A Man to Remember (12 page)

"You don't like it? Oh, Jake, it's a very sexy shirt. It's so sheer you can see through it. We got it because it has long sleeves and will protect you from the sun. But it's still cool."

"I'm not worried about protection from the sun."

"It can be quite vicious reflecting off the water."

Jake opened another box and lifted the enclosed shirt between thumb and forefinger. "This looks like an old-fashioned undershirt."

"It's called a rice paddy shirt. Newest rage."

He rolled his eyes. "And this thing. What's this? Flowers? Really now, Alyse!"

"Jake, this is my favorite!" Alyse bounded to her feet and held the shirt up to his chest. "It isn't flowers; it's a paisley print. Very in for men."

"Yellow?"

She scrutinized his appearance and corrected his color scheme. "Goldenrod. Looks fabulous on you."

He sighed. "I just hope to hell nobody sees me between here and San Diego."

"I'll keep you hidden in the cabin, resting up for our next romp," she said, and swapped the paisley shirt for a green linen one. "How about this?"

"It's okay." He nodded absently, looking away.

She noted his abstraction and remarked sourly, "It matches your mood. Pea green. What's wrong, Jake?"

"Nothing."

"Is it your aunt?" Alyse busied herself folding the shirts together in a pile. When he didn't answer, she realized he had taken his beer out to the balcony. She joined him, standing quietly by his side for a while before interrupting his concentration. "What are you watching, Jake?"

He lowered the binoculars. "Just the city."

"Anything in particular?"

"No."

She sighed and realized she couldn't get through to him. There was only one way they could communicate right now, and she was willing to settle for it. "I'm tired. I think I'll go to bed.

He didn't respond, only lifted the binoculars again to his eyes.

"You coming to bed with me, Jake?"

"Yes, of course. In a few minutes." He lowered the glasses long enough to kiss her, a brief, unemotional kiss.

Alyse padded back to the bed, stripped off everything, feeling the sexiest she ever had in her life, and crawled into bed alone. Jake still didn't come. She sighed audibly.

Lying there in the darkness, she wondered what was preoccupying Jake. What was he watching so intently through those binoculars? Was he searching for something? Or someone? In the back of her mind she couldn't help won
dering if it had anything to do with her.

When he finally joined her between the cool sheets, her doubts about the two of them were allayed. Alyse had been dozing and was startled awake to find his arms wrapped around her. He pulled her to him with such fierceness, she realized she was his harbor of safety for the moment, perhaps for the night. His kisses were breathless and filled with fire. His embrace was strong and relentless; his passion, immediate and burning.

Responding with her heart, Alyse opened her arms to him. She pressed him close and murmured words of love and affection. She wanted this man with all her heart and soul, wanted his love. And she wanted to return the beautiful gift. Wanted to give him supreme satisfaction. Wanted to possess him with every ounce of energy she had.

She received him eagerly, taking pleasure in the fact that he sought her refuge and that she could give it. He needed her, and she somehow knew that was the only way she could hold on to him. If he needed her.

She rocked with him, clinging tightly and praying he would never leave her. The pleasures she had experienced today with Jake surpassed a lifetime, and she thought she could never again live without him. And she didn't even want to try. He was everything for her: masculine; exciting; sexy; mysterious. A man easy for her to love, to remember always.

The mounting foray rapidly grew to frenzy until he held back no longer and, with a low moan, erupted into her.

"Oh, Alyse . . . precioso."

"Jake, Jake," she murmured softly. "I. . . love. . . you." As she held him in the night, long after he was asleep snuggled against her breast, Alyse wondered if it was possible to love a man so quickly. But she already knew the answer.

Sleep took them. At some point he was pulling her up. Shaking her gently. "Alyse! Alyse! Wake up!"

She slumped against him, her nudity poignant and erotic to him. He remembered how she had taken all he offered last night, taken and begged for more. Oh, God, what was he doing to this lovely creature?

"Alyse, wake up!"

"Hmm" She clasped her arms around his waist, and he unhooked them. He shook her again, rudely this time.

"Dammit, Alyse! Wake up!"

Her blue eyes parted slightly, then opened wider. Jake was fully dressed. And he was trying to haul her across the room. Why was he being so rough with her? "Jake? What do you want?"

"Come on, honey. Wake up!"

"Jake, what is it?"

"We've got to go!"

"What? Go where?"

"We must leave La Paz."

"Why?"

"Now is the time. Get your clothes on immediately." He pushed her onto the bed and threw into her lap a wad of material that she recognized as her clothes.

Automatically she started pulling them on, protesting all the while. Outside she could hear vague noises. "I'd like to know what the hell is going on, Jake."

"We're leaving right away. My aunt's taken a turn for the worse and we've got to get out of here. When you get dressed, meet me downstairs. Make it quick!" Then he was gone.

She dressed with shaky hands and, before departing, glanced around the modest room where they'd made love so passionately. The bed was still rumpled, and she was embarrassed to leave it like that. But Jake was demanding that they leave immediately. And she was curious as hell about what was happening.

Alyse darted down the hall and nearly ran into the young Mexican maid.

"Sorry. I guess I'm still half-asleep, Lena."

"Sí, señorita."

Alyse stopped. Lena looked quite shaken, and she felt obliged to say something to the stricken girl. "Qué pasa, Lena? Is it La Dueña? Is she dying?"

Lena looked curiously at her. " Qué?"

"La Dueña. I'm so sorry."

"No se, señorita. I do not know."

"La Duena. You know, the American woman who owns this place."

"There is no duena, señorita. Señor Emilio has no wife."

"No! I'm talking about the older lady, the American who owns the hacienda!" Alyse felt a growing agitation with the young girl.

"So sorry, señorita. There is no dueña aquí, señorita."

Dumbfounded, Alyse stared at the girl. She heard a rumbling in the hall, and Jake was racing toward her. He grabbed her arm and jerked her along.

"Come on! We don't have a minute to spare!"

"Jake, what's this all about?" Alyse felt a moment's panic. Why didn't anyone make sense?

"I told you. We're going." He took her hand and they ran down the stairs and out the entranceway. He pushed her into the backseat of the car and jumped in beside her. "Vamos!" he instructed Emilio, who was at the wheel.

Frantically she gasped for free breath. "Jake? Wait a minute! Things aren't right here. Your aunt—"

"Shhh," he said, and pushed her down to the floorboard. "Don't make a sound, Alyse. It's crucial." He lay on top of her as they wound down the narrow mountain road.

Alyse obeyed him, but only because she could hardly get her breathe.

CHAPTER EIGHT

When they arrived at the wharf, Jake hefted himself off her and lifted Alyse out of the car.

She held her head and squinted at her surroundings to get her bearings. "What a ride! What's going on here, Jake? Oh God, I'm dizzy!"

"No time for that now." He thrust a duffel bag and small wooden box into her hands. "You take these, Alyse, while we get the paintings."

"What is this?" She examined the cassette-size, intricately carved walnut box. The designs were typically Mexican with Mayan gods and stylized sun faces etched into the dark wood. It was the kind of box in which a family would keep small treasures, perhaps typical of what an older lady might use for jewelry. Alyse ran her finger around the wooden ridges and studied Jake's expression.

"The inheritance," he said as his eyes scanned the area. His thoughts were obviously elsewhere. "Jewelry and a few coins, remember? Come on, Alyse. Hurry, hurry."

Alyse gathered her wits. Could he lie to her that easily? Before they went any farther, on any other crazy rides, she would demand to know what had happened. She stood immovable, ready to do battle. "Okay, Jake, your game's up. I have discovered there's no sick aunt at the villa. So how could there be any inheritance? I don't know what all this stuff is or where it's from, but if you think I'm going to get myself involved in some dangerous drug ring or theft of any kind, you're crazy!"

"This is no drug ring," he said, taking the other end of the box of rolled canvases along with Emilio. The two began moving it down the length of the pier.

Alyse followed and noticed that Jake wore the paisley shirt, beige shorts, and tennis shoes. He was ready to put out to sea. "Look, Jake, if this stuff is stolen, I want no part of it."

The men ignored her and moved with purpose toward the Skye Command.

She tagged along, feeling like a kid sister trying to get her brother's attention. "Hold it, Jake. Did you hear what I said? I don't want you loading that thing on my—"

Jake's voice barked at her. "Keep it down, Alyse."

She caught up with him, her voice scared and shaky. "Jake, I'm not going through with this. I don't know what it's all about. And I demand to know before you step aboard my boat."

The men showed no inclination to obey her futile objections.

Alyse continued after them. "Now, wait just a minute! Jake?"

They had reached the Skye Command and were easing their precious cargo aboard, completely ignoring her commands.

"Jake, get off my boat with all this. . . whatever it is! I mean it. I won't haul contraband, even for you."

He looked up briefly as they skirted along the narrow part of the deck on the starboard side. "If you intend to go with your ship, Alyse, you'd better shut up and climb aboard."

Damn him. He was threatening her with her own boat! Just who did he think he was anyway? Hurriedly she followed as the two approached the aft cockpit. "Jake Bronson, I'll call the police if you don't stop. I mean it."

The threat grabbed his immediate attention. His mockingly sweet tone was definitely forced, though. "Alyse, mi preciosa, trust me. I'll explain later." He winked and kept going.

She followed. "Jake, I found out there's no aunt. There is no one dying. No one is in a coma. There is no physician. I don't even know who the villa belongs to, but it isn't your family. That means all this inheritance malarkey is a lie. There probably aren't even any kids in your life. Everything you've told me is a lie. You didn't get this stuff from a relative, so where did you get it? And why are you so interested in taking it all back? And why are you scared of the police? And why—"

Before she could finish her tirade of questions, Jake had left Emilio with the heavy box propped on the aft rail. He grabbed her arm and jerked her against him. "Can it, Alyse. We'll talk about this later. Right now I just want to get this stuff aboard and shove off."

"I think I have a right to know what you're up to. Especially when it involves me and my brother's boat," she said through clenched teeth.

"Cool it, Alyse. I will tell you everything, later." He gave her a sturdy push ahead of him and steered her toward the companionway. The impetus forced her down the wooden ladder, and she stumbled into the semi-dark cabin interior.

The men followed her down and settled the large box in the forward cabin near the head.

"Dammit, Jake! Don't think you can push me around!" Alyse regained her footing and raged at him with a touch of contempt. "Jake, I mean it. I won't be involved in anything illegal. Or whatever you're doing."

Emilio edged toward the ladder and gestured to the cockpit. "I'll wait up here. Rapido, amigo."

Jake turned an enraged face toward her. "None of this is illegal contraband or drugs, Alyse. Trust me."

She drew herself up straight. "Trust you? Why should I? So far everything you've told me has been a lie. How could you, Jake?"

"Not everything." He made a futile motion with his hand as if he would touch her, but he didn't. "Look, no more questions now. We don't have time. I'll explain later."

Emilio called from the aft deck, "Vamos, Jake. It's getting late."

Jake hesitated for a moment, his brown eyes catching hers with a pleading gleam. "Stow these things for me, Alyse. Hide the box, please." He scaled the ladder quickly.

Alyse stood frozen for a few minutes, confused, scared, and angry. What was Jake up to? Should she believe him? Trust him? Why did he want to leave so suddenly? This whole movement was so unexpected; they didn't even have any supplies. There was hardly enough drinking water to last one day.