by Skye Jordan
Before she could answer, a door closed in the distance and footsteps sounded in the hall, along with their daughter’s voice singing, “Baby Beluga and the deep blue sea, you swim so wild and swim so free…”
Joy exploded through Zach’s heart. He laughed and dropped his head back against the door. “That’s so fucking beautiful.”
But it also meant Abby was here. Zach pushed aside his urgent need for Tessa as she stepped back, smiling. “Get ready.”
He wasn’t sure if that was a good warning or a bad warning, but he moved away from the door so Tessa could open it.
“Oh Ba-by Beluga…” Tessa sang as she leaned into the hall, her voice joining Sophia’s, “is the water warm? Is your mama home with you, so ha-ppy…”
“Mommy, look what I drawed.”
Pleasure-pain cascaded through Zach’s heart, and he flattened his hand against his chest, overflowing with joy.
“Oooo, pretty. I have a surprise for you too.”
Zach tensed, unsure how Sophia would react to seeing him so suddenly.
“What?” her gleeful voice echoed in the hall.
“Come see.”
Tessa stepped aside, and Sophia bounced into the room, looking around. Her gaze stopped and held on Zach an extended moment.
“Hey, baby.” Zach dropped into a crouch. “Remember me?”
The shock on his daughter’s face instantly transitioned to joy, and she ran at him full force, screaming, “Daddy!”
Zach caught her and stood, doubling his arms around her and burying his face in her hair. She smelled like bubbles and powder and Sophia, and her warm little body spilled with unconditional love, pushing tears to Zach’s eyes. “Oh, man, baby,” he choked out. “I’ve missed you so much.”
“I missed you too.” She pulled back with her eyes sparkling, her baby teeth flashing, and held up her drawing. “Look what I drawed, Daddy.”
Zach’s chest was so full, it felt like it would crack. He blinked the wetness from his eyes to look at the drawing she held out. “Oh, wow.”
“This is me, you, Mommy, and Abby.” The four stick figures were lined up along squiggly blue lines. She pointed to a stick figure lying in the clouds. “And this is Corinne.”
Regret flashed in his veins, but he told her, “That’s beautiful.”
She pointed out a few more things on the page, but Zach couldn’t take his eyes off her utterly perfect face.
“These are our surfboards,” she said. “These are fish.” She tapped the paper again. “And that’s our new house.”
Zach pried his gaze off Sophia to look at the picture again with a new zing of uncertainty. “New house?” Her image of the house was drawn on the blue squiggles. He chuckled and asked, “Is that a houseboat?”
“No,” she said with a you-silly tone. “A house on the beach. Near you.”
His gaze jumped to Tessa. Abby stood nearby, twirling the lanyard to her keys around her hand, but all Zach could think about was Tessa’s “I’m not moving closer to work.”
“What is she talking about?” he asked.
Tessa drew a breath to speak, but Sophia beat her to it. “I’m talking ’bout moving with you.”
Zach’s arms tightened around her while he held Tessa’s gaze. “Tessa?”
“I’m going to run to the store,” Abby said. “Text me if you think of something you want me to pick up.”
When Abby closed the door, Tessa crossed her arms. “You’re not the only one who’s been soul-searching. I have some apologizing of my own to do. You’ve been amazing—from the way you opened a new part of me our first night to the way you’ve fought for Sophia. I should have trusted you, and I’m sorry I couldn’t see past the fear in the moment.” She moved toward them and closed her fingers around Sophia’s free hand. “Sophia and I have decided we should live closer to her daddy.”
Zach’s stomach clenched, and he waited for more with as much caution as his spinning mind and speeding heart could manage.
Her hand left Sophia’s and wound around his waist. “Once I got back here, and the bill passed, I had room in my brain to think more clearly. I realized that my fears and frustrations were coming from work and the past, not you.”
He slid a hand over Tessa’s hair and pulled her close, kissing her forehead.
“So, Sophia and I decided to move closer to you. It’s not Hawaii, but I just accepted a new job in Los Angeles.”
Zach closed his eyes on a whispered “Oh my God.” He turned his head and kissed Sophia’s neck, making her giggle. “What kind? When do you start?” he asked Tessa, suddenly on cloud nine. “Where are you going to live?”
“It’s contract law, which is similar to what I’ve been doing here, but with fewer headaches. I start work in two weeks, but the ‘where’ is still a little up in the air. They’re putting us in corporate housing until we find something we like.”
“Holy…” He caught “shit” before it came out and wrapped his free arm around Tessa, dragging her close so he could hug them both. “I can’t think of anything…appropriate…to say.”
Tessa laughed and laid her cheek against his chest. “Nothing necessary. This says it all.”
Oh no. This didn’t begin to say it all.
“We’ll have plenty of time to talk more once she’s asleep,” he told Tessa, “but I do have one thing that can’t wait anymore.” He hadn’t thought this moment would come for a long time. But when the time was right, it was right.
He stepped back and lowered to one knee, making Sophia giggle. He settled her on his bent thigh while he dug in his pocket. Once the metal touched his fingers, he took Tessa’s hand with the other. And kissed it. “I don’t want to live without you. You and Sophia fill places in my heart that I didn’t even realize were vacant.” He lifted the ring. “I love you, Tessa. So much. Will you marry me?”
“Mommy, look! It’s so pretty.”
Tessa pulled in a sharp breath, her gaze moving to the ring. “Oh my God. You came with that?”
“I’ve had it in my pocket for a couple of weeks.” He tipped his head side to side. “You know, checking out how it feels. Trying it on my pinkie a few times. Got it stuck once. That was a little terrifying.”
Tessa laughed and pressed her fingers to her lips. She sighed a troubled “Zach…”
“I’m not doing this for Sophia.” He’d known she’d waver over this. “I love her.” He kissed her for punctuation, making her laugh. Then told Tessa, “And I’ll always be part of her life, no matter what happens with you and me. But I also love you, Tessa, apart from Sophia. And I want to know you’ll always be part of my life too.”
“What’s marry?” Sophia interrupted. “Why is Mommy crying?”
He grinned at Tessa. “Better answer before she answers for you.”
She burst out laughing and covered her mouth with a shaking hand. Tears streamed down her face. When she dropped her hand, she managed a weak “Yes.” Then she laughed again and repeated her answer. “Yes. I want to marry you.”
Zach’s heart broke open with joy.
Tessa sipped a breath and leaned in to kiss him. When she pulled back, she looked directly into his eyes and whispered a breathy “I love you, so much.”
Oh, yeah. This was most definitely what he’d been looking for his whole life. He pressed his lips to hers, infusing all his love into the kiss. Almost forgot he was still holding Sophia, until she smacked a kiss against his cheek. “I love you, Daddy.” Then her mother’s. “I love you, Mommy.”
Tessa laughed. “We love you too.” She brushed her hand across his cheek and let her fingers slide into his hair. “It’s getting long. I like it.” She met his eyes again, with a furrow between her brows. “Is there any way you can get the part back?”
He twisted his lips in consideration. “I don’t know, but honestly, I don’t care. As long as I have you and this little princess”—he tickled Sophia and pulled Tessa close again, his heart soaring—“I have everything I need.”
&nb
sp; 21
7 months later
Tessa was going to kill him.
Zach stood at the curb of LAX’s passenger pickup and pressed the back of his hand to his eye. Even before he pulled it back, he knew what he’d find. Sure enough, blood streaked his skin.
“Shit.” He pulled a tissue from his pocket and added pressure to the stitches he’d received late last night in the ER. Then to the still-oozing scrapes along the side of his face, wincing at the pressure against the bruises. Then to his swollen lip. A small price to pay for the starring role on Hawaiian Heat, but the timing of it was just plain cruel.
Rubi’s convertible Aston Martin took the corner toward him about twenty miles per hour too fast and cut across two lanes of traffic, stopping so close to the curb, Zach had to step back to keep from getting clipped with the bumper.
Wes put the car into Park and stood from the driver’s side, rounding the trunk. “Welcome home, bud.”
“Dude,” Zach said, starting toward the back of the car. “You almost took me out at the knees.”
“Eh. All the required plumbing is way above the knees.” Wes rearranged a few things in the trunk to make room for Zach’s carryon. “You’ve got the girls in a tizzy. Should have seen Tessa’s face when she found out you weren’t getting in until this morning. Turned white as a sheet. I thought she was going to hit the deck—”
He straightened and focused on Zach’s face. His smile fell into shock. “What the…?”
“Shut up,” Zach said in advance, knowing exactly what would happen next. “I don’t want to hear it.”
Wes didn’t disappoint him—his friend started laughing. He laughed and laughed and fucking laughed. He laughed so hard, he stumbled backward with an arm over his belly.
“Jesus, Wes.” He couldn’t help but smile, which hurt like a bitch and killed his humor. “Stop it. I need to get to the house. Did my family make it?”
Wes planted both hands on his knees and caught his breath. “Yeah, yeah. I’m not sure which woman is more nervous about your late arrival—your mother or your bride.” He straightened and planted his hands at his hips. Shaking his head, he spoke through more laughter, “Oh my God. Your wedding pictures are going to be fucking epic.”
Pictures. Zach’s eyes closed, and he hung his head. “Jesus Christ. I forgot about pictures. I was too worried about how my mom and Tessa were going to react.”
“As long as Tessa’s still a hot-shot contract attorney to the stars when you put the ring on her finger, you’ll be okay. You know your mom likes Tessa and Sophia way more than she likes you, right?”
“Yes, I know. But thanks for reminding me.”
“Just keeping it all in perspective.”
“Come on, guys.” A traffic cop approached. “Save your fun for another time. Move out.” He took in Zach’s face and grimaced. “Get some ice on that shit, dude.”
That kicked off another laughing fit for Wes. “He’s way past ice.”
Even the traffic cop laughed. “Come on. Move it.”
“I can’t wait to hear how all that happened,” Wes told Zach on the way toward the driver’s side. He opened the door and looked at him across the convertible. “Just let me get behind Tessa before you show your face. I want to be there to catch her. Maybe you ought to reschedule the honeymoon. You ain’t making any magic with those injuries. Take my word for it.”
Zach grimaced as he eased himself into the passenger’s seat. “Fuckin’ prick.”
“I’ve never seen anything this gorgeous, Lexi,” Tessa told the woman fussing with her hair in preparation for the veil. Lexi had designed a wedding gown just for Tessa, a stunning gown beyond her wildest dreams. She’d also created the bridesmaid’s dresses—all six of them, all different to fit each woman perfectly—Lexi, Rubi, Rachel, Grace, Ellie, and Brook. Even Sophia had a matching flower girl’s dress. And Lexi had done it all as a wedding gift for Tessa and Zach. “I know you told me to stop saying thank you, but—”
“Don’t do it.” Rubi’s voice came from the doorway leading to the deck off the living room of Jax and Lexi’s Malibu home. She wore a rich blue, sleeveless dress that hugged her perfect body like dipped paint and made her eyes look more blue than green. “Or you may end up looking too much like your groom.”
Tessa’s first reaction was joy. “He’s here? He’s physically standing on this property? Like right now?” Then the rest of her meaning registered and concern wiped out her happiness. “Wait, what do you mean—?”
“Daddy’s here!” Sophia ran in, wearing a dress too gorgeous to be adorning a child, in the same beautiful ocean blue as Rubi’s. “Mommy, Daddy has a—”
Rubi caught Sophia around the waist and pulled her back against her, covering her mouth with her free hand. “Oh, no, you don’t, monkey.”
Sophia squirmed and giggled.
“Do you want the good news or the bad news first?” Rubi asked.
Tessa pressed a hand to her stomach. “No. No bad news on my wedding day.”
“Okay, we’ll start with the good news,” Rubi said. “Zach is here, standing on this property, like right now.”
Tessa let out a breath of relief. As long as he was here, she could handle the rest.
“And the bad news is…” She uncovered Sophia’s mouth. “You’re on, cupcake.”
“Daddy has an owie.” Sophia said. “A big owie.”
Tessa pulled a sharp breath, meeting Rubi’s gaze. “Is he okay? What’s wrong?”
“He’s fine.” Rubi gave Sophia a hug, a kiss on the cheek, and said, “Go tell your daddy to get to the altar.”
Sophia turned for the deck and sang, “Daddy’s home, Daddy’s home, Daddy’s home” all the way down the stairs to the yard.
“What happened?” Tessa asked, pressing a hand to her temple. “Please don’t tell me he’s wearing a body cast.”
Lexi snickered. “No. I’m sure Jax has that one reserved.”
“He can’t.” Rubi cocked her hip, planted her hand on it, and gave Lexi that sassy look. “You haven’t said yes.”
“Don’t start,” Lexi warned against anyone harping on her about marrying Jax. “And neither have you.”
“I’m waiting for you. And Wes is getting as impatient as Jax.”
“Everything is perfect the way it is,” she said, adjusting a comb in Tessa’s hair.
“Then a ring and a piece of paper won’t ruin anything, will it?”
“Why don’t you go first and let me know,” Lexi quipped back.
“You’re not helping out my stress level here, girls,” Tessa interrupted the familiar discussion of Lexi’s irrational fear of marriage. “What happened to Zach? Is he okay?”
Rubi waved a hand. “These guys are tough. Zach hit a reef yesterday at the end of the shoot.”
“A reef?” Her stomach squeezed. “Oh my God.” She’d watched Zach surf waves the size of buildings over in Hawaii during filming. And she’d seen those walls of water pound him into the surf when he took a fall. The thought of him hitting a reef terrified her. “He didn’t tell me—”
Tessa started toward the doors, but Rubi blocked her path and closed her hands on her arms.
“He’s okay, Tess.” Her voice was smooth, sure, and compassionate. “I’d never keep you from him if he wasn’t. And don’t you dare cry. You’re going to ruin my perfect makeup job.”
Tessa blinked back the tears stinging her eyes. “Should we postpone the ceremony and take him to the ER?”
Rubi laughed. “I think he’d shoot us if we tried. Besides, he spent enough time there last night.”
Tessa closed her eyes and pressed a hand to her cheek. “Oh my God.” She refocused on Rubi. “Promise me he’s okay.”
“He’s. O-K.”
She took a deep breath and let it go. “All right.”
“He’s just…” Rubi added with her sassy smirk, “you know, not his normal pretty self.”
“Oh God. His face?”
Rubi winced. “Among other pl
aces. So unless you two are into S & M, consummating your marriage may have to wait a day or two.”
Lexi lifted the veil to Tessa’s hair with another sarcastic laugh. “A few broken bones and stitches never stopped Jax.” She rocked another comb—this one holding the veil—deep into the bun on the back of Tessa’s head. “Or Wes either, according to you.”
Rubi smirked and lifted a shoulder. “True.”
“Zach won’t be any different.” Lexi stepped away and rounded in front of Tessa, her gaze scanning her hair and veil. And she smiled, a brilliant, white smile that sparkled in her eyes. “Especially not when he sees you.” She met Tessa’s eyes. “Ready to meet your Prince Charming?”
Tessa’s stomach fluttered with excitement. She pulled in a breath and covered her stomach with one hand. “How can I be so nervous about something I want so much?”
Lexi started laughing. “Sweetheart, you are asking the wrong woman.”
She blew out a long, slow breath. And smiled. “Okay. I’m ready.”
Zach was cleaned up, dressed up, dosed up, and standing up at the arbor along with Tucker. The sun was setting on Malibu Beach, and fifty of Tessa’s and Zach’s family and friends filled rows of chairs lining the sand. A soft wind blew, ruffling the flower petals and ribbons decorating the arbor and the center aisle. The surf gently washed the shore a few hundred feet away.
The setting couldn’t have been more perfect for his wedding. Lexi’s Advil-Tylenol cocktail had him feeling like himself again—even if he didn’t look like himself. Troy’s girl, Ellie, was sitting on a stool near the arbor, strumming a soothing melody.
Still, Zach couldn’t settle. He hadn’t seen Tessa or Sophia in a month, but he’d gotten a good dose of his daughter as soon as he’d arrived from the airport. And he wouldn’t feel right until he touched Tessa again.
“Dude,” Tucker said at his side. “Chill. Your fidgeting is driving me crazy.”