Abigale rolled her eyes as she slid into the seat next to Marin. “Oh, be quiet. Like you sat here . . . what? Fifteen minutes?”
Marin laughed. “Actually, it was five. I was a few minutes late myself.” She slid Zach a look and smiled. “You’re looking nice and . . . relaxed there, Zach.”
“I had a nice breakfast,” he said blandly.
Under the table, he rested a hand on Abigale’s knee and she could feel the blush settling on her skin. But she didn’t knock his hand off, either. Instead, she covered it with her own. When he turned his hand around and laced their fingers, something in her heart tripped a little. Sighed . . .
Marin rested an elbow on the table and studied her. “Abigale Applegate, I have to tell you this. I don’t think I’ve ever seen that look on your face.”
“Ahhh . . .”
“Lay off, Marin,” Zach said easily, slumping in the seat. He pinned her with a flat, direct stare and while his tone was level, the look in his eyes was anything but.
The little round table only sat three people, tucked into a secluded little alcove where they had some privacy. Abigale flushed a little as he lifted their hands out and pressed a kiss to the back of hers and then eased in closer, resting an arm on the back of her chair.
Marin chuckled. “Laying off, although, damn, it’s going to be hard when you can’t seem to keep your hands off of her.”
Zach smirked a little as he reached for his water. “You’re just jealous.”
“No. I got over your cute ass years ago, Barnes. I can’t help but think it’s going to be fun to watch this.” Marin sipped from a glass of wine and gestured to the bottle in the middle of the table. “Would you like a glass?”
“Watch what?” Abigale asked, squirming a little. Then she shot the wine bottle a dark look and shook her head. “Absolutely no. I hate your taste in wine. That stuff tastes like shit.”
Marin chuckled. “That cab costs about seventy-five dollars a bottle, you know.”
“Then it’s pricey shit. Although I’ve seen you spend that much on just a glass of wine. So maybe it’s mediocre shit, depending on your point of view.” She reached for the wine list and sighed as she skimmed through it. Typical. The only kind of wines she could typically stomach at most restaurants were the ones they’d serve for dessert and it was too early. “I’ll just stick with coffee for now.”
“Hmm. Needing the caffeine boost and it’s only eleven.” Marin’s grin widened. “Didn’t sleep much?”
With a baleful glare, Abigale reached for the menu and resigned herself to an . . . interesting meal. Marin had gotten it in her head to mess with her and that was exactly what her friend was going to do.
* * *
“You tramp, you went and did it.”
Tucked inside the bathroom, Abigale sighed and leaned in closer to the mirror as she pretended to check her makeup. She’d barely put any on and she wasn’t overly concerned with how it looked anyway, but it was a way to keep from just glaring at Marin. A way to keep from fanning a hand in front of her face when she thought about how she’d . . . gone and did it.
With Zach. Wow.
Feeling the weight of Marin’s watchful eyes, she looked up. She pasted a patently false smile on her face and said, “Went and did what?”
“You’re having an affair with Zach.”
Affair . . .
Frowning, she pushed away from the mirror and turned to look at Marin. “We’re seeing each other, yeah.”
Marin’s blonde brows arched over her eyes. Her eyes were pale blue and they matched the fragile silk tank top she wore. And just then, those eyes were sharp with questions and so very watchful.
“Seeing each other,” Marin said slowly. “For some reason, I get the impression that’s different from having a torrid affair.”
Abigale leaned her hips against the long marble counter and stared down at the floor while she tried to figure out the right way to answer. Oddly enough, she didn’t find the answer on the rose-streaked black tile or the red polish she’d slicked on her toenails, and she certainly didn’t find the answer in the peep-toe black Jimmy Choos she’d chosen to wear with her dress that day.
“Abby.”
Swallowing the knot in her throat, she looked up at her friend. There weren’t any answers in Marin’s gaze, either, but she did find more questions. A lot of them. Swallowing the knot in her throat, she asked, “Yeah?”
“Is there a difference?” Marin asked.
“I . . .” She licked her lips and shrugged. “Yeah. There’s a difference. I just don’t know what it is yet.”
“Okay . . . well, let’s try this. When you planned to have a torrid affair, just how did you see it ending?”
Abigale rubbed her fingers against her temple. Now that question she could answer easily enough. “I imagined a guy, a hot guy, that I’d have a few hot and easy flings with, and then it would be over. No fuss, no muss, and no regrets when it ended. I’d have a wonderful memory, something I could look back on and smile about, but I wouldn’t regret that it had ended.”
“That sounds like a good description of a torrid affair,” Marin mused. She settled into place beside Abigale. She went to say something, but the door opened. As a lovely, sleek little blonde came bustling in, Marin and Abigale lapsed into a light, easy conversation that touched on anything and everything except the things that mattered.
Once they were alone again, Marin bumped her shoulder against Abigale’s. “So how are you imagining things with Zach?”
“That’s not so easy to answer.” She pressed a hand to her belly. Shoving away from the counter, she started to pace. Damn it, they didn’t have time for this. They’d already been in here five minutes. “You know . . . I was thinking about what I was looking for, back when I was having to deal with cancelling the wedding plans. Started thinking about what I needed. Did I need a guy to make me happy? I mean, I wanted kids, but did I need a guy? Not technically . . . I just wanted one. But I realized, even then, I’d been settling. I really wanted somebody who’d make me laugh. Make me think. Who’d be there for me for always . . .”
“That’s Zach,” Marin said quietly. “That’s always been him.”
Abigale lifted her head to stare at her friend. “I know. I even thought that very same thing. But Zach was a friend. Just a friend. That’s all he’d ever been. My friend. Now . . . hell, it’s like he touches me and my brain shuts down. And that’s wonderful. Lately, when he’s around, I can’t think about anything but him and it’s not just because the sex is so amazing.”
“Is it amazing?”
Abigale stopped in her tracks and just stared at Marin. Her heart skipped a little around in her chest and then banged a few hard beats against her ribs while her lungs worked to accommodate the sudden lack of oxygen. “Ahhh . . .”
A wicked grin lit her friend’s face. “Okay. I just had to know. I used to . . . well. You know. Hell, the guy is hot. But I’m over it. Really.”
“You better be,” she muttered, reaching up to toy with a loose lock of hair. “But it’s not just the sex. He’s—” Her belly jumped again and she pressed a hand to it, swearing as the butterflies there threatened to take flight. “He’s my best friend, Marin. I mean, the two of you are . . . but . . .”
“Zach’s always been there, Abby. I know that. We’ve established that, right? I know what the two of you mean to each other. It’s cool. Besides . . .” She wagged her brows. “No matter how close the two of you are, there are certain things you just need a girl for. Like this. So . . . but what?”
“Things are changing lately. He’s my best friend, and I’m scared because I can’t lose that, but this thing . . . it’s getting huge. I think about him all the time, and I want him more than I want to breathe and I . . .” She slumped against the counter again, staring at the floor. “I’m scared. What if it falls apart and I lose everything? Not just this, but my friend, too?”
“Now I just don’t see that happening. The two of you have
too much between you. You talk about how he’s the one who makes you think, makes you laugh . . . how he’s the one who is there for you. That’s a real thing between you and it won’t disappear, Abby.” Hooking an arm around her neck, Marin hugged her tight. “You’re falling for your best friend, Abs. That’s all it is. And to be honest, I think that’s pretty amazing. You’re supposed to be friends with the man in your life . . . and you two already are.”
“But what if it doesn’t last?” Abigale asked, her heart slamming against her ribs as Marin put everything into words. So plainly stated. You’re falling for your best friend.
Falling . . . yes. Hell, she’d already fallen, if she was completely honest with herself. She’d fallen hard.
“What if it does?” Marin returned.
Abigale groaned. She covered her face with her hands and then, because she had to say it out loud, she whispered, “And what if I do fall for him, really fall for him . . . and he doesn’t feel the same way?”
* * *
Oh, sweetie. Marin squeezed Abigale’s shoulders and tried to decide on the best course of action.
You blind woman . . . he’s been in love with you for years didn’t seem to be the right thing to say.
Why don’t you take it as it comes was the exact wrong thing to say to somebody like Abigale because Abigale planned things. Controlled things.
“Well, I can’t speak for Zach,” she finally said, carefully testing each word in her head before she spoke. “But I’d say the fact that the two of you are already involved, that he’s obviously attracted to you, and the fact that you two have so much already between you . . . hell, Abby, it’s more than some people have.”
She squeezed her shoulders again and then, as the door opened, she pressed a kiss to Abigale’s cheek and said, “We need to get out there before he decides we made a break for it or something.”
Chapter Fifteen
“You realize this would be a lot easier if you just told her you are in love with her.”
Zach glared at the phone. It wasn’t particularly effective since Marin couldn’t see him and it didn’t make him feel any better, but he couldn’t keep himself from glaring, either. He almost flipped the damn thing off but figured that was a waste of time.
It was almost midnight, he was alone in the shop, and the last thing he needed was to be scolded by Marin.
Especially after he’d already heard a variation of the same from his mom.
Especially after he’d dealt with Keelie’s cranky ass all week.
Especially after he hadn’t managed so much as five minutes alone with Abigale since they’d gotten back from San Diego.
“I don’t need advice on how to handle my love life, Marin,” he said sourly when the glare didn’t magically disconnect the phone call. It should work, he thought. If life was fair, it would have worked and then when she called back, he just wouldn’t answer.
“The hell you don’t.” Marin sighed. “Zach, listen . . . have you given her any inkling that you want something more out of this than sex?”
He flushed and rubbed the back of his neck. He was not discussing his sex life with Marin, either. She was like the sister he never had. “You realize we’ve only been going out a few weeks, right?”
“Long enough for you to start banging her,” Marin pointed out.
His hand clenched so hard around the pencil, it was a wonder it didn’t snap. The way he was going, he was going to have to buy stock in a damned office supply company.
“Marin . . . if you’re trying to piss me off, you’re doing a damn good job. I’m not banging Abby.”
A few seconds passed and then Marin sighed. “Zach, would you lighten up? It’s not like I think you’re fucking her and writing her name on the boy’s locker room door, okay? I know what she means to you. What I’m trying to get at is this . . . she’s falling for you. Hard. But she doesn’t know how serious this is for you. And she needs to.”
“Fuck.” Shoving back from the desk, he got up and started to pace. “And then what, Marin? When I tell her that I’ve loved her forever and that freaks her out, then what do I do?”
His heart lodged in his throat as she pointed out, “Zach . . . sweetie . . . what are you going to do when she doesn’t freak out?”
“Marin . . .” He groaned and dragged a hand down his face as he fought with each answer. Did he want to tell her? Yes. But he didn’t want to scare her off and he didn’t want to—
The buzzer rang.
Scowling, he said, “Marin, somebody’s at the back. I need to go.”
It was more than an hour past closing time so there were just a few possibilities. He thought maybe it could be Abigale, although she usually went to the front. The back of the shop faced out over an empty lot and he didn’t like any of his employees to be out there alone.
He checked through the judas hole and didn’t see anybody.
But the buzzer rang again.
Tension crawled along the back of his neck, making the hairs stand on edge. Bracing a hand on the wall by the door, he glanced at the alarm panel. It was active and engaged. He’d had his place broken into a few times. It would probably happen again—
A fist pounded against the door.
“Yeah?” Zach called out.
As somebody flung himself against the door, Zach hit the panic button on the alarm panel and dodged off to the side.
* * *
The call came in just before one in the morning.
Damn late for calling, but Abby smiled when she saw Zach’s number. She was exhausted after spending most of the day dealing with a bridezilla who practically defined the zilla part.
The one good thing was that the bride’s daddy was rich and Abby had no problem making them pay through the nose for the headache they were giving her.
The bad news . . . she was almost too tired to talk to Zach.
But tired or not, she needed to hear his voice.
“Hey, gorgeous,” she said, smiling a little as she padded into the bathroom. She eyed the tub and thought about running a bath and soaking for a while. It would keep her awake while she talked—
“Hey . . . ah.” His voice was raw, heavy with exhaustion as he asked, “Can you come to the hospital?”
She froze and the cloud of exhaustion cleared from her head. “Hospital?”
“Yeah.” He paused for a second and then in a rush, said, “I’m fine, okay? But somebody busted into the shop while I was there and I got . . . well, I’m here and I . . . Look, I need somebody to take me home. Can you?”
* * *
Her heart dropped down to somewhere in the range of her soles when she saw him. Zach lay half propped up in the bed and the bright fluorescent lights were unapologetic as they highlighted every damned bruise, every damned wound. And there were a number of them.
“Zach . . .”
His lashes lifted, and slowly he turned his face toward her. “Hey, Abs,” he said, his voice thick and rusty. He had a cut on his mouth. That beautiful mouth was busted up, she thought, and her heart tripped up and stopped as she eased a little closer.
“Damn it, Zach, what happened?”
“I got the crap pounded out of me by a couple of punks looking for some quick cash.” Then he grinned a little. “I pounded the crap out of them, too. One of them got away, but the other one is down the hall. Broken leg.”
“You broke his leg?” She gaped at him.
“Well, me and one of the chairs in the break room. I’m not entirely sure how it happened, but I tackled him. He went down, and his leg snapped.” His lids flickered a little. “Ugly sound, you know. Hearing a bone break.”
“What room is he in?” she asked. “I’ll go break another bone so I can hear.”
“Bloodthirsty . . .”
He yawned and sat up, blinking a little as he looked around. Then he focused on her. “Abby?”
Frowning, she moved to the side of the bed and laid her hand on his cheek. “Zach, baby . . . are you okay?”
He slid an arm around her waist and smiled at her. It was a slightly loopy smile, she decided. No. Very loopy. “They gave you something for the pain, didn’t they?” Zach couldn’t take anything much stronger than Benadryl without it hitting him like a fifth of whiskey.
He pressed his face against her belly and nodded. “Ribs hurt. Nothing’s broke, but it hurts.”
Smiling a little, she brushed his hair back from his face. “Well, I guess that explains why I’m here.”
He hooked his arm around her waist and held her tighter. “You’re here ’cause I need you,” he muttered, rubbing his lips over her and even through her t-shirt, she felt that teasing caress. “I want to get the fuck out of here.”
She didn’t really hear much of anything else he said.
You’re here ’cause I need you.
Bending over him, she closed her eyes and wondered just how much. How much did he need her . . . and was it because he needed the damn ride? Because they were friends?
Or was it more?
She really, really hoped it was more.
* * *
He woke in pain.
Pain every fucking where. His lip throbbed, his hands throbbed, every muscle in his body ached, and when he went to roll to a sitting position, his ribs screamed at him.
Fortunately, Abby wasn’t in there, so he didn’t have to worry about the fact that he might have almost whimpered a little as he made his way over to her bathroom. Bright morning light shone through the frosted glass window and he had an unrestricted view of his battered face.
Left eye was black and blue, with the bruising spreading down over his cheek.
Mouth was busted. Tats covered much of his chest but they ended just below his pecs and he could see the vivid bursts of bruises forming there. The jerks had whaled on him hard and the one time they’d managed to get him down, they’d kicked the hell out of him, too. He’d kicked the legs out from under one of them and used that brief second to get back to his feet and that was when he’d lunged for the other one.
Wrecked Page 18