by Holly Martin
God, why had she hugged him? She barely knew him. She had just been so happy to see him again and she had forgotten that they were still in the very early stages of their friendship. It felt like she had known him for months, not just one day.
She tried to take a step back but his arms were still locked around her.
‘Sorry. I, er—’
‘Don’t be sorry. That was the best greeting I’ve ever had.’
She noticed Barbara from Sapphire Cottage walking slowly past them, a lot slower than her normal speed as she took in Bella and Isaac standing there with their arms wrapped around each other. She gave Bella a huge smile and what she clearly thought was a discreet thumbs-up and a wink before scurrying off to her house. Bella knew half the town would probably know before Bella had even got inside her own house and, considering the population of Hope Island was around one and a half thousand people, that was no mean feat.
Isaac released her with that gorgeous smile. ‘Have you had a good day?’
‘I saw my family and they strong-armed me into taking some food. As predicted Rome has bought me some steak. Two pieces actually so we can eat like kings tonight. I need to have a quick bath so my hair has time to dry before the interview tomorrow, but then we can eat after.’ She walked to the door and he followed her. She let them both in. ‘Did you have a good day?’
He hesitated before he spoke and she cursed herself. Stupid question. Zach was homeless and good days were probably few and far between.
‘I couldn’t get off the island.’
‘I’m sorry… Well actually I’m not. I had a lovely night last night and I was really hoping I would see you again. And tonight you can have a decent meal and a warm place to sleep and tomorrow you can come with me to the Umbrella Foundation to see if they can help you.’
He followed her into the lounge but he didn’t say anything for a moment as she went to fill the kettle up in the adjoining kitchen. A cup of tea was definitely in order; she hadn’t had tea in a long time and she’d missed that.
‘I don’t think that’s a good idea,’ Zach said, quietly.
She filled the kettle with water and put it on to boil before she turned back to him.
‘You know Isaac Scott?’
He stared at her.
‘Your note said that I would hate him as soon as I saw him, so I’m guessing you know him to make that statement.’
He didn’t speak for the longest time but eventually he spoke. ‘He’s a nice bloke, I think. But he’s very protective over his charity. Some of his methods for ensuring he has the right person for the job are a little unorthodox. I don’t think you will like them or agree with them.’
Well this was just sounding weirder and weirder. What on earth did Isaac Scott do in his interviews that she wouldn’t like? Zach said he was a nice bloke so surely whatever Isaac did couldn’t be that bad.
‘How do you know him?’
He rubbed the back of his neck, awkwardly, and stared at the floor. ‘I’ve known him forever.’
‘And does he know you’re homeless? Because if a friend of mine was in your situation I would do everything I could to help him. This Isaac doesn’t sound that nice if he would leave you on the streets.’
‘He doesn’t know…’ Zach trailed off. He looked so miserable about this conversation and so uncomfortable talking about it. ‘Look Bella, I need to tell you something—’
‘No, don’t. I’m sorry, it isn’t my place to pry. This is clearly a difficult subject for you and you don’t want to talk about him so let’s just leave it. How do you like your steak?’
She went to the fridge and pulled out the steaks. There was a lot more to this Isaac Scott than Zach was letting on but hopefully, one day, he would trust her to talk about it.
‘Why don’t I cook dinner for us?’ Zach said, coming up behind her he took the packet from her but she could feel his heat all down her back and it made her breath catch in her throat. ‘I make a mean steak. Do we have potatoes and cream? I could do dauphinoise potatoes to go with it.’
She turned to face him and he was standing so close, staring straight into her eyes. His were the most beautiful shade of blue, with deep tones of purple, indigo and that midnight blue of damsons.
She swallowed and she saw his eyes go to her lips for a second. ‘There’s cream in the fridge and potatoes in the cupboard next to the microwave.’
He nodded and stepped back out of her space. ‘Why don’t you go and have a bath or something and I’ll have it all ready for you by the time you come back down.’
‘OK. Thanks.’
He shrugged. ‘It’s the least I can do.’
She left him to it and went upstairs. It was a very weird feeling to hear him clattering about in the kitchen when she was used to silence. Though he did seem to be clattering with extra force than was necessary. That conversation about Isaac Scott had upset him and she didn’t know why. There was so much to Zach that he wasn’t telling her and she wanted to know everything there was about him.
She quickly had a bath and washed her hair, then plaited it and wrapped the plait around itself into a bun.
Bella thought about what she should wear. Normally after a bath, she would just get into her pyjamas but there was nothing sexy about them and while she doubted anything would happen between them that night, she liked seeing that look of desire in his eyes when he looked at her. She pulled her black satin robe on but that felt way too forward.
She padded out into her bedroom in her robe, determined to find something sweet, sexy, but not overly dressy to wear, when there was a knock on the bedroom door.
Crap.
She opened it slightly to see Zach standing there.
‘The steak is ready, you should come eat it while it’s hot.’
‘Oh, let me just get dressed.’
His eyes cast down her appreciatively. ‘You look perfectly respectable. Come on. It’s just me and you. I hardly think you need to wear a ball gown for dinner.’
Bella laughed as he offered out his hand and she placed hers inside his warm strong paw.
They walked downstairs and though she had wanted him to appreciate what she was wearing, she was glad that the robe came down to the knee and was fastened up quite high round the neck because when Zach had looked her up and down it was the same look a ravenous lion would give to a deer.
There was a solitary white candle burning in the middle of the dining table and she was touched that Zach had made an effort.
He held out her chair for her as she sat down and she smiled at his impeccable manners.
The steak looked delicious and that gorgeous scent of garlic hit her nose as he sat down opposite her.
‘This all looks wonderful, thank you.’
‘A celebratory meal for when you get the job tomorrow,’ Zach said, offering out a glass of wine.
She picked hers up and chinked it against his with a smile. ‘Thank you. But apparently I have some hoops to jump through first.’
Zach put his glass down. ‘Please don’t be worried about tomorrow. I already know you’re going to get this job. You’re one of the most incredible people I’ve ever met and they will snap you up.’
‘I’m not worried.’ Bella took a sip of wine and let the bubbles dance over her tongue. ‘Isaac Scott, if he turns up, and the rest of the panel will have to take me as I am. I’m certainly not going to pretend to be someone I’m not just so I get the job. What will be will be. I’m honest, hardworking and passionate about making a difference and if that’s not good enough for them, or they don’t want me just because I’m not wearing the right shoes, then there’s nothing I can do to change that.’
Zach laughed. ‘I fear I’ve given you a terrible impression of the charity and that’s not what they’re like at all. They are looking for someone special and, believe me, you tick every box.’ He took a bite of his steak and sighed. ‘Isaac was homeless himself for a short time when he was in his teens. He was basically adopted by a couple
of people who lived on the streets who helped him and made sure he was looked after. So the charity is really important to him. Just bear that in mind when you see him tomorrow; that his passion for the charity comes from the heart.’
She stared at him. ‘I didn’t know.’
‘He’s very private.’
‘You really do know him.’
‘Yeah, and I’m questioning his life choices right about now,’ he said, shaking his head. ‘Look I’m sorry, I really am. I shouldn’t have come here last night and I certainly shouldn’t have come here a second time. I shouldn’t be sitting here with you now like we’re best friends and giving you all this completely ambiguous information. Please know that coming back here tonight was nothing more than me wanting to see you again and spend time in your company. But I should go. This was a mistake.’
He stood up to leave and Bella felt a slice of panic rip through her. ‘Wait. Please don’t go. I have no idea what’s going on between you and Isaac Scott but I promise not to say anything more about it.’
He hovered.
‘I really enjoyed your company last night too and I was really looking forward to another night talking to you. You’ve made this delicious steak, you should at least get to finish it. If you still want to leave after that, I won’t stop you. I’m really sorry if I’ve upset you.’
He sat back down. ‘You haven’t upset me. Not at all. I’m more concerned about my actions upsetting you because that’s the very last thing I want.’
‘Well, you leaving would upset me, so how about you eat your steak and we can talk about something else?’
He nodded, a smirk fighting on his lips at her bossiness, and as she tucked into her steak she cast around for a more suitable topic.
Isaac watched as Bella plonked herself down on the sofa next to him and poured some wine into their glasses. The steak had been finished a long time before and they had polished off most of the bottle of wine between them. They had moved to the sofa and the log fire was burning away quite merrily, casting a cosy glow over the room. Things were good and easy between them and – apart from that little blip earlier when he had ended up talking about himself in the third person – she hadn’t suspected a thing.
He hated deceiving her like this but he had made a very selfish decision not to tell her the truth. He strongly suspected that if he told her now, she wouldn’t show up for the interview at all and he needed her for this job. His company needed her. He wasn’t sure how he was going to play it tomorrow. He had intended on sitting in on the interviews with all the candidates but maybe it would be best if he left it to the rest of the panel to conduct them or at the very least not sit in on Bella’s interview. Then she wouldn’t have to see him and wouldn’t know who he was until she had agreed to do the job and turned up at her first day of work.
It was messy and complicated and he knew he only had himself to blame but it was important that he got Bella on board, someone with real passion for his charity, someone who could tackle the job of events manager with a breath of fresh air. He would take any anger from her when she found out as long as he could get her to work for him.
‘Tell me what you wanted to do when you were a kid, what was the dream?’ Bella asked him as she passed him his glass of wine.
He put it down on the coffee table; he needed a clear head because right now, with her sitting so close, her intoxicating scent swirling round him and a glass or two of wine inside him, it was taking a lot of willpower not to lean over and kiss her.
‘That’s easy,’ Isaac said. ‘I wanted to create computer games. I was an avid video game player when I was a child. There was one called Dizzy which was basically the adventures of an egg trying to solve puzzles, collect treasure and save his friends. It was a platform game and a really fun one but even as a child I kept thinking of ways I would make it better. Later I loved all the Crash Bandicoot ones, they were brilliant and I knew I wanted to create something like that. I went to university and learned about coding and how to design basic programs. And then I learned how to make those programs better and more convoluted. I loved it. It’s funny though how life takes you in a completely different direction than the one you envisaged.’
She smiled sadly, taking his hand. ‘This is a little bump in the road for you; you’ll get back on your feet again.’
He smiled.
‘I didn’t mean this. I just meant that after university I never ended up working for the gaming industry as I thought I would. My skills at computer programming led me down a very different path.’ This was getting too close to home and he knew he had to change the subject. ‘What about you? What did you want to be?’
‘A vet,’ Bella said.
He couldn’t help but smile. Of course that’s what she’d wanted. She would always be someone who wanted to help others.
‘Nursing sick animals and making them better appealed to me.’
‘And what happened to that dream?’
‘Oh I’m terrible around blood, makes me ill. I used to pass out in science lessons in school when we used to have to dissect animals. It obviously wasn’t going to be my calling. Shame really as I’ve never been great with people. Much better with animals.’
He frowned. ‘You’re doing pretty well with me.’
‘Oh, I’m much better now but as a child I wasn’t great. After what happened with my parents I had trust issues and was afraid of letting people in. Still do in many ways. I end up pushing people away.’
‘I don’t see that at all. You’re warm, happy, funny, achingly endearing, so kind, easy to talk to, engaging…’ he trailed off as she was watching him with surprise. He brushed a red curl off her face. ‘And beautiful,’ his mouth said, without any consent from him.
She stared at him for a moment and then without warning she leaned forward and kissed him.
Chapter Six
Desire slammed into his stomach as soon as he tasted her on his lips and he immediately kissed her back. God she tasted so good, the scent of her was too much, overpowering his senses. He cupped the back of her head as she slid her hands down his arms. He pulled her against him; feeling her body next to his was incredible, and when she slid her tongue inside his mouth every rational thought went clean out of his mind.
He rolled her backwards onto the sofa so she was under him and she let out a little giggle against his lips before she continued kissing him. It was a wonderful sound. He realised her robe had come slightly undone and he slid it open the rest of the way. He ran his hand over her body and she moaned against his lips. She felt so divine, so soft and smooth and warm.
Isaac ran his hand over her breast and a breathy gasp escaped her lips. He pulled back slightly to make sure she was OK and realised that under the robe she was completely naked. Her skin was pale and her hair looked like fire as it escaped the plait on her head and tumbled over her shoulders. She looked so beautiful and he could see from the desire in her eyes that she wanted this as much as he did.
He kissed her again and she wrapped her arms around him, kissing him with an urgency that he was feeling too. He ran his hand up her inner thigh, moving his mouth to her neck.
‘Oh god, Zach,’ she moaned and he froze.
Zach. That’s who she was kissing. The homeless guy she had been kind enough to help, to offer a bed and food to. She certainly hadn’t offered this and now with half a bottle of wine inside her he was clearly taking advantage. There was no way he could sleep with her or kiss her when she had no idea who he was – and there was no way he should be kissing her and groping her when in less than twenty-four hours he could be her boss.
He leapt off her so fast that he tumbled over the coffee table and hit the floor.
‘I can’t do this, I’m sorry.’
Rejection washed across her face and she quickly pulled her robe together. ‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have kissed you.’
He got up quickly. ‘This isn’t about you, please don’t think it is. This is about me being a complete and utter a
rsehole. This is wrong for so many reasons I couldn’t even begin to list them, but not one of them has anything to do with you. And it definitely isn’t about me not wanting you, I can assure you that isn’t the case.’
She stood up too. ‘Then what’s wrong?’
‘You’ve been drinking,’ he said, grasping at straws.
‘So? I’m not drunk or half unconscious. I’m pretty sure I could still walk in a straight line.’
‘You have no idea who I am,’ Isaac said. He ran his hands through his hair. Christ, what a mess.
‘I know enough.’
‘I need to go, I’m sorry, I really am.’
He walked out into the hall and he heard her bare feet follow him. ‘Zach, wait. Talk to me, please. Tell me what’s wrong.’
He turned back so he could see her looking at him with affection one more time, rather than the anger and hate he’d no doubt see the next day, and then he grabbed his bag and walked out, closing the door behind him.
He walked out of her gate and then sank to the floor against her wall. What the hell was he doing? And what was he going to do now?
Bella stared at the front door feeling utterly confused. They had eaten and talked and laughed, and though he had got a bit uncomfortable talking about Isaac Scott, once they had moved on from that subject things had been good and wonderful and easy between them. And his kiss. It was like nothing she had ever felt before. It was quite obvious that he wanted to kiss her too. So why had he run off?
She peered out the window by the door and saw him sitting outside her garden wall with his head in his hands.
She needed to talk to him because if she let him walk away now she was scared she’d never see him again.
She ran upstairs to get changed, pulled some jeans on and, just as she was pulling a t-shirt over her head, she heard voices outside. She peered outside her bedroom window and saw there was a gang of boys hassling Zach.
She rolled her eyes. There was a little alleyway between two of the houses a few doors down that led to the fields and a lot of the kids from the island would hang out there after dark and some of them would use the alley as a cut through. Most of the time the kids never caused any trouble but sometimes they were a bit loud and if she bumped into them when they had been drinking they were sometimes a little lewd or lairy but they never touched her and she felt more annoyed by them than intimidated. They were only kids after all.
