Blue loved the way the family lived no matter how busy they were in their daily endeavors and businesses they made time for each other. Especially their elderly grandfather. How admirable. Of course, it was noble that they had not forgotten where they came from. It was Toni who helped them with a boost to give them all a good start in life after learning of their existence. And of course, they hadn’t forgotten. The only thing he’d asked of them, she had read once, was that they never forget the importance of family.
Without those you love around you, money and business equate to nothing. It was an empty existence. And if one was too busy for friends and family—then one was just too busy, she remembered a quote from one of the speeches he presented at the Annual Ball that she was sent to cover for Channel 31 News. Those were the days. She was an outsider looking into the world of the Romero family. Covering their every move, some of them. And now? She was amongst them. How strange life could be in throwing some unexpected curve balls.
Never burn your bridges, she’d learned early in life. It was a good thing she had gone out of her way to clear her name with them after that media scandal involving Lucas. Blue would have had enemies from this powerful family instead of being asked to do a documentary about them—and later, dining with them.
“Sorry, we’re late,” Zack walked into the dining room with his brother, Carl, looking exquisite. He had showered and changed into a crisp shirt and gray pants. He looked magnificent. This man would probably look hot washing dishes.
Washing.
Oh, the sexual thoughts that seeped into her mind as she thought of Zack’s hot, muscular body naked with dripping water cascading off his slippery skin.
Blue blinked her eyes emphatically. Oh, no. She was not going there. She really needed to keep her whirling thoughts in control. Not the place. Not the time. Thank God it wasn’t possible to read people’s minds and vice versa. That was all she could think of. That was one thing she hoped they’d never discover: how to eavesdrop on people’s private thoughts.
“You’re just in time,” Toni called out, his hands clasped in front of him. She caught Toni glancing at her and then to Zack. Blue wondered what that was about but decided to ignore it.
Blue had to keep from looking at Zack who happened to be seated across the table from her. She spoke at great length with Shelly who was beside her. Shelly was such a warm and friendly person. It shouldn’t surprise her since she was a new addition to the Romero family herself and it couldn’t have been easy marrying an older man with grandchildren almost her age. Blue was sure Shelly had experienced her share of family politics before being accepted into the inner circle.
Blue kept her gaze elsewhere in the room as they devoured their entrees. The sound of knives and forks scraping the plates along with the murmurs of various conversations around the table was welcome from her earlier turbulent moment on the road. She could not believe the family ate dinner like this. A few close friends were also seated around the table. Earlier they were served Caesar salad with fresh Parmesan and house made herb croutons. They finished the evening having been served various seafood dishes that started off with fresh scallops and vegetarian soup. They were also served roasted double ranch prime rib with marinated shrimp, opal basil and mint spring rolls.
Blue felt as if she’d eaten enough to last her the week. There was something soothing about seafood. She often thought of pasta and seafood as her favorite comfort foods. Right now, she could use all the comfort she could get.
“It’s so nice, what you’re doing,” Shelly commented to Blue. “The documentary. We’re all excited to see the finished product.”
“Thank you. I’m truly grateful for the honor. I’ve always admired all the wonderful contributions you all have bestowed on the community and in your amazing products.”
“Yes, well, excellence is our middle name. If we can’t live up to it then we don’t do it. Isn’t that right, Zack?” Toni commented, turning from Blue to Zack.
“We do our best,” Zack assured, a smooth grin curled the corner of his lips.
* * *
“Why can’t I go now?”
“Because, Courtney, we just got here,” Blue said later to her sister as they got ready for bed. “I’ll be in the next room across the hall. Just shout if you need anything.”
Courtney folded her arms across her chest. “I’m eighteen-years-old, Blue.”
“Yes. That’s right. So act responsibly.”
"Melissa invited me. There’s a few of the girls from my school who will be there. I spoke to Tiffany already. She’s in my Bio class.”
What was Blue afraid of? She knew at Court's age, she was able to hike across Europe for God’s sake. Courtney was just going to the adjacent land next to the Romero Estate to be with the other kids her own age. It sure would be better than hanging out in a vacant wing of a lonely mansion with her older sister.
“You know something? I’m sorry, Courtney,” Blue said, plopping herself on the bedside. “You’re right. You’re eighteen. And you are responsible. I know you are. Just…no drinking or anything okay?”
“You know I’m a teetotaller, right?”
She reached over and hugged her sister. “Enjoy yourself, sis. But not too much.”
“Good. We’re going camping tomorrow and then we’re going to hit the amusement area. You’re like the best sister ever with the hottest friends, eh?”
Blue playfully rolled her eyes. “I told you, Courtney, we’re just going to stay here until my assignment is over. Then…” Then what? A painful lump settled in Blue’s throat. Yes, then what? She sucked in a deep, lung-expanding breath. Yes, what was Blue’s plan B? What would happen when Zack decided he no longer needed her around? What if he found out about her past…with the ex-Senator Aitkin?
CHAPTER TEN
Blue tossed and turned beneath the silky sheets on her bed in the guest room at Romero Manor. How could she possible sleep? Who could possibly sleep at a time like this? First, her job with Zack working under his direction for the documentary. And it had to be perfect, too. She still had a whole lot of filming and editing to do. Then…there was that crazy accident.
Somebody was following her. It wasn’t her imagination, after all.
Her mind was tormented with a whirlwind of confusing thoughts. Her heart pounded like a bass drum inside her chest. She was breathing hard and fast. So hard it was almost painful to inhale and exhale. After gazing up at the magnificent star ceiling art that twinkled in the darkness of the room, the ceiling created the illusion of gazing up at the stars at night on a clear night. It was awe inspiring. Under normal circumstances she would be soothed. But not now.
Blue had one thing on her mind. A crushing, pressing thought.
Zack Romero.
Would she ever be able to break through his barrier and get close enough to him—again? Tonight at dinner, she felt ashamed for the arousal she felt seated across from him. The man was uber sexy in every sense of the word. He was breathtakingly stunning. Why in God’s name was her mind so obsessed over this hot man?
She wished she could wipe him out of her mind. Right now she had to be thinking about doing a damn good job in putting together what must be an award-winning documentary on the Romero Winery and Estate for the National Wine Awards show. It was a prestigious industry award and he was selected to be featured. She couldn’t afford to screw that up. Then she had to find out who the hell was trying to murder her.
How long could she keep under Zack Romero’s protection? Really? Not forever. Then what would happen to her? What would happen to Courtney? Who wanted to run her off the road? Was it her imagination? Zack didn’t want to impart too much information on the matter. He told her the police were on the case. He also mentioned he had some men on the case, too. Whatever that meant.
Blue propped herself up on the bed and drew in a deep breath.
“Right, that does it. I’m officially up.” She glanced over at the digital display of the clock by her bedside. It re
ad: 11:48 p.m.
She whipped off the sheets and got up out of bed. In the room, there was a sixty-inch flat-screen TV mounted on the wall and a remote control on the nightstand but she decided she couldn’t bring herself to watch anything.
Blue was just…restless.
Zack Romero.
Why was he the only thing on her mind? She wondered obsessively what he could be doing. Was he in the west wing nearest her? Or was he in the east wing, or heck, the north or south wing. The mansion was a massive maze. She paced in the room, debating if she should go outside in the hallway or not.
“I need air.”
Blue slipped on her flip-flops and fixed her hair in the mirror. She had worn her night t-shirt and matching pink pyjama bottoms. To the casual onlooker her attire could easily pass for summer wear but of course she purchased it in the nightwear department.
She quietly opened the door of her room and peered out into the long, lonely corridor. It appeared the entire residence was asleep. There wasn’t a sound to be heard, except for that of her own breathing.
A chill slithered down her spine.
Why was she afraid? She was safe here. She would be okay. Everything would be okay, she kept consoling herself. It had to be.
* * *
Zack was a tormented soul. He didn’t often fight. But right now he was wrestling with his emotions as he swam in the night-time-only-illuminated pool on the estate. With a vengeance he propelled his body through the water powerfully, making waves and splashes. Swiftly, he’d swam another few laps with ease.
It was almost midnight. But hey, going for a late night swim on a summer night wasn’t all that unusual. Especially on his estate. Good thing they didn’t have neighbors for miles. He loved the sensation of moving his body through the water. Currently, he had a lot of pent up energy to burn off.
His mind was still swimming with effects of tonight’s wine and dinner with their guest, Blue Monroe. What a gal. She was hot. He’d seen beautiful women but she…was stunning. She had the type of skin deep beauty that elegantly shined. She wasn’t only physically gorgeous but she had a heart of refined gold. And it was a good thing while he was sitting across from her that she could not see the effect she was having on him below his waistline during their meal. He just kept looking at those precious full, ripe lips of hers. They looked juicy enough for him to want to suck on. The memory of their sweet kiss made Zack hard like steel again.
There he went again. He was supposed to be in control of his libido for a full month. It had only been twenty-nine days. Like hell that was going to be easy. Why was he so obsessed with this woman all of a sudden? It was as if she’d bewitched him with her beautiful charm and demeanor.
The truth was, he had taken a lot of cold showers the past month. That was why he’d kept his distance from her and tried to focus on work at the other site while handing over duties to his deputy manager. He’d better stay the hell away from her until he could master his feelings. Instead of the other way around. What else was he to do?
One month without sex? Without a chance of seducing Blue? Dios Mio! He had almost gone crazy out of his mind during that time.
His grandfather was right. He needed to take control of his actions. But face it, beautiful women were his weakness. He was a breathing, healthy man. How could that be so unusual? Yeah, but men often thought with the wrong head. That’s what got him into trouble in the first place, wasn’t it?
Selina. Shit! He’d done some wicked and wild things with her in Vegas. And yeah, she wanted to film everything. He thought it was kinky as hell, but he loved the idea of capturing it all on video. What an idiotic thing to do! Was it the thrill? The danger he lived for? His old gramps was right, though. Stuff like that could only spell trouble. Now it could ruin his business. He never once thought that she’d betray him or want to expose herself like that. It was true he had met the wrong women in his life. And now that he saw great potential in finding “the one,” she was unreachable. Off limits! How pathetic was that? Still, the Selina sex tape drama was still under surveillance. So far nothing had surfaced…yet!
Then Zack’s mind drifted further back to the time when he was in high school. Before he’d met his wealthy grandfather. There was a girl he liked in school, Michlene. She was hot—though nowhere near Blue’s dazzling appeal. He liked Michlene a lot. Hey, he was young, from a working class family and he liked to date. He had given his virginity to her. He thought she liked him. But then when things got rough with his old man and they ended up losing their home, it all went downhill from there. When the bailiff changed the lock on the door, they’d lost everything, including the clothes for school the next day. It was a disaster. But Zack still looked forward to making his way to class. He walked what seemed like a mile to get there but he just had to have a good friend. But word got out and she turned her back on him. Not only that, she’d taken someone else to the prom. “Mom says it’s better that we don’t see each other anymore,” she had squirmed when she told him, outside his locker one day.
“Why?” he said, hurt in his voice.
“Well, we’re not really compatible.”
“Oh, I get it. Because my dad’s broke? We’re no longer compatible.” It was one of the first times he remembered crying. Hey, he was a teen. The other kids were not exactly kind about it either. But after that heartbreak, Zack vowed never again was he going to get hung up over any girl. And he also vowed that he would have everything he needed.
Now, funny thing, women wanted to date him for what he had. They practically threw themselves at him. It wasn’t just after they’d had the fortune of meeting their grandfather, but he’d busted his butt and worked hard in the family business and discovered a way to turn the unused land at the manor into a successful vineyard. His grandfather never handed them anything on a platter. He told them that earning things in life instead of being handed everything made people more appreciative.
Zack pushed himself from the side of the pool and dipped back into the water, his heart racing as he swam another lap. His mind drifted back on his meeting earlier with the family’s press secretary, Pamela. “If you go further with the National Wine Awards, and this tape surfaces,” Pamela advised earlier, “it could spell disaster. You would go down as a National Award Winner with a sex tape scandal.”
He remembered he had winced at the thought. “On the other hand,” Pamela had continued, “if you back out now and keep a low profile and the tape surfaces, no one would be interested. You’d be just another businessman with a tape that is public. And they would see it as a violation of privacy from a private individual.”
“Yeah, but there isn’t much privacy being a Romero, now, is there?” Zack fired back, annoyed. Not that he was world famous or anything. He was known around town. But the National Wine Awards was an internationally recognized, world renowned organization. The Oscars of the Wine Industry.
He saw her point. “No way in hell, am I going to back out and lay low because of fear of what might happen. We Romeros rule our fear, not the other way around.”
“I got it,” she replied to him. “I’m proud of you, Zack. For not cowering and turning tail. It was only a suggestion. But I’m glad you decided to stay in the game.”
Zack could feel the coolness of the water bathing his skin, heat shot through his muscles as he worked his body in the water. It was as if he was competing. He had a whole lot of time to think.
Then his gut clenched at the thought of some creep trying to snuff out Blue. If he ever caught who was trying to do that…
Zack shifted his focus. He had to focus. What was he going to do about Blue and his feelings for her?
He had the documentary to finish and to ensure that Blue had full access to all the winery's facilities for the production and enough background information in their library. But he still hadn’t sat down with her for a heart-to-heart profile to be filmed. A personal question and answer period where she would get to ask him everything about his life growing up a
nd about what it meant to run one of the country’s most elite family-owned wineries and vineyards.
When he was done with forty laps in the pool, Zack climbed out at the side and grabbed his towel to dry his face.
He paused when he saw the silhouette of a woman in the moonlit darkness wandering in the near distance. A curvaceous woman. Her wavy dark pair pinned up in a loose ponytail. She was petite in height. That walk. He could recognize the distinctive sway of each woman he’d ever met. He had that recognition gift.
Blue?
What in God’s name was she doing up at this hour?
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Blue didn’t know what got into her that night but she felt compelled to seek out the fresh summer night’s air and inhale the aroma of the vinery that lingered in the atmosphere. She looked up at the dark night and captured the splendor of the tiny dots of white stars glowing against the backdrop of the sky. It was weird but she felt comforted being outside, under the canopy of the heavens. She was glad that she—and her sister, got a chance to get away from the city and stay in Mayberry Hill where she could finish her film project.
Just as Blue walked out to the pool area, her heart jumped.
Zack.
Zack had been swimming; he was sitting at the side of the pool, dripping wet. A towel slung over his shoulder. Oh, my.
She hadn’t really seen him semi-naked before—not in person, anyway. But he saw her. He got up and walked over to her.
The saltwater pool was illuminated by glowing nightlights, so Blue could see the crisp blueness of the water against the darkness of the night. Trees stood as sentinels around the patio. It looked more like a holiday resort than a private home pool. She loved the night illumination of pools. There was something calming, soothing, romantic about it. The Romeros lived very well!
“What are you doing up at this time?” he said in a low voice, slightly breathless after swimming laps she guessed.
The Playboy Billionaire (The Romero Brothers, Book 3) Page 9