A Desperate Search, стр. 28
It was time to go see her. Nikki had been putting off the visit, knowing how many memories would be stirred once she set foot in that house. Like Dr. Nance, Dessie had taken Nikki under her wing, assigning her little odd jobs around the house to earn spending money while coaxing her out of her shell. The least Nikki could do was offer condolences in person and maybe in the process find out if Dessie knew the whereabouts of Dr. Nance’s journal. Dessie had always been very protective of his personal time and space. Maybe she’d feel more comfortable opening his study to a search by someone that she knew would treat his private domain with the utmost respect.
Nikki waited until twilight when the air had cooled before walking the few blocks over to Dr. Nance’s neighborhood. She hoped any friends and neighbors who’d stopped by during the day would be gone by then.
Turning up the tree-shaded street, she paused on the sidewalk to admire the rambling one-story ranch that he and his wife had built before her death. He’d lived in that house alone for over three decades. Dessie had occupied the garage apartment at the back of the property for most of those years.
A light shone from the French doors in Dr. Nance’s study, as if Dessie had somehow intuited Nikki’s visit. Or maybe she’d just forgotten to turn off the light. The rest of the house was dark.
Accustomed to letting herself in through the back gate, Nikki walked up the driveway and stepped through into the lush garden, lifting her gaze to Dessie’s apartment. All the lights were out there, too. Maybe she’d gone to stay with her sister for a few days. Understandable. The phone and doorbell would be ringing constantly since news of Dr. Nance’s death had traveled through town. In Dessie’s current state, she probably found it difficult to deal with all those sympathy calls and visits while coming to terms with her personal loss.
Nikki had started to leave when the sound of music registered. She thought at first the jazzy notes were drifting over the tall brick wall that enclosed the backyard, but then she realized the soft beat came from the large patio at the rear of the house. She heard muted voices then and the sound of water splashing in the pool.
She eased along the walkway until she could see around the corner of the house. Then she stopped short. A man she didn’t know bounced lightly at the end of the diving board. The pool and garden lights had been turned off, casting the backyard in deep gloom. From his silhouette, Nikki could tell he was a big man, tall and broad-shouldered. Athletic. His presence in Dr. Nance’s backyard was a shock. That he was stark naked was an even greater jolt.
The board popped as he bounced higher and then dived. He swam underwater to the shallow end and then rose, flinging water from his hair as he walked unselfconsciously up the steps. He casually reached for a towel and wrapped it around his waist as Dessie emerged from the house. Nikki’s first instinct was to call out a warning, but then she saw that Dessie wore a swimsuit. A sheer sarong covered her hips and floated about her slender legs as she sauntered up to the man in the towel.
Nikki froze, flabbergasted by the scene before her. She told herself to go back out the way she’d come in. Her presence was obviously an intrusion. But she stood rooted to the spot, unable to look away no matter how many ugly names she called herself.
Dessie poured drinks from an icy pitcher and the two clinked glasses. Then the man bent to adjust the speaker volume, filling the night with that hypnotic beat.
“Turn that down,” Dessie scolded. “What will the neighbors think if they hear music over here and Dr. Nance not even in the ground yet?”
The man laughed softly, deeply. “That wall is nearly a foot thick, darlin’. No one will hear a thing. But even if they do, who cares? You don’t have to worry about the neighbors anymore. You don’t have to worry about what anyone thinks, least of all that crazy old man you had to clean up after.”
“Don’t talk about him like that. Dr. Nance was always good to me.”
“He took advantage of your generous nature. Paid you chicken feed for all that cooking and cleaning, and him sitting all that time on a fat ol’ bank account. But we don’t have to talk about him tonight or ever again. This place is yours now, babe, or soon will be. Your pool. Your backyard. You can do whatever you want.” He ambled up behind her and kissed the back of her neck, swaying against her to the beat of the music.
Her head lolled against his shoulder as her hips moved with his. “You’re bad for me, Clete.”
He untied the sarong and let it fall in a silky puddle at their feet. “How bad?”
She sighed. “So bad I ache.”
His towel came next as he pulled her against him. “Let’s get in the water.”
“No, Clete, don’t!” she protested as he tugged her toward the pool. “I just had my hair done. People will be stopping by after church tomorrow and I need to look my best. Like it or not, I still have obligations.”
“What about your obligation to me?” he murmured as he enticed her toward the steps.
“I shouldn’t...”
“Oh, you should, darlin’. You really, really should...”
Nikki backed away then, tripping in her haste to get away and then pausing for a moment to make sure