While the Fire Rages (31 page)

Reflective of her husband’s actions, Jo pushed her chair away from the desk and walked to the window. If only Brett had not mentioned her affair with Gary in quite that accusing tone! Or was she too sensitive about that fiasco? Why couldn’t they just sit down and talk like two intelligent, mature adults? Maybe she ought to look Brett straight in the eyes and say: I love you. Now what are you going to do about it? Jo sighed. She knew full well that it was the fear of Brett’s answer that kept her from speaking to him about her feelings. Still, Jo knew that something would have to give, and soon. She simply could not continue to live in this void.

Jo stood at the window a long time, her thoughts revolving, always coming back to the same point. Something, or someone, would have to give. Jo had the very uncomfortable feeling that the someone would be JoAnne Lawrence Renninger.

Since their marriage, whenever Brett was in the office, he came for her when it was time to go home. It was after six before he strode into Jo’s office that afternoon. As usual, the sight of him set Jo’s pulses racing. Today Brett’s grim expression increased the pulse rate to a gallop.

“Are you ready to leave?”

For all the work she’d accomplished, she might as well have stayed home in the first place! Jo refrained from offering the information. Come to that, there hadn’t been all that much work to do! Had Brett been as idle as she these last weeks? Jo rejected the idea at once. From all reports, he had not allowed his first wife to interfere with his work, and he had been in love with her! Jo nodded in answer and began collecting her briefcase, handbag, gloves, and coat, suppressing the longing to have the power to interfere with his daily routine.

“Well, at least I’ll soon be saying good-bye to this place.” Brett made the thickly drawled observation as they entered the apartment.

Startled, and more than a little shocked, Jo’s gaze trekked Brett’s as he scanned the room. She would have sworn he liked the apartment! The full content of his statement hit her in a rush. Was Brett obliquely telling her he was leaving her? Jo’s fear hid itself behind a calm tone.

“Are you going somewhere?” God! She sounded bored! And, from the sharp glance Brett sliced at her, he did not appreciate her enforced smoothness.

“
We
are going somewhere,” Brett enunciated harshly. “I had a call from Mother today.” Removing his coat, Brett held it in one hand and reached for Jo’s with the other. “She is expecting us at the farm for Easter,” he continued as he hung the garments in the closet. Jo felt pinned by his steely eyes when he turned to face her. “It’s time to return to Atlanta.” Brett walked to within a few inches of her before adding, “Wolf’s ready to resume control of the New York office.”

“But that’s wonderful!” Jo momentarily forgot her own unhappiness on hearing about Wolf’s recovery. Brett brought her back to earth with a crash.

“Are you going with me?” Brett’s quiet tone conflicted with the muscle jumping in his jaw.

To where? Jo wondered in confusion. To Florida or Atlanta? And why was he suddenly so tense? And, damn it, why did he sound so relieved about leaving the apartment? Ask him, you fool! Jo opened her mouth, then closed it again, damning herself for the coward she’d become. Fortunately, Brett unwittingly gave her a reprieve.

“I told Mother we’d fly down the middle of next week,” Brett went on when it became obvious she was not going to respond. “It seems there’s a family conference awaiting us. Will Wednesday be convenient for you?”

“Yes, of course.”Jo frowned. “What is the conference all about?”

“Who knows?” Brett shrugged. “But, knowing Mother, it will probably mean more work for all of us.”

* * * *

Brett breathed in deeply as the plane soared off the runway into the clear morning sky. After a week of figuratively holding his breath, it was a relief to breathe without constraint. At every minute of every hour of every day Brett had expected Jo to tell him she was not going with him. Now, with Jo strapped into the seat beside him, Brett allowed his taut body to relax. The ending would come soon enough. Until the final moment was upon him, Brett wanted her right where she was, by his side.

My beautiful, fragile-looking, tough-as-a-marine wife.
Brett smiled sadly inside his mind. Since meeting Jo the previous October, Brett had revised every one of his opinions about her but one. At that time, he had concluded that Jo was a confection spun of pure steel. Now Brett knew his conclusion had been correct. Then again, perhaps Marsha’s theory held merit. Maybe Jo simply did not like men! Not once in the two months they had been together had Jo looked at another man with even a hint of interest. As to that, Jo hadn’t revealed a hell of a lot of interest in him, either, except in the bedroom!

Brett had to clench his teeth against the bitter laughter that rose in his throat. Now, there’s a switch! Weren’t men forever getting rapped for being unable to communicate outside of the bedroom?

Brett had never consciously thought about it before but, at that moment, he decided that most of what he’d heard and read about the differences between the sexes was simply nonsense. Once the obvious hurdle was cleared, the fact was there was very little difference between the male and the female.

The fact denoted equality.

The thought sprang into Brett’s mind and refused to be dislodged. In all honesty, he had to admit, at least to himself, that Jo was indeed his equal.

They should make a brilliant combination, Brett mused. The ideal team. So, why didn’t they?

Because she does not love you.

Square one. From a distance that seemed like light-years, but was in fact not yet two full years, Brett acknowledged that the love he’d thought he’d felt for Sondra was as water compared to wine in what he felt for Jo. What he felt for Jo was a totally different kind of loving. Other than in the physical sense, he’d really not needed Sondra. Brett knew he needed Jo, in every sense known to man. If he required proof, all Brett had to do was remember the desperation he’d felt while making love to Jo ever since he’d received the phone call from his mother. For Brett, the act had gone far beyond the physical coupling of a man and a woman. In effect, what he had been attempting to do was draw the essence of Jo into himself; in a sense, to store up on her for a rainy day. And yet Brett still felt empty.

Emptiness has to be filled with something: Brett filled his personal void with anger. His fury was unreasonable and he knew it. Yet there it was, eating through him like a hot tongue of fire. Anger at Wolf, the brother he idolized. Anger at Jo, the woman he adored. Anger at himself, for getting involved in the first place. Brett’s anger fostered determination. He could not…would not give Jo up without a fight!

The same black Cadillac with the same taciturn driver was waiting for them at the small airstrip in Florida, only this time the sun was shining brightly and the temperature hovered in the mid-seventies. There was not a hint of rain, either in the air or on the horizon.

Jo, grateful for Brett’s suggestion that she wear light clothing, looked around with interest as they walked to the car. The airstrip and the small office-hangar had the appearance of having been plunked down in the middle of nowhere, so isolated were they.

Josh’s greeting was every bit as terse and laconic as it had been in December. Brett’s reply was as tight-lipped. Dismissing both men from her mind, Jo sat close to the window, her gaze skimming over the lush green pasture land they were driving through.

“Those trees are beautiful!” Jo exclaimed, indicating the huge pines that dotted the pastures and the large, tree-shaped cones that decorated the grass beneath the widely spread branches.

“Yes.”

Brett’s short reply robbed Jo of her delight in seeing Florida basking in the sunlight. Her first glimpse of sleek Thoroughbreds ambling serenely behind white rail fences restored her enthusiasm. Jo had never seen a Thoroughbred horse before, yet even she could recognize the fine lines and elegant appearance of the animals. It was not exactly love at first sight. Oh, the horses were very beautiful, but they were also very large, Jo decided she’d prefer to admire from a distance.

The drive seemed much shorter, and the house much larger, than before. As the car glided to a smooth stop in the curving driveway in front of the house, Jo was again struck by its likeness to pictures she’d seen of antebellum plantation homes. The word tranquility sprang to Jo’s mind. As she stepped from the car, Jo fervently hoped she’d find a measure of that tranquility while she was within its walls. As Jo and Brett mounted the steps, the door was flung wide open.

Elania Calaveri was exactly as she had been in December. Jo smothered a bubble of laughter as the woman again took Brett to task.

“Well, what a surprise!” Elania exclaimed in mock amazement. “Only half of Holy Week gone and you’re here already! Are you sick or something?” As they entered the imposing hall, the housekeeper directed her comments to Jo in a confiding manner. “Never could keep this hellion in one place for very long. He was always eager to be gone, even as a boy. He’d be up and out of the house so early, I had to teach the scamp to cook his own breakfast to make sure he’d get a decent meal inside him, as he seldom came home before dark.”

Jo shot a gleaming glance at her scowling husband. One bursting sentence from Elania had cleared up the mystery of how and why Brett had learned to cook. Eager to be gone. The words reverberated in Jo’s mind. Did that explain Brett’s strained behavior of the past several weeks and his obvious relief about leaving the apartment soon?

Was the adult Brett still the same as the boy—eager to be gone? Caught up in speculation, Jo missed Brett’s greeting to Elania, snapping to attention when she heard her name.

“I’m sorry, I was…admiring the house and didn’t hear what you said,” she lied unevenly when Brett repeated her name impatiently.

“I said,” Brett reiterated, “Elania has just told me that none of the others know we’ve arrived as they are in the dining room having lunch. Would you like to freshen up before we join them?”

Annoyed by Brett’s too-quiet tone, Jo answered sharply, “Yes, if you don’t mind?”

“If I had minded,” Brett bit back, “I wouldn’t have asked in the first place.” Ignoring the tiny gasp that burst through Elania’s suddenly tight lips, Brett ushered Jo up the stairs.

On her first visit to the house, Jo had been delighted with the bedroom Elania had escorted her to. Now she followed Brett as he swung in the opposite direction at the top of the wide staircase. Apparently, Jo mused, this side of the house contained the family bedrooms. A twinge of pain twisted in her chest as she wondered how much longer she’d be a member of the Renninger family.

The room Jo trailed Brett into was large and square and definitely masculine in decor. Jo loved it immediately. The absence of unnecessary clutter appealed to the Spartan in Jo. Standing just inside the door, Jo inventoried the rich dark-brown carpet and matching drapes, and the stark white of unadorned walls. An overstuffed, comfortable-looking chair in copper silk shantung gave the room focus and color. Jo did not have to be told that Brett had selected the decor himself. In some strange way the room was Brett.

“I love it.” Jo might as well have said “I love you.”

Brett’s face relaxed at her stamp of approval. “Somehow I knew you would.” He stared at her intently for a second before indicating a door on the wall to her right with a wave of his hand. “The bathroom. You don’t need to fuss, it’s only family.” A smile flickered over Brett’s tautly drawn lips. “You always look perfect anyway.”

Jo stared at him, unable to move for an instant. Would she ever get past the point of melting inside at the slightest suggestion of a smile from this man?
It’s not fair,
Jo protested silently.
It’s simply not...

“If you don’t move,” Brett’s sensuously warm voice drew her out of her thoughts, “I might be tempted to demonstrate the resiliency of the mattress on my bed.” His lips curved invitingly. “Are you as hungry as I am?”

Incredibly Jo was suddenly starving, in exactly the manner Brett’s slumberous eyes told her he was! How was it possible? Had they not skipped breakfast in favor of…Jo shivered in memory of the feast she and Brett had indulged in that morning. Fleetingly, Jo concluded that if they could remain in bed forever, they would have no marital problems. She wanted him, again, very badly, but, there was more to a marriage than that. There had to be. “Brett, I…” Jo’s breath caught in her throat as he took a step toward her. ‘They are all down there,” she finished lamely.

“And we are all up here.” Brett took another slow step. “All two of us.” His smile promised everything. The perfect number for a luncheon party.” One more step, and Jo felt like she was coming apart at the seams.

“But we haven’t even seen Wolf yet!” Jo grabbed at the excuse in desperation. What if Elania had mentioned their arrival? What would they all think? The change in Brett was as confusing as it was sudden. His body stiffening with tension, Brett pivoted away from her.

“Yes,
of course, Wolf.” His back to her, Brett stood as still as if carved from rock, his voice as hard. “Will you go do whatever you have to do, so we can get out of this room?”

Jo wanted to scream. Jo wanted to throw things. She walked into the bathroom. How did one keep up with a man whose moods changed with mercurial swiftness? Jo stared at the pitifully wan face reflected in the mirror above the marbleized sink. With the eyes of a critic, she examined the makeup she’d applied so carefully that morning. Her pale cheeks were in need of a touch of the blusher brush. Her disordered hair needed taming. Jo pictured the needed articles inside the flight bag Brett had placed on the long double dresser as he’d entered the room. She could either go and get the bag, or ask Brett to hand it in to her. Jo’s eyes avoided her face. Lifting her hands, she smoothed the mass of dark hair. She would not ask him for anything and, when she did walk out of the room, she would be ready to go downstairs. Brett was in a strange mood. He had been moody for weeks. The smell of showdown was in the air around them. Jo knew the slightest incident could trigger it. Raising her long lashes, Jo read the plea in her own dull hazel eyes; not now, not today, hold on to him as long as you can.