One Touch of Topaz by Iris Johansen Page A

she hurried from the room.
    “Why, she’s afraid of you,” Samantha said, surprised. It seemed impossible that anyone as confident as Sara could be intimidated, yet that last glance she had shot at Fletch had been definitely apprehensive. “Do you have that effect on many people?”
    “I don’t know.” He shrugged. “That’s not important at the moment. I guess I’d better give you a report on your friends to help clear the decks. Lazaro is in a hospital in Barbados. He’s doing well and expected to be released in a couple of weeks. I arranged for special help to be given to Luz and any other refugees who might need it. Now let’s get to the essentials, shall we?” He dropped down on the cushioned rattan chair beside the bed. “You first. Tell me what your plans are.”
    “I’ll take a few days to recover, and then I’ll have to find a way to return to St. Pierre to help Paco.” She paused. “I wonder if you might help me with that? Perhaps Skip could drop me off somewhere in the hills. I know it’s asking a great deal, but I really can’t leave for Barbados yet.”
    “I have no intention of sending you to Barbados.”
    “Then could Skip take me to St. Pierre?”
    “No, he can’t, and since this is a private island, you’re not going to find anyone else to take you there, either.”
    “But I really have to—”
    “No.” Fletch’s hands closed tightly on the arms of the chair.
“Hell
, no. You’re not going back to St. Pierre.”
    “I know you’re concerned about me, and it’s very kind of you to—”
    “I wish you’d stop saying that. I’m not kind,” he said impatiently. “I just have the usual amount of horse sense, something you appear to be lacking.” He paused. “Besides,I’m selfish enough not to want you to spoil my plans.”
    “Plans?”
    “I have a few plans of my own, and they don’t include you going back to St. Pierre.” He held up his hand as she began to protest. “Listen to me. The doctor made all kinds of tests while you were sleeping. He couldn’t understand why you collapsed and remained unconscious when the wound was actually minor. He found you were suffering from extreme exhaustion.” His hand lowered, slowly closing into a fist. “And malnutrition. He said you’d probably been abusing your body, living on your nerves for years. You need months, not days, of rest. You need good food, long lazy days, and no worry.”
    She shook her head. “Not now. I’ll rest later, after I get Paco off St. Pierre.”
    “I thought that would be your reaction,” Fletch said grimly. “You’re like a terrier that won’t let go of a slipper. Well, that’s all right. It fits into my plans. I have a deal to offeryou. You want Paco Ranalto safely off St. Pierre, right?”
    She frowned. “Of course.”
    “And it would endanger your health to go after him right now.”
    “That doesn’t matter. I’m stronger than—”
    “If you tell me one more time how tough you are, I’ll be tempted to strangle you. I’ve just spent twenty-four hours sitting here worrying about you.”
    “Did you worry about me?” Samantha smiled radiantly. “It’s nice to have someone worry about me.”
    He was silent, gazing at her in exasperation. “Even when it’s only a ‘crotchety’ old businessman?”
    She laughed. “Skip told you. I did say you could be crotchety, but I never said you were old.”
    “That’s comforting. I’m glad you don’t find me completely unappealing. Particularly since my plan calls for considerable intimacy.”
    She went still. “Intimacy?”
    He nodded. “I have a bargain that would meet both our needs. You want your friend, Paco. I want a child with none of the disadvantages I’d ordinarily encounter with a woman who might demand more than I’d be willing to give.” He leaned forward, his gaze holding her own. “I propose a trade. I’ll send a team of men into St. Pierre to locate both Ranalto and your Dr. Salazar if you like. They’ll