Zeke (The Powers That Be, Book 2)

by Harper Bentley

  Oh, boy.

  I sucked in a breath as I felt a dip in my womb. Wow. He was good.

  He brought his hand up to cup my face and leaned in close, his eyes still locked with mine. “I’ll prove it to you sometime.” Then he leaned in and touched his lips to mine. When he pulled back, the smolder in his eyes had died a bit but the message was still there.

  Holy damn.

  Then he took a drink from his bottle and all was back to normal.

  “So, you gonna tell me what happened earlier?” he queried.

  I took another drink then staring at my bottle laid it all out for him. “A couple years ago, I had a boyfriend. We were gonna get married. But he cheated on me then asked if I wanted to have a threesome with the woman I’d caught him with.” I looked at him and shrugged. “That’s why what you said startled me. Every boyfriend I’ve been somewhat serious with has cheated on me… then asked for a threesome.” I couldn’t help but chuckle. It was kind of funny in a weirdly fucked-up way.

  I could see the muscles in his jaws jumping before he took a drink. Then he turned to me. “Let’s get a table.”

  He grabbed his bottle and got up then helped me off my barstool and taking my hand, led me to a small table for two, pulling my chair out for me. Man, if I ever met his mom, I’d have to thank her for instilling manners in him. After we were seated, I saw him jerk his head at Gable. A moment later Gable brought us both another bottle then left and Zeke looked at me.

  “Now, let’s get this clear, Scarlett. I’m not like those bastards you dated. I’ve never cheated on anyone and I don’t plan to.” I could see him sizing me up, and I braced for what he was going to tell me next. “I had… some… threesomes when I was younger, but not with anyone I cared about. I don’t have anything against them. It’s just that I don’t like sharing when I find someone I’m interested in.” His eyes bored into mine so erotically it made me suck in a breath. “And you’re someone I’m interested in.”

  Well. As long as we got that cleared up. And, my God, he looked at me as if I meant something to him which made my breathing speed up. No one had looked at me like that in a very long time.

  But then my rational side reared her judge-y face to convince me that I still wasn’t sold. I couldn’t be. Stick to the plan, I heard her whisper in my head, making me shut down my emotions once more as I geared up to tell him this thing between us would go nowhere because I knew what would come next was him pursuing the topic of us dating.

  “Now, tell me about your family,” he said casually as if five seconds before he hadn’t flashed his bedroom eyes at me.

  I stared at him for a moment because he’d surprised me then I burst into laughter. Wow. First of all, how conceited was I thinking he was going to beg me to date him? Secondly, he really had a way with putting things out there, one moment being so intense it completely took my breath away, the next appearing as easygoing as they come which was totally knocking me off my axis at all times. Damn.

  “What?” he asked with a wink which made my heart flutter.

  Smiling, I shook my head. “You.”

  “What about me?”

  It was my turn to size him up. “You’re just so different. Every time I think I know what you’re going to say, you surprise me. And you’re just so take-charge. You’ve got that whole alpha male thing going on.”

  “And I think you like it,” he countered as he brought his bottle to those perfect lips. Then setting his bottle down, his eyes met mine and held them. “I think you like me.”

  Oh, I liked it and him. Probably too much.

  I shrugged. “Maybe.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Maybe, she says. Excuse me if I’m wrong, Scarlett, but I think that was pure lust I saw in your eyes at the weight room earlier.”

  Hoping I was coming off as nonchalant—when in reality, if I didn’t think I’d hate myself in the morning, I so wanted to fuck his brains out right then. I mean, those stalls in the women’s room had been rather large and would be damned accommodating for a quick tryst with him—I shrugged again. “You’re a good-looking guy, Zeke, which I’m sure you know. A woman would have to be blind not to look at you with lust.”

  “So where does this leave us?”

  “I don’t know. But I need to let you know that I don’t have time to date anyone right now. I’ve got to focus on my future, starting up my business, getting my family out of debt.”

  He nodded. “I understand. What’s this business you want to start?”

  Totally. Knocking. Me. Off. My. Axis.

  Most guys would’ve gotten mad and called it a night knowing they probably weren’t going to get laid, but not Zeke. He looked like he really wanted to know about the bakery I planned on opening. So with a surprised chuckle, I told him and he seemed genuinely happy for me, asking all kinds of questions as if he was truly interested in my future. When I asked about his major, which was finance (which I knew because Jay had told me this morning that he was president of the Finance Club), he told me he’d like to be a bank president someday but if his NFL career took off, he’d put it on hold. I next asked about the NFL and he explained about the combines and how players got drafted, which I found fascinating. I found everything he had to say fascinating. He was so charming and humble which I found totally disarming that before I knew it, we’d talked for three hours straight which was when my phone buzzed with a call from Lane.

  “Sorry, I need to take this,” I told Zeke as I got up from the table walking to the women’s restroom again. “Hey, what’re you still doing up?” I answered my phone.

  “Just wondering when you’re coming home?”

  “I’ll be there in a bit. Did you do the dishes?”

  “Yep. Grammy tried butting in but I finally told her you were gonna pay me, so she only helped a little,” he said.

  “By a little do you mean she did them all?” I knew Grammy liked things done her way.

  “Well… I cleared the table and put away everything. I saved a plate for you.”

  Zeke and I had split a plate of nachos, so I wasn’t hungry but I thanked my brother anyway.

  “So where are you?” Lane asked.

  “I’m out.”

  “With who?”

  “God, nosy. If you must know, I’m having a couple beers with a guy named Zeke Powers.”

  I heard Lane suck in a breath. “Zeke Powers? Holy shit! He set the single-season receiving record for Hallervan this year! He caught fifty-five passes for over a thousand yards and had five touchdowns!”

  Damn it. How come everyone and their dog knew who Zeke was but I hadn’t? And how come guys always knew useless sports stats?

  “Um, wow,” I offered. I knew nothing about football, but I’m sure what Lane said was good since he was going nutso over Zeke’s stats. And I decided to let his cussing go this time since he was so excited.

  “Wow? Scar, that’s, like, amazing! The guy’s amazing! And you’re going out with him? Oh, man! Do you think I could meet him?”

  Great. I was getting ready to break my little brother’s heart. “I’m not going out with him. We just had a few drinks. We’re only friends, okay?”

  “Aw! That sucks. Well, could you at least get me his autograph? He’s gonna go pro and be famous!”

  “I’ll ask. ‘Kay, bud, I’ve gotta go. You get to bed, all right? I’ll be home soon.”

  “’Kay. Have fun. And just letting you know, if you wanted to date Zeke, that’d be cool. ‘Night, Scar.”

  So… no pressure there.

  I used the facilities, checked my face in the mirror and went back out to join Zeke, planning to tell him I needed to leave.

  When I came back out, the beautiful blonde he’d hugged this morning was standing with Zeke at our table and I did a stutter step. Crap. Who was she? An ex who he still pined after? Ugh. Sucking it up, I approached and got a huge smile from her.

  “Hey! I’m Scout!” she said, holding her hand out to me.

  I took her hand and smiled b
ack. “Hi, Scout. I’m Scarlett.”

  “This is Gable’s woman,” Zeke explained unnecessarily.

  She rolled her eyes and chuckled. “You mean Gable’s my man.” She winked at Zeke then looked over at the bar where Gable was helping a customer. When he glanced at her, she pulled her hand up to the side of her face and wiggled her fingers at him, giggling and he made a kissy face at her before turning to make his customer’s drink.

  “You two are kinda sickening,” Zeke muttered and she smacked him on the shoulder with a laugh.

  “Don’t be jealous. You’ll be amazingly happy too when you finally find your reason to breathe.” She gazed at Gable watching him work and the look on her face, one so full of love and affection, devastated me because I knew I’d never been looked at that way before. She came out of her daze and looked over giving me a wink. “They may be closer than you think. It was nice meeting you, Scarlett. Zeke? Be sweet to her.” She tiptoed up and kissed his cheek then went to the bar, and going behind it laid a big one on Gable.

  Zeke glanced at me looking a little embarrassed. “Uh, your phone call. Everything okay?” he asked when as we sat.

  “Yeah. My little brother checking up on me.” I chuckled then tossed a napkin at him and dug a pen out of my purse holding it out to him. “So, Mr. Famous Football Player, my brother, who I think is your biggest fan and just quoted all your stats to me, wanted to know if he could get your autograph before you go off and become really famous.”

  He grinned and took the pen from me. “What’s his name?”

  “Lane.”

  “He play?”

  “Yeah. He’s a freshman at Garfield. Quarterback.” I watched as Zeke wrote out a note in a masculine block print. When he finished, he smiled and handed back my pen then folded the napkin and gave it to me.

  I raised an eyebrow at him as I opened it and read what he’d written.

  Lane,

  Remember, hard work and sacrifice lead to good things.

  —Zeke Powers #88

  That was so nice and honest to God I totally wanted to screw his brains out now. I could hear Jay saying, Damn, horny much, Scarlett? I smiled at him, folding the napkin and putting it carefully in the side pocket of my purse then dropping my pen to the bottom. After taking a drink then setting my bottle on the bar, I began peeling the label off my bottle, a small smile still on my face as I wondered how Zeke would be in bed (probably fabulous) and rationalizing that since I didn’t plan on seeing him again, what would it hurt if I went home with him tonight? I mean, I hadn’t been with anyone since Lance two years ago. Two friggin’ years.

  “You thinkin’ dirty thoughts about me?” Zeke asked in a smoky voice.

  I popped my head up, afraid that he’d read my mind, and at the lustful gaze he was giving me, I damn near fell off my chair because it appeared he had.

  “Actually, I was…” I answered, my voice all raspy and throaty. Fuck. Why could I not keep myself from blurting every thought that I had to him?

  His eyes got dark as they drank me in and I could feel the air crackling with the sexual tension mounting between us. Then I swear I think he growled. Growled! And it was then that I almost—almost—made a huge mistake in asking him if we could go to his place.

  But the realist in me stuck her logical head out and took over (but it’d been a struggle, I tell you, because, good lord, it felt like I was Been-Denied-Sex-For-Freaking-Ever-Hulk and was having to tame the freakin’ libidinously frustrated beast inside).

  “I think I need to go now. Can you, uh, drive me to my car, please?”

  Zeke sat there, his eyes on me for me a moment before he nodded slowly then reached to his back pocket and pulled out his wallet.

  “Oh, let me help,” I said, grabbing my purse and looking into it, and then he really did growl which made me jerk my head up to see him now almost glaring at me. Dang.

  “I’ve got it, Scarlett,” he said, pulling some bills out and throwing them on the table as he stood. Then looking over at his brother, gave him that guy head nod thing. I got up too and felt his hand on my lower back as he led me to the door where he first took my coat off the rack, holding it out for me to put on then retrieved his own.

  “Thanks for coming in,” the hostess said and I gave her a smile as we walked out.

  It had stopped snowing, and the only sound besides cars on the highway was the snow crunching under our feet as we walked to his truck, neither of us talking. He opened the door for me helping me in, and as he walked around, I felt that things had shifted somehow between us. Not that I thought he was mad at me or anything, but maybe upset that I’d shut down what easily could’ve happened? I wasn’t all too happy about it either, I mean, passing up having sex with him took a lot of restraint but I knew it was for the best. Damn it.

  We drove to campus in silence and I didn’t know what to make of it, so when we got to the parking lot, I started to get out but he was there already, helping me down. And now he stood between Jezebel and me which made me shift from foot to foot awkwardly.

  “Thank you for the drinks. And the nachos. And the note for La—“ I began right before he bent and crushed his lips to mine giving me a hot, wet, bruising kiss, one of his hands cupping my jaw, the other at the nape of my neck where his fingers slid under my hair holding my head as he pressed me against his truck with that hard body of his.

  Holy smokes.

  I hadn’t been kissed like that in such a long time, and, God, how I’d missed it, but it was almost like I’d forgotten what to do as I stood there stunned for a moment. But I quickly found it was like riding a bike because I was immediately right there with him, jamming my tongue urgently into his mouth to tangle with his as I ran my hands up over his big biceps then snaked my arms up to wind around his neck where my fingers dug in, grasping handfuls of hair. Then what can only be described as a cross between a moan and a cry emanated from my throat as I grew hot between my thighs for him.

  Uh, had I said I hadn’t been kissed in a long time?

  And then there was that magnetic pull between us again because when he started to move away, I went right with him as my fingers literally clawed to keep him there with me which led to another scalding kiss.

  Oh, my.

  Sweet Jesus, the man could kiss.

  He finally pulled back and looked down at me, one side of his mouth pulled up in a cocky smile.

  “What?” I asked as he continued looking at me, my chest heaving as if I’d just run in a 5k race.

  “Just wanted to make sure,” he stated cryptically, making me frown.

  I raised my eyebrows at him, canting my head to the side in a smart aleck manner because what the heck was he saying?

  “You want me.”

  “Wh-what? Ho-how do you know?” I sputtered. Wow, I thought I’d been the conceited one but he was really full of himself. I mean, I could’ve been kissing anyone, I told myself, and would have reacted the same way since I hadn’t been kissed in forever.

  He brought his forehead down to rest against mine. “How do I know? Because your fingers are about to tear my hair out right now. I don’t think you want to let me go.”

  He was right! I instantly unclenched my fingers from his hair, dropping my arms and pushing my hands against his chest as I stepped away, my face becoming hot. “It’s just that I haven’t been kissed in forever! And it was so good. And you felt so amaz—” Crap. I gave him a dirty look wanting the smirk on his face to go away. “You could’ve been the… the…” I explained, shaking my head and trying to think of someone when I saw a janitor come out of the building, “the janitor for all it’s worth!” I held my hand out toward the guy who looked at me like I was an idiot because I guess I’d said that rather loudly.

  And right then I could hear Jayla saying, “’The lady doth protest too much methinks.’” Ugh.

  But in truth, I did know I was lying. It was all Zeke that had made me throw myself so fervently into those kisses but the smug look on his face was a little i
rritating so I’d tried to save face a bit because I didn’t want him to know how much friggin’ power he had over me, which was very perplexing.

  He now grinned. “Goodnight, Scarlett. I’ll see you in class Friday.” He bent and touched his lips to mine then waited while a still-befuddled and scowling me dug my keys out of my purse then I got in Jezebel who decided she wanted to be a picky little thing and took a moment to get started. I glanced out the window to see Zeke frowning a bit in thought at my car then giving him a little wave and what I’m sure was still a baffled look, I backed out and took off for home.

  “It’s eleven-thirty!” Jay answered her phone with a squeal. Um, great. Keep the cryptic messages coming.

  “What does that mean?” I asked, the irritation of what’d just occurred between Zeke and me making my scowl grow bigger. Not the kisses, mind you. The kisses were spectacularly hot. I was just miffed because of the way he made me feel, all needy and want-y and desperate-y (whatever) for him.

  “It means it must’ve gone well with Zeke!”

  I sighed. “It went too well, if you must know.”

  “What? Are you gonna get laid?” she asked breathlessly. “Dex! Scar’s gonna bang Zeke Powers!” she now shouted.

  “No! I’m not gonna bang anyone. God!”

  “Then what?” was her innocent reply.

  “I just… like him…”

  “Dex! Scar likes Zeke!”

  Good God. Could Dex not ever be in the same room with her so she didn’t have to yell at him?

  As Jayla and I talked, I glanced in my rearview mirror several times and thought I saw Zeke following me. What in the world? Every time I turned, I saw what I thought was his black pickup turning too. It had to be him.

  “I think he’s following me!” I told her as I kept my eyes on the mirror. “What do you think he wants?”

  “You!” she answered with a snicker.

  Well, that was something new. It’d been ages since someone had wanted me. And how sad was that?

  I turned on my block and watched as the truck turned too. “Do you think he’s a creeper?” Then I remembered our talk at The Nook. “Oh, God! Maybe he really is a serial killer!” Just my luck. And I’d led him straight to my house. Great.