Seducing the Wolf (12 page)

The low, resolute words sent a frisson of panic through her. She swallowed tightly. “Manning—”

He lifted his head. Bright headlights from passing vehicles penetrated the tinted glass to reveal his stormy expression. “You came here—”

“As a favor to an old friend who teaches at Emory.”

“Is that what you’re telling yourself?” Manning challenged, his eyes glittering up at her, pinning her to the seat.

Taylor stared at him. She could feel her heart pounding, the blood rushing past her eardrums. She felt weak and vulnerable, as fragile as the strings on her violin.

“I don’t know what you want from me, Manning,” she whispered, trying to summon the righteous anger that had fortified her during their years apart. “We’re not kids anymore. We have our own lives—”

“Do you love him?”

“What?”

“Aidan. You said earlier that he loves you. Do
you
love
him
?”

There shouldn’t have been any hesitation. She shouldn’t have had to think about it. The answer should have rolled right off her tongue. But it didn’t, and that troubled her almost as much as the betrayal she’d just committed.

“Of course I love Aidan,” she said defiantly. “I’ve been with him for three years. He understands me, and I understand him. We’re good together.”

Manning was silent, his dark eyes scanning her face like a searchlight, seeking buried truths and secrets.

Taylor waited, breath stalled painfully in her lungs.

After an excruciating eternity, Manning rose from the floor, returned to the other end of the seat and stared out the window.

They rode back to Atlanta in complete silence.

10

U
pon returning to her hotel room, Taylor peeled off her clothes and took a long shower. The water was near scalding, pounding at her body and washing dirt and sweat from her pores. She wished it were as easy to rinse away the guilt and shame she was feeling. She needed a spiritual cleansing, like a sinner seeking absolution for her sins. But as she stood beneath the hot water with her eyes closed, it was hard to think of repentance when she could still feel Manning touching her, stroking her, plunging his fingers deep inside her body. It was hard to consign herself to perdition when she’d just experienced the ultimate nirvana.  

When she emerged from the shower, she slipped on a clean white robe provided by the hotel. The plush fabric absorbed the moisture from her skin and enveloped her like a warm embrace she didn’t deserve.

Sighing, she pulled off her wet shower cap, untwisted her topknot and combed her fingers through her hair. The edges were damp at her temples and the nape of her neck. She’d gone natural eight years ago to simplify her hair care routine once her demanding tour schedule began preventing her from keeping regular salon appointments. After she’d chopped off her relaxed tresses, she’d felt freer than ever before. Rocking a short afro had emboldened her, imbuing her with an inner confidence she hadn’t felt in years. For the first time ever she could truly appreciate her thick brows, her big brown eyes, her high cheekbones, her full lips. When men flirted with her, she knew they were seeing her true beauty and nothing less.

Now, eight years later, her hair was thicker, longer and healthier than ever. Before leaving Paris, she’d gone to her personal stylist to have her hair blown out and flat ironed. She enjoyed being versatile and wearing different styles, even when she wasn’t performing.

As Taylor padded into the bedroom, her eyes landed on her leather handbag in the center of the bed. She stopped and stared at it as if it were a coiled rattlesnake poised to strike.

She’d left her purse in the limo all day so that she could explore Callaway Gardens unencumbered. Or at least that’s what she’d told herself at the time. Deep down, she knew the real reason was that she didn’t want to have her cell phone with her if Aidan called. She’d already lied to him that morning about having breakfast with Manning. There was no way she could tell him that she and Manning were spending the whole day together.

Ungluing her feet from the floor, Taylor went over to the bed and reluctantly pulled her phone out of her handbag. Her heart sank when she saw that Aidan had called several times. Seven, to be exact. And he’d texted her twice.

She grimaced, lowering herself to the bed as she read his messages. He’d sent the first one while she was on her way to Callaway Gardens:
Are you back from breakfast yet? Where did you go? Hope it was good. The deputy secretary is taking me to dinner tonight. That ought to be interesting. Call me when you get back to your room.

The second text came through nearly two hours later:
Still haven’t heard from you. Are you still at breakfast? Or did you get sidetracked on your way back to the hotel? I know you have a tendency to wander off for hours, especially if there’s a museum or a flea market involved. I hope that’s the reason I haven’t heard from you.

Taylor gnawed her lower lip, her stomach churning with guilt. She couldn’t bring herself to listen to the three voice mail messages Aidan had also left. He’d been worried that she and Manning would rekindle their relationship, and she’d assured him that he had nothing to worry about.

What a liar she was. A liar and a cheater.

Suddenly her cell phone rang, startling her so bad she dropped it on the floor.

Nervously tucking her hair behind one ear, she reached down to pick up the phone. She felt a surge of relief when she saw her mother’s number. And then she remembered the time difference between Washington, D.C. and Paris, and she realized that her mother wouldn’t be calling her this late unless it was an emergency.

Or she knew Taylor wasn’t in Paris.

Either reason was cause for dread.

Taking a deep breath, Taylor reluctantly pressed the answer button. “Hey, Mom.”

“Hey, yourself.” There was no mistaking the note of reproach in Elyse Vaughn’s smooth, cultured voice. “You didn’t tell me you were coming to the States this month.”

“Yet somehow you found out anyway,” Taylor murmured.

“Only because Aidan told me.”

“You spoke to Aidan?”

“I just got off the phone with him. He thought I already knew you were both back in the country. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“I don’t know,” Taylor lied. “It must have slipped my mind.”

Her mother was silent. She wasn’t buying the excuse.

“So you’re in Atlanta,” she said evenly.

“Yes. I’m doing a music residency at Emory.”

“That’s what Aidan told me.” More disapproval leaked into Elyse’s voice. “Do you really think that’s a good idea?”

“I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t,” Taylor countered.

“I see.”

Taylor could picture her mother with her brows furrowed, lips pursed, elegant fingers wrapped around a glass of Merlot as she sat in the luxurious parlor of the Georgetown brownstone she shared with her second husband. Elyse Vaughn was a U.S. senator and one of the most powerful women in Washington. She could read people like a book, no one better than her daughter.

“I thought you were taking the summer off to spend more time with Aidan,” Elyse reminded Taylor.

“I am. The residency only lasts for three weeks.”

“Three weeks is more than enough time to find trouble if you’re looking for it.”

Taylor said nothing, her face heating with shame at the memory of her erotic interlude with Manning.

“Aidan was worried about you,” Elyse continued. “He said he’s been trying to reach you all day. He was having dinner, but he stepped away to call me to see if I’d heard from you. Where have you been?”

“I was out,” Taylor mumbled.

Her mother sighed. The sound was heavy with disappointment, frustration and a hint of sadness. “What are you doing there, darling? What are you looking for?”

Taylor pinched the bridge of her nose. “I don’t want to discuss this right now, Mom.”

“Of course you don’t. You never have.”

Taylor closed her eyes as the old feelings of guilt and sorrow came rushing back, spilling over her like black waves of oil washing up on a shore after a major explosion.

I’m sorry, Micah! It was my fault! All my fault!

“I don’t want him to hurt you again,” Elyse said gently. “You’ve come so far, accomplished so much. Why jeopardize all that?”

“I’m not jeopardizing anything,” Taylor insisted, her voice cracking.

The silence on the other end of the line was deafening.

Taylor waited, digging her fingernails into her palms until the pain made her flinch.

“Do you know what I remember?” her mother said quietly. “I remember how lost you were when you came to live with me after Micah died. You wouldn’t eat. You wouldn’t sleep. You wouldn’t talk. You locked yourself away in your room and played the violin from morning to night. It was like a never-ending funeral. We were both an emotional wreck, but you...you scared me, Taylor. That’s why I sent for your father. Not because I needed him or wanted him around. I sent for him because I was worried about you, and I was afraid you might try to hurt yourself. Your father had always been able to get through to you. But not that time. You wouldn’t talk to him either. Only your violin knew your secrets. And Manning Wolf knew. You wrote him letters, poured out your heart to him.” A trace of bitterness entered Elyse’s voice. “I knew you were grieving for Micah, but at times I thought you missed Manning even more than your poor brother.”

“That’s not true!” Taylor cried vehemently, shaking her head. “You
know
that’s not true. Micah was my baby. I took care of him when
you
weren’t there.”

“I wasn’t there because your father won custody—”

“Because you didn’t even put up a fight!”

“Is that what you think?” Elyse challenged hotly. “You think I just rolled over and let your father beat me? When have you ever known me to back down from a fight? After all these years and as close as we’ve always been, do you honestly believe I didn’t want custody of you? Your father was a ruthless monster, Taylor. He took you and your brothers away from me, and I will
never
forgive him for that. But we’re not talking about that right now. We’re talking about you and your foolish refusal to leave Manning Wolf in the past.”

Taylor frowned. “I’m not—”

“Do you remember how devastated you were when he ignored your letters? You kept waiting and waiting for him to respond, but he never did. You even called and spoke to his mother. I remember Manning was away at basketball camp, but she promised you that he’d call you back when he returned home. But he didn’t, and you were absolutely crushed. His silence made it clear that he’d moved on with his life, and he wanted you to do the same.”

Taylor swallowed hard at the memory. The pain had never completely gone away. It was a wound carved into her lungs, making it difficult to breathe at times.

“What is he supposed to think of you being there?” Elyse pressed. “Would he be wrong to think you still want him after all these years?”

Why’d you come here? You could have gone anywhere you wanted. Why Atlanta?

Taylor lifted her chin. “Isn’t this still a free country? I can go wherever I want.”

“That doesn’t mean you should.”

Taylor sighed. “Mom—”

“Listen to me. Aidan is a wonderful man, and he loves you. The moment I met him, I knew he’d be good for you. He’s dependable and trustworthy, the kind of man you can feel secure with. He’s not egotistical or demanding or domineering. He admires you and he respects who you are.” Elyse’s voice gentled. “Don’t make the same mistake I made with your father, Taylor. Don’t choose the wrong man, or you’ll regret it for the rest of your life.”

Taylor absorbed her mother’s words in brooding silence.

After several moments, Elyse continued in a more conciliatory tone, “Anyway, I didn’t call to upset you. I’m glad you’re back in the country. If you’re free next weekend, Boyd and I would love to have you and Aidan over for a small dinner party I’m hosting.”

Boyd Vaughn was Elyse’s husband, an influential political strategist who’d helped her get elected to the U.S. Senate fourteen years ago. They’d married shortly afterward, becoming one of the most formidable power duos in politics.

“Do you think you can get away from Atlanta for a couple days?” Elyse prompted. “You know it would make Truman’s day to have you here.”

“Tru?” Taylor lit up at the mention of her older brother, a lieutenant colonel currently serving in Iraq. “Is he home already? I thought his unit wasn’t due back until next month.”

“They came home early. Tru showed up at my office yesterday and gave me the surprise of my life,” Elyse warmly recalled.

Taylor smiled a touch wistfully. “I wish I’d been there. I miss Tru.”

“I know you do. And he misses you too.”

Taylor sighed. “We talk on the phone and e-mail each other all the time, but it’s not the same as being together in person. I haven’t seen him since my tour stop in D.C. last January.”

“I know. He mentioned that. Which brings me to something else I’ve been wanting to discuss with you.”