She was definitely all grown up

But she was still Beth, and he had to remember that. She wasn’t like the women he usually dated. Beth was a forever kind of girl. He frowned at the thought of the ex-husband he’d never met. But Zach didn’t have to meet him to know he didn’t like him. Anyone who hurt Beth was his enemy.

Zach clenched his jaw. No matter how much he was attracted to her, he would never, ever take advantage of her. Beth meant too much to him. Even if a misguided need for revenge or an urge to prove she could seduce him started her thinking along those lines, he would not allow it to happen. He almost laughed at that. Wishful thinking on his part. There was no denying what he still felt. But…he would protect her just as he always had.

He would protect her from him.

For the most private investigations.

The Marriage Prescription
Debra Webb

www.millsandboon.co.uk

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Debra Webb was born in Scottsboro, Alabama, to parents who taught her that anything is possible if you want it badly enough. She began writing at age nine. Eventually she met and married the man of her dreams and tried some other occupations, including selling vacuum cleaners and working in a factory, a day-care center, a hospital and a department store. When her husband joined the military, they moved to Berlin, Germany, and Debra became a secretary in the commanding general’s office. By 1985 they were back in the States, and they finally moved to Tennessee, to a small town where everyone knows everyone else. With the support of her husband and two beautiful daughters, Debra took up writing again, looking to mystery and movies for inspiration. In 1998 her dream of writing for Harlequin came true. You can write to Debra with your comments at P.O. Box 64, Huntland, Tennessee 37345.

Contents

Prologue

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Epilogue

Prologue

More than three decades ago…

The three women sat in the elegant parlor, two on the original Sheraton sofa, one in a stately wing-back chair on the opposite side of an exquisite Chippendale table. Tea sat cooling in its gleaming silver pot, the one the lady of the house used for very special visitors. And today’s visitor was the most special of all.

An expectant silence had filled the air for far too long before someone finally spoke. “I think this is the best solution for everyone,” she said with a smile that masked the inner turmoil she didn’t want the others to see. Bringing these two together was the perfect solution. She glanced at her dear friend who sat at her side. It could work. She knew it could.

“I agree, my friend,” the oldest of the three added in that refined tone polished by years of finishing school. “I can assure you that if you choose this solution,” she said to the youngest, “the child will never want for anything. Never. The finest health care and schooling will be provided, regardless of cost. The child will have the best of everything, including parents that will love him or her with all their hearts.”

She noticed the tears in her dear friend’s eyes as she spoke and she blinked furiously to hold back her own. This was the right thing to do. It was in the best interest of all concerned. How could any of them lose? They couldn’t. She would not have arranged this meeting otherwise.

“I—I know both of you are right,” the young woman said hesitantly. She was eighteen, unmarried and pregnant…she was desperate. The baby’s father was missing in action, presumed dead. “It’s just that this is so hard.” Her own tears welled past her lashes and rolled down her pale cheeks. She placed her palm against her still flat abdomen and seemed to gather her courage. “But this is the best way. I know that. My child will be better off with you.” She smiled faintly through her tears. “So, how do we do this?”

The oldest of the three smiled warmly, anticipation lighting her eyes. “Don’t worry dear, we’ll take care of everything. You won’t ever have to worry again.”

Chapter One

He had no choice.

For the first time in his adult life, Zach Ashton was going to have to put his personal life before his professional one. And it wasn’t an easy task. His natural inclination was career first, and anything else worth having would follow. It was the law by which all Ashtons lived.

“You’re sure two weeks won’t be a problem?” Zach paused in his restless pacing to study his long-time boss, Victoria Colby, as she considered his question.

“I’m quite sure. You should take as much time as you need. We’ll be fine here.”

He braced his hands on the backs of the two wing chairs flanking her massive oak desk and blew out a weary breath. “Johnson and Wilks have everything under control,” he said as much to himself as to Victoria. “They have my mother’s number if they need me for anything.”

Victoria searched his face with that assessing gaze of hers and then hit the nail right on the head. “Who are you trying to convince, Zach, me or you?”

Moving around one of the chairs, he dropped into it and leaned his head against its high back. “Me, I think.” He settled his gaze on Victoria’s then. “She’s the only family I have left, and I love her. I can’t not go.” He scrubbed a hand over his jaw. He’d agonized over this decision all night. “A week from Saturday is her birthday for Christ’s sake. I have to be there. But two weeks?” He shook his head. “Can I tolerate two whole weeks without the rush of a legal coup?”

Victoria flared her palms. “You said yourself that considering your mother’s recent heart attack and her age, you couldn’t afford not to go for an extended visit.”

Zach nodded. “Seventy-five’s a major milestone. And the heart attack scared the hell out of me. I have to stay the whole two weeks. I’m just not sure either of us will survive it. We’re both too accustomed to having our way.”

Victoria smiled with understanding. She, of all people, knew Zach rarely took no for an answer when he wanted something. He’d inherited that tenacious trait from his mother.

“Forget work,” Victoria suggested. “Enjoy your mother. Let this be her time. Acquiesce to her every demand. Who knows? Maybe you’ll have more fun than you expect.”

He arched a skeptical brow. “In Kelso, Indiana? Population not nearly enough. I doubt it.” Zach stood. “But I’ll go.”

“Good.” Victoria rose from her chair. “I’ll see you in two weeks then.”

Zach hesitated at the door and produced a feigned smile. “And I’ll enjoy every minute of it if it kills me.”

There was a very good chance it would, Zach didn’t add as he slipped out of his boss’s office and closed the door behind him. He hadn’t spent more than a day or two at one time back home in too many years to remember. It was true that part of the reason was the fact that he and his mother were so very much alike, both determined to do things their own way. But Zach dearly loved his mother and he always deferred to her wishes. Always. She had taught him to go after what he wanted with a vengeance, and to never say die. Like any good son, Zach had learned his lesson well. Only once in his entire life had he backed away from what he really wanted. And therein lay the other part of the reason he rarely went home for a lengthy stay.

But he didn’t know why he was worried so much about it, she wouldn’t be there anyway.

“YOU TELL that old battle-ax that I wouldn’t coordinate her birthday party now if she begged me to!”

Beth McCormick stared, appalled, at her mother, then turned her attention to her mother’s employer. “Mrs. Ashton, I’m sure Mother didn’t mean to say battle-ax. You’ll have to forgive her, she’s been under a lot of stress lately, and—”

“You’re darned tootin’ I meant battle-ax,” Helen McCormick argued, her dark eyes glittering with anger. She stood now, her fists planted firmly on her hips. “I’m washing my hands of the whole affair!”

Other than the red tingeing her cheeks, Colleen Ashton showed little outward reaction to her oldest friend’s outburst. Calmly, Colleen turned her regal head in Beth’s direction and smiled patiently. “Beth, if she chooses to resign her post as chairperson of my birthday party, it’s perfectly all right with me. I’m quite certain that the event will be a great deal more appealing and fresh without an old bag like her running the show anyway.”

Helen’s eyes bulged with indignation. “Why I ought to—”

“Mother.” Beth jumped to her mother’s side and tugged her toward the parlor door. “We’ll get this all straightened out, Mrs. Ashton. Don’t worry about anything. Your birthday will be everything you’ve dreamed it would be.”

Colleen rose, not a single elegant feather appearing ruffled. “I’m sure you’ll do a much better job than your mother.”

Beth stalled halfway to the door. She couldn’t mean… “But I—”

“Don’t worry, dear,” Colleen assured her, “Zach is arriving this afternoon. He’ll be more than happy to help you make all the arrangements. We won’t need anyone else,” she added with a pointed stare at her old friend.

Helen McCormick glared at Colleen Ashton, but to her credit she didn’t retaliate. Not verbally anyway. Instead, she stamped out of the room, down the entry hall and out the front door, slamming it firmly behind her.

Beth shrugged, uncertain what to say. Opting to remain silent for fear of unintentionally volunteering for something else she’d regret, Beth rushed out of the house to catch up with her mother.

“Mother!” Beth dashed across the porch and down the steps, then matched her stride to her mother’s furious one. “What in the world was that all about?”

“I have nothing else to say on the subject,” Helen snapped, then compressed her lips into that firm line that indicated the depth of her fury much more so than anything she could have said. Whatever had happened, Beth’s usually unflappable mother was fit to be tied.

“This is ridiculous,” Beth insisted. “You and Mrs. Ashton have been friends for a lifetime. What could possibly have happened to cause such a falling out?”

Helen stopped abruptly and turned to face her daughter. With her gray hair in its usual neat style, and wearing her jeans and work shirt, both meticulously pressed, she looked just as she always did—serene, earthy. But something was very, very wrong.

Beth’s mother had been head housekeeper and cook in the Ashton home for forty years. She’d been overseer of the estate grounds as well since Beth’s father died. Although she no longer did much of the actual work herself, no one dared to challenge Helen’s authority when it came to the care and keeping of the house or the property. Not to mention she’d been companion to and best friends with the mistress of the estate for most of that same forty years. Never in Beth’s entire life had she seen these two old friends at odds like this.

Never.

“Let’s just say that there are some things that need to be said, and it’s not my place to do the saying,” Helen told her without telling her anything at all.

With that, she stormed across the driveway and up the stone path of the east garden to her cottage.

Beth stared after her until she’d disappeared inside. Exasperated, Beth considered the small, inviting cottage in which she had grown up. Ivy partially covered the gray stone walls, while the east garden provided a picturesque setting with its array of rose bushes and other flowering shrubs that Beth’s father had seen to the nurturing of for nearly half a century. Ancient trees stood majestically above the wood-shingled roof, the heavy green boughs blending with those of the dense woods scarcely fifty yards behind the cottage. On the south side towered one massive old tree in particular that held fond memories for Beth. The giant oak on whose sturdy branch her father had hung her first swing with its wooden seat and heavy braided rope cables. The very one still hanging there today.

The memory of laughing as Zach Ashton pushed her ever higher in that swing flooded her being. She closed her eyes and relived the feel of the wind on her face, the sound of his deep, rich laughter. Though much older than she, he’d proven a reliable friend and even an occasional playmate. Beth opened her eyes and grimaced at the memory. Zach would likely consider that time with her more baby-sitting duty than playtime. The worst part was that she had been in love with him since she was twelve years old.

She’d watched him graduate from high school and go off to law school, and in her heart of hearts she’d known that when he finished his education he’d come back for her.

But he hadn’t.

He’d come back all right, but not for her.

So certain of their future together that at seventeen, she’d felt compelled to show him once and for all just how much she loved him. Beth cringed now at the thought. Zach had come home for a weekend visit and she’d thrown herself at him, professing her love and offering him her innocent, young body.

He had refused.

Beth took a deep breath and shoved those thoughts and the hurt that still accompanied them way back into a dark corner where they belonged. This was not the time to dawdle in the past. She had to find a way to patch the rift between her mother and Zach’s. Otherwise she was going to be stuck organizing this birthday party.

Her eyes widened as Mrs. Ashton’s final words sank fully into her head. Zach would be here this afternoon.

Today.

Oh, God.

Beth’s stomach quivered and her knees felt suddenly weak. Now, she decided, would be an excellent time for her to take a vacation anywhere but here. But she couldn’t. She had patients depending upon her. One in particular.

“Okay, girl, you can do this.” Beth took another deep breath and forced her feet in the direction of home.

This wouldn’t be the first time Zach had come home for a brief visit. It wasn’t as if she hadn’t seen him in all this time since he’d brutally broken her young heart. She’d seen him several times. Even exchanged hellos and how are yous. She halted mid-step.

But she hadn’t seen him since…

…the day she’d announced her impending marriage.

…a marriage that had proven a huge mistake.

Wasn’t she the picture of success? Thirty-one, divorced and living with her mother. God, she was pathetic.

Beth squared her shoulders. This was the new millennium. Divorce wasn’t a disease and living with her mother wasn’t a measure of her lack of success in life. Both simply were.

Besides, Zach Ashton was just a childhood memory…a local legend in these parts. The richest, most eligible bachelor in Higdon County. All the girls had loved him. But that was then and this was now. Beth grinned impishly. The guy was a lawyer. She knew plenty of lawyers. He was probably overweight, balding and sporting reading glasses.

She hadn’t seen him in…five years? That was about right. He’d come home briefly when Mrs. Ashton had been hospitalized following her heart attack, but Beth had been away participating in a medical conference at the time. And since she’d only been living with her mother for four months, her schedule and Zach’s, as far as the couple of visits he’d made, had not coincided.

She felt immensely better now. Beth started toward the cottage again. She might be divorced and living at home with her mother, but she had kept her figure. In fact, she took excellent care of herself. She ran three miles everyday and worked out, was still lucky to have great skin and not the first sign of gray hair. And her salary as a physician allowed her to invest wisely and to dress well.

Well, usually she dressed well.

Today being an exception since she was helping her mother in the garden and wasn’t on call. At sixty-five, Helen was slowing considerably, but she refused to allow the gardener to come near the roses—roses Beth’s father had planted. She smiled. Since she was living at home now, the least she could do was give her mother a hand from time to time. Besides, she’d always loved to play in the flowers. And jeans and T-shirts were still her favorite off-duty attire. She could care less if the president himself was stopping by this afternoon. Beth had no intention of behaving any differently than she always did.

The sound of a car pulling into the drive brought her up short. She turned around slowly and shaded her eyes from the sun with her hand. Please don’t let this be him, Lord, she pleaded. I know I just said I didn’t care, but it was a little white lie. I need to be prepared before I face the man.

A red sports car braked to a stop and the driver climbed out and stretched as if he’d been sitting too long. Though she didn’t recognize the car, Beth had that feeling. He turned toward her. Her heart stilled during the hesitation that followed. Then, as if finally recognizing her, a brilliant smile broke out across his face.

It was him.

“Beth!”

Zach Ashton strode in her direction and her heart felt as if it had stopped beating entirely…which was impossible since she didn’t drop dead.

He was not fat.

Or balding.

Or wearing reading glasses.

He was perfect. Just like all those years ago, only better. He was tall, lean and absolutely gorgeous. His khakis might be slightly travel wrinkled, but the navy blue polo shirt that molded to his perfect pecs and broad shoulders more than made up for it.

He stopped directly in front of her, pulled off his designer sunglasses and hugged her fiercely.

He smelled like fresh air and sandalwood. And his strong arms felt like heaven around her. For about two seconds she resisted the urge to press her cheek to his chest and then she gave in. He’d held her just like this a hundred times before. When she’d cried after Sammy Potter pushed her down on the playground. When she’d gotten her period at eleven and realized she had to be a girl whether she wanted to or not. And then, at sixteen when her father had died and she’d been devastated.

Eventually Zach drew away and stared down at her, his hands still bracketing her waist. “God, you look great.”

Color shot to her cheeks. She did not look great. She had on jeans and a T-shirt and worn-out sneakers. She was sweaty and dusty from puttering in the garden with her mother.

She was—darn it—she was a mess.

“Hi, Zach,” she managed to croak. “You look…terrific.”

Boy did he. His hair was shorter, but still dark and thick. Those eyes. She melted just looking into them. As clear and blue as when he’d been twenty-two and visiting from college. And his face. How could anyone so close to forty still look that damn good? There was a line or two here and there, but they only gave him character.

“God, I’ve missed you,” he said wistfully. “What are you doing here? Visiting your mom?”

This was it. Insecurity riddled what was left of her bravado. She was divorced, living with her mother and…God Almighty…still in love with Zach Ashton.

“No,” she admitted, the word seeming to ring out in the otherwise silence that surrounded them. “I’m living here again. I’m on staff at Cartersville General.”

He looked stunned.

She felt humiliated.

“I thought you were—”

She shook her head, cutting him off before he could utter the M-word. “Not anymore.” Apparently their two mothers had kept their word about not mentioning Beth’s marital woes.

Zach took her left hand in his and stared at her bare ring finger. He frowned. “I’m…” his concerned gaze reconnected with hers “…sorry.”

Beth manufactured a smile. “I’m not.” She stepped out of his hold. “Your mother’s inside. I’m sure she can’t wait to see you.”

He nodded distractedly. “Yeah.” He hitched a thumb toward his car. “I should get my bags.”

Beth blinked. “Bags?”

That devilish grin that had charmed every female in this county as well as the next spread across his devastatingly handsome face. “Didn’t she tell you? I’m taking a little time off. I’ll be here for two weeks. That’s why I drove instead of taking a flight.”

Two weeks?

Beth couldn’t take two weeks of having him right next door. The past was bound to come up. He’d want to talk. She’d want to…she slammed the door on that notion.

“I thought maybe I could help with the birthday organizing,” he added when she didn’t respond.

“That’d…be great,” she forced out. “Just great.”

He started to back away, those amazing blue eyes never leaving hers. “Let’s have dinner or something,” he suggested in that sexy, utterly male way that came as naturally as breathing to him.

“Sure,” she lied.

Dinner was out of the question. She couldn’t have dinner with him. She couldn’t have anything with him. What was she thinking? Blast it all, it was like she was a teenager again and unable to think properly in his presence.

He was halfway to his car before he finally turned his back to her, but before he did, he shook his head and exhaled a big breath of genuine masculine approval. “You look…terrific. It’s really good to see you.”

Beth managed to keep her smile in place until he’d turned around. Then it collapsed into a ground-dragging frown. Only then, with his mesmerizing attention focused elsewhere, did her heart stumble back into an acceptable rhythm.

She was doomed.

Doomed to replay her tortured teenage years when she’d lived and breathed Zach Ashton.

Whatever it took, she had to get her mother and Mrs. Ashton back on speaking terms. Living next door to Zach for two whole weeks would be bad enough. No way was she going to organize an event the size of this birthday celebration with him. That would mean hours of going over decorations, music, menu selections and sending out invitations—which was only a formality anyway since folks around here planned their Septembers around Mrs. Ashton’s birthday.

Beth sprinted the rest of the way to the cottage. All she had to do was find out what had started it. Then she could prod the two old friends into making up. They’d been friends an eternity without the first ripple.

How hard could it be to straighten out this little misunderstanding?

SHE WAS HERE.

And she was even more beautiful than ever. To top it off, she was not only all grown-up, she was available. Zach took a long, deep breath and forced his thoughts away from Beth. He never could think straight around her.

Determined to get past the shock of seeing her, he made his grand entrance into the house only to find that his mother was sleeping. Betty, the housekeeper, said that Mrs. Ashton had retired for a brief nap before the arrival of her son.

Deciding his mother needed the rest and that he could get settled in the meanwhile, Zach lugged his bags up the stairs. He deposited them into his old room and then eased quietly to his mother’s door at the other end of the hall. He smiled as he watched her sleep for a moment. Even at seventy-five she was a lovely woman. He inhaled the scent of White Shoulders and surveyed the familiar room. It looked just as it had when he’d been a child. Elegant and luxurious. His mother’s taste was impeccable. And beneath that pretentious appearance beat a tremendously caring heart. The whole town loved and respected her. She was the best mom a guy could ask for.

Suddenly feeling glad to be home, Zach soundlessly closed the door and made his way back to his own room. He took a deep breath and studied the past that was well documented in the unchanged décor. Football trophies, team photographs and banners covered the walls. Memorabilia of family vacations was scattered about on bookshelves and the tops of his dresser and chest of drawers. Zach picked up a picture of his father and smiled sadly. Graduation day from law school. His father had been so proud. Zach still missed him, though he’d been gone for more than a decade.

Zach carefully placed the picture back on his dresser and wandered to the double windows on the other side of the room. He leaned against the window frame and watched Mrs. McCormick and Beth in the rose garden.

She’d been so gorgeous all those years ago when she’d kissed him. Heat stirred inside him at the memory of her sweet young body pressed against his. He’d wanted her so much, but he’d known that it couldn’t be. She’d only been seventeen. He’d been twenty-four.

But how he’d wanted her. Had loved her for as long as he could remember, but that feeling hadn’t turned sexual until she turned fifteen. He’d known it wasn’t right. Had chastised himself every night for the dreams he couldn’t escape. He’d done his level best to get her out of his head. But no matter how many girls he dated, no matter how many he shared himself with, his feelings for Beth didn’t change.

So he’d avoided her. Fortunately, whenever he visited after that one incident, she usually wasn’t around since she’d gone off to medical school. Once or twice they’d run into each other during one of his brief visits with his mother. And then he’d heard that she was getting married and he’d decided that was good. With her married to someone else he could get on with his life instead of waiting for her.

Zach closed his eyes and shook his head. He had been waiting for her to grow up and get her M.D. She’d apparently never forgiven him for turning her away that one time and the next thing he knew it was too late.

He thought about the way she’d felt in his arms when he hugged her only minutes ago…the way she’d looked at him. And he wondered if she still felt it, too?

He shook off that ridiculous idea. They were different people now. Just because his body didn’t realize that fourteen years had passed since that kiss was no indication that things hadn’t changed big time for Beth.

Everything was different now.

Zach touched the glass as if he could somehow reach out to the woman who had stolen his heart so very long ago.

But he couldn’t change the past.

Chapter Two

A quick shower relieved Beth of the grit and sweat of working in the garden with her mom, but nothing she did the entire afternoon assuaged the fire building in her belly for Zach. She could not evict him from her head now any more than she had been able to from her heart all those years ago. He was always there, just around the next thought. And she did not want to think about him.

Beth sighed and smoothed her hands over her cotton-blend sheath. She surveyed her reflection in the oval full-length mirror and was pleased with what she saw. The pale lemony color of the fabric contrasted well with her tanned skin. She didn’t bother braiding her shoulder-length hair, allowing it to remain loose, something she seldom did. The color, she noted, was streaked with more gold than usual after her summer of helping in the garden when not at the hospital. She had never been much on housework. The outdoors beckoned to her on every level. Her father had ingrained the love of nature and all it had to offer deeply within her. Though he’d been gone half her life, she still missed him.

Despite her most valiant efforts, Zach pushed into her musings, shoving aside all else. Did he see that same little girl next door when he looked at her now? After all, it had been five years since they’d even seen each other. Or did he see her as the woman she had so wanted him to notice all those years ago? Beth shook her head and chased those questions from her thoughts. She didn’t care what Zach thought. If it was up to her she’d send him packing and right back to that fancy agency in Chicago. What was it called? The Colby Agency—that was it.

Why did he have to stay two weeks anyway? The answer zinged a direct hit right between her eyes. Mrs. Ashton had probably called and told him of the trouble she and Beth’s mother were having. Colleen most likely persuaded her one and only son to come to her rescue. Not that Beth could blame her, especially considering she’d had that minor heart attack. And since she had no other children, who else would she call? Still, Zach’s visit sure put a cramp in Beth’s style. It was selfish of her to feel that way, but she did.

No matter how hard she tried not to, everything she did and said during his stay would be weighed against what he thought and whether or not she might run into him whenever she set foot outside her door.

Just like fourteen years ago all over again. Why else would she be standing in front of this mirror now? She rarely spent more than a few seconds checking her appearance. She wasn’t a makeup, big hairdo kind of girl. Never had been. No hair spray or curling irons could be found in her bathroom, and few cosmetics. That realization had her peering even closer at her face and hair. She’d had the same cut for years. Was it time for a change?

Beth squared her shoulders and glowered sternly at the suddenly insecure woman staring back at her. “You are an adult,” she scolded. “Act like one.”

With that reprimand ringing in her ears, she went in search of her mother. They needed some one-on-one time in neutral territory—away from the Ashton environment.

Beth had to know what was going on with Colleen and Helen. All she had to do was find a way to get them back together and she would be saved. Helen would insist on taking charge of the party planning and Beth would be off the hook with Zach. Avoiding him wouldn’t be that difficult then.

Helen McCormick was busily peeling potatoes when Beth entered the kitchen. Lingering near the door, she watched her mother for a bit before speaking. At sixty-five, Helen was still an attractive woman. She’d stayed fit and kept a good attitude about growing older. Her hair was more gray now than blond, and she kept the long mane braided and coiled around the crown of her head just like she had since Beth was a child. She smiled. Her mother was a good woman, a hardworking one who enjoyed life and never took anything for granted.

That was the main draw between Helen and Colleen. Both had such a zest for life. Though their backgrounds differed greatly, from education to financial status, the two were so much alike it was astounding and yet, each woman was entirely different—unique in her own right. Beth had seen the two squabble from time to time, but never had she known them to stop speaking to each other.

It just wasn’t natural.

Zacharius Ashton, Senior, had been very generous to Helen in his will, for no other reason than to show his appreciation for her years of companionship to his wife. Not that the McCormicks had ever wanted for anything anyway. The cottage was Helen’s until the day she died. Her salary had always been well above average for the services she rendered, as had been Beth’s father’s. No one could accuse the Ashtons of anything less than complete fairness.

The arrangement had worked like a charm for nearly half a century. What on earth could have changed a relationship that long-standing?

“Let’s have dinner out tonight, Mom,” Beth suggested hopefully, announcing her presence as she crossed the kitchen to stand beside her mother. “You’ve worked hard today, you need a break.”

Helen didn’t look up from her efficient paring. “Thanks, honey, but I’ve got my heart set on that potato soup your grandmother used to make.”

Beth shrugged. All dressed up and no place to go. “What can I do then?” She reached for the drawer that held the aprons while mentally reviewing the ingredients they would need.

“You just run along,” Helen said, still not looking up. “I need some more thinking time.”

Beth closed the drawer and leaned one hip against the cabinet. “Mom, look at me.” She folded her arms over her chest and waited. When her mother at last relented and turned her way, Beth continued, “I don’t know what’s going on here, but I wish you’d let me in on it. This whole situation’s just too disturbing. I can see what an effect it’s having on you, not to mention Mrs. Ashton.”

Helen dropped the knife and the nearly naked potato into the sink and dried her hands on a towel. “I can’t tell you,” she said finally. She folded the towel neatly and put it on the counter, her gaze focused intently upon the ivy embellished terry cloth. “This is between Colleen and me.”

Beth wasn’t going to give up that easily. “You said there was something that needed to be said.”

Helen’s deep brown gaze, the one Beth had inherited, connected with hers. “There is, but it’s not so simple.”

Beth shook her head. “I don’t understand. What could possibly be so earthshaking that you’re afraid to say it out loud?”

Helen looked away, but not before Beth saw the truth of her own words. Her breath trapped in her chest. It was earthshaking. Whatever it was, it was big. The fear and pain she saw in her mother’s eyes in that millisecond before she turned away made Beth’s heart skip a beat.

“Okay.” Beth swallowed at the lump of worry forming in her throat. This was definitely not good. “We don’t have to talk about it right now. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought it up. You and Colleen have been friends forever, you’ll work it out in your own time.”

Her hands braced against the counter, Helen merely stared into the bowl of potatoes she’d been peeling.

Beth started to apologize again but the ringing of the telephone interrupted her. She sighed, walked to the back door and snagged up the receiver from the old beige rotary base hanging on the wall. She managed a pleasant hello.

“Miss Beth?”

“Yes.” She frowned. The male voice sounded like—

“Mayor Chadwick here,” he said in that aristocratic, take-charge air that was more than a few decibels too loud.

“How are you this evening, Mayor?” God, Beth hoped he wanted to speak to her mother. The man could talk for hours without saying anything at all.

“I’m fine, darlin’, and you?”

“Couldn’t be better,” Beth lied through her teeth.

“The council and I are meeting at the diner tonight to organize our part of Ms. Colleen’s celebration. Seeing as you’re in charge of the planning now, we thought you might want to join us.”

Beth tamped down the groan that welled in her chest. “What time?” She glanced at her watch. It was six now.

“Six-thirty all right with you? Josie’s got chicken-fried steak on the blue plate special tonight.” He chuckled. “The best chicken-fried steak in the whole county, you know.”

Just what she needed, a plateful of cholesterol and an earful of bull. “Sure,” Beth agreed, wincing inwardly at what lay before her. “I’ll be there.”

“I’ve already called Zach. He’s coming, too.”

Beth’s jaw fell slack. The mayor said his goodbye and hung up before she could rally a verbal response. This couldn’t be happening already. She needed a little more time to prepare. To brace herself against Zach’s vast and varied charms.

Replacing the receiver, she turned back to her mother. Maybe she could talk Helen in to going with her. Beth was desperate.

“That was the mayor. He’s asked me to meet with the council to discuss Mrs. Ashton’s birthday. Why don’t you come with me, Mom?”

Her mother hesitated in her work, then slowly turned toward Beth. When their gazes locked the bright sheen of tears in her mother’s eyes startled Beth. Helen McCormick never cried. She was too strong. The only time in her entire life that Beth had ever seen her cry was after her father’s funeral.

“Please, let me help,” Beth urged gently. “Whatever is wrong can’t possibly be that bad.”

“No matter what happens,” her mother said, her voice trembling, “you remember that I love you more than anything in this world.”

“Mother—”

Helen shook her head. “Run along.” She resumed her potato peeling. “I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”

FEELING SORELY out of sorts, Zach settled into the driver’s seat of his car and drove around to the McCormick’s home. Mayor Chadwick had mentioned inviting Beth to this dinner meeting. Since her car was still here it seemed reasonable that she hadn’t left yet. It also seemed reasonable for them to ride together. No point in driving two vehicles. It was definitely more economical to ride together, he concluded. And the time would give them a chance to discuss what was going on between their mothers.

As if either one of those excuses was his real motivation.

The truth was, he wanted to have a few minutes alone with her. It was that simple, and at the same time too complicated for him to understand completely.

Shutting off the engine, he pushed that admission away. It wouldn’t be neighborly of him not to ask her if she wanted a ride. Zach smiled as he got out of the car and started for the door. That’s right. This wasn’t the city. People still went out of their way to help their neighbor down here. His gesture wouldn’t be perceived as anything else. He certainly didn’t want Beth to get the wrong idea.

Not that he had the right idea. He had no clue what was going on inside his head. His emotions were in a turmoil—as much from his mother’s odd behavior as from his own. The whole situation was confusing. The one thing he was clear on was that his mother needed him, and he had to put all else aside. Especially these crazy urges where Beth was concerned.

Zach paused at the cottage’s weathered door. He studied the arched portal, and then the ivy covered rock that surrounded it. The place had always seemed magical to him. Beth’s father had been a wizard with plants and flowers. Her mother was always stirring something in a big pot and making the best cookies in the world. And Beth…well she was like the fairy princess who lived in the cottage. Who rehearsed her pirouettes in the moonlight and somehow appeared wherever he was by daylight. Whether he was practicing football or writing a history paper, she was there asking questions, trying to help, distracting him, making him laugh. Making him love her.

You do not want to go there, he reminded himself.

Shaking off the past, Zach raised his fist to knock at the same time the door opened.

Beth made a little sound of surprise and pressed her hand to her throat. “Oh. Hello, Zach,” she said in that throaty voice that reminded him all too much of just how grown-up little Beth was now.

Unable to check the impulse, his gaze immediately swept the rest of her and his heart rate reacted accordingly. The dress was a soft yellow, not too short, just a few inches above the knee, not exactly form-fitting, but not loose either. The neck didn’t scoop nearly low enough. All in all it was just a plain dress designed for comfort. But it was perfect and sexy as hell on her. The color contrasted the fresh, healthy glow of her skin. The lack of makeup and the fall of her silky hair around her smooth cheeks made her look twenty-one instead of thirty-one.

Beth McCormick was beautiful.

He experienced the sudden, almost overpowering, urge to touch her. He immediately tucked his hands into his trouser pockets, nipping the impulse to reach out to her in the bud before it blossomed and embarrassed them both.

“Chadwick told me he’d called you,” Zach said, thrusting his emotions to the back of his mind much the same way he did in the courtroom or in a tense negotiation. “I thought we could ride together.”

Those dark eyes widened and she looked on the verge of turning him down. In fact, he decided, on further consideration of her expression, she looked stricken.

“Come on, Beth,” he coaxed. “I don’t bite. It’s only a ride into town.”

She still didn’t look convinced. Irritation trickled through him, dominating the good sense he’d intended to maintain in her presence. What was the deal here? What did she think he was? The big bad wolf? She never used to be afraid of him. Maybe she was still mad at him for turning her down all those years ago. If she only knew just how much he’d wanted to…

“I planned to drive myself,” she announced, squaring her shoulders and looking straight at him now with no fear or reservation.

He let go a put-upon sigh. It didn’t have to be this way. “Look.” He searched her eyes, determined to sway her decision. “Let’s not make this about the past. We’re both adults now.”

Something shifted in her dark eyes. Some barely perceptible something he couldn’t quite read.

“You’re right,” she said, stepping across the threshold and into the tiny space between him and the door. She closed it behind her and stared directly into his eyes, her own glittering with annoyance she made no effort to conceal now. “I’m glad you finally noticed.”

With that crisp remark, she sidestepped and brushed past him, the brief contact making his body tighten, and leaving the vaguest scent of roses.

Perplexed, Zach did an about-face, angled his head and watched her stride toward his car. Those long legs covered the distance in no time at all, but not quickly enough to prevent the gentle sway of her hips from doing strange things to his ability to breathe.

Oh, yes. She was definitely all grown up now.

But she was still Beth, and he had to remember that. She wasn’t like the women he usually dated. Beth was a forever kind of girl. He frowned at the thought of the ex-husband he’d never even officially met. But Zach didn’t have to meet him to know he didn’t like him. Anyone who had hurt Beth was his enemy.

Zach clenched his jaw and strode to the car where Beth waited. No matter how much he was attracted to her, he would never, ever take advantage of her. Beth meant too much to him. Even if a misguided need for revenge or an urge to prove she could seduce him started her thinking along those lines, he would not allow it to happen. He almost laughed at that. Wishful thinking on his part. There was no denying what he still felt. But…he would protect her just like he always had.

He would protect her from him.

“A PARADE?” Beth repeated, certain she couldn’t have heard the mayor right. Mrs. Ashton’s birthday celebration was turning into a three-ring circus.

“Yes,” Chadwick enthused. “Why Ms. Colleen is our most distinguished citizen. This momentous occasion simply demands that we pull out all the stops.”

“We want to make an official presentation, too,” Harve Baker, deputy mayor, added. “Like the keys to the city, only better.”

“You’re sure that’s not a bit much?” Zach suggested, speaking for the first time since the group had exchanged greetings and settled down to talk business.

Beth darted a stealthy look in his direction. She’d made sure when she arrived that she sat where he couldn’t end up next to her. With the table full, Zach had slid into a nearby booth opposite the mayor. Reclining against the wall so as to face those seated at the table, Zach looked relaxed and too darned good-looking. The light blue shirt set off the sky-blue of his eyes. The fit of those navy slacks displayed the best male buns she’d ever seen, and, as a doctor, she’d seen a few.

“I don’t think so at all,” Viola, the only female member of the council, piped up. “We did the same thing for Bert Sacks after he got himself on the Letterman show. Why shouldn’t we do it for Colleen?”

Beth struggled not to groan. She remembered all too well the parade for Bert. The only celebrity in town. Too bad his ticket to fame had been a musical cow. Though she hadn’t lived here at the time, Beth had come home for a weekend visit to find the whole town celebrating Bert’s claim to fame. She’d almost turned around and driven right back to Indianapolis. But she’d needed a break, more to escape her disintegrating relationship than to get away from work. The marriage had been doomed from the beginning.

She shifted in her chrome and red vinyl chair. She was getting off track. Beth shoved thoughts of Matt and divorce from her mind. She didn’t have time to think about men, past or present, right now.

“Well, see here, Viola,” the mayor was saying. “We certainly intend to do right by Ms. Colleen. Her parade will be every bit as big as Bert’s was.”

Viola and the other members of the council made agreeable sounds. Beth cringed. The school band, the Girl Scouts, the local civic clubs—everyone would get into the act. Anyone who’d ever been voted for and won anything in this town, from Miss Valentine to top hog caller, would want a place in line. Beth pressed her fingers to her temples and wished she were anywhere but here.

“You’d be good at that, don’t you think, Beth?” Viola asked.

Startled at hearing her name, Beth jerked to attention. Heat warmed her cheeks. No way was she going to allow anyone—specifically Zach—to know she hadn’t been paying attention. “Oh, sure,” Beth agreed with no clue to what the woman had said. “That sounds great.”

He was watching her, she realized, tensing instantly. The beginnings of a smile played at the corners of his mouth, drawing her attention there…making her want to taste those full lips.

“Heads up,” a crisp feminine voice warned.

Beth snapped from the forbidden fantasy. The waitress was circling the table, plates balanced in both hands. Beth silently railed at herself. She had to pull herself together here. She couldn’t keep acting like she was seventeen all over again. She had this community event to plan. And, more important, she had to find some way to get the truth out of her mother.

A white stoneware plate laden with glistening green beans and chicken-fried steak accompanied by creamed potatoes dark with thick gravy was plopped down before her. Beth felt the arteries of her heart narrowing already. She glanced around the table and wondered if she was the only one concerned with living a little longer. When her gaze collided with Zach’s, he was still watching her, those blue eyes expectant and somehow knowing. That smile slid fully across his lips now and he scooped up a forkful of potatoes and popped them into his mouth, a blatant challenge.

Instantly, Beth regressed to the summer she’d been twelve and determined she could beat Zach at anything he did—including eating her mother’s lemon meringue pie.

She hated lemon pie to this day. The mere sight of it made her stomach queasy.

Beth firmed her resolve and booted the past back where it belonged, in some rarely visited corner of her mind. Her good eating habits would not be undermined by Zach Ashton. “Excuse me,” she said to the waitress efficiently making her way around the table. “I’ve changed my mind. I’d like a salad, please. Dressing on the side.”

“I CAN’T BELIEVE you missed out on Josie’s chicken-fried steak.” Zach chuckled as he pulled out onto Main Street, headed in the direction of home. “It was awesome.” He glanced at his silent passenger. She looked even more beautiful by moonlight. Forcing his gaze straight ahead, he blinked away her lingering image. He wasn’t supposed to be thinking that way, but he couldn’t get his body and mind to cooperate with each other.

“It’s called being health-conscious,” Beth explained pointedly. “You should try it. After all, you’re not getting any younger.”

A brow notched up his forehead and he stole another quick look in her direction. “Ouch,” he returned. “Surely one evening of eating on the edge won’t drive the final nail in my coffin.” A frown furrowed across his brow. “When did you get so uptight about every little thing anyway?”

She waved him off. “Typical male thinking, Ashton,” she said irritably. “You think because you play the occasional game of racquetball and pound out a few miles on the treadmill once or twice a week that you’re immune to the effects of aging.”

He couldn’t believe this. Was she insinuating that he was old? “What has my age got to do with anything?” he demanded, irritation gnawing its way through his composure. He ran a couple miles every single day. Did his time at the gym three times a week as well.

She flared her palms impatiently. “Games, Ashton,” she snapped. “You’re still playing your immature little games. You thought if you ate it, I would. Don’t try to tell me you didn’t throw down the gauntlet back there with that first forkful of potatoes. Remember the lemon pie? You were always trying to prove you were better because you were older and a boy.”

“A boy?” He darted another look at his lovely, albeit confusing, passenger. A grin stretched across his face at her stiff posture. She was furious. At what, he couldn’t be certain. Surely they could put the past behind them if that’s what the problem was. “I thought we’d already established that we’re both adults now.”

She folded her arms firmly over her chest. “Well, at least one of us is.”

He braked to a stop at a red light. Was she accusing him of being immature just because he’d eaten his steak and potatoes? He ignored that little voice that told him she was right about the challenge. It was instinct. Whenever he was around Beth, he tried his level best to treat her like one of the guys. It was the only way to protect himself from doing something completely stupid—like kissing her. The mere thought made his muscles harden, some more than others.

“Would you care to elaborate on that innuendo?” he prodded, determined to get to the bottom of her unreasonable behavior once and for all. His mother’s peculiar conduct was more than enough to contend with. He and Beth could at least be civil to each other. “The burden of proof lies with the accuser,” he added when she didn’t answer.

Beth rolled her eyes and huffed. “Don’t use your lawyer talk on me. You know exactly what I mean.”

“You’re saying that one of us isn’t an adult. I just wondered from what basis you drew your conclusions.”

She shifted to face him, one long shapely leg crossed over the other, and totally unaware that her dress had slid up a few more inches, showing off a little more tanned thigh. Zach’s mouth parched as he sneaked a second look.

“Well, let’s see,” she began, ticking off the list on her fingers. “There’s the cherry-red sports car and the GQ look.” She shook her head as if what he had was terminal. “Not to mention the immortal male attitude.”

He glared at her, his foot going automatically to the accelerator when the light turned green. “What about my car and the way I dress?” Ire sprouted inside him. Sure he had a little attitude, but what the heck? A guy couldn’t survive in his profession without a pair of brass ones.

She lifted one shoulder in a shrug of indifference, or maybe disdain. “I think any man who feels the need to express his insecurities so literally when he hits middle-age is immature.”

Middle-age? Insecurities? He arrowed a glower in her direction. “You think I bought this car because I feel insecure about being closer to forty than thirty?”

She pursed those lush lips and inclined her head in triumph. “Yes, I do.”

Fury hurdled through him. He didn’t bother slowing down for the next light that went from yellow to red before he passed under it.

“I am not,” he said, enunciating each word slowly, precisely, “going through any midlife crisis. I bought this car because I liked it. And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with my clothes.” He turned onto Hunter Ridge Road. “Or with the occasional meal that includes more than leaves and twigs.”

She smiled patiently, as if completely certain of her assessment. “You date a different woman every weekend. You don’t have time for a social life through the week,” she added, nailing down his personal life in two short sentences. “You tell yourself that there’s plenty of time for marriage and children later. That legitimately explains your single status and leaves you free from having to commit.”

He shook his head. How the hell did she know all that? “What is this? The amateur psychology hour?”

“Am I right?”

Oh, he saw now. This was a trick. She was baiting him to get the answers she wanted. She wanted to know about his personal life—his sex life.

“Am I right?” she repeated, adding extra emphasis to the last word.

“If you want to know how often I have sex, just ask. And besides, what would you call divorcing the man you supposedly loved after five years of commitment?” A four-way stop gave him the opportunity to look directly at her and wait for the answer to his pointed question.

Silence thundered for several excruciatingly long beats.

She wasn’t going to say anything. The dim glow from the dash didn’t allow him to read her eyes completely, but he could see that he’d done what he intended. He had ended what she started. Cut her off at the knees like any good attorney would do. The knowledge gave him no pleasure. In an abrupt epiphany he also realized what he’d given away with his heartless remark—he knew the ink wasn’t even dry on her divorce papers yet. She would know he’d asked about it.

“I’d call it a mistake,” she said finally, her chin quivering slightly.

He held her gaze, hard as that proved in light of the hurt he knew he’d wielded. He wanted to hold her and apologize profusely for what he’d said and whatever the jerk she’d married had done. Disappointment pooled in his gut when he considered her words further. She thought she’d made a mistake. And all this time he’d thought he’d been the one who made the mistake. But then, they weren’t talking about the same mistake.

“The divorce or the marriage?” he asked quietly, unable to help himself from pursuing the subject. He had to know.

She wanted to lie. God, a part of her wanted so badly to deny the truth…to somehow explain it away as something other than a personal failure. The other part of her wanted to hit Zach for even asking.

“The marriage,” she relented tightly. “It was a mistake. But we’re still friends.”

She saw the sympathy flicker in those blue eyes. She was so hopelessly pathetic. She faced front, turning away from what she no longer wanted to see, especially from Zach.

“Sorry,” he said contritely. “I shouldn’t have—”

“It’s okay.” She didn’t want to hear what she’d already seen in his eyes.

“Are we through fighting?” he asked softly, too softly.

She continued her stare into the darkness. “I guess so.”

“What are we going to do about our mothers?”

Beth closed her eyes. She didn’t want to think about that either. “I don’t know. I don’t understand what’s going on.”

Zach pulled away from the intersection. “I can’t figure it out. Something’s changed though. Mom isn’t behaving like her usual self.”

At a loss to stop herself, Beth studied his handsome profile, her heart doing a little dance in spite of the anger she’d felt at him just moments ago. “Different how?” She wondered if it was anything like her own mother’s odd behavior.

He exhaled noisily. “I can’t exactly pinpoint it, just different. She told me she loved me three times in the space of as many minutes. She was almost clingy.”

Beth knew exactly what he meant then. Colleen Ashton was one of the strongest women Beth knew, her mother included. Colleen had never been one to show her affection with outward gestures. Hers was always an understated way.

“Your mother won’t tell you anything?” he asked as he parked and turned off the engine and lights, leaving nothing but the moon to relieve the darkness that now cloaked them.

“Nothing.”

“We have to get to the bottom of this,” he said, his voice curling around her in the still, dark night. “At their age life is too uncertain to stay mad at each other. Think how one would feel if something happened to the other while this standoff was going on.”

Beth nodded. “What can we do?”

“Just keep plugging away until we figure out what it is that’s caused this kind of damage.”

At that moment Beth wanted more than anything in this world to feel Zach’s arms around her. Further proof that nothing had changed. They could be yelling at each other one minute, then making up the next. “Good idea,” she mumbled, then quickly scrambled out of the car. She would not let her emotions get the better of her again.

Zach followed her up the flagstone walk and to her door. She faced him there, the glow from the outside light pooling around them like a dim spotlight. Good-night would be said right here. She didn’t want him to come inside. She’d had all the Zach stimuli she could handle for one night.

“Thanks for the ride,” she said lamely. Truly pathetic.

“Any time,” he offered in that deep, husky voice.

“Good night, Zach.” The words sounded breathless. But how could they sound any other way with him standing so close and her pulse tripping so out of control? She wanted to back up but the closed door was right behind her, preventing her escape.

When his gaze dropped to her mouth the air evaporated from her lungs.

“Good night,” he murmured.

Slowly, very slowly, he leaned toward her. Her heart pounded so hard she was certain he could hear it. She moistened her lips, in anticipation of his sealing completely over hers.

But they didn’t. Instead, he pressed that perfect mouth to her forehead.

As if she were a child.

Or his little sister.

“See you tomorrow.” With one last breath-stealing smile, he turned and walked away.

She wanted to scream. Fury mushroomed inside her. She opened her mouth to tell him she would be busy tomorrow, but he suddenly stopped and faced her. She snapped her mouth shut.

“By the way,” he said in that teasing tone that was all charm and Ashton, “I think it’s great how you agreed to come up with the theme for the whole event.”

Theme?

Grinning widely, Zach winked and strolled away.

Beth sagged against the old wooden door and watched him go. So that’s what Viola had asked her. Beth mentally recited a few choice expletives. What did she know about themes? She was a doctor. She didn’t do themes.

One way or another she had to mend this rift between her mother and Zach’s. Her heart couldn’t take spending this much one-on-one time with the only man she’d ever really loved…

…the same one who’d never thought of her as anything but the girl next door.

Chapter Three

Colleen Ashton signed the letter she’d just finished writing and made quick work of folding it, then tucked it into the matching embossed envelope. She sealed it, penned her son’s name on the front, then set it aside to put in the safe when she finished the remainder of this morning’s correspondence. She restrained the uncharacteristic tears that crowded her throat for the second time today.

No one would ever convince her that she was making a mistake. Not even Helen whom she trusted with her life.

The thought that she and Helen had not spoken in more than twenty-four hours weighed heavy on Colleen’s heart. But there was nothing to be done about it. She and Helen didn’t see eye to eye on the matter and she doubted that anything was going to change that indisputable fact.

“We have a problem.”

Colleen’s head came up at the unexpected sound of Helen’s voice. As Helen crossed the room, Colleen stood, squared her shoulders and faced what would likely be another attempt to sway her decision. But she would not relent. It was completely out of the question.

“I thought we weren’t speaking,” Colleen said crisply when her friend paused next to the antique writing desk.

Helen raised one tawny brow. “We aren’t, but this is an emergency.”

“What sort of emergency?”

It irritated Helen to no end that Colleen could be so blasted analytical about everything—including this. Helen wanted to shake some sense into her, but she knew Colleen too well. Nothing would change her mind unless she wanted to change it. Unfortunately, she didn’t.

“Beth suspects something.”

Colleen wasn’t the least bit surprised. “I would imagine she does. After that little performance you gave in here yesterday, I would think the whole world suspects something is amiss.”

“No.”

The singular word spoken so sharply echoed in the room. Fear seeped into Colleen’s weary bones.

“I mean she really suspects. I’m sure she’s talked to Zach already.”

Colleen nodded. “She has. Zach gave me the third degree last night after he returned from town.”

“It’s time,” Helen said, her gaze pinning Colleen’s with fierce determination. “What if you’d died when you suffered that heart attack? I can’t take this secret to the grave with me. I just can’t do it.”

“But I didn’t die.” Colleen lifted her chin a notch. “It wouldn’t have changed anything if I had. We both know that.”

“It’s wrong for us to say nothing,” Helen insisted, her expression as grim and desperate as her tone. “You know it’s wrong.”

“If that’s all you have to say then there’s nothing else to discuss.” Colleen held her ground, not giving an inch. “You and Beth are a part of this family, Helen. As much as you mean to me, I will not allow you to take matters into your own hands. We took an oath never to speak of this again.”

“We were young.” Helen shook her head, tears shining in her worried eyes. “We didn’t think.”

Colleen struggled to hold back her own tears. “Helen McCormick, I will hold you to that oath until the day I die.”

Helen swiped at the lone tear that managed to escape her brutal hold on her emotions. “This is wrong and you know it. It’s a mistake.”

“That may be. But it’s my decision. If it’s a mistake, then it’s mine to make.”

Two long beats passed before Helen walked away.

Colleen watched her go, sadness welling inside her. What was done was done. There was no turning back now.

“YOU’RE SURE you want to tackle this job, Mr. Ashton?”

Hank, the local handyman, eyed Zach speculatively. At sixty, the man had attempted just about any kind of fixer-up job one could imagine. Including getting his portly frame trapped under Widow Murphy’s house while repairing her faulty plumbing. Ten at the time, Zach vividly recalled the local volunteer fire department having to rescue the man. He doubted Hank crawled under many houses these days. But he’d kept up the maintenance here ever since Beth’s father died.

Zach turned his attention back to the ornate gazebo nestled amid the lush landscape of the backyard where he’d played as a child. Since his mother had decided to have her birthday party here, the gazebo, she had insisted, required a fresh coat of paint. It looked fine to Zach, but then he wasn’t a painter. And it wasn’t his birthday. Whatever his mother wanted, he intended to make sure she got.

“You know,” Zach began somewhat hesitantly, “I think I will do it myself.” At least this way he’d have something to do besides think about the one thing he’d sworn he wouldn’t.

Hank stroked his jaw and studied the large structure as if assessing the possibility. “You’ll need the right equipment. Ladders, brushes and such.”

Zach nodded, his gaze shifting to the other man. “You could take care of that for me, couldn’t you?”

“Sure. Be happy to. I’ll set you up right now, if you’d like. I can even run down to the hardware and pick up the paint.” Hank smoothed a stubby hand over one intricately carved post. “A nice semigloss would be your best bet.”

Never one to waste time once he’d made a decision, Zach said, “Let’s do it then.”

Hank adjusted his cap, then hung his thumbs on the suspenders of his overalls. “I’ll have everything set up within the hour.”

“Excellent. I’ll be ready.”

The handyman lumbered off in the direction of his truck. Zach watched him drive away, then walked slowly toward the French doors at the back of the house. He hadn’t slept more than an hour last night. And there was no one to blame but himself. He’d known when he came here the risk involved if Beth happened to visit at the same time. Not to mention the infernal restlessness that always plagued him. He was a man of action. He wasn’t one to sit around waiting for things to happen. Finding something tangible to occupy his time would alleviate the latter problem, but Beth was another story.

The last thing he’d expected to find was her living here again. Zach rubbed the back of his neck, the move proving useless in his attempt to loosen too-tense muscles. She was divorced and sharing her childhood home with her mother. He resisted the urge to glance in the direction of the cottage. She wasn’t there anyway. She’d left early that morning, probably for the hospital. He’d watched from his bedroom window. The same way he’d watched her every move back when he’d lived at home, or on the occasions he’d visited after leaving for law school.

He’d had it all planned out in his mind sixteen years ago. Beth was too young for him, way too young. He knew how important it was to her mother that she got her education. How important it would be to Beth. Helen McCormick wanted better for her only child than she’d had herself. All parents wanted that, he supposed. Zach’s own mother was no exception. She, in typical Colleen fashion, had ensured Beth’s attendance at one of the top medical schools in the nation by calling the Dean personally. As a high school graduation present, Colleen had given Beth a check that would, combined with Helen’s savings, pay Beth’s tuition in full. Beth and Helen had adamantly objected, but there was no changing an Ashton’s mind once it had been made up.

The McCormicks weren’t just employees. They were family. And Zach’d had plans for the youngest McCormick. All he’d had to do was be patient. He’d carefully maintained a safe distance, as difficult as that had proven. Especially after Beth hit junior high. She’d made no secret of her feelings for him. He’d read how much she loved him in those big dark eyes way before she’d ever said the words out loud or kissed him. He had known that if he let his guard down it would be a mistake. He would have wanted more than that kiss…had wanted more. One thing would have led to another and he couldn’t allow that to happen until Beth was old enough to know whether she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. He didn’t want her making a lifetime commitment until she fully understood what it entailed. Her happiness meant too much to him.

So he’d been the refined gentleman his mother and father had raised him to be, and he’d waited.

The day she graduated from medical school he had intended to tell her how he felt. She would forgive him then, he’d been certain, for turning her away all those years ago. She would understand that he’d been right all along. That he’d had her best interests at heart. Both had needed to be sure of what they wanted before taking such a life-altering step, like marriage. But when he arrived on graduation day, flowers and ring in hand, she was already engaged to someone else. So he’d just walked away. Beth hadn’t even known he was there. It was his fault after all. He should have gone to her sooner and explained his feelings. Instead, he’d stayed away. Too busy building his career and proving he could be everything his father had believed he could. He’d finally achieved the success he’d sought so fiercely when Victoria Colby had made him an offer. He’d been ready then to get married and start a family.

But all of those dreams had died an instant death when he’d seen Beth in the arms of another man. Zach paused to steady his shaky composure before going inside the house. He’d put all that behind him years ago. He couldn’t understand why he was putting himself through it all over again now. It wasn’t like he hadn’t had other women. He’d gone through dozens while waiting for the only one he wanted. But he’d waited too long.

Zach dismissed the past from his mind. None of that mattered now. He was here for his mother, not for Beth. It was good to see her, but whatever had been between them was over…the opportunity had passed.

He clenched his jaw at the memory of how touching her, of simply pressing his lips to her forehead just last night had affected him. He still wanted her desperately, at least on a physical level. His gut instinct told him that she was still attracted to him as well. He doubted it would take much on either of their parts to fall into a brief affair. A two-week affair to be exact. He shook his head. He wouldn’t do that. He was used to short relationships, but Beth wasn’t. He wouldn’t risk hurting her that way. It wasn’t her fault he’d screwed up.

Their lives were different now. There was no going back. That time had passed. Zach didn’t want those things anymore. He had no desire for marriage and family. He’d banished those concepts from his life the day Beth married another man. He’d gotten used to being a confirmed bachelor. The fact of the matter was he enjoyed playing the field. What did he need with a permanent relationship at this point in his life? He spent far too many hours at the office to be a good husband or father. He was probably too old to change.

But he and Beth could have what they’d always had—friendship. He would walk on broken glass to protect that precious bond. No matter how attracted they were to one another, he wouldn’t risk hurting Beth again.

Zach opened the door and stepped into the house. The summer room was quiet and deserted. It had never been that way back in his days as a teenager. He studied the way the sunlight streamed in through the numerous windows warming the comfortable overstuffed furnishings and nurturing the entourage of plants and indoor trees. The only room in the house that contained a television set, this had been Zach’s favorite. He and his buddies had spent many fall Saturday afternoons watching college football in here. He and Beth had spent just as many Saturday nights watching movies in here, too. They’d stretched out on the carpet and shared a big bowl of popcorn. He smiled at the protective feeling that welled in him even now. Later, when he’d had the occasional weekend home from college, his feelings had changed. He remembered the first time he’d looked at Beth and felt something different…something that startled him.

Zach swore hotly at himself, using a particularly nasty compound adjective that described perfectly his inability to keep his head on straight. He needed to focus on the problem at hand. His mother.

“Shame on you, Zacharius Ashton,” Colleen scolded. “Where on earth did you learn such language?”

Speak of the devil. She crossed the room with slow, measured steps, her gaze searching his. “At law school,” he lied, putting his disturbing predicament aside for the moment. He leaned down and pressed a kiss to her waiting cheek. “It was required methodology for closed door negotiations.”

His mother smiled fondly as she caressed his jaw with one frail hand. “You’re so like your father. Confident, strong and so handsome.”

Zach smiled, too, remembering. “But he always told me that I got my blue eyes from the milkman.”

Colleen patted his shoulder. “The broad shoulders, too,” she mused, going along with the old family joke. “That milkman was a real looker.”

Zach took her hand in his and ushered her toward the sofa. “Sit with me for a while.” Hank wouldn’t be back with the paint for another half hour or so, there was time.

Colleen settled primly on the edge of the sofa, the pink of her tailored suit enhancing the light dusting of blush on her pale cheeks. “Did you talk to Hank about freshening up the gazebo?”

Zach sat down next to his mother and stretched out his long legs. “I did.” He crossed his legs at the ankles. “But I decided to paint it myself.”

Colleen looked aghast. “You can’t be serious. Why you’ve never painted anything in your life. You might…” She waved a hand fretfully. “You might fall off the ladder and break something important.”

He laughed. “Well, hopefully I won’t break anything—important or not.”

She frowned and assessed him more closely. He couldn’t be sure if it was out of concern or if she feared the damage he might do to her gazebo or the surrounding shrubbery.

“I’m sure Hank would be happy to do the job.”

“He’s going to help,” Zach assured her. “Don’t worry, I won’t make a mess.”

Knowing him far too well to pursue the issue, she patted his hand. “I’m confident you’ll do a fine job. We’ll tell everyone at the party that you painted it yourself.”

“You’d better wait to see how it turns out before you corner bragging rights,” he said with a chuckle. “Speaking of the party, I really think Beth and I need Helen’s input on some things. Any chance you might talk her into helping us out?”

Colleen’s expression closed instantly. “I’m sure you’ll do fine on your own.” As if he’d pushed her personal eject button, she shot straight to her feet. “I should see what cook has on the menu for dinner tonight.”

He snagged her hand and halted her hasty departure. Zach shook his head. “Let’s talk a little more.” She reluctantly allowed him to draw her back down to the sofa but she wouldn’t look at him. “Come on, Mom, this is ridiculous. Why don’t you tell me what’s going on between you and Helen?”

“There’s nothing to talk about. We simply don’t see eye to eye on a particular issue that I refuse to discuss with you or anyone else. The case is closed.”

Zach held her hand in his. “That sounds a little final,” he said softly. “Are you sure you want to leave it that way? What if something happened…?”

Colleen lifted an aristocratic eyebrow and glared at him. “Then it’ll be on her head,” she said sternly. “This is her choice not mine. I never go back on my word.”

Surprised, a frown pulled his lips downward. He’d never heard his mother speak so strongly against her good friend. “Surely there’s some way to resolve the issue.”

His mother pulled her hand free of his and stood once more. “There isn’t. Now—” she stepped out of his reach “—if you’ll excuse me, I have things to see to.”

There was nothing he could do but let her go. She was an Ashton. Unless she decided to change her mind, which wasn’t likely, then the only hope lay with Helen. As soon as Beth came home they would have to talk. There had to be a way to get Helen to come clean on the issue. Frustrated, Zach fell back against the sofa. That, he thought, disconcerted, would mean spending more time with Beth and fighting feelings he didn’t want to feel…fantasizing about things he knew could never be.

But he had to do it. He would simply find a way to be with her without losing control. He was an Ashton after all.

BETH STARED at the report lying on her desk. She closed her eyes and shook her head, defeat weighing heavy on her heart. Leukemia. The aggressive, ugly kind. Couldn’t it have been anything else?

Beth opened her eyes and reread the report once more. Her patient, Laurie Ellroy, would definitely die without proper treatment. There was no two ways about it. Oh, the oncologist would try chemo, but the chances of it working alone were so minimal that they weren’t even worth mentioning. To cure her it would take massive doses of the meanest chemo available, and then Laurie would still die without a bone-marrow transplant. Her mother’s own health problems prevented her from being a donor. Her father was dead and she had no brothers and sisters. They could look for a match elsewhere, but the chances were slim that they would find a suitable one.

Laurie, twenty-two years old, fresh out of college with a degree in education, was going to die.

Beth’s lips trembled. She bit her lower one to stop the quivering. She didn’t want Laurie to die. Her life had just begun. She was engaged to her high school sweetheart. God, it just wasn’t fair. Beth scrubbed at a tear that managed to escape her firm hold on her emotions. This was the part she hated about practicing medicine. The cases where her hands were tied. When she’d referred Laurie to the internist, she’d hoped he would find something fixable. But he hadn’t. And the oncologist’s prognosis was less than optimistic.

Laurie’s mother was devastated. Beth couldn’t even imagine the horror of losing a child. She thought of her own mother. They were so close, how would either of them survive the loss of the other? Losing her father had been agonizing, but she and her mother had clung to each other until the hurt subsided to a tolerable level. And Zach had been there for her, just like she’d been there for him when his father died. They were family. But if Beth lost her mother, she would be completely alone. She couldn’t turn to Zach now like she had back then. It wasn’t the same anymore.

Last night plowed its way into her mind. Beth tamped down the anger that wanted to well in her chest. Zach Ashton was the most confusing, frustrating man she had ever known. On one hand, he made her want to scream at him, or maybe even hit him. And on the other, she wanted nothing more than to go straight into his arms and stay right there.

She huffed a breath of frustration. How could she still want him so after what he’d done to her? He’d tossed her aside, seeing nothing but the little girl next door. He’d been too busy with the more sophisticated, older women he’d met in college and then his career. The memory of how naive she’d been at seventeen still infuriated her. She was supposed to forget about him. But she simply couldn’t. And God knows she’d tried.

Case in point, Matt Daniels. She’d decided the night before med school graduation that she would take him up on his proposal. He’d asked her three times and seemed crazy about her. He was nice-looking, and they shared a love of healing. What did she have to lose? Zach obviously wasn’t interested and she was tired of waiting. She’d certainly mooned over him long enough. Of course Matt wasn’t the first man she’d dated in an effort to erase Zach’s indelible imprint from her memory. There’d been a few others, none of which stuck or made enough of an impact to evict Ashton from her heart.

Beth pushed away from her desk. It was after five o’clock, she was tired and there was nothing else she could do here. Though the thought of going home held no real appeal considering she would no doubt run into Zach. Then again, how could she avoid him when they had this darned party to coordinate? The theme. She had that stupid theme to come up with. Beth massaged her forehead with her thumb and forefinger. How did one come up with a theme for this sort of thing?

She dug the telephone book from beneath the mountain of papers on her desk and flipped to the Yellow Pages. “P,” she muttered. “Painters, paneling, parties.” Beth dragged her finger down the listing until she found what she wanted. The Party Store. Surely they would have suggestions either on display or in a book. She grabbed her purse and decided it was definitely time to call it a day. She could stop at The Party Store on the way home. And if she were lucky, she could nail down this theme in one stop.

Before leaving, Beth called her mom and told her that she was making a couple of stops before coming home. Helen worried if Beth didn’t make it home on time. Beth smiled wryly. At least someone worried. Zach’s image flitted through her weary mind. She doubted he ever worried about anything other than his next case. Knowing that little accusation was completely unfounded, but feeling immensely better at thinking about him in any way other than sexual, she didn’t immediately dismiss it. She needed to concentrate on all the reasons she could not keep up this ridiculous infatuation of the man.

She was tired of all the Zach worship. He was just a man. She stilled, her hand on the knob of her office door. Why hadn’t she really looked at him and realized that fact all these years? Sure he was good-looking and smart. Built, and probably hung, a wicked little voice added. Beth slipped out, locked her office door and hurried down the corridor as she pondered that line of thinking further. He was just a guy she’d lived next door to her whole life and she’d gotten infatuated with him. If they had ever followed through on her teenage desires, she’d probably have found that there was nothing particularly special about him and moved on. Beth slowed as she exited the hospital. Would getting him out of her system be that simple?

What had kept her from thinking of this before? A smile spread across her lips. The only thing that made Zach so godlike in her mind was his being just out of her reach. All she had to do was have him just one time and she’d know there was nothing special about him. The mystery would be unveiled. The tension broken. Kind of like Christmas as a kid. All that obsessing for months before it arrived, then—bam—it’s over.

“Well, hell.” She stood in the middle of the staff parking lot, her hands planted on her hips. All this time she’d thought he was something special when he really wasn’t. He was just a regular guy. She’d built him into some kind of Adonis in her mind because he’d always stood up for her, been kind to her. And she’d never be free of that long-standing perception unless she proved to herself once and for all that it was just that—a perception.

Anticipation tingled through her. Could it be that easy?

There was only one way to find out.

Now all she had to do was convince Zach to go along with her plan. A scowl tugged her features into a frown. He would never do it. They were friends, he’d insist. She thought of last night’s infuriatingly platonic kiss. She was like a sister to him. The little girl next door. But she was all grown up now. A grin tilted her lips upward. She wouldn’t play by Zach’s rules. She was going to be in control of this game.

And seduction was its name.

THE PARTY STORE carried a huge selection of birthday themes—none of which reached out to Beth. None said “Colleen Ashton.” Beth shifted her purse to the other shoulder and retraced her path down the only aisle that even remotely interested her. A vague possibility for the theme was forming in the back of her mind.

With her elbow propped on one arm she rested her chin in her hand and sighed with disgust. Why the heck did they need a theme anyway? Couldn’t they just do it? All they really needed was a nice cake and a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday.” A smile tugged at her lips. And she knew just who could do it.

“Decisions, decisions,” a decidedly male voice murmured right next to her ear.

Beth shrieked and jumped away from the sound. Deep, rich laughter sent her fright rushing toward anger. She whipped around to find Zach grinning at her. The urge to stamp her foot was almost overpowering.

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