The Adventurer (5 page)

He peered politely over her shoulder. “What’s the problem ?”

She instantly reared up, her strangled gasp becoming a howl of pain when her skull smacked the underside of the raised hood. Before Devon could do more than extend a helpless hand, Jessica spun away, clutched her head with both hands and skewed him with an accusatory glare. “Do you enjoy scaring the liver out of people or are you just an inconsiderate boob? ” Feeling stupid, Devon offered a conciliatory shrug. “I’m sorry. I should have known better. ” Apparently deflated by the apology, her pale brows knitted into a charming frown. “Yes, you should have. ” She delicately probed the top of her skull and winced.

Devon stepped forward, extending his hand. “Let me”

“No!” Hanging onto her skull as though she expected it to bounce off and roll away, she stumbled backward until her shoulders scraped the building’s concrete wall. Taken aback by her reaction, Devon lowered his hand. “I just want to make sure you’re all right. ” “I’m fine, ” she replied crisply, patting her perfectly styled hair as though adjusting a helmet Devon noted that something about the prissy Miss. Jessica seemed different today. Softer. More vulnerable. Perhaps it was her freshly scrubbed face, now devoid of cosmetics, that he found so appealing. Perhaps it was the worn jeans and sloppy sweatshirt making her seem, well, less rigid. He was, however, struck by the incongruity of such casual attire combined with her sophisticated and scrupulously arranged coiffure. In truth, he didn’t much care for her new hairdo. It was too stylish and reflected a touch-me-not formality that he found off-putting. Two years ago her blunt-cut tresses had been sleek and shiny, brushing her shoulders with just the merest hint of curve. They’d been silky and inviting, the kind of hair a man yearns to run his fingers through.

Devon felt a strange pang of loss at the memory.

His wandering thoughts were interrupted when Jessica stopped fiddling with her hair, crossed her arms and confronted him. “What are you doing here? “

“Hmm? Oh. Checking on you”

Her chin drooped. “What on earth for? ” “Apparently my father has been trying to call you all morning and kept getting the answering machine. He was concerned enough to telephone the house and insist that I make certain you were all right. ” Actually, Crandall had seemed a great deal more than concerned. When the jangling telephone had rocked Devon out of bed this morning, the crackling voice on the other end of the line bordered on hysteria. “What did he think I’d find, anyway? “

A furious flush crept along Jessica’s jaw. “I have no idea. “

Devon wasn’t buying that. “Hey, I’ve just been jarred out of a nice warm bed at the crack of dawn-”

“Ten o’clock is hardly the crack of dawn. “

“On Saturday it is. Besides, I’m still on European time, which means that today is really tomorrow so in theory I haven’t slept in two days.

“I’m sorry you were inconvenienced. “

Devon shifted uncomfortably. “I guess my father’s agitation wore off on me.

I figured that if he was that worried, he must have a reason. “

“Crandall’sjust a bit overprotective, that’s all. ” “Overprotective? You’re putting me on, right? ” The thought was so ludicrous, Devon nearly laughed out loud. “Look, my father is a lot of things but overprotective certainly isn’t one of them. When I was growing up, he traveled ten months out of twelve and I considered myself lucky if he called home twice a year. “

“That’s terrible. ” She touched her throat, seeming genuinely dismayed.

“You must have been so hurt. ” The compassion flooding her soft green eyes took his breath away. He coughed away a sudden lump in his throat. “He was a busy man. I, uh, understood that. ” ‘

“No child understands parental abandonment. “

Shifting restlessly, Devon hooked his thumbs in his pants pockets and avoided her perceptive gaze. “It was a long time ago. I got over it. “

“Did you? “

“Yes. ” Annoyed by the conversation’s direction, Devon irritably raked his hair and turned the topic back to her. “So you and my father have some kind of personal relationship ?”

Her head snapped around. “Excuse me? “

Puffing his cheeks, Devon blew out a breath and wondered why in hell he couldn’t spit out a single word without putting his foot in his mouth.

“I didn’t mean to imply that there was anything unsavory going on. “

“How gratifying. ” ‘ Wiping his moist forehead, he managed a thin smile. “I was just curious about your position… uh…” He winced at the unintentional innuendo. “At Electro Sonics that is. I mean, I was just wondering what kind of job requires you to be available on weekends. “

She smiled sweetly. “Don’t foreign correspondents ever work weekends? “

Sighing, he gave up and propped one hip against the car fender. “I’m just trying to make conversation. ” Irked to have lost control of this ridiculous situation, his response was brusque and to the point. “I haven’t the slightest idea. “

She cocked her head prettily. “You don’t like me very much, do you? “

Startled by her candor, Devon studied her curious expression and found no trace of either sarcasm or anger. “I haven’t made up my mind yet. ” To his surprise, Jessica flashed an amused grin that warmed him to his toes.

“I haven’t made my mind up about you, either. “

His own lips curved without permission. “So should we call a truce or what? “

“That would probably be the adult thing to do. “

“How dull. ” “It’s only until Crandall gets back on his feet, ” she promised, her eyes twinkling as she reached into the bag and extracted a tiny, oblong box. “Then we can declare war again and go back to behaving like a couple of bad-tempered adolescents. ” “Sounds like a plan, ” he murmured, watching in fascination as Jessica extracted a new spark plug from the box, whipped a feeler gage from her hip pocket and expertly adjusted the ground electrode until the plug gap measured exactly 0. 75 millimeters. “Where’d you learn to do that? “

“Hmm? Oh, my stepfather. Ralph was his car for almost fifteen years.

“She blew on the plug’s core nose and slid the gage back into her pocket. “When I graduated from college , Dad gave me the Jag on the condition that I learn how to take care of it. ” ‘ As she moved in front of the vehicle, Devon stepped aside to allow her access. “What have you got against professional mechanics? “

“Not a thing but I’ve never seen one on the freeway at rush hour.

Besides, I’d much rather handle my own problems instead of wringing my hands like a helpless twit until someone comes to my rescue. ” Somehow Devon suspected that telling statement summed up Jessica’s opinion of life itself. Despite her irritating snippiness and a high-handed attitude that irked him to the bone, he also realized that the woman he’d once written off as a haughty snob was gutty, self-reliant and admirably independent Most importantly, Jessica Newcomb was different She was a challenge.

And Devon had never been able to resist a challenge.

When she hoisted up on tiptoe to reach into the engine compartment, he leaned forward and plucked the long necked rachet from her hand. “I’ll finish this up, ” he said pleasantly. “You go relax, put your feet up, have a cup of coffee. ” She stared at him as though he’d suggested piercing her tongue with a lug bolt. “Are you trying to be nice? “

He blinked. “

“Well, yes. ” “Ah. Then I’ll refuse your offer politely instead of pointing out how annoying it is to be patronized. ” She held out her hand. “My plug wrench, please. “

“I was just trying to help. “

Her foot tapped an impatient rhythm on the asphalt. “I don’t need help and I don’t want it. I thought I made myself clear on that point. ” Embarrassed and unreasonably irritated, Devon slapped the tool into her palm and decided that female independence wasn’t quite as admirable as he’d first thought. The woman was impossible. Talk about a lousy attitude. Devon folded his arms. He didn’t need this aggravation and asked himself why he was still standing there. The silent answer suddenly rolled through his mind, surprising him. Jessica Newcomb had all the charm of a starving grizzly but she was still the most intriguing woman he’d ever met. He simply couldn’t bring himself to walk away. Ducking under the hood, Jessica angled a furtive glance at the fuming man. She knew that she’d overreacted, and regretted snapping the poor guy’s head off just because he’d offered to help. The thing was that he hadn’t exactly offered When he’d stepped in and taken over, she’d felt inept and foolish. That wasn’t his fault, of course. He had no way of knowing why she was so sensitive. And she had no intention of telling him. Still, she succumbed to an urge to make amends without enduring the humiliation of a full-blown apology. “Actually , a cup of coffee really does sound kind of good, doesn’t it? I’ll make some as soon as I’m finished here. “

He answered with an indecipherable grunt.

As he studied a puffy cloud, she studied him, noticing that the rumpled fatigues had been replaced by crisply tailored beige slacks, a nylon Windbreaker and a cobalt golf shirt that gave his eyes a crystalline spark that was exceptionally appealing. His freshly shaved jawline was firm and strong, the perfect setting for a full-lipped, well-sculpted mouth. All in all, he’d cleaned up surprisingly well. Well enough, in fact, to be a distraction. After twisting the wrench until the final plug was seated snugly, she chanced a quick glance at the lean hip that was propped against the fender. Her pulse increased instantly. The man was definitely attractive Too attractive. She roughly withdrew the plug rachet, snuck another admiring glance and accidentally knocked off the socket head, which clattered through the engine and settled on a steel ledge at the bottom of the compartment. Alerted by her frustrated groan, Devon peered into the engine. “I think I can reach it from under the car, ” he said, then looked up warily. “

“Unless, of course, you’d rather do it yourself. “

She managed to smile. “Go ahead. My ego can handle the fact that your arms are longer than mine. ” Chuckling softly, he knelt behind the driver’s wheel , twisted awkwardly under the vehicle and felt blindly along the engine frame. “Am I close yet? ” Jessica pushed the air hose back for a better view. “About six inches forward… that’s good. You’re almost there. Watch out for that sharp-”

“Ouch!”

“Oh, good grief!” Jessica spun around the fender and helped the struggling man to his feet. “Are you all right? ” “Yeah. ” He opened his hand to reveal the shiny plug socket and a palm full of blood. With a gasp of dismay, she tossed the socket aside and tried to look at the wound. “Let me see. “

He pulled away. “It’s nothing. “

She yanked it back. “What are you afraid of? “

He stiffened indignantly. “I’m not afraid of anything. “

“That’s what I thought. ” She bit back a smile. “Now, let me see if you need stitches or not. ” ‘ He reluctantly complied. As she studied the jagged cut at the web of his thumb, he sullenly eyed the toolbox. “I hope you don’t have a suture kit in there. ” “No. I use staples. ” Laughing at his horrified expression , she released him long enough to reach into her car and pull a wad of tissues from a box beside the driver’s seat. Pressing the tissues against the wound, she folded his thumb into his palm to stem the bleeding and led him toward the underground parking garage. “

“Where are we going? “

“Up to my lair, ” she said cheerfully. “That’s a nasty cut but it’s not very deep. A bandage and some antiseptic ought to fix you up just fine. For a moment, she thought he was going to argue the point. Instead he followed passively, watching with interest as Jessica slid a plastic card into a slotted lock in the wrought-iron security gate. The gate slid open. Jessica tucked her card back into her pocket, extracted her apartment keys and led her wounded assistant through a honeycomb of concrete pillars.

Devon glanced around the dreary structure. “

“Is this where the residents park? “

Jessica poked an arrowed Up button between two elevator doors. “Yes.

Homey, isn’t it? ” “That’s not the word I’d use. How many times have you been mugged down here? “Never, ” she replied with exaggerated indignation. “I’ll have you know that this is an excellent neighborhood. Of course, once you leave the building, all bets are off. ” When the elevator doors opened, De,von emitted a low whistle. “Classy, ” he murmured, eyeing the mirrored walls”

“PPE and c stal fixtures. What hans if I bleed on that fancy carpet?

“My association fees will go up, so please keep your bodily fluids to yourself. ” Devon chuckled and shook his head. “You’re a hard lady to figure, ” he said as the elevator hummed upward. “One minute you’re playful as a kitten and the next you’re cold enough to freeze meat. Are you deliberately trying to keep me off guard or do you have some kind of aversion to consistency ?”

She looked away. “Probably a bit of both. “

She could almost feel his gaze on the back of her neck as he waited for clarification of the obtuse statement. He’d have a long wait. Jessica couldn’t clarify what she couldn’t understand and, quite frankly, was as bewildered by her erratic behavior as was the poor man himself. After having spent most of her life distancing herself with practiced civility, she suddenly found herself on an emotional roller coaster. Devon Monroe was a thrill seeker, a man who’d abandoned his father for fame and glory. He represented recklessness, irresponsibility and a wanton disregard for the sanctity of life. Yet she was fascinated by him. In the close confines of the elevator, his musky aftershave enveloped her like a lover’s arms. His skin was warm to her touch, the corded muscles of his wrist pulsing against her hand. Her mouth went dry; her heart pounded; her knees lost some of their strength. When the elevator doors glided open, Jessica rushed into the hallway, vaguely aware that she’d hauled him out so roughly that he’d nearly tripped over his own feet. She managed an apologetic smile and guided him down the short corridor to her apartment. After opening the door, she released his hand and tossed the keys on the wobbly TV tray that served as a lamp table. She gestured toward the kitchen.

“Have a seat. I’ll get the first-aid kit. “