get it,” Amber volunteered.
Beth bit her lip, not allowing herself to protest. The girls liked Keith. Trying to draw them away and tell them to be wary would only send them flying to his defense.
Kim jumped up to run after Amber.
Beth’s pepper spray lay forgotten on Amber’s beach towel.
Staring at Keith, she went and picked it up. He smiled, shaking his head.
“What’s that smile for?” she demanded, moving closer to him so the girls wouldn’t hear her.
“Pepper spray…machete. Hmm.”
“Don’t kid yourself, this stuff can blind a man.”
“I wouldn’t dream of mocking your strength, Ms. Anderson,” he told her.
Then he turned and went to accept the coconut Amber had picked up. Beth watched as he slammed it against a tree.
The coconut broke at his bidding. He didn’t look back at her, just offered the pieces to the girls. Only then did he turn.
“Sorry—is it all right if they have fresh coconut?”
Amber giggled. “Silly. Aunt Beth doesn’t have anything against coconuts.”
Beth forced a smile.
She was relieved to see the first of the dinghies sliding smoothly onto the shore, just a hundred feet down on the beach.
The others were back.
“Mahimahi tonight!” Ben shouted. He jumped from the dinghy and dragged it farther up the shore, then reached back to give a hand to Amanda. She accepted it with her usual innate sensuality, managing to bring her whole body against Ben in her smooth effort to step to the sand.
“My recipe tonight,” Ben called to Beth.
He sounded so pleased. Their fishing expedition had clearly been a great success.
Once again, she forced a smile, then waved and slipped into her tent.
She hoped her brother was having a good time.
For herself, it felt as if she had taken the night train to hell.
And, she realized, it could only get worse. She was suddenly longing for something she shouldn’t have.
Perhaps couldn’t have…
But the really scary thought was that he was feeling just the same.
5
BETH SAT ON THE BENT TRUNK of the palm tree, eating Doritos and watching.
It might have been a family reunion.
The light was gone, but three separate fires blazed, and the portable barbecue was working away, as well. The fires, she decided, were mainly for show, for warmth and light, though the moon was full, and the sky was clear, studded with stars. The fires were still nice, she thought.
Ben was talking to Keith and Matt by the barbecue, explaining the secret to his perfect mahimahi, she suspected. A coffeepot was set over one of the fires. Brad was the coffee brewer. Hank, Gerald and Matt were hanging out with him, probably talking about their day on the water.
As she watched, Amanda joined the group, giggling, laughing and, judging by her gestures, telling a story about the way someone had caught a fish. The men were laughing, obviously entertained, and equally obviously enthralled.
Beth was startled when Sandy sat down at her side.
She had a beer in her hand, and she was watching the group at the fire, as well.
“She’s got a way with her, huh?” Sandy said a little glumly.
“She’s very pretty,” Beth said judiciously.
Sandy turned to her, a half smile in place, a wry expression in her eyes. “You’re much better looking. Actually, so am I. She just really knows how to turn it on and use everything she has.”
“Two of those guys are her cousins,” Beth reminded her. Sandy seemed so normal at the moment, but Beth couldn’t forget what she had seen and heard in the clearing.
“And two aren’t,” Sandy said flatly. She shrugged. “I guess some women are just like that. They can’t keep their hands off anything in pants.”
“She comes from a…a world of privilege,” Beth murmured, wondering why she was even attempting to excuse Amanda Mason, who tended to make her skin crawl. Still, she’d made it a point to make sure she never talked badly about any member of the club. She offered Sandy the bag of Doritos.
The other woman sniffed. “Think those boobs are real?”
“Um…I’ve never asked.”
“Enhanced,” Sandy assured her.
“Well, lots of people…enhance.”
Sandy sighed. “True. It’s just that…I mean, she uses the damn things like business cards. And men are so easy.”
Beth laughed. “I guess sometimes they are.”
“She can’t have many friends.”
“I don’t really know,” Beth murmured. She felt like she was ragging on the most popular girl in high school, and it felt more and more uncomfortable. She decided to change the topic. “So how long have you and Brad been together?”
“Three years,” Sandy said. “A long time, huh?” She paused. “I’m still madly in love with him. More or less.”
Beth wasn’t certain how “madly in love” and “more or less” could actually coincide, and again she felt she’d gone back to high school.
“Well, it’s great that you’re together, then,” she said.
Sandy chomped a Dorito. Amanda had her hand on Brad’s arm. Sandy shook her head unhappily and looked at Beth. “You don’t think it’s too long?”
“Too long for what?”
“Shouldn’t we be getting married?”
“Oh. Um. Well, I don’t know. I guess it’s good to really know a person first. I’d much rather be with a person and know that he’s the one I want to spend the rest of my life with than marry in a hurry and have it all fall apart. The divorce rate is so high today.”
“Is your brother divorced?”
“No. His wife passed away.”
“That’s terrible.”
“Yes.”
“So…you don’t think it’s a bad thing
