Renegade Moon (CupidKey) Read online

  Wrapped in her musings about Eric, she almost forgot she was dancing with Lee until she sensed that ‘somebody staring’ sensation. She glanced around to see the same pale-eyed Nazi who had watched her earlier in the day at the restaurant. His bald gorilla sat beside him impassively. Catching Destiny’s eye, the man smiled and nodded. She cast her gaze down, then asked Lee, “Who are those men at that table over there?”

  “Where?” Lee squinted.

  “Never mind. You can’t see them now. That carved totem pole is in the way.” At last the song ended. She immediately headed for their table, leaving him no choice but to follow, or dance on alone.

  “Now where are those men you were asking about?” Lee looked right in their direction. “Oh, you mean those two?”

  Destiny nodded and he continued in an oddly strained voice. “Ah, that’s Miles Jard and his, ah, associate, Stoker.”

  “Are they from around here?”

  “Well, they’re here occasionally on business.”

  “Business?” she pressed.

  “They . . . buy local crafts. Ah. There’s Martin and Iris.” He stood quickly. “Drinks?”

  “Not for me,” Destiny said, but the other two accepted. Just then she noticed Eric coming in the entry door. About a minute later the same man who had come into the restaurant to talk to Jard and Stoker entered, strode right over to Jard’s table, and sat down. At that moment, Eric took a seat beside Destiny.

  “Eric, who is that man sitting with his back to us at Miles Jard’s table?”

  Voice cut with a knife-edge, he asked, “How do you know Miles Jard?”

  “I don’t. I asked Lee his name because the man was staring at me. Who is that with him?” she repeated.

  Eric’s brow furrowed. “His name is Glen King. Why?”

  “No real reason. He was talking with them in the restaurant today, too.”

  “So?”

  “Why are you so defensive? Are they friends of yours?”

  He gave a derisive snort. “Not hardly.”

  Destiny wondered if her idea that Glen King had delayed Eric’s trip home after lunch might be her own flight of fancy, but before she could press further, Lee returned with the tray of drinks. To her total surprise, Lee brought her a Margarita. He put a glass in front of Eric.

  “Got you some Ginger ale,” he said, sitting down and raising his own Margarita to his lips.

  “Thanks,” Eric said, and took a drink.

  Exasperated, Destiny pushed her Margarita aside. “Lee, I don’t want this. You shouldn’t have brought it to me.”

  Miles Jard approached, obviously heading right for their table. And his colorless eyes were fastened on Destiny.

  “May I have this dance?” he asked, very courtly, holding out a hand to her.

  Her gaze flew to Eric. His dark brows drew together, but he said nothing. She felt she had no choice but to accept. Miles Jard danced smoothly, without flamboyancy, and was easy to follow. He didn’t hold her too tightly or act offensively in any way whatsoever. But Destiny’s skin crawled.

  “I haven’t seen you in the area before,” he said in a strange, flat voice.

  “I’m here on assignment from a magazine. They’ve uncovered an army post and Native American camp nearby and I’m doing a story about it.”

  “The one the Rampton Foundation is sponsoring?”

  “Yes. That’s the one.” Oh, song, please end!

  “How is your assignment progressing?”

  “Ah, very well. I’ve collected a lot of material. Enough for several articles.”

  “Indeed,” he commented in his toneless voice, and finished the dance in silence. He escorted her back to her table, thanked her, and walked away.

  “What did he say to you?” Lee demanded.

  Destiny glanced at him in surprise. “What do you mean?”

  “I mean, what did he say to you?”

  “He asked me what brought me to Las Nubes, and I told him. Lee, what’s the matter?”

  “Nothing. I need another drink.”

  People were eating, but nobody in their group made a move to the buffet. Destiny didn’t feel particularly hungry, but she wished Lee would eat something. He was getting quite drunk.

  At last Eric stood. “Let’s get some barbeque.”

  “Yes.” Destiny quickly rose. Martin and Iris joined them and they trooped to the buffet. The food tempted; thick slices of juicy brisket, green salad, potato salad, and a large pot of beans. She spotted a bowl of hot sauce and another bowl containing the peppers New Mexico was famous for, Hatch green chilies. Destiny watched the Montoya brothers, and Iris, scoop salsa onto their beans. The men also took several peppers apiece. Destiny was Texan enough to like hot sauce, but decided to forego the peppers. They returned to the table to find Lee swallowing the last of Destiny’s unwanted drink.

  Destiny tried to tempt him with some of her food, but he only took one bite of brisket and refused more. However, he did want another drink.

  When they finished eating, Eric gathered up his and Destiny’s paper plates and plastic utensils and disposed of them in the big barrel that was for that purpose. Martin took his own and, as though on second thought, picked up Iris’s. A cowboy invited Iris to dance, leaving Destiny alone at the table. A bit antsy that Jard might approach her again, she rose and walked outside onto the patio.

  The evening breeze caressed her bare arms. She hugged herself and gazed up at the star-splashed sky. Leaning against one of the large stone columns encircling the patio, she inhaled the sweet night air. Thoughts of Eric, Martin, Iris, and Lee chased each other in circles through her mind. Maybe she’d get a few answers on her picnic with Martin. With that thought, she turned to go back inside.

  At that moment, she spotted Eric and Glen King at one end of the patio, talking. Eric appeared angry. Glen King seemed to be trying to placate him. Destiny stepped back into the shadow of the column and watched. Eric emphasized a point with a chopping hand motion and strode inside. Glen stared after him, then stomped off around the corner of the building.

  After a few moments, Destiny slipped back inside. Central air-conditioning was rare in this country, but it didn’t feel hot indoors. The Wagon Wheel sported a couple of evaporator-coolers, five ceiling fans, and made use of breezes with cross ventilation. In Austin, with its higher humidity, everyone would be sweltering. Destiny found more and more that she was enjoying this wild, rugged country. And maybe a certain wild, rugged Apache.

  Lee was practically cross-eyed by the time she returned to their table. She heaved a disgusted sigh.

  “Duncan is in no condition to drive, let alone take you home,” Eric stated.

  “I’m all right,” Lee sputtered, his face reddening. “You might own the Bar-M, but you don’t own my date.”

  “Oh, shut up, Lee,” Iris scolded, distaste clear in her voice.

  Martin patted Lee’s shoulder. “Take it easy. We can drive you and Destiny both home in my Suburban. You can pick up your car tomorrow.”

  “Thank you, Martin,” Destiny quickly accepted. She’d already decided she would insist on driving Lee home, then take his car rather than allow him to get behind the wheel. No more riding anywhere with Lee. Period. Phooey.

  “You only drank ginger ale,” Destiny commented to Eric as they all made their way to a brown and tan Suburban with magnetic signs on the sides that said at the top, Double Bar-M Ranch, and at the bottom, Johnson City, Texas. Two bars and an M, the ranch brand, spanned the center of the sign.

  “Remember what I told you about my father?” Eric reminded her quietly. Destiny nodded. “That’s why I don’t drink. I refuse to fuel the ‘drunken Indian’ stereotypes.”

  Somehow it made her acutely sad that he’d been hurt, and she wanted to touch him so badly her ar
ms ached.

  “I didn’t notice you drinking anything but ginger ale, either. Why?”

  “Don’t care for the taste of alcohol. Have not found one drink I like.”

  Iris inserted herself between Eric and Destiny and clamped onto his arm, ending their conversation. “You’ve got to come to the condos to take Lee home anyway, so why don’t you, and Martin, too, of course, come up for a nightcap?”

  “No, not tonight. It’s late,” Eric said. “How about you driving Lee home and saving us a trip to the condos?”

  “Good grief! Oh, all right. Put him in the car.” Iris flounced away, her high heels wobbling ungracefully on the rocky ground. They loaded Lee into Iris’s violet Corvette and she spun out of the parking lot, scattering rocks.

  “Surprise, surprise,” Martin murmured, watching the Corvette’s tail lights recede, his face expressionless. Then, turning to Destiny with a smile, he handed her into the Suburban. “Here you go.”

  “Don’t forget tomorrow,” Martin reminded Destiny as he dropped her off at her rental cabin.

  “Okay. Thanks. Bye!” She waved and rushed into her cabin with great relief. With him to the rescue, she’d been lucky, Destiny scolded herself as she snuggled into bed. She knew better than to accept a date with someone she knew so little about. Yet, she hoped tomorrow’s picnic would be different. After all, she didn’t know much about Martin Montoya, either.

  The buzz of her alarm woke her at eight the next morning. Emerging refreshed from a vigorous shower, she toweled dry and slicked perfumed lotion over her bare skin. She’d learned to apply lotion faithfully here in the high desert. A touch of blow-drying was all her hair required to fluff out into waves. A bit of makeup and peach-tinted gloss on her lips completed her efforts. The New Mexico sun had begun to tan her skin a soft honey shade, and she stared into the mirror, trying to see herself though someone else’s eyes. Then, pulling a face at her reflection, she turned away.

  Since it was still too early to meet Martin, she decided to drive around, keeping an eye out for landscape shots. She took a side road away from the highway. A bunny dashed in front of her car and she stopped. A lizard zipped up onto a rock and performed pushups, daring her to invade his domain. She snapped his picture. He pumped more vigorously, then raced back under the rock.

  “Thank you, Mr. Lizard.” She glanced around for another creature to pose. Perhaps a coyote or jackrabbit?

  Galloping hooves announced Eric’s arrival on Pinto. Destiny’s breath caught as she gazed up at him. He looked like an Apache warrior mistakenly dressed in modern day jeans and shirt. Instinctively, she clicked her camera. Eric dismounted and padded toward her, his muscular body graceful, his face mysterious in the shade of his cowboy hat.

  “I think you’ve taken enough pictures.” Shyness softened his words.

  “I can’t resist a good subject.”

  Eric grinned in that slightly crooked, heart-stopping way so unique to him. “So I’m classed with a lizard. I guess it’s better than the last time somebody wanted to take my picture. They wanted me to pose like a Hollywood Indian and wear beads and feathers.”

  “Oh, you’re kidding.” Destiny slid her camera into its case.

  Sadness touched Eric’s handsome face. “No. I’m not kidding.”

  “And did you do it?” she heard herself ask, before she could stop the words.

  Arching a brow at her, he replied, “I did.”

  “You did?” she echoed, surprised, and relieved he didn’t act offended.

  The grin returned. “Hey, I was sixteen and they offered me money. I didn’t work cheap, but they didn’t seem to care. Paid for a fun weekend.”

  “Oh, Eric, you were a naughty boy, skinning the tourists,” she chided with a giggle. A vague headache teased behind her eyes and she pressed her fingertips to her temples.

  “What’s the matter?” Eric demanded, grabbing her shoulders. His eyes burned into hers.

  “Just a little headache.”

  “Let’s get you out of the sun.” Eric helped her into the front seat. “Do you have anything to drink?”

  “Orange juice in the thermos.”

  Eric’s closeness diffused her pain, made her senses reel. He smelled of soap and warm male muskiness.

  “Here,” he ordered. “Drink this.”

  Destiny obeyed, sipping the juice, already feeling normal. If yearning for a man one hardly knew could be called ‘normal.’ She pressed the thermos cup into his hand. Tiny shocks rippled through her fingers as they contacted his.

  “Thanks, Eric. I’m fine now.”

  His gaze moved skeptically over her, making her blush. “You should go home to bed.”

  She let her lashes flutter down over her eyes to hide the thoughts his words ignited. “I can’t. I have a date in an hour.” She glanced at her watch. “Oops, in less than an hour.”

  “Date?” Eric scowled, his dark brows drawing together.

  His stormy response surprised her. “Didn’t your brother tell you about our picnic?”

  “Nope.” He stared at Destiny but she sensed his thoughts were not of her. “Have fun,” he finally said. With a sardonic little tip of his hat, he mounted Pinto and galloped away into the desert.

  Destiny sighed, feeling that she had committed some crime, yet she was unsure of its nature. Or how to atone for it.

  Chapter 5

  Martin waved at Destiny as she parked her Mustang beside his big Suburban.

  “Hi, Martin. Sorry I’m late.” She swung her legs out of the car, reading approval of her pink shorts and matching lace-trimmed tee in his green-gold eyes.

  “Get what you intend to bring and leave your car here. You don’t want to drive that pretty little thing where we’re going.”

  Her eyes widened. “Really? Where’s that?”

  “A romantic spot on the creek, down a very rough road. Hope you’re hungry. Estrella packed enough food to supply an army.”

  “Sounds delicious. I’ve been lucky enough to sample her chili.” Destiny gathered up the camera and her large canvas bag, immediately heading for the Suburban.

  “Wait,” Martin said. “You forgot your hat.”

  “I did not forget my hat.” She opened the Suburban door. “You sound just like your brother. I don’t like hats and I’m not a child to be told what to do.”

  “Touchy, touchy,” he teased, smiling.

  Moments after they turned off the highway, Destiny understood why he recommended she leave her Mustang behind. They traveled over more than just bumps and gullies. At times they plowed through deep sand, which the Suburban negotiated like a tank. It would have captured her Mustang securely. They reached their destination and Destiny got out.

  A great stone canyon framed the creek, which contained only a thin sheet of water that danced over the rugged creek bed. “Hey, Martin! Water.”

  “If it rains at all, this part will have water in it,” he told her. “Thundershowers fell in the mountains recently.” He fetched the picnic basket and placed it atop a flat boulder in the shade of an overhang. “It’s past noon. Shall we eat?”

  She agreed. Martin removed two plastic containers, napkins, forks, and paper plates from the basket. “Estrella made us taco salad with guacamole, and her homemade sopapillas for desert. If we don’t do justice to her food, she’ll be hurt.”

  “No problem.” Destiny savored every bite. When they finished, Martin gathered up their things and replaced them in the basket, then put it in the Suburban before sitting beside Destiny. She could tell he studied her as she watched the sparkling water.

  At his scrutiny, she turned and smiled at him. “Have you ever been married, Martin?” The question just popped out.

  “No.” He examined a pebble he held in his hand, sailing it out into the water. Destiny gazed a
t him. In repose, his expression was cool and aloof. But his smile brought the sun to his face. He turned and gave her that hundred-watt smile then. “What’re you thinking?”

  About Eric. She smothered such a reply. “Nothing really. So you’re the brother who owns the Double Bar-M. And there’s a sister?”

  “Yeah, she’s the youngest. Spoiled of course. How could she not be, with two big brothers? We both doted on her, and she certainly championed us. Eric was such a big kid, and I was small, so we looked more like twins, rather than seventeen months apart. Then he outgrew me when we reached about thirteen.”

  Another pebble followed the first one into the water. “I don’t know why Eric’s mother died in childbirth. She developed some condition and died before they could get help for her. We were pretty remote at the Bar-M in those days. I suppose we still are even now, to some people. I don’t really remember Eric’s mother’s death, I was so young. I do remember feeling jealous that there was a baby to fuss over, and it wasn’t me. I’d been the baby up until then. Not quite three years later his old man got pitched off a horse into a barn wall. Broke his neck. George became a dedicated drunk after his wife died, and he had a hangover. Eric and I were both a little older then, and I understood how he felt. It hurt to see him grieve for his father.”

  Martin weighed a couple of pebbles carefully, chose one, and sailed it into the creek. “We’ve always been in competition with each other, and for each other. I was jealous if anybody paid any attention to him, and if he paid attention to anyone else. I don’t know. Guess Eric and I have some pretty crazy mixed-up feelings about each other.”

  He turned to Destiny suddenly and flashed his brilliant smile. “Why am I telling you all this? I think you cast a spell on me.” He jumped to his feet and extended a hand to Destiny. “Come on. I want to show you something.”