The Adventurer
time of the day or night."
Jake scrawled a phone number on the back of a business card and reached across the table to press it into Sarah's hand. He folded her fingers around it with an intimate gesture and then he got to his feet and sauntered out of the room. A moment later the Jeep roared off down the drive.
Sarah looked down at the card in her hand.
Slaughter & Co. James Slaughter, President
. There was no address, just a box number in Anaheim, California. That made a certain sense. Anaheim was the home of Disneyland. She looked up and saw Gideon watching her over the rim of his cup.
"The two of you got involved in a nice, cozy little chat while I was in the shower, didn't you?"
"Don't get defensive. It's not my fault he showed up this morning."
"Is that right?"
"It certainly is. Now stop trying to bully me."
"Let's eat breakfast and get packed, Sarah."
"Packed?" Sarah frowned. "Gideon, I did a lot of thinking last night and I still feel we shouldn't leave the Flowers behind. Not now that Jake Savage is hanging around. Something tells me he's going to try to find the Flowers, that he'll come close, maybe even get his grubby hands on them. I've got this feeling…"
"I've told you he won't find them. Damn it, Sarah, don't argue with me. We don't have the time. The Flowers are safe enough for now. We're getting out of here."
"Not without the Flowers, Gideon."
"Forget the Flowers. We'll come back for them. Eventually."
"But, Gideon…"
"I want to be out of here by eight o'clock."
Sarah shot to her feet, exasperated. She planted both palms on the table and glared at him. "I'm in charge of this little expedition, remember? I say we stay and dig up the earrings so Jake Savage won't get his hands on them."
"No." Gideon sipped his coffee. "You're not in charge. We're partners."
"Oh, yes, that's right. You're in this for a cut of the action, aren't you? I almost forgot."
"I'm sure Savage reminded you."
"He did say something about the fact that you never work for free," Sarah retorted. "But I was beginning to think our partnership was a little more than a mere business arrangement."
"Did you think I'd give up my claim to one of the Flowers just because we're having an affair? Is that why you're sleeping with me? You figure you can persuade me not to take my cut when this is all over?"
He might just as well have slapped her across the face. Sarah gasped with shock. She took a step back from the table, her eyes widening in hurt and anger.
"You're right," she whispered, aware that she was trembling from head to foot. "The sooner we get away from here, the better. I'll go and pack."
8
« ^ »
S ARAH STARED at the mountain scenery through the car window. "You can drop me off in Seattle." They were the first words she had spoken since they had left the cabin.
"I'm taking you back to the coast with me." Gideon's refusal was quiet but resolute.
Sarah shot him a seething, sidelong glance. "What are you going to do? Kidnap me until you can figure out a way to get your hands on all of the Fleetwood Flowers?"
"I'm not kidnapping you. I'm giving you a lift back to where you left your car. It's still at my place, remember?"
"I remember." She sank down low in her seat, her arms folded tightly beneath her breasts. He had a point. "You're right. I'll need my car." She looked at her watch. "We'll be at your place shortly after noon. I'll drive back to Seattle this afternoon. I'll be home in plenty of time."
"Plenty of time for what?"
"For whatever I want to do."
"Planning on going after the Flowers by yourself?"
"It's none of your business what I do about the Flowers. Our partnership is hereby dissolved. Finished. Terminated. Liquidated."
"I'm not ready yet to be fired."
"Oh, yes, you are. You and Jake Savage had both better stay out of my life from now on. If I catch either one of you anywhere near my property, I'll have you both arrested for trespassing."
"Sarah, you're not being rational about this. How are you going to catch Savage or anyone else hanging around your property when you're in Seattle?"
"I'm heading back up here just as soon as I can," Sarah vowed. "This time I'll bring my own shovel and a shotgun."
"Have you got a shotgun?" Gideon asked.
"No, but I expect I can get one. Guns are readily available these days."
"You don't need a shotgun or anything else to protect your damned Flowers," Gideon said wearily. "I've told you a hundred times, Savage won't find them."
"Is that right? Well,
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