Endangered: A Delecoeur Mystery #1 (2 page)

She sighed. “We’ll be late if we make
love.”

“Yes, we will,” he agreed. He unsnapped
the front clasp of her bra.

“That would be rude.” She arched as his
fingers brushed over her sensitive skin.

“She’ll live.” Max began to unbutton her
blouse, his lips skimming the her skin as it was exposed.

“Max?” she said as she pulled his head
up to look at her. “She’ll know.”

“So? She must know I make love to my
wife.”

Madeleine rolled her eyes.

“Okay, okay.” He shifted. “Do you want
to take a shower?

“Yes. A quick one if we have time.”

His eyes gleamed. “I need a shower too.
We’ll save time if we take it together.”

Madeleine laughed. “That’s true in
theory.”

“Let's test it out.” He stood and helped
her up from the bed.

Max was already in the shower when
Madeleine finished disrobing. She thought about keeping the shower to its
intended purpose, but when she looked into Max’s eyes and saw the love and
desire, she couldn’t refuse him. She'd never been able to refuse him.

“Hey,” he said softly. One hand caressed
her face; the other pulled her to him by her waist. His lips were on hers
before she could respond. Her hands slid up his firm, wet chest and over his
shoulders. She gave herself over to his kiss, over to him.

“Madeleine.” Her name rolled off his
lips in a whisper as he kissed her jaw, her neck, her shoulder. She responded
by trailing her fingers and her lips down his neck to his chest. She loved the
way his body responded to her touch; the shiver, the quick intake of breath.

Despite all the years together, they
savored every touch, every taste as if it were new. There was nothing routine
or expected in their lovemaking. The desire, the sensations were just as
intense and nearly as devastating as they had been the first time.

Max gently pressed her against the
shower wall. He slid his hand down her thigh pulling it over his hip. The cool
tiles were a stark contrast to the warm water and hot body assailing her. Her
hips pressed forward as her leg clung to his body. His lips captured hers and
he pressed into her.

“Madeleine,” he whispered. “You’re the
first…the only.”

“I
was beginning
to think you got lost,” Julia said when she opened the door for Max and
Madeleine.

"Just a little delay,” Max said
giving Madeleine a discreet squeeze. He maintained a straight face although the
look on Julia’s face told him that she knew just what sort of delay they’d
encountered.

“Well, you’re here now. Please come in.”

“Your home is lovely,” Madeleine said. 
Julia’s taste ran towards the pristine and stark; nearly everything was white.
It looked like a showroom, more than a home. Max remembered that Julia had
always put more emphasis on appearances. It was a reminder of how fortunate he
was to have found Madeleine. She'd came from the rich upper class that Julia
had always lusted after, but cared more about people than material things.

“Thank you. I've got some wine chilling.
Would you like a glass?”

“That sounds good,” Max said.

“Madeleine, how about you?”

“Wine would be wonderful.”

“Coming right up.” Julia moved to the
bar on the other end of the room. “Make yourselves comfortable. Chas should be
here shortly.”

“Whatever you’re cooking smells
delicious,” Max said as he took a seat next to Madeleine on the couch. He was
doing his best to sound interested in visiting with Julia, when in fact he'd
much rather be home alone with Madeleine, especially since she was going away
for three days. He couldn't understand a woman's curiosity about her man's
former lovers. Madeleine was like no woman he'd ever met, and yet even she
suffered from the insecurities that seemed to go with the X chromosome. It was
ridiculous. He was sure that the phrase 'in a class alone' was conceived with
Madeleine in mind. She had all the characteristics a man could want; beauty,
intelligence, humor and a great body, but that wasn't what set her apart.
Madeleine had the greatest capacity to love of anyone he'd ever met. And she
lived life full throttle, taking everything in, the good and the bad, and
making sure it counted. Max had known in the first five minutes of meeting her
that he wanted to spend his life with her. She had needed a little convincing,
but fortunately she'd seen something in him and had given her heart and soul to
him. It awed him every time he thought about it. So if her curiosity had her
wanting to spend an evening with Julia, he would indulge her.

“Thank you. It's nothing much really.”

“I didn't know you could cook,” he said
remembering that Julia's goal in life was to have a servant for every
unpleasant task possible.

Julia laughed. “Yes, I never wanted to
do a damn thing for myself did I? Who’d of thought that cooking would calm me?”

Julia brought the drinks and handed them
to Max and Madeleine. “How about you Madeleine? Do you enjoy cooking?” Julia
asked as she took a seat across from them.

Max looked at Madeleine and grinned
giving a tendril of auburn hair a light tug with the hand he'd draped around
shoulder.

“Ah… no…” Madeleine said making a face
at Max. “I’m afraid I’m not very good in the kitchen despite my best attempts.”

“But she makes up for it elsewhere.”

Madeleine gaped at him.

“What? You're one hell of a home
decorator.” His eyes were playful as they looked at her over the brim of his
glass.

“Really? I could use some interior
design help. Sometimes I feel like I’m in a blizzard it's so white in here.”

“It’s a hobby really,” Madeleine said.
“I don’t have any training.”

“She's terrific,” Max said. “You’ll have
to come by our place sometime. Actually she did my office as well.”

“Your office? It seems to me that if
your writing career doesn’t pan out you have a future in design.”

Max was surprised that Julia knew of
Madeleine's career. Had she been researching him before she made contact today?

“Thank you," Madeleine said.

There was a quick knock at the door and
then it opened. “Mother?”

“Chas, you’re here.” Julia stood up to
greet her son. “This is Max and Madeleine Delecoeur, the couple I told you
about. This is my son Chas.”

“Pleased to meet you,” Max said shaking
Chas' hand. It seemed impossible to Max that Julia would have a child as old as
Chas. Had it really been that long since they'd been teenaged star-crossed
lovers? He looked a lot like Julia, except for the blue eyes, Max noted. But
the self-important attitude by which he carried himself left no doubt that he
was Julia's son.

“The pleasure is mine. I’ve heard a lot
about you.”

“Chas is launching his own consulting
business,” Julia said.

“What sort of consulting?” Max asked.

“High tech security systems.”

“You know a lot about technology, don't
you Max?” Julia said.

Max realized the purpose of the dinner
was less about Julia and more about helping Chas. Networking was the way
business worked, so Max didn’t mind. He was always on the lookout for new
talent he could mentor. While Madeleine’s philanthropy ran towards animal
conservation and the environment, Max’s was a non-profit that encouraged
entrepreneurship in young people. It was his way of repaying the debt to the
recluse businessman whose investment helped launch his business.

“
Mother
.” Chas hissed. “She’s
always a networker.”

“Not a problem,” Max said. “I’d be
interested in seeing your business plan and offer any advice I can.”

“I'd appreciate that.”

~~~

“We understand you are back from a trip
to Africa.” Julia said when they were seated for dinner.

“About six months ago,” Madeleine said.

“She just published a series of articles
on the trip,” Max added. “In fact, she’s speaking at a conference in San
Francisco starting tomorrow.”

“Oh, how exciting. You know I admire
that in a person… being an expert at something,” Julia said.

“I read your articles.” Chas said.

“You did?” Julia asked surprised.

“Yes, mother, I did.” Turning back to
Madeleine he said. “I’m always surprised at the economic problems of Africa
considering so many valuable resources come from there.”

“The wealth is not shared,” Max stated.

“I was curious,” Chas continued. “Was it
dangerous to remove all those animal traps. Aren’t poachers like drug dealers;
willing to kill to protect their goods?”

“In this case no. These traps were not
to catch animals for their parts such as elephant tusks or gorilla hands,”
Madeleine answered.

“They were hunting for food?”  Chas
asked.

“Yes but-”

“To feed their families? You stopped
them from feeding their families?” Julia asked looking horrified by the
thought. Max knew better. Julia wouldn't lose a moment of sleep worrying about
starving people in Africa.

“Yes,” Madeleine said simply.

"By removing the traps, aren't you
forcing famine on people? Are people less important than animals?" This
time Julia’s statement took an accusatory tone.

“Mother,” Chas warned.

“No, it's all right,” Madeleine said.
Putting her fork down she turned to Julia, “It's not a matter of who is more
important. People need to exist in harmony with nature. What are they going to
do when they have hunted all the animals? I don't advocate letting people go
hungry, but there are alternatives that involve economic and political
change."

Max sat back to watch and admire his
wife. He enjoyed it when she spoke about her work. She did so with the same
passion and conviction that she did everything else.

“In the meantime people are hungry,”
Julia said.

“And they will be even more hungry when
there are no animals left.”

“Really now, do you think it's possible
for a few people to hunt all the animals?"

“For goodness sake Mother, she’s an expert
on this.”

“It's not only possible, it’s already
happened. One of the leading biodiversity experts at Harvard predicts twenty
percent of the species still in existence today will be gone by 2020. I’m not
talking about obscure animals either. I’m talking about animals like the
gorilla and elephants. All things on earth exist in balance with all others,
except humans. And the inability to recognize that and learn to live by the
rules of nature could lead to our own demise. It certainly leads to famine and
economic hardship."

“I thought extinction was a natural part
of the world order. It happened to the dinosaurs without human help. And
really, humans are a part of the order of things. Perhaps nature is taking its
course.”

“That is true if the natural course of
things is to destroy ourselves.  I don’t believe that. We may have dominion,
but not the right of domination. In the United States alone we consume about
thirty-three percent of the world’s resources even though we make up less than
five percent of the world population. And we export that idea of consumption
around the world. The world can’t sustain that. We see the truth of that in
places like the Rain Forest and Africa.”  Madeleine took a breath. “I’m sorry.
I can get carried away sometimes.”

Max reached under the table to squeeze
her knee. He never wanted her to be sorry for expressing her beliefs,
particularly to someone like Julia who, as far as he was concerned was goading
Madeleine.

Julia started to say something, but her
quick jump suggested that Chas had kicked her under the table.

“I don’t know how you find time for it
all, Madeleine.” Julia finally said. “When I was married, it took all my time
to be a corporate wife.”

“What do you do now?” Madeleine asked
picking up her fork to resume eating.

“Well it's funny that you asked. I've
been writing. I actually just sent a book proposal to a publisher in New York.”

“Really, what’s your book about?” Max
asked.

Chas rolled his eyes. “Mother, they
aren’t interested in your bodice ripper.”

“It's not a bodice ripper,” she argued.
“But, it’s not a meaningful piece like what you write, Madeleine. That’s why I
had to go back to my maiden name. Chas was worried I’d ruin the Newcomb name.”

“I’d love to read it,” Madeleine said.

“Really?”

“Yes, I would. All writing is difficult
and a labor of love regardless of the content.”

“I’m sure Madeleine doesn’t read romance
novels,” Chas said.

"I've read a few," Madeleine
said. Max covered his grin by wiping his mouth with a napkin. While his wife
was a respected journalist, her reading preference had no literary value at
all. Her requirements for a book were simple; romance and sex. That was
something else he'd grown to appreciate about her.