Zane (Alluring Indulgence) (40 page)

“Ready
when you are.” Beau knew him better than anyone. Thankfully, he didn’t question
his motives.

After
letting Travis and Sawyer know that he’d catch up with them later, Zane headed
out of the bar.

♀♂

Ten
minutes after they stepped foot in the airport, V had already decided she
wasn’t a big fan of Vegas. She much preferred the quiet of the country compared
to the overwhelming noise. Everywhere she turned there were people and lights
and sounds, all of which she was ready to get away from.

A
limo had been waiting for them, which was nice. Now that V was in her hotel
room, unpacking the few things she brought, she felt almost lonely. With Zoey
staying with Kaleb and Gage, V had been left to her own devices. Not that Zoey
hadn’t tried to convince her that they could share a room. She had. V refused.
Now she was alone for a few minutes which didn’t help her mood any.

She
knew what the plan was, and she knew at any time she’d come face to face with
Zane. She’d missed him fiercely during the time she was at her mother’s, but
she hadn’t called him and he hadn’t called her. On numerous occasions, she
found herself wanting to text him just to see how he was doing, but she managed
to refrain from doing so. According to Zoey, Zane was doing fine. She needn’t
worry.

As
much as V missed her mother, after the second day, she’d begun to question her
sanity. No, Regina didn’t have a strange man in her life. Somewhere along the
way, her mother not only found comfort in her dog, she also found comfort in
church. Not that V minded that at all, but listening to the constant preaching
from her mother had nearly sent her into hysterics by day three.

There
was no doubt in V’s mind that Regina was on the right path, but V was just
grateful to be going back home after this little Vegas stopover because she was
more than ready for her regular routine. Not to mention, a little quiet. The
only thing she hadn’t missed while she’d been with her mother was the panic
attacks. Without having to go home and relive the events of that one fateful
day over and over again, V was finally able to relax.

A
sharp knock on the door had V scrambling to toss her things into a drawer. She
opened the door to see Zoey, Kaleb and Gage smiling back at her.

“Ready?”
Zoey grinned from ear to ear.

“For?”
V had no idea what they were planning to do, but she knew she wasn’t going to
be able to hide out in her hotel room for the duration. Although it wasn’t a bad
idea.

“The
boys are across the street at a little bar. We’re heading over to join them,”
Zoey explained.

The
boys. Right. V almost forgot that half the town came to celebrate with them.
That also meant that Zane was likely one of the boys Zoey was referring to.

Nodding
her head, V ran back to the dresser, grabbed her purse and her room key and
then met up with them in the hallway. Ten minutes later the four of them were
joining up with the band of merry drunks – or very close to it – at a cute
little restaurant on the strip.

When
V walked into the restaurant, she was instantly aware of the delicious aroma,
but more so, the sound of rock music blaring in the background. The many voices
of the patrons were battling to see who could actually be louder, and V wasn’t
sure which was winning.

She
and Zoey took two empty seats at the bar while Gage and Kaleb stood beside
them, the rest of the bachelor slash bachelorette party crew closing in on
them. With as much discretion as she could muster, V glanced around to see
where Zane was, but she didn’t find him.

“He
left,” Sawyer offered helpfully. Obviously she hadn’t been discrete at all.

She
bit her tongue before she could do something stupid like ask where he was,
instead asking the bartender for a margarita. She needed it. In a bad way.

Either
no one seemed to notice that Zane wasn’t there – not likely – or they just
didn’t want to bring it up with V around, but no one spoke of Zane or Beau or
questioned where they were. For that V was grateful. She wasn’t sure where they
were, nor would she ask, but her curiosity was killing her. She had wanted to
see Zane, almost as much as she wanted another margarita. He was noticeably
avoiding her, not that she could blame him.

“We
should go out and hustle some pool together,” Brendon’s deep voice rang in V’s ear,
making her smile.

“Not
in this lifetime,” she answered. Not in Vegas anyway. There was no way she was
going to risk something like hustling in a city known for its gambling. There
was no telling who they’d come up against.

“Sore
sport,” Brendon teased, but then patted her on the shoulder and V wanted to
cry. He was trying to cheer her up, which meant her mood was obvious. She was
here to support her best friend, not to wallow in her own self-pity. If Zane
didn’t want to have anything to do with her, well, she’d brought it on herself.

Beau
warned her, and yes, she spent the better part of the week thinking about him
and what she was going to do about whatever this was between them.
Unfortunately, she hadn’t come to a decision.

If
she were honest with herself, V was ready to settle down. No, maybe she hadn’t
spent the last ten years of her life sowing her wild oats, but that’s because
she didn’t have any to sow. She never wanted to mess around with more than one
man. Hell, for the most part, she hadn’t wanted to mess around with
any
man.
What happened between her and Zane was unexpected. The fact that he pursued her
for so long still didn’t seem real. Now that he wasn’t, was a little painful as
well. She just didn’t know which hurt more.

“You
ok?” Zoey asked in that sweet voice that told V she was concerned.

“Huh?
Oh, yeah! Great!” Again, this was not the time or place for self-pity. “How
about a shot?”

With
that, V and the guys managed to get Zoey and Kaleb fairly intoxicated.

♂♀

By
the time Zane and Beau made it back to their hotel room, it was two o’clock in
the morning. Blessedly wasted, Zane passed out as soon as his drunken ass hit
the pillow. This morning was an entirely different story. He’d already had to
yell at the assholes banging on his hotel room door three times. He knew who
they were, so he didn’t bother to get out of bed. Glancing at the clock on the
nightstand, he knew he wasn’t going to be able to waste much more of the day
away.

Forcing
himself out of bed, Zane noticed that Beau was already gone, so he shot off a text
to find out where he was and then jumped in the shower. Fifteen minutes later
he was dressed and ready to head out. Picking up his phone, he noticed Beau
hadn’t gotten back with him, so he sent a note to Kaleb. The response he
received was almost instant, letting him know they were in the restaurant
downstairs.

Zane
made his way through the massive hotel and onto the casino floor. His brain was
sluggish, and he felt like shit, but he figured food was in order and definitely
water. Once he reached the restaurant, he let the hostess know who he was
meeting, and he was led to the table at the back. The instant he saw V, their
eyes meeting briefly, his heart stuttered in his chest. Considering the only
empty chair at the table was the one next to her, Zane turned around and walked
out, ignoring the disruptive shouts from his brothers.

Fuck
them.

Zane
wasn’t playing this game. Not with them, and certainly not with V. Without
looking back, Zane made his way to a small shop around the corner, grabbed a
sports drink and a protein bar and then perused the casino.

It
wasn’t that he was trying to be a dick. He just wasn’t going to be the one to approach
her about where their relationship stood at the moment. She held all the cards.
It was her turn, and if she chose to fold, Zane would walk away. It was going
to hurt like a mother fucker, but he wasn’t going to chase a woman who didn’t want
to be chased. He loved her; there was no doubt about it. He just wasn’t willing
to let her go back and forth anymore. She had a decision to make and as much as
he prayed she’d choose him, he wasn’t going to beg.

Ever
since that very first night when they’d talked at Jaxson’s party, Zane had
known that what he would feel for her was going to be significantly different from
any other woman he’d ever met.

V
was so damn pretty, especially when she was flustered like she was right at
that moment. He’d even tried a cheesy pickup line on her just to see what she’d
say, and it’d worked like he hoped. Now, as she stared back at him, still
trying to figure out whether he was or was not trying to pick her up, Zane
couldn’t help but smile.

“Need
another drink?” he asked, noticing the small cup in her hand was empty.

V
glanced down, then back up at him, but she didn’t smile. That didn’t stop him
from laughing.

“What’s
so funny?” Clearly she was not amused with him.

“Nothing.
Come on, let’s go outside where it’s quiet,” he told her, taking her free hand
in his and pulling her along behind him. To his surprise, she moved with him,
not trying to pull away like he initially suspected.

As
soon as they stepped outside of the overcrowded house, Zane felt like he could
breathe better. He’d grabbed two beers on his way and handed one over to V as
they moved away from the house. The night was warm, and only a few people were
mulling about in the front yard. Noticing Beau’s truck was parked out front,
Zane made his way over to it while V followed along behind him. He lowered the
tailgate and patted the seat beside him as he dropped onto it.

V
glanced down as though the truck might bite, but apparently she decided it
wouldn’t because she climbed up beside him.

“How’s
your mom?” Zane asked, not surprised in the least when V flinched like he’d hit
her or something. He didn’t know everything there was to know about Vanessa
Carmichael, but he knew enough to be dangerous.

“She’s
fine.” V sounded completely uninterested in the conversation, so he moved on.

“Zoey
and Kaleb, huh? Who’da thought they’d finally wake up and see the light?”

That
garnered a laugh from V and Zane decided right then and there that he liked the
sound. A lot.

“I
don’t know what took them so long,” she admitted, still laughing.

“What
about you? Who’re you seeing?” he questioned her, taking a long pull on the
beer he was holding.

The
glare she sent him was amusing and so damn sexy, Zane felt a twinge in his
groin. He didn’t say another word, just listened to the sound of the wind as it
hissed through the trees, picking up a little more than earlier. The night was
dark, due to the clouds covering the moon, and the music that billowed out
through the open windows of Jaxson’s house was a nice addition to the
comfortable silence between him and the beautiful woman sitting beside him.

“What’s
with all the questions?” V questioned a few minutes later.

“Just
trying to get to know you. Is that a crime?” he chuckled, then downed the rest
of his beer before chucking the bottle into the bed of Beau’s truck.

“You’d
be smart to go find someone your own age, Zane Walker,” V whispered, sounding serious
and not at all interested in getting to know him.

“And
how old do you think I am?” He wondered if she even knew or if that was her
first attempt to cock block him.

The
thought made him smile.

“You’re
just a baby,” she replied.

“You’re
what? Twenty-nine?” Zane couldn’t hide the irritation in his voice. One thing
he hated was when people used age as an excuse.

“Thirty,
thank you very much.”

“Well,
there you go. Just a few years older than me,” he retorted.

“Maturity
counts too,” V whispered, and Zane barely heard her. But he did.

Turning
to face her, he instinctively reached out and caught her chin with his fingers,
turning her face so she was looking directly at him. “You think so, huh?”
Without asking permission, Zane leaned in and pressed his lips to hers. He had
the good sense to wait to see if she’d push him away, but when she didn’t, he
sought the inside of her mouth with his tongue.

When
V let loose, kissing him back and leaning into him, Zane wrapped one arm around
her, using his tongue to explore the delectable, rich taste of her. She tasted
like beer and sunshine, and his dick no longer twitched. It fucking ached. She
kissed him back, and the rest of their surroundings disappeared, replaced only
by the sultry little breaths she took, and the moans she fought to keep inside.

“You
got any more excuses?” he asked her, pulling his lips from hers, but not
putting any distance between them. She stared back at him, and Zane knew
exactly what she was feeling because he felt it too. Something strong and persistent
and so damn thrilling, he thought his chest might just explode.