With a slight smile, Parker threw money on the table, grabbed Emily by the hand, and led her out of the restaurant.
"Russell, I'm sorry about that. I promised to be the strong one..."
Before she could snap out of the mood, Parker took her mouth again and pushed her up against the building. He pressed his body firmly against her, wishing more than anything to be back in the bed. Thoughts of her beautiful body flooded his mind.
"Wait, stop." Emily walked forward as Parker instantly moved away.
"Sorry, Emily, I got carried away."
"Well, at least we got that out of our system, so let's go take care of business." Emily fixed her hair and straightened out her clothes the best she could. That kiss did anything but get this gorgeous man out of her system. "I want to go by the property and see it."
"Okay," said Parker as he reluctantly walked to the SUV. The last thing on his mind was taking care of any business.
The destruction was still evident. Luckily, the tornado hadn't spent much time on the ground. The trees and debris still littered the long driveway, and he worried about Emily walking through it all. For the first time, Parker noticed the barn was barely touched. He smiled at the thought of Emily's face when he unveiled her new truck. Everything else on the property was gone or destroyed. The place where he'd parked the RV was totally covered with debris and huge trees. He would have been killed if he was still there.
"Russell, there's really no hope of salvaging this house. Seeing part of the old place I grew up in would just remind me of the tornado. I'd rather just keep the good memories I have."
When Parker saw the sadness and water in her eyes, he put an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. "Emily, I'll get someone out here to clean the area up. I don't think you should come out to the property anymore until it's finished."
Before Emily could respond, Parker's phone rang. It was Russell.
"Excuse me, Emily, this is a boring business call." Parker quickly stepped away, knowing that Russell was calling him over something important.
"What's up?" answered Parker.
"Get to New York. We got a big problem on our hands. Speaking of big, that RV is huge. Thanks, bro."
"I'll be on the next flight, and you're welcome. I can't chat, Emily's close by."
"The jet's on its way to Denver. Keep little Miss Carson away from the paper, or your cover is blown."
Parker hung up the phone with feelings of utter doom.
"Emily, I have to get back to New York and take care of some business. We need to pack and get you on a plane with me."
"I can't go anyplace, Russell. My doctor's here and I have this mess to deal with."
"I'll have you back here for your appointments, but I can't exactly leave you in Colorado to fend for yourself." Parker was growing impatient.
"Just go, then. I'll call the agency and have Tyler help me out. Plus, I don't have any clothes, Russell."
"No. Tyler won't be helping you."
"You're the one who hired the people and you won't let them help me?" Emily stared at him in disbelief.
"They're not very good. You called for assistance and they never even showed up. I take better care of you. Let's go." Without waiting for her to respond, he grabbed her hand and began escorting her back to the road.
"I'm not going to New York with you and coming in contact with your scumbag brother Parker." Emily's brow furrowed. Just the thought of seeing that creep again filled her with rage.
"I promise to keep Parker away from you. You'll be nice and comfortable in my apartment. There are lots of shops where you can buy new things, and I'll still be around when you need me. I'm not arguing with you, Emily. There isn't a choice here."
She carefully tried to consider her options. She could go to the gym with God knows how many people, stay alone out here with no help, or go be taken care of. They shouldn't have to stay in New York for too long. "Do you have two beds?" Emily didn't want to risk sleeping with him.
"Yes, there's more than one room." Parker didn't mind having to drop everything to fly back to New York, as damage control was his top priority, always. Having to hide more truth from Emily was hitting him in the stomach. He knew the situation was out of control or it would have been handled over the phone. When Russell warned him to keep Emily away from the paper, all flags went up. If she couldn't get near a paper, then she wouldn't be allowed near a television.
"I guess I can watch television or something while you're gone."
"I don't have one." He'd make sure to call his brother as soon as possible. His apartment would definitely need adjusted. This can't get much worse.
Little did he know...
Chapter 10
Russell paced the floor of his office like a caged tiger. Parker had really caused some problems. This Emily Carson was going to be damaging. He called his wife on the office phone, knowing he couldn't put the conversation with her off any longer.
"Rhonda, come in here so we can talk please."
She had been frazzled all morning. Reporters were blowing up the phone lines, staff was asking questions, investors were raising the roof with their loud voices, and she was more than pissed.
"Good, at least you're going to fill me in on whatever has happened," Rhonda said sarcastically. She walked inside of Russell's office and closed the door, shaking her head when she looked at him. "So spill it."
"Parker could be sleeping with the enemy. I think that's what happened."
"You better start from the beginning, Russell. If you miss one detail, you'll be sleeping on the couch for the next month. What does that have to do with you? Your brother sleeps with lots of women." Rhonda laughed.
"He's Russell to this woman. I'm Parker..."
"Oh my God...You two did that shit? Seriously??"
"Honey, this just snowballed into a giant mess. Trust me, I've learned. We set the rules a long time ago when it came to women. We'd be ourselves--"
"This is an ugly, long story, isn't it?" said Rhonda bitterly as she cut him off.
"Go get us some coffee and put your feet up."
Rhonda glared at him and then left to get the coffee. Anything that involved a woman and Parker Davis certainly wouldn't be a serious thing. She didn't know why this would be any different or what made her husband so involved.
***
Emily climbed the steps to board the jet. She wasn't impressed. Just knowing that Parker Davis had been on it made it tainted, along with anything he'd touched. Hopefully she wouldn't have to sit where he'd been planted while he schemed to take things from other people just to make himself rich. The thought sickened her.