The Silken Web

She smiled. “Earth tones?”

“Yeah. That oughta do it.” She shot him an impatient, disparaging look, then they both laughed.

By the time they reached the shopping area, her head was whirling with ideas. She gave him a crash course in decorating. Erik stood back and let her take charge. She selected linens for his bed and bathroom, picked out twin love seats for his living room. A coordinating chair, a large coffee table and two end tables were also selected. She asked his opinion on lamps. He picked up one with a china base of a seventeenth-century shepherd and shepherdess in a tight clench. Kathleen stared at it in horror, but one look at his twinkling eyes over the frilly shade, and she knew that he was teasing her. They settled on two with clay urns and linen, pleated shades.

At lunch they ate in a restaurant on Fisherman’s Wharf that provided a panorama of the Bay and, in the distance, the Golden Gate Bridge. As they ate, Kathle

en’s heart was over flowing with happiness. Mere days ago, she had thought she would never see him again. Now he was here, across the small table from her, his knees touching hers under the curtain of the tablecloth. They were breathing the same air. She could look at him all she wanted to and didn’t have to worry about curious eyes that might intercept those looks so unguarded and filled with love.

She called home from the restaurant and talked to Alice. Seth had gone to the office. Theron had been fed and was down for his nap. “He’s fine and not missing you a bit,” Alice assured her.

“I know,” Kathleen said with a pout. “That’s what bothers me.”

On their way again, Erik took her hand companionably as they strolled through the shops of Ghirardelli Square, avoiding Kirchoff’s Boutique. Erik looked longingly at all the amenities that he couldn’t yet afford to add to the meager furnishings he had already picked out.

In an art gallery, he expressed a liking for a wall hanging done in woven yarns of brown, beige and sienna. Kathleen sent him on an unnecessary errand and tried to purchase it for him as a housewarming gift from her and Seth. She was disappointed to learn that it was only a sample, but another one could be ordered from the artist. She placed the order and left her telephone number where she could be contacted when it was finished. It would look perfect on the redwood wall of his living room and give some warmth to the room.

Selecting window treatments was tedious, and Erik was happy to leave it to Kathleen and a decorator who agreed on a time to meet him later in the week at the condo to take exact measurements.

“You may want a headboard later on, but for now you might consider painting the wall behind your bed a vibrant color and then tossing hundreds of bright pillows against it.”

“Hundreds?” he teased as he slurped his chocolate soda. They were taking a break in Ghirardelli’s Chocolate Manufactory.

“Well, maybe only dozens,” she conceded with a smile as she licked the last foamy sweet drop off the end of her spoon. When she looked up, she was alarmed to see that Erik was watching her mouth, as though envying the right of her tongue to disappear inside it. The blue eyes raised slightly, seeking hers, and there was a moment of sexual awareness that rocketed through them.

“What’s next?” he asked hoarsely, trying to reestablish the ease with which the rest of the day had passed. His eyes, however, were mutinous, and lowered to take in the agitated rise and fall of her breasts. Sensing his eyes on them, her nipples communicated an enticing message all their own.

“Well, as I was saying about the bedroom,” Kathleen said breathlessly, all too aware that his interest was wandering in a dangerous direction and that she was following his lead right to the edge of the enchanted abyss. Safety lay in meaningless, idle chatter. “Let’s pick out the color you want on the wall, buy the paint, and then we’ll search for pillows. We may get lucky and find an inexpensive chair to go in there, too. What would you think about a wicker trunk at the foot of the bed? That’s a functional piece, and decorative as well.”

He leaned over closer to her and placed his lips directly on her ear as he whispered, “I can think of only one decorative and functional item I want near my bed. She’s got auburn hair that shines in the sunlight like fire. Her eyes are green and radiant and bewitchingly outlined with dark lashes. And if she didn’t want me to talk like this, why did she wear a silk blouse and tight leather pants that fit her sexy little fanny like a glove?”

He pulled away from her, and Kathleen caught herself before she swayed against him. She was held hypnotized by his words and the tone of his voice. His eyes were glowing with desire and his mustache twitched around an insolent curl on his lips. He knew he had disoriented her. She wanted to pay him back.

“There’s something I always wanted to ask you. Do you have a dimple under the right side of your mustache?”

“Maybe, maybe not. Why don’t you find out,” he challenged.

Suddenly, the tables had turned again. She wasn’t taunting him as was her intention. He was still one point ahead. But who cared? The game had its own reward. “I might sometime,” she promised softly as they stared at each other.

“I’ll look forward to that.”

* * *

They completed their shopping within the next two hours and headed for his car, Erik grumbling that he hoped he could remember when he was supposed to meet which delivery man.

When they drove up the lane at the Kirchoff estate, they were still basking in the warmth of each other’s presence. He came around to the passenger side of the car and opened the door for her. She was looking up into his face as they walked toward the front door, but intuition caused her to glance toward the side yard. Her heart lurched to her throat, and she shoved away from Erik as she broke into a dead run.

“Theron!” she screamed.

Chapter Fifteen

The toddler heedlessly ran the length of the diving board of the pool. At the end of it, he stopped, looked down at the inviting water that he loved, laughed happily and then jumped.

“Theron!” Kathleen screamed again, but this time her cry was soundless. Panicked fear had sealed her throat, prohibiting her from making a sound. She raced forward as she saw his tiny blond head swallowed up by the deep water.

She had almost reached the redwood decking when footsteps thundered past her and Erik all but knocked her to the ground as he sped past. Without a moment’s hesitation, he vaulted off the deck and dived head-first into the pool. What seemed like an eternity to Kathleen, as she stood at the pool’s edge, was actually only a few seconds before Erik broke the surface, his arm around Theron’s chest.

Theron gasped for breath and choked up water as Erik kicked them to the side of the pool. He lifted the boy up into the anxious arms of his mother.