07

But Devin was in for a brutal surprise, Ana had no affection whatsoever for her father, not after her only living parent had treated atrociously. She probably loathed the man with as much vehemence as his ex-fiancé did, not that the latter would have the mildest inkling about it. Being an extremely private person, even when they’d been engaged, she’d shared very few details about her family with him, and he’d never probed – something she’d found accommodating then. Now, she knew better – it was simply because he’d never even cared.

As she watched Devin looking at her expectantly waiting for her to break down, she scoffed at him with defiance. « Is he now ? » she questioned in a voice devoid of emotion.

In response, Devin let out another dry laughter, light brown eyes shining with green freckles as they assessed her all over again, with less impertinence though. « I must admit ; you have certainly changed for the better. You’re nothing like the meek and love-struck Anastasia I’ve known or had it all been an illusion ? »

Anger so crude coursed through her filling her every pore that she had to struggle with herself not to retaliate with a physical blow. How she longed to land her fist against his nose, if only it were to dislodge the permanent disdain in the slight uplift of his lips. It would be futile giving in to her impulse though. First of all, she was too petite to cause him any deadly harm, and second it was precisely what he intended. Goad her to her limit, only to dismantle her from her cool exterior, to gauge whether he still affected her. And she absolutely refused to give him that satisfaction.

« I guess you’d never know, » she spat derisively, and turned her head sideways to study him with pure impertinence. « Sooo, tell me. You’ve driven all the way to New York just to personally give me the good news ? I’m touched, Devin, Really, » she commented with enough sarcasm in her voice to let him know that she was having fun at his expense.

Narrowing his gaze at her, she was thrilled to notice green freckles filling the hazel background. It was barely visible, especially in the dark, and had she not been on the lookout for that particular sign, she might have completely missed it. It was the indication that he was not as immune as he was letting on, his eyes took a green hue whenever he became over-emotional. Almost like magic.

« Are you attending the ceremony ? » he inquired with a carefree shrug.

Frowning, she repeated his question in her mind with cool detachment. Alastair Forrester had been a creep, but he was her father after all. Besides, as her evil step-mother Melanie was no longer alive as well, there would no pointless family drama – now hers had been a funeral she’d definitely skipped some years ago.

She mimicked his movement. « Sure. »

« Fly with me, » he ordered briskly, and her eyes flew to him in undisguised surprise. What was he playing at this time ? Had he lost an enormous amount of money like the other victims and wanted his pound of flesh from her ? After all, he’d agreed to marry her for a business deal, so there was denying the length he was willing to go to extort his payback.

Ana was determined not to play the rat to his Hamelin this time. « Why the hell would I do that ? » she asked, not bothering to hide her genuine surprise.

He gave another nonchalant shrug. « It’s easier. I have a private jet which can reach us within one hour. By the look of it…, » he checked his Rolex with one glance. « …if you go on your own, you won’t make it in time for the ceremony. »

Devin was worried about her missing her father’s funeral ? Now that was a complete shocker. That man did not have a benevolent bone in his body, and Ana had neither the time nor the energy to decipher his hidden agenda. With a wave of dismissal in his direction, she muttered « No, thank you. I can take care of myself, » and marched past him to open her door, her mind still reeling from shock of both his re-appearance and her father’s demise.

Fumbling through her purse, she fought unshed tears, waiting to be inside her condo before she gave way to any kind of emotion whatsoever. Why had that cursed man return back in her life ? Turning back to check whether he’d already taken off, she was caught off-guard to find herself staring close-up into familiar dark green eyes, the intensity of emotions she could read there making her still.

Desire. For her. Whatever game Devin had been playing in the past, the only genuine feeling he’d felt for her had been passion, there was no faking that. At the first meeting, it had flared between them like liquid fire, raging their senses out of control, rendering them helpless to fight the fatal attraction between them. It had been her only major mistake : to be unable to distinguish between pure unadulterated lust and true love.

« Ana, » he whispered shakily, her name out of his mouth blowing a hot air on her right ear, his unique masculine scent penetrating her nostrils like someone was casting a spell. Out of its own volition, she found her body sway in his direction, and she stopped herself at the last second, clearing her desire-fogged mind with self-loathing. What the hell was wrong with her ?

Was she completely demented to act on that sexual tension a second time, knowing how terrible a person he was ? Would she ever learn her lesson where that man was concerned ? She’d always been a sucker for Devin Richard Crighton, even if he’d walked over her heart with disregard. This was the man who’d left her at the altar without a single word of enlightenment for Heaven’s sake.

That reminder acted as a wake-up call, and she flinched in reaction, angry with herself for having lost control of her feelings even if it were for a mere second. Scalded, she took a few steps back, realizing in horror that his lips were just a few inches above hers.

« I am so over you Devin Richard Crighton, » she announced firmly, as much for her own benefit as his.

He smiled cynically. « Don’t fool yourself Anastasia. We both know that we’re still attracted to each other. You still want me as much as I want you. »

She sucked in a breath at his forthrightness, her mind wanting to block the truth no matter how accurate it was. It was pointless denying it though ; he could read her like a book, he was so sharp-witted that he was an expert in picking up vibes about other people.

« Yes, » she admitted in a dead-pan voice, chin lifted to challenge him back with his words. « I guess it’ll take a lifetime to cure us from that kind of curse. »

As an exit line, it worked wonders. He recoiled from her in shock, giving her enough space and time to whirl back and disappeared inside her apartment. It was only after checking twice that the lock was firmly in place that she gave her weakened body the reprieve to lean against the door and permitting the reactions to kick in.

It took her several minutes to tame her emotions enough to conduct a phone call to the only person she knew back in Rochester. Uncle Jeremy, an old family friend and her father’s lawyer confirmed the death of Alastair Forrester that morning. The irony of it was that it was Devin who had announced her the news of her father’s demise, and not someone from her family. Not that she was close to anyone, but her step-sister could have made an effort.

A glance at the clock indicated that it was eleven pm and that she had to leave in six hours if she wanted to make it on time for the funeral. It was a long drive and by the look of it, she was not going to sleep a wink.

Sighing wearily, her lump body wallowed to slouch on the edge of the bed, resting her head in her hands, and finally tolerated the truth to hit her hard. Her father was dead, even if she’d no close affiliation with the latter, he’d been her only living parent and now she was an orphan. Whatever she’d felt for him or no matter how vile he’d proven to be, he was still her father and she felt a ping of sadness that he was no longer among the living.

What grieved her was the fact that nobody from home had bothered to inform her of the news, not that she blamed them for she had vanished five years ago without a word or an address. Her disappearance hadn’t meant anything to anyone, she was good riddance then, she was still insignificant now. At least, she knew where she stood.

As clichéd as it was, hers had been a typical Cinderella story : a wicked step-sister with an even more devilish step-mother. Not that she’d known the stakes then. No, gullible fool that she had been, she’d been too indebted for having a roof under her head, a family whom she’d believed had accepted her in their household. No matter how despicable their behavior towards her, she’d always been grateful to Melanie for having accepted her husband’s bastard without protest. At least, Ana had thought then that she’d been spared an orphanage life, had even contemplated it was magnanimous of Melanie. All that had mattered was that she had a father, a mother and a sister.