Falling for the Ghost of You (15 page)

"I know!" Zane yells back at me.  "And you’ve been making me suffer for it every god damn day."

I glare at him.  "Oh, really?!  How exactly are you suffering?!"

"You know how."  He smiles grimly.  "You've been parading around in those hot little outfits, brushing past me...teasing the hell out of me. You think I don't know what you're doing?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," I lie, flushing to the roots of my hair.

"Yes, you do," he says, and reaches over to tug on my skirt.  "What about that stunt you pulled in my room, 'forgetting your clothes?'"

That makes me cringe in embarrassment.  I knew it was too obvious and skanky.  "I did forget them," I say weakly.

“Right.
  Shit.
”  Zane laugh
s, and shakes his head.  "
Who would've thought a little girl like you would have me so fucked up, I can't think straight?"

I'm stung at the "little girl" comment.  "You being fucked up has nothing to do with me," I say coldly.

He suddenly grins.  "Language, Miss Mercer."

"Oh, screw you, O' Connor!"  I give him the finger.

"Yeah, I'd take you up on that offer if I didn't think you'd run screaming in the opposite direction."

I stomp up to him and poke him in the chest.  “Uh-huh, you always accuse me of being the scared one, but it’s always
you
doing the running.”

Zane looks down at me, anger once again darkening his features.  “I’m trying to protect you, Violet,” he growls.

I poke him again.  “And I told you, I can take care of myself—”

Zane suddenly steps closer, cupping my face with his hands, and effectively cutting me off mid-sentence.  His head lowers, and then his mouth is on mine.

Everything else spins away.  The strong smell of the meatballs and sauce burning on the stove is replaced with Zane’s purely male scent.  I am consumed by it, consumed by him.  We are the only two that exists in this one moment, unaffected by time or reason.

We kiss frantically, half-crazed with need.  He pulls back a little, changes the pressure of his lips on mine.  Our tongues touch.  I moan helplessly, locking my arms around his neck, and trying to climb him like a tree.  Zane helps me out by lifting me up by gripping the back of my thighs.  We slam into the counter, he sets me on top of it, and distantly I am aware of crashing sounds.

I’m burning from the inside, a burning ache that causes me to move restlessly against him.  I can’t get close enough!

Zane growls low in the back of his throat at my movements.  I tug at his shirt, insistent.  I need to feel his skin.  He lets go of me only
long enough
to help me get it off, raising it over his head and tossing it away.  I run my hands up and down his chest.  Finally, finally I can touch him!  He’s incredible…silk over steel, so smooth and streamlined.  My hand moves over his wildly beating
heart.  I’m doing that to him!  A sense of power rushes over me as he groans and kisses me deeply.

My shirt is hanging open, I realize when he pulls back slightly.  Zane watches my face carefully as he slowly unhooks my bra.  I flush with embarrassment when his gaze lowers and he exhales softly.  Then his warm hands and talented mouth are on me, and I forget my self-consciousness
,
and I’m swept up in how good it feels.

My hands trail slowly down Zane's ripped abs.  He stops me when I reach his zipper.

"Hold up, Violet."  H
e chuckles unsteadily.  "Y
ou're killing me
here
."

I take a deep breath.  "Do you have anything?  I mean...protection?"

"No."  He smirks when I make an incredulous face at him.  "I got rid of it all so I wouldn't be tempted to break down your door one night and have my dirty way with you."

I gape at him.  "Were you really that tempted?"

He looks down at me, letting his gaze linger on my exposed skin.  "Oh, yeah."

"Oh, um, ok
ay," I mumble, crossing my arms over my chest
.  "I guess we should..."

I trail off, gesturing at...nothing.  Zane places both hands on my thighs, and crouches down a little so we're face to face.

His gaze
is serious, intense.  "
Do you want to have sex with me?"

Whoa.  I blush at his bluntness.  "Um...wow, that’s kind of personal…"  I look everywhere but at him.

Zane catches my chin and holds me still.  He raises an eyebrow and waits.

I force myself to look at him, his fathomless star-lit eyes, the dark angel beauty of his face.  "Yes,"  I say finally, my voice soft but steady.

Zane searches my face intently.  After a couple of seconds, he smiles.  "Okay, then.  Not today, though."

I smile back.  "Guess not."

I can hear the disappointment tinged with relief in my tone and so can Zane. 

He runs a finger gently down my jaw to my neck.  "Hey," he says teasingly.  "There are other things we can do."

He doesn'
t have to spell it out for me—t
he promising gleam in his eyes say it all.  He pushes me down on the counter, and proceeds to take me to heaven.

******

Chapter 14

I'm lying there, panting and limp as
a noodle—and utterly speechless
.

Zane lifts his head to look at me. 
He cracks a grin at the look on my face.  “You okay?”

I clear my throat, testing to see if my brain is working.  “Um.  Give me a minute.”

He chuckles, and I can hear that hint of male satisfaction in his laughter.  He lets me catch my breath before he starts talking again.

“You know, I read your books,” h
e says out of the blue.

“You…”  I can’t look at him, suddenly feeling incredibly vulnerable.  “Oh.”

“
They’re really great.
Funny as hell, and clever
.”

A warm glow falls over me like a cozy blanket.  “Thanks,” I say shyly.  “I didn’t—”

The sound of the doorbell interrupts me.
  Panicked, I look towards the direction of the door.

Zane glances over at me. 
"You expecting someone?"

I shoot up into a sitting position so fast,  I think I give myself whiplash.  "Oh, my god!  Mark!" I gasp.

"Your
dinner date?"

I nod frantically.  The clock on the microwave reads 6:57.  I look down at my mostly naked body.  Crap!

"Relax," Zane says with a lazy smile.  "I'll get rid of him."

I look him up and down.  He's shirtless, his jeans unbuttoned and unzipped.  "Uh, not looking like a sexy Calvin Klein ad, you won't."

He chuckles, but to my relief, buttons and zips.  He grabs his shirt on the way out.  "Better?" he calls over his shoulder.

"Definitely not," I say under my breath.

I lie back down, grinning my head off.  That was incredible!  So that's what all the fuss was about!
  And we didn't even have sex—t
echnically.  If real sex is anywhere as good as not-sex, then yes, please!  Wow, I feel great, sort o
f boneless, and kind of dirty—b
ut in a good way.

My afterglow is cut short by the sounds of hideous screaming.

Mom's ringtone!

I fall off the counter, scrambling to find my phone. As I shout "Hello!" into the phone, I wonder why I didn't just let it go to voicemail.

"Hey, hon!  What are you up to?" Mom's voice chirps in my ear.

Oh, nothing.  Just had
an incredibly mind blowing experience, courtesy of your soon-to-be step-son.

Ugh!

"No one—I
mean, nothing!  Nothing at all, is what I meant.  How are you?  Shouldn't you be on a plane right now?"

"Actually..." Mom laughs.  "That'
s why I'm calling—
"

"Delayed, huh?" I interrupt, distracted by my efforts
in trying to get completely dressed.  I cannot talk to her half-naked like this.  I feel so dirty.

"No, no!  Actually, the opposite.  Bill got called in early for the
Starpoint
project
.  I thought I'd surprise you—w
e're on our way to Jane's right now!"

"Holy shit!" I shriek. "That's...awesome."

"I know," Mom says excitedly.  "I can't wait to see you!  We'll be there in ten minutes."

Crap!  "Uh, wait!  I'm not really...there at Jane's.  Physically, I mean."  I think furiously.  "What I mean is, I'm at Lauren's."

"Oh, okay," she says, and I can hear the puzzlement in her voice at my weirdness.  "Bill, go to my old apartments instead," I hear her call.

"No, wait!" I blurt.  "I'm actually s
pending the night.  Lauren is—s
he's really upset.  She, uh, she just found out she has a secret half-brother."

What?

There is a long pause at my mom's end.  "Really?  Wow, that's...unexpected."

Right now I'm smacking myself in my fool head.  "Yeah, c
razy, right?  Um, I better go—s
he's throwing stuff right now.  So I'll call you tomorrow, okay?  Bye, now!"

"Oh, my God!  Oh, my God!"

Zane ambles back into the kitch
en, and watches as I run around in panicked circles
.  "What's going on?" he asks, amused.

I shoot him a frantic look.  "Our parents are back!  My m
om thinks I'm at Lauren's, so—I
've got to get over there, like, right now!"

"Shit," he mutters, rubbing his hands over his face.  "That's awesome timing."

"I know!"

I dash into my bedroom and grab a shirt from my bag.  I somehow man
age to get stuck in the shirt—o
h, that's an armhole I'm trying to poke my head through!  I finally manage to right myself, only to turn and find Zane in the doorway, eating an apple, and watching me with what better not be enjoyment.

“Would it be so bad if your mom found out about us?” he asks, leaning an elbow against the door jamb.

“Yup,” I reply swiftly.  “My mom’s cool, but not that cool.  Besides, she’s already warned me about you.”

“Really?  What did she say?”

I unplug my phone charger from the outlet next to my bed and stuff it into my purse.  “She said not to fall for you,
because
you would only break my heart,” I finally answer.

“Huh.”  He takes another bite of his apple. 

I grab my bags and my purse and push past him.  I make it a couple of steps when he grabs me from behind and swings me around to face him. 

“
Wha
—?” I start to say.

Zane pulls me to him, and our lips meet with a violence that sends my senses spinning out of control.  I drop my things and wrap my arms around him, meeting his intensity with a fire of my own.

He’s the first to draw away.  I’m ridiculously pleased to see that his eyes are slightly unfocused and he’s breathing hard.

“Your mom is right,” he says, almost under his breath.  He grabs my bags like they weigh nothing and walks toward the front door.

Dazed, I pick up my purse and trail after him.

I am so afraid that I’m going to run into Mom and Bill as I leave the house that I almost drive off the side of the road—twice!  On the way, I quickly text Lauren to let her know what’s going on.  Like a true best friend, she promises to have snacks waiting when I get there.

Luckily, she answers the door when I knock.  She looks me up and down and bursts out laughing.

“I know!” I say, handing her my purse.  She takes it and gestures me into the apartment.

“You look like the aftermath of a hurricane,” she says, still snickering as she leads the way to her bedroom.

I look around cautiously.  The twins’ side of the room is a disaster area.  They could both be hiding under the mounds of clothes tossed everywhere, and I would never know until they popped their little red heads out and shouted, “Boo!”

Lauren sees my look, and smiles.  “Don’t worry,” she says, placing my purse on top of her ruthlessly organized desk.  “They’re at a sleepover tonight.”

“Fantastic.”  I sigh and plop down onto her bed.  I give in to another compulsion to check my phone for any text messages from Zane that I might have missed on the drive here.

There’s nothing.  I left him fifteen minutes ago.  Why would he text me?  I’m dumb.

“So, why are you wearing a Sponge Bob shirt?” Lauren wants to know.  “What happened to the new one you had on
earlier
?”

“Oh…um…”
I cover my blushing cheeks with my hands.  “Zane kind of…tore it.”

Lauren’s brown eyes widen comically.  “Should I go get the popcorn?”