him realize how much he had missed the pleasure of walking into the house after a day’s work and finding dinner cooking on the stove. Kate would probably be quick to tell him that was a sign of outdated male chauvinism. Jared decided he’d better enjoy it while he could.
There was no telling where his next all-American home-cooked meal was coming from, he realized. Unless he did something about it, he and David would be back to eating the creations of the restaurant’s three gourmet chefs. That meant back to marinated goat cheese, sun-dried tomatoes and seafood pâtés. David would never forgive him.
Jared ambled into the kitchen and found it empty except for the gently steaming pot on the stove. He walked past Jolly’s cage and the big bird mumbled an aggrieved squawk. Jared stopped long enough to scratch the parrot’s head.
“I still say she can’t bake cookies,” Jared confided to the bird.
“Wanna bet?”
“No. The way my luck is running lately, I’d lose and I am not about to start losing to a birdbrain like you.”
Jared headed down the hall and heard his son’s voice emanating from the study. Then he heard Kate’s soft, husky tones. He smiled and went to the open door.
For a moment he stood there unnoticed. David and Kate were at the desk, intently examining a drawing the boy had apparently just finished. Jared watched as his son carefully rolled up the large sheet of paper and secured it with a rubber band.
“Are you really going to frame it when you get home?” David asked, handing the rolled drawing to Kate. His eyes were large and questioning as he looked up at her.
“Oh, yes,” Kate said gently. “I know a place where they frame art. It’s just down the street from my apartment. I’ll take it there and have them put it in a red frame and cover it with a sheet of glass. Then I’ll hang it in my living room.”
“Just like a real picture, huh?”
“It is a real picture. Signed by the artist, too. And no matter how much anyone offers to pay for it, I’ll never sell it.”
“Really?”
“Really.”
Jared heard the small catch in Kate’s voice and it tugged at his insides. He opened his mouth to announce his presence, but she turned her head in that moment and saw him in the doorway. The soft, damp shimmer in her eyes told him she was near tears. Even as he stared at her in stunned amazement, she blinked away the evidence.
“I’m home.” Jared couldn’t think of anything else to say.
“Hello.” Kate didn’t move. Her smile was tremulous. She clutched the rolled-up drawing as if it was very precious.
David glanced up eagerly at the sound of his father’s voice. “There you are, Dad. I just gave Kate one of my drawings. She’s going to frame it.”
“So I hear.” He smiled deliberately at Kate. “Whenever you look at it, you’ll think of us, won’t you?”
“Yes.” She moved toward the door. “Excuse me, I’ve got to check on dinner.”
Jared stepped aside and she slipped past him. He turned back to David, who was staring after Kate. “What’s wrong, son?”
“She says she’s going back to Seattle in a few days.”
“That’s her home, Dave.”
“But she likes it here, she said so. She hasn’t even complained about the heat in ages.”
“A lot of people like it here, but not many of them stay. You know that.”
“I bet she’d stay if you asked her to,” David said, a stubborn set to his chin.
“You think so?”
David brightened. He nodded his head vigorously. “Why don’t you?”
“I’ll think about it.” Jared smiled. “Go wash your hands. I think dinner’s about ready.”
Several hours later, Jared guided Kate off the dance floor and steered her out through the hotel lobby into the gardens. He was aware of a strange restlessness and a feeling of urgency. As far as he was concerned, it was all Kate’s fault.
She had been moody since dinner, he reflected, and he strongly disliked moodiness in women. A man always felt he was supposed to do something about the condition and he never knew what it was he was supposed to do.
Dinner had gone well, as far as Jared could tell. Kate had been cheerful while everyone was involved in building tacos, but afterward, when they had said good-night to David and headed for the lounge, her cheerfulness had vanished like snow in the tropics.
The balmy air in the gardens soothed Jared’s uncertain temper. He made himself calm dawn and think clearly. Letty and David were right, there wasn’t much time left. In three days, Kate was going to be gone. He needed to start laying the groundwork for whatever future they had. As luck would have it, they both opened their mouths to speak simultaneously.
“Jared, I...”
“I’ve been thinking...”
“Sorry,” he said. “What were you saying?”
“Nothing. Go ahead. What have you been thinking about?”
“Us.”
She flashed him a quick, questioning glance out of the corner of her eye. “What about us?”
They were almost at the door of her roam. Jared cleared his throat. “You’ll be going home soon.”
“Yes.”
“Yeah, well, you remember I told you I get back to the States at least once a year so David’s grandparents can see him?”
“I remember.” She stopped and fished her room key out of her small purse.
He took the key from her. “Normally we go in August. That’s a slow month around here.” Jared opened the door and stood back while she entered. “But I think this year maybe we’ll go a little earlier. Maybe in a month or two.” He closed the door behind him.
“Is that right?” Kate did not bother to turn on a light. She dropped her purse on the bed and kept walking out onto the veranda.
Jared moved after her, struggling for the right words. He did not know how to deal with a woman who fully expected to recognize the man of her dreams on sight, but who clearly had not done so. “Anyhow, I was thinking we could stop over in Seattle.” There was no response from Kate. Jared plowed on, attempting to clarify the obvious. “We could see you.” Maybe if he gave her a little time, she would come to her senses.
Kate leaned on the railing, her eyes on the darkened sea. “That would be nice,” she said carelessly. “Let me know when you settle on the exact dates. I’ll try to clear my calendar. Maybe we can do lunch.”
Jared came to an abrupt halt. He stared at the back of her head in disbelief. “Do lunch?”
“Sure. Why not? For old times’ sake. Assuming I’m not busy, of course.”
“Do lunch.” Rage boiled up inside him, hot and fierce and fueled by frustration. He crossed the short distance between himself and Kate in one long stride, grabbed her arms and swung her around to face him. “I don’t believe you said that. What the hell do you mean, we’ll do lunch?”
Her eyes locked with his, cool and distant in the shadows. “What did you have in mind? Did you plan to send David off to the Space Needle while you and I have a quick toss in the sack?”
“Dammit, you know I didn’t mean it like that.”
“No? Then what did you mean?”
“I thought we could see each other again, that’s all.”
“And I said, fine. Just let me know when you’ll be in town.”
“Stop making it all sound so damned casual.” He released her abruptly and clamped his hands around the railing.
“But that’s exactly what it is, Jared. Casual.”
He looked at her through hooded eyes, trying to get a handle on whatever game it was she had chosen to play with him tonight. “It’s not casual. It couldn’t possibly be casual. Not for you.”
“Why not?”
“Because I’m the man of your dreams.” He felt the sudden stillness in her and moved in ruthlessly for the coup de grace. “You couldn’t possibly feel casual about me. Not now, not ever. You might hate me or you might love me, but you would never, ever feel casual about me.”
“What makes you so damned sure of that?”
He smiled thinly. “I’m reading your book. Letty gave it to me. It was a real revelation, Kate. Because I’m the hero of that book, aren’t I?”
“Not very likely. I didn’t even know you when I wrote it.”
He shook his head, feeling more sure of his ground now. He had her on the defensive; he could feel it. Relentlessly, he stalked her. “I’m not a fool, Kate. And I’ll admit I don’t generally read romance novels, but it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that I’m what you want and need in a man. You just haven’t admitted it to yourself yet.”
“Your ego is astonishing.”
“Look at me, lady. Look at me and tell me I’m wrong. You want someone who is as strong as you are. You want someone who wants you so much, he can’t think of anyone else. You want someone who doesn’t run when you stand up to him. Hell, I even look like one of your heroes, right down to the dark hair and gray eyes. I live on a tropical island and you half believe I’m a real-life pirate. I’ll bet you fifty bucks, a hundred bucks, a thousand, that you can’t walk away from me without a backward glance. You’re going to dream about me for the rest of your life.”
Kate stared at him, her eyes wide. “The fact that you’re the man of my dreams doesn’t do me much good if I’m not the woman of yours.”
Jared reeled. “You admit it?”
“Admit what? That you’re a fantasy come true for me? Yes, I admit it. I’ve known it since the first time you made love to me.”
Jared let go of the deep breath he had been holding. “Kate, honey, listen to me...”
“No, you listen to me, Jared.” She smiled gently. “You’ve done enough damage tonight. I think it’s time you left.”
“You can’t kick me out. Not now.”
“I think I’d better. If I don’t I’m only going to get hurt worse than I already am. I realized that this afternoon when David gave me his beautiful drawing. I’ve got to start pulling back.”
“Kate, I don’t want to hurt you. That’s the last thing I’d want to do.”
“Then leave.”
He couldn’t believe she was kicking him out. “What do you want from me?”
“Nothing.”
“That’s not true. You’re lying. I can see it in your eyes.”
“You’re suddenly very perceptive for a pirate.” She shrugged and leaned on the railing again. “All right, I’ll admit I want something from you, but it’s something I don’t think you can give me, so it’s better if I don’t ask for it.”
“Stop talking in circles. Be honest with me, Kate. That’s all I’m asking.”
“I’m not sure you deserve a lot of honesty. You haven’t been overly honest with me, have you?”
“Kate, stop baiting me.”
“All right, I’ll tell you exactly what I think. I think I am in love with you, but I’m afraid of that fact precisely because you are too close to being the living image of the man of my dreams.”
Heady relief washed through him. “Honey, don’t be afraid to let yourself love me.”
“Furthermore,” she went on as if she hadn’t heard him, “I think that you could learn to love me, but you’re afraid to try because I’m not the image of the woman of your dreams.”
He absorbed that in silence for a long moment. “I hadn’t thought about it that way. You think I’m so hung up on Gabriella’s memory that I could never love you?”
“Not exactly, but I think that because you were happy with her, you’ve decided you’d only be happy again with a woman who was a lot like her. Maybe you’re right. We both know I’m not at all like her, Jared. In fact, I’m her opposite in many ways. You said it, yourself: night and day.”
“I don’t want another Gabriella. I don’t want another angel.” The words shocked him as much as her with their intensity. “I want a flesh-and-blood woman who understands that a man can’t always be a saint. A woman who can put up with me when I lose my temper, one who won’t crumple like a flower when I argue with her, one who can love me for what I am.”
She stared at him, her eyes luminous in the shadows. “I want a man who can love me for what I am, a man who’s not constantly searching for some image of the past.”
“Maybe it’s time we both stopped thinking in terms of preconceived dream images,” Jared said. He touched her cheek. “I’m not still pining for Gabby. I swear it. I’ll admit she left an impression in my mind of the sort of woman I could love. But that’s all it was, just an impression, an idea. And you’ve trampled all over it. In fact, I don’t think there’s much left of it. When I think about the kind of woman I could love now, all I can think about is you.”
Kate looked up at him, her eyes clear and deep. Jared thought he could see her heart. Her fingers closed around his wrist as he stroked the line of her cheek.
“Do you mean that, Jared?”
He framed her face with his hands and was instantly captivated by the undisguised longing he saw in her gaze. “I mean it.”
He brought his mouth down onto hers, aware of an odd and unexpected rush of tenderness. She responded to it immediately, her lips softening under his, her body pressing close. For a long moment he savored the taste of her, letting himself drown in the knowledge that she wanted him. It felt so good, he thought; so right. Whatever had made him think she wasn’t his type?
The tenderness caught fire and blazed into the stark need Jared always seemed to feel when he took Kate into his arms. It was exhilarating to know that he did not have to temper the force of his desire with her. He could let himself go and she would respond fully and completely. She was a woman whose passions matched his own.
“I want you, sweetheart. I’ve wanted you since the first time I saw you. You make me crazy, you know that?” He caught her around the waist and lifted her up off her feet. She clung to his shoulders, her green eyes brilliant with silent laughter.
“I’m glad,” she said. “You do the same to me and you know it. In fact, I’m beginning to think you know entirely too much about me.”
“Not a chance. I could spend the rest of my life getting to know you as well as I’d like.” The rest of my life. Jared lowered her until her feet touched the veranda deck. He took one step over to the lounger, sat down and tugged her tenderly down beside him.
He deliberately settled her full-length on the cushions, pushing her skirt up high on her thigh. Then he reached down, circled her delicate ankle with his hand and slowly stroked his palm upward. He loved the smooth curves of her legs and the deep, mysterious shadows that waited under the silk of her skirt. In a few minutes he would undress her and touch all those fabulous, hidden places and she would grow hot and moist with her need of him.
The anticipation made him hard. Part of him urged him to make the moment last, but another part wanted to race recklessly toward the soul-stirring conclusion. It was the devil’s own choice.
“What’s the matter?” Kate reached up to curl her arm around his neck, urging him close. “You look as if you can’t make up your mind about something.”
His answering laugh was more like a heavy groan that was torn from his chest. He started unbuttoning the bodice of her dress. “I always feel like a kid with an ice cream sundae when I’m with you. I want it all and I want it right now, but I also want to make it last.”
“There’s nothing that says we can only do it once,” she murmured.
“Such a demanding female.” Jared smiled with deep pleasure as he slipped his hand inside the open bodice. He touched the sweet curve of her breast and sucked in his breath.
Kate lifted herself against his touch, moving under his palm like a sleek cat. The honest, uninhibited desire sent the blood pounding in his veins. When she fumbled with the zipper of his jeans he shifted, gathering her beneath him so that he could lie on top of her.
He tried to undress her slowly, taking his time and enjoying every inch of skin he exposed along the way. But she kept whispering his name and sighing with such fevered longing that he knew he would not be able to last much longer. When she pushed his jeans down over his hips, leaving him wearing only his unbuttoned shirt, he decided he’d had enough of the pleasures of anticipation.
The next few minutes were hurried and a little frantic as Jared got rid of the last of Kate’s clothing. He loved the way her breath quickened and her skin got slick with her excitement.
At long last Jared was where he wanted to be, sliding between Kate’s legs, bracing himself on his elbow as he reached down to guide himself into her. His fingers tangled briefly in the soft hair that shielded her delicate secrets and then he was opening her gently. She cried out as he positioned himself and surged fully and deeply into her. When she closed around him he thought he would lose his sanity.
“Jared. Yes, please, oh, my love, please. I want you so much.”
“Hold me, sweetheart. Close. Tight.” The words were thick in his mouth. He was almost incoherent now as his passion roared through him. She clung to him, giving herself to him with the wholehearted generosity that never ceased to amaze him.
Jared took everything he could, knowing that even as he claimed her he was being claimed. In those last split seconds before release he was aware of nothing except the overwhelming need to make himself a part of the woman in his arms. He had to bind her to him, make her realize that she would never be free of him.
And then Kate was convulsing gently around him, shivering exquisitely, calling to him in that soft, husky voice. Jared went rigid, hovered for an endless, mindless moment in the eye of the storm and then collapsed slowly against her.
It was a long, languid time before he reluctantly rolled to one side. He inhaled deeply, feeling his energy flowing back along his nerve endings. He could not let her leave. That was all there was to it. He could not allow her to leave.
“Jared?”
“Hmm?” He felt affectionate and indulgent now, the urgency and passion magically converted into a pleasant, drowsy satisfaction.
“If we’re agreed that tonight marks some sort of turning point in our relationship...”
“It does. Definitely. A turning point. No casual lunches in Seattle?”
“Yes, well, then I think it’s time we talked honestly about a few things.”
Jared immediately felt his indulgent mood begin to disintegrate. “You’re going to bring up the subject of what’s going on up at the castle again, aren’t you? I can hear it coming. How many times do I have to tell you that it’s none of your sweet business? You’re just going to have to contain your curiosity and learn to trust me.”
“I think I could trust you, Jared, even though I don’t like being kept in the dark.”
“Thanks.” He felt a measure of relief at having gained that much from her at least.
“But I see no reason why I should trust Max Butterfield or Jeff Taylor. I really feel you owe me an explanation on this.”
“Jeff Taylor. At the castle?” Alarm shot through him, shattering what was left of his relaxed, indulgent mood. Jared jackknifed to a sitting position and grabbed Kate by the shoulders. He hauled her up to face him. “What in hell are you talking about?”