Handling the ring as if he could pry open its secrets, he could almost see the woman now, almost hear the lilt of her soft voice whispering in the dark…
Could almost feel her loving touch on his cheek…
As if the ring had a life of its own…
“Aahh!” The frustration got to him and he curled his fingers around the ring.
Next he fetched his newest treasure, a gold chain set with diamonds, from which hung a sapphire-studded crescent moon. He’d found it by luck when he’d gone down alone and had sifted through the sand by hand. The chain obviously had been torn from a larger piece, one he hadn’t yet found.
A matter of time and opportunity.
Certain the find would be his, he tucked both ring and chain away again.
Glaring out the porthole at his competition, Morgan decided he would do whatever it took, even if he had to get close to Cordelia Ward for information. The idea of getting really close to her made his blood rush even faster—she was a beautiful, exciting woman. He wanted a taste of that. But would a taste be enough for him? Not that his desires would let her stop him from getting what he deserved.
If her claim had any validity, Morgan wasn’t aware of it. His research had proved this particular sunken treasure was his family’s inheritance, therefore fate decreed that he should be the one to claim it.
…
Everything Innis Foley ever wanted was within his reach.
If Morgan Murphy didn’t foul things up for him, that was.
“I told you the fetish would do its work on the woman,” Brigitte said in a low voice from behind him, though they were alone in the galley.
“So you did.” He turned to meet her dark gaze. “You kept your promise.”
“As I assume you will keep yours.”
“You know I always pay for what I want.”
“Good,” she murmured. “Then we will have no problem.”
“What kind of problem would that be?”
Did she think to use her Voodoo on him? Innis knew he shouldn’t put it past her.
As if reading his mind, Brigitte tilted her head and gave him her most innocent expression. “I foresee only success where you are concerned.”
“Good.”
“Especially where your Cordelia is concerned, eh?”
“I’ve wanted her forever,” he admitted. “I fell in love with her more than a decade ago when we were teenagers. And then, at summer’s end, her parents took her home after a hurricane struck and destroyed the site of the wreck her father was diving. I thought I had lost her forever.”
Two years older than Cordelia, he had gone off to college. Fate had kept them apart for many years, but he’d never gotten her out of his heart.
“Now you will finally have your heart’s desire,” Brigitte said. “Along with the treasure of a lifetime.”
“Finding the mother lode and bringing it up for her will make her happy.” When they’d met again a few years ago, she had treated him only like a good friend. He was desperate to change that. “I’m going to prove that I’m the right man for her.”
They walked out on deck together.
Already suited up, his first mate stopped what he was doing and smiled when he saw his wife. “Brigitte, you are here for a good luck kiss before I go down, I assume?”
“Exactly.”
Brigitte swayed over to the man who was more than double her width and stood on her toes for that kiss. And Innis couldn’t help envying Leandre, though he told himself that it was only a matter of time before he had such power over Cordelia’s feelings.
Two teams ready to go down were doing a final check on their equipment
“Get that magazine going,” he told Leandre, who took charge of the blowers, the main tool they would use to clear the area so the divers could see what they had below.
Leandre lowered the giant tubes mounted on the stern. As they plunged downward into the blue-green depths, Innis told the divers, “Get in that water and find the first of the treasure before that pirate does.”
“And be careful!” Cordelia yelled over the noise of the magazine engine.
She looked stunning standing there at the rail of the Evening Star next to her mother. Still wearing her turquoise bathing suit, she’d wrapped a flower-print sarong around her and tied it at her hips. Her feet were bare, her blond hair was free, an errant breeze fluttering the pale strands around her lightly tanned face. He’d never seen anything more beautiful. Just looking at her when she was unaware of his scrutiny made it hard to breathe.
Cordelia Ward was everything he’d ever wanted in a wife. And Innis was certain she was destined to be his.
He joined them at the rail. “I have a good feeling about this.”
Cordelia turned to look up him. Her eyes shone with expectation. “I do, too.”
“We make a good team.”
“Of course. Exactly as good friends should.”
“I need to see to lunch,” Madelyn said, leaving the rail. “Would you care to join us, Innis?”
“I would love to.” He waited until she was out of earshot before saying, “I’ve dreamed of this day, Cordelia.”
She nodded. “Finding the Celestine was Dad’s dream, so I understand.”
“I meant working side by side with you.”
She flushed. “You’ve dreamed of it?”
“Ever since we were so tragically separated all those years ago.”
“Why, I do believe you’re being a bit dramatic, Innis Foley,” she said in a teasing voice that made him smile.
“Only a little.”
He knew he had it in him to do whatever he set his mind to. He’d already proved that he was the right man to run Foley Salvage, the family business. His father had made him feel unworthy—had tried to convince him that he would turn out to be nothing—but, determined to get ahead, Innis had hardened himself against his own uncertainty. In the end, he’d won over the board and had defeated his acrimonious father. Taking control of the business, he’d proved the old man wrong.
A first step in the right direction for his future.
This treasure hunt was his chance to get everything he ever wanted, starting with Cordelia and ending with the infamous celestial girdle, the jeweled prize of the Celestine mother lode.
After all, who had a better right to claim it than a descendent of the House of Lennox?
…
Cordelia was furious when Morgan shadowed her team and sent his divers down so close to hers as they investigated the hulk. She’d felt like they were looking over her shoulder for an opportunity to claim what she might find.
She couldn’t wait to go down again for a second dive, but Innis was busy supervising via a live video feed from one of his divers equipped with an underwater camera. She didn’t want to dive with anyone else, at least not today. After watching the monitor over Innis’s shoulder, she caught sight of more sharks. Twice in one day was enough for her, and they did have six divers.
She wandered across deck to where her mother sat in a shady spot.
Mom glanced up at her. “You seem tense.”
“Nervous. I should be down there with the other divers.”
“Then why aren’t you?”
Cordelia looked to the navigation area where Innis had set up the monitors. “My dive partner is otherwise occupied.”
“So that’s it, is it?”
“What do you mean?”
“You’re interested in Innis.”
“Of course I am.”
“I remember the summer when you two met and hung out together. He seemed to make you happy.”
“He did.” Cordelia felt the attraction she’d had all those years ago spring back to life, but the project came first. As always.
“Then yo
u’ll be giving a personal relationship another chance?”
She took the seat next to her mother. “We’ll see.”
“No man has ever had the power to come before your work.”
“Perhaps because the right man wasn’t around to distract me properly.”
“Cordelia, if you don’t have feelings for Innis—”
“But I do have feelings for him,” Cordelia argued. “I just need to sort them out.”
She’d never forgotten the boy who’d first kissed her, who’d held her heart for a summer, but when she had a specific goal, she was single-minded until she reached it. Finding the Celestine’s mother lode was her current focus. Not that she didn’t want romance in her life. Until now, it had simply been an abstract concept. Innis was making her wonder what working together would bring in terms of their personal relationship. He was so confident and had a dynamic personality. What woman wouldn’t be flattered by his interest?
“If you do care for Innis, what do you intend to do about it?”
“It’s too soon, Mom. I have to get to know him all over again. Innis and I haven’t even spent any time alone together since he agreed to work the hunt for us.”
“You’ll have this evening at the Crescent Key Yacht Club. I’m not up to going to the festivities, after all.”
Cordelia had been looking forward to Midsummer Night, to celebrating the Summer Solstice, her birthday, and a night of magic, echoing whispers of her supernatural inheritance from Elizabeth. But if her mother didn’t want to go…
“Mom, you have to come.”
“I know it’s your special day, but I’d rather not leave the ship. Out here, I feel closer to Clive than I have since he died. It’s a wonderful feeling.”
“Then I won’t go, either. I’ll stay here with you and—”
“Give me some room, honey. I’m glad you got me here. Remembering all those hunts with your father is filling my heart. I need a little time alone with his memory. You understand, don’t you?”
“Of course.” Though she didn’t. Not really. Not when she’d never experienced the kind of love and commitment her parents had had for each other.
“Then stop pushing, please. I want you to have a good time with Innis. The best birthday ever.”
Though Cordelia knew she had, indeed, been pushing her mother to rise up from the depression that had taken over her life, she still wasn’t certain if her mother was insisting on the time alone for herself or to let her daughter have time alone with a special man. Either way, she was going to respect her mother’s request for her to stop pushing. But while on the subject of her father…
“How did you know Dad was the right man for you?”
A sad smile slipped across her mother’s lips. “From the moment we met, I couldn’t imagine my life without him.”
Words that had recently seared her heart. “Elizabeth said the same about Will.”
“You’ve been reading her journal again.”
“Last night. She talks about a love that will live through the ages.” She could almost hear Elizabeth’s heartfelt message, as if she’d been there. “I can’t imagine ever feeling such emotion. And yet I feel connected to her.”
“She was our ancestor.”
“Four centuries ago. It’s difficult to explain, but I feel like she’s here now, with me somehow.”
“The journal has touched your heart.” Mom picked up Cordelia’s hand and kissed the birthmark on her wrist. “You are special, my lovely daughter. Never forget that. You have her mark.”
While the Posey ring and treasure box had been passed down from mother to daughter for four centuries, the birthmark, along with psychic ability, skipped generations.
“Do you ever regret not having the connection?” Cordelia asked.
“I had your father to keep me content. The women who have borne the mark haven’t always fared well in love.”
“You think there’s a connection?” One that affected her?
“Who is to say? You’re an exceptional woman. Anything is possible for you. Perhaps you hold Elizabeth’s magic as well.”
Oh, sure. The biggest trick Cordelia had ever managed was a little telekinesis.
Not that moving things around with her mind was easy for her.
The last time was several months ago, when she’d sent a vase of flowers flying against a wall. Her supposed date had them delivered after standing her up when he’d told her to meet him in front of a movie theater.
Spotting a magazine that had fallen to the deck of her mother’s chair, Cordelia concentrated on it, willed it to move back where it belonged. A couple of pages fluttered—her or the breeze?—and Cordelia gave up. She’d been trying to make telekinesis work for her off and on all her life, but it seemed that strong emotions had to be involved or she simply couldn’t do it.
“Magic, huh?” she mused. “That would be great if it translated into my finding the mother lode before that treasure hunter gets his hands on it.” On the knife with the jeweled handle in particular.
“I’m glad you found the journal, but don’t get lost in the romance of Elizabeth’s story.”
Having told her mother about several of the journal entries, Cordelia wondered what bothered her. “Why the warning?”
“If Elizabeth’s belief that she and Will shall find each other again is true, then Carlyle shall certainly try to stop them from being together.”
Despite the icy fingers that crept down her spine, Cordelia laughed. “C’mon, Mom. Elizabeth was the ultimate romantic. That’s not me. I’m far too pragmatic to believe in such a haunting love story.”
She glanced at Innis, walking toward them with a sparkle in his eyes and a smile hovering about the lips that had kissed her.
And for a heart-tripping moment, she wondered if it could all be true.
Chapter Twelve
Later that afternoon, several crew members from Foley’s Treasure were getting ready to go down for the last dive of the day. And Innis was going with them.
“Maybe I should join you.” An anxious Cordelia didn’t want to miss anything. She wasn’t one to sit mesmerized watching a video feed for an entire dive. “I have only done that one dive this morning.”
“Save your energy for tomorrow when the hunt really begins.” Innis did a final check on his regulator and slipped into his vest and tank. “It’s up to you, but I thought you might want to spend some time this afternoon with your mother, being that she’ll stay onboard alone tonight.”
Even though Mom had insisted, Cordelia couldn’t help but feel a little guilty. “You do have a point.”
“And I have enough divers to finish setting up the grid. I promise you, that’s all we’ll do today.” Grinning at her, Innis leaned close enough that she could feel his breath on her cheek. “I wouldn’t think of searching for treasure without you.”
A little breathless, she said, “All right, then.”
Still, she glanced over to her greatest worry—the Sea Rover, anchored but a hundred yards away.
“And don’t give Murphy another thought, Cordelia.” Innis’s brow furrowed and his mouth tightened. “If he becomes a problem, I’ll take care of him.”
Did he mean physically? Cordelia hoped not.
“Innis, please don’t do anything foolish. I wouldn’t want you to get hurt.”
“How do you know I would be the one hurt?”
“In-n-nis!”
“All right.” He smiled at her. “I’ll take it as a compliment that you’re concerned about me. I won’t do anything foolish.”
He brushed his lips over hers in a kiss so quick she didn’t have time to react. Then he saluted her and joined the members of his crew who were making the dive.
Cordelia crossed back to the Evening Star, which was still anchored a
gainst Foley’s Treasure. But rather than joining her mother immediately, she watched the divers roll into the water, wishing she were going with them. She couldn’t keep herself from standing at the rail for long enough that she wondered what was going on below the surface.
Again, she checked out the Sea Rover. The only person visible was an older man who watched the waters with what seemed to be a sharp eye.
“Aaah!” Cordelia vented her frustration.
Certain that Murphy and his men were still down below and trying to beat her to the treasure, she only hoped they didn’t find anything. And that they didn’t make trouble for Innis or his crew. Why couldn’t this have been the idyllic treasure hunt she’d hoped for? Her father’s memory deserved to be honored. Her mother deserved to have a reason to truly regain her life.
Surely Murphy wouldn’t succeed in stealing that from the people she loved.
As if thinking about the treasure hunter had summoned him, Murphy rose up next to the boat like Poseidon emerging from the sea. Shocked by his presence, Cordelia stared down at him, openmouthed, stomach tightening, as he used the dive ladder to climb aboard. Not that he’d been diving. She thought he’d just swam over from his boat. He wasn’t sporting any gear. Or much in the way of anything else. His short skins were tight enough to show off his trim waist and muscular thighs. And, well, all his assets.
Her mouth went dry.
He shook his head as if trying to clear his ears. Water whipped from his long hair and pelted her.
“Thanks for the shower, Murphy!” she forced out. “What do you think you’re doing, boarding my boat without permission?”
And why was her pulse thundering so hard?
His lips quirked. “Would you have granted me permission?” When she didn’t answer, he said, “That’s what I thought. I wanted a chance to talk to you without Foley around to interrupt.”
“Innis Foley is—”
“Your partner, right? Or is he something more?” His tone changed slightly. “Lover?”
How dare he ask her something so personal? That she’d hired Innis and had given him a stake in the find was her own business. “What we are—or aren’t—is none of your concern.”
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