Page 26 of An Inconvenient Marriage
He made a noise, and I could have sworn I heard him take a deep breath, but that could’ve also been me.
“Get dressed. We’re leaving after breakfast.”
Maybe it was the weirdness of the morning. Or maybe it was being so far away from home. But something inside me snapped, and the word slipped out before I could stop it.
“No.”
“No?”
Steeling myself, I turned around. Not my best idea, considering how close Zach and I were standing. But that didn’t matter. I was so tired of always being told what to do and when to do it, I couldn’t take it anymore.
“I’m sure when you snap your fingers, the entire world listens,” I told him. “But I am not everyone and I won’t do something just becauseyoudemand it.” I took a breath because apparently I wasn’t done. “Asking nicely really goes a long way.”
Something wicked sparked in his eyes, and the muscle in his jaw popped. Taking a step closer, he invaded my personal bubble some more, then completely obliterated it when he lowered his head and inched his face closer to mine.
Too close.
He was way too close. I couldn’t think or even take a full breath.
“Will youpleaseput on some clothes?” His gaze dropped to my chest for a second before meeting mine again. “Or maybe you’d like me to help you?”
The blood in my veins turned to molten lava, incinerating me from the inside out. The thundering of my heart became so loud I was certain he could hear it, too.
Impossible as it may have seemed, the man moved in even closer. His breath blew over my lips with every low, gravelly word he spoke. “Is that it, Natalie? You want myassistance?”
My breasts grew heavy, and warmth pooled low inside my belly. Tingles worked their way down my spine and settled between my thighs. I was hot all over and couldn’t do a damn thing about it.
Zach’s eyes had gone from their normal dark brown to almost black. Gaze boring into mine, he drew his bottom lip into his mouth and bit down on it. My entire body shuddered, and I desperately tried to fill my lungs with air.
And since we were standing so close, my every attempt for breath meant my chest grazed against his. The friction was almost nonexistent, but it was enough to send tiny shocks of pleasure rippling through me.
There was an inexplicable need inside me to close the little distance between us and press my body against his so I could get some sort of relief for this burning ache.
Before I lost my mind and did exactly that, Zach cursed low under his breath and walked away. The sound of the door clicking shut was enough to pop whatever bubble I’d just found myself in.
And not a moment too soon.
My knees gave out, and my butt hit the mattress not even a second later. Burying my face in my hands, I shook my head and laughed.
This was by far the weirdest, most embarrassing thing that’d ever happened to me.
Everlee would love it.
I gave myself a few more moments to laugh it out. When I was done, I made the bed, picked out clothes, and headed to the bathroom. As I stood under the warm spray of water, I was so tempted to take care of the ache between my thighs, but I’d never done anything like that before.
And I definitely didn’t have the courage to start now.
Washing up as fast as I could, I got dressed in a yellow sundress. It was perfect. Plain enough to pass up as something casual, but if I paired it with a sparkly belt and heels, it would transform into a glamourous cocktail dress.
I kept my makeup on the natural side and piled my hair on top of my head into one of those buns that looked messy but actually took a while to get right.
When I was done, I still wanted to tell Everlee about most of the morning’s events. Giving myself a quick once-over in the mirror, I grabbed my phone from the desk and powered it up. The screen had barely come to life when the device rang.
I didn’t recognize the number, but the only two people who had my number were Everlee and my father. And since I knew both numbers he’d call from, I figured this had to be Everlee.
Poking the green button, I pressed the phone against my ear. “Oh my gosh, you wo—”
“Why the hell have I been getting your voicemail?”
