Sweet Liar Part 4

aItas just Daphne and some of the girls wanting a free meal. Theyall be gone before full dark.a aOh,a she said softly, eyes wide. aThey work at night?a She was trying to sound sophisticated, as though she werenat shocked by the dress and manner of these flamboyant women.

aThey strip.a aOh,a Samantha said again, relieved, for stripping was healthier than what shead first thought they did. As they drew nearer, Samantha felt one of the women looking at her with more interest than the other three, and she knew without a doubt that this woman was Daphne. When the woman left her perch on the rail, Samantha saw that she had to be at least six feet tall. Samantha thought that under the face paint the woman was probably quite pretty, but it was difficult judging her facial beauty because her body was so distracting: a great deal of it was cantilevered from her broad-shouldered frame. aIs she Daphne?a Samantha asked, whispering.

aEvery inch of her.a Mike was watching Samanthaas face, hoping for a sign of jealousy.

Leaning closer to Mike, Samantha whispered, aAre parts of heraaugmented?a aAs far as I can tell, most of Daphne is fake,a Mike said with enthusiasm. aSheas been augmented, supplemented, subtracted from, added to, from her face to her feet. When you touch her, all the balloons sheas had inserted under her skin slide away at crazy angles.a Even as closely as he was watching Samantha, he couldnat see any signs of jealousy.

aAnd Daphne is anaan exotic dancer?a aNo, sheas a plain ola garden-variety stripper, there is absolutely nothing exotic about Daphne.a Halting, Mike faced Samantha, his hands on her shoulders. aSam, my girl, you donat have to meet these women, and Iad understand completely if you didnat want to. I can send them home, and then you and I could go out to a quiet dinner somewhere. Iall take you to La Cirque.a aWhat a ridiculous thing to say,a she said sharply, realizing that he didnat understand that her questions were curiosity; he seemed to think she was a Puritan sn.o.b who wouldnat sit at a table with a stripper. aOf course I want to meet them. And would you please stop touching me?a Moving away from him, she started down the street, and the next moment she was introducing herself to the women, who looked at her with bored eyes.

Daphne came down the stairs, towering over Samantha. aYouare Mikeasatenant?a she asked.

When she figured out what the woman was asking, Samantha realized why the women were looking at her with hooded eyes. aHis tenant and nothing else,a she said with emphasis. When she saw the slight smiles of relief on the faces of the women, she realized that these women considered Mike to be their property and Samantha an intruder.

Mike unlocked the door, and in the next moment the women swept inside and took over the town house. They turned on Mikeas stereo, then went to the kitchen and began pulling out dishes while one woman went to the telephone to order enough food for a dozen people. One of the women said she had a new routine for the club and wanted Mikeas opinion on the strip dance, but he declined her offer for a private viewing. Samantha was somewhat curious as to what a stripper really did, but she couldnat very well ask the woman to perform for her alone.

The food arrived, and before she knew what was happening, Samantha was acting as both a hostess and a maid. For the rest of the evening, she seemed to always be in the kitchen ladling food onto plates, pouring beer into tall gla.s.ses, and carrying trays into the garden. Once, Mike caught her just as she stepped into the garden and pulled her into his arms, with her back pressed against the front of him, his strong arms about her waist. He bit her earlobe.

aRelease me!a she hissed. With her hands full with a heavy tray of food, she couldnat hit him in the ribs with her elbows as she wanted to do.

aIad like to hold onto you forever,a he said into her ear, nibbling on her lobe.

aYouare drunk.a Giving a sharp twist to get away from him, she set the tray down, then turned and gave Mike a hard look, but that didnat keep him from laughing at her. As Samantha went back into the kitchen, Daphne was standing inside the house by the gla.s.s doors, watching the two of them.

aYouare not in love with him,a Daphne said flatly.

Samantha looked surprised. aNo, Iam not. Is that unusual?a Glancing toward the three women in the garden, she watched them taking turns dancing with Mike. aHe seems to have quite enough women in love with him.a Daphne smiled. aHe does. Heas an easy man to love. Heas sweet and generous and not at all hard to look at, and he takes care of his wounded birds.a After pausing for a moment, Samantha put potato salad in a bowl. aWounded birds?a aYeah,a Daphne said. aLike a boy scout, I guess, although Iave not met too many of them. Mike likes to rescue people.a aAnd what does he do with them after he rescues them?a Samantha asked softly.

Daphne smiled. aGets rid of them fast, as far as I can tell.a She nodded toward the women in the garden, each of them looking at Mike with adoring eyes. aLook at them. Each of them thinks sheas going to be the one to catch Mike. But you know what? This time next year not one of them will even be invited to this house. But look at me, Iave known Mike for two years, Iave seen women come and go, all of them looking at him just like they are, but not one of them, as far as I know, even went to bed with him.a aBut youare still here,a Samantha said.

Daphne picked up the bowl Samantha had filled. aBut then Iave never fallen for him, have I?a She gave Samantha a look that could only be interpreted as warning. aYou watch out, honey, Mike is a heartbreaker, a real heartbreaker.a After her talk with Daphne, Samantha stayed in the kitchen by herself for a while. A heartbreaker, she thought. What she did not need in her life was her heart broken another time. In fact, she didnat think she could stand having her heart torn out of her body another time.

aYou okay?a Mike asked from behind her.

Turning, she looked at him. He was so good-looking that it was sometimes difficult to think when he was around. All day long, with every word head spoken, shead been aware of the way his lips moved.

Mike took a step closer to her. aYouare looking at me strangely. Want me to tell them to leave?a Samantha smiled at him coolly. aNo, please donat.a She turned away from him. aIam rather tired and I think Iall go to bed.a Moving to stand beside her, Mike c.o.c.ked his head to gaze inquisitively at her, then put his hand under her chin and made her look at him. aSomethingas bothering you. Did Daphne say anything? She didnat tell you one of her stories about men, did she? I can tell you that Daphne has a very odd outlook on life.a aNo,a Samantha said, lying as she moved her chin out of his hand. aItas been a long day and I want to go to bed, thatas all.a Mike looked at her. Without moving, without touching her, his face changed to one of such heat, of such desire, that Samantha felt her skin grow warm. aIad like to go to bed, too,a he said softly.

Samantha took a step back from him.

Abruptly, Mikeas face changed from desire to anger. aWhoas turned you off s.e.x, Samantha?a he asked, making her name sound like a synonym for priggishness.

That made Samantha laugh, and the temptation shead felt a moment before was gone. aMen are so predictable,a she said. aWhether theyare a CEO or work in a filling station, theyare the same. Because I donat want to go to bed with you, you like to think Iam frigid or a victim of incest or something else awful has happened to me. For your information, Mr. Taggert, no one has turned me off s.e.x. But you with your constant touching of me and your vulgar little innuendos are about to. Why donat you ask one of those women to go to bed with you?a She nodded toward the women on the other side of the gla.s.s doors. aOr do you only want women who tell you no? Is it the challenge that intrigues you? When youare adding another notch to your bedpost, do the women whoave told you no repeatedly get a star by their notch?a Mike was looking at her in bewilderment. aWhat in the world have I done to make you have such a low opinion of me?a Turning away from him, Samantha knew she wasnat being fair, for he had been so very kind to her all day. Head taken more time with her in this one day than any other person had since her mother had died, yet here she was saying vile things to him because he was making a pa.s.s at her. But wasnat that what males were supposed to do: try?

Maybe his kindness and constant attention was the problem. Maybe she didnat want anyone to pay attention to her.

aI apologize,a she said. aI thank you for today, for taking me to the store, for introducing me to your cousin, fora"a aI donat want your b.l.o.o.d.y thanks,a Mike said angrily before turning away to stalk out the door.

Samantha stood where she was for a moment, then went up the stairs to her apartment. She undressed slowly, carefully hanging her lovely new suit up, and for a moment she leaned against the closet door. Sometimes she wished she could cry. Sometimes she wished she could just sit down and bawl like other women seemed able to do, but as much as she wanted it, Samantha knew the tears would not come.

After washing and creaming her face, she put on her nightgown and went to bed. From the lights in the garden below, she could see the outline of her fatheras furniture. Taking a deep breath, she gave a bit of a smile, for it was good to have her fatheras things around her, very good indeed.

She went to sleep and somewhere in the middle of the night she woke when a flash of lightning lit the room. Over the outside noise she heard what was becoming a familiar sound to her: Mike was typing. Feeling calmer, she went back to sleep.

8.

S amantha woke at seven oaclock, but the rain gently coming down outside her windows made her not want to get out of bed. Snuggling under the covers, she went back to sleep. After all, it was Sat.u.r.day, so why should she get up?

Waking again at nine-thirty, her first thought was of Daphne telling her that Mike was a heartbreaker. Samantha did not want more heartbreak. After a rea.s.suring glance about her fatheras room at his furnishings, smiling, she went back to sleep.

At eleven she was awakened by a brief knock then the door to her bedroom opening. Sleepily, she looked up to see Mike entering with a tray covered with white food bags. aGo away,a she murmured and hid under the covers.

Of course he didnat obey, for as far as she could make out, Michael Taggert was a combination of watchdog, militant nurse, and lecher.

Putting the tray down on the edge of the bed, he sat down beside it. aI brought you food and your clothes from Saks came and Barrett has invited us to tea day after tomorrow. Heas sending a car for us.a aOh?a she said, turning over and looking at him. It was almost beginning to feel familiar to have him sitting on the edge of her bed.

aWhich one interests you? The food or Barrett or the clothes?a aDo you think that little blue jacket came? The one with the big b.u.t.tons?a He pulled a m.u.f.fin from a bag. aSo itas the clothes. I donat blame you for being uninterested in a man who may or may not be your relative. Relatives give me a pain too.a Slowly, yawning, Samantha sat up in bed and leaned against the headboard. aYou donat know what youare talking about. You donat know how lucky you are to have relatives. Your cousin Vicky was very sweet to mea"and very tolerant of you.a Handing her a m.u.f.fin and a large styrofoam cup full of freshly squeezed orange juice, he said, aSheas one of the few Montgomerys whoas even tolerable, but then sheas not one of the Montgomerys from Maine.a Mike already had his mouth full and there were crumbs on her bed, but he looked so good sprawled there. His thick, dark hair was still damp from a shower, he was freshly shaved, and he had on a soft old denim shirt that outlined every muscle in his body. It was better to keep him talking, she thought, for if he were talking, he wouldnat be touching her. She took a deep breath. aWho are the Montgomerys?a aTheyare my cousins and a bigger bunch of wimps you never saw.a aWimps?a aWimps. Pansies,a he snapped. aTea drinkers. There isnat one of them that wouldnat faint at the mere sight of a beer served in its very own bottle.a aAnd these cousins live in Maine?a she asked as she bit into a bran m.u.f.fin.

aYeah.a There was hostility in his voice, and she wondered what his cousins had done to cause his antagonism. Seeing the look on her face, he began to explain. aItas a tradition in my family that the Montgomery kids spend half the summer in Colorado and the Taggerts, half in Maine. I donat know who started that tradition, but Iam sure heas roasting in h.e.l.l now.a aOh? What happened when you were in Maine?a aMy b.a.s.t.a.r.d cousins tried to kill us!a aYou must be kidding.a aNot in the least. They did everything they could to see that we didnat live through the summers. The lot of them live on the sea and theyare half fish. My brother says they have fish scales for skin. They used to do things like row us out into the ocean, then dive off the boat and swim back to sh.o.r.e. They knew that not one of us could swim.a aHow did you get back to sh.o.r.e?a Michael smiled in a smirking way. aRowed. We couldnat swim, but all of us have a bit of muscle.a Samantha smiled at the way he flexed his biceps when he said this. aAnd what happened when they came to Colorado?a aWell, we were a bit miffed at the way theyad treated us when we were in Maine.a aUnderstandable.a aAnd, too, you have to understand the Montgomerys. They are the most annoying bunch in the world. They were always thanking my mother, and they never forgot to use their napkins at the table. And they folded their clothes.a aThat bad, huh?a Sam said, hiding her smile in her cup, but Mike didnat seem to hear the sarcasm in her voice.

aWe all felt we were justified in what we did. We put them on the wildest horses we could find. We used to take them into the Rocky Mountains and leave them alone at night with no food or water, without any covering.a aWasnat that dangerous?a ah.e.l.l, no, not to a Montgomery. As far as we could tell, theyare not killable. One of my brothers took one of them out, put the son of a gun at the end of a rope, lowered the rope down a cliffside, and went off and left my cousin hanging there.a Mike smiled in memory. aIt was two hundred feet down.a aWhat did your cousin do?a aI donat know. Somehow, she got back up the rope. She wasnat even late for dinner.a It was the ashea that made Samantha start laughing. Setting her orange juice on the bedside table, she put her hands over her stomach and laughed hard. aMike, youare dreadful,a she said, now realizing that he had been joking all along, creating the story (or, at the very least, exaggerating extravagantly) to entertain her, to make her laugh.

As Michael lay on the bed, he smiled at her, looking thoroughly pleased with himself, the cheshire cat, the cat that ate the cream. His smile made her certain his story hadnat been serious at all, that he had meant to amuse her and was glad head done so.

aIam glad to see that you can laugh,a he said, reaching into one of the bags and withdrawing a delicious-smelling m.u.f.fin. aI got this especially for you.a As she took it from his hand, she thought, He feeds me and he makes me laugh. aWhat kind is it?a aChocolate chip.a Regretfully, she handed the m.u.f.fin back to him. aToo fattening. I canat eat it.a Sprawling back on the bed, he didnat take the m.u.f.fin from her. aJust as I thought.a aWhat does that mean?a aNothing. I just won a bet with myself. You donat drink any alcohol to speak of, and left on your own, you dress like an old woman. You ever eat any food that isnat good for you? Iam sure youave never even been tempted to do drugs.a She glared at him. aHand me that pat of b.u.t.ter. Better yet, hand me two pats.a Smiling at her suggestively, he pa.s.sed her the b.u.t.ter and a plastic knife. aIf youare worried about working those calories off, I know a great exercise.a Samantha was too intent on her utterly delicious m.u.f.fin to pay any attention to him. Chocolate chips. Soft white dough. Melted b.u.t.ter.

ad.a.m.n it, Samantha, stop looking at food like that,a Mike said, genuine anger in his voice. Grabbing her hand, he pulled it toward his mouth and took a bite out of her m.u.f.fin, catching one of her fingers in his soft, warm mouth and licking b.u.t.ter from it. As he did so, he looked at her with hot eyes.

She s.n.a.t.c.hed her hand away. aDoes anything, anything at all, discourage you?a aNo,a he said without much concern, licking his fingers. Lazily, he got up off the bed and stretched.

Watching him, Samantha halted with her m.u.f.fin halfway to her mouth. He had broad shoulders, a slim waist, and heavy thighs, and the sight of Michaelas body displayed that way was enough to make her forget even chocolate.

When he stopped flexing, she looked away quickly before he saw her gawking. Bending agilely, he shoved leftover food back into the bags.

aWhy do youaI mean,a she said, clearing her throat. aWhy do you look as you do?a aWhat do you mean?a he asked with exaggerated innocence.

Samantha knew he was trying to get a compliment from her. No doubt he wanted her to say, Why are you dripping muscle? Why do you look like a Greek G.o.d? Why do you have a body that Michelangelo would have loved to sculpt? Instead of the words he wanted to hear and the words that came to her mind, she gave him a look that said, You know very well what I mean.

aPower lifting,a he said, picking up the tray and setting it on her fatheras desk.

aLike in the Olympics?a Mike gave a snort of derision. aPretty boys. Thatas Olympic lifting and what Schwarzenegger does is bodybuilding. I power lifted in college in compet.i.tions. Heavy stuff. Now I just do what I can to maintain.a Samantha wasnat very good at hiding a smile. aI take it that power lifting is what areala men do.a He smiled at her as though he had no idea she was making fun of him, but then, with lightning speed, he scooped her and a couple of blankets off the bed, and while she was demanding that he put her down, he opened the door to the terrace and carried her outside.

Samantha had her hands to her side. aPut me down,a she said, doing her best not to touch him.

As though she weighed nothing at all, Mike held her over the rail, then half dropped her.

With a squeal of fright, Samantha grabbed him about the neck, holding him tightly.

aI like this,a he said, nuzzling her neck, and when Samanthaas grip loosened, he let his arms go slack until she again almost fell. She renewed her tight grip.

Samantha liked being in his arms, liked it very, very much. He was big and warm and so very strong. When he put his lips on her neck, for a moment she closed her eyes.

aSamantha,a he whispered.

She had too much self-discipline to give in to his plea or her own desires. aRelease me,a she said, her voice serious.

Reluctantly, he set her down and for a moment he put his hand to her cheek. aYou want to tell me whatas bothering you?a he asked softly.

For a moment, Samantha opened her mouth to speak but closed it again and quickly moved away from him. aI have no idea what youare talking about. If I seem unusual to you, Iam sure itas because I have recently buried my father and gone through a divorce. I doubt if anyone is anormala for a long time after two such traumatic events.a aDid you write that little speech then rehea.r.s.e it?a he asked, then when she started to speak, he put up his hand. aI donat want to hear any more lies or plat.i.tudes. Why donat you get dressed and come downstairs and make that computer work? Or better yet, donat dress.a Although Samantha let out a sigh of seeming frustration, she was glad he was no longer being serious. For a happy-go-lucky guy, he could sometimes be disconcertingly perceptive, which was yet another reason for her to get out of New York and away from him.

Grinning, she tried to match his mood. aI shall wear a white lace gown anda"a aDonat!a Mike said, his eyes serious.

aI was just kidding.a Turning away, he went to the door. aIall give you fifteen minutes, then I want you downstairs. You canat stay up here in this mausoleum.a He frowned at the dark furniture and the dark curtains. aYou canat stay in this shrine to your father.a He left the room before Samantha could think of a reply.

Samantha spent the day with Mike. Heaven, she thought, but he was easy to be with. He was as unlike her father and husband as a person could be. Both her father and Richard had been CPAs, and perhaps thatas what gave them their exaggerated sense of order, but both men had always wanted everything in its placea"a place chosen by them. Richardas organization of the refrigerator had sometimes made Samantha want to scream. Her idea of doing something wild had been to put the bread in the milk spot. Once, when he was away on an overnight trip, she had taken everything out of the refrigerator and put it all back in different places. Shead even put the breads on three different shelves, something that would have sent Richard into a rage. Of course she put everything back in its correct order before he returned.

Mike wasnat like Richard or her father. Mike seemed to have no hard and fast rules about anything. He didnat eat by the clock, he ate when he was hungry. And he could feed himself! To Samantha this was a miracle. After her mother had died, Samantha had taken over the household ch.o.r.es, and it had been her responsibility to feed her father. She prepared meals at eight in the morning and twelve and at six-thirty, and after she had married, the schedule had stayed the same. Once, at a dinner party in Santa Fe, after shead had two gla.s.ses of wine, someone had philosophically asked, What does it mean to be rich? Samantha was feeling too good to remember her place and control her tongue. Before anyone else spoke, she said, aA rich woman is one who, when she is in the vicinity of a man and that man says he is hungry, does not have a responsibility to feed him. The woman is truly rich.a Everyone at the table had laughed uproariously at Samanthaas comment, but Richard had been furious and after that head talked to her about her atendency toward alcoholisma and had asuggesteda that she stop drinking.

Mike wasnat like the two men she had known, for he didnat seem to have rules. Except maybe something on the order of, If it feels good, do it. When he saw Samantha pick up two of his shirts where head tossed them across a chair and without thinking about what she was doing slip them onto hangers, he s.n.a.t.c.hed the third shirt out of her hands and threw it on the back of the couch. aI have a maid,a he said.

Embarra.s.sed at having performed such a wifely little ch.o.r.e Samantha went to the boxes in the corner of the room and opened them. Pulling the flaps back, she inhaled what has come to be a heavenly smell to modern people: new vinyl. Mike laughed at the look on her face, which made Samantha feel embarra.s.sed again, but shead already discovered that Mike could take teasing as well as dish it out, unlike her ex-husband who considered himself sacrosanct.

aThe smell of new electronic equipment is certainly better than the cheap perfume that you seem to prefer,a she snapped at him, making him laugh.

She had an idea that he meant to sit back and watch her hook up the computer, but she told him she wanted his help. Of course he had no idea how different this was for her. Her father and Richard believed that there was womanas work and menas work and that the two of them should not mingle. In the house she shared with her husband in Santa Fe, she had been in charge of computers, and it wasnat unusual for her to come home from her second, evening job and find Richard in bed asleep, the computer left on, ready for her to save the material he had written that day and turn the machine off.

Now, it didnat take Samantha long to hook up the computer and screen and attach the laser printer. It took a little more time to install the word-processing software, make an autoexec.bat, and set up a few other batch files.

Once the computer was set up, she told Mike she was ready to teach him the basics of how to use it. In the past four years she had taught many people how to use a computer, and shead dealt with some bizarre problems. There was the woman who had stapled floppies to her printouts and the man who had broken the plastic case off the floppy and tried to insert the thin inner membrane into the disk drive.

But not in four years had she encountered anyone as difficult to teach as Mike, for he couldnat seem to remember anything she told him. In teaching, shead learned that patience was everything, but after two hours with him, she was losing her composure.

She found herself beginning to shout. aF seven, not the number seven,a she said to him, but Mike once again hit the number seven key, then looked at her with wide eyes.

Ten minutes later Samantha lost it. Clutching his neck with her hands, she began to choke him. aThe F seven key! Do you hear me? The F seven key!a Laughing, Mike pulled her into his arms, and they went tumbling to the floor together. It was then that she realized he had been pretending to be stupid, and she understood that head wanted to know how far shead go before she lost her composure.

As she rolled away from him, she was extremely annoyed. Why was he always trying to drive her to the point where she was angry?

aCome on, Sam,a he said. aDonat give me that look. Donat turn back into little miss goody two shoes.a What she should do, she thought, was go upstairs and read a book. Instead, turning, she looked at him sitting there on the living room rug and, in spite of herself, she smiled. aYou can really be a pain, you know that?a Before she could move, he kissed her neck. aWhy donat I give you some research cards and you type what Iave written into your machine?a he asked.

aI see, I do all the work and you get the credit.a aIall share anything I have with you,a he said softly with great meaning to his words.

Samantha pushed him away. aLet me load the data base, and Iall start putting your information into the computer.a As he smiled at her complacently, she knew he had attained his objective: a secretary.

An hour later, Samantha didnat mind because what Mike was giving her to type was interesting. He had written out what looked to be a hundred pages of information on various gangsters whoad had something to do with Tony Barrett. She read the names of Nails and Hop Toad and Mad Dog and the Waiter and Half Hand Joe and Gyp the Blood with interest.

The more she read, the more she wondered about Tony Barrett, who might or might not be her biological grandfather. But there was very little information about him in the notes Mike gave her to type. When she asked Mike why there was so little on Barrett, who was to be the subject of the biography, Mike didnat really answer but gave her notes on what Samantha soon realized was the slaughter of May the twelfth, 1928.

She didnat like typing about that day in 1928. The leading gangster of New York had been afraid of Barrettas growing power and had decided to kill him and all his men. It didnat seem to matter that during his failed attempt to kill Barrett, Barrett had been in a speakeasy and that many innocent people were killed along with the gangsters in the blasts of machine gun fire.

With growing distaste, Samantha read about the bloodshed of that night. aI donat like this,a she said, pushing the notes away.

Mike raised an eyebrow. aMaxie disappeared that night. Arenat you curious as to why?a She looked at him in disbelief. aIt seems simple enough to understand why she left. Even if she did love Barrett, she wouldnat want to be part of something as horrifying as that bloodbath.a Mike looked at her for a moment, then asked if she wanted something to eat. When her answer was positive, he called a deli and ordered tuna salad sandwiches. After they arrived, they took them into the garden to eat.

aHow did your mother die?a Mike asked abruptly, as soon as they were seated at the picnic table.

aI killed her,a Samantha said before she thought, then blushed and looked away. She was annoyed with him for making her tell things that she didnat want to tell and annoyed with herself for confiding in him. aI donat mean that, of course. Itas just what I felt at the time. A childas fantasy.a She tried to make light of the fear that had plagued her for most of her life.

Mike was looking at her in silence, waiting for her to continue.

aI was twelve and Iad been invited to Janie Milesas birthday party. It was a very important party because Janie was the most popular girl in school and she was going to have boys at her party, but Mother didnat want me to go. When she said I was too young for boys, I got very angry and said she didnat want me to grow up. Mother said I was right, that if it were up to her Iad stay twelve years old forever.a Samantha tried her best to make her story sound amusing, for she didnat want Mike to know what she had felta"and still felt nowa"about her motheras death. Actually, she didnat want anyone to know the full extent of how her life, her world, had changed after that fateful afternoon.

Samantha took a deep breath. aAnyway, when Mother was late picking me up from school to take me to Janieas party I was livid. I was pacing the school yard vowing to never again speak to her when the princ.i.p.al came to take me home.a Mike was looking at Samanthaas hand as she had gripped the tuna sandwich so hard that it was oozing through her fingers. When she noticed where he was looking, she glanced down and saw the mutilated sandwich, then dropped it and used a napkin to clean her hand.

aMother had been rushing so hard to get me to the party shead run in front of a car. She was killed instantly.a aSama"a Reaching out to her, Mike tried to touch her, but she pulled away.

aMother had been rushing so fast that somewhere along the way shead fallen against a radiator and burned her arms and legs. But a little thing like third-degree burns didnat make her stop to go to a doctor. Her only thought was to get her daughter to a party.a Pausing, Samanthaas mouth twisted bitterly. aA very important party.a aWas it a hit-and-run?a Mike asked quickly, not wanting her to dwell on her memories, but he needed to know what she was telling him.

aHeavens no.a Looking across the picnic table at him, she tried to smile. aThe man who hit her lived in Ohio, and he was very upset about the accident. He stayed in Louisville for two weeks after Motheradied and visited Dad and me, even showing me pictures of his own children.a aSamantha,a Mike whispered, aIam sorry.a aYeah, thanks,a she murmured. aIt was a long time ago and I got over it. People can survive a great deal.a aEven husbands?a he asked, trying to make a joke.

She didnat smile. aOne can survive husbands who betray them and mothers who die and fathers who die and grandmothers who desert them. One can even survive a father who has so little confidence in his daughter that he attaches strings to her inheritance. I find that one can survive almost anything.a Getting up from the table, she started back into the house, but not before Mike caught her.

aSam,a he said, his hands on her shoulders as he turned her to face him. aIf you ever want someone to talk to, Iam here.a She forced herself to smile at him. aThereas really nothing to talk about. Nothing more than the ordinary person has to say, that is. Iave had an extraordinary number of deaths in my life and one divorce and itall take me a while to recover, but I will.a She moved away from him. aWhy donat I type more of your notes?a Frowning, Mike watched her walk back to the library. No matter what he did, he couldnat seem to penetrate the sh.e.l.l that surrounded her, yet sometimes he glimpsed a Samantha that lay under the surface of the cool, calm, always-in-control person she presented to the world. When he had kissed her, he had seen a woman of pa.s.sion. When she laughed, he saw a woman with a sense of humor. When she drank too much wine, he saw a woman who could tease and make bawdy jokes. But she never let her guard down for long. After each and every lapse, she drew herself back under control again. She was like a turtle that was being attacked and kept inside its sh.e.l.l, but now and then it stuck its vulnerable head out and looked around and soon retracted again.

Her father had said that when Samantha was a child she had been very different from the young lady she had grown into. Smiling, Dave had said that when she was a child, Sam had been a handful, that she had tangled herself into sc.r.a.pes that had nearly driven her mother crazy. Samantha had been such a tree-climbing, sa.s.sy-mouthed, fearless little h.e.l.liona"called Sam by one and alla"that her mother said it took all her brains just trying to stay ahead of her rambunctious daughter.

Sometimes Mike caught glimpses of that little girl, but most of the time it was next to impossible. He wanted to do his best to get under her skin so he could see the imp her father had described. Smiling, Mike remembered the way Sam had tried to choke him when he refused to remember her lessons with the computer. He had no intention of learning to use a computer, because if he did, head have one less excuse to spend time with Samantha. Right now, his major goal in life was to get to know her, for being around her was like watching a rosebud unfold. Daily she seemed to change and blossom more. Now all he had to do was make sure that she didnat leave his house after their meeting with Barrett. That was two days away, and if she left him in a mere two days, he knew head never see her again. The thought of not seeing Sam again was not something he wanted to contemplate.

aSam,a he yelled, following her into the library. aDid you know Maxie was a singer? She sang the blues.a

9.

aI have a date tonight,a Mike announced to Samantha. He was watching her with such intensity that she knew she was supposed to make some response, but she wasnat sure what.

aHow nice. One of the young women I met with Daphne?a aNo, sheas no one you know.a His dark eyes never so much as blinked as he stared at her. aA chorus girl actually. A dancer. Legs, that sort of thing.a aIam glad to hear that she has legs. Especially if sheas a dancer.a From the look on Mikeas face, she knew she had disappointed him. aWhat will you do while Iam gone? Sleep?a aYou may persist in your fantasy that I am on the verge of psychosis without your constant presence, but it doesnat happen to be true. I will probably wash my hair and watch TV. If that meets my guardianas approval,a she said snidely. She was laughing at him because she realized that he wanted her to be jealous of his date. The truth was, Samantha was actually a teeny tiny bit curious about this leggy date of his. Not jealous, by any means, but curious. She knew he didnat like the women whoad arrived with Daphne, but what kind of woman did Mike like? Probably tall bimbos with big bosoms, she thought. Big bosoms, long legs, and no brains.

aYeah fine,a he half mumbled. aI donat think you should go out at night though.a aOf course not. And I wonat allow any strangers in, no matter how much candy they offer mea"unless of course itas a box of really good chocolate-covered caramels. I belong to the man who offers me caramels.a It was obvious from his expression that he didnat find her levity humorousa"and he did want her to be jealous.