Unveiled by Colleen Quinn Page B

have many, I’m sure.” Katie opened her book and resumed reading. “Please feel free to go on, Mr. Scott. I find this horribly fascinating.”
    “Do you believe her?” he asked Bertrice, who was still hiding from Charles beneath the umbrella. “I daresay I get more sympathy from a pit bull.”
    “Mr. Scott.” Margaret flounced up beside him. “It is so hot out here, and I was just saying to Mr. Pepper how nice a walk would be. Would you care to accompany us?”
    Christopher hesitated for a moment, just long enough for Katie to peer up from her book and give Margaret a scathing glance. Chuckling quietly, he rose from one knee and brushed the sand from his trousers.
    “No, I think not. Thank you, anyway. There’s a brace of snipes a few miles down. I think I’ll engage in some real sport this afternoon, one where I stand half a chance.”
    Katie merely nodded when he made his farewells while Margaret joined Charles and started down the beach. Bertrice emerged a moment later, obviously upset.
    “I can’t believe he just went off with her like that.”
    “Don’t worry, Margaret is just like that,” Nellie said reassuringly. “I know Charles likes you. He was looking at you the whole time.”
    “Do you think so?” Bertrice asked anxiously.
    Katie agreed. “I think he only left with Margaret because he didn’t think you were interested. You have to stop hiding from him. You’re giving him the wrong idea.”
    “That Mr. Scott sure seems intent upon you,” Bertrice said happily. “Why, no matter what you said to him, he kept coming back for more. I’ve never seen a man more taken with a girl.”
    Nellie and Mary exchanged a look, but Katie simply shrugged.
    “He just wants what he can’t have, just like most men. I should tell him yes and really upset him.” She shivered, though the idea wasn’t as distasteful as it should have been. Christopher Scott was beginning to get on her nerves. And he was a distraction she couldn’t afford.
    Margaret returned much more quickly than anyone would have anticipated, Katie thought in satisfaction. The lunch was eaten, and the girls stretched out on their blankets for an afternoon nap. Within moments they were all asleep. Katie was unable to find that refuge for herself, even with the help of the book. Used to a vigorous life, she found the leisure of the wealthy excessive and could seldom find the need for a daytime nap.
    Getting to her feet, she decided to walk along the surf, enjoying the weather and the water. Kicking the waves, she was oblivious to everything until she reached a small inlet several hundred feet away. A motion in the water caught her attention and she gasped, realizing she wasn’t alone.
    A man was in the ocean.
    Katie watched in shocked fascination as he stood in the waves like an Adonis. His body was partially hidden by the water, but even from the distance she could tell that he wore little or nothing. When the surf seemed just right, he turned and dived into the water, allowing the waves to carry him to shore.
    Katie reluctantly admired his form. He was a good swimmer, obviously used to this life and having ample time to polish his skill. As he rose she saw that he was in excellent shape, his body lean and muscular, moving with a deceptive grace. Wading into the ocean again, he swam out to the deeper part, his body slicing through the waves like a half-human, half-sea creature.
    She didn’t know when she recognized him, but within moments, knew it was him. Vexed that he swam as well as he danced or probably anything else, she nevertheless couldn’t take her eyes from him as he moved expertly through the water.
    A dark pile of something on the beach caught her attention, and when he had his back to her, she crept closer and saw that it was his clothes. The temptation was overwhelming. A mischievous impulse possessed her and she snatched them up, tossing them behind a sand dune. She managed to get back to the beach, where her friends were