The Pirate & The Adventurer & The Cowboy

explained. "The day after tomorrow is supposedly his birthday and the resort makes a big deal of it. We also use his wedding date and the date he arrived on the island and Christmas as excuses to hold the damned ball three more times during the year. The masquerades have become an institution. The guests get a kick out of them. Everyone dresses up in early nineteenth-century costumes."

    "I don't have a costume."

    "A lot of the regulars bring their own, but for those who don't, the gift shop rents them."

    "How nice for the resort's bottom line," Kate observed.

    "We try to be a little more subtle than Sharp Arnie, but the goal is similar."

    "To part the tourist from his dollar? I understand. I'll check with the gift shop tomorrow. I've never been to a masquerade ball. Wouldn't want to miss anything on my vacation. I have friends at home who will expect a complete report. Good night, Mr. Hawthorne."

    "Good night, Ms Inskip." He echoed her mocking formality with a courtly inclination of his head that seemed to suit him.

    The Old World grace of the small gesture triggered another fleeting sense of recognition. For an instant longer Kate studied Jared, trying to place him. Then she turned on her heel and left.

    Jared stood where he was for a long moment, watching the unconsciously elegant swing of her hips as she walked out of the bar. Then with a small rueful sigh, he headed back to his stool.

    "Did you dig yourself back out of that pit you were in the last time I saw you?" the colonel asked as Jared sat down.

    "She didn't dump her chowder or the drink over my head, did she? Payoff time, Colonel." Jared held out his hand.

    The Colonel sighed and reached into the till for a five-dollar bill, which he reluctantly dropped onto Jared's palm. "I'm not sure you really won that bet fair and square."

    "Hey, you can't back out of this, pal. You bet five bucks I'd get the chowder or the drink dumped all over me, and you lost."

    "But you did not precisely charm her, did you?"

    Jared shrugged. "I wouldn't go that far, but I think I made some progress."

    The Colonel poured a glass of whiskey and set it in front of his boss. Then he picked up a cloth and began to polish bar ware with fine precision. "I thought you said she wasn't your type."

    "True." Jared took a sip of his whiskey.

    "You don't usually get involved with paying guests."

    "For a lot of good reasons."

    "Granted. So why do I get the feeling you're about to break a few of your own rules?"

    "There's something different about this one, Colonel. Something that interests me. I can't quite figure out what it is."

    "A man who allows himself to get overly curious about a woman is a man headed for deep water."

    "I can swim." Jared raised his glass in an ironic salute. "But as usual, you speak words of great wisdom, my friend."

    "And as usual, I'll probably be ignored," the colonel said. "But you might want to watch your step around that lady. You yourself saw what happened to Sharp Arnie"

    "Sharp Arnie got what he deserved. But I'll bear your warning in mind."

    "Do that."

    "Besides, what's the worst that can happen to me?" Jared asked with a nonchalance he didn't really feel. "She's only going to be here for a month."

    "What if she doesn't go home when she's supposed to?"

    "The tourists always go home, Colonel. You know that. Sooner or later they all get back on a plane and leave."

    "What if that turns out to be the worst that can happen?" the Colonel asked quietly.

    Jared slanted him a derisive glance. "You worried about me getting my heart broken?"

    "Should I?"

    "Nope. Like I said, she's definitely not my type. She just happens to interest me, that's all."

    "But not seriously."

    "Not a chance."

    The colonel planted both hands flat on the bar and leaned forward. "Want to bet?"

    "You just lost five bucks. Haven't you learned your lesson?"

    "Jared, my friend, we both know you've been looking for a wife for the past couple of years. In all this time I haven't seen you get this interested in any of the other ladies who've caught your eye. Maybe you shouldn't be so quick to write her off as an unsuitable candidate."

    "She said herself we've got nothing in common, and she's right. Take my word for it, Colonel. She'd be all wrong for the job."

    "Because she's not like Gabriella?"

    "You know, little Ms Spitfire Inskip isn't the only one around here with a big mouth," Jared growled. He was about to change the subject when a movement at the edge of