Picking up his second longneck, he took a deep swig, never looking away. And that bead of perspiration just had to slide right down his Adam’s apple. He made her want to laugh. He made her restless and unsure and hungry.

‘Do you think your sisters would mind talking to me?’

‘Yes.’ The answer was instinctive. She’d mind. How could he possibly appreciate her sisters on such short association? It had taken the people of Salem’s Fork a solid year to look past Mare’s outfits and Lizzie’s shyness to discover the real beauty beneath. And this was the first town where they’d actually felt as if they belonged. Dee didn’t want them hurt again.

But, oh, hell, it wasn’t her call to make. It hadn’t been for a long while. She shifted her shoulders a bit, trying to work out the stiffness. She shook her head. ‘They were pretty young when my parents died. I’m not sure they’d have much to say. But it’s their decision.’

Come to think of it, it might be worth the price of admission to see what Mare could do to this guy. He might work for a world-famous author, but she’d bet he’d never dealt with the Queen of the Universe.

Just that thought soothed her enough to relax again and finish her drink.

‘What do you think they’d say about your parents’ deaths?’ he asked. ‘I know you’re aware of the suggestion that their deaths were suspicious, coming on the eve of their incarceration.’

She should have expected this. It was definitely the wrong time to run out of martini. ‘The coroner ruled that they died of hypothermia. They’d been participating in a spiritual cleansing in the ocean, and stayed in the water too long.’

‘You don’t think it was suspicious?’

Yes. Yes.

‘Of course not. My parents were rather notorious for their lack of common sense. They went swimming alone in a cold ocean and lost track of time. I’m just surprised they made it all the way home before they collapsed.’

In the middle of the foyer. She’d found them there, lying on the floor with Xan bent over them, smiling. Smiling.

‘And you disappeared after they died because?’

Because my aunt had just murdered my parents and was turning her sights on us. It had all been there in that smile. Only no one else had seen it.

‘It was decided that it would be healthier for us to be out of that environment.’

He considered her a moment, which ratcheted up her nerves. And you don’t think they might have stayed in the water accidentally on purpose?’

Dee was having trouble breathing again. But then, she always did when she thought of her bright, frivolous, unworldly parents. ‘No. They might not have been the most mature adults on earth, but they wouldn’t have left us on purpose. My mother was upset enough that they had to leave us to go to prison.’

She’d made Dee promise to take care of her sisters. And she’d given her the jewelry box.

‘And have you been here all this time?’ he asked.

‘Places like it.’

‘Your family took you in?’

‘Yes.’

It didn’t seem to occur to him that she might be lying through her teeth. Before he could continue, Maxine returned.

‘Here you are, honey,’ she announced, handing the bill to Danny. Sometime during dinner she’d applied a fresh coat of black eyeliner and, evidently, her Wonder-bra. She was bending way over now, as if she couldn’t quite see over her breasts, which was a distinct possibility. ‘I hope everything was to your liking.’

Danny reached around to pull out his wallet. ‘I haven’t had a hamburger this good since BillyBurgers closed back home.’

‘Then I’m glad Dee brought you here.’ Maxine gave him a little smack on the arm. Maxine smacked everybody. ‘So, you in love with her yet?’

His smile damn near sent Maxine toppling over. ‘I even offered to have her babies. She was sensible enough to say no.’

Maxine laughed and gave him another open-handed smack and then turned to Dee. ‘Dee, you tell Mare that Italy is no place for a good American girl like her.’

Dee found herself blinking a bit stupidly. ‘I’m sorry. What?’

Maxine perked up, ‘You didn’t know? Crash is back, honey. He asked Mare to marry him and go off to Italy, if you please. She said she’d think about it, but you know that’s no good…’

Dee tuned her out. Crash? Crash? Dee had to get herself over to the Value Video!! and find out what the hell was going on.

‘Oh,’ she said, interrupting some diatribe Maxine was giving on some wonderful guy named Jude. ‘Yeah. That.’

‘The betting’s at two to five she’ll say yes,’ Pauline informed her on the way by.

Dee shook her head. Crash. ‘Well, put me in for a tenner’

‘For or against?’

Italy. Dee grabbed her briefcase. ‘Either way. You should never think you can predict what Mare’s going to do.’ Pauline laughed and Dee slid across the seat. ‘Uh, I have to…’

Danny James was already on his feet, sliding his wallet into his back pocket. ‘Come walking with me,’ he said, taking her by the hand. ‘You know you want to.’

Dee damn near pulled him over on his head. Of all the things to whisper to her.

You know you want to, Deirdre, Xan had whispered. You want to be like me. But you can’t without my help. Without me, you’ll create disaster.

Dee’s stomach dropped. Hell, she was nauseous. ‘No, thank you. I need to talk to my sister.’

But he was already dragging her to her feet. She barely hung on to her briefcase as she was summarily yanked from the booth, with not one patron of the Fork coming to her aid. No, they were smiling, as if they were extras in Love Story, or something. Before she could so much as protest, she was out the door onto the sidewalk.

‘Now,’ Danny said, making it a point to fill his lungs with air. ‘Isn’t this better?’

‘No,’ she said, even though it was a lie. ‘It’s just windier.’

He tapped her on the nose. ‘Live a little.’

Dee struggled to keep her skirt pulled low and her dudgeon high. How did he do it? She wanted to go with him. She wanted to run down the sidewalk hand in hand like a kid and whoop at the moon. And if anybody knew better, it was Deirdre Dolores Fortune.

‘Mr James…’

‘Danny.’ He took her hand and turned her toward the river. ‘If you want, we’ll walk over to ask your sister why she’d ever want to get married and move to Italy with somebody who sounds like he can’t drive. But on the way, there are still some questions I have.’

‘Lucky me.’

‘It’s painless, I promise,’ he said with that sly grin of his. ‘What’s up there?’ he suddenly asked, pointing toward the orange-tinted trees that crowned the bluffs across the river.

Dee followed his gaze. ‘Salem’s Mountain.’

‘Can you see the sunset from up there?’

‘What’s left of it.’ The clocks had just turned the week before, and it was still a surprise to see the sun up at seven.

‘Let’s go see.’

Dee just blinked at him. ‘Now?’

He laughed and Dee wanted to smile right back. ‘It would be pointless to do it later. C’mon.’

Her heart was stuttering again. Temptation whispered in her ear. Mare could wait. The rest of the world would continue to spin on its axis if she took just a little time and watched the sunset with a handsome man. Before she had a chance to really think about it, she let him pull on her hand, and she followed him down the street.

They only made it as far as the corner when Dee dragged Danny to a stop. She’d just spotted his mode of transportation.

‘That’s a motorcycle,’ she accused.

He straightened, insulted. ‘This is not just a motorcycle. This is a 1956 500 cc Triumph TR6.’

It sat sleek and low and menacing against the curb. And, damn it, bloodred. Xan red.

‘I’m sure it must be very proud. But I’m not going anywhere on it. My sister was almost killed on one of those things.’

‘Ah,’ he said. ‘Now I know where that guy’s name came from. And why you aren’t interested in letting your sister travel to Italy with him. But no one has ever called me “crash.”‘ He leaned close again. ‘Come on. You know you want to.’

This time the words almost made her groan. He was light. She did want to. He was rubbing his thumb over the palm of her hand and setting up showers of heat all through her. ‘It’s… oh, I can’t do this in a dress.’

And no underwear.

‘Of course you can,’ he said. ‘You probably don’t want to do it with your hair held hostage, though.’

And before she could so much as protest, he managed to pluck out the one bobby pin that anchored every other bobby pin in her hair so that it all came tumbling down, pins flying everywhere.

‘How dare you?’ she demanded, grabbing her hair in an effort to corral it.

It was too late, of course. Her hair exploded into curls.

‘Perfect,’ Danny crowed, ‘This would happen sooner or later on a motorcycle anyway. Come on.’

She wanted to. She wanted to climb aboard that bloodred disaster machine and wrap her arms around his chest as he kicked the thing into action. She wanted to feel the engine in her chest. She wanted to feel the vibration of the bike in places that were dangerous, places she spent most of her time keeping under strict control. Places that would be pressed snug against his jeans. She wanted to just take off and find out where she went when she got there. And that scared her more than anything.

‘Why are you doing this?’ she demanded.

Danny’s smile grew even larger. ‘Pure impulse.’

She shook her head. ‘Pure impulse is what gets people into trouble.’