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  “I hate to delay your trip to visit your friends.” Annie got up, made her way down from the bridge and onto the deck.

  “Another day won’t matter.”

  “If we’re stuck with each other until tomorrow, then why don’t we just go ahead and sail off to—what’s the name of the place where your friends live?”

  “Their island is called Le Bijou Bleu,” Dane said. “It’s about an hour and half from here.”

  “They have their own island? Must be nice.” Annie sighed dramatically. “If you don’t think your friends would mind my staying overnight—”

  “Actually, your coming with me to Le Bijou Bleu is a good idea,” Dane said. “Whoever’s after you won’t be looking on Sam Dundee’s private island. You’d be relatively safe there. I could have Matt meet us in Biloxi. It’s a fairly short boat ride from the island to Biloxi.”

  “Then call your agent back and tell him to fly into Biloxi instead of here,” Annie said.

  If we go to Le Bijou Blue, we’ll be in the company of other people, Annie thought. She and Dane wouldn’t be spending the night alone together if they were in his friends’ home. She would be safer on the island, not only from her would-be killer, but from Dane.

  “Matt will have to bring you back to Point Clear,” Dane said. “You’ll have to start the investigation here before y’all head to Florence.”

  “I don’t mind retracing my steps,” Annie said.

  Once again, as if he’d read her mind, he responded to her thoughts. “You think it’s worth going a little out of your way in order not to have to spend the night alone with me.”

  She glared at him, her nose crinkling, her lips curving upward. “You’re the one who said I’d be safer on Le Bijou Bleu.”

  “Safer from whoever wants to kill you.” He eased his aviator sunglasses down his nose, just enough so that she could see his sky-blue eyes. “But not necessarily safer from me…or from yourself.”

  An hour later Annie balked when Dane insisted on familiarizing her with certain pertinent facts about the yacht. She knew the basics. What more did she need to know?

  “This is the VHF radio.” Dane showed her, then went on to explain how to turn on the set and dial in channels 16 and 9. “The calling sign numbers for the Sweet Savannah are taped right here on top of the set, along with a description of the boat.”

  Annie nodded. “Got it, Captain.”

  “Look, Miss Smarty Pants, if we’re out at sea and something were to happen to me, you’ll need this information in order to call for help and other information in case you need to take over for me.”

  Feeling duly chastised, she hung her head and looked as humble as she knew how to look. “You’re right, Dane. Please continue.”

  “I’ll write down the loran coordinates and compass headings and put them here near the VHF. Just in case.”

  “What are the odds that I’ll have to call for help or wind up piloting this cruiser?” Annie asked. “You don’t happen to have any medical problems you haven’t told me about, do you?”

  “As far as I know, I’m as healthy as a horse,” he said.

  Imagining just how healthy and strong his body was sent her mind off into the danger zone. When she felt her cheeks warm, she prayed they hadn’t turned pink. She wasn’t a woman who blushed easily, but her thoughts about Dane were down and dirty enough to make a sailor blush.

  Annie laughed. Dane stared quizzically at her.

  “Is this all?” she asked.

  “I’ll show you how to start the engines and—”

  “I’m sure I know how to do that.”

  “All right. Do you know how to parallel the batteries, make sure the drive is down, and how to check that the kill switch lanyard is installed?”

  “Oh, sure,” Annie quipped. “Those three little items are part of my daily itinerary.”

  Dane smiled at her and her stomach did a silly somersault. Oh, God, she was in big trouble with this man. He was as wrong for her as Preston had been. Do you hear me? she silently asked her body. You may want him, you may even think he’s good for me, but you’re not going to get what you want. He’s wrong for me. W-r-o-n-g.

  “Did your father ever let you play skipper?” Dane asked.

  “You’re kidding, of course. Earl Harden would never allow a woman to pilot his yacht.”

  “Well, you should know that handling a boat is not like driving a car. I’ll go over the basics. All you really need to know is enough to aim the boat toward shore.”

  “I think, with a little instruction, I could manage that.”

  “And I suppose you already know how to use the head properly, since you did spend time on a boat as a kid.”

  “Aye, aye, sir.” Annie saluted him.

  “You’ve got a smart mouth on you, Miss Annie.”

  She slipped her arm through his and smiled devilishly at him. “Come on, Captain, and show me where the life-jackets are stowed, and the flares, the fire extinguishers and the first-aid kit.”

  He did just that. And when he had completed his instructions and the tour, he led her up to the helm and asked her to start the engines.

  “You want me to… Is this a test?” she asked.

  “Not a test, just thought that, being the bossy, independent type, you might want to take us out to sea.”

  “You’re going to let me take over the helm?”

  “Weigh anchor and start the engines,” he said.

  She did. “Now what?”

  He placed her hands on the wheel, positioned himself directly behind her, slipped his arms around hers and covered her hands with his. “Now we sail to Le Bijou Bleu.”

  Annie loved the new experience, the exhilaration of being at the helm as well as the sweet torture of being wrapped in Dane’s arms. And even though it was Dane’s knowledge that actually maneuvered the Sweet Savannah out of the harbor and into Mobile Bay, Annie didn’t care. He had included her. Had instructed her in a task some thought was a man’s domain. And he had respected her intelligence.

  “There’s something you might want to think about the next time you compare me to your father and your ex-husband,” Dane said.

  Cocking her head to one side to see Dane’s face, Annie asked, “What’s that?”

  “Your father never taught you how to handle his yacht, did he? And I’ll bet, if you ever sailed with your ex-husband, he never let you even touch the helm.”

  The truth of his statement jarred her like a sudden stop on a Ferris wheel. She felt suspended high in the air, rocking precariously back and forth, waiting for the downward spin to plunge her back to earth.

  But for now she was safe. Safe in Dane’s arms. Or was she?

  Chapter 5

  “Things didn’t go as planned,” he told his superior. “I’m afraid our man in Point Clear has let Ms. Harden escape, and the police are now involved.”

  “Is he in police custody?”

  “No, he’s too smart to get caught. I told him to get out of town and wait for further instructions.”

  “Did he find out how much she knows and just what she told the police?”

  “No.” He felt as if somehow this was his fault. That he shouldn’t have sent a subordinate, no matter how capable, to dispose of Ms. Harden.

  “Do we know where Annie is?”

  “No. But we do know that she isn’t alone,” he said.

  “What do you mean? She traveled to Point Clear alone, didn’t she?”

  “Yes, but it seems she’s hooked up with some man. The same man who rescued her on the beach last night. He thwarted the second attempt to dispose of Ms. Harden, and it’s my guess that he’s the one who figured out there was an explosive device rigged to her car.”

  “Find out who this man is!” Several deep breaths. Fury subsided. Calm returned. “Be discreet, as always.”

  “Leave everything to me,” he said, trying to be as reassuring as possible. He knew how much was at stake, how much they had to lose. “From here on out, I’ll