11. Zach
Friday 11:53 PM
It’s over. He’s gone
Olivia
WTF
What happened???
He got his dream job and doesn’t need me anymore
I was nothing but a distraction the whole time
Something to do while biding his time
Nell
Oh my god
What a fucking asshole
Olivia
Tell me where that bastard is
I’ll go full-on Carrie Underwood on his car
Saturday 1:37 PM
Olivia
I’m sorry if that didn’t help. We love you. What can we do?
Saturday 2:20 PM
Olivia
Zach, we’re worried about you
How are you holding up, sweetie?
Saturday 8:00 PM
Olivia
I’ve called you five times. Please answer your phone
Nell
Please answer. We just want to talk to you
Sunday 5:28 PM
Olivia
Your hotel assures me that you’re alive
I guess that’s something, at least
Monday 11:04 PM
Olivia
Zachary Potter, enough is enough
I’m your best fucking friend
You walked me down the aisle at my wedding, for fuck’s sake
If there’s anyone who can help you through this, it’s me Now answer your fucking phone
Frustration and shame burned in Zach’s chest in equal measure as he slid the green button. “Idon’twannatalk.” He tried extra hard to enunciate each syllable, but the words somehow all ran together anyway.
“Are you drunk?” Olivia demanded.
“Insufficiently.”
A string of curses came through the speaker. “And I suppose that’s why you ignored me for the last three days?”
His brows shot up at that. Three days? That didn’t sound right. He tried to remember how many times room service delivered food to his room, but his head was far too fuzzy to figure it out.
“Are you even listening to me?” Olivia asked.
“Yes, I’m listening.” He said it like a petulant teenager being scolded by their parents.
“I’m sorry Remy turned out to be a shithead,” Olivia said, the edge of anger leaving her voice. “I can’t even tell you how sorry I am. You deserve so much better than the way he treated you. But dying of alcohol poisoning alone in the fucking Caribbean isn’t the right way to handle it.”
Aaand there it was. The fiery anger hadn’t left her for long.
“Thank you for your concern. But I’ll be fine.”
“Zach—”
“I’ll talk to you later, ’kay?”
“Don’t you dare hang up on?—”
Zach ended the call, then turned off his phone altogether.
The pounding on Zach’s door was not in time with the pounding in his skull, and he very much wasn’t here for it. “Come back later!” he shouted, pulling the comforter up over his head. “I’m sleeping.”
Whoever was out there either didn’t know or didn’t care. They kept right on knocking on the door, the sound so loud that they seemed to want to break it down.
Jesus Christ, was there a fucking fire?
Or maybe he lost track of time again. What day was it? Was he supposed to have already checked out or something?
Dragging himself out of bed, he trudged over to the door, his bare feet dragging on the industrial carpet. “Okay, okay, I’m coming,” he called out, desperate for that pounding to stop before his head split open. “Just give me a second.”
He pulled open the door, ready to argue or apologize, whatever the case may require. But what he saw there struck him temporarily dumb.
Olivia stood just outside, her wild black curls in a messy bun on top of her head, her blue and yellow sundress blowing in the breeze.
They stared at each other for five whole seconds, neither so much as blinking.
And then, for the first time since Remy left, Zach burst into tears.
“Oh, Zach, I’m sorry,” Olivia said, wrapping her arms around him, holding him close. “I’m so, so sorry.”
Less than a minute later, he lay curled in the fetal position on the sofa, his head cradled in Olivia’s lap as he cried. “I loved him,” he managed to get out between sobs. “I fucking loved him.”
“I know, sweetie.”
Olivia ran her fingers through his hair, a constant, rhythmic motion. It gave him something to concentrate on, to center him.
Bring him back to himself after fumbling in the darkness for so long.
Zach didn’t know how long he cried. He only knew that his head pounded even more by the time the tears dried up, and his mouth felt cottony. “What day is it?” His voice cracked, and he tried to wet his tongue.
“Thursday.”
Good God. No wonder she flew down to the island.
“I’m sorry.”
Her fingers resumed their gentle stroking of his hair. “You don’t need to apologize for having your heart broken.”
With a long, miserable sigh, Zach forced himself to sit up. “I didn’t tell you this, but I came here to get over a broken heart,” he said, trying to look her in the eye, not quite managing it.
“I know.”
The certainty in her voice made him look up. “You do?”
So much kindness filled her sapphire blue eyes. Those eyes were what made him want to befriend her in the first place. They had a way of drawing people in, making them trust her. “I’ve seen the way you look at Mason when you think no one is looking.”
He opened his mouth to respond. Closed it again. Finally, he managed to get out, “Why didn’t you say anything?”
“I hoped you’d tell me when you were ready.”
Guilt lanced at his chest. “It wasn’t that I didn’t want you to know. I was afraid you’d have to tell Aiden, and then he’d tell Jonathan, and then everyone would know. I was so afraid of that happening.”
Sadness lurked in her eyes, but she tried to give him a small smile. “I understand.”
“The thing is, coming here made me realize I wasn’t really in love with Mason.”
Her smile turned real.
“Infatuated, yes. Attracted? Without doubt. But not in love. I never felt anything like this before.”
“It changes things, doesn’t it?” Olivia said, sympathy in those big blue eyes. “Makes you have a whole different outlook.”
Zach thought about that for a bit. “I guess it’s liberating in a way. At least I can stop moping around the Manor now.” He tried to sound upbeat about it, almost flip, but it came out sounding like he was talking about the death of a beloved friend. Giving up the ruse altogether, he sighed. “The trouble with falling in love for real is that it hurts a million times more when it all falls apart.”
Taking one of his hands in hers, she gave it a squeeze. “Hopefully it’ll start to get easier now that you’re not alone. We’re all here for you.”
“All?” Zach repeated. “Oh God, does the whole Manor know what happened?”
At least she had the good grace to look apologetic. “It was kind of hard to keep it a secret after the first couple days. Nell and I were freaking the fuck out.”
Groaning, Zach leaned back against the arm of the sofa, shutting his eyes. “Awesome. Just when I thought it couldn’t get any worse.”
Olivia grabbed both of his hands this time, pulling him back up into a proper sitting position. She waited until he looked at her before she started speaking. “Listen to me. No one is judging you. No one thinks any less of you. That’s not what family does. Now come home and let us take care of you.”
“My flight isn’t until Saturday,” he said, wishing as he said it that it wasn’t true. “I got the super economy ticket that doesn’t let you change it without a huge fee.”
“Then I guess it’s lucky I have this.” She held up a black AmEx card.
“Whoa, where did you get that?” Zach grabbed it out of her hand. The name Jonathan Hale stretched across the bottom left corner in tiny, raised letters. He looked back up into Olivia’s eyes, his brows arched as high as they could go. “Jonathan gave you his personal credit card?”
She grinned at him. “He’s been just as worried about you as I have. Last night, when I told him your phone was still going right to voicemail, he just pulled out his wallet, handed me his card, and told me to get my ass on a plane.”
For the first time in almost a week, Zach felt his lips move into his all-too-familiar smirk. “Do you have any idea how much damage we can do with this thing?”
Laughing, she snatched the card back. “I’m not interested in dying anytime soon, thank you very much. We have to be good.”
“Spoilsport.”
Olivia kept on smiling as she pulled her phone out of her bag. “Why don’t you go take a shower,” she said as she tapped several times on the screen.
Considering Zach smelled like he just crawled out of a gutter, that was probably a good idea.
“And I’ll get us first class tickets on the next flight to Boston.” She glanced up, winking at his look of surprise. “Even I can’t be good all the time.”
By the time Olivia’s Bronco rolled to a stop in the Manor’s parking lot the next day, Zach wanted nothing more than to sleep for a week. “Remind me never to go on vacation again,” he grumbled, tilting his head back against the headrest and closing his eyes.
“I’m not sure that’s the answer,” she said, patting his hand where it rested on the center console. “Come on, let’s go inside.”
He groaned. “I don’t want to go inside. I want to go home. I’m technically still on vacation, remember?”
“I do. But your car is technically still in long-term parking at Logan, remember? And I have to go inside.”
Zach groaned even louder that time. “Motherfucker,” he muttered under his breath.
He’d been in no state to drive when they landed in Boston. Exhausted, miserable, and still hungover, he napped in her backseat while she called the chauffeur the Manor hired when a guest needed a ride from the airport. Dale gladly found another driver friend willing to make the eight-hour roundtrip to Fairford—not a difficult task with Jonathan’s AmEx in the picture.
But that meant Zach’s Jetta would be MIA until early tomorrow afternoon. He was stuck here.
Removing his seatbelt far too forcefully, he flung the passenger door open. “Fine. But I’m locking myself in my office until someone gives me a ride home or my car shows up. Whichever happens first.”
“Understood,” she said, as if everything he just said was perfectly reasonable.
He’d need to remember to nominate her for sainthood after this was all over. She deserved it for putting up with his moods.
Zach shuffled along the pathway behind Olivia, his dread increasing with every step. There wasn’t a person inside that building he had the strength to face right now. He knew they meant well. That they’d just be trying to support him the best way they knew how. But he couldn’t take any fucking pity. Not while the wound was still so horrifically raw.
When he got close enough to see Jonathan and Mason waiting on the Manor’s enormous farmer’s porch, he stopped walking. Fuck it, he’d just wait in the car. Sure it was June, and sitting in the car without the AC on would probably kill him, but that seemed preferable right now.
“Zach. We’d like a moment before you head inside.”
Fuck, fuck, fuck, Jonathan was using that low, power-filled voice again. The one that said he knew damn well he was in charge in any and all situations. Zach had never been able to resist when he pulled that shit.
With a deep, fortifying breath, he forced himself to walk up the steps and settle onto a chair facing the two men. “Why do I feel like I’ve just been called to the principal’s office?” He tried to say it as a joke, but it came out sullen.
Even so, one corner of Jonathan’s mouth quirked up. “In five years, I haven’t reprimanded you once. I’m hardly going to start now.”
Sighing, Zach did his best to push the tension out of his body. This was happening whether he wanted it to or not, so he might as well try to accept it graciously. “Thank you,” he said, none of the attitude in his voice that time. “For sending Olivia. I don’t know what I would’ve done without her.”
Jonathan’s eyes softened. “I would’ve sent her sooner if you’d asked. Hell, I’d have come myself if I thought it would help.”
Swallowing the lump in his throat, Zach sounded truly baffled when he asked, “You would?”
“I may be in charge,” Jonathan said, ignoring Mason’s huff of amusement, “but you’re the glue that holds us all together. You’re the one who turned us from friends and business partners into a family. And there’s nothing I wouldn’t do for my family.”
Tears stung Zach’s eyes. He tried to make himself glance at Mason—to see if he could read anything in his expression since he still hadn’t said a word. But try as he might, he couldn’t bring himself to look at the man.
“I’m glad you’re home,” Jonathan said, standing. “If you need anything, and I do mean anything, you know where I am. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to get back to my guest.” He sauntered into the house without a backward glance.
Zach longed to follow him inside. To sprint into his office, lock the door behind him, and hide there for eternity if that’s what it took to avoid the next conversation. But Mason remained on the porch, still and silent, clearly waiting for Zach to finally acknowledge him.
His heart pounded and his brain screamed at him to fuck politeness and flee. This conversation had to happen eventually, though.
It took all his remaining strength to look into Mason’s icy blue eyes.
He knew. It was written all over his face.
Part of Zach wanted to sink into a hole and fucking die of embarrassment, but he forced himself to keep meeting Mason’s gaze. “Hi, Mason.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” So much kindness filled Mason’s voice, it almost didn’t sound like him. Somehow, that made it all a million times worse.
“Because I knew it was impossible,” Zach answered with a little shrug. “If you knew how I used to feel about you, if everyone knew...” Good God, he’d never blushed so much in his life. “What if that made things weird? What if you weren’t comfortable and didn’t want me here anymore? No, do not do that.”
Mason frowned. “Do what?”
“The pity thing,” Zach said, motioning toward Mason’s face. The look in his eyes, the soft curve of his brows, that sympathetic little frown—it was all too much to bear. “I absolutely cannot take anyone’s pity right now, least of all yours. Look at me the way you usually do, like I just threatened to kill your firstborn child, or I swear to God I’m leaving.”
Mason’s whole face went utterly, completely blank. “I’ve never looked at anyone like they just threatened to kill my firstborn child.” His voice, too, was carefully neutral.
“Oh please,” Zach said, rolling his eyes. “That’s your standard expression. Ask Addison. She’ll agree with me.”
Mason pursed his lips, clearly trying to hide a smile. God, since when did Mason smile? Addison clearly was exactly what he needed. As if that wasn’t already abundantly obvious.
“I’m sorry you felt like you had to hide your feelings,” Mason said once he got himself back under control. “I can’t imagine how difficult that was for you. But I want you to know that I agree with Jonathan. We’re a family here at the Manor, and you’re the thing that holds it all together. There’s not a person here who hasn’t been worried sick about you this week.”
Zach rubbed at the throbbing ache in his chest. Far too many feelings warred for dominance within him, the love of his little found family entangled with the bitter, bleeding pain of heartbreak. It felt like it would tear him apart from the inside out.
“You belong here, Zach. Nothing will change that.” Mason said it with absolute finality. “Nothing ever could.”
Brushing the tears out of his eyes, Zach said, “Thank you. For being so understanding, I mean. It’s been a lot to deal with, especially this last week. I’m so fucking lost right now.” His voice caught, and he had to swallow before he could keep going. “It helps to know so many people have my back.”
Something glinted in Mason’s eyes. “You should head inside. I don’t think you realize quite how many people have your back.” His voice came out as cool and neutral as normal, but that look didn’t leave his eyes.
What was he going on about? Had the rest of the Manor staff gathered in the lobby? Or, even worse, had someone gotten in touch with his parents? If his mom and dad were in there, he would literally die. That would be it. The end. Do not pass go, do not collect two hundred dollars.
“You’re not going to tell me what you’re talking about, are you?” Zach said, sighing.
“Not a chance. Go find out for yourself.”
Rolling his eyes, Zach climbed to his feet. God, his body hurt. Whoever waited for him in there could fucking wait. Even his parents. He needed a nap before he’d be able to handle any more emotional turmoil. “See you around,” he said as he walked past Mason and up to the double front doors. Bracing himself, he pushed one of them open.
At which point he completely forgot how to breathe.
Remy stood in the middle of the lobby, so beautiful it hurt to look at him in a perfectly tailored navy suit. One hand rested casually in his pocket, while the other held a stunning bouquet of fiery orange and red hibiscus flowers.
They stared at each other for so long, Zach had no idea how much time passed. It could have been thirty seconds or an hour. He couldn’t move, couldn’t think. The only things in the world that existed were the rush of blood in his ears and Remy Levene standing right here in Fairford fucking Manor.
Remy seemed to be waiting for Zach to say or do something. Perhaps anything other than stand and stare with his mouth hanging open. But as the silence dragged on with no sign of movement from Zach—who remained utterly incapable of both speech and coherent thought—a decision flashed in his cinnamon eyes.
Clearing his throat, Remy said, “I hope it’s okay I came here.” His deep, velvety voice wrapped around Zach like a warm, fuzzy blanket. “If you want me to leave, just say the word. I promised Jonathan I wouldn’t put up a fight.”
Jonathan? Since when did Remy know Jonathan? Literally nothing made sense in his tangled-up thoughts right now.
When Zach didn’t immediately throw him out, Remy seemed to take that as a good sign. A little more confidence entered his voice as he went on. “I’ve given up every other thing that mattered in my life for that job. I used what happened with my family as an excuse to put work above everything else, but the truth is, I did it because I was afraid. Afraid that if my own family—the people who were supposed to love me unconditionally—could turn against me, anyone could.
“The hotel was easier, because it never pretended to love me. It loved the absurd amounts of money I could make it. As long as I kept their profits growing every year, nothing else about me mattered. I was, and always would be, exactly what they wanted. It just felt sosimple. So safe.”
Blinking back tears, Zach took slow, tentative steps across the lobby, coming to a stop only a foot away from Remy. “It is safe,” he agreed, his voice a hoarse whisper. “But it’s also cold and empty. It doesn’t mean anything.”
“I know.” So much regret filled his beautiful eyes. “I was working the wedding I flew home early for, and watching this couple pledge their lives to each other no matter what comes their way, and it just hit me. Maybe I’m right to be afraid, and things won’t work out. Maybe you’ll break my heart. But fuck it.”
A surprised laugh bubbled up out of Zach. “Fuck it?” he said, swiping tears from his cheeks. “Seriously? That’s your big revelation?”
“Here’s the thing.” He was getting more animated now, his hands moving as he spoke. A manic kind of energy gleamed in his eyes. “I have literally no idea what the future will bring. Might be incredible, might be terrible. But goddamnit, Zach, the way I feel when I’m with you is worth risking the worst pain in the entire fucking world.”
Zach had no idea who moved first, but in the space between one second and the next, they were in each other’s arms, holding on for dear life, lips and tongues clashing in a frantic kiss.
Oh God, please let this be real.
It would kill him to wake up and realize this was all a dream. That he’d dozed off in Olivia’s car on the ride north, or perhaps he was still black-out drunk in his room at The Diamonds.
But no, this had to be real. He felt confident his memories could provide the feel of Remy’s broad shoulders beneath his fingers, or the delicious slide of his tongue. No way could he dream up the way Remy’s voice had slightly echoed in the otherwise empty lobby, though. Or the faint, sweet smell of the hibiscus blossoms as Remy crushed them against his back.
When at last they broke apart, both gasping for air, Zach took the partially destroyed bouquet, hugging it against his chest. “Do you really mean it?” he asked, needing to hear the words spoken aloud. “You’re really choosing me?”
“Oh, my sweet boy.” Remy cupped Zach’s face between gentle, loving hands. “I’ll choose you over everything, for as long as you’ll allow me to do so. I love you.”
Zach closed his eyes as more tears fell. “Say that again.” His voice shook. “Please.”
“I love you, Zachary Dwight Potter, my pretty little imp, my gloriously sexy sprite. I love you so much more than I ever knew was possible.”
When Zach opened his eyes, he saw the truth of every single one of those words, written all over Remy’s face. “I love you like all the best love stories,” he said, trying to find words powerful enough to express the feelings swirling around inside him. “The ones so real, they make your heart ache for a love like that, even if you only ever feel it for a second.”
“That’s it exactly,” Remy said, his smile so shatteringly beautiful that Zach didn’t know how he survived it. “That’s how I feel when I’m with you.”
“Well then. It’s decided.” Zach felt like he was floating ten feet in the air. “In our own best interests, we have no choice but to stick together from now on.”
“Good thing I already got a job here,” Remy said with a wide grin.
“Here?” Zach repeated, his brows shooting up. “At the Manor, you mean?”
Remy looked a little sheepish, like he wasn’t quite sure how Zach would react. “It doesn’t bother you that I did that before I talked to you, does it? I promised Jonathan I’d go without a fight if you wanted nothing to do with me.”
It took a few seconds for Zach’s brain to catch up to his ears. “Oh my God, you’re serious. When the hell did you do this? How?”
“The only contact info I could find online was the email address for your info box. So I created a presentation describing the significant financial benefits to the Manor if they were to hire a full-time event planner to manage their growing event schedule. I sent that with my resume.”
Zach gave Remy a suspicious look. “And that actually worked. You spammed the Manor’s inbox and had a job offer less than a week later.”
Remy’s face was the very picture of innocence.
“All right, out with it. What are you leaving out?”
With a smug little smile, Remy admitted, “I may have also included a cover letter begging for the opportunity to prove to you how sorry I am and how much I love you.”
Zach couldn’t have kept the grin off his face even if he’d tried. “That may just be the most ridiculously romantic thing I’ve ever heard.”
“Oh, no, that won’t do,” Remy said, taking hold of Zach’s hips, drawing their bodies closer together. “I can be way more romantic than that.”
Going up on his tippy toes, Zach pressed a soft kiss against his lips. “Prove it.”
Remy slid his hands up, not stopping until he buried them in his hair, gripping hard enough to send a wave of pleasure burning through Zach’s body. “Oh, my love.” He bent forward, pressing their foreheads together. “As you wish.”