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He whistles low. “And what did you do?”
I’m silent for a few moments.
My shoulders slump as I curl into myself. “Nothing.” I sound small. Ifeelsmall.
“You know you don’t have to put up with that bullshit, right?” His voice is hard. He sounds pissed.
I wonder what Zane would do if he ever came face-to-face with Dr. Cooper. Would he say something? Threaten him? Confront him? Would I want him to do all those things and more, or would I want him to pretend like it never happened? Like I did.
“I know.” I say the words mostly to pacify him, but the truth is, I’m not sure I ever knew that I didn’t have to put up with Dr. Cooper’s overtures.
It was such a strange position to be in. He was my boss. I liked my job. I liked him. And way down deep, in a place I could barely admit to myself, I liked the attention. That fact alone left me feeling guilty and culpable. And so confused. I was never the innocent lamb while he was the stalking wolf, though maybe, in hindsight, I was. It’d never crossed my mind to have a relationship with Dr. Cooper other than a working one. Not until he started pursuing me.
“What about you?” I ask, mostly to shift the focus off me.
“What about me?”
“I know you had dreams and ambitions. And that everything changed after your injury. I know you have businesses you help run—”
“I’m mostly a silent partner,” he interrupts.
“You’re the moneybags,” I supply. I look over my shoulder to see him snort and shake his head with a small smile lifting his lips. “Are you happy?”
“How could I not be happy with all this around me?”
I glance around at our surroundings. The fire has burned down to embers, casting a soft red glow over Zane’s features.
“I know you love it here. But are youhappy?”
“Am I happy?” he repeats to himself, like he’s considering it for the first time. “Happiness is fleeting. I’m content.”
“Do you ever think about the future? What you want down the line?”
“You mean, like a wife and kids?” he asks.
“Sure,” I say. “Or anything. What does your future look like?”
He shifts again until his other knee is bent too. “I never think about stuff like that. I’m more of a live-for-the-moment kind of guy.”
I smile at his honesty. “I think that’s one of the things that drew me to you. I’ve always been searching for that next step, working toward it. I never took time to stop and smell the roses. You force me to stay in the moment.”
If there’s one thing Zane is teaching me, it’s how to be present. I was always in such a hurry to get to the next thing that I forgot how to enjoy the journey there. And getting there is often the most fun part.
“Life is like sex,” he says with a smirk, turning my head with his hand until I’m facing him. “You don’t want to rush straight through it just to hit the orgasm. It’s the buildup. You have to lie back and enjoy the ride.”
I roll my eyes and laugh.
I’ve enjoyed the ride with Zane so far. And I don’t mean just the sex part, though that’s been amazing too.
My body starts to throb when his mouth covers mine. He kisses me long and deeply. With intention. I can still taste the sweet,sugary dessert on his tongue. His hands start to wander over my body, touching and feeling my curves over my clothes.
“Want to check out my tent?” he murmurs before sucking that tender spot on my neck.
I laugh again. “Are you propositioning me?”
“Yep,” he freely admits. “Is it working?”
“Mmhmm.”
