Her Innocence, His Conquest

by Jules Bennett

  Ana stood bone weary against the wall opposite the large entryway mirror. She nearly didn’t recognize herself. Dress sagging from the loose knot Zach tied, mouth swollen, flushed cheeks, mass of curls falling loose from her clip to hang around her face and shoulders.

  She looked like a woman who’d been through a battle. Had she ever. And all this time she’d not wanted him to come in to her condo for personal reasons.

  A giggle escaped her. Well, at least he didn’t see her family pictures she kept on her nightstand. Though him seeing all her family she’d once had and now longed for would’ve been a whole lot easier to deal with than letting him in on her intimate, private secret that she’d never been with a man.

  Now he was more determined than ever to get close to her. What had she done? She had to tell him she was a virgin to make him understand why she couldn’t go on, but had she not let him in to begin with, none of this would’ve happened.

  Ana readied herself for bed and for the first time in her life, she dreaded the following day on the job site.

  Eight

  Ana was surprised at the end of the next day when Zach hadn’t stopped by. She never took him for a coward. Then again, she was relieved she didn’t have to face the man who’d turned her world completely inside out with arousing caresses and captivating kisses.

  She left the site later than expected because she’d lost track of time as she’d completed the payroll. She refused to admit she didn’t want to go back to her condo where memories would smack her in the face as soon as she walked through the door.

  But, as she slid the key card into the slot, she braced herself. It was just a room, just an incident. Zach had probably already wiped those moments from his mind.

  Her cell vibrated and chirped against her hip as she entered the room. How ironic, she thought, looking at the caller ID, that Zach would call at the precise time she stood in the place where he’d broken through her line of defense.

  “Hello.”

  “Sorry I didn’t make it by the site today.”

  Ana leaned back against the closed door and tried to stop the chills from racing all over her body at the sound of Zach’s low, sexy tone.

  “That’s okay,” she said honestly. “What’s up?”

  “I’ve got this seating chart and it’s driving me nuts. I know you’ve worked all day, but I need you.”

  He needed her. No matter what way he meant those words, she couldn’t deny she loved hearing them.

  “I’m fine.” She walked farther into the room and began undressing. “Want me to meet you somewhere?”

  “I’ll pick you up. Can you be ready in thirty minutes?”

  Considering she’d spent most of the day in her office with the cool air-conditioning, she didn’t need a shower to rid herself of the grime and sweat she usually brought home at the end of her day.

  Yeah, she just exuded sex appeal.

  “Sure. See you in a bit.”

  She hung up before she could change her mind. Being close to Zach again was inevitable so she may as well get the first meeting after their make-out session over with.

  After freshening up just a bit, she put on some mascara and lip gloss, and pulled her hair back in a loose knot at her nape. She hoped they weren’t going anywhere fancy because she grabbed a pair of denim shorts and a pale blue tank, then slid her feet into white sparkly flip-flops. When she turned to look in the full-length mirror, she frowned. She looked like a teenager.

  Zach knocked on her door before she could contemplate changing. That was fast.

  When she opened the door, she forced a smile. She knew he’d act like last night hadn’t been a life-altering moment, and it probably hadn’t been for him, unlike for her. Even so, she had to put up a good front so he didn’t know just how affected she was by what had happened.

  “I’m ready,” she told him, grabbing her purse from the small stand near the door. “I hope we’re eating. I’m starving.”

  He smiled. “You like to eat, don’t you?” he asked in a playful manner.

  “What’s not to like?” She closed the door and pocketed her key card. “I’d love a big steak or pizza.”

  Zach laughed, reaching to push the button on the elevator directly across from her door. “I’ve never dated a woman who didn’t order a salad and then pick at it.”

  Her heart fluttered. She jerked to see him staring intently down at her. “Are we dating?”

  “What do you say?”

  Ana smiled, stepped into the elevator. “I say you’re dating the wrong women if they’re worried about keeping their figures the same as when they were teenagers.”

  Zach laughed, followed her in and punched the lobby button. “You’re dodging me, Anastasia.”

  “You’re the one who didn’t show up today at the site.”

  Oops. She hadn’t meant to sound like she’d been keeping time and waiting for him to show.

  In a second, without warning, Zach turned, backed her against the back of the elevator and caged her in between his thick, muscular arms.

  “You missed me.”

  It wasn’t a question, but Ana shook her head anyway. “No, I just got used to you dropping by at least once a day.”

  His dark, seducing eyes sparkled. “Would you feel better if I told you I’d rather have been with you than in my office?”

  “I’d feel better if you gave me some breathing room.”

  Zach placed a kiss on her lips and eased back just as the doors opened to the lobby. “For now.”

  Ana let out a pent-up breath as she followed Zach out the doors. She squinted against the sun, not seeing his Bugatti or Camaro.

  “Over here,” he motioned and walked toward his Harley.

  She stood rooted in place. Of course he’d have a big, Alpha-style Harley with a matte black finish and just enough chrome to be flashy. “You’re kidding,” she said, glaring.

  He pulled his sunglasses from his T-shirt pocket and slid them on. “What?”

  “I’m not getting on that.”

  He swung his long leg over the seat, grabbed the spare helmet and held it out to her. Before she could tell him he was out of his mind, his cell phone rang. He grabbed it from his pocket.

  “Hello.”

  She moved closer as he listened, grew concerned when he snapped toward her and asked the caller what happened.

  “She’s with me,” he said into the phone. “We’ll be right there.”

  “What’s wrong?” she asked as he slid the phone back into his pocket.

  He grabbed her hand and gave her the helmet, then tried to get her to get on the bike behind him. “Someone broke into your office at the site.”

  “I’ll take my car,” she demanded. “Stop tugging me.”

  “We’ll go together.”

  She gave up arguing as fear and confusion took over. “Who called? Was there much damage?” She plopped the helmet over her head.

  “That was Victor,” Zach said. “He’s getting ready to leave town for a few weeks and wanted to see how everything was going before he left. He swung by the property and noticed all the busted glass around your office. The windows are all shattered. He called the cops.”

  Zach reached around, adjusted the strap on her helmet. “Here.”

  Ana took a step back, holding up her hands. “You’re kidding me with this motorcycle, right? Why don’t you drive a truck or something?”

  “Because I live where the sun shines year-round and I like the freedom. Are we going to stand here and discuss my means of transportation or are you going to get on?”

  She got on behind him and Zach started the bike.

  He glanced over his shoulder and grinned. “You’ve never done this before, have you?”

  Ana shook her head and put her arms around his waist. Thank God she’d chosen to wear shorts.

  “You’ll have to hold on tighter than that, Anastasia.”

  “Don’t you wish,” she yelled over the noise, but then he took off and she had
no choice.

  Ana didn’t squeal like she wanted to, but she did shut her eyes as Zach flew through downtown Miami. The warm evening wind whipped the hair that stuck out from beneath the helmet. Slowly, lifting one lid at a time, she checked out the surroundings as they flew by.

  If she weren’t so worried about falling onto the pavement or the fact that some vandal had trashed her office, Ana would relish having her arms wrapped around one extremely muscular man. Beneath her palms and linked fingers lay his hard, chiseled abs under a thin black T-shirt. Wrapped by her legs, his lean thighs felt strong and sinewy. Ana couldn’t help but lean forward, just a bit, and breathe in Zach’s spicy, masculine scent. Between the vibration beneath her and the strong man against her, Ana was having some serious thoughts about taking Zach up on his offer and just giving in to the inevitable.

  In no time they were pulling onto the site. A squad car was parked next to a sleek, black sports car. Ana’s instincts went on alert as she took in the equipment, the area partitioned off for the resort. From an initial glance, everything seemed in order, except of course for the glass around her office trailer.

  Zach pulled to a stop and killed the engine. “You can let go.”

  “Oh.”

  Ana jerked her hands away from his warm body, almost sorry the ride had come to an end. Even though she was a little shaky about the new, exhilarating experience, she could totally understand why Zach loved the bike so much. And the freedom he talked about, well, that just went hand in hand with Zach’s lifestyle.

  She climbed off the bike, waited for Zach to get off then handed him the helmet. “Let’s go see what the damage is.”

  He walked beside her step for step. His silence spoke volumes. Zach, Mr. Always a Good Time, was quiet because he was just as scared and nervous as she—at least she assumed so. They couldn’t afford disasters or setbacks on this job or any other. Earlier in the week she’d been worried about the potential threat of a tropical storm, one that had thankfully turned out to sea. But vandalism was something else again. True, it occurred occasionally on a job site, but with the rains and the firing of an employee, she hadn’t had time to think about the off-hours when the site was left unattended. Besides, she’d only been gone about an hour tonight.

  The epiphany hit her hard.

  Ana stopped, grabbed Zach’s arm to stop him as well. “What if this was revenge?”

  Zach looked into her eyes. “We’re thinking on the same page. You need to tell the officer exactly what Nate said about my sister, what you said when you fired him and an address where he can be found.”

  Ana nodded, glancing up as the officer and Victor Lawson came from inside the trailer. The grim look on Victor’s face didn’t help diminish her nerves.

  “Much damage inside?” Zach asked.

  “It’s been trashed,” the officer explained. “I assume you’re the foreman?”

  “No,” Ana corrected, drawing the officer’s attention to her. “I am. I’m Ana Clark and this is Zach Marcum, the architect.”

  The officer jotted down some notes on his pad. “You’ll have to go in and see if anything was taken.”

  Ana turned toward Victor. “I can’t tell you how sorry I am. I will hire a security guard to watch over the site in the off-hours.”

  Victor’s generous smile eased her concern somewhat. “I assure you, this is not the first time a project of mine has been tampered with and I’ve already called a security team. They will be here tomorrow.”

  “I’ll stay here tonight,” Zach offered.

  Ana jerked her head around. “I will. This is my site.”

  “Great, I’d love the company,” he said with a wink.

  Ana narrowed her eyes at him. If he was purposely trying to annoy her, well, mission accomplished. She wasn’t going to get into an argument here and now with an audience.

  She turned to her shattered office. “I’m going to check the trailer.”

  “Don’t touch too much,” the officer said. “It’s still a crime scene and the crime scene unit should be here anytime to check for fingerprints.”

  She moved around the three men and climbed the rickety steps. They’d left the door open and Ana scanned the wreckage from the doorway. Files were flung everywhere, desk drawers had been dumped all over the floor. Luckily there wasn’t too much paperwork and she knew Zach had all the duplicates in his office, but the fact that some jerk had torn apart her space made her furious.

  “Could’ve been worse.”

  Zach’s warm breath and voice were right behind her. She glanced over her shoulder, thankful he stood so close. His sunglasses were perched on top of his windblown hair, his dark eyes taking in the mess.

  Why was her body reacting to this man? Why couldn’t she have a barrier around her hormones that prevented the penetration of sex appeal brought on by cocky, overbearing men?

  She’d always heard that women were attracted to men with qualities like their fathers’…. Obviously the case with Zach.

  He flaunted himself, his money, his relationships, and all for the sake of a good time. He didn’t care what people thought of him but, ironically, people still flocked to him.

  The man thought he could have everything and no matter how attracted she was on a physical level, her emotions wouldn’t go any deeper.

  Still, she had to admit he was continually surprising her. He stepped closer and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. His gentleness shocked her. She remembered last night when they were on the verge of intimacy in her condo. He couldn’t have been any gentler with her. Not even as she’d dropped her bombshell when it was almost too late.

  Nine

  “I’ll bring a couple of air mattresses.” Zach urged her forward and stepped into the cluttered space. “You can bring the coffee.”

  Ana rolled her eyes. “We’re not having a slumber party, Zach, and you’re not staying.”

  The CSU had left powdery residue all over and she wanted to clean up and have a moment to herself without his sexy gaze on her. She was beyond pissed that someone had messed with her site.

  Zach propped his hands on his narrow hips. “Oh, I’m staying. You’re more than welcome to join me, but you won’t be here alone.”

  Mimicking his stance, she rested her hands on her hips as well, more than eager to go toe-to-toe with him. “Look, this won’t be the first, or the last, time I sleep in my on-site office. I don’t need a babysitter. I’m sure whoever did this was just pulling a prank. We can’t be sure it was Nate and even if it was, he probably feels better about getting out his frustrations. I’ll bet this is the last we’ll see of him.”

  A muscle in Zach’s jaw clenched as he stepped closer. “I’m not chancing your safety. Besides, this will give us time to go over my sister’s to-do list.”

  Ana wanted to argue, but Zach was genuinely concerned; she could tell by the low, slow voice. He wasn’t joking anymore which meant he was still worried. Maybe she shouldn’t be so quick to brush off the incident.

  “If you stay—”

  “I’m staying,” he interrupted.

  “Fine. You will keep your hands and all other body parts to yourself. Are we clear, Don Juan?”

  The corner of Zach’s mouth kicked up. “Yes, ma’am.”

  She found herself biting the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling back at him. Damn, the man had a contagious smile.

  Her cell rang, pulling her from the moment. She pulled the phone from her bag.

  “Hello.”

  “Oh, thank God. I’ve called twice this evening, Anastasia.” Her mother’s worried, frantic tone had Ana’s back stiffening, her heart speeding up. “I’m sorry to bother you, honey. Are you terribly busy?”

  “Not too busy for you. What’s wrong?” She turned so she wouldn’t have to look at Zach’s questioning gaze.

  “I don’t know how to say this.” Her mother’s voice cracked. “Your father and I are filing for divorce.”

  Heart in her throat, Ana eased back again
st her desk, saw Zach step beside her out of her peripheral vision. “What?”

  “I’m so sorry to have to tell you over the phone,” her mother cried. “I just wanted to tell you before you heard it anywhere else. I finally left him.”

  Ana didn’t know whether to congratulate her or offer her sympathies. “Mom, where are you now?”

  “I’m at the last property your father hasn’t gambled away…the beach house in Georgia.”

  “Do you need me to come to you?” Ana asked, her heart breaking for her mother.

  “Oh, no, dear. I know how important this job is for you. I’ll be just fine.”

  Would she? After thirty years of marriage, her husband’s numerous affairs and being all alone in the end, how could anyone sound so positive? Pride for her mother overtook Ana. The amount of strength this woman exuded was remarkable. And the fact that Lorraine Clark hadn’t committed an unspeakable, illegal action against the man Ana loosely termed “father” was a feat in itself.

  “Call me anytime, Mom. I mean it. As soon as I’m done with this project, I’ll take some time off and we’ll go somewhere to relax.”

  Her mother let loose a watery laugh. “I’d really like that, Ana. I love you.”

  “Love you,” Ana said, trying to choke back tears. “I’ll call you tomorrow.”

  Ana disconnected the call, straightened and turned her back once again to Zach.

  “I’ll just go outside and speak with Victor and the officer,” he told her, obviously taking the hint she needed some alone time. “They should be about finished here.”

  Well, that was one good thing that came from him knowing women so well. He was in tune with their feelings.

  Ana swiped at a tear that had escaped. She didn’t want to cry about this. Hadn’t her father caused enough anguish over the years? He never seemed to care whom he hurt, so long as he got what he wanted. Women, money, the thrill of the next bet. He always took from everyone, never giving even a piece of himself in return.

  And her mother had finally had enough. After thirty years.

  Did happily-ever-after even exist anymore? She wished she could be there for her mother right now, but their reunion would have to wait.