Page 75 of A Tempting Seduction

The words hit me like a slap. “Let me get this straight. You want me back because it would be politically convenient?”

“We were good together,” he said, his voice taking on that persuasive tone he'd perfected during law school. “We make sense. Your family connections, my political future. Think about what we could accomplish together.” He circled around the desk.

“That’s close enough,” I snapped.

“Come on Ruby. You used to like it when I got close to you.”

“Yeah, well I used to like rollercoasters until I threw up on three people in front of me.”

“Don’t be like that, darling,” he pouted. Goodness. To think I used to think that was sexy. “Are you still sleeping with Carla?”

The question caught him off guard, and for a split second, I saw the truth written across his face before he schooled his expression.

“Of course not,” he said, but the lie sat awkwardly in the space between us.

I laughed again, a sound with no humor in it. “You're crazy, Lance. You're crazy if you think I would ever want your lying rear back. You're crazy if you ever thought I would act as a smokescreen for you and Carla to commit adultery. Hasn’t her husband figured it out yet?”

“That idiot? He’s still oblivious. He’s just happy to have some young piece who puts out for him once a quarter.”

“Like I said, you’re just plain crazy, Lance. There’s not a chance I’m leaving Jasper Creek.”

His friendly facade cracked completely. “You know this is what Horace wants, Ruby. You know that now that I've found you, he's going to come and pressure you to come home. Take the easy way and come with me.”

“Let him take his best shot.” I lifted my chin, surprised by how steady my voice sounded. “He doesn't have any leverage over me.”

“Doesn't he?” Lance's smile turned cold. “What are your little friends in this podunk town going to think when they find out you've been lying to them? When they find out your real name is Ruby Banks? When they find out you're engaged to a state senator? How’s your blue-collar boyfriend going to take that news?”

The bottom dropped out of my stomach. “How do you know about Ford?”

Lance reached out and patted my cheek with the kind of condescending gesture that made my skin crawl. “Ruby, sweetheart, you think this is some kind of game? You think you can just disappear and start a new life without consequences?”

I jerked away from his touch. “Don't touch me.”

“Think about it, Ruby.” His voice carried a warning that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. “Come home with me, and there are no hard feelings. Everyone gets what they want. If you make me force you? Well… You won't like the consequences.”

He moved toward the door, then paused with his hand on the handle. “I'll be in town for a few days, staying at that little bed and breakfast a few blocks off the town square. When you're ready to be reasonable, you know where to find me.”

The door closed behind him with a soft click, leaving me alone in the tiny office with my heart hammering against my ribs and my hands shaking like a rattle.

For about thirty seconds, I considered collapsing into my desk chair and dissolving into a puddle of tears. The kind of breakdown that would match the magnitude of having my carefully constructed new life threatened by the evil ghost of my past. The rat-fink mongrel.

But then I thought about Ford. About the way he'd held me the other night, gentle and sure and real. About how he'd told me he believed in fighting for things worth having. About how he'd been in my corner from the very beginning, even when I'd been too scared to let him all the way in.

I thought about Little Grandma and my great-grandmother Miss Gladiola, who'd opened their door to a stranger and asked no questions. About Carrie, Maddie, Fiona, Fallon, Zoe and Chloe. Heck, there was even Bernie, Jordan and Florence and all the people in this town who'd made me feel like I belonged somewhere.

Dang it, I was not going to let some festering jerk take everything away from me. I was going to trust the man who'd just made the sweetest love to me. The man who'd seemed to be in my corner from the very start.

I pulled open the bottom desk drawer and grabbed my purse, fishing around until I found my cell phone. My fingers only shook a little as I scrolled through my contacts to find Ford's number.

He answered on the second ring. “Hey, beautiful. Miss me?”

The warmth in his voice nearly undid me. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, drawing strength from the knowledge that whatever happened next, I wouldn't have to face it alone.

“Ford,” I said, my voice smaller than I wanted it to be. “I'm in trouble, and I need your help.”

Chapter Sixteen

I hung up the phone and turned to face Ivan and Walker, who were both staring at me with matching expressions of concern. The cherry dust floating in the afternoon light looked almost peaceful, but my heart hammered against my ribs.