Only Forever by Linda Lael Miller Page B

one side, frowning. “No,” he said, sounding surprised. “Are you saying you don’t regret letting me make love to you?”
    “Excuse me,” Vanessa said, pouring herself a cup of the coffee that had been waiting when she came downstairs, “but you didn’t do everything, you know. I was half of that little encounter.” She paused and drew a deep breath, then let it out. “To answer your question, yes and no.”
    Nick gave her a wry look. “Yes and no. I like a decisive woman.”
    “It was too soon,” she said. “I probably wasn’t ready.”
    He set the milk back in the refrigerator and put his hands on his hips. “You seemed ready to me,” he replied.
    Vanessa blushed at the good-natured jibe and sipped her coffee to avoid having to say something.
    “That takes care of the yes. What about the no? What don’t you regret, Vanessa?”
    Vanessa dropped her eyes. “The passion,” she answered after a long time. “You brought me back into the world, Nick, and I’m grateful.”
    “Gratitude isn’t exactly what I had in mind,but it’ll do for now,” he answered, and then he disappeared up the stairs. When he came back, he was wearing tan corduroy slacks, gleaming leather boots and a green turtleneck sweater.
    Vanessa assessed him appreciatively. “How much time have we got before the ferry leaves?”
    Nick took in her blue suede dress and sighed heavily. “Not enough,” he lamented. He took her in his arms and kissed her with knee-weakening thoroughness before whispering hoarsely, “I wish we could stay here forever.”
    Vanessa laid her head against his chest. “Me, too,” she said, but she knew the magic was already slipping away.
    It seemed sadly fitting that, when they drove aboard the ferry to return to Seattle, dark clouds were gathering in the northern sky.
    The storm Nick had predicted was almost upon them.

6
    W hen Vanessa finished her segment that morning, Parker was waiting at the door of the women’s dressing room. His arms were folded across his chest, and his features were set in a sour scowl.
    “Where were you last night?” he demanded in a furious whisper.
    Vanessa sighed. “We’re divorced, Parker, and that’s all I’m going to say about last night or anything else.” She started to walk around him, but he reached out and took her arm in a painful grasp.
    His nose was an inch from Vanessa’s as he rasped, “You slept with him, didn’t you?”
    Vanessa wrenched free of his hold, her face hot with color. A receptionist was approaching with a folded piece of paper in her hand, looking scared.
    “Sh-should I call security, Ms. Lawrence?”
    Vanessa saw nothing to fear and everything to pity in Parker’s eyes at that moment, and she shook her head as he made a visible effort to control himself. “Everything is fine, Karen,” she lied.
    Karen darted an uneasy glance at Parker and held out the paper to Vanessa. “Mr. DeAngelo called while you were on the air,” she explained.
    Vanessa scanned the note and suppressed a sigh. There was some kind of problem at the new restaurant in Portland, and Nick would be away until Friday. She bit her lower lip and crumpled the message into a ball. “Thank you,” she said to the receptionist, who promptly hurried away.
    “Have lunch with me,” Parker said.
    Vanessa stared at him. “You must be insane.”
    He treated her to his most endearing smile. “Look at it this way—if you don’t, I’ll just follow you home and you’ll have to feed me anyway.”
    “I’d be more likely to call the police,” Vanessa said.
    Parker shrugged. “Whereas a restaurant would be a safe, neutral place—very public.”
    Vanessa sighed. She was in a glum mood and Parker was the last person she wanted to spend time with, especially when she knew he was going to tell her something she didn’t want to know, but she finally nodded. She couldn’t hide forever.
    While her ex-husband waited, she toned down her makeup, gathered up the list of times she