Crossing her forearms in front of her empty plate, she leaned forward. “No, Michael,” she said softly. “I’m not mad.”
“Why not?”
Her hesitation was barely noticeable. “A person can only sustain a certain level of anger for so long. I guess mine ran out. To tell you the truth, I’ve really missed your company these past few days.”
He had no business feeling so pleased. Especially after that flimsy excuse. It was painfully obvious that she was sitting across from him on Joseph’s orders.
“I’ve missed yours, too,” he found himself admitting. Nodding at her outfit, he added, “What’s with the casual attire?”
“I thought it would be easier to load things up wearing pants as opposed to a short skirt.”
“We’re just supervising, remember? We have big, burly truck drivers to do the loading.”
“Things’ll move faster if we help,” she said.
She had a point. Things would definitely move faster if the loaders weren’t focused on her legs. Unfortunately the faster things moved, the sooner everything would come to an end. An abrupt end. And, most likely, an unhappy end.
Their food arrived. Antonio picked up his fork and waited for Ruby to start pumping him. Five hours later he was still waiting, and he and Ruby were waving off the last moving van. Incredibly, she was still smiling at him.
Of course, they had kept their conversation on safe topics, like the weather, furniture, paintings, baseball—although how any self-respecting Pittsburgher could be a New York Yankee fan was beyond him—and music. There was no telling how she would react, however, if he asked her how long she was going to wait before getting to whatever it was Joseph had ordered her to do.
“You were right,” he said when the van rounded the corner and disappeared.
“About what?” Turning to him, she lowered the hand she had raised to shield her eyes from the sun.
“About pitching in with the loading. It really did make things move fast. What’s left to do?”
“Close up the house and return the keys to the real estate agent. That shouldn’t take longer than fifteen minutes.”
Antonio felt as if someone had just turned over an hourglass. With each grain of sand that fell, his time with Ruby slipped away. He was close, extremely close, to breaking this case wide open. Once it did, events would begin to move more swiftly than today’s loading.
If only he could have some time alone with her, away from the job. Time where nothing and no one else mattered. Time where it was just the two of them. Time where he was accountable to no one.
“It’s one o’clock now,” he said. “If traffic cooperates, we should arrive back in Pittsburgh shortly after three. Should we go straight to the gallery?”
“Tell you what,” she said, as if the thought had just occurred to her. “Why don’t we play hooky and take the rest of the day off? We’ve certainly earned it. Joseph isn’t expecting us until tomorrow. There’s nothing stopping us.”
“What’s Joseph going to think when the vans arrive without us?”
“That it took longer than we expected to wrap things up here,” Ruby replied. “Trust me, Michael, he won’t know any differently. And he won’t care. He’s gotten a fair day’s work out of us. If you want, I can finish up here, and you can be on your way. It’s a beautiful day. Enjoy.”
So much for his assumption that Joseph had put her up to her reconciliation with him. Had he been wrong? Was it just as she had explained, that her anger had run its course? Antonio’s sense of time running out intensified.
“What are you going to do with your free afternoon?” he asked.
Ruby shrugged. “I was thinking about getting my hair done. Maybe even a manicure.”
He didn’t think it was his imagination that she sounded less than thrilled about the prospect. The words were out of his mouth before he could call them back.
“Do you want to go for a plane ride?”
“Who’s the pilot?”
“Me.”
There was no hesitation. “I’d love to.”
The overwhelming urge to kick himself hit Antonio fifteen miles into his drive. That was when reality intruded. The euphoria of Ruby’s acceptance had diminished to a level where he could think logically, and he realized the risk he was taking. His professional life was about to collide with his personal one. If, while he was with Ruby, they ran into someone who knew him and called him by his real name, his cover would be blown. It would all be over.
Which begged the question, exactly why had he put himself in such a precarious position? Because she had smiled at him?
He groaned. What had he been thinking?
The smart thing to do, the only thing under the circumstances, would be to tell her that he hadn’t been able to arrange the use of the plane and to suggest an alternate activity. But if he did that, there was a good chance she would decide she really should use her unscheduled free time to have her hair styled and her nails painted. Despite the diceyness of the situation, he didn’t want that to happen.
Thank goodness he and Ruby had driven separately. Pulling over at the next rest stop, Antonio called his friend from a pay phone. Luck was with him, because not only was the plane available, it turned out that Jack planned on working well into the evening at his office, his wife and kids were at her mother’s on Cape Cod, and the household and grounds staff would be long gone by the time Antonio and Ruby arrived. No one who could possibly blow his cover would be within shouting distance.
There was still a chance the whole thing could backfire on him—Jack’s wife and kids could return early from their visit, for example—but if it bought him some time alone with Ruby, he was prepared to take the risk. He didn’t want to think too hard about what it meant that before he met her, he never would have considered taking such a risk.
He picked up Ruby in front of her apartment. Neither one of them said much on the forty-minute drive. They reached the scenic town of Ligonier shortly after five o’clock. A few minutes later they were out in the rolling countryside. He aimed his truck down a private driveway and past a stone mansion that made the Bickham estate look like a cottage.
“Wow,” Ruby murmured. “Your friend lives here?”
“Jack built this place three years ago.”
“Impressive.”
He looked for signs of envy or want on her face, but all he saw was an honest appreciation. “Yes, it is.”
A side road cut through a grove of trees and emerged next to a hangar and an airstrip. Jumping down from the truck, Antonio opened the hangar’s doors to reveal the Cessna Skyhawk residing inside. He walked around the plane, examining it closely for any visible problems, and running his hand along the wings and the rudder.
After peering under the fuselage for any signs of leakage, he glanced over his shoulder. Ruby hadn’t moved. Seemingly transfixed, she stared out at him from the truck’s passenger seat. She looked from Antonio to the plane, then back to Antonio again.
“You coming?” he called.
A full ten seconds passed before she opened the door and climbed down from the truck. After taking a few seemingly reluctant steps, she stopped just outside the hangar’s opening.
“Your friend has his own hangar?”
“And his own private runway.”
He stood silently while her gaze roved over the hangar, the plane, the adjacent runway and the acres of green rolling hills that seemed to stretch out to forever. Behind them the massive house was hidden from view by the grove of trees.
“He must be awfully rich,” she finally said.
“Like King Midas, everything Jack touches turns to money in the bank.”
“That makes him a lot richer than Joseph.”
“A whole lot.” Antonio waited a beat before adding, “He’s also married with children. Two of his own and five adopted.”
Ruby shot him an inquiring look.
He spread his arms. “I just thought I’d mention it, in case you were…considering.”
He got the distinct impression she was trying to tell him something. But what could that be? That she actually cared enough for Joseph not to ditch him for someone richer? The thought gave him little comfort.
A gentle breeze blew her hair into her face, and she raised a hand to brush it back. The sun outlined her figure in a blaze of gold, and he found himself blinking against the sudden brightness. She was a vision. But a vision of what? A glorious future? Or his ignominious downfall?
Antonio felt a wave of self-disgust wash over him. What was he doing here? God, he was pathetic. There was no other creature on earth more pitiable than a man who lusted after a woman he could never have. Especially when he should never have wanted to have her in the first place.
“How did you and Jack meet?” Ruby asked as she entered the hangar and began walking the length of the plane.
“We were college roommates.”
“Where did you go to school?”
“Penn State.”
At the plane’s nose she turned to face him. “Forgive me if this sounds pretentious, but I would have expected someone with your friend’s background to go to, shall we say, a more prestigious university?”
“You mean like Harvard or Yale?”
She nodded. “Exactly.”
“Jack’s family was as middle class as mine. He made his money after college.”
“Legally?” she asked.
“Every penny,” he confirmed.
“That’s good to hear.”
Again, Antonio got the impression she was trying to tell him something. An objective bystander might conclude that she preferred honestly earned gains over ill-gotten ones. He, however, knew better. To Ruby money was money. She certainly had never seemed to care how Joseph came by the funds that paid for her creature comforts.
He looked into the fuel tanks and satisfied himself they were full.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Checking the fuel level.”
“Isn’t there a gauge on the inside of the plane for that?”
“There is. But the first thing a pilot learns is to never trust a fuel gauge.” He nodded toward the sky. “Running out of gas up there is a lot…trickier…than running out down here.”
Her lips twisted into a wry smile. “I see your point.”
“Ready?” he asked.
She gave the plane another once-over, then bit her lip and nodded hesitantly.
“You look like you’re having second thoughts,” he said.
He almost hoped she was. Then they could both go home, and he could forget he’d done something this stupid.
“It’s smaller than I thought it would be.”
“You drive a two-seater sports car, Ruby. Compared to my truck, that’s pretty small, too. Still, it gets you where you want to go. You’re not afraid to ride in it.”
“I suppose you’re right.”
She didn’t sound convinced. Antonio’s desire that no one experience fear at the prospect of air travel exceeded his need to put distance between them.
“I’m an excellent pilot, Ruby. For what it’s worth, you have my word on that.”
She visibly relaxed, the stiffness leaving her shoulders and her arms hanging loosely at her sides. “Of course you are,” she said softly. “I trust you, Michael. I know you won’t do anything to hurt me.”
This time there was no mistaking it. She was definitely trying to tell him something. The possibilities made his heart race.
“Thank you,” he replied. “I know you don’t give your trust easily. I promise you, it’s not misplaced.”
He helped her up into the cabin, walked around the front of the plane and climbed in next to her.
“Buckle up,” he ordered as he sank into the leather seat and continued his preflight check.
“Don’t you have to file a flight plan?” she asked.
He didn’t want to explain that the purpose of filing a flight plan was so that someone would come looking for you if you didn’t arrive at your destination within a prescribed period of time. She was jittery enough as it was.
“There’s no air traffic control tower here to file one with. Besides, we’re not going far. I just want to show you a little of the countryside.”
She reached out a hand and clutched at his arm. “Promise me one thing?”
The warmth of her hand distracted him, and he found himself studying the slender fingers curled around his wrist. “What?” he managed to say.
“No spins or acrobatic loops, please.” She gave a tentative smile. “I have a weak stomach.”
She really was scared. Because if there was one thing Antonio knew with absolute certainty, it was that her stomach was as weak as cast iron.
Placing one hand atop hers, he gave it a reassuring squeeze. “I promise, Ruby. No spins or loops. It’ll be smooth sailing all the way.”
Her hand dropped to her side. “Thank you.”
“You’re sure you want to do this?”
“I’m sure.”
He wondered why she had so readily agreed to come, if she was so nervous. Could it be she also sensed their time together was fast coming to an end, and that she was as reluctant as he for it to end? Or was he just clutching at straws?
“You don’t sound sure,” he said.
She thrust out her chin. “I’m sure, Michael.”
“Let’s go, then.”
He positioned the throttle and started the engine. A minute later he backed the Cessna out of the hangar and began taxiing to the runway. At the head of the narrow strip, he lined up with the centerline and brought the plane to a stop.
“You might want to hold your ears,” he told Ruby. “I have to perform one final check. It’s going to get noisy in here.”
Holding the wheel full back and keeping his foot on the brakes, Antonio powered the engine up to the prescribed RPM to make sure it would accept the demands of takeoff and flight. Satisfied, he released the brakes.
“Here we go.”
He felt the plane come alive beneath his hands as it began speeding down the runway. The liftoff was so smooth, he was almost surprised to find that he was airborne. After banking, he climbed to an altitude of two thousand feet before leveling off.
There wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Spread out before them was a panoramic vista of rolling hills, trees and lush green land. Tiny cars traveled on roads that twisted and turned like a thin, narrow gray river. Even Jack’s house, when he turned and flew over it, looked small from up in the air. The entire view reminded Antonio of a picture on a jigsaw puzzle box.
He gave Ruby a chance to gather her bearings and look around before asking, “Well, what do you think?”
Her face, when she turned to him, was alight with pleasure, her eyes wide with wonder. “It’s incredible, Michael. I’ve flown dozens of times before, but always in a jet. It’s never felt like this. This is like…like…” She trailed off, obviously searching for the right words. “Like I stretched my arms out and suddenly I was soaring. No wonder you love it so much.”
Antonio smiled his understanding. Even after hundreds of hours in the air, the feeling he got while at the controls of a plane never changed, never grew old.
“It’s a feeling like no other, isn’t it?” he said. “Up here, things just naturally seem to fall into perspective. No matter what my worries are on the ground, when I’m flying they’re no longer important. For some reason, no problem seems that insurmountable up here.”
Except for his problem of what to do about her. That wasn’t strictly true, he acknowledged. He knew what he had to do to solve his problem with Ruby. He had to forget her. He just wasn’t ready to. Not yet.
“How long can we stay up?” There was a wistfulness in her voice that tugged at his emotions.
“For a while.”
“I wish I had my sketch pad.”
“There’s
a pocket in the seat back. I know Jack keeps paper and crayons and such in there for the kids. It’s not charcoal, but it should do in a pinch.”
While Ruby poised a black crayon over a colored sheet of paper, Antonio pointed out local landmarks. He also studied her out of the corner of one eye. She was like a kid on her first visit to a candy store, exclaiming in delight over this sight and that. Her hand seemed to race across the paper. No sooner had she captured one image than she set the sheet aside and reached for another.
She was the most beautiful woman Antonio had ever seen, but it wasn’t her beauty that captivated him so. The world was full of beautiful women. What set Ruby apart were her joy and her enthusiasm. When she looked at him as she did now, with her eyes aglow and her face all lit up at the prospect of portraying one small bush on a piece of paper, Antonio felt his chest grow tight. A primitive urge to possess her in the only way that mattered to a man took hold of him.
The way she looked now was one of hundreds of visions of Ruby that he carried around with him in his brain. Visions of her with two puppies scrambling across her lap. Visions of her sitting, barefoot, on a park bench. Visions of her reading Serena Bickham’s old love letters with tears in her eyes. Visions of those same eyes darkening and her lips parting when he bent his head to kiss her.
The one aspect of her personality that he hadn’t seen since that first Saturday was the incorrigible flirt. He was beginning to believe she used that persona as a defense mechanism to keep men at a distance.
It sure hadn’t kept him away.
Despite her need to attach herself to a wealthy man—a need, given her background, he understood even if he didn’t approve of it—the woman sitting next to him was someone he could really like.
She was someone he could spend endless hours with and never be bored.
She was someone he could…what? Love? His mind balked at the thought.
When it was time to head back—to the real world, to Joseph and to the police work that would ultimately end any positive feelings she had for him—Antonio had to fight the impulse to fly away with her into the blue, where no one could ever touch them, and never return.
For long seconds after he’d pulled the Cessna into the hangar and shut off the engine, he sat staring out the windshield at the back wall.
Laura and the Lawman Page 19