Page 33 of Sacred Vow

I choke back a laugh, remembering the very moment I was riding him on the couch just downstairs while his father stood behind the couch and finished me off. Zeph was more than just blind then, but sure, I’ll give him this one if it’s that important to him.

“Fair point. What else?”

“When you’re here with me, whether we’re screwing around or just chilling, you always seem to be watching the door as though you’re waiting for someone to walk through it, and here, it’s only me and my dad, so it really narrows down the options.”

I grin up at him. “You don’t know. I could have been staring wistfully at the door, wishing I was standing on the other side of it, exploring the big, wide world out there.”

Zeph scoffs. “If you’re gonna lie about it, the least you could do is come up with something decent.”

“So, that’s it, huh? I was busy a few nights this week and occasionally turned my gaze toward the door, and you came to the conclusion that I was screwing your dad?”

He rolls his eyes. “I mean, there was that time when you were laid out on the dining table and he touched you. You didn’t even flinch.

You were ready for it as though you already knew what to expect.

Any other woman would have been too shocked to have even focused on the pleasure, but not you, Tilly Bardot. You gave it away right there.”

“Wow. And here I thought you were going to say it was when I was giving you both head under the table, and—”

“WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK?” he bellows, his jaw slackening as he gapes at me in horror. “You did—fuck.”

Zeph whips back around, clutching the railing as he stares down at the foyer below.

“Shit. My bad,” I say, sucking in a breath through my teeth and cringing. “I figured you’d put that one together. I mean, it’s not as though I was particularly discreet about it, and your dad, he’s huge. I mean, my whole head was bobbing—”

“A MINUTE,” he says, holding that damn finger up and silencing me. “I NEED A FUCKING MINUTE.”

I choke back a laugh and stand silently beside him, giving him the minute he needs until he’s finally able to turn back around, taking on the same stance he’d just been in a moment before.

“So, are you guys, like . . . together or something?”

I shake my head. “No. It’s only physical. Just sex,” I tell him. “You don’t need to worry about me becoming your new step-mommy. Though, that would have made for an intriguing dynamic, don’t you think? It’s not every day you get to say that you fucked your new mommy before your daddy did.”

His face scrunches in disgust. “Don’t. Don’t call him that.”

“What? Daddy?” I tease. “But I like it, especially when he bends me over and—”

“I swear to God, Tilly. If you don’t shut up, I really will jump.”

I suck in an appalled gasp, my hand flying to my chest as I feign outrage. “Now, what kind of way is that to treat your new step-mom? Straight to your room without your supper, young man. Just you wait until your father gets home.”

“Nope!” Zeph pushes away from the railing and strides back into the den, clutching the sides of his head as though he could somehow squish the memories right out of his brain. “NOPE!”

I laugh and traipse after him, flopping straight back down on the couch beside him and crossing my legs under me as I watch him.

As the seconds pass, a heaviness begins to settle over me, and I reach for his hand, relieved when he allows me to take it.

“You don’t hate me, do you?” I question, not having realized just how much I feared asking him this until this very moment.

“I know we don’t know each other all that well, but you didn’t strike me as the possessive or jealous type, plus we weren’t exclusive, so I figured it’s not as though I was technically doing anything wrong.

But like, obviously it’s your dad, so I know there were some boundaries crossed, and I’m really sorry for that and—shit. I’m rambling.”

Zeph gives me a tight smile and pulls my hand right up against his chest. “I don’t hate you, Tilly. I’m definitely feeling awkward, and I have more than just a bone to pick with my father, but no, I don’t hate you. How could I?”

“You sure?”

Zeph nods. “Don’t get me wrong, just holding your hand makes me want to hurl at the thought of where it’s been.”

“Oh, it’s been places you don’t even want to know about.”

He immediately releases my hand as though it could give him scabies, and when he relaxes back against the couch and lifts his gaze to mine, there’s a strange curiosity there. “It’s really not going anywhere with him?”

I shrug my shoulders. “Honestly, I have no idea, and you’re probably not the right person to even be talking about this with, but he set ground rules right from the get-go.

Any form of emotional relationship is strictly off the table, and while I was more than happy to agree to that, I’m not sure it’s something I’m going to be able to follow through with. ”

Zeph arches a brow. “You think you could fall for him?”

I shrug my shoulders before considering it again and shaking my head. “No. I don’t know. I’ve never had any kind of feelings for anyone in my life. I’ve wondered if I’ve just been broken all these years. If maybe I’m not capable of it.”

Zeph gives me a sad smile. “You are. You just don’t know how. But my dad, I don’t know if he’s the one you want to try that out with. He’s . . . He’s not an easy man to love. There are things about him that rattle even me to the core, but maybe someone like you is exactly what he needs.”

I just stare at him. “Okay, I think I’ve broken you,” I say. “You good? Maybe a cool shower might help.”

“I’m serious,” Zeph tells me. “If anyone is going to be able to handle his demons, I think it could be you. You’re strong enough, and you don’t run in the face of fear.

You stand up to it. The problem is, he’ll never let you close enough to try.

He’s determined to spend the rest of his life alone, refusing to let anyone in, and believe me, he has his reasons for that.

But if there is anything the least bit real between you, I think it could be good for him. ”

I shake my head. “You’re getting way ahead of yourself,” I tell him. “That’s not—”

“I know,” he says. “Despite wanting to wring his neck for taking my girl, I still want him to be happy, and that’s not something he’s ever going to find in that club.”

I fall back against the cushions, both of us settling into a comfortable silence, each of us deep in thought, and after a heavy breath, Zeph reaches out and pulls me into his side, his arm locked tightly around me.

“I can’t do anything about it now, but at least I’ll die happy knowing that I saw you first.”

“Uhhhhhh . . . about that.”

Zeph blows out a heavy breath. “Get fucked. He took that from me, too?”

I can’t help but laugh. “The Saturday night before I met you in class. We had a . . . uhhh . . . moment,” I say, unsure how to word it. “I didn’t know his name or anything about him. Just that he noticed me as much as I’d noticed him. And then after we, you know, and you—”

“Hold up a fucking second,” Zeph says, releasing his hold on me only so he can gape at me in horror. “That first time in the college bathroom, you said you had an itch that needed to be scratched.”

I grin at him. “Yeah, your dad was the reason for that particular itch.”

“Fuck me. I scratched my father’s itch.”

With that, Zeph is back on his feet. “Okay, definitely going to be sick this time.”

I hold back a laugh, realizing that in order to preserve the cleanliness of this room and to save myself an evening of scrubbing vomit out of the plush carpet, I’m going to have to change the topic. Despite having so much I want to ask him, I have no idea where the line has been drawn.

“Sit your ass down and tell me why you think you’re in love with Chloe,” I say, patting the vacated space beside me and watching as he reluctantly agrees.

He strides back to the couch and falls down next to me.

“I’m not gonna lie, I’m confused. You’ve seen her twice for all of three seconds, and both times, you’ve looked like you couldn’t stand each other and then left. ”

Zeph cringes before a dopey look dances across his face. “Have you not noticed how fucking beautiful she is?”

I laugh as though he’s gone insane. “Of course I’ve noticed. She’s my best friend. She’s fucking stunning.”

Zeph nods eagerly. “That’s just my problem.

She’s gorgeous, and I don’t know how to act around her.

It’s fucking with my head. I’ve never had this problem before.

I asked you to fuck me in the middle of class by miming, for fuck’s sake.

Picking up chicks isn’t an issue for me, but with Chloe, I’m fucking terrified of her.

My hands start sweating, and my knees threaten to give out, and then she looks at me like I’m slow because all I can manage to do is just stare at her, and then I panic and run away like a fucking bitch. ”

I stare at Zeph as though he truly is going insane, and while I know I don’t know him well enough to know all the little things, I sure as hell know him well enough to know that this is more than out of character for him. “Holy shit. You really are in love.”

“Nooooo,” he groans, leaning forward and bracing his elbows on his knees. Zeph drops his face into his hands, and anyone on the outside looking in could only assume that this is the worst news he’s ever received. “How could I let this happen?”

“I don’t think you let it happen. I think it just does, and sometimes, there’s not a goddamn thing you can do about it.”

He blows out a breath just as the familiar sound of the garage door opening rumbles through the house, and suddenly, Zeph isn’t looking so sorry for himself anymore.

I can’t help the quip that comes flying out of my mouth. “Mmmm, Daddy’s home.”

“I swear, babe. One more daddy comment, and every last one of my gentlemanly morals will fly out the goddamn window, and I promise, I will punch you right in the left tit.”

I can’t help but laugh, knowing damn well that even if I sat on top of the bastard and told him every raunchy detail about the things I have done to his father, he would never sink to lows like that. “The left? Why not the right?”

Zeph groans before his eyes widen and a wicked grin stretches across his face. “Shut up and get naked.”

“What?” I rush out, batting his hands away as he starts reaching for my clothes. “You clearly haven’t worked this out already, but I’m not screwing you anymore. You and me, platonic friends now. The fuck part of our buddies has taken an indefinite hiatus.”

Zeph rolls his eyes and all but scoops me off the couch before placing me on my feet and grabbing my anxiety attack shirt and yanking it over my head. “You don’t need to fuck me, Tilly. You just need to look like you did.”

Oh God.

I let out a sigh, seeing his plan as clear as day. He wants to use me to get under his father’s skin, and honestly, despite being team Caesar right now, I can’t help but feel as though Zeph deserves this.

“Fine,” I say, and not a moment later, I’m in nothing but a thong and Zeph’s shirt. I’ve ruffled my hair and pinched my cheeks, and Zeph stands before me, shirtless with the button of his jeans undone and my bra hanging out of his back pocket.

We look as though we’ve just spent hours fucking, but Zeph should know better.

Caesar will never fall for his ruse because where I’m concerned, the man can all but sniff me out.

Sex isn’t in the air, and Caesar will be able to tell the moment he walks through the door, but that’s not what’s making me nervous; it’s what comes after that’s got my heart racing a million miles an hour.

Then, as we hear Caesar come through the internal garage door and into the house, Zeph scoops me up bridal style and gives me a manic grin. “It’s showtime, baby!” And with that, he races down the stairs, more than ready to blow this shit to pieces.