Chapter 10
10
JOBE
Zara places our plates on the dining table.
“What about us?” she asks in a quieter tone, and I sense her nervousness on the subject. She takes the seat opposite me and won’t look at me.
“I decided not to have Hayley email the details. Instead, we could have a conversation about it.”
She glances up with a frown firmly set on her pretty face. “Since we’re adults, I’m sure we can discuss it without it being in writing,” she says sarcastically.
“Business partnerships are made by signatures at the bottom of the page,” I remind her.
She rolls her eyes. “I guess you’re going to have to trust me.”
There is my problem.
“I trust your honesty,” I say, pausing because vulnerability isn’t a comfort zone of mine, but after the way I made her feel last night, this needs to be said. “It mustn’t be easy to share the fact that you don’t want children. I understand that many people hold the deluded belief that you are less of a woman without children. I don’t think that at all. In fact, one of the things that attracted me to you was we both agreed we didn’t want babies.” I take another bite.
Zara ogles me. “You find that attractive?”
“I found it refreshing we had something in common. Penny’s baby weekend was a nightmare for you. At dinner, you had kill me now written all over your face.”
“It w-wasn’t that bad,” she stammers.
“Zara. It has nothing to do with you being a good friend and everything to do with you wanting to find happiness elsewhere.” She nods slowly as though this is something she struggles with. “If you believe babies should be a topic of conversation, then maybe we should plan what we’ll reveal about our future at the next dinner.”
“Which is when?”
“Friday night.” She chokes on her food, and I raise a brow. “Is there a problem?”
Her expression turns desperate. “I thought you were here for one week a month?”
“On average.” Where is this going?
“I’m heading to a beach house on Friday with my friends.”
“Zara. If I need you, then it’s a priority. It’s not a big ask. You can party with your friends anytime.”
“Don’t make it sound like I party all the time. It’s Sandbanks, and they don’t do this every weekend. It’s about fitting in with my new friends.”
How do I make Zara understand she doesn’t need other people to fit in? She has a magnetism about her that pulls people toward her. I’m beginning to understand these friendships are important to Zara to feel better about herself. I don’t understand it, but moving forward, I’ll support her. “So we go to dinner then I’ll drive you to meet your friends early Saturday morning.”
“You’ll drive all that way?”
I grin at her. “It’s what boyfriends do.” Our eyes meet and lock and fuck, with one look, I’m being drawn closer to her and into her world.
“I feel bad asking you to do that.”
“We’re both making sacrifices.” I also want to check out her friends but not for Sir James’ benefit.
Pouring a whiskey, I move to the couch, making room for Zara as she grabs some chocolate from the shelf before sitting beside me. “London has the best chocolate in the world,” she says with a mouthful. “I keep it on my tongue and let it melt.”
Christ. If these conversations continue, I’m going to need fucking earplugs because now I’m thinking of where I could put that melted chocolate for her to lick. “Let’s move on to the details of our relationship. Timelines. Anniversaries. Future plans. What we both like and dislike.”
She springs up from the couch as though I’ve upset her. “I’m going to need a fuck ton of chocolate for this conversation.”
Forget the earplugs. Give me a damn eye mask so I don’t have to look at her mouth sucking the chocolate.
Friday night, we walk into the penthouse after dinner, and I head straight to the bar to pour myself a whiskey. Zara heads to the room to slip out of her gown.
Sir James has taken a liking to Zara, and his wife, Natalie, chatted to Zara like they had known each other for years. With it only being the four of us, the night went better than I anticipated .
Standing in front of the glass doors leading to the terrace, I stare out to the Parliament houses. We have a gala ball in early December, two months from now, and it’s probably the last formality for Zara to attend. It should be a relief, but I’m finding excuses for us to stay together for longer.
I stare into my glass and swirl the golden liquid. London has become a sexual nightmare. At dinner, Zara tested my limits. Her acting, every touch of my thigh, and fuck-me-now look in her eyes crossed boundaries. My head is foggy. My dick’s fault. My stupid idea, so I am the one to blame. It doesn’t help that the only taste my dick wants is the one fuck I cannot touch.
We messed it up once. If we become enemies, then Penny will never forgive me. Pretending is as good as it gets.
“I’m pouring a gin.” She strolls into the room wearing her sweatpants. How does she make baggy pants look sexy?
She prepares a drink, then hops onto the couch and crosses her legs, keeping a tight hold on the glass. “I think tonight went well.”
“It went very well.” I sit at the other end of the couch, away from her roaming hands, but it’s me who can’t be trusted. She’s a temptation I can’t give in to.
Zara holds up her hand, and I high-five her like a child. “We make a good team.”
I smile at her enthusiasm. “I believe we do.”
“Who knew how awesome we’d be together.” She laughs and takes a sip of her drink. Her words hit me straight in the gut, seeing I was thinking it, and now she has brought my words to life. “I mean,” she doubles back after seeing my face change. “We’re good at acting.”
“How much of it was an act?” Because she was testing me .
She frowns. “What are you saying? That I was coming on to you?”
“Could you kiss me now with no one here to witness it?” I hold her gaze, challenging her. For most of the night, Zara left a hand on my thigh, caressing my muscles, her fingers sliding high, dipping down to the inside of my thigh. My dick twitched with every touch, and I wondered if she was teasing since they couldn’t see her hand. And once, she leaned in and kissed my lips. A peck, but it surprised me.
“It meant nothing, Jobe.”
“Prove it. Now.” Christ, what am I saying?
“You’re overreacting because I’m better at showing affection than you.” She downs the rest of her gin and stands to pour another.
“I, at least, could control my hands.”
She turns and stares at me. “We’re supposed to be a couple. Couples touch each other.”
I glare at her. “Take a seat, Zara.”
“You don’t get to tell me what to do.”
“Take a seat. Please. I need to hear you say there is nothing going on between us.”
Otherwise, because of your little performance, I’m on the verge of throwing you over my shoulder and taking you to my room.
She laughs sarcastically and stands in front of me. “Oh, please. You’re not that irresistible.”
I take a long breath to withhold an urge to prove her wrong. “We have one upcoming event we need to get through without complication.”
“I’m not complicating anything.” She plops down beside me.
“Touching my shoulder, my arm, my hands, even my chest is acceptable. A quick squeeze of my thigh is okay, but you left your hand there most of the night. ”
A subtle smile crosses her lips. “You liked it.”
“Of course I liked it. I’m a fucking man,” I growl out.
Her smile grows wide. “You’re the one struggling because you haven’t had sex, and you liked me touching you.”
“Your point?” I snap.
“I’m better at this than you.” Her confidence is infuriating.
“There is no winner, Zara. We need to get through this together, and I’d prefer not to blow in my pants when I’m out at dinner.” I throw back my whiskey, frustrated that I had to explain myself to her.
“Best give yourself a hand before going out.”
“You wouldn’t like it if I almost made you come in public.” That finally seems to get through to her.
She stills and eyes me warily. “I guess not.”
“You want to be a winner, Zara? Fine. You win. You have more restraint than me. So use it on yourself and promise not to touch me like that again… in public.”
Her eyes widen at my last words. “Okay. I’ll see you bright and early in the morning.”
I stare into my empty glass, debating on pouring another. She is right about one thing—I need to give myself a hand, especially if I’m to get any sleep tonight. Another whiskey it is.
With my drink in hand, I walk outside to the terrace. The view usually calms me. Tonight, all I can think about is Zara’s hand almost on my groin. The flutter of her lashes when she smiles at me. The way her eyes sparkle when I say something that makes her laugh.
I have allowed her to blur the lines of our agreement when everything about us is a lie.
We’re barely even friends.
This started as a favor to Penny when she asked me to check on Zara to make sure she was okay. I had to take it one step further, and now I’m feeling things I don’t understand.
As I head inside, the wind catches the door, and it slams shut. I stop in my tracks and listen, hoping it didn’t wake her. Fuck, now I have an image in my head of Zara sleeping.
Is she naked?
I remember… I remember everything. The subtle curve of her hips, her full breasts, her rounded ass that I wanted to smack and fuck. She is intoxicating to the point I can’t think straight.
Heading to my room and stripping off, I turn back the bedcovers and grab the lube. I close my eyes, imagining it is Zara’s hand wrapped around my dick. Her hot mouth is all over my chest… my mouth sucking her pretty pussy. Jesus, I’m building fast. My hand quickens. Her hips grind as I taste her. I raise my hand to my lips as I imagine tasting her. Sweet as honey. “Yes, baby, come for me,” I murmur. Her breath quickens as she moans my name. She’s now on top of me, riding me, her hips moving in sync with mine until I hold her still and pump into her. She lets out a cry as she comes… I shoot all over my stomach.
“Zara,” I whisper. Only it’s not enough. I need her .
Saturday morning, I’m up at the crack of dawn to drive Zara to Sandbanks.
An hour out of London, I stop for gas and when I return to the car, Zara is busy texting. She looks around. “Does it still feel weird to you?”
Us on a road trip together? Strangely no. “Meaning?”
“How different things are. Drive on the left side of the road. You stopped for petrol, not gas. They call foods different names.”
“Every country is different. ”
“Yeah. It’s taking me longer than expected to adapt. Except for the chocolate,” she says and giggles. Her cell buzzes. “Hey, we’re almost there… sure… okay, see you then.” She pops her cell in her bag. “Can we stop for some groceries? Piper forgot some things.”
While Zara is shopping, I make some calls of my own, including the contact of a condominium I rented for the weekend.
“How well do you know everyone?” I casually ask when we’re back on the road.
“My work colleagues?” She stares out the window. “You met them at the pub.”
“Anyone else staying the weekend?”
“Yeah, Anna’s sister and her boyfriend. I’m not sure who else. Piper said it has nine bedrooms. In sane. ”
“How did you find the house?”
“Anna’s sister’s boyfriend’s family owns it.”
After following her direction, I stop out front of a double-story white building on the beachfront. “I’m impressed.”
She smiles. “Piper said it’s the Miami of England here.” She offers me a parting smile and says, “Bye, Jobe. Have a nice weekend.”
“Call me if you need anything.”
She stares at me for a moment, and I expect her to give sass like saying, sure, Dad . Instead, she smiles. “Thank you, Jobe. I appreciate it.” I wave and watch her stride up the path to the front door, my eyes glued to her sexy ass, wishing it was mine.
After dinner, I head out for a stroll along the waterfront to clear my head. While I used the time to work and then check out the local real estate, I’m now thinking about Zara and what she’s doing.
For whatever reason, I don’t seem to be able to stay away and find myself heading in her direction. The closer I get, the louder the music becomes, a clear sign this isn’t the place for me.
Hands in my pockets, I stare at the front door and contemplate leaving. I’m not leaving until I know she is okay. Knock. Knock.
“Hey, dude,” a guy with long, black hair answers the door, reeking of weed. I glance over his shoulder, and smoke wafts around in the room behind him. “Can I help you?”
“I’m with Zara.” So move aside.
His blank expression takes a while to comprehend my words.
“The American.”
“Right. C’mon in, man.” He opens the door. “Head straight out the back.”
In the front room, another guy and three girls are smoking weed. Jesus, this music is depressing. And fucking loud. My eardrums are about to burst, not to mention the amount of smoke making me squint.
In the kitchen, five girls are dancing. But that’s nothing. The back room is where it’s at. It’s crowded, and I can’t hear my thoughts with the thump, thump, thump in my head. People are spinning as they dance in front of me, blocking my way.
Why the fuck am I here?
Why is she here?
I weave around men and women, but there is no sign of her. A chick grabs my arm and pulls me close, grinding her hips against mine. What the fuck? “Where is Zara?” I yell.
“Upstairs.” Her ass grinds my hip.
“Thanks. ”
I get out of the maze and head up the circular staircase. Voices carry toward the back of the first floor, so it’s not much relief from the noise, but it is something. Piper and Anna are sharing a chair closest to the doorway.
Piper takes one look and then glances across the room. “Zara, your father is here.”
Hysterical.
I step into the room so I can see Zara. She is leaning against the counter of a smaller kitchen alongside another six or so other people. Others are making out on the couch opposite us.
“Jobe.” Her eyes round. “What are you doing here?” She looks at her friends and then back at me.
“I was in the neighborhood.”
It takes her a moment to register, so I go to her. “Is everything okay?”
She wraps her hands around my neck and kisses me on the cheek. “Girls, this is Jobe, who I was telling you about.”
It takes a moment to catch up. She’s behaving like she has a boyfriend, just as I asked.
I slip behind her and lean on the counter, wrapping my arms around her as I pull her back to my front. I lean in close. “What is this place?” I whisper.
“An orgy,” she whispers back.
She’s messing with me, swaying gently in my hands as Coldplay blasts from the speakers, much better than the music when I arrived.
Her friends are chatting about some guy, and Piper is calling him out as a cheater. Their words are exaggerated which is aided by the empty wine bottles beside her.
I rest my chin on Zara’s shoulder. “Is this your idea of fun?”
She shakes her head. “I’ve never been happier to see you. ”
“Do you want to leave?”
“We can’t.” She turns her head, and her breath caresses my ear and neck, and goose bumps tingle my skin. “They know I have a boyfriend, so now you’re here, we need to role play.”
“I hate it and love it,” I growl out against her neck, dotting her skin with kisses. She sways in my arms, and I can’t help myself. I run a hand up and down her hips.
She takes my hand and brings it to loop through hers. When I grind my dick against her ass, she stiffens in my arms.
Game on, girlfriend .
“Why are you here?” she asks again.
Because I can’t get you out of my head. “I was taking a stroll along the beachfront and heard the music. Decided I’d join the rave.”
She laughs. “Liar. You hate every second of being here.”
“So let’s leave…”
“I can’t. I promised I’d stay until tomorrow. What happened with you driving back to London?” She moves her hips in tune with the beat as her ass rubs over me.
I watch as three more guys stroll into the room and sit near Piper and Anna.
“I decided to stay and check out the real estate value.” My plan to return to London and work without Zara in my penthouse to distract me got derailed when I imagined some random guy coming on to her. I have taken this protector role that Penny asked of me too far. And now I’m at a fucking gathering of college students getting high on the smoke in the room. “But this is not my scene, and you’re having a good time, so I’ll go.”
“Stay a bit, please,” she says softly.
“I have work to do, and after last night, I could do with an early night. ”
She throws down whatever was left in her glass and turns, kissing me on the fucking lips. Then her hands loop around my neck, and her body leans into me. I should push her off and tell her it’s a bad idea, but she tastes so delicious—a mixture of alcohol and Zara. Soft lips, just as I remember. Her kiss is delicate and hesitant, as though any second could push us over the edge. Instead my hands remain on her waist, holding her close.
“What’s going on?” I murmur against her lips.
“Sorry. I know I said I wouldn’t overstep, but the guys that just walked in…” I sneak a glance without moving too far from her face. “The one in the blue shirt tried to hit on me earlier. It’s when I told everyone I had a boyfriend.”
Hairs prickle on the back of my neck. “We’re leaving.”
“We can’t… I can’t,” she corrects. “Stay a while then you can leave. Please. ”
Jesus. “Fine.” If that prick comes near her, I’ll ram his joint down his throat.
She turns back around, lifts a hand to cup my neck, and grinds her ass over my dick.
“Not amused, Zara,” I whisper close to her ear.
“Act like you enjoy it,” she purrs.
“I don’t need to act,” I say between clenched teeth. I kiss her neck and place my hand on her hips, trying to put some air between us.
“Get a room,” Piper calls out.
Brilliant. “Show me your room.”
“Now?”
“Yes, now. ”
She takes my hand and leads me out the door along the hallway. We pass two bedrooms and a bathroom, and then she opens the door to a bedroom that has an ocean view.
I quickly close the door behind us. “You’re not sharing with anyone? ”
“No. Piper and Anna are next door. Though, now, I wish I was sharing.”
“Jesus, if you don’t feel safe, you need to leave,” I state.
“Now you’re here… you could stay?”
“Seriously? You want to sleep in the same bed when I have a condo a block away?”
She looks down at her feet. “I’m not sure why I came. I’m trying to fit in somewhere… ”
There it is. “Hey.” I take her in my arms and hold her for a moment. The reason why I check in on her. I encouraged her to come to London, and I don’t want her to be alone in a strange country. “Go back out there with your friends, and I’ll stay here. I need to get some sleep.”
She kisses my cheek and holds my gaze. “Thank you.”
“You owe me,” I mutter before she closes the door.
When I head down the hall to the bathroom we passed, there’s a damn lineup. I nod to the three guys waiting before me.
Finally, the door opens, and a girl walks out. Then, a guy adjusting his fly.
The fuck?
It’s like being back at college all over again.
Finally, it’s my turn. How many people use this bathroom? I stare at the shower floor. It’s wet. Did someone shower or…
Despite the fancy décor, I’m not staying in here a second longer than I need.
I head back to the bedroom, strip off, and climb into Zara’s bed. I’ll grab a few hours’ sleep and once she’s okay, I’ll head back to mine. I have willingly subjected myself to this environment for Zara.
I let the meaning of that sink in.