by Taylor Hart
Holding her gaze, Zane let the side of his lip turn up. “Does it scare you more to have me here or to not have me here?”
“Ha ha.” She turned away, not wanting him to see that he was getting to her. There was no way to hide it. After all, she’d given in to that stupid kiss back there, and she was still trying to process it. What the heck was happening? “I’m going to sit in the kitchen and work on my laptop.”
“Sounds good,” he said.
She went into the kitchen because she couldn’t get any work done when he was in the same room with her. She pulled a glass out of the cupboard, filled it with water, and looked out over the ocean. Putting the glass to her lips, she had to stabilize it with her other hand to stop the trembling. Dang, she was flushed and trembling. Zane had her feeling all sorts of things.
A million questions had been going through her mind since she’d seen him. How had he ended up in San Diego? And owning a PI firm? Why had he been at a coffee shop the other day? Then there was the most important question, the one she thought she knew the answer to, but now she doubted it because she was doubting everything about herself—was he dating? Did he have a girlfriend? He’d mentioned needing a matchmaker. He wouldn’t have kissed her if he had a girlfriend, right?
She gulped down the water, sat down on a stool, and opened her laptop on the counter. She preferred to have some space between them. When there was space between them, there was room to think. Her thoughts wandered back to the question at hand. So was he staying here or not?
He hadn’t answered, and she had to admit his own question was valid: Was she more afraid of having him here or having someone break in? Truthfully, it might be a toss-up with the way she felt completely off-balance and uneasy today. After working a bit, she looked at her computer and couldn’t believe she only had an hour until she had to pick up Tyler from school.
Going to her website, she pulled up the most pressing client at the time. Harris Dred. He’d finally gone out last night with a woman she’d matched him with. Today, she’d received an email from him telling her it wasn’t a good fit. He said he was disappointed and would like to have a face-to-face with her again tonight to discuss options.
Her heart raced. She couldn’t do tonight. Harris had become a needy client. Plus, it felt more and more like he was trying to date her.
The reality was that she couldn’t lose him as a client. She didn’t know what to do. Her father had pretty much lost his mind and was on lockdown twenty-four seven. Her mom was too fragile to live by herself, and Sarah was more than willing to help her. However, her mother had insisted she stay with her father. There wasn’t an unlimited amount of money to pay for medical bills, and Sarah needed Harris’s client referrals.
The computer program she used to make matches was top-of-the-line. Running some more searches, she found two more women who might fit his caliber. He specifically stated he didn’t want anyone who’d been divorced, even though he was divorced. She had found the hypocrisy a bit distasteful, but that wasn’t her call. Her clients got what they wanted. In fact, she preferred just knowing the truth so she could do her job. She didn’t want to be just run-of-the-mill.
Her phone buzzed. It was a text from Mr. Dred. Can you meet tonight to discuss more options?
She thought of Mrs. Morris two doors down. She was the go-to babysitter for Tyler, the one who was on call after school or at night if she needed someone. Mrs. Morris had lost her husband the year before, and all of her kids lived elsewhere, so she’d made it clear when Sarah had moved in that she wanted the job as babysitter. It’d been a godsend to have her. Especially because she refused payment. She had said, “Sweetheart, my husband made me a millionaire. I don’t want your money.”
Sarah sighed, her thoughts still unsettled. She thought of Zane in there working. No, she wouldn’t ask him to watch Tyler. She didn’t even know him. Okay, that was a lie, but she didn’t know him now. Though that begged the question of why would she ask him for help if she couldn’t trust him with Tyler.
She slammed her hand to the counter. “No,” she said aloud. She picked up her phone and texted Mrs. Morris, asking her if she would watch Tyler tonight at her house from six to eight.
Mrs. Morris texted back, letting Sarah know that she couldn’t tonight but could tomorrow night.
Sarah texted Harris that she could meet with him at six tomorrow at the coffee shop.
Instantly, he texted back. Not coffee. Antonio’s, an Italian restaurant next to the coffee shop. When she hesitated, he texted again. That’s the only time I have for dinner.
Fine. If they were functional about dinner, then that was fine. Okay, she agreed.
It niggled at her. Something about Harris bothered her. He was a pretty boy. She would give him that. Not Zane’s kind of Greek god meets bad boy and “I’ll slam your face into the wall if you mess with me” type. No, he was suave. Almost salesy. The kind who even the barista at the coffee shop flirted with because he had a brilliant smile, dark good looks, and said the right thing.
Zane marched into the kitchen, making her jump. He wore a tool belt and was holding some cords. He stopped, narrowing his eyes at her. “You okay?”
“Yeah.” She quickly looked back at the profiles on her computer.
Zane put the cords on the counter before dropping into a push-up position and staring beneath the counters.
“What are you doing?” she asked cautiously.
He went to his side and ran his hand along the edges. “I’ve been sweeping this whole place for bugs.”
“Oh.” She didn’t know what to say about that. “Well, thank you.”
There was an awkward silence for a few moments as he continued opening cupboards and checking everything, running his hands across every possible surface. Eventually, he said, “I have to run to the hardware store to pick up a few things. Uh, maybe you should come, and I could pick up some steaks for dinner.”
“What?” Steaks? Dinner? What was this? Tyler’s face flashed into her mind. What would she tell him? What would he say? “Uh, no.”
He didn’t look up. “Uh, yeah. I don’t think you should be alone.”
Okay, she hadn’t expected quite so many security measures. She felt completely out of sorts with Zane here, sweeping her house for bugs. She didn’t know what she would say to Tyler. Everything about this interaction was awkward. “I don’t think you need to stay after all. Not with all this security you’ve installed; we’ll be fine. Plus, I have a life, I have clients. I have a client meeting tomorrow night I need to see and Tyler goes to a babysitter down the street.”
“No,” he said stoically.
“Yes.” This was ridiculous.
“Then I’m going with you.”
“No, you’re not.”
He held out his hand, and she saw three little black things nestled in his palm. “I found three bugs in your house so far. You’re being listened to, possibly watched.”
“What?” She stood, knocking the stool she was sitting onto the ground. “Bugs?”
Staring at the little microscopic bug, he pulled his hand closer to his face, trying to get a better look at them. He inspected it briefly before squashing it between his fingers. “Yeah, bugs. I went ahead and installed a device that blocks all bugs. It blocks anything trying to listen in or any cameras we can’t see.”
Her heart rate kicked up a notch. “What the … I can’t believe that!”
He scowled at her. “Believe it.”
“I …” She swallowed.
He leaned forward on the counter, his eyes boring into her soul. “Right now, the place is clean, so tell me: who might be after you?”
It felt like she couldn’t catch her breath. “I don’t know. I don’t know.” Her mind went a million miles an hour. “I saw some teenagers out on the beach the other night.”
He let out a light laugh. “No, this would be professionals.” He crossed his arms and looked like a cop questioning a perp on the street. “What else? Who else?”
She put her hand on her forehead, willing her mind to think of who this could be. “I don’t know. I honestly don’t.”
“Who do you associate with on a day-to-day basis?”
“I don’t know. Mrs. Morris, lady who watches Tyler. My parents, I go visit them three times a week.” She shrugged. “I have a teacher from Tyler’s school that I do girls’ nights with once in a while.”
He studied her. “Who else?”
She didn’t like this intensity. The way he looked at her made her feel like she was guilty. “Uh …”
“Your clients. Who are your clients? I need to see a list.”
“No. My list is confidential.” That was the deal. She protected confidentiality at all costs.
He tilted his head to the side and squeezed his eyes shut for a second, then rubbed at his face. “Really, Sarah? Really? You come to me, asking for my help, and I find three bugs.” He held up three fingers. “And you have—” He waved his hand toward the door. “—a son to protect.”
He’d nailed her to the wall with a mere glance. She didn’t appreciate it. “Fine. Fine.” She threw up her hands. “I’ll give you my client list, but don’t lecture me about protecting my son. I’ve always protected my son.” Tears misted her eyes. She shouldn’t be crying, especially in front of Zane. Having him around pushed all her buttons. All the memories. All the old feelings. Now it felt like he was doubting everything she’d done, all of her sacrifice.
She bit her lip. “Don’t you dare tell me that I don’t take care of my son. I protected him and married Jeff. And I stayed married even when it was hard.” Righteous anger welled up in her. Yeah, he should know the hard things she’d done, not sit here and dare to judge her. “I protected him when his father was dying of cancer. I protected him after he died and the life insurance was denied.” She took in a shaky breath. A few tears finally escaped, and she didn’t bother wiping them away. “I came to San Diego and lived with my parents and started this company to take care of my son. I’m still doing what needs to be done to take care of my son. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have come to you.”
His face was severe, but his tone was quiet. “I’m sorry. I know it couldn’t have been easy for you.”
She was done talking. “Fine, you’re staying. Fine, thank you for agreeing to help me with this. But what happened back there between us … That kissing thing, that will not happen again, because I am still protecting my son.”
His gaze hardened. He shook his head and let out a breath. “Fine.”
“Fine.”
They had a stare-off. After a couple of seconds, it almost felt ridiculous.
“You don’t trust me?” he finally said.
It wasn’t even a question in her mind. “If I didn’t trust you to protect us, I wouldn’t have gone to you.”
He squinted at her. “But you don’t trust me in other ways.” When she glared at him, he lifted his hands in surrender. “You seem like you want to say something, so say it.”
Her heart rate spiked a notch. “Fine, I’ll say it. The day I told you I was pregnant, you said I ‘couldn’t wait to let Jeff in my bed.’ That was the day you broke my heart. I let you make me feel like I was worse than some prostitute.” She put up a finger up and shook it at him. “Which was not true.”
He winced. “You’re right. I shouldn’t have said that. I was angry.”
She looked at her hand. Seeing it trembling, she put it down by her side. “Yeah, you shouldn’t have said that, but over the years, I realized I never should have given anyone the power to make me feel that way. So yes, I trust you, but I will never allow you to have power over me again. I will never let you in and open myself up to being hurt like that again. Ever.”
They stared at each other. He nodded, though she couldn’t read the look in his eyes. “I’m still coming on your date tomorrow.”
She glared at him. “It’s not a date.”
“Doesn’t matter. I’m still coming.”
Chapter 7
Zane hadn’t tried to force Sarah to come with him to the hardware store a couple of minutes after their … whatever that was. Would fight be the right word? He didn’t know for sure. It had troubled him how sad she was. How her life sounded so different from the one he’d imagined she and Jeff would have had together. For some stupid reason, he’d always thought they would have the life he imagined he would have had with her.
He’d called Sutton, and there hadn’t been a police report in Sutton’s file. That was reason for concern. Zane had allowed for this breather from her during the day, only because her home had never been broken into during the day, but he wouldn’t allow them to be by themselves at night. He would also go with her to see clients. It was nonnegotiable.
Honestly, going to the hardware store and stopping at the store for some groceries felt like a needed break from being in her presence all day. It had unnerved him that he was in her home. That he had seen several pictures of her and Jeff and their son, Tyler, all around the house. He hadn’t tried to be invasive, but he couldn’t help it. When he’d gotten to the kid’s room, he’d had to pause and smile at the baby pictures. The kid looked just like Jeff, but he had her eyes—those fiery eyes, the ones that knew him, the ones that seemed to hate him at the moment.
As he pulled up to the home, he noticed her car. She must be back from picking up her son. He felt uncertain. How would it be to meet him? What would he be like? What would Tyler think of Zane? He got out of his truck, grabbed the groceries, and walked toward the front door. Of course, he knew all the codes and could just punch them into the garage and go in, but that kind of familiarity didn’t seem right at the moment. Hesitating at the front door, he was about to knock when he heard something.
“I’ll get you. No, I’ll get you!” It sounded faint, like play fighting. He recognized it because he had five brothers, and that’s what they still did when they were together—play-fight. Granted, it led to a lot of broken things, but they still did it.
Putting the groceries down, he went around to the side of the house and peered at the back deck. There was a dark-haired boy, with just shorts on and bare feet, playing with a lightsaber, slashing it back and forth through the air. As Zane watched the game, he noticed the kid was acting out both sides of the duel: he put his lightsaber down, spun around, snatched a different one off the ground, and slashed and jabbed at the space he’d stood in moments before. He had to turn away to muffle a laugh. It was cute. The kid was fighting himself. He grunted and thought about how the kid didn’t have a sibling. For a second, he wondered why, but quickly brushed the too-curious thought aside. He needed to focus on this mission and not on the past with this woman.
As he turned to peek again at the boy, he was astounded when he felt a bonk on the head. “Got you right where I want you, mister.”
Zane grinned and inspected the kid. He wasn’t afraid. In fact, his eyes were alight with anticipation. Zane took a couple of steps and picked up the lightsaber on the ground. “You were expecting me?” He gently poked the air with the lightsaber.
“Mom told me you would be here.” The boy grinned at him and then charged. “Die, you Sith!”
Zane sidestepped, and the boy fell flat on his face. Zane didn’t laugh, though. The boy turned onto his back, apparently gauging Zane’s reaction to decide if he would cry or not.
Gesturing for him to come back, Zane raised his lightsaber in a stance befitting a Jedi. “Come fight me like a man, Skywalker.” Truth be told, the kid had already endeared himself to Zane when Sarah had told him the story about how he’d bravely tried to protect her last night.
Tyler stood, brushing himself off, and evaluated Zane. “My mom told me you were coming and you were tough.”
This made Zane happy, though he wouldn’t admit it. “Did she now?”
Tyler held the lightsaber out and took two quick steps to him and pounded the one Zane was holding. Zane let him, liking the sparring.
“But she didn’t tell me you
looked like a superhero.” With a laugh, the kid hit the lightsaber again.
Zane turned and showed off a bit, doing a roundhouse kick in the air and then taking the lightsaber and holding it to Tyler’s neck. “I don’t think superhero is the right word.” He grinned at the little boy, who up close looked more like his mother in his nose and lips. There were definitely signs of his father in the color of his hair and eyes, though.
The little boy burst into giggles, grabbing the front of the lightsaber and pushing it away.
“Hey!” Zane pointed out. “You just slashed your hand off. That weapon can kill you.”
The kid laughed harder and used his hand to smack Zane in the thigh. “Then I just put my bloody hand all over you.”
Zane didn’t know how it happened, but he found himself whooping and grabbing the kid and tickling him and picking him up and holding him over his head. “You can’t rub blood on your sworn enemy!”
The kid shrieked more, and Zane loved it. It was weird, but he’d already fallen in love with this boy.
He put him down, and Tyler picked up his lightsaber. “C’mon, Thor. Come and get me.”
“Thor, huh?” Zane picked up his lightsaber and pretended he would pounce, finding it funny the kid was already calling him that.
Tyler shrieked and ran out onto the beach.
Zane laughed at the kid’s reaction.
“Come on!” Tyler yelled. “Come on! Or are you a sissy?”
Zane laughed harder and found himself taking off his hiking boots so he could chase him in the sand.
“Zane.” Sarah’s voice interrupted his happy thoughts. “Can I talk to you?”
Turning, he saw her standing at the barely opened French door. She looked like she’d been standing there watching the entire scene. He was surprised he hadn’t noticed her.
“I’ll talk in a minute. I’m in very serious combat at the moment.” He took off, but not too soon to miss something he hadn’t seen from her all day—a real smile.