anyone's obsession before. I expect to enjoy the hell out of it.' His smile faded. 'I wish you'd let me stay. I don't want you to have to face that bastard alone.'
She shook her head. 'I can't say I'm looking forward to it, but I have to do it on my own. He dominated my life for a long time and, even when I got away from him, he still loomed larger than life. Don't you see, I ran away from him. I've been avoiding him for nine years, because I was afraid to face him again.' Her expression was desperately in earnest as she tried to make him understand. 'I thought I had beaten him when I took Dane and left him, but you can't really claim victory until you come to terms with what you fear. I have to prove he's not important to me anymore. It's the only way I'm ever going to be able to shoot this bushwhacker out of the saddle.' She drew a deep breath. 'Do you understand?'
He became very still. 'Yes, I understand,' he said slowly. 'And I think you may be right.' His gaze lifted from her face to the thatched cottage down the beach. 'Is that your bushwhacker coming toward us?'
She followed his gaze and went tense. She hurriedly rose to her feet and nervously brushed the sand from her skirt. Edwin Marlbrent was still far down the beach, but she could feel the familiar fear and tension gripping her.
Gideon stood up and his hand clasped her shoulder in encouragement. 'Good shooting, partner.' He started down the beach toward the cottage. 'I'll see you later.'
She scarcely heard him. Her attention was focused on her stepfather coming toward her. In his late fifties, he was an attractive and imposing man. His dark hair was slightly flecked with gray and his tall, heavily muscular body was clad with faultless elegance in an expensive dark business suit. He was frowning as his highly glossed shoes sank into the sand with every step. He had always abhorred the fact that the natural elements of nature were beyond his control and generally avoided exposing himself to the minor defeat they represented.
Serena automatically ran her hand through her rumpled hair to tidy it. She tried desperately to relax, but the habit of years was strong, and she felt as if she were encased in an iron straitjacket.
Gideon had come abreast of Marlbrent and he stopped, his head tilted to the side as he leisurely studied the older man. Marlbrent stopped, too, his frown deepening in puzzlement.
Gideon's lean, whipcord body was dressed, as usual, in jeans and boots. The sleeves of his forest green shirt were rolled to the elbow revealing his tanned forearms, and his sunstreaked hair was ruffled by the breeze. In his elegantly sophisticated apparel and with his imposing, heavily built physique, Marlbrent should have made Gideon seem to dwindle in comparison. Yet this wasn't the case. Gideon's strength dominated the scene with absolutely no effort on his part.
Gideon suddenly cast a glance at Serena over his shoulder, his eyes gleaming with humor and a touch of mischief. Then he turned back to Marlbrent, extended his index finger as if he were aiming a gun, and slowly made the motion of pulling the trigger.
Serena's laughter rang out over the deserted beach as she saw her stepfather's expression of befuddlement and outrage. Abruptly her tension and the ingrained fear of years disappeared as if it had never existed.
Without another glance, or speaking a single word, Gideon passed Marlbrent and continued down the beach toward the cottage. His stride was a careless saunter, but his bearing was totally indomitable.
Nine
It was done.
Serena watched her stepfather walk away and then turned once again to face the soothing rush of the waves against the shore. The episode hadn't been pleasant, but now it was over she was experiencing a singing exuberance and a profound sense of freedom. She would give Marlbrent a few minutes to leave the village, and then she would find Gideon. There was no hurry, and she needed a little time to absorb exactly what had happened here today.
It was over fifteen minutes later that she picked up her shoes and strolled slowly back to the cottage.
Jeffrey Brenden's keen brown eyes searched her face. 'Are you all right?' he asked gruffly. 'Gideon asked me to keep an eye on that big guy, but you didn't seem to be in any trouble.'
She smiled. 'No trouble at all. Where's Gideon?'
'Gone.'
She became still. 'Gone?'
'He said he'd be back in a couple of hours.' He looked at his watch. 'We talked for a bit before he set out, but I guess he left about fifteen minutes after Marlbrent arrived, so he shouldn't be long now.'
'But where did he go?'
'The rain forest. He had me give him directions to the tree house.'
The rain forest. A ripple of shock went through her, followed by an instant and sweeping rejection. What could have possessed him to go back there, after what he had gone through last night? She felt panic clutch at her as she thought of Gideon alone and reliving that nightmare by himself. 'No,' she whispered. 'It doesn't make any sense. Why?' Her gaze lifted to Jeffrey's face. 'I have to go after him. Will you show me the way?'
'Sure, if you think it's better to follow him.' He raised a brow as he glanced down at the high- heeled sandals in her hand. 'Those aren't very practical trekking shoes.'
'They're all I have with me. I left my jeans and tennis shoes at the tree house when Julio brought me this outfit. He thought that purse with the bamboo handles wouldn't be carried by a woman wearing jeans.'
'Sounds like Julio.' There was a touch of pride in Jeffrey's voice. 'He pays attention to details.' He turned away. 'I might be able to find you a pair of Manuel's sandals in the cottage. They'll be too big, but at least you won't be turning your ankle.'
'Hurry. Please hurry.'
Jeffrey looked back over his shoulder. 'Don't worry. I'll see that you're with Gideon in forty-five minutes, tops.'
It was closer to thirty minutes when Kate's tree came into view. It was strange, but since Julio had told her the story of Kate and Beau Lantry that night while they were waiting for Gideon to return from Mariba, Serena now always thought of the tree house as belonging to Kate rather than Julio.
'Here you are,' Jeffrey said. 'Gideon must still be up there since we didn't run into him on the way over here.' He stopped under the tree, his eyes twinkling. 'I think I'll go back to the cottage and wait for you there. I don't believe either of you will need me anymore.'
'Thank you, Jeffrey.' She began to climb the rungs of the ladder. 'I appreciate you bringing-' She broke off as she looked over her shoulder and realized Jeffrey had gone. She tilted back her head and called, 'Gideon, Are you there? Is everything all right?'
'I'm here.'
Serena felt relief pour through her. As far as she could tell from his voice, he couldn't be suffering any traumatic upset. 'I'll be right up. I was worried when you ran off like that. If you wanted to come back here, why the devil didn't you wait for me?' She stepped onto the platform. The door was wide open as it had been last night and she could see Gideon sitting on the mattress at the far end of the room. 'I didn't spend that much time with my honorable stepfather.'
'How did it go?'
'Well. Wonderfully well. I feel… free. It wasn't easy, but-' Her eyes widened in surprise as she gazed around the tiny room.
The entire house was brimming, exploding with flowers. Brilliant coral and cream-colored wild orchids had been thrust into the formerly empty black vase on the nightstand and into the rattan holders on the walls until they were overflowing with fragrance and beauty. The tall vase in the corner now held maidenfern and exotic white and gold blossoms. Wild flowers had even been strewn over the denim cover of the mattress next to the window.
'Do you like it?' Gideon asked quietly.
'It's beautiful.' Serena's gaze returned to his face.
He nodded. 'Jeffrey told me a little about Kate, and how she had loved this little tree house and everything
