"Starlight ceiling on or off?" Demanski flipped another switch to demonstrate the hundreds of pinpoints of fiber-optic lights on the room's dark blue ceiling.
She gave him a cool glance. "Definitely off. I don't like being reminded that I'm sleeping in your make-out chamber."
He turned the starlight ceiling off. "No, you're thinking of my stateroom down the hall."
She laughed. "Oh, the one with the heart-shaped bed, the disco lights, and the mirrors everywhere?"
His lips indented. "Don't forget the champagne-glass bathtub."
"You're kidding, right?"
"Of course. I can only take the billionaire playboy thing so far. My room is actually very tasteful."
"I'm glad to hear it."
"I'll leave you now. I don't want to disturb you. I know that you're not exactly pleased at my interference in this project."
"Anything that puts Rachel in more danger pisses me off. But it appears we're stuck with you." She was silent a moment. "And I suppose I should be grateful that you saved my neck back there on the bridge."
"That's very generous of you considering that it was my fault your neck was in jeopardy to begin with."
She nodded. "That's true. But you took a chance that you didn't need to take. Life is precious. No one knows that better than I do."
He nodded slowly. "I imagine you're pretty much of an expert."
"At any rate, it would be counterproductive not to cooperate with you." She paused. "As long as you behave in a reasonable manner."
"Oh hell, that blows it. These days I tend to act on instinct instead of reason."
She smiled. "Like stealing that mastaba wall? That wasn't at all reasonable."
"But it got me what I wanted, didn't it?"
"For about an hour."
He made a face. "Okay, rub it in."
"I have. I will." She gazed up at him. "But I have to admit it was a ballsy move."
"What a compliment. I feel as if I've been given the keys to the White House."
"You'd probably install all the historic bedrooms with slot machines."
"Probably. But I'm keeping you from getting your rest." He nodded at the windows. "The window shades will close automatically just before the sun rises, so the light won't bother you. And there's a shower in your bathroom. Do you need anything else?"
"Can I call the U.S. with that phone on the nightstand?"
He nodded. "It's satellite. But I thought you needed to rest."
"I have to call Letty and tell her we're all right."
"Letty?"
"Letty Clark." He was still gazing at her inquiringly, and she said, "My housekeeper, my friend." She added deliberately, "She's also a registered nurse who keeps me company while I'm wasting away."
"Ouch. You know I'd never have said that if I'd thought you were really doing that. I've never seen anyone who looked less ill."
"I didn't mind. I can accept rudeness more easily than cloying pity."
"I'll have to remember that." He smiled. "But I promise I'll make up for my rudeness. Ask anything, and it's yours. Put me to the test."
"Really? You sure know how to spoil a girl."
"I like to make my guests comfortable."
"Even at thirty-seven thousand feet."
"Especially at thirty-seven thousand feet. Flying can be such a hassle."
Allie sat up on one elbow, staring at him. Demanski possessed the same charm and confidence she had seen in television interviews, but in person, his bravado was tempered a bit. A definite improvement, she thought.
"I still haven't figured something out," she said.
"What's that?"
"Why are you bothering with this treasure hunt of ours?"
"You don't think it's worthwhile?"
"Of course I do. But you don't need this. Flying around the world in your luxury jet, checking in on your billion-dollar casinos with Oscar-winning actresses on your arm."
He held up his hands. "Nominees only, I'm afraid. Get your facts straight. I've never dated an Oscar winner."
"My mistake."
"And I'm always on the lookout for a good business opportunity."
"I'm sure you have many opportunities that are far less risky than this."
"True. But as your sister pointed out, I'm a fan of the big idea. The game changer. There aren't many things out there that can rewrite the rule book. But if this works out, we'll be part of something incredible."
"I can't think that big. For me, it's just about staying alive."
"You've been doing a good job of it so far."
"I have. I've been beating the odds since I was thirteen years old. But there are things I can't do."
"Like what?"
"Like having a family."
"You can have children, can't you?"
"I think so. But every time I think about it, I get another reminder that I might not be around to see them grow up. Just last week, I started losing my peripheral vision. I think it's stopped, but you never know. On top of that, GLD is a genetic disease. I had adult-onset GLD, but when it hits infants, it's almost always fatal by the age of two. I just can't risk it."
"Too bad. Is there a man in your life?"
"No one special. You wouldn't believe how many guys out there try to cast themselves as my rescuer. It's the Galahad complex. Needless to say, I don't keep them around long."
"Needless to say." He crossed his arms and leaned against the dresser. "Meeting you on this trip was actually a pleasant surprise. My intel didn't tell me you were a part of this expedition."
"Last-minute addition."
"I spoke with Rachel about you in Las Vegas, but I didn't tell her how taken I was with your paintings."
She gazed at him in surprise. "You've seen my work?"
Demanski nodded. "I'd never seen your paintings in person, but I've recently spent a lot of time looking at them online. They're very powerful."
"Thank you."
He raised his index finger. "Don't go away."
"Where would I go?"
Demanski disappeared through the doorway. In less than a minute, he returned with a large, framed painting. He turned it around to show Allie a landscape with a tiny lone figure on a hilltop dwarfed by a massive evening sky.
Allie's eyes widened. "That's one of mine!"
"I know."
"Where did you get it?"
"The Tauck Gallery in Denver. I saw it on their online catalog and couldn't get it out of my mind. I had them bring it to the airport, and I stopped and picked it up on my way out of the country."
Allie scrambled to the edge of the bed to get a closer look at the painting. "It's called Biography. I sold it to a collector in New Mexico a few years ago. I didn't know it was back on the market."
"Lucky for me it was." Demanski placed the painting on the dresser and gently leaned it against the wall.
Allie stared at it for a long moment. "It's always hard for me to part with my work. They're pieces of me, you know?"
"That's why there's such passion there." Demanski crouched to look at the painting head-on. "The gallery owner gave me her interpretation of it. In her opinion, you're showing how overwhelming the universe is. How it can overpower you and make you feel insignificant."