CHAPTER 8
LIT WITHtiki torches, Kyra thought the poolside restaurant resembled a fairy garden. Either that, or a nighttime scene from an old episode ofFantasy Island. She stifled a giggle. All in all, she’d take Mr. Roarke over fairies any day.
Unless the fairy was the wishing kind. Right now, she had about a dozen wishes zipping through her head, not the least of which was the wish that she knew the identity of her mysterious lover. The problem with anonymous encounters, it seemed, was the difficulty in tracking your date down for a repeat performance.
Of course, she really didn’t want to know his identity, had made a studied effort not to try and compare his body to any of the men she saw at the resort. Anonymous was safe. She wasn’t sure her heart could stand it if she had to walk away from a man she knew. For half a second, an image of Tony popped into her head, but she pushed it firmly away. She had no business thinking those kinds of thoughts about him. No business at all.
“You look like a woman who needs a drink.” C.J.sidled up and nodded toward the bar. “Can I buy you a beer?”
She pulled herself out of her funk and smiled at him. “I promised myself I was only going to drink exotic-sounding fruity rum drinks.”
“We can probably manage that.”
She followed him to the bar, set up in a thatched-roof open hut, and watched while he ordered a draft beer and a Razzmatazz.
The bartender dumped some fruit, some ice, and quite a bit of alcohol into the blender, then slid a deep purple concoction in front of her. She eyed it dubiously. “Just what exactly is this?”
C.J. glanced at the bartender. “Kevin?”
“Secret recipe. I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.”
C.J. shook his head. “That’s okay. Merrilee frowns on doing away with the guests.” He nodded toward the drink. “Feeling adventurous?”
“Funny you should put it that way.” She stuck a tentative finger into the liquid and took a quick taste. So far so good, and so she took a sip through the curlicue straw, pleasantly surprised by the sweet and tangy sensation.
She flashed Kevin a smile. “It’s wonderful.”
“Well, yeah. I don’t go around killing guests for just any secret recipe.”
She laughed, warming up to the party atmosphere. “Good plan.”
C.J. took her elbow and steered her to a table by the pool. Underwater lights, colored for the occasion, had transformed it into something magical. Not that she really needed the lights. That afternoon she’d found her own bit of magic in the pool. She had so few close friends, and meeting a guy like Tony…well, that counted as something special.
“Penny for your thoughts,” C.J. said.
She smiled, sheepish. “Sorry. Wandering mind.”
He chuckled. “No, I’m sorry, using an old cliché like that on you. But you look like a woman with a lot to think about.”
“I thought I looked like a woman who could use a drink.”
“Like I said…”
They laughed, but in the end she nodded. “I was thinking about Tony.”
C.J.’s eyes twinkled. “Ah, another island romance brewing? I thought you two kids might hit it off.”
“No, no.” Her cheeks burned hot. She was uncomfortable thinking about romance and Tony in the same breath. Tony was her friend, hopefully, Michael was her lover. If she could just keep her feelings locked in their appropriate little cubbyholes, she’d do just fine.
Clearing her throat, she looked back up at C.J. “I mean, yes, we hit it off. But it’s not a romance at all. We’re just friends.”
He looked dubious. “I thought you found the boy attractive.What did you say? Something about him being rugged?”
“I said that his scar wasn’t that big a deal.”
“Is that a yes or a no?”
She blinked. “Yes or no, what?”
