Seduced The Unexpected Virgin - By Emily McKay Page 0,43
her heading for the door. Racing, practically. I think she must have seen someone she didn’t like.”
Ward smothered a curse of frustration and immediately excused himself. He hoped to catch up with Ana, but by the time he made it out to the valet stand, she was already gone. The attendant told him that a cab had dropped someone off just as she was rushing out.
Ward sent the man off in search of the Lexus and stood there alone, fuming. He’d left her alone for ten, maybe fifteen minutes. And she’d ditched him.
Ana balked when she heard how much a cab ride from L.A. to Vista del Mar would cost this time of night. She might have been better off renting a car, if any car rental places had been open. She briefly considered getting a hotel room, but just now, she longed for the simple familiarity of home even if it was a house she hadn’t lived in long. With the taxi and the rental out of the question, she fell back on the reliable transportation of her youth. Public transportation.
Of course, taking the bus in a thousand-dollar evening gown was like begging to be mugged. So she had the cab drop her at a twenty-four-hour discount store, where she bought the cheapest sweater and pair of jeans she could find and a roomy bag in which she could carry the dress, neatly rolled up. She changed in the bathroom and used a damp paper towel to wipe off most of her makeup. Then she caught the bus to Union Station. Thank God for the ten-thirty train to San Diego. From there it was just a short bus ride back up to Vista del Mar. Still, it was after one by the time the taxi dropped her off in front of her house.
Climbing out of the cab, she stilled as she saw Ward’s Lexus parked in front of her house. The fact that it was empty offered her no comfort. Especially not when a glance at the front door revealed him waiting for her there.
She fed the cabbie the fee.
He followed her gaze to her doorstep. “Hey, you okay? You know him?”
“Yes. Unfortunately, I do.”
The cabbie frowned. “You want me to drop you somewhere else? I won’t charge you any extra.”
She smiled, trying to look reassuring, but pretty sure her smile looked sad instead. “No. He’d never hurt me.” Not physically, anyway. Emotionally, that was a whole ’nother ball of wax. “I just didn’t want to face him tonight, that’s all.”
The cabbie looked from her to Ward and then back again. “Hey, that isn’t—”
“No, it’s not.” But she slipped the cabbie another twenty just to be sure he believed her.
He drove away, hopefully tipped into silence. She could only wish she were as easily satisfied. But of course, if money was all she needed to find happiness, this would all be much easier.
When she walked up the path to the door, Ward stood, blocking her way. “Where the hell have you been?”
She elbowed him aside as she pulled her keys from her beaded clutch. “Why does it matter?” she asked, as she slid the key into the lock. “You weren’t interested in me being there at all. I was just a pretty accessory for you to have on your arm.”
“That’s not true,” he growled.
“It is true.” She stepped inside, knowing better than to try to keep him out. But of course, it wasn’t true. Not even close. She wished it had been true. She wished that he’d treated her badly, because then at least she’d have a legitimate reason to be furious with him. As it was, she could hardly criticize him for being too charming. Too protective.
She would sound like a crazy woman. And she was starting to wonder if that wasn’t too close to the truth.
She dropped the bag containing the dress on the floor by the front door, too exhausted to hang up the dress and care for it as it deserved. She sank to the edge of the sofa.
She’d had plenty of time to think on the long train ride home. It was a trip she was all too familiar with after her years working in L.A. when she’d made frequent trips home to visit her family and Emma. There was something soothingly familiar about taking public transportation.
It was such a nice reminder of what her life was all about. Helping people who’d had fewer advantages than she’d had. Hard work. Making a difference. Those