Shifting Sands

"I like your suit."

"Thank you. I had to take a shower so I put on my new suit afterwards. It is pretty warm out here, so I'm glad you changed too." He tried to keep things light saying, "Sorry, but I don't look good in a bikini."

She laughed and said, "I like you just as you are." He poured the wine and they sat down. Not right next to each other, but almost. Neither of them knew quite what to say. They had already crossed a line, but could they behave now?

She tasted her wine and said, "I thought we needed an hour to cool down a little after our...lunch. Lee, do you ever wish you didn't have this place?"

"Oh sure once in a while but not now. Especially not now."

With about half of her wine gone she put her glass down and said, "I keep thinking about the lady that sat in this very chair and teased you."

"She is quite a woman for her age. Full of life and mischief."

"So she just..." and her hand went behind her. "She just took her top off like this," and her small bra dropped away. He couldn't believe that he was looking at Kala's breasts. Her beautiful, modest sized and firm breasts. "Oh shit" was all he could say. He felt like such a country hick right then. "I'm sorry Kala, I can't be calm and suave. Not when I'm near you." She stood up and so did Lee. "Oh God Lee, I just can't behave when I'm around you," and picking up right where they had left off an hour earlier they kissed again before she said, "I don't know what to do with myself. I thought that if I could just stop and think about us, I could behave better but I can't." With more strength than he felt he asked her, "Do you want me to leave?"

Her eyes misted and she said, "No damn it, and that's my problem. I want you here and I want to be close to you...and I want so much more."

"Kala, I better leave right now or something is going to happen that you might regret later."

"I'm not at all sure that I would ever regret that Lee. But...I know you are right. I'm sorry about teasing you." "Kala, honey you look so incredible. Don't ever be sorry for teasing me. I live for every minute we can have together, and for every experience that we can share. I have dreams of you coming to my room at night and staying with me."

"I do too. I look down the hall from the kitchen and see your bedroom door and imagine going in and seeing you and closing the door behind me. Oh God, I guess you better go." They shared another kiss and it went well past the gentle exploring kiss. It was full of passion, desire and wanting. It was everything to them short of making love. Lee stepped back quickly then and almost ran downstairs. He had managed to control himself, but he knew that if something didn't change soon they were going to make love. And once that happened there was going to be no going back and there would be no doubt that it would happen again.

Chapter Eight

Lee didn't know what to do with himself. The Sand Castle was still very quiet with the few remaining guests still gone. The air was humid, very still and very warm and he couldn't get Kala, Gil's wife, out of his mind. He had admired her from the first instant he had met her some three or four years ago, and from then on he liked both of them, but he especially liked her to the point of adoration. Now he wasn't sure what to call it. He had moved beyond adoration, but was it pure lust? Was it simply desire? Was he vulnerable because of being the obedient and faithful innkeeper to so many older couples? Did he love all women...or was he really in love with Kala? Gil had left no more than five or six hours earlier, and he and Kala had already kissed several times and she had exposed her breasts to him. And they had come very close to making love. Just the thought that Gil would be gone for another twenty four hours and more was almost frightening to him. With Grace there tomorrow he knew he could...he had to behave himself at least until after she left at three o'clock. Then if any of the guests chose to utilize the pool or tennis court in the afternoon, that might help him to behave, but that was no guarantee or a solution. It wasn't even a moral issue that bothered him. It was only that he didn't want Kala hurt. He didn't want her marriage destroyed because of his lack of self control. It was about Kala and her emotional well being.

It was coming up on five o'clock and the couple from room one might be back in a couple of hours unless they had a late dinner before returning to the inn. He was still on that thought when his phone rang. "Sand Castle, this is Lee."

"Hi."

"Kala?"

"Would you do me a favor?"

"Of course, anything."

"Go up to the deck outside of my room and take your phone with you."

"Okay," and he headed for the stairs. When he hit the second floor he went out the end door onto the deck and turned to the right. "I'm on the deck now."

"Now come down in front of my room." in seconds he was there and said, "I'm there hon...I'm here."

"Look down to the pool." There she stood in her hot pink bikini with her cell phone in hand. "I thought that this way we can talk and still behave ourselves."

He had to smile then. "I'm not even sure the couple of hundred feet will keep you safe from me."

"I'm not safe from you. Not even if I were in Chicago, or more accurately I'm not safe from myself."

"You look so gorgeous and sexy standing there."

"You make me feel so sexy and desirable."

"Lee, am I forgiven for teasing you earlier?"

"There is nothing to forgive Kala. I have that vision locked into my memory and I love it." As he stood there looking at her she put her phone down and slowly took her top off again. Then as she stared up at him she removed her bikini bottoms and tossed them over to join her bra. One of the white plastic lounges was turned to face toward him and she lay back on that with one knee bent up slightly and picked up her phone again. "I wanted to do this for you.

"I'd move heaven and earth to make love to you, Kala."

"Oh God Lee, what are we going to do?"

"I don't know. When you and Gil go home, I'm just going to think about you more than ever."

"I'm not sure if this was a good idea either. I can see you so clearly and hearing your voice it's like you are so close to me, but can't touch me. It's torture." They were driving each other crazy. It might have been better for them to make love and get that behind them because the teasing was just drawing them closer together.

"I want to make love to you so much."

"I want you too. Take your clothes off for me, Lee." He almost dropped his phone in his haste to comply with her wishes. In seconds he was standing naked before her. "God I wish I was up there, Lee. You look so sexy standing there." "Kala..." Her free hand slowly moved up to her breasts and she continued to tease herself and him.

"Lee, I've been sunning naked near where you're standing right now."

"I wish I could have been here then."

"I do too. I almost called you then in fact but we both know what would happen."

"I want you so much."

"Damn it Lee, it just isn't fair. I knew that by us staying apart like this we would be safe, but I can't stand it and I'm just making this worse for us. Lee, I'm going to hang up and get dressed before I go crazy, and..." She hung up and picking up her bikini disappeared from view. Lee was left to stand there staring it the empty lounge. He didn't move as he stared down on the pool area and didn't even hang up his phone until it started to beep at him. He finally picked up his shorts and underwear and went downstairs without dressing. He was in the hallway before he realized what he was doing and quickly dressed and went to his room.

It wasn't fifteen minutes later when she called him back. "Lee, I'm going in to town to eat alone. I have to stay away from you for awhile. I'm so out of control I could scream."

"Please have a drink with me later. We can sit at the bar in the solarium, in plain view of others."

"I'll see you after dinner then." It wasn't long after that when he heard her leave. Lee warmed the dinner that Grace had left for him but all he did was pick at it. He had so much on his mind. He felt powerless to do anything. He wanted to be with Kala more than anything in the world and it was as simple as that. Nothing else mattered to him. He had to find out if what he felt for her was love and he had to find some way to come to terms with the fact that she was married and he couldn't have her.

Kala returned about half past seven and found Lee in the solarium listening to soft music again. She slid onto a barstool and he made her a whiskey and Coke from his supply behind the bar. "How was dinner, Kala?"

"Lonely."

She tasted her drink and he asked her, "Have you heard from Gil?"

"No. I probably won't until later and maybe not before morning if he decides to have too much to drink."

"I didn't know he drank like that."

"He doesn't, at least not normally. But he sounded pretty upset when he left here and when that happens he'll sometimes has a little too much." They were nearly holding hands when the couple from room one came in and said hi. They got their bottle of white wine from the small bar fridge before selecting a place across the room. Lee moved his hand away from Kala's just a little but stayed close to her as they continued to talk. It seems that both of them had settled down just a little but their current of passion was just under the surface.

"Kala, do you think Gil is going to spend his whole vacation working or running around or whatever?"

"I wish I knew. He warned me that he would be busy, but he said it wouldn't be so bad that we couldn't do things, or go to the ocean, or whatever, but so far I've seen very little of him this trip."

"I know better than anybody that this place can get boring if you're just sitting around."

She looked up at him and said, "Boredom hasn't been my problem, Lee."

"Does he talk about his work much?"

"Not really. Once in a while over dinner something will come up but that's about all."

"What about your job, do the two of you talk about that?"

"No. My job is pretty straight forward so there really isn't a lot to stimulate conversation. I don't know if you knew it but I'm an accountant."

"No I didn't know that." He smiled then and said, "Had I known that I would have had you help me with my books yesterday."

She smiled then and said, "That's it, I'll become your accountant and assistant."

She was making a small joke but he said, "I'd like nothing better." Lee was starting to lose his control again so he said, "If I'm smart I'll go make my rounds and get some fresh air."

"I think I better go upstairs and read for awhile and finish this drink up there."

"I'll see you at breakfast in the morning then." Kala smiled and said, "At least we'll have Grace around to keep us on the straight and narrow."

"Then she'll have her hands full."

"Night, Lee."

"Night, Kala...and if you need anything at all just let me know."

"Sure, I'll come down to your room in the middle of the night."

"Bad idea I know, but I'd like it just the same." Lee made his rounds and then went to his room hoping to read and fall asleep.

Chapter Nine

It was about one o'clock Wednesday morning when Lee's front doorbell started to chime. It appeared as a segment of his dream for a minute but then he sat up and put on a robe and went to the front door. Lee looked through the peephole and then opened the door saying, "Hi Mel, what's going on?"

"I need to talk to you, Lee."

"Sure, come in."

With the door closed behind him the sheriff asked him, "Do you have a Gilbert Adler staying here, Lee?"

"Yes I do, Gil and Kala Adler from Chicago. What's going on or can you tell me?"

"We found a woman dead. She had Mr. Adler's name and number in her cell phone. Her phone records show a call to this area and then we found a paper with the Sand Castle name on it."

"What the hell?"

"I wish I knew Lee. She was murdered some time earlier in the evening."

"What could possibly be the connection between her and Gil?"

"Is he here?"

"No, he had to leave on business. Kala his wife, is in room six."

"He's here on vacation?"

"More or less. They booked two weeks, but he said he had some business to take care of too."

"A working vacation."

"I guess."

"Lee, I hate to do it, but I need to talk to his wife."

"I hate it too Mel, but I understand. Want me to go up with you?"

"If you would," Lee and Mel had known each other for a number of years so Mel was being as gentle as possible. When they reached Kala's room Lee knocked, waited and then knocked again.

In a soft muffled voice they heard, "Yes, who is it?"

"Kala, it's Lee. The sheriff is here and needs to talk to you."

"What?"

"Wake up, Kala. The sheriff is here and has to talk to you."

"Give me a second." When she opened the door her right hand was brushing her hair back and her eyes were still trying to focus as she woke up. "What's wrong?"

"Sorry to bother you Mrs. Adler, but I need to ask you a couple of questions."

"Sure okay."

Lee said quickly, "Kala, I'll go put coffee on. Come down when you're done. Mel, you're welcome to a cup too of course."

"Thanks Lee, but I'll have to pass." Lee didn't wait for Kala's response and left.

"Mrs. Adler, do you know where your husband was today?"

"Not really. He got a call and then he said he had a mess or a problem or something like that and that he wouldn't be back until some time late

tomorrow... today, or tonight. He didn't seem very happy when he left though. Something in Raleigh, I think he said. What's wrong?"

"Do you know a Miss Rae Ann Cummins?"

"No, I don't believe I do."

"Has your husband ever mentioned the name?"

"Not that I can remember. Tell me what's going on."

"Mrs. Adler, a woman was found along a roadside just after dark and she has been shot to death."

"Oh my God."

"We found your husband's name and number in her cell phone, plus a paper with The Sand Castle written on it."

"How can that be?"

"That's what we're trying to find out."

"Have you heard from your husband since he left?"

"No, he was going to call this evening, but he never did."

"Is that typical for him?"

"Not usually, but it sometimes happens."

"This is very important." Handing her his card he said, "If or when he calls, have him call us right away. It's very important that we talk to him."

"I understand and of course I'll tell him." As Mel turned to leave she asked him, "Does this make him a suspect?"

"At this point ma'am, about anybody could be a suspect. We just need to know what the connection was between your husband and that young woman. Oh, and how long will you be staying?"

"Well for another week, plus...well, about another week and a half."

"Thank you and I'm sorry to disturb you."

"That's okay."

Lee caught Mel as he was heading for the front door and said, "Kind of surprised to see you working at this hour."

"Yeah me too but we're short handed right now so I got the call."

"Sorry about that."

"It goes with the job, Lee. I'll probably be back to talk to Mr. and or Mrs. Adler, night Lee."

"Night, Mel and good luck." Mel tossed a wave over his shoulder and left. Moments later Kala appeared and the two of them went to the kitchen. Lee poured the coffee and added a generous shot of Irish Crème, and then sat across from her. "You okay Kala?"

"I guess so. What do you suppose is going on?"

"I don't have an idea."

"I'm sure they tried to call Gil on his cell phone, do you think he has it on?"

"Not at this hour that's for sure. Lee I have to think that Gil is a suspect."

"I'm sure he is. Of course that doesn't mean he knows anything about it."

"But how could a woman from down here have his name and number and why would she even know we're staying here?"

"I don't know, but I'm sure we'll find out before things settle down."

"Did the sheriff say where they found the woman?"

"No, why?"

"No reason, just curious. I mean if he's in Raleigh..."

"I know, none of this makes sense."

"So we just sit here now and wait I guess. I can't imagine sleeping now."

"We both need to, but I'm not sure I can either."

Lee poured more coffee and added more Irish crème to it and said, "Drink up, maybe this will help us sleep."

"Lee, do you think Gil could be doing something illegal"

"I don't know him well enough to answer that Kala, what do you think?"

"I just can't picture that. He's aggressive and can be abrupt and overbearing but that's all."

"Well we know that the police have his cell phone number so I'll bet that they keep trying his number until he answers."

"I'm sure they will."

"Lee, I don't want to go back to my room and just pace and worry."

"You don't have to, you can stay down here. In fact, you can come to my room."

"Do you think that's a good idea, Lee?"

"I think it's a better idea than you being alone right now."

"I think you're right."

Lee shut off the coffee pot and they abandoned their cups as he led her down the hall, opened his door and let her go in first. Lee's room was generous sized with one corner being his office area. Then there was a small sitting area with two chairs in an alcove with large windows. In the far corner was what he called his bedroom. There he had a queen sized bed, dresser, and a chest of drawers. They stood inside the door and he gave her time to look around. "Welcome to my inner sanctum."

"It's very nice."

"Nothing fancy but it's comfortable."

"I'm sure it is." She turned to him and without getting too close to him she asked, "Now what do we do, Lee?"

"Kala, I think we should lie down and at least rest."

In a wistful voice she said, "Lee..."

"Kala, with all that's going on I'm certainly not going to try anything and I doubt that you're in the mood either. We can just be together and talk, and if sleep comes so much the better. In fact, I'll bet we do fall asleep."

"In our robes?"

"I don't think that would be very comfortable. Okay, you close your eyes and I'll get into bed, and close my eyes and then you can get under the covers."

"Lee, you don't have to close your eyes I do have something on under this robe."

"I do too...underwear."

"I'll close my eyes. I've seen you naked and I don't trust my imagination."

"Kala, honey I've seen you naked too and believe me I know what my imagination can do."

"Okay eyes closed, but I'll go first." With his eyes closed Kala removed her robe and slipped under the covers and said, "It's safe" and then Lee followed as she

closed her eyes. Once they were in bed they lay on their backs and stared at the ceiling. They were silent for a minute and then turning his head to look at her Lee said, "Kala, I don't have a good feeling about what has happened. I'm trying not to rush to judgment, but Gil could be in a lot of trouble."

"I don't want to think that way but I have to think he has done something wrong."

He found her hand under the cover and took it in his as he said, "Whatever tomorrow brings I'll do whatever I can to help you through it."

"I know you will and I'm counting on that."

She turned on her side to face him and said, "Lee, I've dreamed about being in bed with you, but...damn it, not like this."

"I have too and I'm sorry for the woman that was shot, but I'm so glad to have you next to me." She just put her arm around him and gave him a kiss.

"If we lie very still maybe we can go to sleep."

"I'll love waking up next to you."

Chapter Ten

Sleep didn't come easy for them, but at last it did and just before seven o'clock, Lee stirred and opened his eyes. Even though Lee only had one room rented other than Kala and Gil's, Lee always made it a point to be up, showered, and breakfast behind him, so he could say good morning to the guests no later than seven forty five. That meant that Grace would be expecting to serve him breakfast before half past seven. Kala was awakened by Lee stirring and opened her eyes. "What time is it?"