A Christmas Affair (9 page)

“Excuse me,” said a member of the party staff as he appeared with a broom and dust pan to clean up the glass.

Corona stepped back. Her past and her future were all colliding too fast. She reached out for something to
hold on to, but all she could find was Wahida’s skeleton-thin bones that were amazingly iron-hard.

“Surprise,” Wahida sang, looking like The Joker.

“I don’t understand. How?”

Wahida patted her arm. “Oh, it wasn’t easy finding your folks,
Corona Mae.
”

Corona’s knees buckled.

“At first, I kept running into a brick wall until a dear friend of mine suggested that I simply hire a private investigator.” Wahida lightly smacked her forehead. “So simple. Anyway, I got Casey Attwater on the phone and twenty-four hours later, I had all your little skeletons dug out of your closet.”

All?
Corona stared at the woman open-mouthed.

“So am I going to get a hug any time soon or did I waste a couple airline tickets and a trip to that fancy men’s store y’all got downtown?” her father asked, opening his arms for a second time.

Corona blinked—not because she didn’t want to launch herself into her father’s arms, but because she was afraid of what would happen if she did. It’d been so long.

“Honey?” Rowan elbowed her and then gave her a gentle push. It proved to be just the jumpstart she needed to enter her father’s arms. But, even so, she was completely unprepared for the dam that had been repressing her emotions for years to completely crumble.

“Corona Mae.” Her father sighed next to her ear as his arms tightened around her. “It’s been way too long.”

Hug him back. You should hug him back.
Quivering like the last fall leaf on the first day of winter, Corona drew in a deep breath and then slowly slid her arms
around her father, careful not to drop her empty champagne glass.

Rufus Banks’s mountainous body trembled as a choked sob escaped him.

Corona’s sob wasn’t far behind his. Never in her life had she ever come close to seeing her father like this. He had two modes: congenial and angry. One thing he didn’t do was cry. He certainly hadn’t cried when he’d given her an ultimatum and then disowned her after her great escape from her shotgun wedding.

“I’ve dreamed of this moment for so long,” her mother said, throwing her arms around them in one big bear hug.

Corona’s emotional flood was about to test the waterproof claims of her makeup.

“Hey, guys. Don’t forget about me.”

At the familiar lyrical voice, Corona lifted her head from the crook of her father’s arms to see her sister’s smiling face.

“Tess.” Corona lit up and pulled out of her father’s arms so that she could go to her sister next. This unexpected reunion was starting to feel like an episode of
This Is Your Life.
There was just one person missing.

As if the universe had heard her thoughts, Lyfe Alton suddenly appeared at the doorway with a casual smile. She pulled out of her sister’s arms, with her eyes wide and her mouth opened in shock.

“Hello, Corona Mae,” he said in a warm baritone that nearly melted the muscles off her bones.

Corona’s champagne glass crashed to the floor for the second time.

H
ow Corona remained on her feet was a complete scientific mystery. One would think that other bodily functions would cease to work after going brain-dead, as Corona was sure she had.

“I take it that you’re surprised to see me,” Lyfe said. His sexy full lips stretched into a breathtaking smile. The baby face was gone and, in its place, was a devastatingly handsome man with a square jaw and glittering cognac-brown eyes.

Corona continued to stand there like a deaf mute while her gaze roamed over Lyfe’s rich mahogany skin, his broad shoulders, and his chest that was a landscape of chiseled muscles.

“Hello.” Tess waved a hand in front of her face a few times until she broke through her trance.

“Oh. Uh … “ She shook her head but the image of Lyfe
and Tess remained in front of her. It wasn’t a hallucination.

Tess smiled. “Aren’t you going to invite us in?”

Instinctively, Corona shook her head, but said, “Sure. C’mon in.”

Lyfe and Tess looked at each other and then back at Corona.

“It’s kind of hard to do that with you blocking the door,” her sister informed her.

“Oh!” She jumped and then stepped back, crunching down on the broken glass. She picked her foot up too quickly and suddenly felt herself starting to fall backward.

Lyfe’s old football instincts kicked into gear, and he rushed into action before her action-star fiancé even had a chance to move.

Strong, sinewy arms wrapped around Corona. There was no doubt in her mind that it was their strength and not the sudden loss of altitude that stole her breath. When he lifted her back up, his masculine scent enveloped her and his intense gaze branded her soul.

Rowan cleared his throat.

One side of Lyfe’s full lips cocked into a half smile. “Careful. We don’t want you to hurt yourself, now do we?”

She could only mouth the word “no” because her voice failed her. Who cared that there was a house full of people behind her witnessing this … reunion. All she knew was that she could easily spend the rest of her life locked in this man’s arms and smothered in his masculine scent. All too soon, he had righted her back onto her feet and unwound his steely arms from her body. But it hadn’t stopped her head from spinning.

“It’s good seeing you again.” He stepped back.

Corona’s vertigo intensified.

Rowan wrapped his arm around her waist and sized Lyfe up from head to toe. It was clear in his body language that he sensed a threat.

“I take it that you two know each other,” Wahida finally said with a calculating glance. “Quite well, I’m guessing.”

Corona thought it was best to ignore that loaded comment. “Uhm, hon—” she cut a look over at Lyfe. “Rowan, this is my sister Contessa.”

“But everyone calls me Tess,” her sister informed him, stretching out her hand.

“Sister?” Rowan blinked before his smile stretched wider. “Well, give me a hug, sis,” he said, flinging his arms open and erasing the short distance between them.

Tess’s eyes popped when Rowan lifted her off her feet with a huge bear hug.

While they were doing that, Corona and Lyfe’s eyes re-engaged. She tried her best to read him, but she didn’t know Lyfe the man like she had known the boy he’d been. Try as she might, she couldn’t detect any hint of anger or resentment on his face or even his body language.

Luckily, another waiter strolled by and Corona pounced on one of the passing flutes. When Rowan and Tess broke away, Corona sensed that her fiancé was waiting for her to finish the introductions.

Her gaze shifted to Lyfe and once again her brain frizzed out. “And this is, uhm … er … “

Lyfe’s brows crashed together as he realized he would have to introduce himself. “Lyfe Alton. Pleased to meet you.” The men smacked palms and shook.

It might have just been Corona, but it appeared to her that Lyfe was pumping and squeezing Rowan’s hand with a little more aggression and strength than was necessary.

“Lyfe Alton,” Wahida said, rolling the name around her tongue like it was a familiar taste.

For a brief moment, Corona feared the woman was going to put all of Corona’s business out in the open. If she had hired a private detective to find her parents, surely she had dug up everything else about her life. Hell, maybe it was her detective that had been snooping around in her closet.

Corona sucked in a deep breath. This just confirmed what she had always suspected: Wahida didn’t like her. She didn’t know whether it was because of her color, her status, or simply because she wasn’t Danica Foxx.

Before the drama Wahida had cooked up could escalate, the crowd behind started tapping their champagne flutes, and the sound rose to a deafening crescendo.

Rowan straightened his shoulders and popped his collar. “That’s our signal.” Rowan winked at his future in-laws and then grabbed Corona’s hand. “Excuse us, won’t you?”

Corona didn’t know what was happening, and she didn’t get a chance to ask before she was whisked away from the small group. As she zipped past Lyfe, once again their gazes connected. A new army of goose bumps marched down her spine, while inside she endured a combination of fluttering butterflies and stomach muscles looping into sailor’s knots. And yet, she still couldn’t detect anything in his expression.

Why was he there?

Rowan held up his hand to quiet all the clinking
glasses. Then one of the performers handed him a microphone.

“Thanks, everybody. First of all, Chloe and I want to thank each and every one of you for coming out and spending one of your holiday evenings with us on this joyous occasion. For those of you who don’t know, this lovely woman standing next to me has agreed to become my wife.”

Everyone “aw’ed” and then applauded enthusiastically.

Corona couldn’t stop her gaze from scanning out into the crowd. Once she’d zeroed in on Lyfe, she struggled to pull her eyes away. Damn he looked good. He’d smelled good too—and the way his arms felt wrapped around her body was still doing something to her.

From the corner of her eyes, she caught Wahida’s head swiveling between her and Lyfe. A couple of times, she even leaned over and whispered something into Danica’s ear.

Corona finally found the strength to jerk herself out of her own trance and return her attention to Rowan. But that didn’t mean that she could truly concentrate on what he was saying. There was something about his leaving to put in a couple of weeks shooting his next film before the wedding.

Like most men, he was leaving the planning of the wedding to Chloe and his mother. That last part caught Corona’s attention and she wondered why in the hell he thought his mother would have any say in
her
wedding. But she covered up her irritation by flashing another smile and then mentally urging Rowan to hurry up and finish. She needed another drink.

But Rowan loved being the center of attention and if
she let him, he would keep them standing there for the rest of the night. “Okay, honey. I think everyone would like to sample some of that wonderful food your mother had catered.”

“Ah. That’s my cue,” Rowan said, winking. “My baby is trying out her new set of balls and chains.”

The crowd laughed.

Rowan pulled Corona closer. “I’m a lucky man,” he announced and then received another round applause. “Not only am I getting a beautiful wife, but I’m also acquiring a new family. Everyone, I’d like to introduce you all to my new in-laws, the Banks.” He gestured to the back of the room. “Rufus, Adele and Tess, raise your hands so everyone can see you.”

Oh, dear God,
Corona thought.

Everyone turned and her father politely lifted his hand and waved to the crowd. “Pleased to meet y’all,” he said in a thick Southern accent.

There were a few giggles that danced through the crowd and Corona grew instantly defensive. Her polite smile twisted into a sharp glower.

However, her parents just smiled, clueless that they were the butt of an unspoken joke.

“And now, I’d like to give
y’all
a preview of coming attractions,” Rowan said.

Before Corona had a chance to even guess what the hell he was talking about, she was swept into his arms and dipped so far back that her head nearly touched the floor. When she opened her mouth to protest, it was quickly silenced by Rowan’s dramatic kiss. Too bad it wasn’t the primary cause of her being lightheaded. That had more to do with him leaving her upside down a few seconds too long. Just as quickly as he dipped her back,
he jerked her back up and then released her to wobble on her legs before the crowd.

Lyfe stood stone-faced for about as long as he could stand it before turning toward Tess. “I’m leaving.” He pivoted to bolt toward the door.

“No!” Tess latched on to his arm. “You can’t leave now.”

“Are you kidding me? I think I need my head examined for letting you talk me into coming here. She’s getting married—to
that
guy.” His face twisted at the thought that she preferred that Tom Cruise wannabe over him. Really? What did that guy have that he didn’t?

Another round of amused laughter dusted throughout the crowd before a final applause allowed Rowan to give up the microphone.

“Engaged isn’t the same thing as married,” Tess reminded him.

He cocked his head at her strange response. “I didn’t come here to bust her relationship. I just came to finally get some answers. Closure. That’s all.” He glanced over his shoulder to take another peek at the happy couple.

Jealousy like he’d never known before twisted in his gut as he watched Rowan ease his arm around Corona’s waist in an obvious show of possession. Reflexively Lyfe’s hands balled at his sides.

“Just came for some answers, huh?” Tess chuckled as she finally managed to snatch a flute of champagne for herself.

“I think I’m entitled to a few,” he said, still tracking the newly engaged couple as they laughed and mingled with their guests. He couldn’t help but note just how much more beautiful Corona was in person. The television interview had failed to do her justice.

The girl he’d fallen in love with was gone and, in her place, was this gorgeous creature with incredible Coke bottle curves, long powerful legs and a smile that kept stabbing him in the heart each time she flashed it at everyone but him.

Tess attempted to cut into his thoughts again. “Call me crazy if you want, but, if you ask me, I think you’re just trying to punk out.”

Lyfe jerked back around and twisted up his face. “Punk out?”

She nodded. “I’m not blind, you know. You haven’t been able to keep your eyes off her since you walked in here.”

At that moment, Corona snuck a look over at them.

“And apparently she can’t keep her eyes off you, either,” Tess added.

Lyfe cut another look across the room and sucked in a small breath when his gaze connected with hers. He attributed the extra kick in his pulse to the fact that her eyes had turned a simmering amber color, which meant that she was excited or tuned on. The only problem was that he didn’t know whether it was him, or the man standing next to her, that was triggering the reaction.