sea?”
Jack grunted in brief amusement. “None of us are at sea with the waters boiling like they’re from hell,” he muttered.
Robin didn’t react to his awareness of the law enforcement activity all around the coast but merely looked at him with a spaniel-like expression. “Please tell me where the boat is,” she begged.
Almost angrily he said, “It’s no skin off my nose if you want to get your silly ass shot off. Sutton usually anchors in a cove off one of the Ten Thousand Islands. They call that island the Maze, and for good reason.”
“Thank you,” Robin said breathily, sliding off the stool.
“Here.” He reached out suddenly and stuffed something into one of the pockets of her windbreaker. “Hop a bus back to Iowa, or wherever you’re from. Now, get outta here.”
She nodded and moved quickly back to thedoor, relieved to find no further attention paid her by the men in the tavern. Immediately outside the door Michael took her hand and drew her into the shadows.
“Anything?” he asked.
His hand felt very warm, and Robin knew her own was ice cold. “Yes,” she murmured, trying to get the shake out of her voice. “An island in the Ten Thousand group. It’s called the Maze. He said Sutton usually anchors in a cove there.”
“I know where it is. Good work,” Michael said sincerely, then asked, “What’s that?”
Robin was staring in astonishment at two hundred-dollar bills she had pulled from her pocket. “He—he gave me this. Told me to get a bus back to wherever I was from.”
Michael grinned a little. “What line did you give him?”
“I said I was looking for my boyfriend, that he worked on Sutton’s yacht. He, that is, Jack assumed I was pregnant.”
Still holding her hand, Michael began moving away from the tavern. “You must have touchedhis soft spot if he gave you two bills,” he said philosophically.
“I can’t keep the money!” she protested.
“You’ll have to. It wouldn’t be in character to give it back. Besides, do you really want to go back in there?”
“No. But it isn’t right.”
Patiently Michael said, “Then we’ll stop at a church somewhere and you can put it in the collection box.”
Robin sighed but walked beside him without further protest. She knew she was stupid to feel guilty about accepting money from a man like Jack under false pretenses; it was probably ill-gotten gains anyway. Still, he’d been kind to her in a rough way, and she couldn’t help but feel bad about it.
“How did you guess they wouldn’t bother you in there?” Michael asked curiously as they walked.
“It made sense.” He seemed to have forgotten he was still holding her hand, and Robin wondered why she didn’t pull it away. “A girl dressedlike I am, probably pretty young and down on her luck—but wearing a religious medal she could have pawned. A cop told me once that some of the roughest men still have a tendency to respect ‘good’ girls. I took the chance.”
“You sure did.” He squeezed her hand briefly. “And you pulled it off. You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that.”
Still fooling them all!
Robin’s bitterness grew when she realized that the aftermath of fear had left her feeling weak and shaky—as always. Oh, damn, why couldn’t she conquer her fear? Why couldn’t she find some hint of courage inside herself?
“Thanks,” she said tautly, and immediately changed the subject because she felt like a fraud. “Are we going back to the boat?”
“After we stop for supplies, I think we’d better. And we should head for that island right away. The crackdown on boats in these waters won’t last longer than a couple more days, I’d guess. Once the heat’s off, Sutton could decide to bolt.”
For the first time, Robin wondered what he planned to do when they found the yacht. If Sutton was indeed an old enemy, then Lisa’s position was decidedly precarious. From what Robin had heard, Sutton was just as likely to enter into a gun battle
Jack grunted in brief amusement. “None of us are at sea with the waters boiling like they’re from hell,” he muttered.
Robin didn’t react to his awareness of the law enforcement activity all around the coast but merely looked at him with a spaniel-like expression. “Please tell me where the boat is,” she begged.
Almost angrily he said, “It’s no skin off my nose if you want to get your silly ass shot off. Sutton usually anchors in a cove off one of the Ten Thousand Islands. They call that island the Maze, and for good reason.”
“Thank you,” Robin said breathily, sliding off the stool.
“Here.” He reached out suddenly and stuffed something into one of the pockets of her windbreaker. “Hop a bus back to Iowa, or wherever you’re from. Now, get outta here.”
She nodded and moved quickly back to thedoor, relieved to find no further attention paid her by the men in the tavern. Immediately outside the door Michael took her hand and drew her into the shadows.
“Anything?” he asked.
His hand felt very warm, and Robin knew her own was ice cold. “Yes,” she murmured, trying to get the shake out of her voice. “An island in the Ten Thousand group. It’s called the Maze. He said Sutton usually anchors in a cove there.”
“I know where it is. Good work,” Michael said sincerely, then asked, “What’s that?”
Robin was staring in astonishment at two hundred-dollar bills she had pulled from her pocket. “He—he gave me this. Told me to get a bus back to wherever I was from.”
Michael grinned a little. “What line did you give him?”
“I said I was looking for my boyfriend, that he worked on Sutton’s yacht. He, that is, Jack assumed I was pregnant.”
Still holding her hand, Michael began moving away from the tavern. “You must have touchedhis soft spot if he gave you two bills,” he said philosophically.
“I can’t keep the money!” she protested.
“You’ll have to. It wouldn’t be in character to give it back. Besides, do you really want to go back in there?”
“No. But it isn’t right.”
Patiently Michael said, “Then we’ll stop at a church somewhere and you can put it in the collection box.”
Robin sighed but walked beside him without further protest. She knew she was stupid to feel guilty about accepting money from a man like Jack under false pretenses; it was probably ill-gotten gains anyway. Still, he’d been kind to her in a rough way, and she couldn’t help but feel bad about it.
“How did you guess they wouldn’t bother you in there?” Michael asked curiously as they walked.
“It made sense.” He seemed to have forgotten he was still holding her hand, and Robin wondered why she didn’t pull it away. “A girl dressedlike I am, probably pretty young and down on her luck—but wearing a religious medal she could have pawned. A cop told me once that some of the roughest men still have a tendency to respect ‘good’ girls. I took the chance.”
“You sure did.” He squeezed her hand briefly. “And you pulled it off. You’ve got guts, I’ll give you that.”
Still fooling them all!
Robin’s bitterness grew when she realized that the aftermath of fear had left her feeling weak and shaky—as always. Oh, damn, why couldn’t she conquer her fear? Why couldn’t she find some hint of courage inside herself?
“Thanks,” she said tautly, and immediately changed the subject because she felt like a fraud. “Are we going back to the boat?”
“After we stop for supplies, I think we’d better. And we should head for that island right away. The crackdown on boats in these waters won’t last longer than a couple more days, I’d guess. Once the heat’s off, Sutton could decide to bolt.”
For the first time, Robin wondered what he planned to do when they found the yacht. If Sutton was indeed an old enemy, then Lisa’s position was decidedly precarious. From what Robin had heard, Sutton was just as likely to enter into a gun battle
Similar Books
