From Glowing Embers Read Free

flicker in his tarnished silver eyes.
    “How long is long enough?” he asked.
    “A lifetime.”
    “That’s what you were hoping for.”
    The words were neither a question nor a statement, but rather an observation that could be disputed if she wished. Julianna felt no need to.
    “I’d like to talk to you,” Gray said after he’d given her time.
    “I can’t think of anything I’d like to talk about.”
    “Then I’ll be glad to do the talking.”
    “I can’t think of anything I’d like to listen to.”
    “You’re making this very difficult.”
    Her laughter was as low and husky as her voice. It was also humorless.
    “I’m not here to cause you trouble,” Gray told her, his lips tightening in a thin, straight line.
    “Then you
have
changed, Gray.”
    “The captain has turned on the seat belt sign,” a woman’s voice informed them over the public address system. Gray spread his feet wide and lightly rested a hand on the back of Julianna’s seatmate’s chair. His eyes left hers to flicker over the lounging man before he gave her his full attention once more.
    In the seconds after recognizing Julie Ann he’d had time for nothing more than fleeting impressions. Now he took several moments to study her more carefully. Only the dark blue eyes and the perfect oval of her face were familiar. Ten years was a long time. He wondered if ten years ago he had recognized the potential of the teenager with the pale skin and razor-sharp bone structure. He wasn’t sure. He wasn’t sure if he had been mature enough to really think about her at all.
    Gray cleared his throat, realizing as he did how out of character the mannerism was. “Julie Ann, I know this is difficult for you. It’s just as difficult for me, but I need to talk to you.
We
need to talk,” he added.
    When she didn’t answer, he turned his attention to her seat-mate. “Excuse me. I’m sorry to disturb you, but would you mind taking another seat for a few minutes? I have to talk to this lady for a little while.”
    For a moment it seemed as if the man wasn’t going to answer; then he lifted one hand and readjusted the brim of his hat, pulling it down an extra inch. “It seems to me the lady doesn’t want to talk to you, mate.”
    Gray wished he could see the man’s face. “The lady and I are way overdue for a conversation. I’d appreciate your help.”
    “If the lady tells me she wants a conversation, I won’t mind a move.”
    “Julie Ann?”
    “My name is Julianna,” she said softly. “One word.”
    “It suits you.”
    Perhaps if his answer hadn’t been so conciliatory, Julianna would have agreed to the conversation. She could handle his anger, his arrogance, even his condescension. But she couldn’t handle his warmth. It brought back memories of a Gray whose existence she had stopped believing in a long time ago. She did not want that Gray in her life again. That Gray had almost destroyed her.
    “I don’t want to talk to you,” she said, turning back to the window. “Not here, not anywhere.”
    “You’re acting like a child.”
    Dillon pulled the brim of his hat up to expose his face. “The lady gave you her answer,” he said, a steel edge to his voice. “It was no.”
    Gray watched as the man brought his seat forward. He wondered what the husky Australian’s relationship was to Julie Ann. . . Julianna.
    “The lady doesn’t realize I’m not here to stir up trouble,” Gray said. “I’m not trying to hurt her.”
    “Maybe the lady has reason to think otherwise.”
    Gray nodded, although he could feel his own irritation building into anger. “Julianna,” he said, without stumbling over the name, “you’ve had ten years to hate me. Give me just a few minutes to try and change your mind.”
    As soon as he saw the fury in the eyes that had turned to challenge his, he knew that he had said exactly the wrong thing. “A few minutes? God, you are arrogant! Do you think that’s all it will take, Gray? Just a minute or