Read Online Eclipse Bay by Jayne Ann Krentz - Free Book Online

acutely aware of several curious onlookers. “That little scene will keep tongues wagging for a day or two.”
    Rafe drove out of the small lot onto Bayview Drive. “Told you we’d give the folks a thrill.”
    A short silence fell. Hannah opened her purse and found her sunglasses. She put them on. Winston licked her ear. She stroked him soothingly.
    “Two-timer,” she muttered. “I saw you licking Rafe’s hand earlier.”
    Winston rested his chin on her shoulder and sighed in content.
    “Your dog and I decided not to duel at dawn after all,” Rafe said.
    “You both chickened out?”
    “We prefer to think of it as a negotiated settlement.”
    “Huh. Translated, I think that means that neither of you was willing to exert yourself to do battle in my honor.”
    Rafe glanced at her, his gaze unreadable behind the shield of his sunglasses. “When a guy reaches a certain age, he has to pick and choose his battles. I think it’s called getting smart.”
    “Excuses, excuses.” She peeked into the sack that had landed on the pavement. As she had suspected, the tomatoes were little more than pulp inside the plastic vegetable bag. The lettuce and mushrooms looked badly bruised too. “So much for dinner.”
    Rafe said nothing for a moment. He drove with easy skill, but he seemed to be concentrating on the road with an unnecessary degree of attention.
    “Got an idea,” he said after a while.
    “I’m listening.”
    “Why don’t you and Winston eat at my place tonight? I’ve got plenty of food.”
    Another overture? Maybe he really was weakening. She tried not to look too eager.
    “Seeing as how there isn’t much that’s very exciting in the other sack of groceries, I believe I can speak for both Winston and myself when I say that we’d be pleased to take you up on that offer.”
    “Okay. Fine. It’s settled.”
    She watched him out of the corner of her eye. “You appeared to have some hesitation in putting forth your invitation. Was it such a big deal to ask me over to dinner?”
    He flexed his hands on the chunky steering wheel. “Had to work up my courage.”
    “I beg your pardon?”
    “I was afraid you’d turn me down.”
    “Why would I do that?” She gave what she hoped was a very blasé sort of shrug. “We’ve got to talk about our mutual business problem sooner or later. Might as well be tonight.”
    “Wasn’t planning to talk about the house tonight.”
    She stilled. “What do you plan to discuss?”
    “Old times, maybe?”
    She contemplated that for a moment. Then she gently cleared her throat. “You and I have only one incident between us that could conceivably be classified as old times.”
    “True. But you’ve got to admit it was a hell of an incident. I could have gone to jail if it hadn’t been for you. That would have really messed up my big career plan. I told you that day I called to say good-bye that I owed you.”
    “Still feel that way?” She smiled sweetly. “Sell me your half of the house and we’ll call it even.”
    “Not feeling quite that grateful,” he said.
     
    Rafe walked back into the solarium just as the September sky finally faded all the way to black. Hannah noticed that he did not turn on any lights. Winston, flat on his belly on the floor, looked up hopefully but lost interest when he saw the two snifters Rafe carried.
    Rafe lowered himself into the wicker lounger next to Hannah and handed one of the glasses to her.
    She watched the darkness settle over the bay and thought about the arugula, beet, blue cheese, and walnut salad and the pasta she had just finished. Rafe had glazed the walnuts with a little sugar and salt and heated them in the oven before adding them to the salad. The pasta had been flavored with an incredibly rich truffle-infused olive oil. A taste of heaven.
    “Okay, so you can cook,” she said.
    “Man’s gotta have a hobby.”
    “I’m with you on that.” She took a sip of brandy. “For the record, you can fix dinner for me