Fortune Hunter's Hero

He never saw the surprise in Rusty’s eyes, never saw the watchful stares that took note of his every step as he headed across the bar to where Rainey sat, seemingly waiting for him. How had she known to expect him? He hadn’t known himself that he was coming to town until forty-five minutes ago.

Suspicion churning in his gut, he studied her with narrowed eyes as he reached her table. “Mind if I join you? Or are you expecting someone? I can sit at the bar—”

“No one at the bar can tell you where the mine is, Mr. Wyatt,” she retorted simply. “Pull up a chair.”

She wasn’t smug, but there was a confidence in her blue eyes that told him that it didn’t matter what kind of arrangement they finally agreed on, he was toast. She had something he wanted, and she knew it.

A smart man would have cut and run right then. But there was something about the way she challenged him that he found impossible to resist. So she thought she was clever, did she? Time would tell. Taking the chair across from her, he lifted a dark brow at her in amusement. “Who said I wanted to talk about the mine? Maybe I’m here for a steak.”

“Maybe,” she agreed easily. “So what are you saying? You’re not interested in the mine? No problem. A lot of people think it never really existed, anyway. And maybe it didn’t,” she added with a shrug. “Maybe I misunderstood the papers I found in Spain. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not infallible. And the older the records, the more difficult they are to read and interpret. I could have misunderstood. My Spanish isn’t perfect.”

Flashing him a rueful smile, she reached for one of the menus and changed the subject. “So…what do you recommend? This is the first time I’ve been here. What’s good?”

When she glanced up from her open menu, he just looked at her. “The truth,” he retorted. “You don’t believe for a second that you misinterpreted whatever you found in Spain. So why lie about it?”

Her eyes flashed at that. “I’m not lying. I’m just saying what you want to hear.”

“You wouldn’t still be in town if you thought you were wrong,” he pointed out. “In fact, you seem like the type of woman who would be meticulous about research. You would have never approached me if you thought there was a possibility that you were wrong.”

Surprised, she frowned, irritated. How could he know that? He didn’t even know her. “What I know, Mr. Wyatt, is that, for whatever reason, you don’t want to believe that the so-called experts have been wrong about the mine’s location all these years. Why you would want to believe them instead of me since they haven’t found the mine is beyond me, but that’s your choice. I can’t control what you believe.”

The matter settled as far as she was concerned, she turned with an easy smile to the waitress as she arrived at their table to take their order. “I’ll have the rib-eye and a baked potato with extra butter. Oh, and ranch dressing on my salad.” When she turned back to Buck and found him watching her in amusement, she lifted a brow. “What? Is there a problem?”

“Not at all.” He chuckled. “It’s nice to meet a woman who’s not always on a diet.” Ordering porterhouse steak and a salad, he waited until the waitress had departed before focusing his attention once again on Rainey. “So tell me about your research in Spain.”

She eyed him warily. “Why? So you can shoot me down again?”

His lips twitched. “Are you that easily discouraged?”

“If I was, I would have left town this morning,” she said dryly. “I was hoping if I gave you some time, you would…”

“Come to my senses?”

“Something like that,” she admitted with a grin. “And it worked! Didn’t it?”

“Maybe.” He shrugged. “Maybe not. This is your chance to speak your piece. Give it your best shot.”

He didn’t have to tell her twice. “I was in Spain, doing research in a university library on the lost mine, when I came across a reference to a family in Barcelona whose ancestors supposedly had come to America with the first Spanish missionaries. I traced the family tree, discovered there were descendants still living on the land the family had owned for three hundred years, and went to meet with them.”

“And they told you everyone had been looking in the wrong place for centuries?” he said incredulously. “I find that hard to believe.”

“I found proof in their library,” she said quietly. “I have copies of excerpts from the diary of one of the missionaries. You’re welcome to read them.”

“So let’s see them,” he retorted as the waitress arrived with their food. Sitting back, he waited expectantly. “Well? I presume you have this evidence with you.”

“I have it in a safe place,” she assured him.

“This is a safe place. Let’s see it.”

“Yeah, right.” She laughed. “Nice try, Mr. Wyatt. Do I, by any chance, have Stupid tattooed on my forehead?”

“I never said you were anything less than intelligent,” he replied, amused. “Obviously, you’re afraid I’ll take your information and run with it, and in the process, cheat you.”

She shrugged. “It’s happened before, Mr. Wyatt—”

“Buck,” he corrected her.

She hesitated, her eyes narrowing speculatively. “Our relationship is strictly business, Mr. Wyatt. There’s no need for first names between us.”

“Unless you detest formality, Rainey. I do. Now, about our deal—”

“We don’t have a deal.”

“Not yet, we don’t. This is your chance, love. Go for it.”

Rainey’s heart stumbled at the casual endearment. It meant nothing, she told herself. He probably called every woman he knew love. So what did he call a woman he cared about? And why did she care?

Horrified at the direction of her thoughts, she jerked herself back to the situation at hand. After years of working with her father to find the lost mine, searching for clues all over the world, she finally had a shot at finding it. She couldn’t blow this!

“I’m not just selling information,” she told him. “I want to be actively involved in the search for the mine.”

He lifted a brow at that. “You want to get those pretty hands of yours dirty?”

“Yes, I do,” she said with a jut of her chin. “And I want a finder’s fee and a percentage of the mine’s gross for the first ten years of operation.”

“Ah…money.” He sighed, smiling slightly. “Why did I know we would get around to that? Just out of curiosity, how much is this supposed finder’s fee you think you’re entitled to?”

When she named a figure that by any stretch of the imagination was outrageous, he laughed. “Yeah, right. Would you like my right arm, while you’re at it? Or maybe my firstborn child? I don’t have one yet, but I haven’t given up hope. How much time do you have?”

Heat climbing in her cheeks, Rainey gave serious thought to dumping her salad on top of his head. It would have been no more than he deserved. But even as her fingers itched to snatch up the bowl and send it flying his way, she reminded herself that she held all the cards. Why was she letting him push her buttons? She had a better idea of where the mine was than he did.

Sitting back, she surveyed him in amusement. “Is that a no?”

“What do you think? Of course it’s a no!”

“Okay,” she said easily, and took her first bite of steak. “Wow! This is incredible! How’s yours?”

“Excellent,” he said without tasting it.

“Really? I’ve never seen anyone taste something without taking a bite.”

His lips twitched. “We all have our talents.”

Rainey’s eyes dropped to the sensuous curve of his mouth. He would be a good kisser, she thought, only to blink in confusion. Had she lost her mind? What was she thinking? The man stood between her and one of the biggest treasures she’d ever hunted. And all she could think about was his mouth? She didn’t think so!

Thankful for the years of poker she’d played with her father, learning to bluff, she put on her game face and smiled. “You’re absolutely right. I’m really good at finding lost treasure, but you’re not interested in that. That’s okay. I understand. You want to find it yourself. I can’t blame you for that. I’ll just move on to the next treasure. If you change your mind, give me a call. Maybe we can work something out.”

He was a gambling man—she could see it in his eyes—but he didn’t, to his credit, look away. Instead, he studied her shrewdly. “You want too much. Can you guarantee that the mine is as rich as it’s reported to be?”