From the Heart

he was much of a beachcomber. She had always liked blue eyes in a man, and Jordan’s were very dark. And, she thought, very shrewd. A lean face. Good bones. She wondered if he had any Cheyenne blood in him. The skull structure was very similar. The sophisticated clothes and manners were offset by a certain sensuousness around the mouth. She liked the contrast. He was built like a tennis player, she mused. Good shoulders, trim, strong hands. His tailor was obviously exclusive and conservative. Too bad, she thought again.
    But watch out, she told herself, there’s a bit more here than meets the eye. She had a feeling there was a temper under the cool sophistication. She knew, from reading his books, that he was intelligent. The only fault she had found with his work was a certain coldness.
    “I’m sure we’ll work very well together, Mr. Taylor,” shesaid aloud. “I’m looking forward to getting started. You’re a fine writer.”
    “Thank you.”
    “Don’t thank me, I didn’t have anything to do with it.” She smiled.
    Jordan’s lips curved in instinctive response even as he wondered what he had gotten himself into.
    “I’m very pleased to have the opportunity to help you with your research,” she went on. “I suppose I really should thank you, Dr. Rhodes, for suggesting my name.” Her gaze shifted and locked on Harry.
    “Well, you, ah—your credentials—were impeccable.” Harry stammered as he tried to connect the Kathleen Wyatt whose papers he had read with the slim, curly haired whirlwind who was smiling at him. “You graduated magna cum laude from Maryland University?”
    “That’s right. I majored in anthropology at Maryland, then took my masters at Columbia. I worked with Dr. Spalding on his Colorado expedition. I believe it was my paper on that which brought me to your attention.”
    “Excuse me, sir.” The dark maid hovered in the doorway. “Miss Wyatt’s baggage has been taken to her room. Mrs. Taylor suggested that perhaps she would like to freshen up before dinner.”
    “I’ll skip dinner, thanks.” Kasey spoke to the maid directly, then turned back to Dr. Rhodes. “I will go up, though. Traveling tires me out. Good night, Dr. Rhodes. I suppose we’ll be seeing each other over the next few months. I’ll see you in the morning, Mr. Taylor.”
    She swept out as she had swept in, leaving both men staring after her.
    “Well, Harry.” Jordan thought he could all but feel the room settle back into order. “What was it you were saying about distractions?”
    After following the maid up the stairs, Kasey stood in the doorway of her room. Pale pinks and golds dominated the color scheme. Pink drapes hung against oyster white walls; pink and gold cushions graced ornately carved Regency chairs. There was a gold skirted vanity table and a large, plush-covered lounge in a deeper shade of rose. The bed washuge and canopied, complete with bed curtains and a pink satin spread.
    “Good grief,” she murmured and stepped across the threshold.
    “I beg your pardon, miss?”
    Kasey turned to the maid and smiled. “Nothing. This is quite a room.”
    “The bath is through here, Miss Wyatt. Would you care to have me draw you one now?”
    “Draw my—no.” Kasey grinned, unable to do otherwise. “No, thank you—Millicent, right?”
    “Yes, miss. Very well, miss. If you require anything, just press nine on the house phone.” Millicent slipped noiselessly out the door, closing it carefully behind her.
    Kasey dropped her purse on the bed and began to explore the room.
    To her mind, it was entirely too proper and pink. She decided she would ignore it and spend as little time within its walls as possible. Besides, she was too tired from planes and taxis to care where she slept now. She began to search for the nightgown that Millicent had apparently tucked away in a bureau.
    “Come on in,” she called as a knock sounded on the door. She continued to rummage through the carefully folded lingerie. She lifted her eyes to the mirror. “Hello. You must be Alison.”
    She saw a tall, thin child in a simply cut, expensive dress. Her long blond hair was carefully groomed, pulled neatly back with a headband. Her eyes were large and dark, but their expression was neither happy nor unhappy. Kasey felt a stirring of pity.
    “Good evening, Miss Wyatt.” Alison broke the silence but came no further into the room. “I thought I should introduce myself, as we’ll be sharing a bath for the next few