A Coral Kiss Part 20

Chapter Eleven.

The sleek, white cruise s.h.i.+p was visible as soon as the Jeep rounded the last cove on the way into town.

It was tied up at the docking facility that had once been used by the military.

Amy caught her whipping hair, held it out of her eyes and stared in amazement. "Good grief. Rosie was right. Orleana is getting downright civilized. She said a cruise line had started making the island a port of call, but after all these years of being ignored, it's hard to believe. The village shops must be going crazy with all those tourists descending on them. Hank and Rosie's will be packed."

"Speaking of village shops, where can I pick up some new batteries for the dive light?" Jed asked as he drove along the road bordering the harbor.

He had to slow the Jeep to a crawl as he entered town. Throngs of tourists from the s.h.i.+p were crossing the narrow road with little regard for traffic. Some of the bright, colorful cruise clothing on display was almost as vivid as the fuchsia s.h.i.+rt Amy had tied below her b.r.e.a.s.t.s and the island print shorts she was wearing.

"Harry Sanderson runs a general store at the end of the street. He's got a small dive shop attached. You can get batteries there," Amy said as she watched the tourists with fascination.

"Are you sure you want to dive that old bomber today?"

Jed asked as he found a parking place for the Jeep and neatly slipped the vehicle into it.

"That's the fortieth time today you've asked me that question. The answer is still yes." She grinned at him as she alighted from the Jeep.

"Don't get sa.s.sy. It's only the thirty-ninth. I just want to make sure." Jed used his left hand on the window frame to lever himself out of the driver's seat.

Amy's grin faded. "Don't worry, Jed. I won't panic on you. I've told you, if I start getting stressed, I'll signal you and we'll surface."

He regarded her intently, thick brows drawn together in a frown. "I'm not worried about you panicking on me. I just don't want you rus.h.i.+ng things."

"It's time I went back into the water. I feel capable of handling it today. I don't want to put it off any longer."

"All right, if you're sure."

"I'm sure. Go get the batteries. I'll wait for you at Hank and Rosie's." Amy waved toward the direction of the small store at the end of the street, then swung around and strolled toward Hank and Rosie's. She didn't glance back, but she could feel Jed watching her until she disappeared through the doorway of the open air bar.

The place was filled with people from the s.h.i.+p. Amy spotted several guava juice c.o.c.ktails as well as more traditional island drinks sitting on the old rattan tables as she made her way toward the rear. It was obvious the tourists were thoroughly enjoying the laid back island atmosphere of the bar. The place looked like a scene from a film set in the islands.

Amy spotted Rosie working madly amid a cloud of steaming pots. She waved at the plump woman from the kitchen door.

"Hi, Rosie. Looks like you've got a full house. These folks are really getting off on the South Seas image.

Since when did Hank learn how to make frozen banana dai-quiries?"

"Since the cruise s.h.i.+p started putting in here once a week. The man learns fast. He can also make a wicked mai tai these days." Rosie grinned, mopping perspiration from her forehead with a tea towel.

"You wouldn't believe the kind of stuff tourists want to drink. Hardly an honest Scotch drinker in the bunch. Nothing but daiquiries, mai tais and fluffy pink stuff. One of these days we might actually have to start stocking white wine."

"Oh, I don't know. Looks to me like you're making inroads converting the cruise folk to guava juice c.o.c.ktails."

Rosie's hearty laugh filled the kitchen. "Speaking of which, how did you survive the other night? Your man have to carry you into the house?"

Amy grimaced, folding her arms as she leaned against the doorframe. "To tell you the truth, my memory of getting into the house is a little vague."

"I'm not surprised. Listen, I got a little loose lipped that night. I guess your mentioning the old days got me remembering. I hope I didn't upset you by telling you some of those things about your mom and dad and the past." Rosie looked anxious.

"No," Amy said gently, "you didn't upset me." Determined to change the subject, she added quickly, "Did your guests arrive? The ones you said had made genuine reservations?"

"Sure did. Got in this morning. That makes three staying upstairs now. I'm getting ready to feed them lunch, along with some of those folks from the boat. What are you and Jed up to today?"

"We're going to dive the old bomber this afternoon. Jed's buying some batteries for the dive light now.

Here, let me give you a hand serving that stuff."

"I appreciate it, honey. Pick up some plates and follow me."

Amy deftly slid two hamburger baskets and a bowl of fish chowder onto a tray and followed Rosie into the dining area of the tavern. Several tables were filled. One man sat alone at the rear, his hands wrapped around a can of beer. Rosie directed one of the hamburgers toward him.

Amy dutifully carried the hamburger to the waiting diner. He was a thin, wiry man somewhere between thirty and forty, though it was hard to tell. It had been difficult to tell Jed's age at first, too, Amy remembered. This man was not bad looking with his light hair and gray eyes, but there was a surly, indifferent quality about him that made her want to serve him as quickly and un.o.btrusively as possible.

Amy summoned up her brightest smile.

"Here's your hamburger, sir. Anything else?"

He looked at her curiously, making Amy wonder exactly what he was thinking. Automatically she stepped back a pace.

"No," he muttered. "That'll be all. For now."

Amy nodded and hurried off with the tray. Rosie was signaling her from a table where two other men were seated.

"Chowder goes there in front of Mr. Guthrie." She indicated the short, heavily built man at the table. "And that last hamburger is for Mr. Renner, here." Rosie gave the second man the full benefit of her laughing grin.

"Call me Dan, Rosie," the man said, his eyes on Amy. "And my friend here just uses his last name as his first name. He prefers to be called Guthrie, don't you, Guthrie?"

"That's right." Guthrie was ignoring the two women. His full attention was on the chowder and the beer at his elbow.

"Guthrie and Dan are staying upstairs," Rosie explained. "That guy who had the other hamburger is the third guest I was telling you about. He got in a few days ago."

"How about an introduction to your waitress, Rosie?" Renner was smiling at Amy.

Amy smiled back. She couldn't help herself. Renner was the kind they called drop-dead-good-looking.

He obviously knew it, but he seemed to find the fact amusing as much as anything else. His smile invited Amy to share the little joke nature had played by endowing him with so much attractive charm. That smile implied Renner himself didn't take it too seriously and neither should anyone else. It was a very disarming expression. Renner had a wealth of jet black hair that fell across his forehead in a rakish wave and vivid blue eyes that mirrored his smile.

He was dressed in a das.h.i.+ng version of tropical khaki s.h.i.+rt and trousers with lots of snappy pockets, epaulets and b.u.t.tons. To be fair Jed was wearing similar clothing, but on Jed the clothes looked comfortably worn and faded. Renner's appeared to have come straight from a Rodeo Drive boutique.

His smile said he found his clothing amusing, too.

"I'm Amy Slater. My folks have a place here on the island. I just dropped in to visit Rosie and decided to give her a hand serving lunch."

Renner blinked. The voltage of his smile went up another few notches. "No kidding? You live here?"

"No, I just visit a couple of times a year. My parents are the permanent residents, although they're gone for a few weeks. How long are you staying, Dan?"

"Just a few days, then we're heading back to Hawaii. We heard the diving was great around here. I'm a novice, but I'm trying to get in as much experience as I can on my vacation."

Rosie interrupted to clap Amy on the back. "While you two are yakking, I'm going to get the rest of my food dished up. Take your time, Amy. I can handle the rest."

Amy glanced around quickly. "I don't mind helping, Rosie."

But Rosie was already halfway back to the kitchen. Renner made another bid for Amy's attention.

"Do you dive?" he asked.

Amy smiled. "What? Oh, yes. The diving really is great around here. A friend and I are going to the north end of the island this afternoon to check out the wreck of an old bomber. You should be sure and see it before you leave."

"Thanks. We'll make a point of it, won't we, Guthrie?"

Guthrie nodded once and continued spooning his soup.

Renner ignored his companion. He kept his attention on Amy. "Any chance we can get you and your, uh, friend to show us some of the good dive spots around here? We could use an insider's knowledge."

Amy hesitated, looking for a convenient excuse. She didn't want to dive with anyone except Jed until she knew she was back in control of herself underwater. "I'm afraid we've already got this afternoon planned.

But Hank, the guy who owns this place, can give you some tips."

Renner looked mildly chagrined. "I can take a hint Maybe some other time?"

"I'm not sure," Amy said hesitantly. "My friend and I are going to be busy for the next few days."

"Say no more, I get the picture. It would be too much, I suppose, to hope that this, er, friend is female?

When Guthrie's not eating soup, he's really a pretty decent guy. Any chance of a double date in scuba gear?"

Amy laughed and shook her head.

Jed heard the sweet, clear sound of her laughter as he walked into the tavern carrying a paper bag from Sanderson's dive shop. He glanced around at the roomful of colorfully dressed tourists looking for Amy's even more colorful fuchsia s.h.i.+rt. He spotted her talking to a dark-haired man who looked to be about her age. The man was seated at a table with another, slightly older man, but Jed ignored the second male. It was the first one, the one with the carefully styled black hair and the expensive bush s.h.i.+rt who was making the pa.s.s at Amy.

Jed's reaction was immediate and startlingly intense. Every nerve in his body reacted fiercely to the sight of Amy laughing with another man. The possessiveness he felt took him by surprise.

He realized with a start that part of the problem was that he was accustomed to having Amy completely to himself. During the time he had known her-even when they had been playing the game of being friends-he had never had to deal with the potential threat of another man.

Oh, there had been that brief moment when he was calling her from the L.A. airport and he had wondered if she was with someone else, but that jarring thought had quickly been forgotten when she'd agreed to meet his plane. Caliph's Bay was a small place and Amy lived a quiet, private, almost reclusive life. She had never even dated anyone else in town.

For the past three months Jed had had her virtually to himself. She was always at home when he called, available for dinner or willing to invite him over for an evening, and finally, after three long months, willing to share his bed.

It occurred to Jed that he'd gotten pretty d.a.m.n spoiled. Where had he picked up the notion that he actually had exclusive rights to Amelia Slater?

In the next instant he realized it didn't matter where he'd gotten the idea; it was firmly embedded in his mind. Amy belonged to him.

He shouldn't have let her leave the house with that s.h.i.+rt tied just below her b.r.e.a.s.t.s like that, he decided as he watched her. It left her neat little midriff fully exposed.

Jed heard her laugh again and started forward. He walked up behind her just as the blue-eyed man spoke casually.

"I understand the cruise s.h.i.+p has a standing invitation to the locals to go aboard in the evenings, spend a little money at the bar and enjoy the entertainment. Any chance you'd ditch your diving friend and join me tonight? Rosie says they usually have a good band. Apparently she and Hank go aboard when the s.h.i.+p is in harbor."

"I'm not surprised," Amy began politely. "There's not a lot of night life here on Orleana, but as far as tonight goes-"

"As far as tonight goes," Jed interrupted smoothly, "Amy is busy. Her diving buddy isn't about to get himself ditched." He put his arm around Amy's bare waist. She glanced up at him in surprise.

"Oh, there you are, Jed. I wondered what was keeping you. Did you get the batteries?"

Her voice was a bit too bright and Jed knew why. She had sensed the potential for trouble and was determined to head it off at all costs. He knew instinctively that Amy would hate finding herself at the center of an uncivilized scene between two growling males. Ruthlessly he took advantage of her natural desire to avoid a rude exchange of masculine insults. Jed smiled down at her a little grimly.

"I've got the batteries. Are you ready to leave?"

She nodded quickly. "I'm ready." Then her manners got in the way. She paused to introduce him to the two men seated at the table.

"Glaze." Renner's smile went down a few watts but stayed in place. He studied Jed with interest.

"Renner." Jade acknowledged the other man with a cool inclination of his head. It was hardly worth bothering with Guthrie. He seemed concerned only with spooning up the last of his chowder. He did so with a distinct slurping noise that made Dan Renner wince. Jed didn't like the wryly apologetic smile Renner gave Amy on behalf of his companion; it was too much like a private exchange. The man was a nuisance. Jed's arm tightened around Amy. "Come on, honey. Let's get going."

She didn't argue with him but she insisted on stopping by the kitchen before they left. Rosie had dished up the last hamburger and was about to carry it into the other room. She smiled when she saw Jed.

"I hear you two are going diving this afternoon. You take good care of this girl now, you hear?"

"I hear."

"And you bring her out to the boat tonight. Be fun for both of you. I'm gonna make Hank put on a fresh s.h.i.+rt and polish his shoes. That man can dance when he puts his mind to it, you know."

Hank loomed in the doorway behind Jed and Amy. He exhaled gustily. "The woman wears me out on the dance floor. Hadn't danced in over thirty years and then this cruise s.h.i.+p started putting into port every week and inviting all us local yokels on board. Next thing I know, I'm trying to remember how to fox-trot."

"Believe me, I understand," Jed muttered. "I'm not much of a dancer, either. Never was."

"Well, it sounds like fun," Amy said with an enthusiasm Jed knew he wouldn't be able to override.

"Save us a seat tonight."

"Will do," Rosie confirmed. "I guess Renner and Guthrie are planning on living it up, too. Heard them say they wanted to take in the night life on board."

Jed glanced back toward the two men. "I hope Renner realizes he's going to have to turn up his own dancing partner from among the pa.s.sengers. He's not going to borrow Amy."

"Jed!" Amy gave him a quelling glance which Jed ignored.

Rosie laughed zestfully and patted Amy's arm. "Don't fret, girl. The good ones are always a tad possessive. Seems to go with the territory." She paid no attention to the warmth in Amy's face. "You know, that Renner puts me in mind of someone I once knew."

"You've met him before?" Amy asked.

Rosie shook her head. "Oh, no. I'd remember if I had. You know me. Never forget a face. No, there's just something kinda familiar about him. What about you, Hank? Does he remind you of anyone?"