Garden of the Moongate Read Free Page B

Actually, Allie didn't sound nearly so bad the way he pronounced it, with a much softer
a
, but she dismissed the fanciful notion that it almost sounded like an endearment that way. Still incensed with him for daring to tell her what she might and might not drink, she thrust out her chin. "You have a good memory. And I'm at a disadvantage, I'm afraid. Unless I can assume your name is Ric
Darling
or Ric
Love
."
    Her sarcasm didn't seem to bother him one whit. "Wrong assumptions," he said flatly. "It's neither love nor darling."
    Realizing he had no intention of telling her what his name really was, Allendre glared indignantly at him until, finally, he lifted his dark head and met her vibrant green eyes, his blue-gray ones seeming almost to issue a challenge. Yet, when he spoke, his tone was surprisingly matter-of-fact. "You're traveling alone. Does that mean you live in Bermuda? Or are you just going to visit a boyfriend who's stationed at the U.S. naval base there?"
    "I'm just another tourist," she replied, then hastily concocted a story to explain why she was traveling alone. "A friend planned to come with me but had to cancel her plans at the last moment. So since this is the only time I could take my vacation, I decided to come by myself. I have no boyfriend at the naval base, and, unfortunately, I don't live in Bermuda."
    "Frankly, I'm relieved. Bermuda and the armed forces there may actually survive your visit.
If
you don't stay too long."
    The teasing note in his voice was as obvious as the mischievous gleam in his eyes, and despite a desire to remain cold and aloof Allendre couldn't suppress her smile. "Oh, all right," she conceded. "I can understand why you might think I'm a menace to society, considering the fact that I walked all over your feet twice in one hour. But, believe me, it just isn't one of my better days. I'm not usually so clumsy. Really."
    Though he didn't seem totally convinced, he smiled as he glanced down at her feet. "Well, at least you don't wear those lethal spike heels. Maybe I won't sue you for crippling me, after all."
    "Oh, and were you considering filing suit?"
    "I was considering something much more drastic than that after our second little mishap," he answered. His tone was slightly suggestive, and he surveyed her with disturbing intensity from her trim, crossed ankles to the flaxen hair that brushed her shoulders. Then he shrugged. "But since I'm such a gentleman…"
    "Oh, aren't you sweet?" she countered with mock humility. "I just can't wait to tell all my friends that chivalry isn't dead, after all." As he laughed she watched him with a bemused smile, wondering if he was one of those rare people who had a split personality. That was the only possible explanation, she thought, for his astonishing metamorphosis from grump to pleasant young man. Unless, of course, gin and tonic always made him more mellow.
    Taking advantage of his unexpected good humor, she asked him questions about Bermuda; about the people and the places of special interest, and about the weather. As she had guessed from his conversation with Judy, he had been there often, and it was obvious that he felt a strong affection for the island.
    When lunch was served, however, their conversation ceased. Though the silence between them was infinitely more comfortable now, Allendre wasn't particularly hungry. His description of neat, white-roofed houses overlooking the cool sapphire ocean had only increased her desire to arrive and see it all for herself. Excitement dulled her appetite so that she did little more than push her pepper steak around on its bed of fluffy rice. Lost in her daydreams, she was hardly aware of the turbulence that had begun to rock the plane slightly. Then she was brought back to reality with a frightening jolt. Suddenly, the plane seemed to drop in altitude, as if it might fall straight down into the ocean below. Gasping, she reached out to hold on to the full cup of coffee still sitting on her tray, but