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Her gasp made them both freeze.His eyes remained squarely on hers.Unwavering.Nonetheless, she felt him withdraw slightly, as if he’d also realized the emotive and shocking meaning of his words.
Abruptly, he dropped his hands.“Come on.We’re almost done.”
She followed him, sedate on the outside, raw and shaky on the inside.Lush plants, palm trees and luxury hammocks made up the elaborately designed garden.
But again, Zach’s love of water was what caught her attention.
The pool extended from underneath the west side of the house and dissected the garden before dropping off in an infinity-style design almost a hundred meters away.Lined in slate grey, the bottom of the pool was almost indiscernible, escalating her nervousness.
Zach’s fingers curled around hers, and he forced her to stop.
“The water isn’t deep at this side.You don’t need to come out here if you don’t want to.The other side of the house has a garden without a pool.If you need to come out here for any reason, I’ll be with you.If not, a member of my staff will always be with you.”
She gave a jerky nod, and his fingers relaxed a touch.
He curled a hand over her nape and pulled her close.“Don’t let the assholes win, Bethany.Just say the word and I’ll help you put the bad memories to rest.”
She pulled back and looked into his eyes.“Will you let me do the same for you?”
His eyes shadowed immediately, and he looked away, staring off towards the white peaks of the Atlas Mountains.“No need, baby.I have my demons well and truly covered.”
“So you do have them?”she probed, her heart stalling then accelerating in anticipation of finding out a little bit more about this enigmatic man.
“Don’t we all?”
“That’s not really an answer, Zach.You’re ready to cut down the people you think have wronged me, but you refuse to tell me even a little bit about what created those shadows in your eyes.”
His frown made her pulse stutter, but she refused to look away or cower from it.“They don’t impact us in any way, so they’re irrelevant.”
Again, she noted the evasive non-answer and curbed the frustration rising inside her.In the grand scheme of things, she was in danger of losing sight of the fact that she’d only known this man for three days.
Three.Short.Days.
It seemed as if a lifetime had passed, yet in all ways except carnal, they were virtual strangers.
Patience.
It wasn’t a virtue she possessed in abundance, but she knew deep down that Zachary Savage wasn’t a man you pushed.
Her stomach growled loudly, breaking the tension.
The smile that replaced his frown held a hint of relief.It was also blatantly calculated to fry her insides with its brilliance.“I guess our final destination is now determined.”He tugged her after him as he rushed through the rest of the tour.
Twelve bedrooms, fifteen bathrooms, a golden-domed tower room accessed by interconnecting arches, and endless hallways later, they ended up back in the lavish kitchen.
Ordering her to sit at the high stool set into the center island, Zach strode to the giant fridge and started setting out ingredients on the counter.
“Can I do anything?”she asked, although secretly she wanted to do nothing more than sit and stare at the graceful movements of the man who succeeded in taking her breath away, even as he performed the most mundane of tasks.
“You can get us some wine.”He indicated the deep alcove that held rack after rack of wines.“I’m making us a chicken couscous salad.Is that okay with you?”
She nodded as she slid off the stool and went to the wine chiller.She was by no means a wine connoisseur, but she guessed that anything she chose from Zach’s selection would be a good choice.She grabbed the most familiar-looking label and returned to the island, fetching two glasses from the cabinet on her way.
Uncorking the wine, she poured and passed him a glass.
Eyes on hers, he took a long sip, set the glass down and moved the preparation to the center island.As he passed her, he stopped and dropped a kiss on top of her head.
He grabbed a large glazed earthenware pot and set it on the far side of the island.