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And with the pleasant memories came his words: he only wanted to get her back to her father, that all she was to him was a possibility of a pardon, that she was just one of hundreds of women he’d bedded, no more, no less. Chris remembered with shame the way she’d tried to talk him into marriage. In the flickering darkness, she could feel her face turning red. How childish she’d been, how immature.
And how childish she was acting now, she thought. She kept thinking that he’d betrayed her when the truth was, he’d been more than honest with her, never had he insinuated that he wanted any more from her than a job and a good time.
As she watched him, he opened his eyes and looked at her, and for a moment, Chris almost threw herself into his arms. Whatever she felt for him was not returned and she’d better get used to that fact. He didn’t love her and she was going to stop loving him—even if it killed her.
“Would you like to see what I found?” she asked.
He gave a nod, but said nothing, just sat there looking at her with hot eyes.
Probably thinks that since we’ve made love once, we will again. Not on your life, cowboy! she thought.
Turning away from him, she unbuttoned her blouse and withdrew a long narrow belt of what looked to be silver links. “It’s mine,” she said, caressing the belt and taking her time before handing it to him.
“It’s worn out and it looks old. Where was it? In your carpet bag?”
“No, of course not,” she said, taking it back. “I found it here, when I was looking through Dysan’s things. He had several treasures in a little cabinet. I think he found them in the sea—salvage. But I knew right away that this was mine so I took it.”
Tynan looked at her in confusion for a moment. “You mean that you’ve never seen this thing before but you think it’s yours?”
She looked up at him with a stubborn expression on her face.
“Is this your second sight again?” he said and there was laughter in his voice.
Chris merely kept her jaw set and put the belt back into her blouse.
“What is the thing anyway?”
“I think I’ll get some sleep now,” Chris said with her nose in the air.
“I didn’t mean—” Ty began but he stopped himself. “You want to hear why I have on new clothes again?” he said after a moment.
Chris tried to control her curiosity but couldn’t. She was a reporter to the tip of her toes and she was not capable of resisting a story. Reluctantly, she nodded.
He started with entering Red’s place secretly and then went on to tell of the men waiting outside for him. He told of his reluctance to wear the sideshow man’s white leather outfit, and of at last agreeing.
Chris listened with held breath, in awe of what he wasn’t telling her: of how difficult it had been to get to her. She didn’t laugh until he started telling her about Chanry and how the man had loved the suit.
“But won’t the men chase him when he’s wearing the white suit, and won’t they think they’re chasing you?”
Tynan grinned at her. “That’s the idea.”
“Oh, Ty, that’s dreadful of you. That man could get killed.”
“Hmph! You’d rather I’d have worn the suit and let myself get killed?”
“That isn’t what I meant and you know it.”
“Then you’ll be happy to know that I’ve already heard that Chanry escaped, a little dented maybe, but he’s alive.”
“And looking for you, no doubt.”
“I seem to be a popular fellow,” Ty said.
“Do you have any idea why Dysan wants you? He seemed to be very interested in you.”
“I doubt it. He just wanted to see who could get through that gauntlet he set up. Chris, seeing as this might be our last night alive, would you like to—”
He didn’t get to finish. “Of all the audacious, disgusting things I have ever heard, that’s the worst. After the things you said to me! How dare you ask me something like that! What kind of woman do you think I am?”
