Searching For Treasure - By L.C. Davenport Page 0,37

ready for a nap. Rose set off in search for Henry to show him her new face. With a shake of her head, Dana realized that Rose had successful avoided any talk about her own budding romance. Torn between wanting to look for Jack and wanting to be alone to think about Jack, she headed toward her room.

She paused as she spied Jack sitting on the top of the stairs as if waiting for her. Or maybe he was just trying to catch a breeze. She sat down next to him. "Hey. You're looking pensive."

To be honest, he had been brooding, which was not a natural state for Jack to find himself in. His conversation with Noah, his sudden inability to know what Dana was thinking, the casual way she had tossed off the fact that some other man had made a pass at her, and the unresisting way she had allowed herself to be led off by the other ladies, instead of spending time with him, had all contributed to a rather gloomy attitude.

Jack studied her closely. The hair around her face was curling in the humidity, her face shining with sweat, her clothes hanging damply from her limbs. And there was a smudge of white paint across her cheek. Still he wanted her so much at that moment that he could barely breathe from it. But all he said was, "You're looking a little pensive yourself. The old ladies run you over the coals?"

"Not really. But I've decided that I want to be Rose when I grow up."

Jack wasn't listening. He seemed entranced by the drop of sweat that was snaking its way down her face. He watched as it paused on her chin then slowly resumed its slide down her throat to disappear into the v-neckline of her shirt. He touched a finger to the spot where it had slid out of sight and then retraced its trail back along her neck and face to where the drop had began its journey.

Despite the heat, Dana felt herself shiver. "Jack?"

"Mmm?"

"Do you want to go play?"

Jack felt a strange, dangerous coldness grip him at her words. He smiled into her eyes, slowly, sensuously, as he picked up her hand. He held it sandwiched between his two much bigger ones. He held her hand up to his mouth and kissed the tips of each finger, softly, tenderly, never once looking away from her face. He held her hand up to his face and stroked it along his cheek. Dana felt herself getting lost in his eyes, consumed by the spell he was casting. "Is that what we're doing, Dana? Playing?"

"It was just an expression."

"Was it?"

The tone of his question confused her. She tried to pull her hand away. He held it fast and kissed her palm. "What do you want, D?"

"I want for us to go to my room."

He kissed her fingers again. "A little hot for that, don't you think?"

"So why are you trying to get me hotter?"

"Is that what I'm doing?"

With a surge of anger she realized that he was laughing at her. She jerked her hand away.

"I'm just playing with you, D. Didn't you say you wanted to play?"

Dana shot up off the stairs and stomped to her room. Jack beat her to the door, blocking her way. "Dana, wait."

The air around Dana seemed to crackle from her anger. "I don't like this mood you're in, Jack."

"Well, I'm sorry! I don't like it much either." He rubbed his hands through his hair, growling in frustration. "What do you want from me, Dana?"

"Right now I want you to get out of my way."

"Please, I'm being serious." He ducked his head, making her look at him. "What do you want from me?"

He was serious. He was so serious it scared her. Her anger dissolved like a mist. The potential for saying the wrong thing hung like the Sword of Damocles over her head. She found herself stammering. "I-I want what I've always wanted. For you to be my friend."

His shoulders slumped as if in defeat. "So you still want to be friends."

Dana felt a little bit of panic forming in her gut. "Of course. Don't you?"

"You said you wanted to move forward."

"I thought we were."

"Is that what you call it?" Dana shook her head in confusion. "We spent the night in this room making love. Doesn't that mean something to you?"

"Of course it does,”she cried. "How you can you ask me that?"

"What did it mean?"

She looked at him helplessly.