Teacher's Pet

"Thank you." Joshua slid an arm around her waist. "There's nothing wrong with a fun summer job. How about we go out to celebrate that? There's got to be a decent restaurant around here somewhere. Then, we can talk about you starting at the Ritz this fall."

He had it all planned out, and the bright flashes of anger directed at me meant that Joshua did not want to deal with any obstacles. He wanted Corsica to follow the right path to end up with him. How could the crown prince of an exclusive inn find a match if she didn't have the same impressive names on her resume? Joshua was molding her just the way Alicia had tried with me, and the thought made me sick.

"We've got champagne on ice up at the house," I said and nodded towards my beachfront mansion.

Joshua raised an eyebrow. "Yes, Corsica said you were the, what is it? Caretaker? I wouldn't want to overstep. I'm sure your employer is very understanding, but it feels rude to trespass."

I waited, but Corsica never corrected him. Instead, she looked at me and said, "Thank you, but I know you've got work to do. And, Joshua, you came all this way, so really the choice is yours."

"Just one glass to celebrate, and then you can go on your way," I demanded. "Go ahead, Joshua. We'll be right behind you."

Corsica sidestepped me with a frown, but I caught her arm. Joshua disappeared over the top of the sand dune, and she hissed, "What are you doing?"

"You can't be serious," I snapped. "You're going to go out with him and let him berate your choices all night? You got a gig today! We should be celebrating, not lining up the rest of your life into perfect little tight columns on a spreadsheet."

"Don't you have work to do?" Corsica wrenched her arm free. "I'm sure Alicia could line up a late-night happy hour with another one of her rich connections."

"This has nothing to do with me." I snagged her elbow again. "This is about you. You shouldn't have to downplay something that makes you so happy. Did he even congratulate you?"

"That's not Joshua's style," Corsica said between pursed lips.

"What about your style?" I fought the urge to shake her. "What about this great break you got? Don't you want to enjoy it? It's not just a 'fun summer job,' and I don't want to hear you knocking it down like that."

She spun to face me with flashing eyes. "It's just a few nights of singing. I'm not in it for the money, but the money will be important when our little deal is done. I need to pay my rent, buy food, and support myself."

"Corsica, please. I know what it's like to be scared of giving up everything for a dream, but you have to believe it's worth it."

"Says the man who did it all with a golden parachute," she snapped.

I cursed my father again. "I never intended to take anything from my father then, and I'm not going to now."

"But you have the comfort of knowing it's there if you need it." Corsica wrapped her arms around her. "I don't have anything or anyone. Once I'm done helping you, I'm on my own again, and I have to make sure I can make it. The chances of making it on a singer's salary is very, very slim and you know it."

"So it's not worth it?"

Corsica turned away from me, back to the waves. "You don't understand. It's working out for you, and it always will. I swear there's some twisted law in the universe that says the rich will always get what they want while the poor will always have to work. So, I don't care if Joshua didn't say congratulations. He actually has my best interests at heart. You just want me to walk out on a ledge and hope I can keep my balance when the waves hit."

A huge swell sprayed us with cold salt water. Corsica shivered and headed back up the path to the house.

"Wait." I didn't know what to say, but I couldn't stand the idea of her leaving with Joshua. "I just want you to be happy. You can't tell me that he makes you happy."

"What do you care if he makes me happy or not?" Corsica snapped.

"Because I want to." She stopped on the path, and I reached out to spin her around. "I know you're helping me out this summer, but I want to help you, too. Didn't the audition make you happy? Aren't you excited to sing?"

Her shoulders stiffened again. "Thanks for the introductions and the audition. I owe you one."

I tipped her stubborn chin up so I could look into her eyes. "You don't owe me anything. That's the difference between him and me. Joshua thinks you owe him for all the careful grooming he's done. He expects that now you'll repay him by slipping right into the picture he's formed of his perfect life. You're not two-dimensional, and you can't let him do that to you."

Corsica's eyes burned. "What if I like the look of his perfect life? What if that's what would make me happy?"

"Liar," I snarled and caught her lips in a hard kiss. All the words I couldn't form pushed their way into that kiss as I held her tight.

Corsica pushed her fists between us, but then her hands flattened out on my chest. When her fingers gripped the front of my shirt, I was lost. The kiss consumed us both. It inhaled the salty sea spray, the roar of the waves, and the curious call of her ex-boyfriend.

We didn't hear Xavier until he was two feet away and laughing. "Guess that answers my question about the gentleman waiting in the driveway," he chuckled.

Corsica pushed free of me. "I have to go."