“Thanks,” he said, looking around the bright, open kitchen. “I like it.”
“It’s funny, I hadn’t heard anything about new owners buying this place. I thought the previous owners’ son inherited it when they passed on. It’s been vacant for a while. But then their son went to jail, so I’m not sure—”
“I’m sorry if Branson gave you a hard time. He can be a bit of an ass sometimes.”
He was giving her whiplash with the abrupt subject changes. “It’s no problem. He seems like a nice guy.”
“Oh yeah? You like him, do you?”
She curled her hands around her oversized mug. The bite in his voice made it difficult for her to decide how to respond. “Sure, why wouldn’t I?”
“What did he say to you about me?” he asked, narrowing his eyes.
“Not much. We only spoke for a few minutes before you came down.”
“Huh.”
Their conversation was getting a little awkward, so Juliette said, “Uh, he said something about you guys being from LA?”
“Yeah.”
“So you just bought this as a vacation home?”
“Something like that.”
She wondered how much time he planned to spend in Vista Falls. “You said something about creating apps. Does that mean you can work from anywhere?”
“Pretty much.”
It was obvious he didn’t want to answer her questions, so Juliette poured the rest of her coffee down the sink, rinsed the mug, and set it in the dishwasher. “Well, I guess I’ll go get dressed. I have a busy day today. I’ll just call a cab to—”
“I’ll take you home.”
“Oh no, you don’t have to do that!”
He raised an eyebrow. “What’s wrong? You don’t want me to know where you live?”
“No, it’s nothing like that.” Though she probably would have been wise to keep that information under wraps just in case. “I just don’t want to take you away from your friend. He just got here.”
“And if I know Branson, he won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.”
“Really? Doesn’t he have a job to get back to?”
“He’s a day trader. As long as he has his laptop, he can work from anywhere.”
“Oh, that’s cool. What does he—”
“Why are you so interested in Branson?”
Juliette realized she was asking an inordinate number of questions about Zeke’s friend, but only because he didn’t seem eager to answer any about himself. “Sorry,” she said, shaking her head. “I didn’t mean to be so nosy.”
When she tried to slip past him, he grabbed her wrist and surprised her with an intimate kiss. “Take the back stairs, okay?”
“Why?”
“I think my buddy’s seen too much of you already, don’t you?”
She blushed when she remembered what Zeke had done to her panties last night. “Oh, uh, right.”
***
“I didn’t appreciate that,” Zeke said, standing in the doorway of his family room and watching his friend shovel more of Juliette’s homemade muffins into his mouth.
“What?” Branson asked, barely taking his eyes off the sports highlights on the large flat screen mounted on the wall.
“The way you were checking out Juliette. Not cool, man.”
Branson chuckled. “Come on, you can’t blame me. That is one seriously hot piece of ass. If the girls in LA woke up looking like that, I wouldn’t be so quick to kick them out of bed.”
“She is not a piece of ass.” Zeke didn’t know what had happened between them last night, but something had. He’d gone from thinking of her as a revenge hook-up to something more.
“You’re gonna share though, right?” Branson grinned. “She was into me. I could tell.”
Zeke felt his blood pressure rising. Not because Branson suggested they share a woman—it wouldn’t have been the first time. He was pissed because Branson thought Juliette wanted him, and judging by all the questions she’d asked about him, Zeke feared it might be true.
“Dude,” Zeke said, smirking. “You want my sloppy seconds? Be my guest.”
Juliette gasped from behind him, and Zeke turned in time to see tears filling her beautiful hazel eyes.
“Shit,” Zeke muttered, jogging after her as she ran out the door.
“Nice going, asshole,” Branson called. “You made her cry!”
“Jules, wait!”
She was running up the dirt road in her flip-flops and dress, her oversized purse slung over her shoulder. “Go to hell!”
He deserved that, but she was crazy if she thought he was going to let her get away without an apology or an explanation. Her short strides were no match for his, and he caught up with her in under a minute.
“Just stop.” He stepped in front of her, grabbing her shoulders. “I was a bastard for saying that. I’m sorry.”
“You think I’m easy.” She wiped a hand across her face, streaking her face with tears. “Why wouldn’t you after last night?”
He wanted to crush her against his chest and beg her to stop crying, but he knew that wouldn’t help. She’d only fight harder to get away. “I don’t think that.” He wiped her tears away with his thumbs, framing her face with his hands. “I think you’re amazing. I meant what I said. You blew my mind last night.”
“Why did you tell Branson he could have me?”
The thought of Branson having Juliette made his blood boil all over again. “Because he made it clear he wanted you, and I thought you may have felt the same way about him.”
She grabbed his wrists, trying to pull his hands away.
“I panicked, okay? After last night, I definitely did not want you hooking up with my best friend. So I said the only thing I could think of to deter him.”
“Why would you care who I’m with?”
Good question. One he’d been asking himself for the past twelve hours and still couldn’t answer. “I don’t know.” He dropped his hands and turned in a slow circle as he looked at the cloudless sky. “I know this is messed up. I get that. But I…” He bit his lip, wondering whether he should admit the truth. “I like you.”
“You like me?”
“Yeah, I like you.” Which he knew was a mistake since she definitely would not like him when she found out his story. “I know last night was supposed to be a one-time deal, and if that’s still what you want it to be, I’m cool with that.” Not really but he could pretend. “If not, maybe we could see each other again.”
“Zeke…”
Before she could list all the reasons that was a bad idea, he raised his hands. “I’m not suggesting we start dating. I know you don’t have time for that. But maybe we could hang out sometime.”
“Hang out?” She raised an eyebrow. “You mean a hook-up?”
He raised a shoulder. “Wouldn’t be the worst idea, would it?”
She crossed her arms, looking up at him. “Are you suggesting a friends with bennies arrangement?”
“Uh, not really since we’re not friends.”
“Right, we barely know each other. So more of a casual sex thing?”
“I don’t care what you call it. I’d just, uh, like to see you again sometime.” To avoid coming off desperate, he added, “If you’re into it.”
“Can I think about it and get back to you?”
That was a first for him. For the past several years, ever since his windfall, he’d had trouble getting rid of women, not convincing them to stick around.
“Sure, take all the time you need.”
Chapter Four
Juliette sat in front of her house, feeling awkward as she questioned whether a kiss or hug was most appropriate.
Zeke took the decision out of her hands. Leaning in, he cradled her cheek in his hand. “I wanna see you again, Jules.”
“I’m not sure we can avoid seeing each other,” she said, hating the breathless quality to her voice. “Vista Falls is a pretty small town, and since you have a vacation property he
re now—”
He dipped his head to hide his smile. “You’re deflecting. Are you nervous?”
“Why would I be nervous?” Because you’re the hottest guy I’ve slept with since… ever? And I can’t get doing the dirty with you out of my head?
“I don’t know.” He brushed his lips across hers. “You tell me.”
“I’m not nervous.”
“Good.” He looked surprisingly vulnerable when he asked, “Forgive me for what I said earlier?”
“Sure, no worries.” She was still offended but willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. She knew guys talked smack when they were alone, and she didn’t know him well enough to have earned his respect yet.
“Can I program my number into your phone?”
“Um…”
“That way you can call if you want. No pressure.”
She supposed it was the best option, and if she got out of his truck without taking his number, she might regret it. “Okay.” She pulled her phone out of her purse, typed in her code, and passed it to him.
He pulled up her contacts list and added his before handing it back to her. “Thanks.”
“I feel like I should be thanking you… for the ride and… everything.” She blushed again, wondering how long it had been since she’d been flustered enough to blush around a man. Probably high school.
“You’re thanking me for the great sex?” He laughed when she pushed his chest. “You’re welcome. Anytime you’re looking for a triple play, you know who to call.”
“Shut up.”
He was fun and flirty and sexy, and she loved everything about him. That was why she couldn’t see him again. If she did, it could lead to her liking him even more, and that was just asking for trouble. Guys like Zeke were cut out for casual sex, not relationships. Especially not with small-town, workaholic mayors.
“I can think of one way for you to shut me up.” He traced her jawline with his fingertip. “Kiss me.”
“Are you asking me or telling me?”
“Telling you.”
“I don’t take orders.”
“Maybe you should start.” His grin was ridiculously hot, taunting her with a threat of indecency.
“You think you could get me to take orders?” She loved a challenge, and apparently he did too.
“Maybe in the bedroom?”
If she’d been wearing panties, they’d have been drenched by now. “Don’t count on it.”
“You’re not saying no, so that’s something.”
“Why me?”
“Why not you?”
“Do you always answer a question with a question?”
He sighed, sinking back against his leather seat. “Why am I so into you? Let’s see…” He drummed his fingers against the steering wheel. “You’re ridiculously hot. You’re smart. You’re independent, ambitious…” He rolled his head to face her. “You need more?”
She shrugged, trying to appear indifferent. “If you have more, feel free to share.”
He laughed. “You make me laugh. It’s been a long time since a woman made me laugh.”
“Maybe you’ve been dating the wrong women.”
“Maybe I have.” He took her hand, lacing his fingers through hers.
“I’m a lousy girlfriend.” She could have kicked herself for blurting that out. Especially when he chuckled again.
“Good to know. I’m a lousy boyfriend. I am, however, a pretty good friend. And a reasonable lover.” He winked. “Or so I’ve been told.”
“You’re not bad.”
“I seem to recall you telling me I was the best you’ve ever had.”
“I did not say that!” Had she? She’d had a few drinks but not that many.
“Uh, yeah, you did. It was the one thing you said last night that gave me hope.”
“What do you mean?”
He stared straight ahead at the multicolored blooms spilling out of the planters on her front porch. “I hoped you’d want to see me again. I figured if I could show you a good time, maybe you would.”
She couldn’t imagine a man like Zeke felt insecure very often, so she squeezed his hand. “If things were different—”
“Uh oh, it’s never good when a girl leads with that.”
“I mean, if my job didn’t take so much of my time.”
“Well, here’s the thing. My job takes so little of my time, so I figure my work schedule balances yours. I’m pretty flexible. You call me at midnight telling me you need a massage or whatever, I can be there.”
He had a beautiful, newly renovated vacation home and a place in LA. Expensive furnishings, original art hanging on his walls, yet he didn’t work a lot? There was definitely a story there. One she would never learn if she refused to see him again.
“Um, it so happens I’m free tomorrow night,” she said. “I had a business meeting with a potential developer from out of town, but he had to cancel due to a family emergency.”
“Are you saying his loss could be my gain?”
“If you’re free?”
“I think I can swing dinner. Why don’t you pass by my place around seven? I’ll cook for you.”
Was there anything sexier than a guy who knew his way around a kitchen? She didn’t think so. “That sounds nice. Can I bring anything?”
He leaned in to kiss her, his mouth hovering above hers. “Just your sexy self.”
***
“Please tell me you did not go home with Matt Dyson last night!” Gabby said, slamming Juliette’s office door.
Juliette stared at her friend, wondering why she was bordering on hysterical. It wasn’t like Gabby to barge into her office unannounced. Thankfully, her receptionist was out to lunch.
“Uh, no. I met this guy… Zeke…” She could check her contacts for his last name, assuming he’d added it, but that would mean admitting they’d been too busy to exchange last names.
“I don’t care who he said he was,” Gabby said, pacing. “Wes, Rush, and Colt all swore it was Matt Dyson.”
“Matt Dyson?” She knew the Dyson family had owned the house Zeke took her to, but she couldn’t place his name.
“He’s the guy who killed his brother when we were in high school. The one your dad petitioned the court to have charged as an adult.”
“Oh my God.” Juliette sank back in her chair, shaking her head. “How could I forget that name? My father talked of little else for months. He was on a mission to see that kid behind bars.”
“I know.” Gabby sat on the edge of Juliette’s desk. “It was kind of sad if you ask me. He was only a year older than us, and he lost his brother. Everyone said it was an accident, but—”
“My father didn’t believe that. He made it his business to see him behind bars. It was an election year, and he thought making an example of Matt, Zeke, whatever his name is, would help him get reelected. He wanted it to look like he was tough on guns and crime and teen—”
“I remember,” Gabby said, touching Juliette’s shoulder. “But the courts decided to charge him as a juvenile since he was only fifteen. Your dad was pissed. He was ranting and raving about it all over town to anyone who would listen.”
“I can’t believe it.”
“He didn’t say anything to you about his past?” Gabby asked.
“No, not a thing.” She shook her head. “Do you think he targeted me? You know, to get back at my father?”
“Does your father know about last night?” Gabby asked, wide-eyed.
“Not yet but word gets around fast. Anyone who was at Rusty’s last night could have run into my father at the diner this morning. He usually goes there for his morning coffee and to chat with the old-timers.” She slapped her forehead. “I can’t believe I could have been so stupid! The one guy in forever that I’ve actually been interested in and he has an agenda.”
“You don’t know that for sure,” Gabby said gently. “I know I was warning you off when I came in here, but it’s obvious to me now this guy means something to you,
Jules. Maybe you should talk to him, get his side of the story.”
“If he had nothing to hide, why would he lie to me about his name? And why wouldn’t he tell me he’d inherited that house when his parents died? He made it sound like he bought it.” Or had she made that assumption? It didn’t matter. He hadn’t told her the truth about who he was.
“All of that aside, how was last night?” Gabby crossed her ankles, resting her weight on her palms. “I can’t believe you actually went home with him. That’s so unlike you.”
“I was tired of being alone.” Just a few months ago, Juliette had gone into Gabby’s flower shop and complained to her friend that she had no social life thanks to her job, so Gabby couldn’t be too surprised she’d resorted to drastic measures. She knew that made her sound desperate, but she was beyond caring. And Gabby wouldn’t judge her. She’d been in the same position before her first love, Colt, came back to town. “I wanted to have a little fun, forget my responsibilities for a while, you know?”
“The guys said you had a few drinks. He didn’t take advantage, did he?”
“No way. In fact, he suggested taking me home to sleep it off instead of going back to his place.” She covered her face with her hands when she thought of how insistent she’d been in the front seat of his truck.
“But…?” Gabby asked, swinging her legs. “I’m guessing that isn’t the way it went down?”
“No, I persuaded him to take me back to his place.”
“And?”
“It was amazing.”
Gabby clapped, squealing. “Tell me everything. And don’t leave out a single detail.”
“Are you forgetting who we’re talking about? This guy shot and killed his brother! Can you imagine what’s going to happen when people find out I slept with him? They’ll want my job!”
“Screw them,” Gabby said defiantly. “You’re entitled to a little fun. Just because all the old busybodies elected you mayor doesn’t mean they get a say in how you run your personal life. You’re young, beautiful, and single. If you want to hook up with a hot guy, I say go for it.”
Coming Home (Vista Falls #4) Page 3