LITMIR.BIZ

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to Denver to avoid the worst of the traffic.

      By tacit agreement, any reference to last night’s unfortunate incident was avoided. When the family returned to the suite from dinner, Laurel had put on fresh makeup, and she greeted them with a smile. She insisted the boys sleep in her room. Brent and Julie had no choice but to go along with her wishes.

      Today was a new day, and she intended to enjoy it. First on the agenda, she’d have a leisurely breakfast in the coffee shop. Afterward she’d drive into town to do a little shopping. Maybe she’d see something cute for a baby girl in one of the stores at the Bell Tower mall.

      If she was having a boy, Julie had saved enough baby and toddler clothes to fill every need. Brent had already set up their old crib in Laurel’s room. She was as prepared as she could possibly be.

      She pulled into the lodge parking lot and got out of the car. During the night a storm front had moved in, bringing lower temperatures and the threat of more snow. Her breath curled in the air.

      Glad of Brent’s old black-and-white parka, which covered most of her, she made her way toward the lodge, hoping no one noticed that she walked like a fat penguin these days.

      A line of cars idled outside the entrance. Sunday mornings tended to be the busiest time, with the majority of guests departing. As she walked between two of the vehicles where people were loading their bags, she got the distinct impression she was being watched.

      The feeling grew so strong she glanced to her right and caught a glint of blue. The wintry blue of eyes that had condemned her last night. It was Hawk at the controls of a four-wheel-drive Blazer.

      There was a logo on the side. Eagles’ Nest Ski and Bike Shop, Copper Mountain. Was it a loan from a friend for the occasion?

      Her timing couldn’t have been worse. He’d told her he was with a wedding party. Maybe it had been his own. If so, good luck to his little brunette bride. Any woman foolish enough to marry a man carrying around that much rage—that much cruelty—would need it.

      Laurel picked up her pace and walked through the huge glass doors of the lodge. When she reached the coffee shop, it looked filled to capacity. Making a snap decision, she headed back to the suite. It would be easier to order breakfast from there, then visit the mall.

      But once inside the room, she discovered she was too angry to eat, let alone shop. She removed her parka and sank down on the bed.

      During the night she’d relived the hurtful experience on the dance floor over and over again. No matter how many times she’d tried to analyze it, she couldn’t understand why it had happened. There was no way to reconcile his behavior with what she knew about Hawk.

      If he and Scott had suffered a falling-out, she had no idea when it would have occurred. Once her husband had been transferred from Nellis, their careers had taken them to different parts of the world, although they’d always stayed in touch.

      Twice there’d been periods where they both served with NATO forces for many months at a time. The most recent had been right before Scott had returned to perform in the air show that had cost him his life. Her husband would have told her if there’d been trouble between them.

      Now that she’d recovered from the initial shock of their meeting, she was more curious than devastated by his rudeness. From everything she knew about him, he’d acted out of character last night.

      Scott might be gone, but for her own peace of mind she intended to solve the mystery. If some wrong had been done, if Scottie had somehow offended the man he used to idolize, Laurel wanted to know. Perhaps it was too late to make amends, but she could try.

      If memory served her right, after seeing action, Hawk had been sent to Edwards Air Force base, then Holland. Duce had mentioned something about his testing jets with the Dutch Air Force. No telling if he was still stationed there.

      The fact that he’d come to Colorado for a wedding meant he was only here on leave. If she didn’t act fast, she could miss him before he returned to active duty.

      Grabbing the phone directory from the nightstand, she looked up the Eagles’ Nest Ski and Bike Shop. If she couldn’t obtain any information there, she’d try to locate his family.

      The local operator could make a search of every Hawkins listed in Colorado, starting with this area of the state.

      She picked up the phone, pressed nine for an outside line, then used her phone card to call the number she’d found. There were two rings before the message came on.

      “You’ve reached Eagles’ Nest Ski and Bike Shop. We’re open Monday through Saturday, seven to seven. Sundays, seven to one. Come and check out our ski rentals for the whole family. If you wish further assistance, please stay on the line.”

      Laurel waited.

      “Rental shop. This is Nina.”

      “Hello. Excuse me for bothering you, but I’m trying to locate someone I saw driving one of your vehicles this morning. His name is Major Nathan Hawkins.”

      “You’ve reached his father’s place of business.”

      “Oh, good! May I speak to his father please?”

      “I’m sorry. Clint’s out of town.”

      “I see. Do you know how I could reach his son?”

      “He’ll probably be here on Monday. If you’d like to leave a phone number, I’ll make sure he gets it.”

      It didn’t sound as if Hawk had been the bridegroom, after all. Not if he hadn’t gone away on a honeymoon.

      “I’m afraid he won’t be able to contact me. At least I know where to call now. Thank you very much for your help.”

      Laurel hung up before the other woman could ask for a name. If Hawk did show up and discovered that someone was looking for him, he might think it was Laurel, but he wouldn’t have proof.

      She checked the telephone directory once more. Hawkins. Ah, there it was. Clint Hawkins in Copper Mountain.

      Laurel wrote down the address and phone number. It was her insurance in case Hawk didn’t want to be found.

      Now that she knew he wasn’t leaving Colorado for at least another day, she could relax. In a much better frame of mind, she rang for room service and stretched out on the bed to watch TV until it was time to pick up the family.

      WITH SECURITY SO TIGHT at the Denver airport, there was no opportunity to do anything more than deposit the newlyweds at the curb. Nate reached over the seat to squeeze Pam’s arm and wish her a happy trip.

      While Rick helped them with their bags, Nate lowered the car window to say goodbye to his father, who’d come around to the driver’s side. He’d always been a strong man. This morning his grip on Nate’s shoulder was almost bruising.

      “Thank you, son. I love you.”

      “I love you, too,” he whispered.

      “When we get back, I want to sit down with you and Rick. We’ll talk about everything.”

      He nodded. “Sounds good.”

      A minute later Rick climbed into the front seat. Nate took advantage of a break in the traffic and headed away from the terminal.

      “I don’t think Pam said more than a dozen words on the way down from Breckenridge.”

      “She did while Dad was paying the bill.”

      Nate turned his head toward his brother. “Problems already?”

      “I don’t know what to think. She said she’d been waiting for the right moment to explain why she was at our house the morning I surprised them. Apparently Dad had just picked her up at the Copper Mountain Inn where she’d been staying all month.

      “To quote her, ‘Your father and I did a lot of soul-searching on the previous night. The love he felt for your mother

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