Page 83 of Words We Didn't Say

But he was so close to his dream.

Please come home with me.

His work always came first, but maybe it wouldn’t once he got promoted.

“Coffee tomorrow morning?” I asked.

“I’d love that.”

When the ferry docked at Circular Quay, we kissed goodbye and walked through the city in opposite directions.

And nothing had ever felt so wrong.

Frustrated, I yanked openthe closet door. One sneaker flew off my foot. The second bounced into the wall.

Whose dumb idea had it been to wait?

My dress was stripped over my head and tossed on the floor instead of in the hamper. I twisted to catch a glimpse of myself in the full-length mirror. Sexy black lace underwear. Decoration,zero comfort. Scorecard? Hotter than hell. Not that Zach saw my new lingerie. Not that he’d even tried to take a peek.

Sighing, I flopped into the mountain of pillows on my big, lonely bed beside the sequinned dolphin. A cute but poor substitute for the man I missed so much. Sure, sex for us had always been out of this world, but the thing I craved most was our connection—the laughing, the pillow talk, snuggling together, and sharing sleepy kisses.

I should’ve spoken up and told Zach I was ready. Why hadn’t I?

I needed to fix this.

A scheme.

I snatched my phone off the bedside table. A satisfied smile spread across my face as I tapped out a quick message to Zach.

Eden

Can you come over? We need to talk.

My wicked laugh filled the emptiness of the bedroom. If this plan worked, there would be very littletalking.

I slipped a floral kimono over my underwear and spritzed some perfume in the air.Oh, what the heck.A spritz for me, too. I raced around the apartment, tidying the clutter to make sure Zach’s neat freak eyes focused on nothing but me. Dishes flew out of the sink and into the dishwasher. A dirty towel finally made it into the hamper. Pillows on the sofa were fluffed and chopped—

Frantic knocking cracked through the silence.

Cinching the belt of my robe snugly around my waist, I let just enough satin slip off my shoulder to reveal the lacy black bra strap hiding underneath.

Let’s see how long his pants stay on…

I opened the door, arching against it with my best seductive smile, but Zach’s reaction was not what I expected. He barelygave my outfit—or me—a second glance before he burst through the door. His arms were overloaded with so much junk I didn’t know where to look.

“Zach, what the fu—”

“Eden, I’m sorry. Was it the ice cream thing? Was it ’cause I nearly puked when we went upside down on the Moon Ranger?”

“What the hell are you talking—”

“Whatever I did, I’m sorry. More than sorry.” My dining table disappeared under an avalanche of sunflowers, daisies, cookies, chocolates, and a bottle of wine. “Is this enough?” His hands clapped on his cheeks. “What else can I buy? What do I need to do? You know I’ll do anything.”

“Zach—”

“Was it because I asked you to go to Chris’s birthday party?” Agitated, he paced the kitchen, pushing a hand through his hair. “I know you’ve got your doubts about him. Me too. I don’t know how to separate the man I admire from the man at the gala. But we need to put on a brave face until the announcement.”

“Zach—”

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