Storm Front (Reunited Hearts) (10 page)

She
was clearly suffering from temporary insanity, probably brought on by the
extreme conditions of the last two days. She wouldn’t let these weird feelings
control her. She was a mature, sensible woman and didn’t have to be dragged
around by such silly emotions.

Nothing
could happen with Michael. Even if nothing else would get in the way between
them, eventually he’d have to find out what she did for a living.

And
then he’d never want to see her again.

*
* *

Michael kept slanting
sharp looks over at Allison as she drove quietly down the narrow country road.

Something
was wrong with her. She’d gotten tense, closed up. It had happened when he was
out of the car taking care of that tree.

It
worried him. He wondered what he’d done to make her put up her guard like that.
He didn’t like it. She’d been so friendly and open with him for the last two
days—filled with warmth and good spirits.

The
change was palpable, and it frustrated Michael not to know what had caused it.

This
morning she’d looked at him with something close to tenderness, and now the dog
seemed happier to see him than she did.

He
tried a couple of times to make conversation, but Allison only replied in
monosyllables. So he gave up, although he brooded over possibilities and kept
checking her expression for signs and clues.

It
shouldn’t matter. It wasn’t like Michael had been intending to keep pursuing Allison
after they returned to their normal lives, but he hadn’t done anything to
provoke such coolness, and there was no reason for her to close him out like
this.

To
distract himself, Michael kept checking his mobile, and after about forty-five
minutes he was finally able to pick up a signal.

“At
last,” he muttered, hitting a number he had programmed into his phone. His
administrative assistant back in New York picked up. At her courteous greeting,
he said, “Julie. What’s going on?”

He
blew out a breath as she rambled about how worried everyone had been about his
suddenly dropping out of contact. “I’m all right. Just bring me up to speed.”

He
knew Allison was listening in on his side of the conversation, and her
curiosity was at least normal for her, characteristic, a sign that she wasn’t
as distanced as she was acting.

Julie
rehearsed the messages, issues, and problems that had come up over the last two
days. She was competent and organized, and she had them listed in order of
importance.

For
a few minutes, Michael’s focus was only on business. He responded with some
directions for Julie. He also told her where his damaged car was located and
asked her to get someone to take care of it.

“And
get me some contact information for someone named Graves.”

“Todd
Graves,” Allison put in softly.

“Todd
Graves,” Michael spoke into the phone, giving the address of the house. “We
made ourselves at home in his house.”

When
the conversation had ended, he disconnected his phone and looked over at Allison.
“Do you have anyone you need to call?”

“Yeah,”
she said, staring at the road in front of them. “I suppose.”

Michael
arched his eyebrows, feeling a familiar flicker of curiosity. Allison was a
puzzle, and she was less open now than ever. “Boyfriend? Boss?”

“No
boyfriend,” she said, shooting him a strange look. “And I can wait to call my
boss. But I guess I should call one of my friends. Some of them will be worried
about me.”

Michael
handed her the cell phone he pulled out of her purse, and she flipped it open
to make her call.

He
could only hear her half of the conversation, but he studied her face as she
talked. Her voice was warm as she greeted someone named Elizabeth.

Evidently,
Elizabeth had been worried about Allison, because after a minute Allison said,
“I’m fine. Really. It’s been kind of crazy, but I made it through unscathed.”

Michael
couldn’t figure out what the next question was because all she said was, “Yeah.
Maybe a few.”

After
another pause, she said, “No. I wasn’t alone.”

Michael
smiled discreetly at the slightly guilty look that flashed over Allison’s face.
His smile broadened when she added, “I’ll tell you about it later.”

He
wondered how she would explain to her friend that she’d spent her time stranded
in the middle of the storm having intense, passionate sex with a man she hadn’t
seen in seven years.

Then
he wondered how she felt about what had happened. Things had ended rather
abruptly between them after the night they’d spent together so many years ago.
Maybe she was expecting something similar now.

Michael
had to admit that was exactly what he assumed would happen. He’d never
seriously considered calling her up or trying to see her after they returned to
their respective lives.

But
now he started to wonder why not. The sex with Allison had been good.
Fantastic. And they got along remarkably well. She made him feel…different than
he felt with anyone else.

Why
shouldn’t they continue having a good time together for a little while longer? Yes,
he lived in New York and she lived in D.C., but they could work around that. They
would just have to avoid the journalists who wouldn’t stop hounding him over
his broken engagement.

Allison
finished her conversation before they reached the interstate. Once they did, it
was only an hour up to D.C.

Michael
made an effort to be friendly, and eventually Allison relaxed enough to laugh
and chat with him casually. There was still something odd about her expression,
but he wasn’t particularly worried.

He
and Allison were good together. She knew it as well as he did, and he couldn’t
believe she’d refuse an extension of their chance encounter.

He
owned a townhouse in D.C, which his father had bought years ago, so he gave her
directions to the exclusive street on which it was located.

When
they reached it, he smiled at her and said smoothly. “Maybe I can give you a
call, and we can get together some time soon.”

Allison
narrowed her eyes and aimed wary green eyes in his direction. “I don’t think
that’s a good idea.”

“Why
not?”

“Didn’t
we agree this was just a one-night-stand?”

“Yes.
But why shouldn’t it be extended? I promise I’ll make it worth your while.”

“Don’t
try that seductive routine on me. I’m way too jaded to fall for it anymore.”
She gave him a teasing smile, apparently to soften the blow.

Her
reaction confused Michael more than it disappointed him. Allison was smart and
ironic, but she wasn’t jaded. There was still that untouched innocence about
her, despite all her wit and experience.

So
he didn’t know why she was being so wary.

She
cleared her throat as she neatly pulled the SUV into an empty space on the side
of the road. “Uh, Michael?”

He
took a quick breath as he met her eyes. “Yes?” It felt like she was going to
make a confession, but he had no idea what it was.

“My,
uh, apartment building doesn’t allow pets.”

Michael
felt a kick in his chest. With a slowly rising dread, he turned to look in the
back seat, where the dog was happily panting at the window. “You can’t be
serious.”

“They're
not allowed. He’s too big to smuggle in. I’m not going to leave him at the
pound. I’m just not.”

Michael
groaned, knowing even as he objected that he was never going to win. “Rescuing
the dog was your idea. My lifestyle doesn’t lend itself to pets.”

“Can’t
you hang onto the poor fella? For now at least? He might belong to someone. I
can put some feelers out to see if he has an owner who lost him in the storm.”

Michael
knew the dog didn’t have an owner. He just knew it. And instinct told him that
if he let the ingrate into his house, he might never be free of him.

But,
as the dog snuffled hopefully at Michael’s shoulder, he wasn’t sure how he
could refuse. It would be a shame for such a decent dog to be foisted off on
the pound, to who knew what future. Plus, the dog might be just the excuse he
needed to keep in touch with Allison.

“All
right,” he said, “I’ll take him. For a few days. Then we’ll have to think of
another option.”

“Thank
you.” She grinned at him and got out to help unload the dog. She walked with Michael
up to the front door of the house. “I’m sure he won’t be any trouble.”

Michael
frowned as he leaned over to keep the dog from taking off down the sidewalk.
The first thing he’d need to do was get the animal a collar and leash. “I’m not
sure of any such thing.”

Allison
leaned forward and pressed a kiss on his cheek. “Don't bother putting on a
pretense. You’re just not as cold and heartless as you’d like the world to
believe.”

Her
words were soft and unexpectedly intimate, and they made Michael strangely
uncomfortable. He felt even more at a loss for words when Allison pulled back
suddenly, as if she hadn’t meant to say what she’d said.

“Anyway,”
she went on hurriedly, “Thanks for your help and everything.”

“You
too.” Pulling himself together, he smiled at her again. “I’ll be in touch.”
Before she could object to his textured tone, he continued, “About the dog, I
mean.”

“Oh.
Yeah.” She opened her mouth, as if she was going to say something else.

“What
is it?” Michael asked.

She
shook her head. “Nothing. All right. Bye.”

She
was on her way back to the car before Michael could figure out what was going
on with her.

*
* *

That evening, he was
sitting at the office in his townhouse, catching up on correspondence and the
most urgent tasks that had been left undone in his absence. When the phone
rang, he glanced at the caller ID and then picked it up.

“Hi,
Julie.”

“Good
evening, Mr. Martin. I have some of the information you requested. I have Ms. Dent’s
phone number.”

Allison’s
number was unlisted, but Michael wouldn’t let something like that deter him.
“Good. What is it?” He jotted it down as she read the number out.

He’d
felt at loose ends all evening, even with so much work to catch up on. He felt
all alone in the townhouse, and he kept wanting to talk to Allison. He’d
actually been grateful for the company of the ingrate, who kept at his heels
the whole time. Michael decided he’d call Allison when he got through with Julie.

“If
you’re having problems with a reporter,” Julie added, “I’m sure someone in the
P.R. department can help you.”

Michael
blinked. “What are you talking about?”

“Ms.
Dent. She’s on staff with a web magazine. I thought you must have been having
problems with her pestering you.”

Michael’s
throat closed up, and he couldn’t answer. He sat speechless, staring at the
computer monitor in front of him. As his mind intuitively put the pieces
together, suddenly all of the gaps and odd behavior made sense. A bleak, bitter
kind of sense.

Of
course, Allison was a reporter. Of course, she had lied to him about it.

It
had been a long time since Michael had experienced a pure, intense passion of
any sort. He did now, though, as the truth crystallized into a starkly detailed
picture of how he'd been used and deceived.

As
the shock slowly dissipated in his mind, a cold, hard rage took its place.

Allison was glad to be
home.

She
felt rather disoriented and at loose ends as she stumbled into her apartment to
be surrounded by her familiar furnishings and her much-loved piles of clutter.
She was disheveled and exhausted, but it was so nice to take a hot shower in
her own bathroom, put on her favorite pajamas, turn on her laptop and catch up
on news and email.

She
ordered a pizza, had two beers, and decided not to stress about things until
tomorrow.

She
did contact Jeff, her boss, who was sympathetic about her near crisis and
relieved she was safe. He told her to make sure she was recovered and to touch
base first thing tomorrow with any story ideas she had from her experiences.

Allison
managed to avoid any troublesome thoughts until she went to bed, but as she lay
in the dark, she found herself thinking about Michael.

It
was silly for her to keep rolling her mind over options, possibilities, and
various visions of the future. Michael was the kind of man only intended for a
one-night-stand. He’d never choose to make Allison a real part of his life, and
his lifestyle was too questionable anyway.

She
had enjoyed her time with him—and not just the sex. All of it. But she was no
longer a foolish girl who dreamed that anything lasting could come of it.

Seven
years ago, she’d entertained those kinds of dreams, even before Michael had
given any signs of being interested in her sexually.