He tore into the house. When he reached the bathroom he was relieved to discover she hadn't fixed the broken lock on the door. He shoved open the door and stormed inside to find her standing in the tub, clutching a towel against her body.

Cassandra's tearful eyes met his. Leif's heart wrenched as he reached into the tub and lifted her into his arms. She yelped and struggled against his hold.

"Be still, damn it!" He was surprised when she did exactly as he ordered. When he reached her bedroom he set her down on her bed. She yelped again.

"What in the hell happened? Did you burn yourself?"

She sat gingerly on the edge of the bed, her face turning a flaming red color. He sank down beside her when she said, "I got stung by a bee."

He expelled his breath, relieved. "Is that what all the ruckus was about?"

She narrowed her eyes on him. "Not just once, but three times! Maybe more," she wailed. "And on..."

Leif wondered why she'd stopped in mid-sentence and then recalled Roy telling him not to open the bathroom window.

"You opened the window, didn't you?"

"It was steamy from my shower so I let in some air."

"Guess I forgot to mention that screen has holes in it, too." Leif braced himself when he added, "And there's a beehive under the eaves."

She shoved a finger in the middle of his chest. "The first thing tomorrow, buster, you are going to fix every single screen in this house. And you'll drown out that beehive. Understand?"

He nodded, rose from the bed. "Okay. Tomorrow, for sure." He left the room but remembered something after she slammed the door shut. He gave a tentative knock and she opened the door with a scowl.

"What?"

"I just remembered I've a guiding trip lined up for the entire day tomorrow."

"Cancel it," she ordered.

He gawked at her, noticing for the first time the white terry cloth robe she'd donned, the belt she'd left untied. His eyes caressed a creamy expanse of skin between the two edges of her robe. Finally, he tore his eyes away and met her accusing look.

"I can't cancel the trip. I'm taking five guys out. That's a substantial chunk of change for Gateway, and we're leaving around six."

"I don't care! What if I was allergic to bees?"

He gaped at her. "You're not, right?"

"No, thank heaven!" She slammed the door in his face.

Read the first chapter of Bait Shop Blues.