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“You’re blowing this way out of proportion.”
Shaking and clenching her teeth, it was all she could do to not tell him to shove it up his butt. After shimmying her cover-up over her bikini, she made herself comfortable in a white and green striped loveseat. All the while Christian stood there and stared.
Finally, he offered her a pillow, but she ignored it and him. With a grunt, he threw it to the back of the cabana. “Dammit, Zoe, don’t be this way.”
“You know what—you’re completely right about blowing this out of proportion. You have my forgiveness, even though you didn’t ask for it.” She glanced up at him. “Go hang out with your friends. I’ll stay for a little while. Maybe I can add some respectability to your reputation. It’ll be totally zoe.”After all that was his real reason for inviting her. Four girls and three guys. Someone was obligated to be the odd one out.
He searched her face. “I really am sorry. Vanessa heard me say your name and got all pissed off. Instead of manning up, I told a lie and it turned into a joke. One that was never meant to be at your expense.”
Too little, too late. She waved him away with her fingertips. “Go play with your friends.”
“Zoe is Greek for life, and I think it’s quite lovely,” he said and her heart jumped to her throat. “You’re lovely, and I don’t deserve the time that you’re giving me.”
“Just go, please” she whispered, starting up her computer.
She watched him walk away, his usually confident shoulders drooping until he dove into the pool. Brennen jumped Christian from behind as soon as he came up for air, then shoved him back under the water. The two men played like teenagers as they tried to drown each other.
Finally, she gave up watching when it became clear that Christian wasn’t coming over to talk to her. Why she wanted him to was entirely illogical. She had told him to leave her alone. But it did hurt a little. All right, if she was being honest it hurt a lot. More than she’d thought. However, there was nothing she could do without seeming desperate.
She typed away, her mind not really on what she was doing. A soft thud sounded beside her. Glancing beside her, she peeked beneath her lashes. A large, pastel-colored drink with a little umbrella in it had appeared on the table. Something she would have ordered had she not been licking her wounds.
“Thank you for staying.” Water gleamed on the tanned skin of Christian’s chest.
She frowned. Why did he have to be so attractive? Why did he have to have the most perfect tattoo of a rose on his chest, one that a lifetime ago she’d traced with her tongue. Her life had been just fine before she ran into him again. Boring, yes, but constant. Manageable.
Maybe she’d been a fool for breaking off her engagement with Gabriel. But she couldn’t second guess her decisions, not now. It had been the right thing to do, a relief from the pressure of having to be together because their relationship looked good on paper. Easing back into a comfortable friendship had made them both very happy. However, she was lonely and wanted what her best friend had. What everyone around her in Holland Springs had—someone to love and be loved by. Someone to come home to and eat dinner with every night. Someone to discuss the sweetest mundane things, like picking out paint samples and debating where the next flower bed in their yard should go.
Neither Christian Romanov, the man, nor Ian Romanov, the actor, was good or realistic for what she wanted. She needed to be on guard with his easy charm. This afternoon proved the hows and whys of it.
“Are you still not speaking to me?” He grabbed a bottle of beer from a nearby treasure chest full of ice and drinks, then plopped down in the chair beside hers.
“What do you want me to say?”
His jaw worked. “Thank you for staying.”
She closed her eyes briefly, trying to not let his apology sway her determination to stay closed off to him. “I didn’t do it for you.”
“Whatever your motivation, I’m genuinely happy you’re still here.”
“So you say.”
He leaned into her line of sight, blocking her view. “You’re on Twitter?”
His muscular back made her mouth water. “I’m working.” Her screen replaced the amazing view of his body. Her followers would probably love for her to tweet a poolside picture of a half-naked movie star like Christian. Forget her followers, Christian would love for her to tweet their picture together.
“All work and no play makes a dull Zoe,” he teased, pushing the drink closer to her.
She pushed it back, hitting a cluster of candles. The drink sloshed over one side, and she inwardly groaned. So much for cool indifference. “All play and no work makes me broke. Could you hand me a towel?”
He grabbed a cloth napkin from the extras cleverly displayed in a colorful beach bucket. Instead of handing it to her, he made quick work of cleaning up her mess. Her heart did a little somersault, despite her brain telling it to stay firmly in place
“Why don’t you follow me on Twitter? I could tweet our picture.”
“Hmpf.” She scowled at him.
“I’ll take that as a definitive ‘no’.”
“Sorry, I’m more of a leader.” She took a sip of her drink. “But thank you for the drink and cleaning up my mess.”
“My pleasure.”
A waitress hurried over, taking the dirty towel from him and promising to return with another drink for her.
Motioning at her screen, he asked, “You follow Homer Simpson?”
“So?”
“I follow him, too.” He grinned, then tilted his head to the side and bit his bottom lip. The gesture so familiar and endearing that she found it impossible to stay mad at him, like a sensible woman would. Apparently, sensible women were not allowed in Vegas. “What would you say if I asked you to stay longer? We Homer Simpson fans need to stick together. Possibly form a club.”
Maybe this was the way to finally talk to him about that night and the next day. Only she was too much of a coward to bring it up right now, and poolside in front of his friends wasn’t exactly the right place either. One could even argue that she owed it to Christian, and that helping him would be a quick way to ease her guilty conscience. How long was too long to make someone pay for a bad deed, especially when they had no idea they’d been paying all along?
“Guess you’ll have to ask to find out.”
Her jaw almost dropped when he got on his knees in front of her, moving her laptop and taking her hand in his as everyone watched.
