Love's Dream Song by Sandra Leesmith Read Free Book Online Page B

tell me.”
    Again her brow furrowed. “You don’t mean Riker? He’s all mouth. Most of the people here are sophisticated enough not to pay any attention to his bigoted remarks.”
    Riker was the farthest thing from his mind. Clever. He had to hand it to her. She could sidestep like the mountain sheep that used to inhabit the canyon.
    He reminded himself of this primary reason for being here—the cocaine on the market. Autumn could be involved. That would explain why she was so serious and intense. The crowd of scientists would put pressure on her, not to mention the fact that Dr. Davidson might notice some extracurricular activities now that they were at a stationary camp.
    At the edge of the creek, Autumn paused and faced him. “I’m headed for the cliff dwellings. You can follow if you want to keep up.”
    The pure pleasure on her face momentarily erased doubts from his mind. She seemed too engrossed in her heritage to be involved in crime. He’d watched her with her grandfather, seen her hold the turquoise nugget around her neck. His instincts told him she was innocent, and he wanted to believe they were on target this time.
    She rounded the bend where water glistened from the stream below. Before following, Jess paused on the trail to consider how much of his personal feelings were involved. She’d woven a spell around his common sense. Instinct was one thing, but until he was certain about Autumn’s innocence, he mustn’t let his personal interest cloud his judgment or hinder him from accomplishing his goal.
    He caught up to her when she paused at the stream. He studied the sandstone rocks forming the steep bank. “I’m game to climb around.”
    The stream formed pools as it twisted its way through the canyon. Autumn found a shallow section and crossed without getting water in her boots. Jess followed. Several paths wound through the ruins on the canyon floor. Autumn, Dr. Davidson, and Wayne had cleared the ancient walkways during the summer.
    At the base of the cliff they paused. About fifty feet up, the moqui cave had been carved out of sandstone, probably by water before the creek had eroded the canyon floor. The Anasazi had bricked walls along the edge of the cave to form the adobe dwelling. There had been room for about twenty to live in the quarters.
    Shallow toeholds were carved into the steep cliff. Jess held his breath as Autumn climbed. She hadn’t gone more than ten feet when he relaxed. She knew what she was doing. “You make that look easy.”
    “My rubber soles grip the sandstone,” she called back without slowing her ascent.
    He hesitated. He had on cowboy boots. The leather soles would be slippery. It wasn’t that he worried about hurting himself. He’d been in situations that would make a Green Beret sweat. It was Autumn and the seeming intimacy of shedding any of his clothes—even his boots. It was like lowering a piece of the barrier that kept him from giving in to his feelings.
    Autumn scrambled over the ledge and peered at him. “Aren’t you coming, Barron? Or do I need to hold your hand?” A hint of a smile twitched at her mouth.
    “I’m coming.” He’d make it up there all right—and with his boots on.
    He hadn’t gone more than ten feet when his right foot slid, sending gravel and sand below. Jess hugged the rough surface of rock until he regained his footing.
    Without glancing up to see if she was laughing, he returned to the canyon floor and shed his boots and socks. Before the warm sand could dry out his skin, he climbed the ancient steps with ease.
    When he crawled over the edge, Autumn was nowhere in sight. He searched the dimly lit cave until he found her in one of the rooms. He ducked to enter the quarters and was assailed with his past—the cold surface of the floor, covered with years of dust that sifted between his bare toes. The musty odor of darkened rooms. The sound of his grandmother’s voice echoing against the stone walls as she filled his head with