JAKrentz - The Pirate, The Adventurer, & The Cowboy (16 page)
"So I've been told." Kate massaged her temples and tried to clear her head. "This is crazy."
"Can't you trust me, Kate?" Jared asked gently.
"That's unfair," she snapped. "You know if the situation was reversed, you'd jump on me with both feet, demanding explanations."
"Only because I'd be worried about you getting yourself into trouble."
"Okay, so I'm worried about you."
He smiled grimly and put his feet up on the desk. "There's no need. I've been taking care of myself for a long time."
"Jared, I don't like this. You've been living out here beyond the reach of civilization for so long that you're starting to think you're a law unto yourself, the way Roger Hawthorne thought he was."
"Not quite. I haven't started locking people up in dungeons yet."
"That's not very funny. Roger did that?"
"Sure. He was the only law on the island and the bunch that worked for him was rough, to put it mildly. He occasionally needed a dungeon, so he had one built at the bottom of those stairs you were exploring this morning."
"That little cell? That's some sort of dungeon?" Kate's eyes widened. "I knew it. But there's more down there than just that barred room. I know there is. I saw the way the footprints just disappear near the wall."
"Did you?" He eyed her speculatively.
"There's something else down there, Jared."
"Yeah. There is. But it's got nothing to do with you. One of these days, I'll show you the whole place, honey, but not today. Not for a couple more weeks, at least. Until I give you the word, you are not going to set foot on the castle path."
"You can't stop me from going wherever I want to go."
"Yes, I can. Here on Amethyst, I can do just about anything I want."
She stared at him for a long, measuring moment and knew he was right. "You really mean that, don't you? You really think you can give me orders and make me obey them."
"Kate," he said wearily, "even if you went back to the castle, you wouldn't see anything more than you did this morning. There's nothing more to see except a few other empty rooms."
"Then why can't I go there and explore to my heart's content?"
"Because it's unsafe, that's why. I've told you that."
"It's more than just structurally unsafe, isn't it? Whatever you're involved in there is dangerous. I know it is."
Jared swung his feet down from the desk, his eyes narrowing. "Look, I've had enough of this. Whether you like it or not, I'm the boss around here.
"And you really don't feel you owe me any explanations at all?" she asked in stunned, helpless disbelief.
"Just because I'm sleeping with you? No."
Kate looked at his implacable face and realized further argument was useless. Furious, she went to the door and yanked it open. "You arrogant, overbearing, dictatorial, son of a… You know something, Jared Hawthorne? You're no better than your ancestor. You're just a twentieth-century pirate who thinks he's lord of all he surveys."
She slammed the door on her way out When she was safely back in her room, she cried for the first time since Harry had walked out the door.
On that occasion she had been feeling hurt and humiliated and very much a failure. This time it was much worse. This time she was afraid her heart might break.
SEVEN
J
ared walked into the nearly empty bar that afternoon and realized immediately that the news of his quarrel with Kate had spread even faster than the news of his affair with her. He also knew that if it was all over the resort, it would be all over the island by now, too.
"Well, well, well, decided to come out of hiding, eh?" The colonel rested both hands on the bar and grinned in masculine commiseration. "Don't worry, it's safe enough in here for the moment. The lady's nowhere in sight. Haven't seen her all day."
"Is that right? And how do you know I've been in hiding?" Jared dropped onto a stool and hooked his foot over the brass rung.
"Lani was behind the front desk this morning when Kate came out of your office. I gather Ms Inskip looked more than mildly annoyed after her early morning interview. She didn't say anything, according to Lani, but it was obvious she'd just gone toe-to-toe with someone and the only other person in your office, Lani says, was you. You yourself have apparently been snapping off heads right and left all day. Everyone agrees that makes it official: you and Kate must have quarreled."
Jared swore, knowing there was no stopping the local rumor mill. "Is everyone else enjoying this as much as you are, Colonel?"
"Far as I can tell."
"Where's Kate?"
"I have no idea. Haven't seen her."
"She's probably sulking in her room. I'll give her a little while longer and then I'll go see if I can smooth a few feathers."
"You think it's going to be that easy?"
"She'll calm down. She's just a little pissed at the moment."
"I'd say she's more than a little pissed."
"Only because she lost the argument. She'll get over it."
"I wouldn't count on that happening anytime soon. I get the impression Ms Inskip is not accustomed to losing an argument. And since you're not exactly an expert at losing, either, I'd say we're in for a long siege."
"What's she going to do? Spend the rest of her vacation in her room? She's not that silly or irrational."
The colonel polished a glass and contemplated that. "She might decide there are more pleasant places to spend a vacation than
That jolted Jared. His jaw tightened. "You think she'd leave just because I put my foot down with her over something that was none of her business in the first place?"
"Is that what you did?"
"Yeah, that's what I did. Apparently she hasn't had too many people do that to her."
"I can see why," the colonel said. "As far as her getting ready to leave the island, I can't say for certain one way or the other. Haven't heard a thing on that score. Guess we'll find out soon enough, though, won't we? Hank will be making his usual afternoon run back to Ruby in about an hour. If she's on the plane we'll have our answer. A lot of people have a lot of money riding on it, you know."
"Who's handling the bets?" Jared asked, resigned to the inevitable.
"Jim at the front desk."
"Figures." The news irritated Jared but did not particularly surprise him. He was suddenly far more concerned about another matter. Until that moment it hadn't occurred to him that Kate might actually leave the island because of the quarrel. He thought about that possibility a moment longer and then stood up quickly. "See you later, Colonel."
"Where are you going?"
"To catch Hank. I want to make sure he knows he hasn't got a spare seat on that Cessna of his."
"Hank almost always has a spare seat on the afternoon hop."
"Not today he hasn't."
Twenty minutes later Jared drove swiftly back from the small paved strip that served as
He wasn't in a good mood, but he was momentarily satisfied. Hank Whitcomb had been willing to see reason the moment Jared had pointed out that there were other island pilots who wouldn't mind getting a guaranteed daily schedule between Amethyst and Ruby.
"Sure thing, Jared," Hank had said with a grin when Jared handed him enough cash to cover the cost of one empty seat to Ruby. "No seats available on this here flight. None whatsoever. Good luck with that little lady, pal. Sounds like she's got you running around in circles."
He was not running around in circles, Jared assured himself as he stalked into the lobby. He was simply drawing a few lines for a woman who needed them drawn.
He found the front desk vacant and promptly hit the bell to summon a clerk.
"What can I do for you?" asked the thin young man who emerged from the office. He had started talking before he realized who it was that stood at the front desk. When he saw Jared, he blinked a little nervously. "Oh, it's you, boss. Sorry, I was just checking something on the computer. We had some last-minute bookings."
Jared leaned his elbows on the polished desk and waved a twenty in front of the desk clerk's nose. "Forget the last-minute bookings, Jim. I want to place a last-minute bet."
"Uh, sure thing, boss. Whatever you say." Jim smiled weakly. "What exactly did you want to bet on?"
"The same thing everyone else around here is betting on: whether or not Ms Inskip leaves with Hank this afternoon."
The clerk had the grace to turn red. He cleared his throat with a couple of coughs. "How did you want to place your bet, boss?"
"I've got twenty that says she won't be on the plane."
"Yes, sir. Twenty it is." The clerk leaned forward conspiratorially. "You know something the rest of us don't?"
"Of course not." Jared smiled grimly. "I just feel lucky."
"Hey, Dad, where have you been? I've been looking all over for you." David dashed down the hall and skidded to a halt as Jared walked into the house. The boy looked worried.
"I ran out to the strip for a few minutes. Had to talk to Hank." Jared ruffled his son's hair.
"You didn't take Kate out to the strip, did you?" David demanded, thoroughly alarmed now.
Jared scowled. "No, I did not take Kate out to the strip. Why?"
" 'Cause everyone knows she's mad at you and we're all afraid she's gonna leave on account of you yelled at her. It'll be all your fault if she goes, Dad."
"I did not yell at her. And where did you hear about her being mad at me?"
"Everyone says so. Hey, it's not because of that bet you and I made about her cooking, is it? Is she mad because we did that?"
"No, it's not because of the bet. Kate doesn't even know there was a bet. And if the subject comes up I want it clear that it was all your idea."
"You're the one who said she probably couldn't cook," David reminded him. "You bet me a dollar she couldn't, remember?"
"Yeah, but you're the one who suggested we con her into fixing dinner so we could find out for sure. You are also the guy who won a buck off me because she could make pizza. I'd appreciate it if you would not forget your part in all this."
David chewed his lower lip. "She'd probably really get mad if she ever found out, huh?"
"Yes," Jared said, "I think she would be very mad."
David sighed. "She sure made a great pizza, didn't she? You said she'd probably burn it, but she didn't."
"Pizza is probably the only thing she knows how to cook. I don't think Ms Inskip is the homey type."
"Anyone who can make good pizza can probably make lots of good stuff."
"Maybe," Jared agreed cautiously.
"Think she'll leave the island because you yelled at her?"
Jared lost what was left of his patience. "I told you, I did not yell at her, and no, Kate's not going to be leaving the island. Not today, at any rate."
David's expression relaxed instantly. "That's great. In that case, I'm going to win another buck."
"I should have guessed." Jared swore under his breath but without much heat. "You'd think everyone around here could find something more interesting to bet on than the status of my love life."
David's gaze widened with interest. "Is that what you have, Dad? A love life?"
"Had. Past tense."
Jared went into the kitchen and dug a cold beer out of the refrigerator. Then he walked out onto the veranda, dropped onto a lounger and started wondering how he was going to get his love life back. It was amazing how fast a man could get used to having a certain prickly little broad around.
Kate packed and unpacked her suitcase three times before sinking dejectedly onto the bed. She knew she ought to leave on the afternoon flight. If she had an ounce of self-respect, not to mention common sense, she would get off the island. She could not possibly stay here after what had happened this morning.
It amazed her to think she had spent years fantasizing about pirates. Having met one in the flesh, she now realized they were an infuriating breed. Give her a nice, sensitive, understanding,
civilized
male any day.
The knock on the door brought her head up with a start and her heart leaped. As she went to answer the summons, she steeled herself to be firm. If this was Jared come to apologize and explain his actions, she would not make it easy for him. The man deserved to do some groveling. Head high, she opened the door.
"Oh, hi, Letty."
