"Getting a little egotistical, aren't we?"

"You've had a taste of the real thing now, lady, and you're going to want more. You are one hot little number. You've been locked away in ice all these years but I've melted that ice. The next time you want to feel as good as you did when I was inside you, just remember I'm the man who can make it happen. You need me for that, if nothing else. Sweet dreams, your majesty."

He had turned and stalked off down the corridor, leaving Verity more confused and wary than she had ever been before in her life.

No one really believed in psychometry.

And no one except the most sheltered and naive of innocents believed in finding true love with a man who was wrong for her on every count.

On her way downstairs Verity reminded herself forcefully that she never had been sheltered, nor was she naive. She had no excuses for the daydreams she hadn't even begun to acknowledge until recently.

Whatever she had with Jonas amounted to nothing more than an affair that probably wouldn't last through the winter.

The odds were that Jonas would grow restless and hit the road long before spring. Or she would lose her temper with him one time too many and wind up kicking him out for good. Either way, once he was gone she would never see him again.

A sobering thought. The man might be difficult, crazy, and haunted by ghosts, but he was her first lover. It was depressing to think she had waited all these years for a wacko to sweep her off her feet and into bed.

That probably said something about her own flawed judgment, Verity decided gloomily.

At least now she knew the source of the ghosts in his eyes.

As she entered the gray-on-gray dining room she found Caitlin waiting for her at the far end of the granite table. Verity decided she did not care for the table. With its unrelenting near-black surface and its wide, heavy base, the thing reminded her entirely too much of someone's idea of a witch's altar.

Caitlin was pouring coffee from a silver pot when Verity walked into the room. She turned her scarred face to looked at her guest, her eyes searching for answers to questions that remained unasked.

"Good morning, Verity. I hope you slept well. Did the storm disturb you? We get some violent ones this time of year."

"Storms don't bother me." That much was true. "That coffee looks good."

"Help yourself. Tavi is busy in the kitchen. I take it Jonas is not up and about yet?"

Verity concentrated on pouring her coffee. "I didn't stop by his room to see if he was in motion."

"I see." There was silence for a moment and then Caitlin said quietly, "It was kind of you to come for a visit, Verity. I want you to know how much I appreciate your company. I feel that in a short time we have become rather close. Is that presumptuous of me?"

Verity's head came up sharply at the diffident tone in Caitlin's voice. "Not in the least. I feel exactly the same way. I've enjoyed the visit thoroughly and I hope you'll be able to come back to Sequence Springs soon. I don't have a second bedroom, but Laura can always make room at the spa."

"That would be nice." Caitlin started to say something else but broke off, her eyes going to the doorway behind Verity. "There you are, Jonas. I was wondering if you would want to sleep in."

Verity turned to glance at Jonas, who strolled into the room with his usual negligent grace. He always looked so calm and at ease on the mornings after. It wasn't fair. He took the seat beside Verity and reached for the coffeepot. She thought she saw some evidence of exhaustion around his eyes but she couldn't be certain. Probably wishful thinking on her part.

"Good morning, Verity," he said politely.

"Good morning, Jonas."

They might have been the most casual and polite of acquaintances, Verity thought in annoyance.

"I was just about to tell Verity about some plans I've made regarding the sale of Bloodlust," Caitlin said smoothly as Tavi walked into the room carrying a platter of eggs and fruit.

"Is that right?" Jonas did not appear overly interested. He was concentrating on his coffee, treating it as if it were an expensive drug, Verity tried to cover up Jonas's lack of social grace. "What plans, Caitlin?"

"I believe I mentioned that I will be conducting a bidding session for the painting."

Verity nodded. "I remember. You said you were going to handle the auction yourself."

"That's right. This is a very special sale for me, you see. Bloodlust is the last painting I plan to do."

"The last one?" Verity was shocked. "Caitlin, you can't stop painting. It's your life. You have a great talent and you're in your prime. Why on earth would you want to stop?"

Caitlin smiled fleetingly but her eyes were on Jonas. He was watching her speculatively. "I have my reasons."

"Like instantly driving up the prices of all your works by making it clear there will be no more?" Jonas asked sardonically. "Not a bad move, Caitlin. It would cause a flurry of interest in the art world."

"Jonas, for heaven's sake," Verity hissed.

Caitlin waved a dismissing hand. "He's right. Financially, it will be an interesting move. I still have several unsold paintings left. Their value will probably triple when word gets out that Bloodlust is my final work."

"And Bloodlust itself should go for a fortune." Jonas dug into the eggs Tavi had put in front of him.

"I fully intend to get as much as I possibly can for it," Caitlin agreed calmly. "I also plan to make my auction a major event. I have always kept my distance from the art world but I would like to leave it with a bang. There has always been a certain amount of curiosity about me among art patrons. I have never allowed myself to be photographed, never mingled socially. Call it a whim, but I want to exit with an event that will not only satisfy that curiosity but will be remembered for a time."

Verity looked down as Tavi placed a plate in front of her. She noticed that the woman's fingers were trembling. As she looked up, she caught a tight, pinched, almost desperate look on Tavi's face. Then it was gone. Tavi moved on toward Caitlin's end of the table.

"What are you planning to do to make your auction special?" Verity asked uneasily.

Caitlin took another sip of coffee. "I have been giving the matter much thought. Jonas, you're the one who gave me the final inspiration. In three weeks I'm going to hold a Renaissance costume ball here in my home. I'm going to recreate a sixteenth century court setting as closely as possible. We will eat, drink, and converse as any wealthy gathering would have done back at the height of the Renaissance.