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her sunglasses to glare at him “—your ladylove.”
    He shrugged, powerful muscles rippling in his chest and arms. “Some men like well-endowed women, I suppose. I never have.”
    She was too aware of her full hips and generous bosom. She glared at him. “Then don’t waste your time sitting here talking to me.”
    He laughed mirthlessly. “I have a vested interest in you, and kindly don’t take this as a sign of sexual intent. Even if you appealed to me, which you do not physically,” he added pointedly, “the fact is, you’re still in school.”
    She started once again to correct his assumption about her age, and stopped. Plenty of time for confidences later, if he stuck around. Otherwise, pretending a lesser age than she owned might not be a bad form of protection. He was obviously pretty experienced, if the look he was giving her body was any indication. He wasn’t blatant, but he had seductive eyes and a voice that was more than a little persuasive. His words denied any interest or intent, but his eyes belied that. She wondered if he even realized it.
    “I’m back…!” Ben hesitated before he sat down beside his father and Shelly. “Oh. Hi, Dad. Where’s Marie?”
    “Sleeping late, I suppose.” He watched as Ben handed Shelly a soft drink.
    “Delicious,” she whispered, holding the icy can to her temples.
    “Are you assimilating it through osmosis?” Ben asked. “We studied that in biology.”
    “You don’t know what biology is until you’ve had to study DNA, enzymes, proteins and genetics in college.”
    Ben blinked. “What happened to animals?”
    “You study them in zoology.”
    “You study enzymes in biology?” Ben muttered.
    “That’s right. And if you really want to understand biology, taking chemistry helps. I haven’t yet.” She grinned. “I’m a sociology major. I only have to take biology. Since I passed it, I don’t have to take chemistry.”
    “How far along are you?” Faulkner asked.
    “Oh, I’m still a freshman.”
    He didn’t reply. His face grew thoughtful, and he turned his attention seaward.
    “Where are you from?” Ben asked her suddenly.
    “Washington.”
    “State?” he persisted.
    “D.C.”
    “So are we!” Ben said excitedly, and Shelly was aware of his father’s interested gaze. “Where do you go to school?”
    “Thorn College,” she replied. “It’s very small, but nice.”
    Faulkner knew the college and the area in which it was located. A nice, middle-class community. Nothing fancy. Older homes on small lots near the interchange.
    “Oh,” Ben said. “We live several miles away from there. Some of our neighbors are senators.”
    “Are you on vacation?” she asked hesitantly.
    “No,” Faulkner replied. “There’s a convention here this week—bankers.”
    “Dad’s the keynote speaker,” Ben said proudly. “Shelly, didn’t you say your dad was good at numbers and accounting?”
    He certainly was. He was on the board of directors of two banks. She hoped Faulkner’s wasn’t one of them. “Sort of,” she said.
    “What does he do?” Ben persisted.
    “Actually very little,” she said, feeling her way.
    “I see,” Faulkner said quietly, and his tone indicated that he was developing an impression of Shelly’s father that classed Mr. Astor as a street person. Shelly had to bite her lip to keep from laughing at the picture that came to mind. Her father contributed to several charities that helped street people, but he was far from being homeless.
    “What are you going to do with your degree when you get it?” Faulkner asked with genuine curiosity.
    “I’d like to be a social worker,” she said. “There are plenty of people in the world who could use a helping hand.”
    “No doubt about that,” he replied.
    “Well, I want to be a wildlife illustrator,” Ben said firmly.
    “He wants to do his duck shooting with a camera,” Faulkner said with a sigh.
    “Good for him. I think it’s atrocious the way people treat our