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Chapter One

“Aunt Shannon, watch me!”

“Aunt Shannon, catch!”

“Aunt Shannon, I’ See?”

“Aunt Shannon, Aunt Shannon!”

The wohed as she turned from one side to another in the hip-deep water of the lake, trying to respond to the half dozen children coe chair in a shady spot on the beach nearby, James Stillman watched her in fascination

Somewhere in her h he found the expressive face fra She looked a little fa her before—and he couldn’t iotten if he had

Her slender body was nicely displayed in a bright yellow bikini that bared just the right amount of fair skin to be neither toosun-screen Though it was late afternoon and theto fade, it was still sunny enough to cause a burn if she wasn’t careful

Or was that just the scientist in hi too serious about everything

He watched as the woman picked up a little boy and tossed hiht have been three or four, bobbed to the surface sputtering with giggles He begged, “Do it again, Aunt Shannon!”

“No,froe life vest, she dog-paddled ahead of him “Throw me, Aunt Shannon”

A brunette wo on a towel not far fro her attention froer-haired man dozed beside her “Jack Caitlin Settle down,” she called out, then returned her gaze to her book

Her words had no visible effect on the children, who continued begging their aunt to play with theht, floated on a neon-blue air mattress a few feet deeper in the water He splashed his ar for Shannon to adational skills

A girl who appeared to be about the sae as the boy on the raft tossed a purple beach ball into the waves, then swam to retrieve it Occasionally she threw it at Shannon, who caught it deftly and lobbed it back Two other girls, obviously twins, whom Ja to see who could float the longest without dropping her legs They called out regularly for Shannon to determine the winner