All That Glitters

Chapter Two

When the back door slammed, common sense told Rikku to

hide. But the woman in white sprawled on the floor in

Tidus's living room wasn't dead. Her finger had twitched.

Rikku wouldn't leave this unconscious victim at the mercy

of whoever walked through that door. It was her nature

to protect the helpless. Growing up in foster care,

she'd learned to be tough.

From the kitchen, she heard a man's voice. Maybe Tidus? Or

maybe not.

She needed a weapon. From the stand by the front door,

she grabbed an umbrella. With her other hand, she groped

in her purse for her cell phone.

The stranger who entered the living room was handsome.

"Stay back!" Rikku positioned herself between him and his

victim. She punched in 9-1-1. "I'm calling the cops."

Calmly, he reached inside his blazer and pulled out a

revolver.

Her heart stopped. Was it too late to run and hide?

"I need help," Rikku shouted into the cell phone.

"There's a man with a gun."

The handsome man stepped toward her. "Listen, ma'am, I'm not

—"

"Don't move!" She jabbed at him with the point of the

umbrella as she gave Tidus's address to the emergency

operator. "And we need an ambulance. There's a woman

who's nearly dead."

"Not hardly," said a familiar female voice.

Looking over her shoulder, Rikku saw Leblanc Dumont sit up

on the floor, like a vampire rising from her coffin.

Tidus strolled into his living room. As he beheld the

scene, his eyebrows lifted. "Rikku," he said, "I see

you've already met Gippal. He's a professional

security guard."

"Oh." She lowered her umbrella.

From the floor, Leblanc whined, "Tidus, darling, I was

attacked. Don't you care about me?"

While Tidus helped Leblanc onto the sofa, Rikku approached

Gippal. "Sorry," she said.

He grinned. "You had me real scared, ma'am."

She glanced toward Tidus and sighed. Every time she got

close to him, she seemed destined to behave like a

complete moron. The wail of approaching police sirens

and an ambulance confirmed her idiocy. This situation

could only get worse now that the cops were involved.

Breathlessly Leblanc explained, "I came here to surprise

you, Tidus. I had my chef prepare a divine candlelit

dinner for two. She left while I set the table. I heard

a noise and came into this room. I sensed someone behind

me and…" She reached up to touch the back of her head.

"…everything went black."

"Wait a minute," Rikku said. "You were hit on the head?

But there's blood on the back of your dress."

"Oh dear, I hope not. This is a Vera Wang."

Leblanc leaned forward. There was nothing on her back. But

Rikku had seen blood! She looked down at the carpet.

"There it is."

She picked up the piece of shiny red plastic that she'd

mistaken for blood in the poorly lit room. It was shaped

like a sunburst — the calling card for the cat burglar

who was terrorizing the wealthy of Denver.

Immediately, Leblanc checked her ring finger. "Thank God,

the burglar didn't get my blue diamond!"

When Gippal opened the front door for the policemen

and ambulance crew, Rikku left center stage to Leblanc who

protested to everyone and wouldn't allow the paramedics

to touch her. In the midst of this confusion, a neighbor

popped in to see what was happening. With her was Donna

Corsky, who had just arrived for an evening tarot card

reading.

Leblanc demanded, "I want my personal doctor. Someone fetch

me a brandy."

Donna complied, going directly toward the liquor cabinet.

Had she been here before? Did Tidus use the services of

this psychic?

When he caught Rikku's eye and nodded toward the dining

room, she followed him. At the romantically set table,

he paused to blow out the candles. "Let me assure you, I

knew nothing about Leblanc's dinner plans."

"Someone did," she said. "The cat burglar."

"How much do you know about these thefts?"

"Only what I read in the paper. Why?"

"The Benefit Ball is a big temptation for a jewel

thief."

Tidus unlocked the door into an old-fashioned library with

floor-to-ceiling bookcases. Unlike the rest of his

house, this room looked lived-in. The large desk held a

respectable amount of clutter. On the center table was

an ebony rectangular box.

Reverently, Tidus unfastened the hasp and lifted the lid.

"I wanted you to see this before you designed the

decorations for the ball."

Inside the white satin-lined box lay an ornately carved,

golden scabbard. The hilt of the sword was pure,

gleaming gold.

Tidus lifted the scabbard from the case and drew the

double-edged blade. "The Sword of LeFevre, a Frenchman

who came to the Rockies and discovered gold in the

1800s. This scabbard and hilt were fashioned from gold

mined from his strike. The blade is steel, still sharp."

He slashed the air, and the sword whistled. "It's to be

auctioned off at the ball."

Rikku watched as Tidus parried and thrust at an invisible

opponent. The gold highlights in his hair matched the

shimmer of the hilt. "Elegant," she said.

"The owner's nervous about letting this treasure out of

his sight. That's why I have Gippal with me."

"May I touch it?" Rikku reached out.

He gave her the sword. The hilt was still warm from his

touch. Golden heat radiated up her arm and spread

through her entire body.

"I thought the sword might inspire you," he said. "For

the decorations. Maybe some French stuff. Lots of gold."

Her gaze met his. An undeniable electricity sparked

between them. "I'm inspired," she said.

"There was another reason I wanted to see you, Rikku. I

need major redecorating to make my house suitable for

kids."

"But you're a bachelor." A confirmed and notorious

bachelor.

"I've applied to be a foster parent."

She swallowed hard. Could Tidus Clarendon possibly be more

attractive? Handsome. Dashing. And sensitive, to boot.

"This was the kind of home I dreamed about when I was a

kid. I grew up in foster care." Rikku confessed.

"I know."

Though her past wasn't a secret, her upbringing wasn't

common knowledge. "What else do you know about me?"

"You have a juvenile criminal record for shoplifting.

You put yourself through college, majoring in art

history. Before I hired you, I had you checked out,

Rikku. You're the woman I want…for this job."

Before Rikku could reply, the library door was opened by

Gippal. "Excuse me, sir. The police are taking

statements. They'd like to speak to Miss Huffman."

* * *

After her interview with the cops, Rikku drove straight

home, thinking about what Tidus had said. She was the

woman he wanted...for the job. Did he want her in other

ways? What might have happened tonight if Leblanc hadn't

interfered? For hours, Rikku invented possible scenarios.

The candlelit dinner. The personal tour of his house,

including the bedroom.

Before going to bed, she took her cell phone from her

purse to recharge during the night. The phone wasn't

properly closed. It looked like something was blocking

the catch. She flipped it open.

Leblanc's diamond ring fell into her hand.

To be continued...