Page 28 of Keeping Zita

Sage chuckled, and Zita could feel it all along her body. Somehow, she’d moved closer without even realizing it, and now she was plastered against his body from thighs to chest.

“They’re taking care of it.”

“How?”

“Don’t know. They just are. By the time we go back in, the bitch’ll be gone.”

It was Zita’s turn to get nervous now. She bit her lip. “She’s not going to be happy. She obviously wants you, Sage.”

“I’m not some toy to be fought over.”

His words startled Zita. Was that what she was doing? What he thought was happening? That two women were fighting over him? She tried to take a step back, but Sage tightened his arms around her. The thought she had earlier about being able to break out of his hold was obviously way off the mark. Though, she wasn’t afraid of him. Not even close.

“I know you aren’t,” she clarified. “But I wouldn’t hold it against you if you changed your mind and wanted to go out with her.”

Sage chuckled.

“I wasn’t trying to be funny.”

“And yet, you still were. Zita, if this was a competition, you’d’ve already won. I’m here with you. I want to date you, when that was the furthest thing from my mind a week ago. I can’t stop thinking about you when I leave the set, and you’re the first person I look for when I arrive every morning. I’ve never bought a woman coffee, and yet I’ve done it every morning since our fifth day on set. You’ve met the most important people in my life, and I’m already trying to figure out where to take you on our first one-on-one date. I don’t care if Carmen wants me—I don’t want her. She’s just going to have to get used to disappointment.”

Zita pressed her lips together. She knew it wasn’t that easy. Carmen St. James was like a lot of the famous, rich, spoiled actresses she’d met over the years. They all wanted what they wanted, and nothing and no one stood in their way.

Carmen wanted Sage. At least, she wanted what he represented on the outside. She didn’t really care to get to know him, or figure out what mattered to him, or what his values were. She just wanted eye candy on her arm for the time she was here in Virginia.

“You ready to go back in?” Sage asked.

“Are you?” she countered.

Leaning down, Sage put his forehead on hers. It was a very intimate position, and Zita was in no hurry to end it.

“Thank you for being with me while I got my shit together.”

“I didn’t do anything,” she protested.

“You did. You didn’t ask me a million questions. You trusted me out here, in a dark alley, and didn’t freak out. You didn’t get all catty and hysterical when Carmen showed up.”

“I wanted to.”

He pulled back and smiled. “I know. That’s why I got us out of there. That, and I didn’t want to see her being rude to you any more than she already was. Probably wasn’t the best idea to bring you out here in the dark though.”

“It’s not that dark.”

“Mmmhmmm.”

“And I’ve taken self-defense.” She didn’t know why she was blurting out that inane fact, but there it was. “Also, I’m sure if I screamed, someone would come out to see what was happening.”

Okay, that was stupid. She had no idea if someone would come looking for the source of a scream or not, but it sounded good right before the words came out of her mouth.

“You’re safe with me,” Sage said, the look on his face telling her how serious he was.

“I know,” Zita whispered back.

“You will go out with me again, won’t you? On a you-and-me date? Not one with all my buddies?”

She didn’t even need to think about her response. “Yes.”

“This time we won’t talk about it on set, so we don’t get interrupted.”