never paid her any attention. How terrible that must feel, and
how much King must want to comfort and protect her. But how terrible, too, for
King to be torn between his feelings for
Bess and for Bobby and his sense of what was right. What a mess.
And what a pity,
Elissa thought, that she herself couldn't be one of those superficial people who enjoyed life
without really considering consequences. But
she knew herself too well to think she could sur vive a casual affair with King. Her principles were too firmly embedded in her personality, and
despite her abandon when she was with
him, he was right that her conscience would kill her if she fell into
his bed. Besides, she thought miserably,
would he still feel the same about
her once he'd been intimate with her?
She didn't think she could stand to have him and then lose him.
And what
about Bess? Did she really want King, or was she attracted to him because
he was safely unattainable and no real threat to her marriage? Elissa sighed, staring at the passing
sea-grape trees and tall
114
Diana
Palmer
Fit for a
King
115
casuarina pines that
partially veiled the blinding white beach and the incredible blues and
greens of the Car ibbean.
What a ridiculous question. Her eyes turned to
King, adoring his profile. He was handsome and rich, and what he didn't know
about women wasn't worth knowing. Who
wouldn't want him for keeps? She looked away quickly and closed her eyes
on a wave of pain. If he and Bess wound up
together, they would undoubtedly marry and have children. How that thought hurt!
Time
crawled while they got through the long line of customs and
immigration before boarding the plane. Bess eased into the seat next to
King's on the enormous jumbo jet, and Elissa, on his other side, couldn't help but notice the
way Bess clutched his hand as the plane prepared for takeoff.
"Frightened?"
King asked his sister-in-law in a tone so tender that it hurt Elissa.
"Not now," Bess whispered, her heart in her
eyes.
Elissa
looked away, unable to bear the tender smiles they were exchanging. Across the
aisle, Bobby, once
more buried in his paperwork, hadn't even
noticed.
When they
touched down in Miami, Elissa breathed a sigh of relief.
Sitting next to King and Bess had been utter torment, but now she could escape. She could go home to her parents and try to forget all about this. She didn't ever want to see the two of them together again. If that meant
selling her cottage,
well... The thought
was horrifying. She couldn't bear it if she never saw King again! Her eyes filled with hot tears, and she swallowed them down before he could see them. How had this happened? They'd been friends. She almost wished he'd never touched her. She could almost hate
him for making her so aware of him, of her
feelings for him.
They
cleared customs and immigration again, and Elissa stood a little
apart while King said goodbye to Bobby and Bess.
"We
need to get going," he told them, "so we won't wait to wave
you off. I'll be back to the ranch in a week or so. Check with Blake
Donavan and make sure
everything's all right. He's supposed to be look ing out for me while my foreman's on vacation."
"Imagine
Donavan having time to do that," Bobby said with a laugh.
"The last I heard, he was up to his ears trying to hold on to his own
place after his uncle died. All those greedy cousins of his, filing
law suits..."
King chuckled. "Donavan
won, didn't you hear? Hell of a
businessman."
"And
a dish," Bess said playfully, glancing sur reptitiously at Bobby. "He's never
married, either. I wonder why not. Do you
suppose he's nursing some hopeless
passion for someone?"
No one responded
to Bess's musings, but Elissa saw King's face harden. Then he forced a
smile as he
116
Diana
Palmer
Fit for a
King
117
shook Bobby's hand.
"Take care of yourself and Bess."
“Sure, sure. Thought
we might find some time to go horseback riding this weekend," he added
with a grin at Bess, who looked amazed. "Bess and I
how much King must want to comfort and protect her. But how terrible, too, for
King to be torn between his feelings for
Bess and for Bobby and his sense of what was right. What a mess.
And what a pity,
Elissa thought, that she herself couldn't be one of those superficial people who enjoyed life
without really considering consequences. But
she knew herself too well to think she could sur vive a casual affair with King. Her principles were too firmly embedded in her personality, and
despite her abandon when she was with
him, he was right that her conscience would kill her if she fell into
his bed. Besides, she thought miserably,
would he still feel the same about
her once he'd been intimate with her?
She didn't think she could stand to have him and then lose him.
And what
about Bess? Did she really want King, or was she attracted to him because
he was safely unattainable and no real threat to her marriage? Elissa sighed, staring at the passing
sea-grape trees and tall
114
Diana
Palmer
Fit for a
King
115
casuarina pines that
partially veiled the blinding white beach and the incredible blues and
greens of the Car ibbean.
What a ridiculous question. Her eyes turned to
King, adoring his profile. He was handsome and rich, and what he didn't know
about women wasn't worth knowing. Who
wouldn't want him for keeps? She looked away quickly and closed her eyes
on a wave of pain. If he and Bess wound up
together, they would undoubtedly marry and have children. How that thought hurt!
Time
crawled while they got through the long line of customs and
immigration before boarding the plane. Bess eased into the seat next to
King's on the enormous jumbo jet, and Elissa, on his other side, couldn't help but notice the
way Bess clutched his hand as the plane prepared for takeoff.
"Frightened?"
King asked his sister-in-law in a tone so tender that it hurt Elissa.
"Not now," Bess whispered, her heart in her
eyes.
Elissa
looked away, unable to bear the tender smiles they were exchanging. Across the
aisle, Bobby, once
more buried in his paperwork, hadn't even
noticed.
When they
touched down in Miami, Elissa breathed a sigh of relief.
Sitting next to King and Bess had been utter torment, but now she could escape. She could go home to her parents and try to forget all about this. She didn't ever want to see the two of them together again. If that meant
selling her cottage,
well... The thought
was horrifying. She couldn't bear it if she never saw King again! Her eyes filled with hot tears, and she swallowed them down before he could see them. How had this happened? They'd been friends. She almost wished he'd never touched her. She could almost hate
him for making her so aware of him, of her
feelings for him.
They
cleared customs and immigration again, and Elissa stood a little
apart while King said goodbye to Bobby and Bess.
"We
need to get going," he told them, "so we won't wait to wave
you off. I'll be back to the ranch in a week or so. Check with Blake
Donavan and make sure
everything's all right. He's supposed to be look ing out for me while my foreman's on vacation."
"Imagine
Donavan having time to do that," Bobby said with a laugh.
"The last I heard, he was up to his ears trying to hold on to his own
place after his uncle died. All those greedy cousins of his, filing
law suits..."
King chuckled. "Donavan
won, didn't you hear? Hell of a
businessman."
"And
a dish," Bess said playfully, glancing sur reptitiously at Bobby. "He's never
married, either. I wonder why not. Do you
suppose he's nursing some hopeless
passion for someone?"
No one responded
to Bess's musings, but Elissa saw King's face harden. Then he forced a
smile as he
116
Diana
Palmer
Fit for a
King
117
shook Bobby's hand.
"Take care of yourself and Bess."
“Sure, sure. Thought
we might find some time to go horseback riding this weekend," he added
with a grin at Bess, who looked amazed. "Bess and I
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