Not like her! Was the woman crazy? Hell, “like” wasn’t a strong enough word to describe his feeling for her. From the very first moment they’d kissed, he’d wanted her. Those feelings hadn’t changed in the intervening years. He still wanted her. That was evident from the kiss they’d just shared. God, he hadn’t expected that.
But what she suggested was more than just appealing—it made sense. “Okay, Babycakes, a truce it is.”
“Beth. My name is Beth. I know you don’t like it but tough, it’s my name. What is it with you guys and your dumb nicknames anyway?”
She shook off his hand, and he raised an eyebrow at her sudden vehemence.
“And you may have a bad memory, Zach, but I’d think after all these years the least you could do is remember my name and use it.”
“You’re perfectly right, I should, and I will.” Her jaw fell open, and that made him smile.
“Really!”
“Yes. Are you hungry, Beth?” he asked as they came upon a small restaurant, and liking the sound of her name on his lips, he reached for her hand.
“Sure, I could be tempted.”
He grinned. “And for the record, I do like ‘Beth,’” he said as he ushered her to a vacant table and drew out a chair.
When she was seated, he took the one opposite, a lit candle flickering on the table between them. A waiter appeared at his side and a bottle of wine was ordered. It wasn’t until after the first drink that an easy camaraderie developed between them.
Beth was entertaining, regaling him with stories from her childhood growing up in the Bronx, and what it was like being the only girl in a family with three older brothers. How even after the boys moved out, they still shared a weekly meal together unless of course someone was away for work or on holidays. Talk of her brothers reminded him they’d soon be here and that created a dilemma. Should he tell her? He juggled the decision but decided against it. With tomorrow looming over her head, she didn’t need any extra stress.
“You must be tired of hearing about my life; tell me about your new business,” she said after taking a sip of wine.
“Not much to tell. It’s still in its fledgling stage, but we’ve had a steady stream of work coming in. Enough to keep us all busy, but, on the contrary, I’m enjoying hearing about your family.” And it was true. He was fascinated with how the mechanics in the Carmichael household worked, never having experienced normal family life himself.
The way she told it, her family came across as so disciplined and structured, giving him a whole new insight into her life, which posed the question, how could such a normal family allow their only daughter to run out of control?
Beth laughed. “Oh, Zach, don’t humor me, it must be so dull for someone like you.”
“Someone like me?”
“High society, starlets, flashy cars, you know, the good life.”
“It’s not all it’s cracked up to be.” He didn’t want to elaborate and was glad when the waiter arrived to take their order.
“I have no idea what this says.” Beth closed the menu that was only written in Spanish and laid it on the table. “Could you choose for me, please?”
“Sure, I’ll order a couple of dishes and we can share. Will chicken and beef do?”
When she nodded, he scanned the menu and gave his selections to the waiter.
The food was slow in coming, so when it did arrive they didn’t hold back.
“I feel bad for Havoc and Hawk.”
“Yeah, why’s that?” he asked, forking some chicken and rice into his mouth.
“All this yummy food, of course. I can’t imagine their supper will be à la carte.”
“Don’t waste your sympathy, they won’t starve.” Thoughts of Beth and Hawk still rankled.
“I don’t know how Hawk manages to stay so trim. When I entered the dining room this morning, he was already halfway through a plate of food and was still going strong when I left.”
His heart rate picked up, a flush of adrenaline shooting along his veins. “You didn’t go down together, then?” He sounded overanxious, so topped up their wine glasses to avoid her eyes.
She reached for her glass and their fingers touched. “Good gracious, no. I couldn’t sleep, so I got up and went for an early walk then opted to eat in the dining room.”
That bit of information brought a smile to his face.
When dessert was over and he checked his watch, the warmth of her touch still lingered on his skin, and he was surprised to see two hours had passed without a snark between them. Things were indeed looking up.
“That was delicious,” he remarked, rubbing his belly. “Makes me feel for Havoc and Hawk too. Still, it won’t stop me describing dinner to them in great detail.” He chuckled, but when he got no corresponding laughter he glanced across the table at Beth sipping her wine and studying him with reproachful eyes.
“Why, Zach? Why did you do it?”
The question sucker punched him, but he should have expected it. He didn’t pretend not to understand. The incident in the games room was embedded in his brain and he remembered it as if it was yesterday. He leaned back in his chair and scrubbed a hand over his face, recalling it with graphic detail—the fragrance of her perfume, the softness of her skin. He’d wanted her then, wanted her still.
“You were eighteen, and I knew that, but that didn’t stop me…I should have known better.”
“I was almost nineteen, and that’s no excuse. I waited for you upstairs. I was devastated when you didn’t come. I cried myself to sleep.”
“I’m sorry. It was for the best.”
“For the best! How can you say that? I was mortified. When you didn’t show, it was like a slap in the face.”
“I’m not proud of what I did.”
“Not a word, Zach, not even a note, you just disappeared. Why?”
Her accusing eyes liquefied, glittering with pain in the flickering light. Something pierced his heart, and he inhaled a sharp breath.
He owed her an explanation. “Why? You want to know why? Then I’ll tell you, Beth. I’d made a vow to myself, but when you waltzed into the games room that night looking all sexy and sultry in that slinky little number with your face painted and acting all grown-up you bewitched me, and I broke it. You were so damned desirable I couldn’t help it. And do you know how it made me feel afterward, knowing I’d broken my word, and to top it off, taken the coward’s way out? Well, let me tell you, it made me feel lousy, like a prize jerk.”
“What vow, Zach?”
He heaved a sigh and continued. “You were about to start college. I wanted you to have fun, go to parties, meet people, establish a career, do all the things you were meant to do before I asked you out. I promised myself I’d wait until you were older, and then I blew it.”
“You liked me?”
He made a noise in his throat that was between a scoff and a laugh. “You couldn’t tell?”
“You left me. I thought you were glad we got interrupted to escape.”
“I was scared if I went to your room to explain it was over, I wouldn’t have had the strength to leave. I was already feeling like a louse for taking advantage of you and I didn’t want to compound it.”
“I seduced you. So you’ve got no reason to feel that way.”
“No excuses, I was the adult.” He dropped his head into the palm of his hand and studied the patterned tablecloth without really seeing it.
“I was an adult, too. I did everything I could think of that night to get you to make love to me. When you didn’t show, I was crushed. I believed you didn’t like me, that the idea of us having sex was repulsive to you.”
“Oh, Beth, I’m so sorry I made you feel like that.
“You’re not responsible for my thoughts.”
Now he felt like an even bigger heel. He should have manned up and gone to her room, apologized, and then left. What a pussy. He looked across the table. Her eyes were downcast, fingers pleating her shirt. “You want coffee?” he asked to break the awkward silence.
Her chin came up and she gave him a half smile. “Yeah, that would be nice, and, Zach…”
He cocked a brow and forced his lips to smile.
“Thanks for telling me. I needed to know—and I’m not sorry we did what we did.”
The waiter appeared at his side as if summoned by some extrasensory request. Zach placed the order, and then lapsed into silence until he returned with the coffees.
“Thanks,” he muttered and began drinking the steaming brew.
Beth dawdled over her coffee, postponing the inevitable when they’d have to return to their room. That was cool with him, he was a bit anxious too after their conversation, but the time had come and couldn’t be put off any longer. He’d settled the bill ten minutes ago, now it was time to make a move. The last of the patrons were leaving, and the owners were waiting to lock up.
“We should go too.” He stood and took her hand, not only for the benefit of the waiters, but because he wanted to feel her skin, draw her close. Heck, when she’d kissed him at the bar, it had shaken him and made him want to do more than kiss her. Now that they’d cleared the air, that might be a possibility once Loretta was safe. If he didn’t fuck it up again.
When they moved onto the street she let go of his fingers and slipped a hand around his waist. It felt good. He pulled her closer, tucking her under his shoulder. Familiar tingles surged through his body at her nearness.
Beth’s constant chatter buzzed the air as they ambled back to their room.
“The meal was great, wasn’t it?” she asked for the third time as he unlocked the door and stood back for her to enter.
“Yeah, but we said that already, didn’t we?”
“I guess so. Do you want to play some cards? I have a deck in my pack somewhere.”
“Beth, it’s time for bed. I’ll sleep on the floor if that’s what’s bugging you.”
“No, I can’t expect you to do that, not when there’s a perfectly good bed big enough for two.”
“I’ve slept in worse places, it’s really not a problem.”
“No, we’ll share. You don’t snore, do you?”
“Only when I’m drunk, now stop making excuses and get ready for bed.”
Beth disappeared into the bathroom, toting her toiletry bag. Tomorrow would be a bitch of a day, and tonight was proving a trial as well. Not only was he keyed up about her delivering the ransom and getting both girls back unharmed, but now he had to get through the night with her siren’s body right alongside him, and her words I’m not sorry we did what we did ringing in his ears.
When she emerged wearing a pair of panties and a tank top, he had to fight the urge to throw her to the mattress. He tried to look away, but he was only human. His eyes mapped every inch of her and fixed on her breasts, naked under the cotton top and jiggling and swaying with abandon as she moved around the room. God, it was going to be a long night.
“I’ll sleep on the side closest to the door,” he muttered, and then retreated to the bathroom for a cold shower before she copped sight of his boner.