by Emma Renshaw
“Glad y’all are okay,” I said, running one hand down Zoe’s arm. I nodded and jogged across the street to the truck. I hopped in and we headed out. My gaze caught hers as we pulled away, and I held her stare as long as I could.
One simple kiss from her had wrecked me. I wanted so much more from her before she left and I never saw her again.
11
Zoe
“You’re not coming.”
It wasn’t a question. It was a statement. I fisted my hand in my hair, resisting the urge to yell and scream into the phone. It wouldn’t accomplish anything. I’d get further talking to a wall. Every ounce of hope I’d held for my parents had vanished with one sentence from my mother.
She sighed. It’d been over a year since the last time I'd seen her. She and my father stopped in Colorado to visit my aunt and me for one night before they left for Vail. I’d only spent a handful of moments with them since they left me in fifth grade, but I could picture her face perfectly when she sighed. I knew her eyes were rolling. I knew her lip was curled in a sneer as she stared at my father and silently asked him how they had such an annoying daughter.
“She’s gone, Zoe. There’s not much reason for us to be there while her ashes are spread. We went to Spain for a lovely festival our friends told us we could not miss, and the place we were staying had these lovely peach trees. I had a peach in your aunt’s honor, and that was my goodbye to her. She’s gone,” she repeated.
My chest clenched as my heart spasmed with the pain of that knowledge. I knew she was gone. I was there when we received her diagnosis. I was there when she took her last breath. And I was there for every grueling, painful, awful moment in between. I knew soul deep that she was gone. My mother’s only sister had passed away, and it seemed it wasn’t even a blip on her radar.
“That’s where you’ve been? Spain?”
She chuckled, and I heard my father’s throaty laugh in the background. “Well, we'd planned for only one night before heading to the states to see you, but we lost track of time.”
I pinched the bridge of my nose. “Losing track of time is showing up thirty minutes late to a party. It’s not forgetting to come home and not answering your phone for weeks.”
She sighed again and started speaking in an exasperated tone, like I was a child acting out against her parents. “Zoe. We’ve told you multiple times to access your account and come explore with us. If you only knew what it was like, you’d understand.”
The money they'd put into a trust for me had been sitting there. I’d never used a single penny of it; instead I was using my own savings, which I'd earned. I didn’t want their money. They knew I didn’t want their money, but there it sat. Unused. Untouched. And completely worthless.
I swallowed and leaned my head back, staring at the ceiling, blinking away the angry tears that threatened to fall. Anger and resentment weren’t new feelings for me—they'd slowly built up over time since my parents had dropped me on my aunt’s doorstep—but the emotion rushing through me at the moment wasn’t anger. It was more. It was hotter. More bitter. Utterly consuming and just like their money—completely worthless.
Makenna would be here any minute to take me to Gunner and Delilah’s party. I still hadn’t gone to pick up a new rental car since the fireworks-in-the-back-seat episode earlier that week. I would need to do that soon though. I couldn’t keep relying on others for transportation.
I didn’t want there to be tears in my eyes when Makenna showed up. “So y’all aren’t coming?”
“Meet us somewhere in Europe. We’ll go peach picking and finally spend some time with our baby girl. It’s been too long.”
“Way too long,” I heard my dad shout.
“I can’t do that,” I said, running my hand over my heart. “Georgia wanted to be spread here and I…I’m also here for my friends.”
My mother scoffed. “There’s nothing there for you, sweetheart. You’re too good for that place. I don’t know why Georgia loved it so much. She always had such simple tastes. She’s gone, Zoe. She’ll never know if you don’t follow her wishes. Let her go and move on with your life. You were stuck caring for her for too long.”
My eyes filled with tears, and I bit out through clenched teeth, “I wasn’t stuck caring for her. She loved it here because it was home. She was like my mom and, with or without you, I will make sure she has the perfect resting spot.”
“Well, if this precious place was home, why did you leave, Zoe? Why did you take her away from there? I know she left because of you. She never told me why, but I know it was because of you,” she hissed.
I jerked as if I’d been slapped. My throat tightened, and my lungs were struggling to fill and release. There was so much I could say. Excuses I could make. Reasons why it made sense at the time. But the cold hard truth was I took the one person I loved most from the place she loved most. And only because she loved me in a way my parents never could, she came with me and stood by my side every day.
I listened to my mother’s angry breathing for one more second before pulling the phone away from my ear and jabbing the END CALL button with my thumb. I wasn’t sure when I’d speak to them again. If I would.
A knock sounded on the door. I tossed my phone on the bed behind me. Everyone I wanted to talk to and could talk to would be there tonight. Deep in my gut, I knew my parents wouldn’t reach out to me, but I didn’t want to take the chance of seeing their names on my phone screen.
It seemed I was going to take some of their advice after all—I was going to lose myself tonight. Lose track of time. And get lost in life.
The emotions swirling in my stomach felt dangerous. like I was standing on a cliff with my toes hanging over the edge. And if I could just jump, I might experience something new instead of the chains that were keeping me in my place.
I snatched the peach charm on my new necklace and closed my eyes as Makenna knocked again. “You’re not getting out of coming,” she shouted through the door.
I wasn’t trying to get out of going; I just needed a second.
“Just a sec,” I called out. I drew in a breath and closed my eyes, fiddling with the charm, trying to summon Aunt Georgia—and any advice she might give me—to my mind. As easily as if she were standing next to me, I heard the words she’d repeated to me often throughout the past eleven years.
Leave it all behind, peach. You need to start living again.
I glanced at my phone lying on the bed one last time and turned toward the door, smoothing down the front of my sundress.
I didn’t even have to force the smile when I opened the door to Makenna. I was leaving my parents and that pain behind me and moving on. I wanted to feel alive again; I hadn’t felt that way in years. I didn’t know how I would do it, but I wanted to live instead of just existing.
12
Ridge
My gaze snagged on Zoe the moment she walked through Gunner’s front door behind Makenna. She had a smile on her face, but there was something different about her. A little wildness. Like energy was zipping just beneath her skin. I clutched the short, fat glass of amber liquid more tightly in my hand as I watched her long legs carry her across the room to the bar.
She had on heeled sandals with thick pieces of red fabric that wrapped around her ankles. I skimmed every inch of skin between the sandals and the hem of her dress. With every step, the bottom of her dress floated off her legs and teased me with more inches of creamy skin. Her dress was the same color as the eyes I could easily get lost in. My gaze coasted over her breasts, lingered on the long neck I had been dying to taste since I got a small taste of her lips, and settled on her smile as the bartender passed a shot and a bottle of beer across the counter.
I pushed myself off the wall I’d been leaning against, leaving Foster in the middle of his sentence. I heard his laugh behind me, but it didn’t register. When I reached the bar, I rested my forearm on the counter and placed my drink on a waiting coaster.
“I’ll take the same sh
ot she’s having.” I signaled to the shot in front of Zoe.
Her eyebrow arched and her lips formed a teasing smirk. “I’m not stopping at just one.”
“No?”
“Nope.” She popped the p, drumming her fingers along the bar. “This is going to be the first of many.”
“I think I can handle it.”
Her eyes raked over me, from my feet to the top of my head, pausing at my chest and lips. “I have no doubt you can.”
Eleven years ago, I’d tried in earnest to flirt with Zoe. At the time, I’d thought I had all it took to get a woman into my bed, but looking back, I wasn’t sure if Zoe even knew I was flirting with her. The few times I’d seen her since she arrived in town had been too quick except for the baseball game and that kiss, which I’d replayed in my head and twisted into fantasies where we took it further. And even though I’d tried to flirt with her, I wasn’t sure if she had ever flirted back.
I scanned her features, taking in her eyes. It was the same thing I’d seen from across the room. She was practically vibrating with the need to do something. I recognized that wildness in her eyes. There were times when I was growing up when everything was just too much and I needed to do something. Anything to get out all the emotion that could’ve suffocated me.
I still felt it now, but each fire I walked into set my soul at peace and calmed me like nothing else had.
“Are we celebrating? Commiserating?” I asked and searched for the truth in her eyes. I didn’t think she would tell me. She’d cut off any personal questions eleven years ago, and I was sure she would do the same now.
So it surprised me when she actually answered.
“Celebrating and commiserating.”
The bartender slid my shot of tequila, with a wedge of lime and salt on the rim, across the bar. “Ready?” I picked up my shot glass. She did the same but bit the edge of her lip, a bit of nervousness trickling over her features.
“I always forget the order of a tequila shot. I hardly ever drink, and if I do it’s one beer or one glass of wine. A margarita if I’m feeling wild.”
I raised a brow. “Maybe we should just plan for one shot at a time then.”
She laughed, her head falling back slightly, the ends of her long vibrant red hair tickling the top of her ass. The sound of her laughter and view of her exposed neck sent my blood racing south. My voice came out gravelly as I explained the order. “Just remember. Lick. Sip. Suck.”
Her eyes came back to mine and flared as her breath hitched. We raised our glasses to our lips, and her tongue traced the rim of salt. I tossed the shot to the back of my throat, picked up the lime, and sucked hard. Her face was squeezed tight as she sucked on the tart lime. I laughed as she released a full-body shudder.
“Going slow is a good idea,” she said and shuddered again. “I haven’t even said hello to anyone yet. I came straight over to the bar.”
I nodded. “I saw. You were a woman on a mission. Come on, Gunner and Delilah are over there.” I pressed my hand to her lower back, leading her away from the bar and toward another corner of the house.
She sucked in a breath. “I didn’t even look around when I came in. This place is gorgeous.”
I nodded. “Gunner found it right before he left for Spring Training. The backyard is incredible. I’m renovating my house right now, and when I saw their large picture window, I changed the original plan I was going to go with and added a picture window.” I gestured toward the window I was talking about as we passed it.
She gasped again and grabbed my arm, stopping and turning us to look out the window. The sun was beginning to set and was hitting the bluff, making the cliffside look like a canvas of reds and oranges against the sunset and the blue water of the lake. “Wow. I can see why you wanted a picture window. Are you renovating your house by yourself?”
“With Foster. We own a construction company that we do on the side, when we’re not firefighting.”
“Zoe?” We turned to see Gunner and Delilah striding toward us.
“I told you she was coming.” Delilah looked up at him, smiling. His eyebrows were halfway to his hairline as he nodded.
“I know, but I didn’t believe it. I didn’t see her after the game. It’s damn good to see you, Zoe.”
He stepped forward, opening his arms to her. Her gaze caught on his rolled shirtsleeve and the burn marring his arm. Pain flickered over her face as she moved into his embrace. “It’s good to see you, too, Gunner.”
He leaned down, whispering to her, before laying a kiss on top of her head. She nodded and pulled away from him with a sheen of tears in her eyes that she quickly blinked away. She pasted a smile on her face and I looked at Gunner. He subtly shook his head, and Zoe stepped back to my side. I put my hand on her lower back, rubbing once to let her know she wasn’t alone.
A woman with long curly blond hair approached our group, holding a tall Hispanic man’s hand. They were followed by a grinning blond guy. “I like your dress,” the woman said to Zoe.
She smiled. “Thank you. I got it at Harper’s Avenue in Austin. I hadn’t been in town in some time, so when I was there the other day, I might have cleaned out the store. If you’re ever in Austin, I highly recommend it.”
Delilah chuckled. “Zoe, this is Harper Marx, owner of Harper’s Avenue. Her husband Roman and that’s Kiernan. Y’all, this is Ridge and Zoe, some good friends of ours.”
Zoe slapped a hand to her forehead. “Oh my gosh. I’m so embarrassed. I love your store.”
“Thank you.” Harper leaned in, giving Zoe a quick hug. “That really meant a lot to me. Don’t be embarrassed.”
“Roman and Kiernan own Marx Security. They do the security for the Rattlers and their families,” Gunner said and pressed a kiss to Delilah’s temple.
Roman’s arm was wrapped around Harper’s middle. Kiernan was crouched down playing with Rattler, Delilah’s son Tucker’s dog, on the floor. Kiernan stood with Rattler in his arms, looking at Zoe.
“What do you think? Think I look good with a dog? I’m thinking about getting one.”
Zoe, Harper, and Delilah chuckled. “You look good with a dog.”
My attention snapped to Zoe, scanning her features. A flare of jealousy that I wasn’t used to sat in my gut, but it rapidly disappeared when her eyes connected with mine again. I had no business getting jealous over the possibility of her being interested in someone else.
She’s leaving, I reminded myself.
But I couldn’t shake the part of me that wanted her as mine while she was here—whether that was a week, a month, or a year. I didn’t care. I wanted her while she was here. I ran my thumb along the zipper on the back of her dress, and Zoe’s lips tilted up as her gaze held me in place.
“Why are you getting a dog?” Harper asked.
“All y’all are having babies, babies, and more babies.”
“You’re godfather to half of them,” Harper said.
“That’s because I’m the best,” Kiernan retorted.
Roman scoffed. “If you get a dog, you’re not bringing him to the office.”
“Sure, boss, whatever you say.” Kiernan smirked as he snuggled Rattler again and placed him back on the ground. “Where’s Tuck? Usually Tuck and Rattler are inseparable.”
“He’s staying with a friend tonight,” Delilah said.
“Ridge, Roman and Kiernan are the guys to talk to about security for your property whenever you’re ready.”
Before I could ask for their information or ask questions, an unwanted voice interrupted. “Ridge.”
“Fuck,” I muttered.
Zoe’s brow wrinkled in confusion. My hand fell from her back as I leaned down to whisper in her ear. “When I’m done with this, I’ll need that second shot.” She nodded. “Excuse me,” I said to the group before walking away. If I ignored Elise, she would insert herself and I wouldn’t be able to shake her.
“What are you doing here?” I asked. I knew Delilah wouldn’t have invited her, and
I didn’t think she knew Gunner. Elise was a couple of years younger than he was and wouldn’t have hung out with him in high school.
She placed her hand on my arm. “I didn’t know you knew Gunner Gentry.”
I ground my teeth together. I didn’t want to think the worst of her, but a ballplayer with a lot of money was someone she would sink her claws into. “Why are you here?”
“A friend heard about the party, and we decided to check it out,” she said as I took a step away from her and her arm fell back to her side. She frowned. “Don’t be like that, baby. Even in a room with all these professional athletes, I still want you.”
I shook my head. “I told you that’s not happening, Elise.”
Elise trailed a finger down the middle of my chest. As I was reaching for her hand to remove it, it was batted away by another. I looked to my left as Zoe wound her arms around my waist. “I got Roman’s card for you, babe.”
I couldn’t stop the smile from spreading across my face as she stood on her toes and kissed the edge of my jaw. She laid her head against my chest. “Hi, I’m Zoe. Who are you?”
“Elise.” She sneered. “Ridge’s fiancé.”
“Ex-fiancé,” I said, snarling.
Elise shrugged. “For now. Until you remember how good we are together.”
“He hasn’t mentioned you,” Zoe said, and I had to bite back my laugh. I didn’t want to be rude to Elise, but I wanted to move on and it didn’t seem as if she was going to take no for an answer.
“We were never good together. You left me. Don’t pretend you’ve been pining for me. I don’t know what you want, but you aren’t getting it from me. Enjoy the party, Elise.”
I wrapped an arm around Zoe’s shoulders, tucking her into my side, and walked back to the bar. “Ready for that shot, clover?”
13
Zoe
“Clover?” I asked. His arm was still wrapped around my shoulders, and I had my arm around his waist. I could have lied and said it was because his ex was still watching, but the truth was I liked being pressed against his hard body.
