Summer Days (Fool's Gold #7)

BY EARLY AFTERNOON, RAFE was ready to run screaming into the mountains around Fool’s Gold. He’d managed to escape from Nina, only to continue setting up for the carnival. The dart game he’d started to put together required him blowing up hundreds of balloons. The tall, skinny guy who had introduced himself as Ham had shown him three empty, massive cardboard boxes and said they had to be filled with balloons. Then he’d pointed to a box of balloons and an air compressor. He’d slapped Rafe on the back and disappeared. Rafe sensed he’d been had.

Still, he went to work, blowing up the balloons, tying them off, then dropping them into the boxes. Late morning turned into early afternoon. The sun rose higher in the sky, the day warmed and the sidewalks around him grew crowded.

By three, his fingers were cramping from the twisting motion. Give him a ten-foot fence line or a herd of “feral” cattle any day, he thought. At least that was work he enjoyed. And it was solitary. Because along with the bottomless box of balloons, he’d had a long string of visitors.

Harvey of the recently cured cancer had stopped by to talk about his good health and how Glen’s generosity had literally saved his life. When Rafe had pointed out that the money had come from his mother and Glen had lied to get it, Harvey had been unimpressed. He’d done ten minutes on the state of health care in this country, recounted two funny stories about Glen and had told him that everyone was watching him, before drifting away.

A pretty, middle-aged redhead appeared next in a flowy, long dress, and stopped in front of him. “You must be Rafe,” she said. “I’m Madam Zoltan, but you can call me Rita.” Her green eyes swept over him. “Nice. Very nice.”

He didn’t know what she meant, and he decided it was better not to ask.

“Good to meet you,” he said, continuing his balloon work.

“So you’re with Heidi.”

Rafe’s grip on the balloon he was filling with air loosened, and the bit of rubber went flying through the air. It zigged and zagged around them before fluttering to the sidewalk. A little boy ran over and picked it up, then darted away.

“I need a drink,” Rafe muttered, and he wasn’t talking about the bottle of water Harvey had brought him.

Rita smiled. “She’s a wonderful young woman, but then you already know that. May I?”

She reached for his hand. He let her take it, then she bent over his palm. Her fingers were long and cool. They lightly touched his skin, tracing lines before rubbing the base of his thumb.

“I’m going to meet a dark stranger who will change my life forever?” he asked.

“No, nothing that simple. You’re a complicated man.” She tapped a line. “Very loving, although you try to hide that part of your character. You take care of the people around you.”

This was the second time in one day a woman he barely knew was talking about him as if they had exclusive emails delivered from heaven. He pulled back his hand.

“It was nice to meet you,” he said firmly, picking up the next balloon.

“You’re dismissing me.” She seemed more amused than angry. “All right. I’ll take the hint. But first, to get your heart’s desire, you’re going to have to be willing to take a leap of faith. To be vulnerable.”

Involuntarily, he remembered what Nina had told him that morning. About being naked in front of the world. Had the women around here had a meeting and decided today was the day they were going to torture him?

“It’s worth it,” she assured him.

“Good to know.”

She smiled and left.

He stared after her for a couple of seconds, then reached for the next balloon. About an hour later, he’d nearly finished when Charlie walked up to him. She was wearing a Fool’s Gold firefighter uniform, so it took him a second to place her.

“Charlie.”

“That’s me. I came to—”

He held up both hands and took a step back. “I’m not talking about my past, who I date or Heidi. You can’t read my palm, ask about my mother or discuss any aspect of my life, now or in the future.”

Charlie raised her eyebrows. “Are you okay?”

“No. Go away.”

Her mouth twitched, as if she were holding in a grin. “If you insist, but at some point I have to check the booth. Fire regulations.”

“Not now. Get out. Stop talking about me. Pretend we never met.”

Charlie chuckled. “Now I can honestly say I have no idea what Heidi sees in you.”

“You were leaving.”

She was still laughing when she strolled away.

* * *

THE GROUP OF SIX WAS EVENLY split between archaeologists and reporters. Heidi touched the back pocket of her jeans, where she’d shoved the notes Annabelle had given her, and hoped she remembered all the important points. Speaking in public, even to a small group like this, wasn’t her idea of a good time. Of course, she only had herself to blame for the situation, something she needed to remember.

She’d come in before the tour and left lanterns in the caves, then given everyone a flashlight. Now, as they stepped into the darkness, light was swallowed up in the darkest corners, and the temperature dropped noticeably with every step.

“The front part of the caves have been used for decades,” she explained. “Maybe hundreds of years. When I bought the ranch last year, I knew they would be perfect for aging my cheese. The caves maintain a steady temperature. The farther back you go, the cooler it gets. The lowest temperature is just below fifty degrees.”