Free [Desert Roses 03] - Beneath A Harvest Sky by Tracie Peterson Page A

easy one.
    They took the Kayenta Road, and because the weather had been dry, the road was decent.
    “You’ll want to take the lower road to the left,” Sonny said, leaning over Duncan’s shoulder.
    “Yes, unless you want to put us in the sand, as Sonny delights in doing,” Rainy teased. Duncan nodded and maneuvered the car to the left while Rainy turned to her passengers. “The body of water you see is called Sheep Dip. After we cross a sandy stretch we’ll reach a lake called Red Lake. It’s called this because the sand at the bottom of the lake appears red.”
    They passed the lake and headed on their way across the dry wasteland. At one point Rainy again turned to the guests and smiled. “This area of ruins is full of pottery and arrowheads. Little is known about the Indians who once lived here. There are several archaeologists who intend to study the area, but they feel confident the findings will prove the tribe to have been Navajo.” Duncan enjoyed her comments but could tell by the way she frowned whenever she turned back to face the road that she wasn’t happy at all. He couldn’t help but wonder what was making her so miserable.
    At midday they paused to share a picnic lunch that had been packed for them back in Tuba. Duncan felt ravenous as he settled in beside Rainy to share in the sandwiches and fresh fruit. Rainy was nearly finished with her food, but helping Sonny resecure some loose luggage had delayed Duncan’s lunch.
    “So how do you like driving the touring car?”
    Rainy asked.
    Duncan unwrapped a ham and cheese sandwich and shrugged. “It’s an adventure, I will say that much.”
    “Are you sorry you gave up the museum?”
    He felt a twinge of guilt. There was no way he could explain that he hadn’t given up the museum.
    He couldn’t very well tell one of the prime suspects of the investigation that he was only along to spy on her and gather information.
    “I don’t want to spend my life living in a museum,” he finally said. “I have other plans.”
    “Truly? Maybe you could tell me about them sometime,” Rainy said, seeming quite interested in him.
    “Miss Gordon,” Phillip Vance interrupted, “I wondered if you might take a walk with me and tell me about the landscape.”
    Rainy smiled up at the handsome man. “Of course.” She quickly got to her feet and dusted off the backside of her skirt. “What would you like to know?”
    They walked away with Phillip casually putting his hand on the small of Rainy’s back as they ascended a slight incline. Duncan couldn’t help but notice there was no sharp elbowing of Mr. Vance. On the contrary, Rainy seemed to enjoy Mr. Vance’s attention very much. Duncan wanted nothing more than to run after them and insist he join the walk, but his appetite was fierce, and besides, he knew he had no business interfering in the matter.
    Why does it have to be so hard to wait, Lord? I feel as though most of my life has been spent waiting for one thing or another to happen. Rainy Gordon is a beautiful and exciting woman, probably too much so for my simple life, but still I find myself drawn to her in a way I can’t explain .
    “You don’t understand.”
    Duncan perked up at the statement. The voice of a man speaking in low, hushed tones carried over from the other side of the rock where Duncan ate.
    “I understand better than you think,” came another male voice. The second voice had to belong to Marshall Driscoll. It sounded much too refined and old to be his son’s. Since Chester Driscoll was the only other man on the trip, besides Phillip Vance, the other voice must belong to him, Duncan reasoned.
    “But Rainy is still determined to see the truth come out about those artifacts.”
    “Shut up,” Driscoll told his son. “This is not a matter for discussion.”
    They moved away from the rock, leaving Duncan feeling rather ill. What did they know about Rainy and artifacts? The situation didn’t look at all good for Rainy. First the