“That's the best thing about having a sister-in-law who's an interior designer. Tom nearly had a fit, but when I told him about all the discounts, he didn't say too much. Besides, it's his sister who talked me into it."
Nikki giggled. “Tom never says too much about anything you do. You've trained him well."
“Yes, he's a keeper.” Marti sat down on the Italian leather sofa and motioned for Nikki to join her.
Nikki settled into the baby-butt-soft leather sofa. “Longer than the other two?"
“Well, I learned on Joel and Chris, and now Tommy reaps the benefit of my maturity."
Nikki tried, but couldn't keep from giggling. “Maturity? You're thirty-three."
“Mere details, darling. You know I've always felt older than my years, except when I was being very immature, of course."
“Of course."
“Besides you didn't know me when I was eighteen. I was a wild child then.” Marti leaned forward, her eyes wide. “But enough about me, what's the scoop on you and Max? I'm not going to feed you any dinner until you tell me absolutely everything."
“Are you really going to make me rehash it all?"
“Of course. So spill,” Marti said with a girlish giggle.
Nikki made a face. She'd known Marti for ten years. Her oldest friend wasn't about to give up until she knew everything. “I was at the beach house. Max called from Provençe and asked me to fly over."
“Sounds great. That's what you want, isn't it, to be with Max?"
“Yes—well—I don't know. Nikki shrugged. “It's confusing. I don't know what to expect from him anymore. You know I've idolized him since that first night. He was my knight in shining armor.
Marti laughed. “I think I might have heard this story once or twice before."
“I guess you have at that,” Nikki admitted. “Anyway, Max has always been so unobtainable. Now all of a sudden, he wants me to visit him in France? I don't understand. First, I'd heard through the grapevine he was in France with Arianne Willoughby. When he called me, I assumed they'd had an argument. I—uh, wasn't very receptive."
Marti shook her head. “Not receptive. I suppose by that you mean you blessed him out in no uncertain terms."
“Sort of."
“Well, I do have a grapevine of my own, you know,” Marti said. “Arianne's father and my Tommy both being bankers. I'd heard she was interested in him, but I never heard about any signs of interest on his part. I think you're upset for no reason."
“Well, to be fair, Max did say she followed him to Paris, and he told her he wasn't interested,” Nikki allowed. “But why would she act as if they are nearly engaged, if there's not some reason?"
“From what I know about Arianne, she's not used to taking no for an answer."
“If he's telling the truth.” Nikki shifted on the sofa.
“Is Max in the habit of lying to you?” Marti asked.
“No. Not that I know."
“Just my point, Nikki."
“Okay, but wait, you don't know everything that happened. When Max called, Jolie had just fired me a couple of days before.''
“Fired you? Is she nuts? You're the agency's top model. Don't you have other agencies sniffing around all the time?"
Nikki nodded. “That's another story. But still I wasn't in a very good mood to begin with. I told him I was too busy with rethinking my life. He seemed to think that was amusing. Then he told me he'd talk to me later when I was in a better mood. The next day I'm out on the beach, and there he is, walking straight toward me."
“Impulsive ... and determined. I like that in a man.” Marti giggled. “Go on. Then what?"
“We had dinner."
“You cooked?” Marti asked in disbelief.
Nikki grinned. “No, he did."
“This is better and better. I love a man who cooks. And ... after dinner?"
“We were sitting before the fireplace about to talk and have some wine ... and the phone rang."
“No.” Marti groaned.
“Yes, and it was my mother."
“Oh, Lord."
“Yes. She felt it her maternal duty to call and read me the riot act because she had heard about my leaving the agency on television. She also managed to get in a few digs about Max."
“And you hung up on her ... I hope.”
“Yes. You know how she never fails to piss me off. By then, I had a headache, so I pointed Max toward the guest room, and I went to bed."
“You're kidding?” Marti shook her head in disbelief. “I can't believe you had the man of your dreams, alone and in the same room, and you sent him down the hall to the guest room."
Nikki gave a rueful laugh. “I did."
The more she tried to explain about her desire for independence, the more her friend shook her head. Nikki concluded her story with Max's calling her about Alexa. “So that's how I ended up at the townhouse."
Marti sat with her mouth open for a moment, then said, “You are in quite a predicament, aren't you? He may have you right where he wants you, but it's up to you to take advantage of it."
“Take advantage of it? Max and I can't start a relationship with Alexa there. It wouldn't be proper. I'm supposed to set an example, not seduce her father."
Marti seemed to consider Nikki's reservations. “Okay, think of it as an opportunity to know the real Max. I mean, if you really want to get to know him, the situation is ideal. Keep some distance between you, but not too much. Drive him crazy with desire. That's what I'd do."
“Au contraire. He's already driving me crazy. The dream I had the night he was at the beach house. Whew!"
“X-rated?"
“Was it ever. The hard part about waking up was that it was so real. And it seemed so right. It didn't seem like the first time, either.” Nikki grew contemplative, then asked. “Did I tell you Max sent me a gift?"
Marti shook her head.
“The day before he called, he sent me this old French mask he bought from an antique shop in Paris—for my birthday, which isn't until July. I put it on at the beach house, and I either fainted or went to sleep. I'm not sure which, but I had another dream. Max and I were lovers in France, but it had a tragic end. Max was killed after making love to me."
“That wasn't very nice of you."
“I didn't mean I killed him. The Nazis did, after he left me. I think reading about the mask's history must've made me dream that, because it referred to a similar incident."
“Interesting."
“It was anything but interesting. In my dream I saw him lying in a pool of blood, and I woke up crying."
“It must've seemed very real. Still it was only a dream.” Marti's voice soothed, encouraging Nikki to continue.
“It was more like watching a movie than a dream, Marti. You know how dreams are usually all jumbled up? Well, this one made perfect sense.” Nikki worried her lower lip for several seconds, then decided to take the plunge. If Marti thought she was crazy, so what? Nikki took a deep breath, then asked, “Do you believe in reincarnation, Marti?"
“Not sure if I do or not,” she said with a slight shrug.
Nikki continued, “At first I thought it was just a dream, but now I wonder if wearing the mask stimulated some kind of—I don't know—karmic memory?"
Marti smiled and raised an eyebrow. “Well, you're getting pretty deep into the esoteric realm here. I guess it's possible that you and Max have been together before and are still trying to work it out."
“I don't know. I mean who can really know that stuff?"
“True."
“On the other hand, maybe it's a warning. Maybe we aren't good for each other. Honestly, I want to be with him, but whenever he broaches the subject, I back off,” she wailed. “I can't help it. I just want to run in the opposite direction."
“It's more likely you're reacting to what happened with Ian Starr."
“That was a long time ago. I'm over it."
Marti reached over and patted Nikki's hand. “I'm not so s
ure about that. Still, you'll never know, if you don't give Max a chance."
“Life shouldn't be so complicated.” Nikki paused and sipped her coffee. “Something else happened at the beach house too."
“What?"
“After he left the cottage, I walked back and found a rose lying on the wrought iron table. First, I thought Max had left it, but there was a note lying under it. Someone had scrawled, You don't need him. What do you think? It really gave me the creeps. I was already packed and ready to leave, when Max called and asked me to come to the townhouse."
A puzzled look crossed Marti's face. “Ever received anything like it before?"
“No."
“I don't like the sound of it. Did you call the police?"
“No, I threw it away. I mean, it didn't threaten me or anything. The police would've just blown me off."
“Well, I don't know, but if it happens again, promise me you will. I don't want to scare you, but it sounds like you might have a stalker."
“One rose doesn't make a stalker."
“I still think you ought to call the police,” Marti said, giving an emphatic nod of her head. “By the way, have you tried on the mask again?"
“No. I mean—well, I hadn't slept the night before. I thought I'd fallen asleep, and dreamt it, but the more I think about it ... Hell, I don't know."
“Just as an experiment, mind you, why don't you try it, again? I mean either you will or you won't. If there's something about the mask, which caused it the first time, then it might happen again."
She frowned as she considered the idea. The initial result had been pretty startling. “What if something worse happens?” she asked, uneasy at the thought of trying it again. “I'm not sure I want to experience those other lives, if that's what's happening."
“What if you brought the mask over here...” Marti suggested, “...and I stayed with you? If it looked like you were having a rough time, I could just wake you up, and that would be that."
Nikki grinned at her friend. “I think you're more interested in this previous life thing than I am. I can't believe you'd even consider something like this. You're usually so levelheaded—"
“I may be levelheaded, Sweetie, but I've had an experience or two that makes me think that anything is possible.” She rustled in her pocket for a cigarette. “I know, I know. I need to quit, and I will, but not yet."
Nikki watched her friend become very agitated, her hands shaking as she lit a cigarette. Marti took a long drag before speaking.
“I don't think I ever told you, but when I was about nine or ten, my grandmother was sick. My mother had gone to Cambridge to stay with her, but she wouldn't let me go. Mother said Gramma was too ill, so I was left home in Boston with my governess. Late one night after I'd gone to sleep, I woke up, and there was Gramma standing at my bedside smiling at me. I said, ‘I thought you were sick.’ she smiled and shook her head. ‘Not any more, child. I'm much better, and I wanted to see my little namesake. You go back to sleep now.’ Then she sat down in the rocker by my bed, and I went back to sleep. The next morning, everyone was rushing around, and my mother was back at home. I asked her where Gramma was, and she told me Gramma died the night before. I kept saying, ‘No, she didn't. She was here last night, in my room. I saw her.’ My mother became very upset and told me to be quiet and never mention it again. It wasn't until later when I heard of other people having similar experiences that I even remembered what had happened."
The hair raised on Nikki's neck and forearms. “I've heard of things like that too, but I've never known anyone who actually experienced it."
“That's not the only time I've had it happen, Nik. When I was sixteen, I was in the school library, studying for an exam. I kept seeing someone in my peripheral vision. I'd turn around and look, but no one was there. Finally, I heard my brother Eric laugh, as if he were playing a joke on me. Then I heard him say, as clearly as I can hear you, ‘Bye, Sis. I have to go now.’ When I turned again, he wasn't there. I called home, and mother said I was being silly, that Eric was with friends, and I needed to get out of the library and get some fresh air. An hour later, my father called and told me that Eric had died in a boating accident. So, yes, I do believe there is more to life than we know. I don't think anything is impossible. Far from it."
Nikki shivered, rubbing her arms. “The hair is absolutely standing up on my arms. So you think we ought to try this little experiment?"
“I do. Then if nothing happens, you'll know you were tired and it was just a bad dream."
Skeptical, but curious, Nikki took a deep breath and agreed, “Okay, let's do it."
Twenty-two
Nikki and Marti made a quick trip to the townhouse. “Max?” Nikki called, listening for a response. She shrugged and turned to Marti. “Come on in. I guess he and Alexa have gone to dinner. Now, we can get in and out without any questions. I'll be right back.”
She bounded upstairs to her room and retrieved the mask from its place of safekeeping, an old-fashioned hatbox on top of the armoire. Lifting the lid, she looked inside the box. Yes, still there. A frisson of unease shimmered down her neck and lodged in her stomach. Don't be silly. It's just butterflies, she told herself.
She carried the box down to the foyer where Marti waited.
“You look like the cat that ate the canary. I take it your mission was a success."
“It's right here.” She patted the hatbox.
“So, let's see it."
“Now?"
“Yes, now. Just for a second. Then home for the grand experiment,” Marti said, the sound of excitement mounting in her voice.
“All right, but I don't want to be here when Max and Alexa come home.” Removing the top, she revealed the leather mask.
“It's beautiful.” Marti reached for it. “May I?"
“Sure,” Nikki said, shrugging.
Marti took the mask, lifting it from the box, then dropped it. “Oh."
“What's wrong?"
Marti looked at Nikki and again at the mask. “No, I—uh, I don't know. Something strange happened. Look, sweetie, maybe this isn't such a good idea, after all. Why don't you take that thing and—uh, put it away. Why don't we take in a movie and forget all about Max and that silly mask?"
“Marti?"
“Or we could go have a drink."
Nikki took Marti by the shoulders. “What's wrong? You're acting very strange."
“Let's go home and I'll tell you. I need that drink."
During the taxi ride back to Marti's apartment, Marti tried explaining the sensations she'd experienced when she'd touched the mask. “It didn't burn, but the mask was definitely warm. It almost felt alive. When I touched it, I had flashes—visions of people running and shouting. It doesn't make a lot of sense to me right now, but maybe in time it will.” She shivered, a fey look in her eyes.
Marti's expression sent another chill up Nikki's spine. She closed her eyes for a moment, but the twin images of a Royal Guard and a French Resistance soldier caused her to open them right away. She shook her head. Two Max's were too many. She had enough trouble with the Max Devereaux in the present, she wasn't signing on for any more.
~ * ~
Once back at the apartment, Nikki opened the box. “I'm going to prove that all this nonsense about the mask is just that—nonsense."
Marti placed a restraining hand on her shoulder. “I wish you wouldn't do this. It was a stupid idea. I'm sorry I suggested it."
“I disagree. Look, I'm touching it, and I don't feel a thing.” She raised the mask. “See, I'm putting on the mask and nothing—"
~ * ~
Over his after dinner coffee, Max smiled at his daughter. “Lexie, I promise I'll find you a school in the city for the fall. I won't send you away again. The house is so lonely without you. I missed you too much. I was selfish. Didn't think how it would affect you."
“Is Nikki going to stay with us in the fall?” his calculating daughter asked, glancing up at him from under her spi
ky dark lashes.
“I have no idea what her plans are. I doubt she does either."
A sudden wave of vertigo hit Max. He grasped the edges of the table with both hands.
“Daddy, what's wrong? You're pale.”
He shut his eyes for a moment before answering. “I'm not sure. I felt like the room was spinning, but now it seems to be going away."
His daughter's eyes grew wide. “Are you sure?"
“It's nothing. In fact, I'm fine.” He shrugged. “It's over.” Looking at his watch, he said, “I need to make a call.” The vertigo had passed, but a feeling of unease remained. Images of Nikki had come to mind and wouldn't go away. Something was wrong. He keyed in his home number, but the answering machine picked up. “She's not answering."
“Wasn't she going to Marti's?"
~ * ~
Nikki would have fallen to the floor if Marti hadn't been standing by her side. She eased her friend down on the leather sofa and held her hand. What else could she do?
“Shit.” Worried, Marti patted the side of Nikki's face. “Answer me, what's happening? Your color's good. Are you breathing okay? Yes, breathing's okay."
She continued watching, but Nikki made no response to any of Marti's feverish efforts to awaken her.
“Omigod. Should I call a doctor or 911?” she muttered, wringing her hands. Maybe Nikki would come out of this spell on her own. Marti held her breath and waited.
~ * ~
Nicola walked about the open deck and spied the Captain of the Santa Elicia at the helm. She made her way toward him, determined she would have her fears allayed ... or confirmed.
“Captain, does a storm approach?"
“Not much of one, Signora, but you should remain below in your quarters. My ship and I have weathered many such storms.” The Captain smiled, flashing his white teeth behind a chestnut mustache.
She found his presence virile and his sea green eyes compelling. She nodded her agreement, suddenly suspicious the handsome officer had merely placated her. Still, she would take his advice.
See You In My Dreams Page 21