“I want to apologize for getting you into this situation,” Thad said, breaking the silence between them. His head was bowed as he continued his chore.
Darnell was impressed by the sincerity in his tone. He didn’t strike her as being a humble man, which made an apology from him a major event. However, that paled compared to the effect his voice was having on her. It was low, husky, and very sexy. She cleared her throat, unsure of her own voice. She hoped it sounded steady because she certainly didn’t feel that way.
“Don’t worry about it. You saved our lives tonight.”
Thad lifted his head to look at her. The sleeve was folded, but he was still holding her arm, gently caressing it with his thumb. “Yes, but if I had taken you home in the first place, you wouldn’t have been in the car when the tire blew.”
Self-consciously, Darnell withdrew from his grasp. “That’s true, but if I wasn’t with you, you’d be out here in these mountains by yourself and wouldn’t have anyone here to protect you.”
It took Thad a second to get what she was saying. Then his booming laughter echoed throughout the car.
“That was a good one!” It was hard to believe that a short while ago he had been ready to toss her out on the highway from a moving car. Now, he was actually enjoying being with her. The mountain air must be affecting his brain.
With a sigh of regret, he got out of the car and moved to the roomier back seat. Darnell followed his movements.
“What are you doing?”
“It’s too cramped up there. I need leg room,” he explained, knowing that what he was saying wasn’t entirely true. He wasn’t about to tell her that he needed to put distance between them. Being so close to her was a bit too tempting. In spite of their constant differences, she did arouse the male in him. They were beginning to establish a camaraderie, and he didn’t want to blow it.
Now settled comfortably in the back seat, he watched as Darnell shifted her position in the front seat, stretching her legs over the console and onto the empty driver’s seat. She rested her sandal-clad feet against his overnight bag. He noticed that her toenails were pedicured and that the dark red polish matched that on her manicured fingernails. Sexy.
“Open the bag, and you’ll find some clean socks inside. You’re going to need something on your feet tonight when it gets cold.”
Much to Thad’s relief, Darnell did as he suggested. She needed to cover those toes. Actually, she needed to cover her entire body. Darnell Cameron was simply too sexy for her own good. She was also enterprising, self-sufficient, stubborn, and demanding. She was different than most of the woman he had been with over the years, that was for sure. He was a man used to having women cater to him. With Darnell, there was no fear of that happening. She took nothing from him, and strange as it might seem, he liked that about her. As hard as he tried not to, he was beginning to like her. Too bad the sentiment was not returned. But he wasn’t a bad guy. She needed to know that.
“Hey, Darnell, I’ve got something to ask you.”
“What?” Her tone was cautious.
Thad swallowed, surprised by his sudden anxiety about the question he was about to ask. “What do you think of me?”
Darnell paused. Where had that come from? If she didn’t know better she would think that her answer really mattered to him. Dismissing that thought, she answered honestly, “I think that you’re a selfish, self-centered, spoiled brat with no social conscience. You have an over-inflated ego, but no self-pride. Plus, you have little regard for women except as sex objects, and…”
“Never mind!” Thad interrupted, angry and crushed by her harsh assessment. “I’m sorry I asked.”
“I can only go by what I’ve seen so far and by what I’ve read.”
“You, of all people, can’t tell me that you believe everything you read in the media!”
“Of course not, but…”
“Well, maybe there are some things I’ve read about you that I choose to believe, too. Like, how you and that guy you’re with…”
“Lance?” Darnell tensed. “What have you read about me and Lance?”
“That you’re both eggheads and that you spend most of your time together reading medical journals and listening to opera.”
Darnell snorted. “Oh, please!”
“Please what? Please believe it, or please don’t believe it?” The temporary camaraderie had gone out the window. The malice in the inquiry was barely masked. “You’re telling me that you believe what you’ve read about me but I’m not to do the same. That’s hypocritical.”
“So this playboy image of yours is a total lie?” Darnell was skeptical.
“I’ve had my share of women, I won’t deny that, but if I’d had all the women that the media say I’ve had, then I wouldn’t have time to walk and talk. I’d spend it all in bed.”
“And you haven’t?”
“No.” Thad shook his head. “I haven’t. And I don’t know what you think that you’ve seen so far as my attitude toward women, but believe it or not, my parents raised me to respect women, and I do. I also like them. I have three older sisters, and I wouldn’t want anyone to disrespect them. So I’ve taken pains not to treat any woman I’ve known like that.”
Against the illuminating light from the dash, Thad watched Darnell assessing his words. He wanted her to believe him. Her devastating assessment of his character hurt. He had always thought of himself as a good person. People liked him. He liked himself. Why couldn’t she? He wasn’t some immoral playboy, and he didn’t want her to think that he was.
It was at that moment that he made a decision. For the next few days, he was going to put his interest in getting her to do his movie aside. Instead, he would concentrate on the two of them getting acquainted. If they stayed on this continuous collision course, there would be no way for them to work together. His script was a sizzling love story, and it would hardly be believable if its two co-stars looked as though they hated each other. His voice filtered through the tense silence between them.
“I want to make a proposal.”
Darnell drew back suspiciously. He hadn’t been able to mask the pain in his voice at her scathing personality assessment, and while she hadn’t meant to be harsh, just honest, she wasn’t sure that he wouldn’t retaliate.
“What kind of proposal?”
“We’ve spent weeks fighting with one another, but rarely have we listened to each other. It seems that we’ve judged each other by what others have said and little else. Let’s throw out all that past garbage and try to really get to know each other.”
Darnell started to speak, but he leaned forward, silencing her effort with a finger to her lips. “Just let me finish. I’m not trying to give you a come-on line. I just don’t want to fight anymore. We’re stuck here on this mountain overnight. So let’s agree to try and get along. That’s not too much to ask, is it?”
In the shadow of the dimly lit interior, Darnell studied him closely. He appeared earnest, and she had been unfair to him regarding his image. He was right. They needed to abandon their childish behavior and start acting like adults. If she were honest with herself, she would have to admit that Thad really wasn’t that bad. He did have his moments, and he was right about the media. What did she have to lose trying to get along with him? She shook her head in agreement.
“All right. It sounds good to me.”
Grinning, Thad stuck his hand out. “To the beginning of a brand new friendship.”
She slipped her smaller hand into his and shook it. “To the beginning.”
* * *
Moody slammed the telephone down on its cradle. He had product missing. A mistake had been made on the other end, and somebody was going to pay. Not only was this costing him money, it was interfering with his personal plans. What he thought would take a few days to solve looked as though it would take longer. This was time that he had planned on using to further implement his plans in Carmel, and he was angry.
Settling back in his chair, he
allowed his thoughts to drift to Darnell. He had been so close to meeting her, and now it would have to wait. He wondered where she was, what she was doing. He would give anything to be wherever she was now.
Tossing the thought aside, he resolved that the most immediate need was to take care of the business at hand so that he could return quickly to the West Coast. With that in mind, he picked up the telephone and started dialing.
CHAPTER 8
Thad and Darnell spent the next few hours on the mountain trying to stay as comfortable as possible until daylight. They donned the remainder of Thad’s clothing from his overnight bag to keep warm, and managed to temporarily relieve their hunger with a package of peanut butter crackers they found buried in his bag. In an effort to preserve the battery, they shut off all of the car lights and entertained each other in the dark. Thad did snippets of monologue from his old comedy routines, while Darnell treated him to a preview of songs she had written for her next CD.
“No wonder you can command an audience,” he said after she had finished. “You’re awesome.”
“Thank you.” She smiled, pleased by the compliment. “Your talent is pretty awesome, too.”
“Aw shucks,” he grinned, equally as pleased. “My talent is nothing compared to yours. All I do is imitate my father. He’s hilarious. When we were young, he kept my sisters and me in stitches. I wanted to be just like him, so I became good at making people laugh, especially when I was in trouble.”
“It sounds like you and your father are close.”
“We are. My three sisters are much older than I am, and being the only boy and the baby of the family, I guess that made me kind of special.”
Darnell grunted. “You mean spoiled.”
Thad chuckled, “Okay, I admit it. I was a wee bit spoiled, but my dad and I were inseparable, and he kept me on the right path. I learned a lot from him. How about you? I’ve read that your father is dead, but were you two close when he was alive?”
Darnell shook her head. “No. He died before I was born.”
“That’s rough.”
“Yes, I would have liked to have gotten to know him.”
She sounded wistful. He wanted her to keep talking. “What did your father do for a living?”
“Construction.”
“He was a construction engineer?”
“No, he never went to college. He was a construction worker. According to Mama, he was gone a lot. He did jobs all over the place for some man that he worked for.”
“What did he build?”
“I don’t know, houses, I guess.” Darnell shifted in the front seat to get more comfortable. Thad certainly asked a lot of questions. “My mother adored him. She talks about him as though he walked on water. They were young when they got married, and they loved each other like crazy. She claims that I have his temperament.”
“Hot one minute and cold the other?” He knew that she couldn’t see the smirk on his face in the dark.
“No, deadly, and don’t you forget it.” Stretching, Darnell stifled a yawn. “It’s getting late, and I’m tired. I think I’ll try to get some sleep.” She adjusted her body to make herself comfortable. “Goodnight.”
Amused by her retort to his last question, Thad echoed her “Goodnight.” He had hoped that they could talk longer so that he could learn more about her, but no matter. They were enjoying each other’s company, and for now that was enough.
The next morning, a highway worker stumbled on the disabled car and got the surprise of his life when two of the biggest stars in the country tumbled from its interior. An hour later, Thad and Darnell were headed down the mountain, toward Carmel, laughing about their mountain adventure. Stopping in Santa Cruz, they bought breakfast from a drive-through window, then found a secluded place to park and enjoy their meals. The camaraderie between them felt good. Thad wanted to prolong the feeling.
Finishing his meal, he sat enjoying the pleasure on Darnell’s face as she took a bite of her breakfast sandwich. From their many conversations during their night on the mountain he had learned that Darnell wasn’t adventurous. She liked control. She didn’t like surprises. Maybe it was time for that to change.
“Say, do they still have that boardwalk with the amusement park here in Santa Cruz?”
Darnell shrugged. “I don’t know.” Taking a bite of her sandwich, she looked up to see a mischievous gleam in Thad’s eyes. Instantly, she knew what he was thinking. “No, Thad! We can’t go to an amusement park!”
He grinned. “Why not?”
“Suppose we get recognized? We’re still in the clothes we had on yesterday. We look a mess. We must smell like pigs…”
“We’ll have fun,” he said pulling the car out of its parking place. “Come on.”
Darnell searched for excuses. “But…but…” She fought her rising excitement at the possibility. Yet, she had to be practical. “I’ve got to get home. Mrs. Sharon will be worried sick when she discovers that I haven’t been there all night.”
“Call her when we get to the boardwalk. I’m calling my housekeeper. He was expecting me yesterday.”
The word he caught her off guard. “You’ve got a male housekeeper?”
“Yep, his name is Donald. I just promoted him to my assistant since my old one moved away. Donald’s a jack-of-all-trades and he cooks, too,” Thad said proudly.
Darnell wasn’t sure whether to believe him or not. Thad Stewart, the chauvinist, had a male housekeeper. That was a surprise!
At the boardwalk they made their telephone calls. Thad let Darnell have the phone so that his very proper, and very efficient sounding housekeeper-assistant, could confirm Thad’s equal opportunity hiring policy to her.
The rest of the day, they spent enjoying themselves. They rode every ride, played games of skill and pigged out on hot dogs and cotton candy. Thad won Darnell two stuffed animals, and she was as excited as a child at Christmas.
It was early evening when they arrived back in Carmel. At Darnell’s doorway, Thad had another surprise.
“I’ll pick you up at ten tomorrow morning,” he informed her. “I’ve decided to stay in town another couple of days. I want to show you something.”
She resisted. “Thad, I’ve got things to do.”
“They can wait. You’re on vacation.”
“But I can’t just run all over the place with you.”
Thad pushed. “Why not? We’re friends now, aren’t we? Just dress casual tomorrow.” With a quick peck on her lips, Thad left a stunned Darnell standing in her doorway. He had jumped into his car and driven away before she recovered.
The kiss had been unexpected. She wouldn’t have believed that it had happened except for the tingling she felt in her limbs. Slowly, she exhaled. Being with Thad was like being caught in a whirlwind. It barely left her time to breathe. What had happened since yesterday morning when she left her house for a trip to the garage? How could her relationship with Thad have changed so quickly? She was actually beginning to like the man.
Entering the house, Darnell found Mrs. Sharon about to leave for the day. She raised a brow at Darnell’s wrinkled clothing, mussed hair, and the two large teddy bears she was carrying.
“Good evening.” Darnell passed her and floated up the stairway.
“Good evening.” Mrs. Sharon smiled. From the looks of it, the sparks that she had so astutely observed the other day might be turning into flames.
* * *
Thad arrived at Darnell’s front door at ten sharp the next morning. He was as animated as he had been yesterday, except today he was driving a yellow Porche.
“How do you like it?”
Darnell hedged. “Well, it is bright.”
Thad ran his hand lovingly over the car’s shiny hood. “I took the car you got me back to the rental company and exchanged it for this little baby. This is more my style.”
“I would have never guessed,” Darnell deadpanned.
Thad smiled. “I figured that you weren’t a yellow car kind
of woman, but you could use a little spice in your life.”
“You don’t call being kidnapped and sleeping in a car in the Santa Cruz mountains a little spice?”
“Okay, I’ll admit that those things were a little unexpected, but today is well planned. I want to take you to Big Sur.”
Her eyes widened. “Big Sur?”
“Have you ever been there?”
“No.”
“Then you’re in for the time of your life.”
He was right. As they drove along the highway, enjoying the panoramic vistas, she found Thad’s enthusiasm infectious. He reveled in the surrounding beauty, pointing out sights and sounds along the way. He had purchased a dozen books on the Big Sur area and seemed to have read them all overnight as he recited tidbits about the area and the scenic highway on which they traveled.
They stopped for lunch at Nepenthe Restaurant. “It was built in the 1940s as a honeymoon cottage for Orson Welles and his movie star wife, Rita Hayworth,” he informed her.
Darnell had worried about having lunch at the tourist hangout, but Thad assured her that they wouldn’t be recognized. Again, he was right.
He had chosen Julia Pfeiffer Burns State Park as the day’s destination. It was one of several parks in the Big Sur area. His choice turned out to be perfect. Along the miles of scenic coastline, they discovered canyons laced with trickling creeks, groves of towering redwood trees, a fifty-foot, solid-rock tunnel and the magnificent beauty of Saddle Rock Falls, a cascading waterfall that fell straight into the ocean. It was breathtaking.
They took endless photos. Awed by the natural beauty, Darnell chastised herself for not having taken the time out before to enjoy such moments, and she was grateful to Thad for orchestrating this day. They ended their adventure at the waterfall.
By the time Thad pulled up to Darnell’s house, the moon had made its appearance in a star-filled sky. He turned to find Darnell slumped against the seat asleep, her braids tousled in wild disarray and her sunglasses perched precariously on her nose.
Easing the glasses off, he threaded his fingers through the errant braids. With the lightest of touches, his knuckles skimmed the contours of her jaw. She was so beautiful, so tantalizing. Thad drew closer. The urge to kiss her was strong. All day he had wanted to taste those lips. This woman filled him with more conflicting emotions than he had ever experienced, and after today he could no longer deny what he knew to be true. He wanted Darnell Cameron. He drew closer. It wasn’t just her body that he wanted. His lips caressed hers lightly. He wanted her admiration, her respect, her devotion. He wanted her.
Singing a Song... Page 6