Page 91 of The Curse of Redwood

“Because you were living a lie?”

“Precisely. I knew I never wanted to take a wife, and the pressure to do so was nearly too much to hold. I became an actor on the stage, smiling and dancing the night away, all the while dying on the inside.” We reached the bottom step, and Zeke stepped backward, dropping my hand as he bowed. “May I have this dance?”

“But there’s no music,” I said past the tightness in my throat.God, I’m such a sap.

“Is there not?” He straightened his spine and put a hand behind his back, reaching the other toward me. I placed my hand in his, and he spun me to his chest. “If you listen closely, you can hear the bow sliding across the violin strings. You can hear the deep bass of a cello. Close your eyes, little dove, and listen to the world around you.”

I did as he said and shut my eyes. Suddenly, I heard it. Shoes clacking on the floor as people danced, the merry sound of laughter, and the echo of classical music.

“Now look at me.”

My eyes opened, and my breath hitched in my throat. The sun lit his face, emphasizing his strong bone structure but also the softness of his features. He was beauty and strength wrapped up into one man.

Our fingers threaded together, and he put a hand on my waist. I put my other hand on his shoulder as I’d seen in movies.

“Guess this is an awkward time to say I don’t know how to dance.”

“Worry not, little dove,” he said with a smile. “Follow my lead.”

And then we began to move.

My foot work was clumsy in the beginning, but with Zeke being such a strong lead I was able to settle into an easy rhythm before too long. We twirled around the ballroom floor, going in and out of streams of sunlight. I laughed with delight, as did he, and I felt both ridiculous and happy. I smiled so much my face hurt.

“I feel underdressed for such a fancy occasion,” I said, as he spun me in a circle. “Hoodie and jeans aren’t exactly ballroom appropriate.”

“This room has seen many ballgowns and dapper gentlemen in suits.” Zeke glided his lips up my neck as we danced. “Yet, you are the most beautiful creature to ever step foot here.”

Yeah, leave it to me to fall for a first class sweet-talker.

“More beautiful than you?” I played along with the flirtation, feeling like the luckiest guy in the universe. “Never.”

“We can agree to disagree,” he said, arching a fine pale brow. We stopped twirling as he moved the hand from my waist and placed it at my neck. “Now. If you’ve had your fill of dancing, I have another way we can pass the time.”

“Oh yeah?” I asked, meeting his smirk with one of my own. “What do you suggest?”

“Better to show you.”

I squealed as he knocked me off my feet—literally—and swept me up into his arms. “Don’t drop me!”

“Drop you?” he murmured against my throat, before placing a kiss there. “But you are so little. How could I?”

“I’m a very manly size,” I said, looping an arm around his neck as he started to walk across the floor.

“Hold on tight, my big strong male.”

Before I could spout off at his obvious sarcasm, he dashed forward super quick, carrying me all the way to his room. We pulled at each other’s clothes and fell onto the bed. As we came together hot and heavy, I refused to think about what waited for us in the future.

All that mattered was this moment with him.

Chapter Seventeen

Zeke traced the mark over my heart as we lay in bed, naked and sated from hours of foreplay and sex. The light outside had shifted, and the room had darkened as the sun lowered in the sky.

“This protects you?” he asked.

“Yep. I can’t even explain how good I feel since Callum put it on me. A weight has been lifted, and all my anxiety is gone.” I kissed his chilled skin and nestled closer to his chest. “The worst isn’t over yet, but it will be okay.”

It had to be.