Billionaire Undaunted: The Billionaire's Obsession ~ Zane (16 page)

Finally, when she opened her eyes, Ellie’s gaze caught the clock on the wall of the pool area. “Oh, shit! It’s almost five o’clock. Chloe and Gabe will be here soon.”

Gabe had texted Zane that they’d be over around six o’clock, but her friend had a habit of arriving early.

“Hey, don’t worry,” Zane said with some humor in his tone. “Just tell her you got tied up.”

Ellie smacked his arm playfully. “That’s not funny. Oh, my God. She’ll know. Chloe always knows when I’m lying. She says I’m a terrible liar.”

Zane laughed. “Then don’t lie. You
were
tied up. You don’t have to tell her that her brother was fucking you like his life depended on it, which it did by the way. I think I would have expired from a case of blue balls if I couldn’t get inside you.”

“Oh, God,” Ellie groaned loudly. “I’m not sure she’ll like the fact that I’m doing her brother.”

“It’s none of her business,” Zane replied more seriously. “And I don’t plan on stopping. So I guess she’ll have to get used to it.”

“It might be…awkward,” Ellie warned him.

He shook his head. “No, it won’t.”

“I need to take a shower and get ready,” she said anxiously as she disentangled her body from his and started back toward the steps.

He followed her, grabbing a towel to dry her off, and then swiped it over his own body before handing it back to her as she held out her hand. He gave it to Ellie, and she quickly dried off her hair.

Zane gestured toward the door. “Stop worrying, sweetheart. I can see that worried expression on your face. Chloe just wants to see you again. Let’s go take a shower.”

“I’m not showering with you,” she said sternly. Ellie knew exactly what would happen if she stepped into the shower with Zane. They couldn’t be naked together without wanting to touch each other.

“We are,” he said nonchalantly. “There’s no way I’ll give up the chance to spend any time with you naked.”

Ellie was secretly delighted, but she threw her towel at him. It landed squarely on his head. “Pervert,” she accused.

“That’s your fault.” He put the blame on her with a sexy grin as he leered at her breasts.

She giggled like a young girl, surprising herself at how much she enjoyed his sexually playful side. Tossing the towel, she sprinted for the master suite bathroom. “I’ll lock the door.”

He followed, hot on her trail. “Bullshit!”

He chased her naked through the house. She made it to the shower, but didn’t have time to close the door before Zane caught up to her.

Ellie never admitted it was a half-hearted attempt. She’d
wanted
him to catch her, and he did. However, she was hard-pressed to make herself presentable by six o’clock.

B
lake Colter was just getting ready to get into his pickup truck when he saw Marcus’s Ferrari 458 Spider cruising down his driveway.

“Shit!” he cursed, wondering if Marcus was slumming it today since he wasn’t driving one of his most expensive vehicles. His twin appreciated doing everything fast: fast cars, fast planes—and fast women, because he never stayed with one for very long.

Blake wouldn’t categorize Marcus as a rich snob. Granted, the guy liked the finer things, and Marcus liked to get to where he was going a lot faster than everybody else. In some ways, he understood why Marcus had a need for speed since he secretly worked for the CIA during his constant travels all over the world to manage the Colters’ global interests. But Blake worried about him. Some of the shit he got himself into wasn’t wise if he wanted to stay alive during his business trips.

Hesitating with the door of his pickup truck open, Blake waited for Marcus to smoothly step out of the low-slung vehicle and saunter up to him.

“Where are you going?” Marcus questioned curiously as he stopped beside Blake.

“I thought I’d swing by Zane’s place. I’d like to see Chloe and Gabe.”

Marcus lifted an arrogant brow. “Already? They just got back. Chloe and Ellie are just meeting for the first time since Ellie disappeared.” He hesitated before adding, “You just want to spy on the reunion.”

Blake squirmed. What Marcus was saying was partly true. He
did
want to see how things were going when Ellie and Chloe saw each other for the first time in months. Chloe had presumed that her best friend was dead, so it wasn’t going to be an easy or quiet reunion. “Yeah? So? Maybe I do want to see them together. They’ve both gone through hell. Other than Chloe marrying Gabe, it’s the only good thing that’s happened to either one of them.” He knew he sounded defensive, but he didn’t give a damn.

“What about Zane and Ellie?” Marcus questioned.

“What about them?”

“I think Zane’s going to end up being the next Colter to get hitched.”

“You think they’ve gotten that close?” Blake thought Zane liked Ellie, but he didn’t think it was serious. His younger brother had always been the type to step in when somebody needed him. Underneath Zane’s brilliant mind lay a tender heart.

“I think they’re very…close,” Marcus answered, sounding amused.

Blake brushed off Marcus’s comment. If things were serious between Ellie and Zane, everybody would know. “Did you come over for something specific?” he asked.

Marcus motioned for him to get in the truck. “You drive. But be careful backing up. I don’t want you to hit my car.”

Blake watched as Marcus walked casually to the other side of the truck and got in. Hopping into the driver’s seat, he glared at him suspiciously. “You were always planning on going, too. That’s why you came over.”

Marcus shrugged. “Maybe,” he said noncommittally.

Blake was tempted to back his heavy truck into the sports car behind him just to get a reaction. Lately, Marcus had grown cooler and more distant. Maybe it was because of the work he did for the government. It had been gradual, but Blake could sense things with Marcus. The two of them had always been able to read the other’s emotions. Sadly, Blake was starting to comprehend less and less from Marcus. It was as though he’d put up a shield to keep everybody from knowing what he was thinking.

“Do you remember when I did you that favor, pretending to be you so you didn’t have to go to a party?” Marcus asked carefully.

“What party?” They hadn’t done a switch since they were teenagers.

“The one you dreaded because you said the female host was as bossy as a drill sergeant.”

Blake turned and looked at Marcus in surprise. “We were eight years old, Marcus, and I said she reminded me of Cruella De Vil, which definitely fit her perfectly.”

Although the incident had happened a long time ago, Blake could still remember how disappointed he’d been because Cruella’s sister wasn’t attending the birthday party. And the last thing he wanted was to attend the party without Cruella’s sibling as a buffer.

“I don’t know. I kind of liked the little drill sergeant,” Marcus mused. “Anyway, you said back then if you could repay me some day by doing the same thing, you would. You still up for that?”

“You want me to be you? We’re in our mid-thirties. And you’re asking for a favor I promised when we were eight? Hell, I pretty much forgot the whole thing.”

“I never forget. And I don’t need it right now,” Marcus reassured him. “But possibly in the future.”

“What are you up to, Marcus?” Blake would swear there was more to this question and answer session than he knew.

“I can’t tell you that right now,” Marcus remarked with a hint of remorse in his tone. “As long as you’re a senator, my personal activities are off-limits to sharing.”

“I already know what you do for the CIA,” Blake reminded him as he turned the corner and headed toward Zane’s house.

“It’s not about them,” Marcus answered thoughtfully. “Not directly anyway.”

“Then what?” Blake was getting antsy. He wanted to know what in the hell Marcus was cooking up this time.

“I’ll tell you some day. I’ll tell all the family. But trust me, I can’t right now. I just need to know you’ll help me if I need it.”

“Of course I’d help you. It goes without saying. You’re my brother.” Blake was irritated that Marcus wouldn’t share more, but he’d certainly be there if his twin needed him.

“Good.”

Blake knew the one-word answer was all he was going to get. “When might this happen?”

“I don’t know if I’ll
ever
need that favor. But it always pays to know all of my options.”

“Just keep your ass safe, and you won’t need anything,” Blake told him gruffly.

“I plan on it,” Marcus answered arrogantly.

Blake had no answer for that comment. He wanted all of his family to stay safe, and he wanted them all happy and secure.

They drove the short distance in silence, Blake lost in thought about why in the hell Marcus would ever need him to play a game of switch.

“Going somewhere?” Tate Colter asked his wife innocently.

Lara had just gotten home from school, and was already changed and picking up her car keys to go out again. Tate was pretty sure he knew exactly where she was going.

“I wanted to pop over to Zane’s to see Chloe.” She picked up her purse from the kitchen table.

He moved up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “What you really want to do is see the reaction between Chloe and Ellie,” he teased, dropping a kiss on the side of her neck. “Are you planning on playing counselor with the two of them?”

Lara turned around in his arms and glared at him. “Of course not. I don’t have my advanced degree yet, and I’m not qualified. I just want to see if my sister-in-law and her best friend are okay. Plus, I missed Chloe. What’s wrong with that?”

Tate was sorry he said anything because he was afraid his teasing had actually wounded Lara. “Nothing is wrong with caring, sweetheart.” He put his arms around her waist. “I was kidding.”

If there was one thing among many that he loved about Lara, it was her capacity to give a shit about other people. Granted, sometimes he thought she sacrificed too much. Especially when she offered herself up to a terrorist to save his ornery ass. But that was who Lara was, and there wasn’t a damn thing Tate would do to change her. She was fucking perfect in his eyes.

“Then you aren’t very funny today,” Lara shot back at him huffily.

“I love you,” he answered huskily, kissing her on the forehead.

Lara wrapped her arms around his neck. “God, I hate it when you do that.”

“What? Love you?”

“Make me forget I was mad with three little words,” she whispered against his lips as she rose up on her toes and planted a tender kiss on his mouth.

As usual, touching Lara was all it took to have his cock standing at attention. Hell, even looking at her or hearing her voice could do it. He was hopelessly crazy about his wife. Always had been. Always would be.

“I never meant to piss you off in the first place. It’s kind of funny because I have to go pick up Mom. I was coming to talk to you when I saw you getting ready to take off.”

Lara leaned back to look at him. “Why?”

Tate shrugged. “So we could all go together to Zane’s place. You’re not the only one who wants to see Chloe. Mom’s bursting with excitement.”

His wife lifted a brow. “And you aren’t?”

“Okay. I’m curious. Or maybe I’m worried. Hell, Chloe and Ellie have been through so damn much.”

Lara cupped his whiskered jaw as she said, “They’re strong, Tate. They’ll both be fine. Actually, they
are
pretty much fine. I admire both of them.”

“Why?” he asked curiously.

“After all they’ve been through, both of them survived the emotional and physical pain. I’m not sure how well I would have done if it had been me.”

Tate looked at her, astonished. “You’re the strongest, most kick-ass woman I know. You were an undercover FBI agent, Lara. How much tougher do you want to be?”

“That’s just a job, a façade that I needed to keep up for my agency. But I’ve never known the personal pain either one of them have been through. Yeah, I had a bad relationship, but not like that. Not like them.”

“You would have gotten through it,” Tate answered staunchly. Maybe Lara had never been tested emotionally like his sister and her best friend had, but he had no doubt Lara could survive anything that came her way. “I would have made damn sure that you did.”

“You know, I think you would,” Lara said with a laugh. “You’re too damn pigheaded to let me spiral down for very long.” She paused before adding, “Support is important, and they both had a good guy to lean on when they needed them.”

“Gabe helped Chloe a lot,” he admitted. In the beginning, he hadn’t been too sure that getting involved with another guy so soon was exactly what Chloe needed. But since then, he’d changed his mind. Gabe Walker had ended up being exactly what his little sister needed. “Thank fuck he was a decent man.”

“I don’t doubt that Zane has helped Ellie, too,” Lara answered thoughtfully. “She sounds so much better, like she isn’t afraid to go out and live her life again.”

Tate nodded. “I guess they’ve become pretty good friends.”

Lara snorted. “If you think that’s all they are, you’re wrong. Ellie has that certain warmth in her voice when she talks about Zane, that tone a woman has when she adores a certain guy.”

He wasn’t too sure he understood exactly what his wife was trying to say. Somehow, he couldn’t see Zane having a serious relationship. “He’s married to his lab, Lara. Hell, we barely see him. He’s been that way since we were kids.”

“People change, Tate. Maybe he’s just been waiting for the right woman. I was married to my career, too. Until some hotshot asshole challenged me, made me realize there was so much more to life than just my job.”

Tate wasn’t about to admit he was an asshole, even though he probably was, so he answered, “Was that before or after you met me?”

She hit him playfully on the bicep. “Smartass!” Lara wrapped her arms around him and put her head on his shoulder. “You know you make me crazy sometimes. But that’s exactly what I need.
You’re
exactly what I need.”

His arms tightened around her, grateful for the fateful day that Lara had come into his life. He’d never known how lonely he was until he’d found her, and he planned on making sure she never had a reason to stop loving him. “You were what I needed, too, sweetheart. You always will be.”

They stayed cuddled together for moment before Lara asked, “What time are we picking up your mom?”

He stepped back and glanced at the clock. “Now,” he said with a grin.

“We better move. I’m surprised she hasn’t called yet. She has to be excited.”

Tate opened the door to let Lara exit, and the cell phone in the pocket of his jeans began to ring.

His wife looked at him and they both smiled before he quickly locked the door and they both sprinted to his vehicle.