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Rainbow lady.The term stoked the embers of resentment smoldering within her. She deliberately stepped back out of his embrace, shrugging off his hold. “I believe we discussed the fallacy of you calling me that,” she said through her teeth. “I’m not the insubstantial lightweight you want me to be. I guess I don’t have to ask what duties you had in mind as a replacement for my legitimate work.”

“I told you I’d take care of you,” he said gruffly. “I wouldn’t let you suffer for coming to me. What difference does it make where the money comes from as long as it makes you comfortable and keeps you from taking risks that could kill you?”

“How simplistic can you get? I wonder if you’d have the same attitude if I tried to hireyouas some sort of sexual gigolo?”

He turned white, an odd, stunned look tautening his face. “A gigolo?” A bitter smile curved his lips. “Perhaps I’d be more understanding than you think. I believe my father was very much in demand in that role.” He gestured impatiently. “But that’s hardly pertinent to the situation. We’re talking about you…and how we can keep you in one piece.”

“You’re wrong. We’re talking about choices.Mychoices that you’re trying to take away from me. Choices that you have no right to rob me of.” Her voice was vibrating with the intensity of her feelings and her brown eyes were blazing. “For heaven’s sake, you don’t even have the excuse of caring about me. How could you care? You don’t even know me. You don’t know what I think or how I feel. All you know is that I have a responsive body you believe will amuse you for a while. Well, I’m worth more than that. I have value, damn you!”

“It’s more,” he said roughly. “Hell, do you think I react like this to every woman?” He shrugged helplessly, seeming to search for words. “I do want you. Right this moment I’m aching with it, but there’s something else there, too. I have an urge to take care of you.” He shook his head in frustration. “I worry about you. I may not know what you think or feel, but Iwantto know, dammit. Give me the opportunity, Kendra!”

“While I’m tucked away in your own private harem?” she asked mockingly. “I appreciate your consideration in putting me in a special category, but it would all come down to the same thing in the end. You don’t have the reputation for a great deal of staying power, do you, Joel? Even if the arrangement you offered appealed to me, it would be too high-risk. We both know how competitive my profession is. And a harem would have a definitely softening effect.”

“Your work can’t be that important to you,” Joel said tersely. “What can you get out of it besides money and some kind of perverse kick?”

“You may not regard it as a desirable occupation, but it’s what I do for a living. I’m a stuntwoman and a damn good one.” Her words had the rapid spate of a machine gun. “A stunt person isn’t just a reckless idiot willing to take chances. He or she has to be in better shape physically than most professional athletes. Do you know that I spend three hours a day exercising just to maintain that strength? That I’m proficient on the trapeze, that I can fly a plane, drive a car, and race a motorboat with more skill than most professionals who make it their life’s work. I’m an expert and, by God, I’ve paid my dues.” She was glaring at him defiantly. “You think that my voice is sexy? Did you ever question how it got that way?”

He shook his head. “It never occurred to me it wasn’t your natural voice.”

“Hardly natural,” she said. “When I was nineteen, a lariat slipped from my shoulders to my throat as I was being dragged by a horse. They got to me before my neck was broken but my larynx was permanently damaged. This husky little whisper is as loud as I’ll ever be able to speak, Joel. I’ve had more broken bones and torn muscles and bruises than I can count, but through it all there’s one thing that makes it worthwhile: I’m a professional, the very best I can be. I’m proud of what I am, Joel.” She gazed at him questioningly. “Did you really think I’d give up that pride to be some kind of toy?”

He didn’t seem to be listening, his face was even paler than before. He took a step closer, his eyes fixed with compulsive fascination on her throat. His hand reached out shakily to touch her smooth skin. “You were dragged along behind a horse by your throat?” He closed his eyes, his face betraying the sickness he felt. “God, I can almost see it happening.” He opened his lids and his green eyes were blazing. “And you want me to stand by and watch that happening to you again? Hell no!”

She shook off his hand impatiently. “Hellyes!” she said, just as decisively. “I have a contract with Donovan, Limited, and as long as I fulfill my part of that contract, there’s no way you can fire me, Joel.” She drew a deep, steadying breath. “And I intend to fulfill that contract, every single gag and every extra bit that Skip will give me, including the special jump across the canyon.”

“No!” His voice was softly menacing. “You won’t even get within sight of that canyon jump. Not if I have to fire Skip Lowden and his whole team.”

“You’re bluffing, Joel. I know your reputation too well to believe you’d ever be that much of a bastard. You may be a workaholic and drive everyone around you into the ground, but you’re a fair man. You’ll keep the fireworks between us and not let any bystanders be hurt.”

She could see his hands clench slowly at his sides and frustration tighten his lips. “Don’t count on it, Kendra. You’ve had it all your own way in our relationship to date, but you can be sure that I’m not going to be satisfied with the status quo. I can make it easy or difficult for you on the set and I won’t hesitate to put you through hell if it means getting what I want. That rough job you’ve just finished may seem like a rest cure by the time I’ve finished with you. In two weeks I’ll wager you’ll be very happy for me to send for Wendy Lynch to replace you.”

“You’ll lose, Joel. I’ve worked with difficult directors before. You’ll just be one more,” she said wearily. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d appreciate it if you’d leave. I understand I’m to start work tomorrow morning and I’d like to settle in and get unpacked. Tomorrow you can throw anything you want at me, but I’m on my own time now. Good-bye, Joel.”

He uttered a curse that was worse than anything she had ever heard from the boys in the stunt crew. “I won’t be so easy to dismiss on the set tomorrow, Kendra,” he said grimly. “I’d put off that unpacking and get a hell of a lot of rest instead. You’re going to need it.” The amber beads of the curtain jangled harshly as he stalked out the door.

She waited until the front door had slammed behind him before she allowed the tension to flow out of her. She was almost weak as she tottered over to the bed and sank down on the cushioned surface. Lord, she had never dreamed the meeting with Joel would be so difficult. She’d thought she’d fortified herself against him, but she had never expected him to exhibit such strange vulnerability and loving tenderness. She’d expected lust and arrogance, and his anxiety and protectiveness had caught her completely off guard. And on top of it all was the suggeston of pregnancy. Good Lord, his concern might have some foundation. No! She wouldn’t accept it. She couldn’t be that unlucky, not with all she had to do. It would be years before Casey would be finished with his training and equipped for a new career. She couldn’t afford another responsibility on the scale a child would represent.

She squared her shoulders and sat up straighter on the bed. Why was she worrying about something that might never come to pass? Joel was obviously going to give her more than enough problems in the next weeks without her borrowing trouble. She rubbed her temples wearily, trying to ease the knotted tension. She was so tired of fighting and it had felt so wonderful to relax in Joel’s arms and be petted so tenderly. She had wanted to stay there forever. Butforeverwasn’t a word in Joel Damon’s vocabulary, and despite his surprising gentleness earlier in their meeting, she knew he wasn’t a man she could lean on for more than a moment. He had withdrawn that blessed support with brutal abruptness when she hadn’t bowed to his wishes.

When it came down to the essentials, she was always alone, wasn’t she? There was no reason why she should come unraveled at the thought now. Tomorrow she’d be able to fight him again. She’d be able to meet any challenge he could hurl at her after she had some rest. But right now that sluggish lassitude was creeping like molasses through her veins and those pillows looked irresistibly inviting.

It would be safe to let her guard down now for a little while and nap until Billie came back. The cushions were just as comfortable as they looked and her lids were already closing as she curled up like a weary child on the couch.

Child? Joel Damon’s child would no doubt be as enchanting a rascal as his father. She had a vision of a miniature replica of him: crisp curly hair, green sorcerer’s eyes, and a smile that tugged at…

FIVE

THE ROOM WASdim and shadowy; darkness showed through the gap in the curtain at the windows. The only light was a diffused glow emanating from the other room. That wasn’t the only thing drifting into the room, though, she realized hazily. There was the low throb of a guitar and the haunting softness of a woman’s voice. Billie’s voice, she thought, as she got off the bed and headed toward the beaded curtain.

There is an island where only the south winds blow.

There is a river they say has no end.

There is a mountain whose peak has known no snow.

And there is a lover who only calls my name.

He only calls my name.