Some Kind of Wonderful (Treasure Harbor Book 1) Page 7

  He looked down for a moment, focusing on his napkin. This subject made him feel incredibly vulnerable. “So you see why it bugs me to hear myself described as a womanizer. It really couldn’t be further from the truth. After seeing my mother’s tears, it’s the last thing I’d ever want to become.”

  “I believe you, Ryan. We may not have seen each other in years, but you were always honest when we were kids. Scrupulously truthful. I can’t imagine that has changed one bit.”

  “Thanks for saying so. It really does mean a lot to me to hear it.” Ryan felt his voice getting a little clogged up with emotion. Even after all these years, Lara Callahan still knew him better than most folks in this town. She knew he was way more than the Burton golden boy with the good hair.

  She grinned at him, causing his stomach to do flip flops. “And just in case you were worried about it, I promise not to consider this a date.”

  His heart sank. “Oh no, Lara. This is a date. An honest-to-goodness, boy meets girl then wants to take her out to dinner kind of date.” He pressed his palm against his heart. “So unless you want to deeply offend my pride, you better start thinking of this as a date.”

  Lara’s lips parted in surprise and he found himself wondering what it would be like to kiss her again. Right here. Right now. What if he leaned across the table and planted a soul soaring, tender kiss on those perfectly-shaped ruby lips? Would she push him away? Or would she kiss him back?

  Just then the waiter came with their entrees, making his thoughts about kissing her irrelevant. Something told him this wasn’t the last time this evening that the thought would cross his mind.

  **

  Lara knew she was in trouble the moment Ryan kissed her goodnight. It had been a tender, beautiful kiss that made her feel as if he cherished her.

  The entire evening from start to finish had been romantic and uplifting. After dinner they had walked over to Swashbucklin’ Sweets for candy. They’d ran into Ryan’s cousin, Victor Burton, who Lara vaguely remembered from back in the day. Victor owned the candy store, and although one would think he led a charmed life, he didn’t seem like a very upbeat person. Ryan had even referred to him as sour, then pointed out the irony of Victor owning a sweet shop.

  Although Lara giggled at Ryan’s joke, it seemed sad to her that a man could be so very grim and unhappy. Perhaps he needed love in his life. With his dark head of hair and handsome features, she imagined many women in Treasure Harbor would want to date the brooding shop owner.

  Before they called it a night, Ryan and Lara had walked the stretch of beach near her bungalow. When the wind kicked up, Ryan had placed his arm around her, pulling her against his side in a protective gesture. It endeared him to her. He was a man who thought of others and went the extra mile to make people happy.

  For some reason she had tried to tell herself that it wasn’t really a date, although that notion had quickly been dispelled by Ryan. Of course it had been a date. On some level she had known it, otherwise she wouldn’t have spent so much time getting dolled up for it.

  Why was she resisting her budding relationship with Ryan? He was everything she’d ever wanted in a man. Kind. Funny. Intelligent. Witty. And he was so sweet he could give a girl a cavity. Not to mention the fact that he was pretty easy on the eyes. And when he kissed her, it felt as if God had planted her right where she needed to be. Being back in Treasure Harbor was all a part of God’s plan. If only she could just trust in His plan for her and accept that Ryan might have a role in her future. Yes, she was heading back to Philly after this assignment was over, but anything was possible if the feelings were there between them.

  The sound of her cell phone buzzing pulled her out of her thoughts. She immediately recognized the number flashing on her screen. Ryan?

  She picked up the call. “Hey, Ryan. Is everything all right?” She prayed he hadn’t gotten a flat tire or ran off the road.

  “More than all right.” The rich timbre of his voice was better than any lullaby. The soft cadence of his voice was soothing and warm. “I just wanted to make sure you knew before you closed your eyes and went to sleep that I had an incredible time tonight and I can’t wait to do it again.”

  Her heart thundered and soared at his sweet words. “I had a great time also, Ryan. I look forward to seeing you…soon.”

  As she drifted off to sleep thoughts of Ryan drifted in and out of her thoughts. Never in a million years had she ever imagined becoming involved with Ryan Burton. God had a funny sense of humor. Ryan was her childhood best friend and the teenager who had crushed her romantic dreams. And now he was someone she couldn’t stop thinking about. Ryan pulled at her heartstrings. He fascinated her, delighted her, intrigued her. When she wasn’t with him she wanted to be. She’d never felt like this in her entire life. It was a scary sensation. There wasn’t a safety net in sight. It puzzled her that she could feel all of this for someone so quickly. Lara reminded herself that she’d known Ryan her entire life. He’d been her closest friend for many years of her childhood. Did you ever truly stop knowing someone once you’d known them all the way down to their very soul?

  The last thought that ran through her mind before she fell asleep was that she was falling head-over-heels for Ryan Burton, and there didn’t seem to be a thing she could do to stop it from happening.

  Chapter Seven

  Lara woke up feeling upbeat and refreshed. April sunshine poured through her bedroom window, serving to remind her of the beauty of spring in her hometown. She sat down to her desk right after breakfast and began working on her third article. For some reason, writing about the treasure felt almost effortless. The first article was going live today and Lara couldn’t wait to hear the feedback from readers. It was always such an exciting feeling when her work made its way into the public arena.

  Her meeting with Bree and Dr. Victor Mendez had yielded a wealth of information for her series. Aside from a multitude of facts about the treasure from a historical perspective, Lara had discovered Bree’s quest to polish up the Burton family name. Lara hadn’t realized how deeply the Burtons resented Drake Burton being portrayed as a thief and a rogue. Now that Lara had read his personal journal, she understood Bree’s desire to see history portray him accurately.

  “Perhaps if Drake’s journal was made public, there would be more understanding of Drake’s motivations and his abiding love for Camilla.”

  Bree had made a face. “I agree, Lara, but my family is so paranoid about any clues that might lie within the journal that they’re resistant to making it part of the public domain.”

  Lara nodded. “Ryan did mention that. I feel very grateful that he allowed me to look at the journals.”

  Bree’s eyes twinkled. She flashed Lara a smile. “You must be pretty special to him if he let you view the journals. Ryan is usually so busy trying to please his parents—Uncle Paul in particular—that he rarely crosses any lines drawn in the sand.”

  “I did get the feeling that he too wants to preserve the Burton family legacy. That’s a lot of pressure.”

  “Wants to or is forced to?” Bree had shrugged. “I’m never quite certain. All I know is that Ryan believes that finding the treasure will make him worthy in his father’s eyes. And that’s a very sad thing indeed.”

  Hearing those words from the lips of Ryan’s cousin had made Lara’s heart shatter a little for Ryan. It explained so much about him. Back in high school he had pushed himself to be the best in everything he did. And, if true, it was tragic that Ryan felt he was only worthy if he fulfilled the Burton family’s quest to find the treasure. Her heart ached for him. It was too much of a weight for one person to bear. And the deeper she got in, the more she resisted the lure of buried treasure. It was seductive and tempting and deceptive. It fooled people into believing that it lay within reach if they simply stuck out their hand and grabbed the brass ring. How many of these treasure seekers would wind up heartbroken, despondent and down on their luck?

  Even as a child Lara had always
been struck by the Bible verse from Matthew. What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

  Ryan had a beautiful soul and she didn’t want him to get pulled under by the madness of the treasure hunt. And if she was being honest with herself she didn’t know if she could stand by and watch him chasing something so destructive and elusive.

  The sound of her cell phone ringing drew her out of her thoughts. She wrinkled her nose. The number didn’t look familiar. As soon as she picked up and said hello, Jade’s voice came across the line.

  “Did you hear the news?” Jade sounded out of breath.

  “No. Has something happened?”

  “Yes. A customer just told me that a rumor circulated last night that someone had found the treasure. Now, tensions in town are running at an all-time high. People have gathered at Bounty Beach, which is where the treasure was supposedly found.”

  “Wow. That’s amazing. I’m not sure I buy it since Dr. Mendez refuted that the treasure found after the storm was part of Drake Burton’s pirate’s booty.” Was this simply another instance of treasure seekers going haywire at the mere suggestion of uncovered treasure?

  “Just thought I’d let you know. Never a dull moment in Treasure Harbor.” Jade chuckled. “Let me know if anything interesting develops on the beach.”

  “I will,” Lara agreed, ending the call and immediately dialing Ryan’s number. The call went straight to voice mail and Lara left a quick message rehashing the information Jade had passed on to her. She turned on the television and watched as a local news anchor referenced a developing situation at Bounty Beach. Her pulse raced as she spotted a police cruiser and an ambulance in the background.

  Lara pulled on a long-sleeved T shirt and leggings, then raced to her front door. She ran toward the beach, looking in the distance for any signs of trouble. Not seeing anything in the distance, Lara jogged over to her car and began driving down the stretch of road parallel to the beach. About a half mile down the road, Lara saw police cruisers, television station vans and a large group congregating on the beach. It looked like utter mayhem was unfolding on this gorgeous property.

  After parking her car, Lara walked toward the crowd. People were yelling and shoving. A man was even cursing. There was a huge hole in the sand and someone was waving a shovel around in the air. People were digging in the sand with their hands.

  “Lara!” The sound of Ryan calling her name sent relief shooting through her. He was coming towards her in quick strides, a look of irritation stamped on his face.

  “Ryan. What’s going on?” she asked, praying he would have some answers.

  He threw his hands up in the air. “Utter madness from the looks of it. All I can gather is that some outfit from the Bahamas was rumored to have found the treasure here on the beach last night. By the time word got around this morning everyone gathered here to verify the claims. Or to see if they could find it themselves.”

  “This is crazy,” she said, looking all around her at the yelling and pushing and digging in the sand. “People have lost their minds.”

  “I know,” he said with a shake of his head. “But at least no one found the treasure. There’s still hope.”

  “Hope of what?” Lara asked.

  Ryan looked at her as if she were speaking pig Latin. “Hope of the Burton family finding the treasure. If no one has found it yet, there’s still a chance we can be the ones to find it.”

  Lara waved her arms around at the mayhem surrounding them. “Can you really want anything to do with something that creates all this madness?”

  Ryan reached for her hand and pulled her toward him. He ran his hand across her cheek. “Lara, it’s not the treasure that’s done this. It’s human beings who can’t control themselves.”

  An elderly man called out to Ryan. He held up his hand and told her, “Gimme a few minutes to help Fred out. I’ll be right back.”

  Lara watched open-mouthed as a policeman handcuffed the man waving the shovel. People were scuffling. Ryan moved forward to stand between two men who were exchanging blows. Lara shivered. She didn’t want anyone to get hurt, especially Ryan. Things had gotten downright ugly. People had come out in droves based on a silly rumor that had gotten out of hand. They were fighting each other over the possibility of finding an infamous treasure. There wasn’t a single thing right or Godly about any of this. It was greed, pure and simple. And it made her stomach turn.

  And she hated to ask Ryan, but how far was he willing to go in his pursuit of the treasure? It seemed to her as if all the rules were being tossed out the window. Every man for themselves!

  All of a sudden Lara stopped in her tracks. No, it couldn’t be! Standing not twenty feet away from her were her parents, Douglas and Sharon Callahan. They were right in the thick of things. Lara couldn’t help but wonder if her parents had been here on the beach all morning. She knew from past experience that the treasure had always attracted them like moths to a flame.

  She quickly made her way to their side. “What are you doing here?”

  Her parents whirled around to face her. The expressions on their faces were priceless. Shock and awe would be a fair description. With her high ponytail and sweat suit, her mother looked like a guilty teenager. Her father did a better job of maintaining a poker face.

  “Lara!” her father said in an overly sweet tone. “We just heard about someone finding the treasure. Curiosity caused us to get in our car and drive over here.”

  A sheepish expression was etched on her mother’s face. She reached out to pat Lara’s hand. “Don’t worry, honey. We’re not invested in the treasure. It’s not like all those other times.”

  Lara shook her head. She had no right to feel angry at her parents. It was their life after all. But the little girl inside her who had been hurt by their past actions took umbrage to the fact that they were standing at Bounty Beach discussing treasure with her.

  “So what brings you here, Lara?” her father asked, clearly trying to change the subject.

  She crossed her hands over her chest. “I’m a journalist, dad. That’s why I’m here. I’m reporting on the treasure, not trying to find it like most people in this town.” She pursed her lips. “Trust me, I had enough of treasure seeking when I was a kid,” she muttered.

  Lara knew her pointed dig hit home when her mother began to blink her eyes in rapid succession. It was a nervous tic she had whenever she felt uncomfortable.

  “You have to have a little faith in people. I know you’re not a big fan of the treasure, but for some of us it’s a point of local lore…we’re curious about what will happen if someone does find it. Surely there can’t be anything wrong with that.” Sharon tilted her chin up in an almost defiant gesture.

  Lara shook her head. After all these years her parents still didn’t get it. Perhaps they never would. Their quest for the treasure had made the family home a war zone. It had been a very unstable place for years. Lara still had the scars to prove it.

  She hated all the furor over the treasure. It wasn’t healthy. And it worried her that her parents had come down to the beach and joined the throng of spectators. She didn’t know if they were strong enough to resist the lure of riches. What if they got caught up in the lust for treasure all over again? What if they threw it all away in order to chase the treasure?

  It reminded her of gambling addiction—risking everything for a chance to take it all home on the roll of a dice.

  All of a sudden it all became too much for Lara. Her head was pounding and the scene unfolding before her very eyes was disturbing. A paramedic was attending to a woman who had a bloody cut on her forehead. She didn’t want to be here. It was dredging up too many painful memories from her childhood. For the first time in a long time she felt afraid. Afraid of this out of control scene. Afraid that her parents were going to fall back into that deep black hole and never emerge. Afraid that Ryan was going to push himself past all reason in order to find the treasure, all in the hopes of making his
father happy.

  “Mommy, I’m scared.” A little voice sobbed. Lara looked over just in time to see an attractive woman with dirty blonde hair scoop a little girl up in her arms.

  “No worries, sweetheart. Mommy will get you out of here.”

  Lara couldn’t help but approach them. “Is everything all right?”

  The little girl looked at her with big eyes, her lips quivering.

  “She’s just a little frightened by all of the noise and shouting.”

  Lara nodded as compassion welled up inside her. She felt just as confused as the little girl. “I’m Lara Callahan. I live just down the beach if you need anything. Water. A snack.”

  “I’m Charlotte McCoy. This is my daughter, Bailey. And thanks for the offer but I’ve got to get home.” She shook her head. “This is no place for children at the moment. They should all be ashamed of themselves.”

  As Charlotte and her daughter made their way away from the mayhem, Lara decided to follow suit. She turned around and saw Ryan having a heated argument with a man digging in the sand. He didn’t seem to know she even existed at the moment. His face was contorted in anger and he was pointing at the man. Lara had never seen Ryan like this before, nor had she ever wanted to.

  With a wounded spirit, Lara headed toward her car and made her way back to the bungalow. As terrible as the scene at the beach had been, she now knew the title of her next article.

  The hunt for treasure: at what cost to one’s soul?

  **

  Lara didn’t see Ryan that day or the next. He called her a few times to get together, but between work and having a sour taste in her mouth regarding the scene at the beach, Lara didn’t have the heart to call him back. She knew that she couldn’t hide from Ryan for forever and that her actions were immature, she couldn’t help herself.