Distant Shores

Smiling, she clasped her hands behind her back and strolled toward him. The clicking of her high heels sounded appallingly loud in the room. The only thing louder was the beating of his heart.

Onetime thing, he reminded himself.

"About last night . . . "

She placed her hands on his desk and leaned forward. From this angle, he could see the lacy beige edge of her bra. Pale, firm breasts swelled beside it.

He tried not to recall how sweet shed tasted, how pink her nipples were--

Stop it.

"Youll never guess who called for you this morning," she said.

"Who?" He kept his gaze pinned to her face. Nothing below the collar. Or the top button at the very lowest.

"Your publicist. He asked me to pass along an offer . . . from People magazine. "

"People?" He rose out of his chair. "What did they want?"

She hitched one hip onto the edge of his desk. "They want to feature you in the Fifty Most Beautiful People issue. "

"Youre kidding?"

"This is the big time, Jack," she said. "Youre a star again. "

He didnt mean to do it, but he reached out, pulled her into his arms.

"Take me on the shoot with you," she said, tracing his lips with one finger. "Its going to be at the Peninsula. "

He gazed down at her heart-shaped face and felt a sharp tug of desire. God help him, he wanted her again already.

Elizabeth tossed and turned all night, unable to sleep. She hadnt realized how accustomed shed become to privacy until Anita showed up.

At dawn, she got dressed and tiptoed across the hall, then eased the door of the guest bedroom open. Anita was still sleeping.

She wrote a quick gone-to-the-beach note, then went outside.

Hugging her canvas supply bag, she climbed down the steps to the beach. The ocean was energetic today, surging forward and back. Thousands of shorebirds circled the distant rocks, cawing loudly.

She left the bag by her rock and kept walking, faster and faster, until it seemed completely natural to break into an easy jog. She took energy from the surf; it made her feel powerful and free. Off in the distance, she could see a pair of box kites sparring with each other in the wind. An osprey flapped down onto its nest in a dead conifer tree.

For a few glorious minutes, she forgot that Anita had shown up last night, dragging a suitcase big enough for a two-month stay.

Finally, she turned around and came back to her spot. Collapsing, breathing hard, she sat down on her flat rock and tucked up her knees, stared out at the endless blue sea. A few diaphanous silver clouds floated across the sky.

It felt good to push herself. After years of ignoring her body, she had finally figured out what really mattered. Who cared if she was a size four or a six or a fourteen? She just wanted to be able to run down the beach and climb up the stairs and ride her bike. Size wasnt the point; health was.

It didnt sound like much, but to a woman whod spent almost thirty years counting calories and wearing control-top panty hose, it was freedom, pure and simple.

"Birdie, honey? Is that you?"

Elizabeth turned. Anita was standing a few feet away, wearing a long floral skirt and a heavy cable-knit white sweater.

Elizabeth reluctantly scooted sideways on the flat rock. "Here. Theres plenty of room. "

Anita sat down beside Elizabeth. "Whew! Those stairs are a killer. No wonder youve lost weight. "

Elizabeth turned. "I have?"