Chapter Seventeen
Melina
I was still coming down from the high of orgasm, my core pulsing in satisfaction around his fingers, when Zane murmured in my ear, “Feel better?”
Better? If he meant never more fantastic in my entire life, then yes. Much, much better.
But the thrilling high couldn’t last forever. Even as I relaxed into him, I could feel it fading. And what waited on the other side had disappointment written all over it.
Whatever this was could surely never work, and I wasn’t certain I should even try. There was no way I could ever consider Zane my boyfriend. There were too many variables. Too many ways it could all go wrong.
Way too much risk.
“I have to get to work,” I grumbled, reluctance washing over me.
“Not the answer I was looking for. I’m going to need just a quick minute to fix that.” His hand cupped the back of my neck, drawing me to him, and his tongue swept into my mouth.
It shouldn’t be possible, but my entire body flared back to life. Not just a flicker but a fully energized flow of desire. It was as though he were an outlet and I’d been plugged in.
Damn him. Why did he have to be so fucking good at this?
I gave in, melting into his kiss, allowing him to knock down just one more of my barriers. There weren’t many left, and every moment I spent with him made it harder to keep the remaining ones up. Sometime soon, he would figure out how to break them all, and then Zane Alexander would steal my heart.
Or at least, I might finally admit he already had.
When we pulled apart, it was on a collective groan, his hand soothing my panties back into place.
“Do you have hot chocolate at home?” I asked, tracing a fingertip over his bottom lip.
His smile was instant, and he nipped at it playfully. “I do,” he mumbled, then caught my hand and replaced it with his own fingers—the ones still slick from me. He held my gaze as he licked them clean and sucked them into his mouth on a groan that made my stomach flip.
Before I could recover, he pulled me back in for another kiss, and the taste of myself on his tongue wiped every coherent thought from my head.
“Why?” he asked, breaking the spell.
“Why what?”
“Hot chocolate,” he said through a low, sexy chuckle. “I have it, but why did you want to know?”
“Oh.” I breathed, thankful for the change in direction. “It’s the perfect match for snickerdoodles.”
“Sounds good, but you need to get off my lap now.” He swatted me lightly on the butt, that wicked look still gracing his too-handsome face. “As tempting as it is, the only driving I can do from this position will not get you to work on time.”
“Sorry,” I murmured as I hoisted myself back into my own seat, smoothing the invisible wrinkles from my dress and securing the belt across my lap.
Zane fixed his seat, and I pulled down the vanity mirror to fix my makeup.
“Melina?” He shifted the truck into drive and checked his blind spot as he pulled back onto the road. Then, turning to me, he quickly caught my eye. “I’m still not sorry at all.”
The air stalled in my lungs.
I’d said it. The horrible word I dreaded. And even after what we’d just done, on the side of the damn road no less, the only thing I could think was how badly I wanted to do it again.
Clearing my throat, I looked back to my reflection and said, “Oh, I don’t know…looks like you might have one very big, very hard regret over there.”
Boisterous laughter filled the cab of his truck, and by the time he dropped me at the front door of the hotel, I’d forgotten all about my blunder, and every other bad part of that morning.
I walked into the guest services office with a lingering smile and fifteen minutes to spare.
After a quick cleanup in the staff washroom and a few minutes reviewing my prepared notes, I gathered my materials and my bolstered confidence and strode toward the resort manager’s office.
The door was open, but I knocked anyway, wanting to maintain my decorum. My hand fell away after only one short tap when I noticed Becky sitting in the office with Wyatt and Lydia.
“Melina!” Wyatt called, gesturing for me to enter. “We were just talking about you.”
My stomach pitched and my courage wavered as I carried myself forward on shaking legs.
“Have a seat.” Lydia motioned to the empty chair beside her, and I wanted to drop at her feet in mercy.
“Thank you.” I somehow managed to keep my voice steady. “How is everyone this morning?”
“Good, good,” Wyatt said, waving a hand like my formality was inconsequential. “As I said, we were just talking about you. Becky here seemed convinced you wouldn’t make it to the meeting on time.”
Her brightly painted red lips stretched with an overly fake smile, making me want to wipe the floor with her face.
Frustration simmered deep in my belly, but the smile I shot her in return was genuine. Because in that moment, something clicked.
No matter how many stunts she tried to pull, I was the winner here.
I didn’t need to rely on underhandedness or attempt to cause drama the way she did.
We might both be a little desperate to impress, but I would always be better at this job.
I’d earned that. Every late night, every extra hour, every weekend I’d sacrificed—it added up to something Becky couldn’t fake or steal.
“Well, I did have some car trouble this morning.” I crossed my legs, relaxing into my seat. “But I was lucky enough to have a coworker help me out with a ride so I could make it here on time.”
“Terrific,” Wyatt exclaimed, his booming voice echoing in the small room. “I love hearing stories about great teamwork. May I ask who it was?”
My smile faltered. Could they read the truth simply from the look on my face? “Oh. It was Zane. Um, Zane Alexander.”
“Really?” Wyatt chuckled. “I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.” I didn’t know what he meant by the comment, and I was too afraid to ask. But it didn’t matter because he’d already moved on. “Thank you for your assistance, Becky. You can go now. Melina will take it from here.”
Becky skulked away, and something inside of me switched on, shutting out all my personal worries and unwarranted fears. The event came to life as I presented it to them, my passion for the work taking over as though I were possessed.
Every detail I’d agonized over, every contingency plan, every creative solution I’d fought for—it all poured out of me with a clarity and conviction I hadn’t known I was capable of.
This wasn’t just a presentation. It was proof.
Proof that I belonged here, that I’d earned this, that every sacrifice had been worth it.
As I finished to their smiles of approval, the feeling in my gut was unmistakable. I’d impressed them. The only question now was how much.
“Well, Melina.” Lydia beamed. “That may be the best event plan I’ve ever seen.
” My heart accelerated as she turned to Wyatt with what seemed to be a silent question before continuing.
“As you know, I’ll be leaving at the end of this season.
Wyatt and I have already discussed my replacement.
I think it’s safe to say, based on everything you’ve already shown us, we’d like you to have the job. ”
“That’s informal,” Wyatt interrupted, making the offer clear. Not that my heart understood or even cared. “We can’t put it in writing until this event is a completed success, but we have great confidence in your ability to make that happen.”
“Thank you,” I gushed, barely able to hide my enthusiasm.
“It’s well deserved,” Lydia said. “Now go make that party sparkle!”
I practically floated back to my own office, feeling like nothing could knock me down. For once in my life, it felt like my hard work and dedication were paying off. Everything seemed to be coming together. Even the parts I hadn’t expected. Like Zane.
Especially him.
“I’m surprised he stuck around long enough to drive you to work in the morning,” Becky sneered the moment I walked through our office door.
Smiling, I replied, “I have no idea what you mean.” Then I turned my back on her to stow my files in the one locked drawer I’d newly reserved for myself. I didn’t need to be taught the same lesson twice.
“Are you really so sad and na?ve, or is it just an act you thought would lure him?”
Now the bitch had my attention. I whirled on her, my mask of professional indifference falling away. “You don’t get to judge. You know nothing about me.”
“Maybe not.” Her smile spread wide, and there was nothing fake about it this time. This was the real Becky—cruel, calculated, and enjoying every second. “But I know Zane extremely well. And I know he only asked you out because he made a bet with his friends.”
The implication of her words hit me hard, knocking the wind out me and deflating my earlier confidence.
She knew Zane. Extremely well.
Did that mean what I thought it meant? And more importantly…was it true?
“A bet, Melina,” she cackled, finally showing her true mean-girl colors in full. “Don’t you get it? You’re nothing to him but another notch on his bedpost.”
Nothing she said was sinking in. It didn’t feel right. It didn’t feel real. None of it meshed with the Zane I knew. The man who’d held me on his porch, sang to me on the ice, driven across town at dawn just because Nate told him I needed help.
But doubt tried to creep in, regardless. “If that’s true, then he’s already lost the bet.”
Her brows drew together in confusion, but for the first time in forever, she didn’t have a snappy comeback.
“We haven’t slept together. But maybe when he picks me up tonight, I can ask him if my act is working. What was it you called it? Sad and na?ve?”
The stark red of her hair and lips made her look suddenly paler.
“But you know, it’s funny,” I continued, tapping my finger on my lips in mock ignorance. “I didn’t feel too sad or innocent when I came on his hand this morning. I guess I’ll just have to check how I feel when his head’s between my legs later tonight, like he promised.”
“You think you’re so smart,” she hissed, her eyes narrow and teeth bared. “Just because he wants to fuck you, doesn’t make you special.”
She left me in a flurry of flowing hair and clacking shoes, my bravado sliding back down my throat the second she was gone. Even though I couldn’t trust a word that came out of her mouth, I still felt like shit.
Everything I’d told her—all the beautiful, intimate details of what had happened between me and Zane—now seemed tarnished and cheap.
I’d taken the most private, tender parts of whatever we were building and weaponized them against her.
Used his reputation as ammunition, thrown his words back out into the world like they meant nothing.
But they meant everything.
And standing alone in that office, the adrenaline draining out of me, it felt like Zane was the one I’d cut down.