CHAPTER 11
Tony awoke first, realizing instantly that the night had slipped away and the cabin was filled with the quiet of predawn.
For a long moment he didn’t move, not wanting to interrupt the total tranquillity of waking well rested with Libby slumbering peacefully in his arms. He kept his eyes closed, enjoying the pleasurable sensations of Libby’s curves molded against him, the scent of her hair tickling his nose.
He frowned thoughtfully. He knew that somehow a bridge had been crossed, a connection had been made between them. It was a connection that would make it impossible for him to escape from her unscathed.
When they finished with this mystery and went back to their own lives, he knew there would be many times when memories of this intimate time with her would come back to haunt him. There would be moments of reflection when he mourned what might have been if his ultimate decision had been different.
Still, he knew that to anticipate any sort of long-term relationship between them was a fool’s dream.
They had come together, made their connection in the surreal world of a small cabin in the woods, surrounded by a heady combination of mystery, intrigue and danger. What they had shared here would never last back in the real world. He refused to make the same mistakes as his father and mother. As much as he hated to admit it, he feared he was too much his father’s son to make and keep a marriage healthy.
He gently eased himself away from her and out of bed, studiously ignoring the desire to stand over her and watch her sleep. He stealthily crossed the room and disappeared into the bathroom, where he stepped into the shower. Maybe a hot, stinging shower would rid him of her scent, wash away the feel of her body against his, banish her from his thoughts and heart.
Minutes later he stepped out of the shower and dried off briskly with one of the thin, worn towels. He pulled on his jeans and T-shirt, his gaze falling on the thick gold necklace resting on the side of the sink. For a long moment he stared at it, frustration welling up inside. What did the damned thing contain? What in the hell was so important? With a sigh, he shoved it into his jeans pocket, then left the bathroom.
Libby still slept soundly, not having moved an inch since he had gone into the bathroom. Standing there for a moment, watching her in the dimness of the room, he suddenly felt the need to get on the road.
Her hair was like a halo surrounding her head and he remembered how it had felt in his hands the night before, with its perfumed silkiness and rich texture. She had given to him completely, holding nothing back as they’d made love. And he’d found himself responding in kind, unable to do anything else. It had been frightening…that moment when he’d lost himself to her, found himself in a veil of darkness where she was the only light, the only reality. He frowned.
She’d gotten too close, crept into his insides like a dreadful disease. The protective box he’d always kept firmly erected around his heart had been opened, and like Pandora’s box, the mystery of it all scared the hell out of him.
He needed to regain his equilibrium, restore his self-imposed isolation. He needed to keep her out of his heart. He wanted out of this room, out of this mess that had brought them together. It was time to move on and bring this whole mess to an end.
He looked at her again. Despite his anxiety, he was reluctant to wake her out of her peaceful sleep. Besides, an hour more won’t make any difference, he thought as his stomach rumbled its good morning.
He looked at his wristwatch. It was only a few minutes after five o’clock. If he woke her up now they would have time to stop at the restaurant for breakfast before they went on their way to Jasper Higgens’s lab. Still he hesitated, knowing Libby would not appreciate being awakened at five o’clock just so he could have a hearty breakfast before they continued on their adventure.
His frown deepened as his stomach rumbled loudly.Just because she doesn’t like to eat breakfast doesn’t mean I have to do without,he thought irritably. He didn’t want to wake her up or go to the trouble of cooking in the room, but as he remembered the wonderful steak he’d had two nights before at the restaurant down the road, his mouth watered. They could probably fix him up a dandy breakfast in no time at all. He could probably eat and be back in the room before Libby even awoke and knew he was gone. Finding a piece of paper, he quickly scribbled a note telling her where he’d gone, just in case she woke up before he returned. Laying the note on his pillow, he crept out of the cabin and into the brisk, fresh air of predawn.
* * *
Libby woke slowly, stretching sensually against the crisp cotton sheets. She knew immediately that Tony was no longer next to her. The heat of his body was gone, but she could still smell the scent of his maleness on the sheets, on her skin, and she closed her eyes and smiled.
She couldn’t remember the last time she had slept so soundly. Her sleep had been that of a woman totally and completely sated. She wanted him again, even now with her body still tingling with the lingering sensations of their lovemaking. She wanted him again and again. She ran her hands down the sides of her body, remembering the touch of his hands, the feel of his lips against her skin. Making love with him had been everything she’d imagined. He’d been a passionate, sensual, thoughtful lover.
She sighed and rolled over, opening her eyes as her hand encountered a piece of paper on his pillow. She scanned the note quickly, smiling softly. Tony and his morning appetite. She flushed slightly. His nighttime appetite wasn’t too shabby, either.
She got out of bed and headed for the shower, knowing that the minute Tony returned to the room he would be ready to hit the road.
As she stood beneath the spray of water, she wondered what the day would bring. Would they discover the secret of the necklace? Would they find the answers they sought at Jasper Higgens’s lab? And if they did solve the mystery and went back to their lives in Kansas City, what would happen between her and Tony?
Surely last night changed things, she thought hopefully. Surely after last night he couldn’t deny that he felt something for her…that there was a magic between them. The thought of not seeing him again, not making love with him again, made a hollow ache of emptiness well up inside her.
But he’d been most emphatic from the very beginning. He wasn’t looking for a long-term relationship. He didn’t want a lifetime commitment. And what did she want from him? It was a question that, in her mind, had no clear-cut answer.
She shoved her head under the water spray, rinsing out the shampoo and unsettling thoughts. One mystery at a time, she cautioned herself. The first and foremost thing was to get rid of the necklace.
She had just finished pulling on her T-shirt and jeans and was towel-drying her hair when she heard the outside door of the cabin creak open.
“I’m almost ready,” she called through the bathroom door. She quickly finger-combed her hair, looking one last time at her reflection in the mirror.
“I hope you had a good breakfast,” she said as she threw the towel she’d used in the corner and walked out. “I figured you’d be anxious to get down to business and on the road and find—”
The last of the sentence strangled in her throat as she saw the albino sitting at the kitchen table, his pink eyes glittering and his thin lips pulled into a cold smile.
“Good morning, Mrs. Weatherby.” His voice was soft, but Libby heard the steely grit beneath the soothing tone.
