“Are you going somewhere?” His question drew her attention back to him.
“Back to my room. I’ve outstayed my welcome.”
“I put off answering your question, Tiny. That doesn’t mean I want you to leave.”
“I freaked you out.”
“You…surprised me.”
“I invaded your privacy.”
“You shared something I hadn’t expected you to find out about.”
“I like chocolate.”
“Uh…yeah.” He frowned. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“You don’t.”
“Don’t what?”
“Like chocolate.”
“Didn’t,” he corrected, running his tongue along his lower lip again. “Until I tasted it from your perspective. And that taste is something I could grow addicted to in a heartbeat.” He held a hand up in question. “Still, I don’t see why having different taste in food means you have to leave.”
“Okay, then let’s just be honest. You’re famous, I’m not. You’re Jonah Speed, I’m just someone with a strange gift.”
“What the hell does fame have to do with this?”
“You’re out of my league, Jonah.”
“Zachary.”
“Zachary’s out of my league too.”
“How can you say that?”
“You kissed me and a thousand flashes went off. That puts you—Jonah and Zachary—in a different league. One I can’t deal with.”
“I’m sorry about that. I shouldn’t have kissed you in front of all those people.”
“Jeez.” She ran a hand over her cheek. “I’ve known you a few hours and I swear we’ve apologized to each other ten times already.”
“Don’t get me wrong, Eve. I’m sorry I kissed you in front of all those people, sorry I called all that attention to us. I’m not sorry I kissed you.”
“Yeah?” Well, didn’t that just make her heart race like crazy? “I bet you’re sorry you grabbed my hand afterwards.”
He thought about his answer. “I liked the feel of your hand in mine.”
“And the craziness that came after?”
“It surprised me.” He smiled then. “But it’s nice to share my grandmother’s song with someone. Nice someone could hear it after all this time. It brings back good memories.”
Of course it did. Memories of his red-haired future. She stumbled, unsure what to say next.
“The answer’s no, by the way.”
She raised an eyebrow in question.
“The redhead you asked about. I haven’t met her yet.”
Yet.
“So you still think about her?”
“Damn.” He gave her a rueful smile. “You just zone right in on those difficult questions.”
Eve could have kicked herself. After apologizing for invading his privacy, she’d gone straight back and done it again. She raised her hands in defeat. “I’m sorry. Again. Look, I’ll just go now. Leave you in peace.”
“Of course I think about her.”
She blinked. “You didn’t need to tell me.”
“I know I didn’t. I wanted to.”
“You wanted to?”
He nodded. “There’s something else you should know. Something else I want to tell you.” His stomach punctuated his words with a loud growl. Zachary smiled. “And if you just give me a minute to order something to eat, I’ll tell you all about it.”
He walked over to the phone, pressed one of the buttons and waited.
Her hand strummed over her cheek. What on earth could she need to know?
“Yeah, can I get room service up here…? Excellent.”
He looked at her with a question in her eyes and pointed to the receiver.
She shook her head. Her stomach was in no state to fill it with food.
As Zachary placed his order, his gaze caught hers again, and there went her heart, beating like crazy once more. “And one extra-large serving of chocolate mousse,” he said into the receiver. “…Fifteen minutes? Cool, I’ll be here.” He hung up.
“I thought you hated chocolate mousse?”
“I do.” His green gaze held hers. “It’s for you.”
And that was all it took for something to shift in her chest. Like a gear changing, her emotions were suddenly tumultuous. Zachary Jonah Speed Pace had just become a very serious threat to her heart. If Eve didn’t do everything in her power to protect it, she feared she could easily gift-wrap it—with a ribbon—and hand it over to the man before her.
“Zachary…”
A soft groan escaped his lips. “Christ, I don’t know what you’re thinking, but the look on your face makes me think about sex. Hot, heavy, dirty sex.”
She opened her mouth, then closed it again, helpless to respond. Not when the very heart she feared she’d lose to him now felt like it sat in her throat, pumping like crazy.
The air around them sparked. Currents of heat and electricity snapped from him to her.
“Perhaps…” Zachary swallowed. “Perhaps I’d better tell you my story before I completely lose the ability to talk.
Chapter Four
Zachary sat back down on the couch and patted the cushion beside him. “Sit with me?”
Eve chewed her bottom lip.
“Please?”
She gave a quick nod but walked toward him so slowly Zachary realized she must have misgivings.
“I swear not to bite. Or hold your hand.” More than that he couldn’t promise. He was going to touch her. Zachary wanted to get his hands on her more than he wanted his next breath.
Still her uncertainty troubled him. “If it makes you feel better, you’re not the only one who’s had visions.”
Her jaw dropped. “Wh-what?”
Yep. That had pretty much been his reaction to her confession about her visions. It had taken him a good few minutes to get over his shock.
He looked pointedly at the seat beside him until she perched her tight little butt on the edge of it.
Zachary was having none of that. He placed his hands around her waist, pulled her close and tucked her into his side, leaving his arm around her shoulders so he could run his hands through her silky hair.
Where to begin his story?
From the place Eve had popped into it, obviously. “You saw her. You saw the redhead in my imagination. She’s my vision.”
At the mention of his fated one, Eve tried to pull away.
Zachary wouldn’t let her. Didn’t want to let her go. “Uh-uh. I heard about your vision. It’s only fair you hear about mine.”
She gave an exasperated sigh. “I’ll listen. But could you please just move your arm while you talk?”
“I could. But I need to touch you. Want to touch you so bad, it’s like a physical compulsion.” He gave in to his desire and wound his hand through her locks, letting his fingertips brush over her scalp.
Ah. Better. Much better.
The muscles in her cheek twitched, as though she was having an internal debate, and finally, almost reluctantly, she settled back on the couch.
He tapped his fingers against her scalp in a slow, sensuous beat that he heard in his head. He seemed to hear a beat in his head whenever she stepped up close. A beat that tied his balls in knots and made his chest ache just a bit.
He enjoyed the way her hair feathered over his hand and wrist. Enjoyed just having her there, beside him. Enjoyed the music she inspired in him.
“It first happened when I was very young, about four or five,” Zachary told her.
She turned to face him, watching him while he spoke. Her blue eyes held him captive.
“It was the first time my grandmother sang me the lullaby. She took my hand, held it in hers, and explained the song she was about to sing was meant for my ears only. Said it would be our secret song.” The memory was clear, as though it had taken place yesterday. “Nothing happened until she began to sing. And then I felt these…I don’t know, chills running through my hand and up my arm.” He frowned. Kind of like the chills he’d felt when Eve had zoned out on him. “Before I knew it, I couldn’t see my grandmother anymore. She’d disappeared. Everything had disappeared. All I heard was her song.”