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Her heart did that thing it’d perfected over the last seven days every time she thought of Zach.It bungee-jumped from her chest into her stomach, set itself on fire and streaked about like a firework.“Because he was so damned ripped up about it?Because he loved her more than life itself and things went horribly wrong between them?I was merely the woman he was fucking six ways to Sunday at every opportunity who just happened to find out his dark secret at a weak moment.”
She clawed her fingers through her hair and barely felt the pain of her tingling scalp at the rough movement.“Bottom line is, I found out, it scared the hell out of him, and he clammed up.And I got the hell out of there.”
“How did you leave Marrakech?”
“He had his driver take me to the airport, and his pilot flew me home.”
“Okay, that kinda floors me a bit.But you trusted your instincts with him, B, or you would never have ditched the Indigo Lounge trip to go with him.”
“I know.Which is why I can’t think straight!My gut tells me he’s incapable of… whatever he did, that there’s more to the confession.”She shuddered.“But my head… I can’t unhear the words.”
Her phone buzzed loudly.They both jumped and stared at the number on the screen.
“Looks like he’s not ready to give up either,” Keely murmured.“Should I turn it off?”
Bethany swallowed, shrugged, and tried to keep breathing.More than anything she wanted to pick up that phone and hear his deep, dark, pulse-destroying voice again.Seven days had felt like a million lifetimes.She wanted to hear him call her Bethany in that husky, growly way of his, which promised insanely decadent things.She wanted to see his gorgeous face, run her thumb over his lower lip the way he loved her to do.Hell, she wanted to climb inside him and never come out.
Too damn bad.
She backed away from the ringing phone, her heart now making a slightly more valiant effort to do its job.“He’ll go away,” she replied shakily.
“I hear wishful thinking, but I also hear yearning and denial.Which is it, baby girl?”Keely eyed her, then eyed the phone as if she wanted to incinerate it with just her thoughts.
“You didn’t come here expecting coherency from me.Jesus, am I not allowed some leeway to be confused out of my goddamned mind?”
Contrition gentled Keely’s face.“Of course.I’m sorry.”
They both stopped as the phone cut off mid-ring.A second later, a text message beeped.
Bethany’s knees gave way, and she subsided back on to the sofa.Keely eyed her again and snatched the phone off the table.
She read the message, then sucked in a deep breath.
“What?”Bethany blurted, unable to stop her belly from flipping over.
Silently, Keely handed the phone over.
We need to talk.But until you’re ready I need to know that you’re okay.I’ll respect your decision for me to stay away but only up to a point, Bethany.Avoiding my calls will not make me go away.I think we both know that.
Jesus.Zachary Savage couldn’t help his arrogance even as he respected her decision.There was a mild threat to the text that promised punishment for her silence.
Punishment.As in, retreating to nurse her completely shattered heart, and reeling senses would only be tolerated up to a point.
Sliding her finger across the interactive surface, she tapped her keypad.
I’m not okay, Zach.I think we both know *that*.And I don’t see the point of talking when you won’t answer the questions that are creating the problems between us.Hell, is there even an *us*?Or was there always going to be me, blowing my stupid feelings out of proportions and you taking advantage of that?
She pressed send and dropped the phone beside her.
“More wine?”Keely asked.
“Why not?”She held out her glass and took another big, fortifying gulp.Getting hammered was a stupid idea, especially since this was the first time she’d replied to Zach’s incessant attempts to contact her all week.The likelihood of her weakness and pain bleeding through was very high, but her own silence was eating away inside like acid.
“Feel better?”Keely asked.
“Not even a little bit.But keep it coming.”
“What—” She stopped at the sound of another text message.“He’s fucking persistent.Gotta give him that.”