The Devil You Know

When he slid his hand under her coat, then her sweater, she shivered with delight. His touch was cool at first, but soon warmed as he explored from her neck to her waist, stopping when he touched the top of her jeans.

She pulled back and turned ever so slightly.

It was enough of an invitation. He cupped one hand under her, lifting her onto the rail where cowboys once tied their horses. Now they were at eye level. He slipped both hands under the bulky sweater she wore, caressing upward until he came to her breasts. His thumbs stroked across the tips, which seemed ultrasensitive under the thin barrier of lace she’d worn that morning.

Sensation plunged through her, as wild as a mustang fresh off the range. She hadn’t known longing could be like this, or that pleasure could be so strong it bordered on pain. She gasped his name.

He kissed the word from her lips, pulled the breath out of her body with his mouth.

But she didn’t need air now, only his touch. She was all dancing flames, burning wild and out of control across the windy plain that was her soul. Her heart was engulfed in the magic of his fiery embrace.

And then he was gone.

She stared in confusion as he pivoted and turned his back to her. “Adam?”

From six feet away, he faced her, his expression so grim, so filled with disgust, her heart felt as if it had been turned into ice.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “That shouldn’t have happened. I never meant to let it go that far.”

“It was wonderful. Why should you be sorry?”

“Because I can’t afford to get involved with you.”

She smiled because it was obviously too late to worry about that.

He shook his head, fury in his eyes. “Because when it was over, we would still have relatives who are married to each other and that could be awkward.”

“Why should it be over?” she challenged. “Maybe we’ll fall madly in love, marry and live happily ever after.”

“It won’t happen,” he said, as if he had a crystal ball. “My work is dangerous. I can’t afford to lose my concentration by worrying about a family.”

“I see,” she said, forcing a quietness into her manner that she was far from feeling. She’d learned long ago that men responded to calm and withdrew from tears.

“There’s an attraction, a strong one,” he admitted, “but that’s as far as it goes. I’m not in love with you, and I’m not going to be.”

His words echoed inside her where she felt as hollow as a cave. “You’ve made yourself perfectly clear.”

Too proud to let him see the hurt, she smiled, jumped down from the railing and walked into the ranch house.

Hearing her uncle Nick in the kitchen, she stayed in her room until she was totally composed, then she went to help him with breakfast. The next morning Adam was gone when she rose. His sister’s lack of surprise later that day told Roni he’d explained his plans to Honey, but not to her.

Only her older brother had known of her feelings. Seth would keep a secret to the grave, so she didn’t have to fear pitying glances from the rest of the family.

For the present, she only had to get through the rest of this weekend, then she could go home and privately lick the wounds that hadn’t quite healed.

Observing Adam as he set his plate on the table and took the seat opposite her, she wondered at the madness that had seized them both that day. March madness, she thought, recalling Alice and her trip through Wonderland.

“What’s funny?” Adam asked, shaking pepper generously over his scrambled eggs.

Her whimsical smile grew. “I was wondering what it is about March that makes rabbits go mad.” At his quizzical glance, she added, “Don’t you remember the saying—mad as a March hare?”

He replaced the pepper shaker on the table with a thump. “I was wondering when you would bring that up.”

“I wasn’t referring to us.”

“Like hell you weren’t.”

She returned his glare, her stubborn nature coming to her rescue. At that moment she wanted to drive him mad with frustration as he tried to figure her out but couldn’t.

She hoped.

He caught her wrist. Surprised, she let him take her pulse, which was now pounding in her head. She counted the beats as he did. Dropping her hand, he picked up his knife.

“What’s your diagnosis, doctor?” she inquired.

His smile was challenging. “Fast and sassy.”

She raised her eyebrows at that. “I have a sassy pulse?”

He looked up from buttering a muffin. “You have a sassy mouth,” he said, his voice dropping to a deeper note. “And a sharp tongue that could very well get you into trouble one day. Your relatives should have warned you about that.”

She had to laugh. “Well, actually, they have. Many times. Many, many times,” she said truthfully.

After a second, he laughed, too.

Now that he was in better humor, there was something she needed to know. She leaned toward him and spoke in a near whisper. “Are you here socially, or are you on a case?”

He was silent so long she thought he wasn’t going to answer. Finally he gave a sardonic half smile. “Since you know the family, I suppose you’ll ferret out my secrets before the weekend is over. I’m on a case.”

She ignored the relief she felt at this information. “Uh, what should I know about you? Do you have a cover?”

“I’m in the equipment leasing business and may be doing some work with their company. This is a relatively new endeavor for me, so you don’t know anything about it.”

“I’ll follow your lead,” she promised.

He gave a frankly amused snort.

On that cheerful note, Geena entered the room. She wore white slacks and a white silk shirt with turquoise stones around her neck and dangling from her earrings. Her summer-blond hair was sleek and held back from her face with a black band. She looked like a princess.

After daintily covering a yawn, she glanced at the couple with a smile. “You two are in good humor this morning.”

“Join us,” Adam invited, rising and holding a chair for her. “Coffee?”

“Please.”

He brought her a steaming cup of the delicious gourmet blend, then inquired about her preferences in food. Roni tried not to get angry about his attentiveness as he served Geena the single slice of toast she’d requested and placed the container of marmalade close at hand.

“My, aren’t we the gentleman this morning?” she said and immediately regretted the acid drip on her tongue.

“I’ve always found Adam to be perfectly charming.” Geena smiled into Adam’s eyes, her sexy perusal meant for him alone.

Roni experienced the uncomfortable feeling a person got when with others who obviously would have preferred that she disappear so they could have privacy.

Her chin went up. She gazed out at the lawn. “Are you two going to play tennis this morning?”

“I thought we would go for a walk by the river. There are some beautiful rose arbors on the estate.” She glanced at Roni. “You might enjoy them, too.”

“No, thanks. Roses make me sneeze.”

Adam frowned at that, but Roni didn’t change her story. He was probably recalling all the flowers in her yard. Well, she did take allergy pills when ragweed was in season. At any rate, Scott was her host. She would wait for him.

Thirty minutes later, the couple left her at the table. She watched them cross the tennis court and stroll down the sloping lawn. Geena slipped her hand into the crook of his arm before they disappeared among the trees that lined the river.

At nine, Mr. Masterson appeared, gulped down a cup of coffee, then headed out for a golf game. He told her his wife took breakfast in her room and answered her mail in the mornings, that his son didn’t usually get up before ten on the weekend and that she should feel free to watch television, read or do whatever she wished until they all met for lunch at one at the country club.

He was a nice man, she reflected after he left. Going to the other room, she read financial magazines until Scott appeared. “Shall we see if we can catch up with the other two?” he asked, bringing a muffin and glass of orange juice to the library with him.

“Sure.”

They headed for the river as soon as he finished. There they found Adam and Geena sitting on a bench beneath a bower of white roses. They were just about to kiss, or so it seemed to Roni.

“Hey,” Scott said, not at all embarrassed at coming upon the other couple. “Knock it off, you two. It’s too early for that sort of thing.”

The older couple laughed as they leisurely drew back. Roni indicated the stain on Adam’s jaw near his mouth. “Is that your favorite shade of lipstick for daytime wear?” she teased, hiding an unwarranted possessiveness. Adam wasn’t hers. And never would be, according to him.

His eyes met hers. For a second she thought she saw regret in those gray depths and something that seemed warm and sensual and concerned. Then the impression was gone.

He might be here on a case, but that didn’t mean his reactions to Geena weren’t sincere. The thought hurt, but she had to face it. The other woman was lovely, smart and sophisticated. Why wouldn’t Adam be attracted to her?

He wiped his hand across his face and glanced at the resultant smear. “Yes, I think it is.” His grin at Geena was sexy and intimate.

Geena removed a tissue from her pocket and gently wiped the color away. “There,” she said. “Now we won’t embarrass our young guest.”

Roni rejected the comparison to a child coming upon a grown-up game she didn’t understand. She understood all too well. The other woman was marking her territory.

Chapter Three

A fter a morning of hiking around the beautiful estate, Adam showered and dressed in fresh khakis and a white polo shirt for the planned luncheon at the country club. He gave a silent whistle upon meeting Geena in the library.

“Very nice,” he murmured, ignoring the slight pout to her lips that indicated she would like a kiss. Maybe the weekend visit hadn’t been so smart, although it was part of the plan that he should distract the daughter of the house while Greg got Mr. Masterson’s approval for the bogus leasing agreements with the fake company Adam represented.

Since Geena knew he was with the FBI and had helped him set up the sting operation, he thought she was taking the friendly pretense a bit far. He hoped she wasn’t making plans for the two of them for when the case was resolved.

“Thank you, sir,” she said demurely, then laughed.

She wore white slacks with tiny gold stripes and a golden-colored, clingy blouse that crossed over her breasts and tied in the back at her waist. An enticing bit of tanned flesh was visible at her waist. Her gold sandals had three-inch heels, putting her at eye level with him.

He’d always liked his women tall and elegant, he grimly reminded himself. Until he’d met a certain small tomboyish woman who’d shown him the sweetest passion he’d ever known.

Hearing voices from the stairs, Geena picked up her purse, extracted her sunglasses and glanced impatiently toward the corridor. “Are you two ready?” she asked.

Scott and Roni entered the room. Her brother checked the clock. “Yes, we’re right on time.”

Adam noted the not quite concealed irritation in the other man. Scott and Geena, like many brothers and sisters, didn’t get along all that well.

Had circumstances been different, he and Honey might have been at odds, but with the difference in their ages and the fact that they’d had only each other while growing up, they were close. He suddenly missed her.

He wanted to question her about falling in love, about taking a chance on another person, about trusting in luck for once and a gut feeling that he should take what life offered and run with it.

Then what? What came next? Marriage and happily ever after, as Roni so confidently proclaimed?

Upon this odd note, he let himself look at Roni. His heart started pounding, as it had last week at her cottage.

She wore a short white skirt and a formfitting white top with blue sleeves and collar. Like Geena, the top and bottom didn’t quite meet, exposing a midsection of smooth flesh. A gold ring with a tiny cross dangling from it pierced the edge of her navel.

His lungs stopped working.

He stared at the bit of gold as it shifted constantly with each movement, each breath she took. He thought of kissing her there, of stripping the skirt from her perfect form and tasting the delectable flesh—

He broke the thought and held his arm out to Geena. “Shall we go?”

They followed the other couple to Scott’s car. He forced himself to think of winter snow and icy dips in the river until the fever left his blood.

On the short trip to the country club, he was mostly silent while the two women chatted. Anger—with himself for his lack of control, with his job for bringing him to this place and with the unfairness of life for making him long for things he couldn’t have—burned in the pit of his stomach. As soon as he finished the current task, he would request a transfer back to LA.

Fat chance, some snide part of him whispered. The division manager had wanted him out of the LA area after they broke that case so he’d be safe from vengeful cops.

Safe?

Glancing at Roni’s dark, gleaming hair in the front seat, he experienced a sinking sensation. He could have gone to New Mexico on a drug smuggling bust. Why had he chosen to come here?

“You’re quiet,” Geena murmured, leaning close. “Deep, dark thoughts?”

“Very deep, very dark,” he said with a wicked smile.

She shivered delicately. “Mmm, sounds delicious.”

When she laid a possessive hand on his knee, he didn’t pull away. Instead he clasped it in his and held it as they pulled into a parking space at the club. Through the side mirror, he met Roni’s eyes. They watched each other for a second as if sizing up an opponent, then she looked away.

He felt as if he’d taken a cheap shot at her. He quickly got out and went around to Geena’s side to open her door. Damn, but it was going to be a long weekend.

Halfway through lunch Roni was relieved to see Patricia on the last hole of the golfing green. When her friend finished the game, she stripped off her gloves, spotted Roni and her group, waved madly, then came over. Roni had told her to look for them.

The three men stood.

“Please, gentlemen, keep your seats,” Patricia told them. “I just stopped to say hello to Roni. We were roommates in college. She got me through those awful computer courses.”

“Patricia corrected all my English papers before I turned them in, or else I would still be trying to graduate,” Roni said, returning the implied compliment.

Adam invited Patricia to take his chair and pulled another over from an empty table. The day was sunny, so they had opted to sit on the dining terrace. Roni introduced her friend to the Masterson family and to Adam.

“Upjohn?” Charles repeated the last name. “There’s a Thomas Upjohn who lives in the area.”

Patricia wrinkled her nose prettily. “My father. I work in the loan department at the bank. Since he has no son, he’s decided I need to learn the family business.”

“She’s a whiz at it,” Roni said loyally. “She arranged the loan for my house and got me through all the paperwork. Even Seth approved of the transaction.”

She had to explain Seth was her brother and an attorney and that he reviewed all the family legal affairs.

“I know him,” the older Masterson told her. “He brought a suit against my company for a client and won. It was a business matter,” he added with a smile. “No hard feelings.”

Roni nodded.

Patricia ordered a glass of iced tea when the waiter came over, then settled in to chat with them. Roni felt more at ease with her friend there. She’d been to the country club with Patricia on other occasions, and it was nice to have reinforcements, so to speak.

Not that everything wasn’t just fine, at least as far as she was concerned, she mused when attention shifted away from her. There was tension between Scott and Geena. She thought the brother and sister didn’t like each other very much. Geena had probably bossed Scott around when they were kids, the same as her brothers and cousins had always tried to do to her.

She’d hated being ordered about. Except by Uncle Nick, of course. He was the undisputed boss of the Dalton gang.

Her heart warmed as she thought of the relative who’d taken the orphans in and given them shelter and a loving home. That aspect of him had never changed, not even when his own heart was aching with the loss of his wife and child not quite a year after the orphans had come to live with him and Aunt Milly and Tink.

With only a few months difference in their ages, she and Tink had become fast friends. It had been so nice to have another girl to play with. Then Tink was gone, leaving another hole in her heart…

She realized the others were looking at her. “I’m sorry. What was the question?”

“Shall I see if we can get a tee time for this afternoon?” Geena asked. “There may be a cancellation.”

“I don’t play golf, but you three go ahead.”

“We don’t mind helping you,” Geena offered graciously. “It’s easy to learn.”

Roni grimaced to herself. It looked as if she was going to have to join them.

“Actually,” Patricia spoke up, “Roni has played a few rounds with me. She’s not bad for a beginner, but watch out for her wicked slice.”

Roni couldn’t recall if a slice meant she hit the ball to the right while a hook went to the left or vice versa.

Geena rose. “Then it’s settled. I’ll check with the pro and see if we can get a slot.”

Roni had a feeling she wasn’t going to enjoy this game at all. “When did you learn to play?” she asked Adam.

“I used to caddy when I was in high school. Sometimes I was asked to fill out a foursome.”

“I see.”

Charles and Danielle apologized and left them shortly after that. Patricia gave Roni’s arm a squeeze and said she had to run. She was in charge of a political dinner that evening for her father, for whom she often served as hostess.

Growing up without a mother had been an immediate bond between the two girls when they’d shared a room their freshman year at school, then an apartment thereafter. Patricia came from a wealthy banking family, but she was friendly and candid and casual about her background.

Scott saw a friend and excused himself, leaving her and Adam at the table. Roni sipped iced tea and observed the next group of golfers at the eighteenth hole.

“Scared?” Adam said.

“Of what?”

He shrugged. “Of looking like an amateur on the golf course. You Daltons don’t like to lose.”

“Well, I hate to have Geena show me up,” she admitted, bringing an unexpected smile to his face, “but I’ll live through it.”

“Good.”

A funny feeling invaded the pit of her stomach at his approving nod. “Uncle Nick said we should try new things as long as it wasn’t drugs or something illegal. Geena is probably an expert,” she added a trifle glumly.

His smile became a chuckle. “Probably. Just relax and try to enjoy it. Don’t worry about the score.”

“That’s easy for you to say.” She sighed loudly. “The grounds are nice here. If nothing else, I can admire the landscape while I’m hacking my way down the fairway.”

“Right.”

Her attitude lightened as he laughed again. Maybe she would get through this with her dignity intact. She vowed to do her best.

When Geena returned and reported they were scheduled for four o’clock, the problem of shoes came up. Determined not to be outdone by the other woman, Roni bought a pair of golfing shoes at the club. She carefully concealed her shock at the sticker price and put the cost on her credit card. She hoped Uncle Nick didn’t find out what she’d paid for them.

“They’ll last a long time,” Adam said, falling into step beside her as they went to the car where Scott waited.

“They’d better,” she said wryly.

Geena, on the other side of Adam, looked amused. “You can play in sneakers, too. Some people do.”

Her tone implied that those who did were social wash-outs. Roni smiled brightly. “It’s time I learned to play. Patricia loves it and is always after me to join her. Maybe I’ll get good enough to show her up.”

“What’s her handicap?” Geena wanted to know.

Roni hadn’t the foggiest idea. “Five.”

Geena looked surprised, then dubious.

“Maybe six,” Roni said, trying to look as if she knew what she was talking about.

“We’ll have to invite her to play sometime,” the other woman decided, a competitive light in her eyes.

Roni had thought Patricia was a wonderful player, but now she hoped her friend was pro material. She wanted to see someone beat the socks off the cool blonde, who seemed perfection personified. Maybe someday she would beat her, Roni mused, wondering how much golf lessons cost.

Glancing at Adam, who observed them with a slight frown on his handsome face, she hoped he didn’t realize she was seething from something very akin to jealousy. She didn’t like the feeling at all.

Roni lined up the borrowed driver behind the ball, eyed the flag on the pole at the last hole, then gave it her all. She observed as the ball went shooting off into the rough, hit, then, to her surprise, rolled onto the green. The far edge of the green, yes, but on the green, and this was only her second shot.

Geena—the cool, the skillful, the beautiful—drove straight down the fairway and landed in the middle of the green. Scott and Adam followed, then the foursome climbed in the golf cart and went to play the eighteenth hole.

Geena had played beyond her game, or so she said, and had given Adam a run for his money on the lovely course, coming in only two points behind him. Scott was ten points behind and obviously disgruntled about it. He was probably off his game due to having to play after her.

Her own score was so terrible, Roni saw no need to add it up. She’d lost two balls in the trees and two in water traps. Three times she’d had to pick up and move on without getting the stupid ball in the hole because other people were waiting for the green.

Adam’s handicap was nineteen. A handicap less than ten was considered close to pro status, so Geena had known that Roni had been talking through her hat when she’d claimed Patricia was in the five to six range.

Nothing like making a fool of oneself. She hadn’t been so humiliated since first grade when she’d forgotten the lines to the poem she’d written for Uncle Nick and he’d been in the audience to witness her failure.

“This is a difficult green,” Geena announced.

“Tell me about it,” Roni muttered.

Since she was the farthest from the hole, she walked to the edge of the green, stood at a tilt because the rough slanted downward there and, hardly glancing at the hole, gave the ball a whack with the putter Adam handed her. Three more whacks and she was done, even if she missed every time, she consoled her bruised ego.

The ball rolled merrily with the slope of the green. It was going to miss the hole. She pasted her cheeriest smile on her face. Stoic was her middle name.

Just then the ball swerved to the right. In a long graceful arc, it spiraled over the short grass in a tightening circle. To her amazement, it disappeared.

“A birdie,” Geena said. “I don’t believe it.”

Roni couldn’t believe it, either. She walked over to the hole and peered inside. The ball was there.

“Good going,” Adam said when she lifted it out of the cup. His eyes were filled with laughter.

She grinned at him, her world right once more. On this buoyant note, Roni made it through the casual dinner and the teasing she took over her score that evening.

During the evening meal, listening to Adam talk business with the Mastersons, she picked up on the fact that the family thought Adam was in some kind of communications leasing business, just as he’d said at breakfast. She also learned that Greg Williams was the chief financial officer of their company.