Through the Night (10 page)

He appreciated her being so accommodating and sensitive to his mood swing. While meeting up with Russ and Angie in the same hotel was most likely a coincidence, the scene between them had definitely put him on edge, and he needed to get out. He didn’t want to be cooped up in the room for the rest of the evening, and the very last thing he wanted was to risk running into Russ and Angie downstairs again.

“Do you like seafood?” he asked her. “I know of a fantastic restaurant on the wharf that serves the most amazing shellfish.”

“I love it.”

She smiled at him, the sentiment lighting up her eyes, and him. Just that easily, just that quickly, the aggravation that had been twisting through him dissipated. He didn’t question how or why she had that kind of effect on him, even without them physically touching, because some things just couldn’t be explained.

Half an hour later, a cab dropped them off at Scoma’s at Fisherman’s Wharf and they were seated at a table in the bar. He ordered a premium tequila, she a wine spritzer, and after perusing the menu they decided it would be fun to order the mixed shellfish platter for two that would give them a variety of items to share.

As they cracked open the Dungeness crab legs, dined on succulent prawns dipped in drawn salted butter, and extracted the tasty clams from their shells, they made small talk that centered on how diverse and eccentric the city of San Francisco was, and he regaled her with tales about his other travels to different countries in pursuit of various valuable treasures.

He was having such a good time with Valerie, enjoying her sweet, sometimes flirtatious smiles and husky, sexy laughter, along with the way she licked the remnants of butter from her fingers, that he’d forgotten all about the scene in the lobby of the hotel earlier … until Valerie decided to bring it up, just after he’d ordered an apple crisp à la mode and two Irish coffees for dessert.

“Can we talk about Russ and Angie?” she asked once the waiter left the table to fill their order.

He supposed this conversation had been inevitable, but his association to Russ and Angie was such a tangled mess that it wasn’t worth unraveling, or discussing. “Why?” Despite the nice evening he’d just had with Valerie, he felt his defenses rise. “Don’t like them. Don’t trust them. That’s all you need to know.”

She stared at him unflinchingly. “That’s a pretty big statement to make.”

She hadn’t backed down from his brusque tone, and he would have been more shocked if she let the subject drop. He was quickly discovering that retreating wasn’t her style, and a part of him admired her tenacity. Not that he’d let
her
know that.

“It’s the truth,” he said as their waiter returned, setting the apple crisp in the center of the table and giving each of them a whiskey-and-cream-infused coffee. “Besides, they’re nobody important.”

She took a sip of her spiked drink, her intelligent, perceptive gaze calling him on his lie. “That’s not the vibes you, and they, were giving off earlier.”

She was so damned persistent. He ate a bite of baked apples and ice cream, and when her intent stare over the rim of her glass mug made it clear she was expecting some kind of reply, he still tried to find a way to evade the conversation she obviously wanted to have. “It’s complicated.”

“I’ll say,” she said in a dry, droll tone as she used her fork to pierce an apple slice. “Especially considering Russ’s rivalry toward you, and Angie’s jealousy that felt as sharp as acid.”

That grabbed his attention. “Jesus, did you read them?”

“Not intentionally.” She nibbled on the soft, baked piece of fruit, then licked her bottom lip. “Their feelings were so strong and overwhelming that when I shook their hands, all those emotions were hard to ignore. You and Russ share some kind of past that’s caused some animosity and resentment between the two of you, and I’m guessing Angie is an ex-girlfriend?”

Chase couldn’t help but wonder what, precisely, she’d seen between him and Angie. “She was
never
a girlfriend.”

She tipped her head speculatively as she finished the bite of cinnamon apple. “Friends with benefits?” she asked lightly.

He was starting to get a better idea of what kind of images Valerie must have picked up on with Angie, and the last thing he wanted was her coming to any wrong conclusions about him when she didn’t have all the facts. “We slept together, but it was just sex.”

She gave him a nod of understanding, not at all shocked by his blunt statement. “I get it, but just as an FYI, I think Angie missed that particular memo of yours.”

Annoyance spiked through him and he set his fork on the dessert plate. “I was up front with her from the beginning, and I never gave her any kind of false impressions about what our relationship was.” And for God’s sake, why was he defending his actions to Valerie?

Probably because he didn’t want her to think the worst of him. The realization that her opinion of his character mattered was more than a little unsettling when he usually didn’t give a shit about what other people thought of him.

He was used to the scrutiny and harsh judgments from strangers because of his unique psychometric abilities and his chosen career as a successful treasure hunter, but Valerie was different. He liked her. A lot. And he respected her—as a woman, a friend, and a fellow psychic—and wanted the same in return.

“I didn’t mean to insinuate anything, or upset you. I just find the triangle of relationships between the three of you fascinating,” she said, her voice softening. “Why is there such a rivalry between you and Russ? Is it because of Angie?”

That would be the logical conclusion—since Angie was the common denomininator in the equation, but the situation was far more complex than that.

He glanced across the table and found Valerie patiently watching him, her chin propped in her hand, her eyes bright and beckoning him to open up to her. He couldn’t recall the last time he’d talked about any aspect of his life with anyone. At one time, his grandfather was the person he shared everything with because he’d been the only constant in Chase’s life, as both a child and an adult, but since his death there had been no one he trusted enough to confide in.

He’d always kept his personal life private, finding it much simpler to keep up the façade of an easygoing, carefree attitude that gave the impression of someone who didn’t have a care in the world, which was the furthest thing from the truth of who he was and what he’d been through in his life.

That he was considering spilling things about himself to Valerie, even something as mundane as his past with Angie and Russ, was huge for him. He didn’t know if it was the tequila, the casual atmosphere, or how comfortable he felt with Valerie that prompted him to talk to her, but it felt right,
she
felt right, and he went with the impulse.

“Russ is a treasure hunter like I am,” he said as he leaned back in his chair and stretched his long legs under the table. “And because we’re in the same business, our paths have crossed for years at estate sales and antique auctions. There’s always been an underlying rivalry between us, because we’re competitors and it’s the nature of what we do for a living.”

“Do you guys try to one-up the other with the things you find?” she asked just before she ate a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

He laughed, the sound coming easier than he would have expected. “Oh, yeah. All the time. We’re both extremely competitive, and it really pisses him off that I have the advantage of touching an object and knowing its history before an auction starts.”

She took a sip of her Irish coffee and smiled. “I can just imagine.”

“I’d been dating Angie for a few weeks when she accompanied me to an estate auction in Chicago. The ivory carving of flowers caught my eye, and when I picked it up and flashed on the Capone connection, I knew I had to have it.”

He remembered the thrill he’d experienced when he discovered the rare find, recalled thinking how his grandfather, who’d been fascinated by anything connected to Al Capone, would have been so excited to see the priceless collectible for himself.

God, Chase missed the old man.

Shaking off the moment of melancholy, he continued. “Obviously, no one realized what the cane top was worth, or who it belonged to, which gave me some leverage. But Russ was at the auction, too, and I knew once I started bidding on the item, he’d know immediately that it was something valuable and he’d fight me for it, so I had Angie do the bidding for me. Russ didn’t know until after Angie had won the piece that I was the buyer.”

Valerie winced. “I’m sure that didn’t sit too well with him.”

“To say the least,” Chase agreed. “Especially when Russ heard through other professionals in our circle what he’d lost out on and what the ivory piece was actually worth. So, yeah, there’s some resentment and animosity there.”

“And Angie?” she asked.

He watched the way she tugged on her bottom lip with her teeth, the anxious gesture probably more telling than even she’d realized. Her question was a casual extension of their conversation, yet there was no doubt in Chase’s mind that her curiosity about Angie had more to do with womanly interest than with a professional inquiry.

But as far as he and Angie were concerned, Valerie had nothing to worry about. Angie was the past, but whatever was between himself and Valerie was the present, and something he wanted to explore on a more personal, intimate level. It was just a matter of getting Valerie on the same page that he was on, and pushing past that control of hers to the hot, sexy woman who had kissed him so passionately last night.

He shoved those sensual, arousing thoughts from his mind for the time being and gave Valerie the explanation she was asking for. “Angie and I dated for about six weeks, and when she started pushing for something more serious, I ended things,” he said simply.

That, and he just didn’t trust Angie and her motives, especially when she realized just how wealthy he actually was. “She didn’t let go easily, and she did everything possible to get me to change my mind and take her back. When that didn’t work, she pursued Russ because he’s my biggest rival, and she was hoping to make me jealous, but I was more relieved that she’d finally moved on.”

Unfortunately, that relief had been short-lived, because Angie
hadn’t
moved on, he quickly discovered. Not emotionally, anyway. She still called and left him voice mails on his cell phone to entice him, or texted him with inappropriate messages, considering she was now in a relationship with Russ.

He’d deleted all those calls and messages without returning any of them, but as he witnessed today in the lobby of the hotel, Angie was holding on to the hope that there might still be something between the two of them.

The one thing that bothered him the most was the fact that Angie knew way too much about the Capone cane top she’d won for him at the estate auction six months ago. At the time, he was so caught up in the excitement of what he’d found that he told Angie about the history of the ivory piece—a huge mistake on his part. One evening, he caught her on his laptop, reading his research notes that indicated the cane, once it was restored to its original state, was merely an elaborate decoy for something far more rare and priceless.

He’d let Angie get way too close, and he was afraid he might pay a significant price, personally and professionally, for that mistake.

Chase’s biggest concern had always been that Angie had shared that private, highly valuable information with Russ. And if she had, there was no doubt in Chase’s mind that Russ would be just as interested in getting his hands on the holy grail of all treasures. A once-in-a-lifetime score that was worth millions. And if Russ wanted to extract the ultimate revenge, then beating Chase to his own endgame would accomplish that goal.

“Well, despite the fact that Angie is now with Russ, there’s a determination about her when it comes to you,” Valerie said, bringing his attention back to her and their conversation. “She definitely wants you back, and considering the bitterness I felt when I shook her hand, I wouldn’t trust her if I were you.”

Valerie’s gaze was clear, her warning genuine and not based on some kind of female rivalry. Valerie was the opposite of Angie in so many ways, and he knew she’d never resort to manipulating a situation to her advantage. As guarded as she was with her emotions, she was a straight shooter when it came to being sincere.

Chase gave her a reassuring smile to ease her worry. “Don’t worry, I
don’t
trust her.”

“Good,” she said with a nod. “Just be careful around her. Her aura is way too black and hostile, and there’s no telling what she’s capable of.”

Her concern seemed a bit extreme to Chase, but he indulged her anyway. “I don’t plan on being anywhere near her, if I can help it.”

Valerie tried to conceal a yawn behind the back of her hand but failed. “Sorry about that,” she said impishly. “I can’t believe I’m so tired. A wine spritzer and an Irish coffee, and I’m ready to crash.”

“You’re such a lightweight,” he teased, and motioned the waiter for their check as he withdrew his wallet to pay for their meal. “It’s been a busy day, and tomorrow is going to be even more exhausting. So, let’s head back to the hotel so we both can get a good night’s sleep.”

And he really
did
mean sleep. Despite all his flirting with Valerie today, and the sexy innuendos they’d bantered back and forth, there would be no attempt at seduction tonight. Chase wanted to be sure they were completely rested and both their minds were clear for what they needed to accomplish at Alcatraz tomorrow morning.

But once the business portion of their trip was wrapped up, all bets were off.

Chapter Six

Valerie shivered and pulled her jacket tighter around her body as the private boat Chase had chartered neared the island of Alcatraz. Even though the afternoon forecast promised sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-seventies, this early in the morning the weather was cold and foggy, a normal occurrence in the Bay Area, Chase had assured her.