As he stopped talking, I felt my heartbeat racing faster and faster, as if it were trying out for a position in a Formula One racing team. I wasn’t sure how to respond to him. One part of me wanted to reach over and kiss him and tell him that I never wanted to let him go, but another part of me was cognizant of the fact that he had clearly told me that I would never have his heart and that he didn’t want me to fall in love with him either. There was no future in a relationship between the two of us. After everything I had been through, I didn’t know if I could survive being in a relationship with Zane that would never go anywhere. But he’s never known love, a little birdie whispered in my ear. Maybe if you show him what it means to be in love, maybe then he’ll change his mind.
“Did I scare you, Lucky?” Zane looked at me with worry in his eyes, and I shook my head.
“No. I’m just thinking.”
“Not about being my sub again? Do I have to buy a paddle to get an answer out of you?” He joked at me with twinkling eyes and I burst out laughing.
“You better not buy a paddle. I don’t think my behind could take it.”
“Just my hand then?” He winked and I lightly slapped his arm.
“I’m not really sure what you are asking of me.” I spoke lightly, unsure of myself.
“I don’t really know either.” He sighed. “I guess I just want to see what happens?”
“Won’t it be weird? Me working for you, living with you, and kind of seeing you?”
“Only if we let it be weird.”
“I guess.” I bit my lip. I wanted to ask him about the other girls, but I was scared. It wasn’t like he was asking to be my boyfriend. But I had to know. “Will we be dating other people?”
“I can’t answer that for you.” He rubbed his face. “However, if you are sleeping in my bed. I will not stand for you to be fucking another man.”
“Zane.” I looked around the airplane, mortified that someone may have heard his crude language.
“I don’t share.” He spoke softer this time. “I want your body all to myself.”
“So you think you’re going to have my body?”
“Only if you want me to.”
“Okay.” I laughed at the look on Zane’s face as he heard my response.
“Just okay? No yes or no?”
“I have to think about it.” I smiled. “Now, can I watch my movie?”
“I suppose, seeing as it’s been a long day, you can watch your movie.”
“Why thank you, kind sir, I do appreciate it.” I spoke in my Southern accent again.
“I’m glad you find it agreeable, ma’am.” Zane laughed and leaned over and kissed me on the cheek. “A man, such as myself, likes a woman to be soft and pliant.” He whispered in my ear, and before I could respond indignantly, he was kissing me. I kissed him back, passionately and closed my eyes. I could get used to these moments, I thought.
Chapter 9
“Welcome to Los Angeles.” Zane grinned at me as he pulled into a parking space.
“I can’t believe you let me sleep the drive away. I didn’t see a thing.” I yawned as I stretched in my seat.
“You needed your beauty sleep.”
“I guess so.” I stepped out of the car and looked at the building in front of me. It looked like a grand Spanish house. “You said you live in a condo?”
“It doesn’t look like a condo, does it?” He grinned.
“No. It doesn’t.”
“I decided to bring you to my casa in Los Feliz instead.” He grabbed the bags and I followed him to the front door.
“Why?” I was puzzled at the change in destination.
“No reason.” He opened the big wooden door and I followed him inside. I was immediately struck at how different the interior of this home was to his place in Miami. The floors were a golden brown hardwood that ran from the front door all the way to the French doors at the end of the large room. From the front of the house, I could see the garden outside, and it looked lush and green with different plants and flowers. The lights at the back coupled with the moonlight made his garden look magical. “Welcome to my home.” Zane put the bags down and ushered me in properly.
“Thanks.” My voice was small as I took in my surroundings. I was in awe at just how perfect his home was. There was a large white couch to the immediate right of me and it had bright orange throw pillows that seemed to accent the cream and orange rug on the floor. There was a huge fireplace to the right of the rug and on top of the mantelpiece there were little ornaments. There were paintings all along the walls, but I didn’t recognize any of them from any of my art classes or trips to museums.
“Do you like?” Zane asked me quietly and I could sense that he was really interested in my opinion.
“I really really love it, Zane.” I gushed. “It’s so different from your place in Miami.”
“That’s really Noah’s place.” He explained. “This is my house. I chose it and designed it. This is my style. I’ve never really brought anyone here before.”
“Oh?”
“Yeah.” He shuffled his feet nervously. “I usually take everyone to the condo I share with Noah. It’s in Burbank.”
“Oh okay.” I offered him a small smile, while inside, I was beaming. This had to mean something, right? He had taken me to his real home and not the home that he has on show.
“Would you like a tour?” He seemed unsure and that uncertainty endeared me to him even more. He was like a little boy showing off his favorite toy. My heart went out to him when I realized that he likely never had a great childhood and that his image of the world had been shaped by events that had occurred in his life when he was six.
“I would love a tour. What are we waiting for?” I linked my arm through his and smiled up at him enthusiastically.
“Well this is my living room.”
“Who did the paintings?”
“I’m involved with a hospital that does research on children with cancer. These are some of the children’s paintings.”
“Wow. They are amazing.” I looked at the paintings and was blown away by the talent of the children and the fact that Zane had hung their images in frames on his walls.
“The ornaments on the mantle-frame are keepsakes I’ve gotten from my travels.”
“Do you like to travel a lot?”
“I did.” He paused. “My father used to take us all over the world with him when we were younger. He had a lot of movie releases in other countries.”
“That must have been fun.”
“It was a great way to learn about other cultures and people. Many of the guys I know, all they care about is their own small microcosm—it’s all about movies or parties. There’s more to the world than having a good time.”
“I agree.”
“But that’s a conversation for another time. This is my dining room, I got the table, solid wood by the way, shipped from India.”
“It’s gorgeous.”
“The chairs aren’t very comfortable, I’m afraid.” He laughed. “I have to get them replaced.”
“At least they are pretty to look at.”
“Who know that metal chairs would be so uncomfortable?”
“Not me.”
“And through here is the kitchen. Some people don’t like white cabinetry, but I love it, I think it looks so fresh and clean. I got the hardware at Anthropologie.”
“I didn’t know guys knew about Anthropologie.”
“Oh I didn’t. A girl I was dating at the time took me in one day and I ended up finding quite a few pieces that I liked.”
“Oh, that’s cool.” I tried to ignore the knotting jealousy in my stomach. What girl, I thought to myself. Was she his girlfriend?
“And of course all stainless steel. And a gas oven.”
“Do you cook a lot then?”
“No.” He laughed again. “I’ve thought about getting a cook though.”
“I can cook for you if you want. I really enjoy cooking.”
<
br /> “That would be great, if you didn’t mind, of course.”
“I wouldn’t mind at all.”
“Awesome. Well let’s go upstairs. Let me show you the bedrooms.”
“Oh we aren’t going to go outside?” I pointed to the French doors.
“We can go later. Maybe we can even go for a swim.”
“You have a pool here?” I said excitedly.
“Of course.” He grabbed my hand and we ran up the stairs. It was really light and spacious with a lot of windows. I was pleased to see carpet on the floors. I like hardwood a lot, but there is something about having carpet in the bedrooms that makes you feel more comfortable and at home.
“Let’s go to my room first.” He winked and I followed him to a door at the end of the hallway. I walked in slowly and looked around carefully to see what I could figure out about him from his room. I was surprised that he had a queen size bed in the center of his room, and directly opposite from it, there was a 42-inch flat screen TV hanging on the wall. His nightstand only contained a lamp and a book, and his duvet was a navy blue shiny color that I hated. I looked to the corner of the room and saw a huge bay window. Next to the window, was a small bookshelf, with well-tousled books that looked like they had been read and there was a huge chest of drawers against the wall. I walked over to the bookshelf to see what books he read and was pleasantly surprised to see the names of authors I loved and enjoyed as well.
“What’s your favorite book?” I asked him curiously.
“My favorite? That’s hard.” He paused. “But my top three would have to be Crime and Punishment by Dostoevsky, For Whom The Bell Tolls by Hemingway, and Paradise Lost by Milton.”
“Nice choices.”
“What about you?”
“Well, I have to admit, I have a bit of an eclectic taste.” I laughed. “I love A Tale of Two Cities by Dickens, I preferred The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky, and of course my absolute all time favorite is Little Women by Alcott.”
“Classics.” He grinned.
“Yeah, but I also love books like Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire and as you know, I’ve read Fifty Shades, and I enjoyed it.”
“Well that’s because you were training to be a dom.” He laughed. “Or should I say a sub.”
“I think you should say nothing.” I laughed.
“I’m afraid I don’t have any secret pleasure or pain rooms.”
“Wait, how did you know about the red room of pain?” I asked suspiciously. “Did you read it as well?”
“Hell no.” He laughed and shook his head. “Well, not really. I saw part of the movie script.”
“Oh.” I coughed. “Sure, that was it.”
“Are you calling me a liar?” He growled and walked towards me.
“No.”
“Yes, you are.” He grabbed me and tickled me under my arms until I was squealing and almost falling to the ground. “Come here you.” Zane pulled me towards him and put his arms around me. He leaned down and kissed my forehead, and then my nose and my lips. I melted against him and we stumbled back onto his bed as we kissed. We fell onto the bed and Zane pulled away from me slightly. “Are you ready to go to bed?” He studied my face and I knew he was asking me a completely different question.
“You haven’t shown me my room as yet.” I looked away from him quickly, unsure of how to answer his unspoken question.
“Come on then.” He jumped off of the bed quickly and I followed him quietly. I had forgotten how easy he was to move on from everything. I was annoyed at him and myself for not pushing the issue. “I figured you could have the room next door.” He spoke in a perfunctory voice, all teasing gone from his tone.
“It looks very nice. Thank you.” I looked inside the room and was once again overwhelmed by just how much the room fit my taste. The walls were a light yellow and the carpet was plush beneath my feet. I was happy to see that the bedspread was a luxurious looking cream color and the pillowcases were peach. There was a bay window in this room as well, and there was a vanity table and stool on the other side of the room. This design had definitely been planned with a female in mind. I wanted to ask him why this room was so feminine; what had been his plan when he had created this room?
“I’ll go downstairs and get your bags, and you can get ready for bed,” he said, quite coldly.
“Oh ok, thanks.” I sat on the bed as he walked out of the room and sighed. “Are we going to be working tomorrow?” I asked him when he returned with my suitcase.
“No.” He shook his head. “I thought that I would show you around Los Angeles this week and that we could talk about the project. We will start officially working next Monday.”
“Okay, that sounds good.” I smiled, trying to break down his wall.
“I thought we could have a party in the next two weeks? Just a small one with some of my friends. That way I can introduce you to some people.”
“That would be great.” Will Noah be there? I wanted to ask him, but resisted.
“I think I’m going to go shower. Feel free to help yourself to anything you want in the kitchen. You have a private bathroom through that door.”
“Are you going to bed?” I bit my lip, not wanting the day to be done already.
“No, I was thinking of watching a movie after my shower.” He frowned. “And after I make a few calls.”
“Can I watch the movie with you?” I asked hesitantly.
“Sure.” He paused. “If you don’t mind watching it in my room.”
“That’s no problem.” I smiled up at him happily.
“Okay. Good.” He smiled back at me and rubbed his forehead. “I’m glad you’re here, Lucky.”
“Thanks. I’m glad as well.” I watched him walk out the door and lay back on the bed as he closed the door. I closed my eyes and took a big deep breath. The room smelled of tangerines and honey. I took another deep breath and stretched on the bed. I opened my eyes and looked around at the room again. It was beautiful and I was happy to be here. I jumped up and opened my suitcase, trying to decide what to change into after the shower. I wanted to make sure I looked cute and sexy, but not wanton. I didn’t want him to know that I was going out of my way to look attractive to him. I was disappointed that he hadn’t tried harder to keep me in his room. I wanted him to seduce me. I wanted him to want me so badly that he couldn’t keep his hands off of me. Sometimes I felt as if that was how he felt, but other times, I felt as if he couldn’t be bothered at all. I decided to wear a pair of gym shorts and a tank top—relaxing, casual, and slightly sexy, if Leeza was to be believed. I was just about to go into the bathroom when my phone rang.
“Hello.”
“Hey Lucky, it’s Braydon. I just wanted to make sure you made it to the best coast alright?”
“Haha, I did make it to the west coast just fine, thanks.”
“I’m glad that Zane wasn’t a completely ass to you then.”
“Oh. No, he was fine.” I paused. “Sorry about last night.”
“What’s to be sorry about? You had a few drinks. You were fine. Zane, on the other hand, was a psycho stalker.”
“He was just worried about me.”
“Why? He barely knows you,” Braydon scoffed.
“Well, he knew my car broke down and I guess—”
“Your car broke down?”
“Oh yeah, I didn’t tell you? I thought I told you on our date?”
“I think you said something about your car. But you’re only now telling me he just happened to be there when your car broke down.”
“Well, it was after the party and I guess he left around the same time,” I said defensively.
“Lucky, I want you to be careful.” Braydon’s voice was low. “I know you don’t really know me. But please be careful with Zane. He’s not right in the head and I think he has something against me.”
“What?” I was starting to get annoyed at Braydon.
“I know this may be hard to believe, but I think he has it out f
or me. Maybe he’s jealous or something. But he is really not right in the head.”
“Braydon, why would you say that?”
“Look, I don’t know him that well. We don’t really hang in the same circles. But his brother Noah and I were pretty tight. I think—”
“Hey, where is Noah now?” I interrupted him, hoping to get some information on the infamous Noah Beaumont.
“Zane hasn’t told you?” Braydon’s voice was slow and deliberate.
“No, and I haven’t wanted to intrude. Did they fall out or something?”
Braydon sighed and took a deep breath. “Look, I don’t want to say much, but Noah and Zane fell out. And Noah kind of left Zane behind. He wanted to make something of himself. He wanted to be a new person. Zane is so insular. He was all about it being him and Noah against the world, but Noah wanted more than that.”
“Oh wow, so they fell out.”
“Yeah.” Braydon cleared his throat. “Look Lucky, I want you to stay safe okay. I’m going to try and fly down to LA this week.”
“Wait, where is Noah now?”
“I gotta go. I’ll talk to you later.” And with that, Braydon hung up and I was no closer to knowing where Noah was. I sat looking at my phone and wondered what could have come between Zane and his brother. It seemed like they were as tight as two brothers could have been. Maybe Zane didn’t like Braydon because Noah stole his friendship. Someone who was as emotionally insecure as Zane probably found it pretty hard to trust anyone. All of a sudden, I realized that I wanted to fix Zane. I wanted to be the one to let him see that not all relationships ended badly. Not all love was selfish and hurtful. Even if it cost me my heart. Zane was like no other man I had met before. On the surface, he seemed cocky, bossy, and uncaring, but I was starting to get to know the real him and he was a really good guy. The sort of guy that could win my heart forever. He was the type of guy a girl took a chance on, and that was exactly what I was going to do.
The Last Boyfriend Page 10
