The 22nd Secret Read online

  “Would you do me a favor?” Paula asked without waiting for an answer. “I want to soak for at least an hour. You said there’s plenty of hot water.”

  “That’s right, all you want.” Jim released his hold on her, allowing the stack of clothes to define the distance between them.

  “I’d really like some hot coffee while I’m soaking.”

  “I’ll make some and bring it right up.”

  Pam looked deep into Jim’s eyes. She did not want to control Jim’s feelings like she had Ben’s and the others.

  “Jim, there’s no way for you to understand what you mean to me right now. I don’t mean just saving my life but… this is going to sound silly.” She paused and looked down with sincerity, searching for the right words. “I’ve been waiting my whole life to meet you. I’m more than willing and I know you are, the question is, can you handle it?”

  She turned away from Jim, picked up her cosmetics case, and spoke as she slowly started up the stairs. “I’ll help you with breakfast after my bath. Bring me some coffee, black.”

  Jim stood for a moment trying to understand the words he heard and their meaning, which sounded silly but were strangely sincere.

  “Your room’s the last one on the left,” he said, before heading for the kitchen.

  He poured the coffee in a chrome carafe and placed it on a small round tray along with two coffee mugs, and headed for the stairs. Jim arrived at Paula’s door to find it slightly ajar. He knocked softly.

  “Paula?”

  “I’m in the tub.”

  Jim thought about Paula asking him if he could handle it as he slowly opened the door and peeked in. The clothes Jim had given her were on the bed. The clothes Paula had been wearing were piled on the floor next to the bed. The door to the bathroom was slightly open. Jim could hear the water running. Before he could figure out what was happening next Paula spoke from the bathroom.

  “Jim, you there where’s my coffee? Hey listen, I haven’t known you long enough, bring me my coffee but don’t you dare look.”

  Jim set the tray on the table. He filled one of the mugs and slowly backed into the steamy bathroom. Like all the rooms in the lodge he knew this one well. He backed over to the tub and handed the coffee down to Paula.

  “Sit down. We’ll talk.”

  “I brought another mug. Let me get some coffee first. I won’t look.” He tried to catch a peek through the mirror, but it was fogged up. He returned backing in with his mug and started to sit on the toilet with his back to Paula.

  “Hand me the shampoo before you sit down.” Paula’s voice seemed relaxed. By comparison, Jim was anxious with anticipation. “I’m going to lie here and soak with the hot water running and listen to you tell me about yourself. How did a backwoods stud like you end up here in the perfect setting for me to take a bath?”

  Jim could hear Paula splashing around in the tub as he spoke.

  “I was born in Denver, grew up there with my parents and two sisters, both older than me. I guess I’m about as average as they come.”

  “Any girlfriends?” Paula asked as she settled down to soak after bathing herself.

  “Yeah, plenty.”

  “How about now?” Paula closed her eyes to allow the hot water and Jim’s voice to heal her sore body.

  “Yes, well at least until yesterday afternoon when I met you, I did.”

  “Well that makes us even, but you still can’t look.”

  “My Uncle Charlie built this place after returning from World War II. Starting when I was just a kid, I came up here every summer. When I was little I just kind of did some chores and played around. My friend, Bill, who’s the sheriff now, was my best friend. We spent every summer together growing up. When I was in high school, I worked full-time every summer and got paid. I’ve done every job in this place from cook to maid. My parents’ died in a car accident my freshman year at the University of Colorado. After that I kind of made this my permanent residence while I was in college and then the Navy.”

  “I’m sorry about your folks, Jim. Both mine are still alive.” She paused, thinking about her parents for a moment. “What’d you do in the Navy?”

  Pam found that Jim’s strong presence was as healing to Paula’s body as the warm water. The more she relaxed, the more comfortable she felt. She felt it from the first moment she met Jim, she had an overwhelming attraction to him. The impression was so powerful Pam was having trouble controlling her thoughts. At that moment she decided she would allow Jim to dominate her, at least for the next few days. For the first time in her life she would let herself lose control. The feeling made her feel secure, protected, and very feminine.

  “I was an officer in the Navy SEALS, went into Kuwait before the invasion and helped the resistance movement.”

  “Did you kill anyone?”

  “I was in command of a very special team. We did what we had to. We helped end the brutal torture of an entire country. It wasn’t like what people saw on CNN. It’s not something you talk to a lady that’s in your bathtub about.”

  “I’m sorry,” Pam breathed deeply. “Tell me about the lodge.”

  “Well, anyway Uncle Charlie passed away three years ago and Aunt Judy wanted to move to Dallas to live with her daughter. She couldn’t run the place by herself anyway. I had a chance to get out of the Navy so I bought the place from her.”

  “Jim, can you please get me the bathrobe.”

  Jim heard Paula stand up as he left the room. He returned backing into the room but could sense Paula was out of the tub.

  “You can look now.” Pam was enjoying teasing Jim. They both laughed out loud at Jim’s expression when he turned to see Paula standing in front of him wrapped in one of the lodge’s huge bath towels.

  “I’ve had enough teasing.” Jim dropped the robe on the floor and wrapped one arm around her. He pulled her hard to him and kissed her passionately. While kissing her, he used his other hand to grab one of her firm butt cheeks. He squeezed it then ran his arm up her back and pulled the towel off of her, throwing it across the room. Without looking down he turned and walked out of the room, informing Paula, “I’ll look whenever I want. Get dressed, I’ll start breakfast.”

  Pam stood naked until she heard the door to her room close. Take me whenever you want, I’m ready, she thought.

  The clothes Jim picked out were too large, so she decided to put on the wool socks and wear the terrycloth robe until after breakfast. She folded them up and carried them downstairs with her. Descending the stairs, she wondered what it would be like to fully open up her mind to Jim. She didn’t know the depth of his psychic powers. They seemed to be only over her. She would have sensed it if he had developed any level of physic skills or if he was aware of what he was doing to her. She wondered if he could also read her thoughts or if it was merely a sexual connection. Whatever it was, if she could get him to focus his thoughts directly at her he could take control of her body. She decided to lower her guard, whatever Jim thought, her body would do without her intervention. His desires would become her actions, but only for tonight. She still had to keep her true identity and reason for being in Alaska hidden. This knowledge was still deadly. Jim would probably never know the truth. In a few days she would be out of his life. Whether the Americans or the Chinese got her, Jim would believe she had just used him. It would be easier for him than the truth. And what was the truth? Fate had brought them together, they were meant for each other, love at first sight, a perfect fit, and fate would separate them in two days. She would be Jim’s forever. She deserved to be with the man of her dreams, if only for a few days. She usually controlled her lovers, but now she would be the one controlled.

  Pam set the clothes down on the leather couch and walked to the kitchen. The smell of ham and fresh biscuits filled the room. There was a red tiled floor and stainless steel everywhere, typical of a commercial kitchen. Jim turned from the griddle.

  “How do you want your eggs?”

  “Scrambled, but it
really doesn’t matter.”

  “Scrambled it is. I’ll have the same.” Jim said as he took a stainless steel-mixing bowl from the shelf and started breaking eggs into it with one hand. “Why aren’t you wearing the clothes I gave you?”

  Pam lifted herself up and sat with her legs hanging off the edge of a large stainless steel prep table. She made sure the opening in the robe below the tied belt exposed her right up to the top of her crossed legs. “They were too large, at least the panties and jeans were. I decided you could help me pick out some after breakfast. Anyway, it’s just the two of us.”

  Jim turned to look at Paula as he began scrambling the eggs with a wire whip. “You look great. Do you feel better?”

  Pam could feel his eyes trying to look up her legs past the point where the robe covered her. She would have accommodated him but she could tell he was just curious. Even so she felt sexier than anytime she could remember. She almost shivered with anticipation. She jumped off the table, grimacing from her sore back and legs.

  “Can I help?” she asked.

  Jim gestured toward a tray containing platters piled high with ham and hash browns and a basket of biscuits.

  “You can take that to the table by the bar. I’ll bring the eggs in a second.”

  “Are you planning on me being able to eat all this?” Paula asked.

  “No, I’m just used to cooking for a lot of people. I do the same thing when I’m alone. I just save it for the next day. That way, I only have to cook a few times a week. Only thing is breakfast is not real good left over. We can make sandwiches with the ham. I hope you like trout. I got a couple of real nice rainbows I caught last summer thawing for dinner.”

  “I love trout.” Paula walked out of the kitchen with the tray.

  The picture of Paula’s beautiful thin legs was burned in Jim’s mind. He wondered how she could seem so uninhibited. He knew how he felt about Paula from the moment he first looked into her eyes at the crash. He was beginning to realize that she felt the same thing. He wanted to believe the logic of the situation. Was he falling in love with her, was she with him? His mind said no but his heart said yes.

  Do I just take her after breakfast? She’d obviously let me, or do I wait, spend the day getting to know each other; build the anticipation in both of us until tonight. What’s the hurry? Let’s enjoy the moments as they happen. I’ll wait but she’s so damn beautiful and sexy. Hell, there isn’t a word this old sailor knows to describe what she is but whatever it is she’s got all of it.

  He left the kitchen with the bowl of scrambled eggs.

  Paula had served herself ham and some hash browns and was buttering a biscuit when he arrived. He sat down and served each plate with a heaping spoonful of eggs. Paula was hungrier than she realized and was eating as fast as she could by the time Jim had finished serving his plate.

  “Paula, there’s something I need to talk to you about.” Paula froze at his stern tone, and swallowed her eggs.

  “What is it, Jim?”

  “Well, don’t get me wrong, you’re very beautiful and appealing, but… I mean it’s not that I don’t want you–”

  “Don’t tell me, you’re gay.”

  “No. Hell no. That’s not it.”

  “Thank God. I almost thought the man of my dreams was gay.” They both laughed.

  “That’s it. I’m the man of your dreams? Things like this just don’t happen. I’m just not that lucky. I mean you; any man would die to have you for just one night. But you drop out of the sky yesterday afternoon and this morning you’re telling me I’m the man of your dreams.”

  “Jim, you shouldn’t underestimate yourself. You don’t understand, but trust me, there’s every reason in the world for me to feel the way I do. I’m just as frightened and insecure as you are, probably more. But time will change that.” Pam could fix this problem in Jim’s mind in an instant but she wanted Jim’s feelings toward her to be real. They ate quietly for a few moments.

  “Maybe if I told you a little about myself you’d understand. I grew up on my parents’ farm in Idaho. I was an only child and didn’t have a lot of friends.” She paused, thinking this might be the only true part of her story. “It was pretty lonely. My parents and I weren’t real close.”

  Paula stopped eating and stared at her food as she spoke. Jim stopped too and looked at her with empathy.

  “Anyway, after high school, my parents didn’t encourage me to go to college. They didn’t want to pay for it.” Paula punctuated this with a sarcastic chuckle. “I got a job at the front desk of the Holiday Inn. That’s where I meet Tino. He was a guest. I don’t know why he was there. You learn that if you want to survive in this line of work you don’t ask questions. Anyway, Tino liked my looks so he offered me a job as his personal assistant. I guess I was pretty naive. My parents didn’t care what I did so I went to San Francisco to live with him.”

  “I’m sorry, Paula.” Jim reached over and held her hand. Pam tearfully looked up at Jim. She was always capable of crying on command, but this. This was different. Of all the men she’d known, none of them were like Jim. She knew that in a few days they would probably part forever.

  She looked down at Jim’s strong hand holding hers. “Like I told you last night, it wasn’t so bad. I didn’t love him or anything. We did have some good times together. If I knew then what I know now, I would have never left Idaho.”

  “Then we would never have met.” Jim squeezed her hand. She smiled modestly at him.

  “And I wouldn’t have got you mixed up in all of this.”

  It seemed strange last night when he had lied to Bill about the crash. At the time he hadn’t thought about it, but why had he done it? Today, looking into Paula’s eyes, it seemed perfectly reasonable. This gorgeous woman wanted to spend the rest of her life with him.

  “Paula, last night I really didn’t mean this but this morning I do. I want you to stay with me. Maybe things won’t work out for us. I want them to and I think they will.” He rubbed her back.

  She turned her eyes away from Jim’s.

  “I’ve only known a couple of panting high school boys in their back seats and Tino. I want to know what true love is. I want to know what it’s like with someone I choose. I want to know what it’s like to be in love with you.”

  She threw her arms around Jim and buried her face in his shoulder. She squeezed him as tightly as she could.

  “Look, Paula you’ve been pretty, well, appealing this morning. You don’t have to do that just because you think it will give you a place to live for the next few months.”

  Pam quickly moved away from Jim and spoke with shock in her voice. “You don’t like me like this? Because I like me like this. I like feeling sexy. I chose to be like this with you. I liked taking a bath with you talking to me, that was my choice and I liked it. Only problem was you wouldn’t look. Oh Jim, you were such a gentleman.” Pam shot a sexy smile right through him and they giggled. Pam thought at least this was not a deception.

  Jim was getting ready to speak when the radio crackled to life.

  “Jim. This is Bill, you copy?” They didn’t need any special abilities to know this was probably not good.

  “Jim. You there? Over.”

  Jim hurried over to the radio. “Ten-four, Bill. I copy. Over.” Pam slowly walked over to the fireplace and stared at the flames.

  “You know who was on that plane? Over.” Pam thought say no as she concentrated on every word, hoping to get a clue or message from Tom or Henry.

  “No, why? Over.”

  “Mafia, but that’s not all. The whole damn government’s going crazy over this. They got the guard activated to get the airport runway cleared and some FBI big shots flying in on a C140 as soon as they think he can get in, probably tomorrow morning. Army Special Forces are moving toward the crash site to secure it today. This FBI guy wants you to take him and a couple FAA people he’s bringing with him from Washington, out there tomorrow. Over.”

  Jim looked at Paul
a who stared at him with her hand over her mouth. “In this weather? Over?”

  “Yeah, I’m talking on the phone with this guy, got him on hold. He wants to ask you some questions. He told me if I got you on the radio to patch you through to him. Over.”

  Pam mouthed what’s his name, but Jim was facing the radio.

  “Who is this guy? He’s got to be crazy. Whatever is out there will be there in a couple of days when the weather clears. Over.”

  “Special Agent with the FBI, name’s Tom Walker, and man, he doesn’t sound like the kind of person you question. Look, buddy. Whatever it is that’s out there, it’s important enough for this guy to mobilize the guard and Special Forces. You ready? I’ll patch you through. Over.”

  Jim looked at Paula and saw terror in her eyes. She shook her head no, but thought talk to him. Jim would have to talk to him sooner or later, and telling Bill he didn’t want him to make the connection would be awfully suspicious. Jim made a quick decision. “Put me through, over.”

  “Ten-four, buddy. Hold on.”

  Jim stared quietly at Paula for what seemed like an eternity. Neither wanted to utter a sound, for fear they would be overheard even though the radio microphone key was not depressed. Then the radio crackled with Bill’s voice.

  “Jim you still there? Over.”

  “Yes I’m here. Over.”

  “Mr. Walker, you’ll have to say over at the end of–”

  “I know how to use a radio, Sheriff.” Tom cut him off. Pam was torn. She knew that if Tom was on the radio the mission might be salvaged. She also knew this meant that her time with Jim had just been cut in half. She flopped down on the couch, leaned against the backrest, and stared at the rugs on the ceiling. She tried to concentrate on the conversation, ready to intercede if Jim was going to make a mistake or if she could pass anything on to Tom through him.