Embrace (Two Hearts Book 2) Read online

  “So to sum all this up, you totally want me.” He says, flipping the mood from serious and heavy to joking and playful in the matter of seconds and then laughing at his own cockiness.

  “I totally do.” I joke back, grabbing his face with both of my hands and kissing him square on the mouth. “And you're damn lucky for it too.”

  “That I am Grace Morgan.” He says, kissing me again. “That I am.”

  Chapter Eleven

  I wake to a slight swaying motion and in desperate need of a bathroom. It takes me a moment to realize that I am still in the master suite of the yacht and that the person currently draped over my body is Zayne.

  I can't remember falling asleep but we must have talked into the late hours of the night. Having no clock in the cabin and my phone somewhere on the deck, I have no way of knowing the time. I gently peel Zayne's limp arm from my waist before sliding my legs out from underneath his.

  He stirs lightly, rolling onto his stomach, but doesn't wake as I quietly slip from the bed and tip toe into the master bathroom. I take a couple of minutes to freshen up, locating some much needed toiletries in a small wicker basket under the sink.

  My body feels deliciously sore and I can't help but smile at myself in the mirror, remembering the way that he literally trembled against me as we brought each other to the brink over and over again.

  I have no idea where this will go and at least for right now, that's okay. Because no matter what happens, good or bad, last night will forever be remembered as one of the best nights of my life.

  Trailing my hand along my collarbone, visions of his fingers, his lips, his eyes, flash through my mind. The way he held me, caressed me, explored every inch of my body like he was on some grand adventure.

  When I reenter the room, Zayne is still fast asleep. I feel around for my dress, figuring it must have ended up on the floor sometime throughout the night but I can't seem to locate it anywhere. The room isn't dark but it's dim enough that locating a tiny scrap of black material proves impossible. Remembering I also have no underwear, I do the only thing I can, crawl back into bed and wait for Zayne to wake.

  It doesn't take long for him to stir, probably in large part due to my restless body not being able to find a comfortable position in the bed and feeling anything but tired. I know the minute he's awake and am not at all surprised when one eye peeks open and a lopsided smile stretches across his perfect lips.

  “Good morning.” He says, stretching his arms out causing the muscles in his back to tense and flex. I try my best not to be distracted by his perfectly tanned skin and smooth broad shoulders but a man this beautiful deserves to be admired.

  Catching me ogling him, I get another brilliant smile before he wraps his arm around my waist and pulls me to him. He rolls to his side so that we are facing each other and places a sweet kiss to the tip of my nose.

  “Do you have any idea where my dress is?” I ask, swiping a strand of stray hair from his forehead, taking a moment to fondle the silkiness of it before letting my hand fall to his chest.

  “I like you better this way.” He says, his hand trailing down my bare back leaving goosebumps in its wake.

  “That may be, but the fact still remains that eventually I need to go home and in order to do so, I need clothing.” I laugh when he crinkles his nose is dislike.

  “Well I guess it's a good thing that you will not be going home today.” He grins wider when he catches my expression.

  “I thought we didn't have a destination. Certainly we aren't so far out that we can't head back to the city. Even if I find my dress, it's extremely too short to wear with no panties. Thanks for that by the way.” I say, pushing myself into a sitting position and playfully swatting his bare butt cheek.

  “I said that there doesn't need to be a destination, not that there wasn't. You assumed.” He laughs, tugging my arm so that I am forced to lay back down. Instead of curling into his side, I lay on my back. “Besides, I am nothing if not prepared. There are clean clothes for both of us hanging in the closet.” He chimes, clearly very proud of himself.

  While I know how he is, it still surprises me that he is always so through. Never missing a beat when it comes to getting his way. He eliminates any and all excuses before I even have a chance to make them just to ensure that I am his for as long as he wants.

  “So where are we going then?” I ask, peering up at the cabin ceiling, just now noticing that it is the same dark color as the walls.

  “You'll see.” He says, laughing when I look over and give him an evil scowl. “You know, it's not wise to be mean to the man that has the power to keep you here forever.”

  “Oh please. I am much too valuable.” I say with my best rich person impersonation. “Someone would find me in the matter of hours.”

  “Is that so?” He laughs, rolling towards me and draping his leg over both of mine, pinning me to the bed.

  “Care to test that theory?” He asks, trailing his hand down my naked torso and finally settling on my side. I know what's coming before he even moves. I can tell by the mischievous look on his face that in the matter of seconds I am going to be squealing and bucking against him as he tickles me into submission.

  “Don't you dare.” I manage to warn but my words fall on deaf ears. Squeezing my side, he flips his body over top of mine and straddles my waist, effectively immobilizing my lower half, leaving only my hands to fight him off.

  “I swear to god Zayne, if you don't stop.....” I get out through my laughter, not able to actually form a full coherent sentence.

  He continues his torturous movements for a few more moments, my body wildly flailing beneath him, trying desperately to get away from him but not actually being able to move at all.

  Abruptly he falls forward, pinning my hands above my head. Hovering over me, he studies me intently for a moment, his face soft and relaxed.

  “What?” I question breathlessly, still trying to calm my lungs from trying to fight him off.

  He doesn't respond right away but still continues to hover. If he wasn't looking at me so adoringly, I might feel self conscious under his gaze but right now, I don't feel that way at all.

  “You're so beautiful. You know that?” He asks, tightening his grip on my wrists when I roll my eyes, completely unintentionally might I add.

  “Sorry.” I say on a laugh.

  “Do you even realize that you do it?” He asks, a playful smile lighting up his face.

  I shake my head, bursting into laughter when he does something completely unexpected and rolls his eyes at me. I start to say something and he does it again. By the third time, I'm ready to smack him in the back of the head, only I can't because I am pinned below him.

  “Do you see how annoying that is?” He asks, tacking on one more eye roll to really drive his point home.

  “Okay, okay. I get it.” I laugh, unable to argue with the fact that it is probably not the best way to communicate with a person.

  “I knew you'd see it my way.” He says, his voice dropping low as he slowly lowers his face to mine, stopping just mere inches from my mouth.

  I try to lift my head to meet his lips but he pulls back a few inches, purposely teasing me. I pout my lip out and try again, making it closer this time but still not able to reach him.

  “Fine, don't kiss me.” I say, plopping my head back down on the pillow. “I didn't really want to kiss you anyways.” I say in the snarkiest voice I can muster.

  “Is that so?” He asks, dragging his bottom lip between his teeth causing my breath to hitch. My god this man is so unbelievably sexy and what's worse is that he knows it. Leaning down, once again his faces comes within just inches of mine.

  “You want to know what I think?” He asks, cocking his head to the side, a lazy smile turning up the corner of his mouth. “I think that you are dying for me to kiss you. I think that right now, all you can think about is how it feels when I drag my tongue along your lower lip.” He says, showing the action on himself, my body imme
diately tensing below him.

  “Or when I nip your tongue with my teeth.” He says, dragging the tip of his tongue through his teeth on a slow hiss.

  My breath immediately quickens and I can feel my pulse beating rapidly against my chest. If I had to guess, I would say that he can see it too. He knows exactly what he's doing to me. He can see the flush of my cheeks. The way my eyes become hooded with lust. The way that my body clenches below him.

  “You love how it feels to taste me, for me to taste you. Tell me Grace. Is that what you want? Do you want to feel that right now?” He asks, scooting his hips and grinding his erection across my belly.

  A breathless “Yes” falls from my lips even though I want to fight it. I want to play hard to get and tease him the way he's teasing me but I can't find it in me to resist. I want him too badly in this moment to do anything but give into the fire creeping through my veins and slowly pulling me into an all consuming inferno.

  “Yes what Grace?” He purrs, sliding his bare body down mine, his skin like silk across my naked torso.

  “Kiss me.” I plead, arching my back and pressing my body into him.

  “Just a kiss?” He asks, leaning down to take my breast in his mouth, releasing my hands which immediately fly into his hair.

  “More.” I moan when he flicks his tongue across my hardening nipple and then moves to the other one.

  “More?” He hisses against my chest.

  “Everything.” I cry out when he nips at my hard bud with his teeth.

  “You'll have to be more specific than that.” I can feel his smile against my skin as his lips trail below my breast and slowly down my stomach.

  “I want everything.” I repeat, arching my lower body up when his lips land just above my hip bone. My skin feels hot and sticky and while normally I would be embarrassed by my behavior, I want him too badly to care if I have to beg or not.

  He laughs lightly, his kisses working inwards across my bare pelvic bone. “I think that can be arranged.” He growls, sending my already sensitive body in an absolute frenzy of need and want.

  Chapter Twelve

  “Bear Mountain? I've never heard of it.” I say, standing on the edge of the deck, leaning against the railing as I peer out at the beautiful scenic nature laid out before me.

  “It's a pretty popular tourist location but if you hike, there are secluded spots. I like it because it reminds me of home. Plus, it's really peaceful out here.” He says, draping his arm over my shoulders as the boat pulls into dock.

  “I don't get the chance to come out here often but I thought it would be a nice way for us to spend the day together.” He says, shrugging as he pulls me tighter into his side.

  “Now the outfit makes sense.” I laugh, nudging him in the ribcage with my elbow. I thought he was crazy this morning when he pulled out a pair of jeans and tennis shoes for me to wear. Not that I am opposed to such things but given the midsummer heat, it made little sense to me at the time. Hopefully the thin tank that he brought for me as well, will offer a little relief from the heat but it's really not likely.

  Though I can't complain too much. At least he was thoughtful enough to not only bring me clothes but to bring me things that were appropriate for what we are doing. Not to mention the fact that he looks absolutely edible in his denim jeans and fitted black v-neck shirt. Add on the backwards baseball cap and I physically have to wipe the drool away from my chin every time I glance in his direction.

  “I just thought the least I could do is not subject you to poison ivy and insect bites on a day where I kidnapped you.” He jokes, kissing my temple.

  “Thanks for that.” I laugh, looking up to see him smiling down at me. I can't control the way my pulse pounds or my breath hitches at the sight of him so utterly beautiful and uncharacteristically carefree.

  “You ready?” He asks, watching one of the crew men tie off the yacht to the dock and signal that we are good to go.

  I nod, entwining my fingers with his as he leads me off the yacht and across a long wooden dock where several other boats are also parked, no doubt their owners out for a day on the mountain as well.

  Zayne leads me away from the main focal point of the park and eventually into a deep wooded area that has a thin path leading the way through the forest of trees. I feel like we have been walking for miles but know that less than an hour has passed since we left the boat.

  We make small talk on our hike upwards. Stopping every few minutes to look out over the trees from a high point so that we can see how far we've come so far. It's so strange to see him out here in nature, moving through the trails and pointing at animals like he doesn't have a care in the world.

  I never imagined him as an outdoors kind of person but I guess there's still so much I don't know about him. Just because he's rich, intelligent, and spends ninety nine percent of his time swallowed in custom made suits, doesn't mean that's what makes him who he is or determines what he enjoys doing outside of the time he dedicates to Zalec.

  He's so natural and relaxed and I can't remember a time where I have ever seen him so much in his element. He talks about his brothers and what it was like growing up with parents that might as well be reenacting the movie “The War of the Roses.” He talks about high school and playing football but not one time does he mention Chad or the girl that tore their friendship apart, Christy.

  “Did you love her?” I ask when we stop another mile up the mountain to take a short break. Sitting down on an old tree stump, I stretch out my legs and peer up at him.

  “Love who?” He asks, clearly caught off guard that a story about a prank he once played on his older brother spurred such a random question from me.

  “Christy.” I answer.

  “No.” His response is short.

  “But you must have cared for her in some way right? I mean, why else would you risk your friendship with Chad to be with someone you had no feelings for?” I ask, realizing how two sided the question may seem.

  What am I really asking? Did you love her or do you love me? Suddenly very nervous about his response, I wish I could rewind the last two minutes and let him finish telling the story that seemed to be a rather easy conversation for him.

  “I don't know.” He sighs, crossing the small path to join me on the stump. He knocks his shoulder with mine and smiles at me, somehow completely reassuring me in that one act that my question is not inappropriate and it's okay to want to know these things about him.

  “I cared for her, yes. But I was never in love with her. I didn't want to be with her forever or anything. I don't know. I think a lot of it, like I said before, stems from the competitiveness between me and Chad. I didn't want her love because I loved her. I wanted it because he had it. Does that make sense?”

  “No.” We both laugh in unison. “But I mean, I guess it does. It's completely ridiculous and stupid but I get it. I have two brothers, I know how competitive men can be.” I say, bumping his shoulder again with mine.

  “Were you sad?” I ask, losing my breath a little when he turns to face me. “When she lost the baby I mean?” I take a deep breath, hoping I'm not opening old wounds.

  “I don't know. I mean, if I say no then that makes me seem like a completely heartless jackass right? But if I say yes, then I guess I would kind of be lying. The truth is, I was a kid. I didn't understand or grasp the realness of the situation and because she lost the baby so early on, I never really got used to or attached to the idea of being someone's father.” He pulls off his hat and rubs his forehead before pulling it back down in place.

  “When I think about it now, yeah I guess it makes me a little sad but then again, what kind of father would I have been? Hell, I'm not even sure I would be any good at it now, let alone fifteen years ago.” He lets out a nervous laugh, clearly a little uneasy with the direction of the conversation.

  “For the record.” I say, once again bumping his shoulder, watching his body sway out and then back into mine. “I think you are an amazingly swee
t and generous man that takes care of the people he loves and I think you would be an amazing father. If that's something you ever wanted that is.” I stutter on the last part.

  He gives me a goofy lopsided grin but doesn't comment. Sensing that our conversation has run its course, I stand up and move back towards the trails.

  “Come on old man.” I joke. “There's still a long way to go.” I turn, waiting for him to join me before grabbing his hand and continuing up the trail.

  The conversation turns light again and before I know it we are tripping up the mountain, laughing hysterically at some of our old childhood stories. He tells me about how one time he locked Brock in the pantry and refused to let him out until he ate an entire box of raw spaghetti noodles, while I retell some of the boneheaded things my two brothers used to do to one another.

  Being the only girl and the youngest, my brothers took it pretty easy on me. Ian is the jokester and while he has spent a good deal of his life tormenting me, it's always been verbal. Thank god neither of them ever pulled some of the crap that Zayne and his brothers put each through.

  “Come here.” He says, cutting off my laughter as he steers us off of the dirt path and through an area cluttered with overgrown grass, weeds, and tree branches.

  “Should we really be going off of the path?” I ask, tripping over some stray branches and stumbling forward.

  He reaches out and steadies me before I fall face first on the ground, laughing lightly. “Careful.” He says, pulling my body against his. I try not to let the sudden closeness between our two bodies distract me but it's damn near impossible not to give into the pull and the heat now surging through every limb of my body.

  “Thanks.” I get out breathlessly, straightening my position and pushing a small distance between us.