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Z ack contained his disappointment behind a veneer of professionalism. He’d always known getting Dani to listen to him would be an uphill struggle. She’d made up her mind, but he’d hoped the passing of time would have softened her stance a little.

He’d been angry himself, after all, at her complete and utter refusal to let him explain, but that had diminished into an abiding sadness over the time they’d been apart. A longer time, by far, than they’d even been together.

Not that they’d ever really been together. Not in the true sense.

But in all that time, the memory of Daniella Moreno had never left him. It was like she’d infected his blood.

Zack had truly thought he would mark what had happened between them up to experience and move on. Find another play partner and learn from his mistakes with Dani.

Truth was, he’d become even more of a recluse in the past four years than he had been before. And that was saying something.

Oh, he’d tried all right. But somehow, whenever he went to a club, he just couldn’t bring himself to scene with anyone else.

He couldn’t imagine another woman bound in his ropes.

There had been the odd vanilla hook-up along the way, just to slake a need, but they’d always proved unsatisfying.

The women got off, he made sure of that, but Zack himself was always left with a deep sense of disappointment, so in the end he’d stopped bothering altogether.

He’d wondered if being here on Elysium, so close to Iniquity, the kink club the island was built around, would whet his appetite again.

That seeing Dani would prove his feelings for her were simply rooted in memories which had long since lost their power, and he’d be able to look at her like any other woman.

That maybe he could move on with his life.

Instead, it had just cemented his resolve. No way could he even consider playing with anyone else. Not with Dani so close, and yet so far away. That was something he needed to ruminate on, but not even a night tossing and turning with her on his mind had brought him to any clear conclusion.

He sighed, looking out the window at the lush tropical landscape. Somehow, the beauty only emphasized his melancholy. Four years of regret and what-ifs had led him back here, though not for the reasons he'd always imagined.

Zack forced himself to focus. He had a job to do.

Saul’s identity had been compromised and now his life depended on Zack pinpointing the information that would keep him alive while he hid out in the sanctuary of this island.

Although seeing her again had been what tipped the balance when he’d agreed to come, his own drama with Dani couldn't interfere with that.

Even so, speaking to her face to face yesterday, had reopened old wounds he'd thought long healed. He recognized that much, at least.

The way she'd looked at him - with that mixture of shock, anger and something else he couldn't quite define - played on repeat in his mind. There was still a spark there, he was sure of it. But Dani clearly had no interest in exploring it. Plus, he was lying to her again, something he hadn’t properly considered when he accepted Luca’s plea to help Saul.

And even though the first time hadn’t been intentional, he doubted she’d see things that way.

She hadn’t then, and he suspected she’d be even worse now.

Things with Dani were always so cut and dried, there was no room for any shades of grey in how she thought.

It was all or nothing. If he tried to mend things and she found out he was here under false pretenses, not running security on the mainframe computer at all, but using it to scour the dark web at her cousin’s request, he doubted she’d give him the time of day ever again.

He’d be lying if he said he hadn’t wanted to test the waters. To see if her harsh opinion of him had lessened over the years. See if there was still anything between them.

But so far anything positive was in short supply.

No. It was a mistake to approach her. Better for everyone involved to keep things strictly professional. He'd tread carefully, get the work done and get out. No matter how much it killed him to be so close to her and yet unable to bridge the chasm between them.

He just hoped he could stick to that decision, because goddamn, the woman tempted him beyond all reason. Even when she was sending him very clear ’fuck off’ vibes.

A knock at the door startled him from his brooding. "Come in," he called, turning from the window.

The door opened to reveal Dani herself, looking composed but wary.

Fuck, she was beautiful with the glossy black hair and fathomless dark eyes of her Italian heritage.

"I thought we should go over the specifics of the mainframe upgrade, so I understand it fully,” she said, her tone cool and professional.

"I've scheduled a meeting with the IT team for tomorrow morning, but I wanted to touch base with you first."

Zack nodded, grateful for the distraction from his thoughts, even though her attention to detail left him with a conundrum. Why hadn’t he considered how detail-oriented Dani was. He should have known it would never have been as easy as just spinning her a line and Dani accepting it.

"Of course. Please, have a seat." He gestured to the chair across from his desk, trying not to notice how gracefully she moved as she sat down. She was slimmer than she used to be, but still delectably curvy. And all business.

"I've prepared a preliminary outline of the system requirements," Dani continued, pulling a tablet from her bag. "I'd like you to review it and let me know if there are any areas we've overlooked.”

As she spoke, Zack couldn't help but marvel at her composure. If he didn't know better, he'd think their past had never happened. But there was a stiffness in her shoulders, a tightness around her eyes that betrayed her discomfort.

"I appreciate your thoroughness," he said, accepting the tablet. Their fingers brushed for the briefest moment, and he felt an electric jolt at the contact. Dani jerked her hand back as if burned.

"It's my job," she replied curtly. "The resort's security is paramount during any system upgrade." She paused, a flicker of uncertainty crossing her face.

Zack met her gaze steadily. "Of course. There won’t be any weak points during the swap over. Client privacy will always be my top priority." He hesitated, then added softly, "You know that, Dani."

Her eyes flashed with a mix of emotions - anger, pain, and something that looked suspiciously like longing.

But it was gone in an instant, replaced by her professional mask.

"I know nothing of the sort," she said coolly. “And while our past association is irrelevant to this project, the one thing it taught me was caution where you’re concerned. We have very different ideas of what is pertinent information.”

The words stung. More than stung. They were like tiny daggers digging in just where it hurt most, but Zack couldn't deny their truth.

He had no right to expect anything from her, not after how things had ended.

"You're right," he conceded. "I apologies for the inappropriate comment. It won't happen again."

Dani nodded stiffly, but Zack noticed her hands trembling slightly as she reached for her tablet. "Good. Now, regarding the firewall upgrades..."

As she launched into the technical details, Zack found himself only half-listening.

He was acutely aware of every subtle shift in her posture, every flicker of emotion that crossed her face.

Despite her attempts at detachment, he could sense the underlying tension between them.

It was a living, breathing thing, filling the air with an almost palpable electricity.

As Dani delved into the intricacies of data encryption protocols, Zack found his mind wandering to less professional territory.

He couldn't help but remember the way she used to look at him during a scene - eyes dark with desire, body trembling with anticipation.

The contrast between that passionate woman and the coolly efficient administrator before him now was stark.

"Are you even listening?" Dani's sharp tone snapped him back to the present.

"Of course," Zack replied smoothly, though he felt a flush of guilt at being caught daydreaming. "I was just considering the potential vulnerabilities in the current system so I can evaluate them effectively.”

Dani's eyes narrowed, clearly not buying his excuse. "This isn't a game, Zack. If Luca is to be believed, the safety and privacy of our guests depend on this upgrade, although I personally have never felt there was a problem."

"I'm well aware of that," he responded, a hint of irritation creeping into his voice. He didn’t like the way she’d posed that last statement. Like maybe she didn’t completely believe the line her cousin had weaved.

And why should she? She knew this system inside out.

Like she said, if there was an issue, she’d be the first to know.

Not Luca. And while the two of them had the best intentions to safeguard Saul, his presence was a need-to-know basis only. And Dani didn’t need to know.

But jeez, she really was going to kill him if she ever found out this upgrade was all a ruse.

And from how engaged she was with the procedure, he knew he was going to have to come up with something to satisfy her on that score.

Thank fuck he had access to some state-of-the-art systems. He hadn’t planned to use them here, but it was the only way he’d get through this without her eviscerating him.

And if he was completely honest, Zack didn’t think he could stomach Dani looking at him again with the same disappointment, disgust, and heartbreak as she had during their last encounter at Club Risqué.