Double Life Read online

  Emma took the key out of the ignition and climbed out of her car. “I’ll go over to the garage and see if Jimmy has time to take a look at it this afternoon.”

  “Jimmy?”

  “Jimmy Vaughn. He bought Metz’s Garage a few years ago.”

  Ash nodded toward his car. “Hop in and I’ll give you a ride over there.”

  Emma had no intention of getting into the car with Ash Corbett. He looked too good in his jeans and soft T-shirt, and her stomach hadn’t stopped trembling since he showed up. “It’s not that far. I can walk.”

  He squinted down at her. “Come on, Emma, it’s hot out here. Let me give you a ride.”

  She gazed at the gulf for a moment as she tucked her hair behind her ears. She wasn’t sure why she was so reluctant to get in the car with Ash. He was just offering to give her a lift.

  Maybe that was the problem. Maybe he’d really meant it last night when he said he wanted to be her friend. But Emma wasn’t sure she was ready for that. Right now the tug of attraction was a little too strong, and she wanted to stay angry with him for letting her believe he was dead. It was safer that way.

  He opened the door for her and she got in. The leather seats were buttery soft and cool from the air-conditioning. “I like your car,” Emma said when Ash had climbed in behind the wheel.

  “Thanks.” He started the engine and pulled onto the street. “You’ll need to refresh my memory about Metz’s Garage. It’s on Fourth Street, right?”

  “Close. Elm Street. Take a right at the next light.”

  “That’s right, Elm Street,” he muttered. “I don’t know what I was thinking.”

  “There used to be another garage on Fourth Street, but it’s been closed for years.”

  “Yeah, that’s probably the one I had in mind.”

  Emma glanced at him, letting her gaze linger in spite of herself. In profile, he looked more like the Ash she remembered. The strong jaw and perfect nose were exactly the same and those blue eyes were still so striking against his tanned skin.

  She used to tease him that he could be a movie star if he wanted, but he’d just laugh and tell her that he’d never make it in Hollywood because he wasn’t any good at pretending.

  When he glanced in her direction, Emma quickly looked away.

  “I’m not surprised that you don’t remember Metz’s Garage,” she said. “You always took your Porsche to a place in Corpus to have it serviced.”

  “Ah, yes, the Porsche,” he murmured.

  “You loved that car,” Emma said. “What happened to it?”

  “I sold it a few weeks after I left here.”

  “Sold it? I’m surprised your grandmother gave you the title.”

  “She didn’t.” He gave her an enigmatic look. “But you can pretty much buy and sell anything if the price is right.”

  Emma was troubled by that look. It seemed the more time she spent with Ash, the more she realized just how far they’d drifted apart. He was starting to look the same to her on the outside, but inside, he was a completely different man.

  “Why did you sell it?” she asked.

  He paused. “I needed the cash, and a car like that kind of stuck out in some of the places I found myself. I didn’t want to attract attention so I decided to get rid of it. I figured Grandmother could use it to track me down.”

  Emma started to say something, then thought better of it.

  “What?” he prompted.

  “Nothing.”

  “You were about to say something. I want to know what it was.”

  “Just forget it,” she said. “It doesn’t matter now.”

  He shot her another glance. “You don’t think she would have used the car to track me down?”

  Emma sighed. “I don’t know. Like I said, what difference does it make now?”

  Ash turned back to the road. “She didn’t try to find me, did she?”

  Emma stared at him in shock. “You knew?”

  “No, not until now.” His features hardened as he stared at the road. “I wondered why it was so easy to disappear, but now that I think about it, it makes sense. She wouldn’t want to do anything to make herself look weak.”

  “That’s exactly what she said. It was your decision to leave. It had to be your decision to return. I’m sorry,” Emma said. “For whatever it’s worth, I think she realizes she made a mistake.”

  He gave a bitter laugh. “I doubt that. Grandmother has never been one to own up to a mistake. I just wish I’d known twelve years ago that she hadn’t sent the dogs after me. It would have saved me a lot of trouble.”

  “And your Porsche,” Emma said.

  “And the Porsche.”

  He flashed her a smile, and for one brief moment, the years melted away.

  A FEW MINUTES LATER, EMMA had dropped off her key with Jimmy Vaughn and explained the problem with her car as best she could. He agreed to tow her car to the garage and call her with an estimate when he figured out what the damages would be.

  Emma climbed back into Ash’s Mustang and they headed for home. The road followed the coast, and she kept her gaze trained on the passing scenery. For a moment back there, she’d felt something that she really did not want to feel. And she’d seen something in Ash’s eyes that told her he’d felt it, too.

  Maybe nothing else remained of their teenage romance, but the attraction was still there. For one split second when their eyes had met over smiles, the tension had sizzled between them.

  After a while, Ash said, “So what have you been doing all these years?”

  She turned with a frown. “What do you mean?”

  “David Tobias said you’d only been working for Grandmother for a few months. What were you doing before that?”

  “I worked for an insurance company in Dallas.”

  “And before that?”

  “Before that I was in college.”

  He kept his gaze trained on the road. “What made you decide to quit your job and come back here?”

  “For one thing, I wanted to be close to my dad in case he needed me.” She paused. “And there were other personal reasons I wanted to come back.”

  He said carefully, “Like that guy you were with earlier? Is he one of those reasons?”

  Emma turned. “What guy? You mean Rick?”

  “Rick. Is that his name?” He spared her a brief glance.

  “Rick Bledsoe. We went to high school together. He’s a deputy with the county sheriff’s department now.”

  “I gathered that much from the car you were in. And I assumed since you didn’t appear to be under arrest that the encounter was a friendly one.”

  Something in his tone took Emma completely by surprise. “What are you getting at?”

  He gave her a longer perusal. “I’m not getting at anything. I’m just making conversation.”

  “Then why does it feel like I’m being grilled?”

  “Must be your imagination. Like I said, I’m just making conversation. If you have a problem with my questions, you don’t have to answer them.”

  Emma folded her arms. “I don’t have a problem answering your questions. I have a problem with you asking them. You sound as if…” She broke off and glanced out the window.

  “I sound like what?”

  “Never mind. Let’s just drop the subject, okay? I don’t mean to be rude, but I’ve had a long day and I really don’t feel like talking.”

  “Sure. Whatever.”

  She could tell from his tone that he was annoyed, but Emma didn’t care. All those questions about her personal life…if she didn’t know better she’d almost think he sounded jealous. But that would mean that he had to still care and he’d made a point of letting her know last night that he didn’t. So what was she supposed to think?

  Emma wanted to turn and look at him, but she kept her gaze focused on the passing scenery. They both fell silent and no one spoke until the car hit a bump and Ash swore.

  “Sorry,” he muttered.

 
Emma did turn to look at him then. “No problem. I’ve never heard you use that word before. You were always pretty careful about your language.”

  “Yeah, well, that changed once I was in the service. I broadened my vocabulary along with my horizons.”

  “Your grandmother told me that you spent some time in the army,” Emma said. “I find that hard to imagine.”

  He glanced at her. “Why?”

  “I just never pictured you as the military type.”

  His mouth tightened at the corners. “Why is that? Because of my background? You think pampered rich boys like me don’t feel a responsibility to their country?”

  “No, I just meant…I didn’t mean to offend you,” she said softly.

  “I’m not offended.” He lifted his hand from the wheel to rub the back of his neck. “It’s just good to know what you really thought of me.”

  “Ash—”

  “Let’s just drop it, okay? I don’t feel much like talking, either.”

  An awkward silence settled over the car once again, and Emma stared miserably out the window for the rest of the way home.

  When Ash parked the car underneath the portiere, she turned and said quickly, “Thanks for the ride.”

  She opened her door and climbed out, hoping that she could get inside before he caught up with her. But he blocked her way before she could open the garden gate.

  “Look, I’m sorry that things got a little tense on the ride home. I shouldn’t have pried into your personal life.”

  “And I shouldn’t have questioned your patriotism. Let’s just call it even.”

  She tried to walk past him, but he took her arm. “Emma…”

  The way he said her name…the way he stared down at her…

  Emma closed her eyes for a moment. “What do you want from me, Ash? Last night you all but told me I have no place in your life, and today you act as if…”

  His gaze darkened. “As if what?”

  She drew a shaky breath. “As if you care who I see or what I do.”

  “I do care. I told you last night that I want us to be friends again.”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea. I think it would be best if you stayed away from me,” she said bluntly.

  “That might be hard, considering we live under the same roof.”

  “It’s a big house. I think we can manage if we try.”

  She turned away again, but he still wouldn’t let her go. His gaze lit on her throat, and she saw him go very still.

  “What happened to you?” he asked in a strangely harsh voice.

  Emma tried to keep her scar covered most of the time, but after she’d taken off her jacket earlier, the tank top she wore left her throat completely exposed.

  He reached up and very gently traced his finger along the scar. “What happened?” he asked again.

  “It was nothing. An…accident.”

  “That was no accident.” When his gaze lifted, Emma shivered at the look in his eyes. “I’ve seen knife scars before. Who did that to you, Emma?”

  She put her hand over the scar. “It doesn’t matter.”

  “Oh, it matters. Who was it? Someone you knew?”

  She shook her head. “No. I’d never seen him before. He broke into my apartment one night and attacked me. But I’m alive and that’s all that matters.”

  “And where is he?”

  He asked the question in a very quiet voice, but Emma couldn’t help shivering. There was an edge in his tone that she’d never heard before and it frightened her.

  “He’s in prison. He’ll be there for a very long time. It’s over and done with and there’s no point talking about it anymore. And I really wish you’d stop looking at me that way.”

  “What way?”

  She lifted her chin in defiance. “Like you have a right to know about my personal life. You don’t.”

  “Maybe not. But I didn’t have a right to do a lot of things I’ve done in my life. That never stopped me.”

  And before she realized what he meant to do, he bent and kissed her.

  Emma was so stunned she couldn’t react. She didn’t kiss him back, not at first, but neither did she move away.

  She stood stone still as his lips moved back and forth on hers, and then when his tongue slipped inside her mouth, she opened in response.

  His arms came around her and he pulled her hard against his body. The kiss wasn’t gentle, but neither was it cruel or punishing. If Emma had to put a name to the emotion, she would have said it felt a little desperate. At least on her end. Maybe she was trying a little too hard to recapture something that just wasn’t there anymore.

  His fingers slid into her hair and his thumbs caressed the sides of her face. His touch was so familiar then that the desperation slipped away, replaced by a bittersweet desire that tore at Emma’s resolve, that ripped through the years of pain and disillusionment and reminded her instantly of how much she had once loved Ash Corbett.

  He’d always known how to kiss her, where to touch her, when to whisper exactly what she needed to hear.

  He’d once known her better than she knew herself, and he used that intimate knowledge now to strip away the last of her defenses.

  When they broke apart, Emma’s knees were weak and trembling and all she could do was stare up at him for a moment before she backed out of his arms.

  “Why did you do that?”

  “I didn’t mean to.” He looked as shaken as she was. He ran a hand through his hair and looked away. “I’m sorry. It won’t happen again.”

  “Why?”

  He couldn’t meet her eyes. He kept his gaze focused on some distant object as he said, “You know why.”

  “Because I’m not good enough for you.” She was stunned by the bitterness in her tone. “Is that it?”

  Something flickered in his eyes and he glanced away. “No. Because I’m not good enough for you.”

  Chapter Ten

  Emma hurried through the parlor, anxious to get to her room before Ash caught up with her. She heard him come in the French doors behind her and call out her name.

  “Emma, wait!”

  She had no intention of waiting, but as she strode into the front hall, she stopped short.

  Maris and Helen had come out of the study and were standing at the bottom of the stairs. Helen saw Emma first, and then her gaze hardened when Ash came into the hall behind her.

  Emma could only imagine what conclusions the woman was drawing from their appearance. There Emma stood, all windblown from the boat ride and her cheeks flushed from the sun. And from the kiss.

  And Ash…she didn’t dare look over her shoulder at him.

  Instead Emma said as calmly as she could, “I’ll be in my room if you need me, Mrs. Corbett.”

  She hurried up the stairs without looking back and didn’t stop until she’d reached her room. Then she leaned weakly against the door and closed her eyes.

  Ash could deny it all he wanted, but his lips had told her something very different. Something she’d been longing to hear for twelve long years.

  He still loved her.

  HELEN CORBETT WATCHED EMMA run up the stairs and then she turned without a word and walked back into the study.

  Maris gave Ash a bemused look. “So you and Emma…?”

  He shrugged. “We’re just friends.”

  “It looked a little more than friendship to me,” Maris said. “I’ve been around the block a few times. I recognize sexual tension when I see it, especially when it practically oozes out of your pores the way it was with you and Emma just now. I don’t have to tell you that Mother will not pleased.”

  “It’s none of her business,” Ash said with a frown.

  “That’s not the way she’s going to see it. Ash, if you’re not careful, you could make Emma’s life very difficult around here. She’s a good person. I don’t want to see her get hurt. By you or by Mother.”

  “I’m not going to hurt Emma.” Although after what he’d just done, h
is words rang hollow. “There’s nothing going on between us. We were just reminiscing about the old days.”

  “Is that what they’re calling it now?” Maris shook her head. “I don’t know why I’m bothering to talk to you about this. You’ll do as you please. You always did. And besides, you’re a grown man. You don’t need me to lecture you on your love life.” She turned down the hallway toward the study.

  Ash’s glance traveled up the stairs. It was all he could do not to follow Emma up to her room. But she’d been right earlier. The best thing he could do was stay away from her. He’d already let his attraction get out of hand, and now she was up there right now with the wrong idea about them. About their future.

  He’d screwed up royally, but he had to believe that he could somehow fix the damage. At the moment, though, he didn’t have a clue how to do that. Not without hurting her again.

  “Come into the study,” Maris called over her shoulder. “Mother has something she wants to talk to you about.” She glanced back with a smile. “Something besides Emma I mean.”

  But when they entered the study, Helen Corbett acted as if she’d never witnessed the scene between him and Emma. She sat behind her desk and motioned for him to take the seat across from her.

  “I asked Maris to come out here today so that we could get started on the tests,” she said. “The sooner we get all this business behind us, the sooner we can start making plans for the future.”

  “What are you talking about?” he asked suspiciously. “What test and what plans?”

  “The DNA tests,” Helen explained. “They’re just a formality as far as I’m concerned, but I don’t want anyone questioning my judgment down the road.”

  He tried not to sound worried. “I don’t have a problem with a DNA test, but I thought David Tobias was making the arrangements.” If Tobias wasn’t involved, the whole plan could come crashing down around him. He’d have more problems to deal with than Emma’s hurt feelings.

  “David has already made the necessary arrangements. I’m just collecting the samples.” Maris went over to Helen’s desk and opened the medical bag propped on the corner. “I’ve already drawn Mother’s blood for comparison. Now I need some from you.”