Page 120 of You Make Me Feel
“Our lips are sealed,” Skyler says, crossing her heart. “But if you think Asher’s overprotective now, wait until that baby starts kicking. He’ll probably wrap you in bubble wrap and tie you to the bed.” She wriggles her eyebrows at the last one.
“Do not give him ideas,” Francie mutters. “He’ll find a way to put a security camera in my womb if he could.”
“Welp,” I say, wrinkling my nose. “That doesn’t sound pleasant.”
“Right?” Francie says. But there’s a sparkle in her eye she always gets when she talks about him.
“But on the topic of Fitzgerald men,” Romy says,leaning forward, her chin propped on her hand. “You guys have been hiding Wyatt under a rock.”
Eden wrinkles her nose. “That’s because he always stinks of fish.”
Skyler giggles. “He does not. He wears Sauvage. We buy it for him every Christmas.”
“He also only replies in emojis,” Eden says to Romy, rolling her eyes. “The man has no ability to converse in long form.”
“A nice change from his brothers,” Skyler says. “Hudson never shuts up.”
“Nor does Asher.” Francie sighs. She looks at me. “How about Zach? Does he talk constantly?”
I blink, because the man’s a doer not a talker. And he’s mostly been doing me. “I ah…”
Thankfully the question coincides with the orchestra taking a break. They’re replaced by a DJ who starts playing a banging rock song that was huge this summer. There’s a rush of sequins and glitter as guests head to the floor to dance.
Zach and Wyatt appear in the doorway, and I let out a soft breath as his eyes land on me. A familiar clench pulls deep in my belly.
“Oh my heart,” Romy murmurs as she looks over at them. “Get me a man who looks at me like he wants to pick me up and throw me over his shoulder.”
I don’t answer. I’m too busy watching as Zach crosses the room with long, purposeful strides, never breaking eye contact. Every cell in my body tightens in anticipation. By the time he reaches our table, I’m already flushed all over.
“You okay?” he asks, his voice pitched low, meant for me alone. He reaches out, like he can’t bear not to touch me, and runs his fingers over my cheek.
Iswallow hard. How can one little touch make me feel like I’m on fire? “I’m fine.” I tip my head to the side, looking up at him. “Are you?” I ask, wondering what he had to go to the office about.
For a second he says nothing. Just holds my face in his warm palms. “Can we talk?”
“Now?” I ask, ignoring the way his tone makes my stomach tighten.
“You’re gonna have to get past the security guys,” Romy warns him. Then she tips her head at Wyatt and smiles. He looks back at her, his face impassive, though I notice his gaze dips to her lips.
Zach’s hand tightens around mine. “Yeah, now. Let’s go,” he murmurs.
The table erupts into conversation, as Zach leads me over to the corner of the room. The music is quieter here, and the only interruption is the low hum of voices drifting from the dance floor. Zach pulls me close, his hands wrapping around my waist as he lowers his face to my hair and breathes in.
“What is it?” I ask him. “What happened in the office? Are you sure you’re okay?”
Zach takes another deep breath. “Darien has been spotted.”
I’m not going to lie, just hearing my ex’s name makes my stomach drop.
“Where?” I ask. “Is he in the halfway house?”
“No.” He clears his throat. “Asher’s been trying to find him for days. His team finally tracked him down to the mainland.”
I know ‘the mainland’ means the other side of the ocean in Liberty-speak.
“That close?” I ask, trying to keep breathing. It’s okay, he can’t hurt me. This place is surrounded after all.
But there’s only one reason he’d want to come this far east and that’s because of me.
