Awakened by Virna Depaul Page A

each other. All he had to do was slam the door behind him and they got naked and went wild. They ended by falling asleep in each other’s arms, exhausted and spent, until they had to get up and pretend it had never happened.
    About twenty minutes later, Nick conferred with the front desk clerk at an anonymous, brand-new luxury hotel while Barrett waited.
    “The gift shop’s still open,” he said, tactfully not looking at her somewhat shredded khakis and sneakers. “Go crazy.”
    Barrett took the credit card he handed her. “I’ll pay you back.”
    Nick shrugged, hoisting the large duffel he kept stashed in the helicopter. He’d told her that it held several outfits suitable for different events. Everything but a tux, in fact.
    She came out of the shop with a bulging bag holding a black maxi skirt and a gauze top in white, plus some costume jewelry that wasn’t too gaudy, makeup, brush and toothbrush, and toiletries. And what the hell. A really nice bikini and black wedge flip-flops. The clerk had told them that the pool was on a high terrace adjoining their floor. She might as well take full advantage of it.
    She showered and changed, then met Nick in the lobby. He looked every inch the handsome guy waiting for his gal. She resented the approving glances sent his way from a few women who sauntered by. In the improvised outfit that clearly conveyed gift-shop desperation, Barrett herself was more or less invisible.
    The restaurant featured secluded tables for diners who preferred privacy. Their orders came quickly, but Barrett only picked at hers until the silent waiter removed their plates and left their wineglasses.
    Nick was patient, but the knowledge that his patience wouldn’t last long made her jittery. Despite the fantasy she’d had of spending time with him, and maybe even swimming before they talked, she’d always been a rip-the-bandage-off type of person.
    Barrett took a fortifying sip of her wine. Second glass. Maybe she shouldn’t have. She felt tears prickle her eyes.
    “You came to me,” he said quietly. “Trust me enough to tell me why.”
    “All right. Here goes.” Barrett summoned up her nerve. “I made a mistake. A big one.”
    “That’s not like you.”
    At the clear sarcasm in his voice, Barrett glared at him.
    “Sorry. Go on.”
    “I had a friend,” she began. “She came from a rich family.”
    “Like yours?”
    “Not rich enough for my snooty folks,” Barrett said dryly. “But we used to play together. Sarah got pregnant in high school. Mr. Wonderful ditched her and their baby six months after the birth. No forwarding address. Private detectives couldn’t find him. So there she was, a single teenage mother with a baby daughter.”
    “Doesn’t sound like she had to worry about a roof over her head or paying the bills.”
    “No. But there were other things. She’d developed lymphoma soon after giving birth, but it went away with chemo. The baby meant everything to her. We were really close when Jane was little. Then …”
    “Then Noah died. You joined the army. Went abroad.”
    “Right,” she managed. Barrett really didn’t want to tell Nick everything. She swallowed hard, taking another sip of wine to refresh her still tender throat. She’d covered up the bruises with makeup and left her hair down.
    “Go on.”
    “The lymphoma came back. I saw Sarah now and then but not often enough. She swore she was going to beat it. It was convenient to believe that. She was tough, but just before I met you …”
    “How old was her daughter by then?”
    “Fourteen. She’s seventeen now. Sweet kid. Shy and imaginative. A little too sheltered. But she hung out with guys Sarah didn’t know sometimes, scared her mother out of her wits. At least they were age appropriate,” Barrett clarified. “The cute boy in the park with a guitar, that type.”
    “Got it. Sensitive.”
    “Just like Jane. Which was one more reason for Sarah to hide the fact that she was dying. Jane