Unearthed

by Ann B. Morris

  She changed the circles to soft strokes from one side of his chest to the other. “You should leave soon. I’ll go down and make breakfast.”

  He kissed the top of her head. “Getting rid of me?”

  “Not exactly, but we both need to get an early start. You, especially. And we could use a good breakfast to help us on our way.”

  He sighed, and his chest rose and fell against her cheek. “You’re a hard taskmaster, but you’re right. I have clean clothes in the car. Can I rent your shower for a few minutes?”

  She skimmed a fingernail down his middle and stopped at his navel. “A hot shower comes with the breakfast.”

  His hand closed over hers. “Umm. Can I interest you in sharing the shower?”

  A warning signal went up. Did she want another memory she’d have to suffer through after he was gone? Another room that would haunt her with memories when he was no longer in her life? Now was the time to be thankful for what she’d had and not press her luck.

  She rolled away to the edge of the bed, reached down to the floor, and felt around in the dim light for her robe. Somewhere between their last lovemaking and the one before, she’d turned off the lamp, hoping they’d get a little sleep before the sun rose. But sleep hadn’t come. They’d made love yet again, and if she didn’t get out of here fast, the sun might be high in the sky before either of them left the room.

  “I’d better start breakfast first,” she said, as she slipped into her robe. “I’ll shower after you’re gone.” She belted the robe at her waist, found her slippers, and started across the room. “Breakfast should be ready in twenty minutes. You can shower before or after. Your choice.”

  “Any warnings I need to know about? Like panty hose hanging over the shower or shampoo that looks like body wash? I’m not too familiar with ladies’ bathrooms.”

  She looked over her shoulder and made a face. “Give me a break, Beck. I’ll bet you’ve seen more women’s bathrooms than I have.” She aimed for witty nonchalance, but she was afraid her statement didn’t come off that way. She didn’t want to sound bitchy and possessive. Acting like a jealous lover would drive him away sooner than he might otherwise leave.

  Beck hauled himself up on an elbow. “Just to set the record straight, I’ve never spent the night in a woman’s bed before. I’ve never showered in a woman’s bathroom—with or without her.”

  Alex was so embarrassed she wished she could turn to smoke and disappear in a puff. She took a deep breath. “It’s really none of my business if you did. My saying such a thing was tacky.”

  Beck chuckled. “It was, but I forgive you.”

  “How do you like your eggs?”

  “Scrambled.”

  “Toast?”

  ‘Yes.”

  “I mean how do you like it? Light? Dark?”

  He kicked the covers off his legs and sat up. “Dammit, Alex, why the cold shoulder all of a sudden? You’re fire one minute and ice the next. Did I do or say something wrong?”

  She felt like the bottom of her stomach had fallen out. He didn’t deserve her sharp tongue just because she was already anticipating his good-bye. He hadn’t offered an extended relationship, and she certainly had no plans to offer him one, either. She still planned to take the first plane to Jeremy as soon as a permanent replacement was found for Evelyn.

  “Alex?”

  She turned to face him. Now that the sun had risen, the room was brighter and she could see him clearly. Even from that distance, she could see the dark shadow on his cheeks and chin. Memory of the way his stubbled face felt on her skin whenever he put his mouth to any part of her body made her shiver. “Yes?”

  “Last night was special.”

  “For me, too.”

  She took his words with her and repeated them while she cooked breakfast. She needed all her strength not to forget about food and rush upstairs to join him in the shower.

  Minutes later, when she caught sight of him in the kitchen doorway—in his jeans and open-necked denim shirt, his hair damp and tousled after his shower—she gripped the frying pan to keep from running across the room and throwing herself in his arms.

  After breakfast, Beck went upstairs. A few minutes later, he appeared in the doorway again, this time with a duffel bag in one hand and his boots in the other. He balanced himself with one hand on the door frame while he slipped on the boots and watched intently as she passed a towel over the kitchen table.

  Then he crossed the room, took the towel from her hand, tossed it on the counter behind her, lifted her arms, and slipped them around his neck. He kissed her hungrily.

  The kiss was like he’d never tasted her before, and she returned the kiss with a matched hunger of her own.

  Beck was the first to break away, leaving them both breathless. “What’s on your agenda today?”

  She waited a moment for her racing pulse to slow. “First, I have to go to the university lab to bring in the artifact. Then, I have a lot of details to handle and people I need to get in touch with. I have last-minute research to do in the library. I’m getting my hair cut, too. I had a call from Evelyn French’s husband while you were in the shower. A private service will be held tomorrow morning.”

  He let out a long sigh. “That means you’re staying here again tonight?”

  She nodded.

  Anchoring his hands at her waist, he held her while he looked deeply into her eyes. “Will you do something that’ll put my mind at ease?”

  “If I can.” The wrinkle in his forehead told her he was in a serious mood.

  “Will you do only what you absolutely have to outside the house, and then come back home and call me on my cell the instant you return?”

  “Okay.”

  “And,” he added, “Promise you’ll be on the lookout for anything, or anyone, the least bit suspicious.”

  The concern in his voice brought back the frightening experience of the night before when she was on the road. In the light of day, she could almost forget it had ever happened. And the incident certainly seemed less ominous now than it did at the time. “I think you’re making a big deal out of nothing.” She leaned back in the circle of his arms.

  “Humor me?”

  She smiled.

  Again, he pulled her close and kissed her just like before, deepening the kiss until they both knew where it would end if they didn’t break it off fast. “Can I have a repeat performance tonight?”

  Her eyes opened wide. “You’re coming back here? What about your father? You shouldn’t leave him alone tonight.”

  “Let me worry about my father.”

  She leaned back until their gazes locked. “Beck, you’re really carrying watching over me to the extreme.”

  “You promised you’d put my mind at ease.”

  “Yes, but—” He broke off the rest of what she had to say with another kiss, a shorter one this time, but no less intense.

  “What time do you think you’ll be back?”

  “I don’t know. I might be late, especially since I’ll probably have to take the last appointment at the hair salon.”

  “Suppose I get back before you do? Do you—”

  “I have an extra key you can take.” She took a key from a hook next to the kitchen cabinet and handed it to him. “If you get here first, put on the coffee.”

  He grinned. “I promise. But I won’t promise I’ll put on anything else.”

  She poked him in the chest with her finger and gave him a nudge. “Promises, promises. Now, get going. We both have a full day ahead.” Leaning over, she gave him a quick, sisterly kiss on the cheek, and herded him toward the door.

  Alex watched until he pulled away from the curb before she went upstairs. She was about to step into the shower when the phone rang. She almost let it ring, but thinking the caller might be Beck with a last-minute concern, she hurried to answer it.

  “Alex?”

  Her heart leaped to her throat. The strength left her legs, and she sank onto the bed. The phone bobble
d in her hand; she steadied it and tried to do the same with her breath, but she couldn’t, her heart raced too fast.

  Something had to be horribly wrong for Bill to call.

  ****

  “Tired of her already, Pretty Boy?” Kent muttered as Beck’s truck pulled away from the site late Tuesday afternoon. Didn’t get what you wanted? Or maybe you did, and now you’re ready to move on to greener pastures? No matter, it’s about time you pulled your long-ass nose out of things that don’t concern you. He slammed shut the back door of the van with such force several students who were close by unpacking their gear jumped back.

  “Hey, man, did Doctor Kingsley’s friend push your button again?”

  One of the students needled him. He’d come to expect it from these small-minded, little cowards. Not one had the stomach for the kind of things he’d had to do just to survive. He was determined, though, not to let them get the best of him today. “No. Matter of fact, he needs my help with something.” He walked to the driver’s side of the van, opened the door, and stepped inside to avoid more conversation. He wasn’t in the mood for talk. Now was the time to think. To scheme.

  His initial plan had already been screwed up by this pretty-face, mother-fucking busybody. Before he arrived on the scene, everything had been working like a well-oiled machine. Even the two hokey jokes he now knew had been pulled by Pretty-Boy’s friends had worked in favor of the original plan.

  After that, sneaking around outside the cabin when Alex was alone had been a flash of genius. Again, he’d been foiled when Pretty-Boy stayed with her the next night. How was he supposed to know they’d left his truck behind at the site?

  The idea of tampering with her car, so she’d have to depend on him for transportation for a couple of days, occurred on the spur of the moment. But as usual, the son of a bitch also screwed up that plan by calling his old man to fix her car. Keeping an eye on Alex since then had become much more difficult because Pretty-Boy became her shadow.

  The latest word by way of a phone call this morning was for him to lay low, keep track of Alex’s whereabouts, and wait for further instructions. That’s what he’d been prepared to do from the get-go. Keep close to Alex and report on her whereabouts when asked. Not much to do for the handsome reward he was promised. If necessary, he was prepared to do more. He’d made that clear from the very beginning.

  He smiled, remembering the incident on the highway the other night. Following her wasn’t anything planned. The idea came to him suddenly when Alex returned to the cabin unexpectedly.

  When she left, he’d given her a few minutes’ leeway then followed without any real purpose or plan. But as the miles stretched behind them, he decided he’d trail her all the way home. Give her a little scare.

  He hadn’t planned on the poorly traveled highway making tailing her difficult. He could tell she was on to someone following her when she sped up every time he got too close.

  After she’d spotted him, he’d driven a couple more miles before he decided to play it safe, turn around, and head back to the cabin. That’s when his damned tire had blown, forcing him off the road. Luckily, he controlled the car, or he might not be here now, worrying about what new plans to make.

  He swung his thoughts back to the problem at hand. How to keep Alex here at the site. He’d already insured that likelihood by taking care of the only person who could cut Alex free from this job. He’d also gotten rid of the other potential problem. If he hadn’t, one thing might have led to another, and then the whole scheme could have blown up in his face.

  He couldn’t risk it. He desperately needed the money. The job he was hired to do wasn’t as easy as he’d originally thought. Getting it on with Alex had become more difficult since that bastard showed up. He drew in a harsh breath. The deep primal urges he could usually ignore coiled in his groin. He’d have to take something soon to knock off the pain soon to rear its ugly head. He craved the privacy of the cabin.

  Alex wouldn’t be at the cabin today. But she’d arrive soon. As soon as he got rid of Pretty-Boy, he’d find a way to get up close and personal with her before his services were no longer necessary. Oh, yes, he’d get what he needed—with or without her consent.

  ****

  An hour after Bill’s unexpected phone call, Alex pulled into her parking spot on the campus, still upset and just as bewildered as when the conversation ended. She loosened her grip on the steering wheel and took a deep breath.

  What was the real reason Bill had called? He’d spun a yarn a kindergartener wouldn’t have bought, much less the woman whose heart he had ripped from her chest five years earlier. Why had he chosen now to call if nothing was wrong? She certainly hadn’t bought his explanation that he had just given in to the urge to see how she was getting along.

  Her heart missed a beat the way it did the first second she’d heard Bill’s voice. There. Her heart missed another beat. She needed to calm down. She reached for the package of mints in her purse, freed one, popped it into her mouth then let out a long breath.

  A long time had passed since she’d needed the ritual that replaced the reach for a drink. Not that she wanted a drink, now. She was simply comforted by something tangible that reminded her of where she’d been and how far she’d come. In some strange way, the mints did that, and her analytical mind didn’t question the ritual.

  But she did question the reason for Bill’s phone call. Not once in five years had they exchanged more than a few words, and then only when necessary. Seeing Bill again was the reason she hated the thought of going home for her parents’ anniversary next week. He was always present for any family function. After all, he was still family to her mother and father. To them, he was the third victim of her unbridled addiction.

  Minutes later, calmer and looking forward to the work ahead, Alex started for the lab. Just as she was about to go inside, she was hailed by Gail Lambert, the Associate Professor of Anthropology who occupied the office across from hers.

  “Congratulations,” her colleague called out as she approached Alex.

  Obviously, Alex’s success at the site preceded her. She listened intently and with no small measure of pride, as her colleague told of the many calls the Department had already received from around the country. As Gail rattled off the various news media and universities interested in speaking with her, Alex mentally tallied the time to return even half the calls. She’d be lucky to get home before midnight.

  Anxious to get started with the required work before she could even think of giving interviews, she thanked Gail and asked to be excused.

  The woman put a hand on Alex’s forearm. “Have you heard about Cindy?”

  Thinking Gail meant about the young woman’s demise, she nodded and said sympathetically, “Yes. Her death hit me rather hard, especially after the grade I had to give her practically guaranteed she’d have to leave graduate school. Frankly, the only thing that took off the edge was that she hadn’t done well in any of her other classes.”

  Gail shook her head. “No. I mean, did you hear that she was pregnant?”

  Alex gasped. “Pregnant? Lord, no, I didn’t know that. Do they think that’s what made her—”

  “Do you know about the drugs?”

  “Yes, I know about that.” She returned a greeting from another colleague who had just left his office then turned back to Gail. “Thanks for the congratulations and for the news about Cindy. But I’ve really got to run and get started.” She shifted her canvas backpack to the other shoulder and waited for the woman to take her leave. As soon as she did, Alex hurried down the hall toward the lab, hoping she didn’t again get sidetracked.

  She made it to the lab without another stop and breathed a huge sigh of relief when she discovered no one else was present. As busy as the lab usually was, she couldn’t count on that state for too much longer, so she went to her private work area and prepared for the tedious, but all-important, tasks to be accomplished that morning.

  For the next hour, she worked und
isturbed—cleaning, photographing, and cataloguing the precious find. Only once did she break her concentration, and that was when the news about Cindy came to the forefront. Had Kent heard about this latest discovery? Had he perhaps known of her condition? He’d been closer to Cindy than to anyone else.

  Alex was just wrapping up everything when the Department Chair and two other gentlemen entered the lab and ended her solitude.

  The local news media wanted an interview for the ten o’clock nightly news.

  Sighing inwardly, she forced a smile and invited the threesome into the small office at the back of the lab she shared with two other professors.

  An even longer day than she first anticipated loomed ahead.

  ****

  Driving back to Baton Rouge, Beck felt as though he’d already spent a lifetime away from Alex. Had just—he stole a quick glance at the dashboard clock—little more than twelve hours passed since he’d climbed out of her bed? Staggered out was more accurate. In those few hours, he’d had the most intense and satisfying sex of his life.

  Alex had given herself with complete abandon, and he’d finally had a taste of the fiery nature he’d suspected was hers since he’d first met her. Just thinking about her and remembering their shared intimacy shot his pulse rate up and popped out beads of sweat on his forehead. He pressed harder on the gas. He could hardly wait to see her again.

  Due to several unanticipated delays, he was returning later than he’d planned. He hadn’t expected to hear so soon from the Georgia company that his group had won the job they so desperately needed. His financial worries, as well as those of his associates, were a thing of the past now. Hearing the good news so soon, though, meant a couple of lengthy phone calls with his partners establishing the initial development phases to begin the new project.

  After that, he’d had to wait for Mrs. Doolittle, his father’s caregiver, to finish her other job before she could sit with the old man for the rest of the evening and night. No sooner had he finished those arrangements, he’d heard from Ned. They’d met for two long beers and an even longer conversation.

  As it turned out, Ned and Merilee patched up things and took off for a long, bed-and-breakfast weekend upstate. The mystery of Ned’s disappearance was solved, but a lot of unanswered questions remained about the scary stuff happening to Alex. Damn, he wished he could get in touch with her.