Inevitable (12 page)

“True. But he's changed since then and so have I.”

“And I know your psychic ability is a bit underdeveloped, but I never thought it held you back at all. You have a way with people. You can see the truth if you concentrate hard enough.”

Emma knew him, he couldn't deny it. The tight knot in his gut finally loosened. He had a hard time believing he'd ever doubted her in the first place. The woman was one hundred percent genuine. What you saw was what you got with Emma Black.

He raked a hand through his hair. “Well, I do wish I could admit everything to you, Em. I really do. I honestly don't blame you for telling Patrick what you saw that night.”

She looked shocked at this. “You don't?”

“No. I wouldn't expect anyone to jeopardize their own jobs on my account. You did the right thing. But there's just one really big problem with everything you've told me tonight.”

“And what's that?”

He came closer so he could lean over and whisper into her ear. “I didn't do it.”

The sentence was clear, blunt, and he waited for her
reaction. The wall started to come down over her expression when a moment ago it had been completely transparent. She began to move away from him but he grabbed her by her upper arms. His heart pounded hard in his chest, causing lust and something hotter and even sweeter to course through him.

He crushed his mouth against hers, kissing her hard and deep. It only took a moment before she kissed him back just as passionately, sliding her hands down his chest, before she braced herself against him and pushed back a couple of inches.

There was desire and confusion in her gaze.

Ryan shook his head. “I know what it sounds like, that I'm in denial.”

“Big-time denial.” She sounded breathless.

“Just hear me out, Em. I brought you here tonight to confront you, to make you admit that you'd lied about what you saw.”

“But—”

He cut her off. “But you
weren't
lying. You
did
see me. Which leaves me with a really big problem because I didn't do it. Whoever you saw that night wasn't me.”

He'd been so furious with her only a few minutes ago, but now he was confused…and more relieved than he thought possible.

Emma frowned hard. “That doesn't make any sense. I saw you. What, do you have a twin walking around town, or something?”

“I don't have a twin.”

“Then how?” She paced across the parking lot and then came back, her expression tense with concentration.

“I don't know.” He wracked his brain for the answer.

“Wait.” Her brows were drawn together. “It wasn't you, but it was someone who looked like you.”

“Yes.”

“But I saw him. He looked…” She searched his face. “He looked exactly like you. What could make that possible? I wasn't hypnotized. I wasn't influenced. Nobody even knew I was there. But…” Her eyes widened.

“What is it?”

“You—you said you know potions, right? More than just the Desidero one?”

“Yeah.” He raced to catch up with her line of thinking. “When I started at PARA, Patrick recognized that my psychic ability wasn't one hundred percent, so he had me do some extra work in the potions department as a backup. It would give me a little extra expertise to help pad out my résumé.”

“When I dropped off the Desidero bottle yesterday, I saw some of the other ones we have in the office. It's amazing what some of them can do. Some change your hair color, your eye color, make you more beautiful or uglier…although, not sure why anyone would want that. But—but is there one that might make you look like somebody else entirely?”

His eyes widened as it all began to click for him. “Super rare and very old. Goes by the nickname Doppelganger. If you mix this potion with the blood or hair of your victim you'll temporarily appear to others as that person. And PARA had a small amount of it in the potions department. I remember seeing it on the list once.”

Emma's faced paled. “You can't be serious.”

“DNA is what helps it do its hocus pocus. The effects last only a couple hours.”

Even though Emma herself had brought up the subject, she looked as if she was fighting this new possibility. “So someone could have used this potion so they could look like you when they stole from the vault?”

It didn't exactly sound like a story that would hold up in court, but he nodded firmly. “That's it. That has to be it. There's no other explanation.”

She swallowed hard. “I don't know. I don't know if I really believe it. It's too far-fetched.”

“Then that's the question, isn't it? You either believe this crazy explanation or you continue to believe that I'm a scumbag who enjoys lying to your face. I don't have a lot of time here to wait for your decision, though. I need to get back to New York as soon as possible.”

She exhaled shakily. “What's in New York?”

“Xavier Franklin and his priceless collection of glassware. I'm positive he's bought one of the stolen pieces from whomever the real thief was. That's the reason I was there the other night.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “So what'll it be, Em? Believe that the Doppelganger potion's the thing to blame, or that I'm a big liar who doesn't deserve to be anywhere near you.”

Emma stared at him, her face pale, her brow creased. “This is crazy, Ryan. Just because I believe in lust potions doesn't mean I believe in one like this. I don't know much about potions.”

“But I do, so you need to trust
me
.” He stood there another minute as silence stretched between them. His chest tightened with disappointment and he nodded with a firm shake of his head. “Come on. I should probably take you home now.”

He turned away from her and moved around to the
driver's side of the car. He opened the door, his heart feeling very heavy.

“Wait!”

He heard the clip clop of her high heels on the pavement of the small deserted parking lot and he glanced over his shoulder to see her swiftly moving toward him.

“It's okay, Em. Really—”

She grabbed hold of him, throwing her arms around his shoulders, and pulling his face down to hers so she could kiss him hard and passionately on the mouth. He gasped against her lips in surprise.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

She was smiling and shaking her head. “This is me trusting you.”

Disbelief gave way to tentative hope. “Be serious.”

Emma's eyes shone. “I am serious. I've never been more serious in my life.”

He didn't want to set himself up for disappointment, but there was nothing in her expression to make him think she wasn't being completely honest right now. No walls. No barriers. Just belief. In him. “But, Em—”

“Just kiss me, Ryan.” She brushed her lips against his again. “Something inside of me kept telling me that you wouldn't lie to me like that over and over again. I was afraid to believe, but now I do. It's the truth. You've been innocent all along.”

Ryan held her face between his hands. “I can't tell you how happy I am to hear that.”

A wave of desire swept through him when he kissed her, more powerful than any he'd felt before—which was saying something. Her hands slid down the front of him
and over his erection. When he pulled back from her, he saw the raw need in her green eyes.

“I want you,” she whispered.

“The feeling is mutual.”

He grappled for the handle to the door of his car and pressed her back against the seat. He felt mindless and desperate to feel her body clench around his. It swept away all other thought.

“Just like the teenagers who come to this park,” she managed to say as he worked his jeans off his hips and tugged her panties down over her legs.

“That's us.” Ryan grinned for a moment, but the expression faded as he quickly slipped on a condom. Emma's legs fell apart and her mouth pressed hot and wet against his as he slid into her tight, heated core.

She believed him. He'd felt so alone for so many months—sometimes he'd wondered if he'd imagined things and maybe he
wasn't
innocent. But he was and now she knew it too. Finally.

Now they were making love in a parking lot like a couple of horny teenagers.

And it felt so damn right.

 

W
HEN
E
MMA WOKE
the next morning she had to remind herself that the night before wasn't just a dream. She felt a firm, warm body against hers. A glance over her shoulder confirmed Ryan sleeping beside her. They'd left the park, forgotten all about dinner, and come back to her house where he'd made love to her all night long.

He was innocent. Many people might question her certainty—and possibly her sanity—considering she was going solely on his word. She had no confirmation from anyone else that this Doppelganger potion was a
real thing. She'd heard of similar potions, but not one that totally changed a person's appearance to resemble someone else.

It was far-fetched at best.

But she believed it with all of her heart. She supposed it was an example of faith—she had faith in Ryan, a faith that had never completely been extinguished. It stayed there, flickering deep inside of her until the moment it came time to tap into it. When he told her his story, his theory, everything finally fell into place.

She just wished she'd known he was telling the truth the whole time. It could have saved many months of uncertainty and feelings of betrayal.

She slid her hand over his bare chest, trying to memorize every inch of him. He looked so innocent when he slept.

Her hand drifted lower on his abdomen and slipped past the bedsheets to wrap around his stiffening cock.

Ryan opened one eye. “And I'm awake.”

She grinned. “Glad to hear it.”

His breathing grew labored. “You know, it's not polite to tease a man first thing in the morning.”

“Is that what I'm doing?”

“I'd say so.”

“I'm not teasing.” She slid down the length of him and peeled back the covers so she could slide her tongue along the length of him. He pressed back into the bed and groaned as she took him fully into her mouth.

“Much better than an alarm clock,” he managed to say.

She slid back up his body and kissed him passionately. He slid his hands over her bare back, pressing his erection firmly against her stomach.

“Do you feel it?” she whispered against his lips.

“Oh, I feel it. Definitely.”

She smiled. “No. I mean…I thought the Desidero potion's effects would have worn off by now, but they're still working as strong as they ever were.”

His fingers dug into her arms as she straddled him. “Seems that way.”

She slid her tongue over the curve of his ear. “I want you. Badly.”

“The feeling is mutual.”

He managed to find a condom and sheath himself before she shifted her hips on top of him, reaching back so she could guide his hard length into her. He groaned deep in his throat. The sensation of having him inside of her was so overwhelming that she needed a moment to catch her breath. Her heart pounded hard in her chest.

“This feeling,” she said shakily. “I don't want it to go away. It's so intense, so incredible.”

He cupped her breasts, circling his thumbs over her tight, aching nipples, as she began to moved up and down on him. His gaze darkened with desire.

“Emma…” he growled. “You're driving me crazy.”

She grinned. “Glad to hear it.”

Ryan grabbed her, circling his arms firmly around her and rolled over so he was on top. In this new position, his thrusts became faster, deeper and she felt like she was going to lose her mind to the pleasure he gave her.

She held on to him as he made love to her, arching her back when her orgasm swept through her, followed quickly by his own.

“So…” Ryan said a few minutes later as he traced slow circles on her bare stomach from where he lay next to her in the tangle of sheets. “What do you want to do
today? I can think of many things. All which involve us not leaving this bed.”

Emma propped herself up on her elbow. “I want to go back to New York and talk to Xavier Franklin.”

He eyed her. “That would involve leaving this bed.”

“It does. But if he's been buying some of the stolen merchandise, he might know who set you up.”

Ryan's easy, relaxed expression tensed. “I was going to take care of that myself.”

“Well, guess again. I'm a part of this now, Ryan. And I'm going to do everything I can to clear your name.”

He just watched her as if he couldn't believe what she was saying. “You don't know how great it feels to hear you say that.”

“Good.” She sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed. “Now immediately after you make love to me again in the shower, we're on our way.”

He laughed deep in his throat. “I do like the way you think.”

B
Y DAY, THE
F
RANKLIN
M
ANSION
looked about the same as it had the other night, only without the masked partiers. Ryan and Emma approached it cautiously. Ryan was determined to get his answers today and be done with it. Then he could take Emma back to Mystic Ridge and continue where they'd left off.

It was the best plan he'd had in recent memory.

Frankly, he was overwhelmed by everything that had happened so quickly. That Emma was ready to believe him had filled him with more hope than he would have thought possible. It was a good thing. This was a very good thing. And he only prayed it would all work out in the end.

When Ryan had been fired, he had to admit that Patrick had been fair with him. Patrick had explained the situation. Explained the evidence. He'd seemed disappointed, but it wasn't the first time an employee had allegedly stolen from the vault, nor was it likely to be the last time. In his view, Ryan had been caught red-handed both on the videotape and by Emma's witness report. Patrick's hands were tied—he had to let Ryan go. He could have filed charges with the police and made it
much more difficult for Ryan to move on, but he hadn't. Ryan would always be grateful for that.

But Ryan didn't want his old job back. That wasn't what this was all about. He wanted to clear his name to everyone—to Emma. Then he'd head down to Florida to work with his brother at the garage and start his new life. It seemed like the best idea for him—a chance to work all day surrounded by the cars he loved and reconnect with his big brother who'd turned his life around just as much as Ryan had over the years.

The only problem was, Florida was a hell of a long way from Mystic Ridge.

“Well, here we are,” Emma said as they stood at the front door of the mansion. “I can't believe it.”

It seemed like a lot more than three days had passed since he'd last been here, ready to confront the old man about his expensive hobby. “So we go in, ask questions as if we're investigating the case officially, and see what we can uncover.”

Emma gave him a sexy smile. “Just like the good old days.”

They'd made a great team the year they worked together. He couldn't have asked for a better partner. He raised an eyebrow at her. “Have you missed having me around?”

“A little bit.”

“Only a little?”

She shrugged. “Wouldn't want it to go to your head.”

A grin tugged at his lips. “Are you ever going to admit that the hero in your book is based on me?”

“I don't want that to go to your head, either, so probably not.”

His grin widened. “I'll take that as a yes. You know, you should keep writing.”

“Oh, yeah?'

“Yeah, you're a natural at it. There's that one scene in the book…. I can't stop thinking about it. It was so sexy. The one with all the candles and rose petals.”

Her gaze grew heated. “That is one of my favorites.”

“It was pretty…intense.” It was the scene where the hero wanted the heroine to know exactly how deep his feelings for her went, beyond sex, beyond desire. Their love was for real. It was written with so much passion, it practically burned his fingers. Of course, at the end of that scene, the hero asked the heroine to marry him and she declined. He went his way and she went hers, leading to a rather unsatisfying ending.

If Ryan was a woman, he'd care more about that sort of thing, of course.

Still, it definitely needed a sequel.

Emma cleared her throat, her gaze sliding over Ryan's body as if she couldn't help the direction of her eyes. “The scene was…fun to write. And I feel like I do have another book in me. Consider me recently inspired. But, uh, can we focus right now, Ryan? I believe there are more important things to deal with. Like, I don't know, clearing your name?”

“Okay, but I'm not finished with this subject. It's important, too.”

Emma rolled her eyes. “Consider me forewarned.”

“Okay, here it goes.” Ryan rang the doorbell and tried his best to look professional.

A minute went by before the door opened. The butler stood there wearing traditional black and white and looking solemn and professional. “Yes?”

“We'd like to see Mr. Franklin,” he said.

“I'm sorry, but Mr. Franklin is very busy today. He's not receiving anyone without an appointment.”

Emma spoke up first. “Can you tell him that Emma Black from the Paranormal Assessment and Recovery Agency is calling? I was here the other night and he asked me to become his mistress. Please tell him I've given it a great deal of thought.”

The butler pursed his lips, gave her a sweeping glance, and his grip tightened on the door. “Please come in.”

Ryan repressed a smile. Nice to know that Franklin's staff was well aware of his many passions.

The butler left them standing in the foyer while he went to announce them. The room had a high ceiling with a skylight above them, making the area as bright as outside.

Ryan looked at Emma. “So you've decided to give the idea of having a sugar daddy a chance?”

“Oh, yes,” she agreed, straight-faced. “He's so sexy, I just can't help myself.”

“Some old guys still have it. In fifty years, I hope I'm half as horny as he is.”

Her lips twitched as if she was repressing a smile. “Thank you for your opinion.”

It was difficult for him to refrain from touching her. She was so beautiful, so sexy, and he was incredibly tempted to make love to her again right here in the foyer of the Franklin mansion. Although, that probably wouldn't make Franklin all that keen on helping him out. The old man already thought that Ryan was competition for Emma's amorous attentions.

“Should I go hide somewhere?” he asked. “That was a great line to get in here. Don't want my presence to ruin anything.”

But it was too late. The next moment, Xavier Franklin marched into the foyer with his attention solely focused on Emma.

“Emma, my dear, it's so wonderful to see you again.” He clasped her hands in his and brought them to his lips.

“You too, Xavier.”

His gaze moved toward Ryan as if seeing him for the first time. His pleasant expression fell. “Oh, my. This is unexpected.”

Ryan moved forward and stretched out his hand. “Great to see you again.”

Xavier hesitated only a moment before shaking his hand. “Yes, of course.” His gaze flicked to Emma. “Your fiancé is all right with our arrangement?”

She frowned. “Our arrangement?”

“My butler told me that you…” He cocked his head to the side. “I see. You only said that to bring me out to see you, didn't you?”

Emma's gaze didn't waver. “Yes, I did.”

Ryan braced himself for the old man's reaction.

“Very clever,” Xavier concluded, a smile spreading over his wrinkled face. “Very clever indeed. I won't hold it against you, wicked girl. Obviously you wanted to see me for a very good reason.”

“I do. We both do. Can we talk somewhere private?”

“Of course.” He led them through the impressive mansion with its chandeliers and inlaid floors, imported wood, gold trim, and high ceilings. It had a rooftop terrace that Ryan spent some time on at the party to escape from the clawing socialite who'd wanted to “get to know him better.” As beautiful as she admittedly was, and as much money as she had to back up those looks for the next thirty years at least, he couldn't say he'd been interested at all.

Especially after he'd spotted Emma.

They finally arrived at a very familiar room—the
library. Ryan and Emma exchanged a glance after his gaze moved over the black leather couch where they'd first noticed the potion's effects.

Good times.

“So,” Xavier said, after closing the door. “What is it you wished to discuss with me, so much that you'd journey all the way from your quaint little town to mine again? It's not a short trip.”

“A little over three hours,” Ryan confirmed, crossing his arms over his chest.

“I'm sorry I lied,” Emma said. “I didn't think you'd speak to us otherwise.”

Xavier pursed his lips and regarded them each in turn. “I am disappointed that you aren't interested in my suggestion from the other night, Emma, but I'm used to dealing with disappointments and moving on from them. Luckily for me, the majority of beautiful women whom I show interest in do not have
fiancés
.”

Ryan tried not to laugh out loud at that. Franklin thought the only reason that Emma would reject his proposition was because she was engaged. The laughter died in his throat as Ryan eyed her. The man
was
a billionaire. That had to be extremely attractive to most women.

But Emma wasn't most women.

He knew this “relationship” he had with Emma probably wouldn't end well. He was going to go to work with his brother fifteen hundred miles away and she'd stay here, where her career with PARA was.

It was best to enjoy everything while it lasted and not think about how it would inevitably come to an end.

Today, he'd force himself to focus on the business at hand.

“We're here on PARA business,” Ryan added bluntly,
his good mood falling away like sand through an hourglass. “We know that you have acquired several items that were stolen from our vaults in the last year, as well as other items procured from around the world.”

Franklin's face paled. “I don't know what you're talking about.”

“Ryan,” Emma said sharply. “I don't think that's a very polite way of broaching the subject.”

He eyed her with confusion. This was the reason they were there in the first place. Why not broach away?

“Xavier,” she soothed, placing her hand on his arm. “Ryan isn't accusing you. He's asking a question, one we, frankly, already know the answer to. You bought a few items for your secret collection, didn't you?”

His chest moved with his rapid breathing. “No.”

Ryan rolled his eyes. The old man knew he was in the wrong, but there was no way he was admitting it. This approach wouldn't get them anywhere. Ryan had hoped to use the authority PARA might hold for him to extract the truth.

“It's okay,” Emma said. “We're PARA agents, but we're not actually here on official business.”

Ryan eyed her curiously, wondering what her game plan was. But because they'd worked so easily together before, he stood back and let her do her thing.

“Then why are you here?” Xavier asked with suspicion.

Emma paced back and forth in a small area, her stiletto heels clicking against the hardwood floor. Today she wore a gauzy blue skirt that swished as she moved and drew Ryan's appreciative gaze to her legs. “Well, the economy isn't great right now, although a man of your wealth and intelligence probably isn't touched much by
that unpleasantness. It's amazing what you've done for yourself here.”

“Thank you. I've worked very hard.”

“And now you deserve to play hard, give parties, spend your money on beautiful women who catch your eye. You also deserve to expand your interests in collecting very unique pieces.” She paused. “And we can help you with that collection.”

He looked at her skeptically. “You can?”

She glanced at Ryan who watched her with interest. “Ryan and myself are…entrepreneurs, if you will. We are in a position to get our hands on some extremely valuable pieces that, in all confidence, we thought you might be interested in.”

Xavier studied her. “Is that so?”

She nodded. “When they came into our possession, the first person I thought of was you. They're glassware, which I know you already collect.”

“What kind of glassware?”

“They're five jars that hold the separate pieces of a djinn. It's said that when they're all brought together and a special incantation is read—” She shrugged. “I'm sure you can think of a wish or two you'd like to have granted. Even a man in your enviable position must want something.”

“A djinn,” he breathed, and his pale eyes lit up.

With every word Emma spoke, Ryan grew more and more impressed with her ability to…well,
lie
. It was a skill he never knew she had.

And it was actually turning him on. Although, with Emma, it didn't take all that much. But he'd never seen this side of her—a side that was willing to do whatever it took to get results. He liked it.

Emma spread her hands. “I wasn't totally certain
you'd be open to a business transaction like this. I saw your public display of glassware, of course, and I'd only heard a few rumors that you were interested in more than that.”

Franklin paced to the far side of the room, stood in front of an expansive floor to ceiling bookcase that was packed with leather bound volumes, and then turned to look at them again. “Thank you for coming here, both of you. It is very rare for me to be presented with such a stunning and tempting offer. But I'm going to have to decline.”

Emma's eyes widened. “Decline? Why?”

He hesitated for a moment, before a wicked smile lit up his wrinkled face. “Perhaps in the future we can do business together. But right now I think it best to stay with my regular supplier.”

Emma and Ryan shared a glance. “So you're currently working with another supplier?” she asked. “I'd be curious to know more about my competition in this area.”

“Yes, I'm sure you would be.” He looked amused. “I can't help you there, I'm afraid. My dealings with my supplier are confidential. But I'd be happy to show you my valued items, the ones I don't share with just anyone.”

Ryan moved to Emma's side, placing his hand on the small of her back as they watched Franklin turn back to the bookcase, pull a book out on the shelf next to him and step back. The bookcase swung around revealing an opening to another room.