Zane (Alluring Indulgence) (29 page)

Yet.

She
contemplated calling Zoey to ask, but she didn’t want to sound like a complete
idiot. Except when it came to this, she was. Grabbing her cell phone from her
dresser, V paced her bedroom, hearing Zane talking to someone in the other
room. His cell phone vibrated shortly after she agreed to go, and he
disappeared as soon as he answered.

“What
am I supposed to wear to a fetish club?” V asked without preamble as soon as
Zoey answered.

Her
friend’s chuckle made her smile.

“I
have no idea. I was about to call you and ask the very same thing.”

Well,
crap. That didn’t help. V wandered back into her closet, flipping through her
clothes. She had too many damn clothes.

“I
guess it’s safe to assume you’ll be wearing a skirt or a dress, right?” Zoey’s
voice was muffled, as though she were holding the phone between her cheek and
shoulder, probably going through her own clothes if V had to guess.

Of
course, she’d be wearing a dress. What the hell else would she wear to a place
like that? “What kind of place is this?” V asked, trying to plan out an outfit
in her head.

“The
only thing I could get out of Kaleb was that it’s upscale and elegant. That’s
about all he could get from Travis.”

Well,
crap.

An
hour later, V was packed, both her and Zoey agreeing on the outfits they were
wearing the following night at to the club. When all was said and done, V had
picked out both of their outfits, but that’s what she did best, and Zoey looked
to her on many occasions for wardrobe help.

Zane
hadn’t returned to her bedroom, but she no longer heard him on the phone
either. Placing her suitcase on the floor, she lifted the handle and then
rolled it behind her as she headed down the hall to the living room.

“You
get everything you need?” he asked when she walked into the room.

He
was standing by the front windows, the curtains pulled open as he stared out at
the street. V glanced outside to see what he was looking at, but she didn’t see
anything out of the norm. Nothing aside from the front yard where the
unthinkable happened just a few months ago.

Turning
away, V moved into the kitchen, checking the back door and grabbing two bottles
of water from the refrigerator. She wasn’t thirsty necessarily, but she needed
to keep herself busy or she was going to go down that dark path she’d been
frequenting way too much lately. When she returned to the living room, Zane was
now carrying her suitcase, the keys to her door in his hand.

“We
need to stop by Sawyer’s and get one of his cars,” Zane said as he opened the
front door and took a step back.

“For
what?”

“As
much as I love my Jeep, I don’t think it’s worthy of a trip like that.”

V
didn’t respond, figuring his comment told her all she needed to know. As much
as she tried to focus on his words and what he was telling her, just like so
many other times for the last few months, V’s stomach began churning, her palms
began sweating, her breathing accelerated, and she began to shake.

She
hated this part. Absolutely detested it. She had no idea why she couldn’t walk
in or out of her own house without going through this horrific moment of
terror. It seemed to be even worse with Zane there. She almost could smell the
fear from that day when she’d rushed outside finding him bloody and hanging on
as four men continued to beat on him.

V
had thought he was dead.

“I’ve
got you, V,” Zane’s voice was close to her ear, his arms wrapped tight around
her, his body warm against her chest. “Baby, I’ve got you.”

She
hated this part. She hated the fact that she reminded him over and over about
what happened, more so when she reacted like this, but for the life of her, she
couldn’t control it.

“Come
on, V. We’re going to walk out to my Jeep and drive to my house. And for the
next couple of nights, you won’t have to think about anything else except for
us and what interesting things we might find to do in a sex club.”

That
got her attention, and she smiled, like he probably knew she would.

Taking
his proffered hand, V linked her fingers with his, grabbed her purse and her
cell phone and followed him outside. She tried to catch her breath, tried
counting to one hundred as he locked up the house and walked her to the car
carrying her suitcase. Once they were inside, he even buckled her seatbelt,
before moving around to the driver’s side and starting the Jeep.

Ten
minutes later, they were pulling down the long, winding dirt road that led to
Zane’s house, and V was feeling much better. At least the episodes were getting
shorter. She knew that was more thanks to Zane than for any other reason
because if she were left to her own devices, she’d be a puddle of mess in her
kitchen floor right about now.

Zane
pulled the emergency brake, turned off the engine and then climbed out. V
watched him as he moved around to her side before opening her door, kissing her
firmly on the mouth with a smile before taking her hand and helping her out of
the car.

V
glanced around, checking out Sawyer’s house. Because it was dark, thanks to the
short winter days, she couldn’t see much more than the outline of the large
house, and the enormous front porch that appeared to wrap around. It appeared
to be a log cabin style structure, at least in the dark.

Before
they made it to the steps, Sawyer was walking out onto the porch, wearing
nothing but a pair of faded jeans and a smile. The man had a thing for being
partially naked. V had heard more than enough stories about his frequent stunts
out on Main Street. He seemed to have a thing for holding up signs and intrinsically
stirring up gossip within the town. She was starting to believe it was Sawyer’s
way of picking up women. Lots and lots of women.

Sawyer
tossed something in Zane’s direction, and he caught it effortlessly, then
glanced down into his hand.

When
Zane let go of her hand, she kept her eye on him as he went back to the Jeep
and grabbed the suitcase she brought with her. When she heard the trunk release
in the sleek, black car parked beside her, she stared back at Sawyer.

 “We’re
taking the Corvette?” She was so surprised, she wondered how she even got the
words out.

“We
are,” Zane answered simply, grabbing her hand and pulling her around to the
side of the car.

Once
she was in, he shut the door, and V was overwhelmed by the scent of leather and
something else. Some sort of carnauba wax if she had to guess, probably used on
the interior. Whatever it was, it smelled rich and luxurious, sort of like the
car itself.

V
managed to sink into the seat, deciding right then and there that she was going
to give herself over to this experience.

Who
knew if she’d ever have the chance again.

♂♀

The
following morning, Zane and V got up fairly early and went out for breakfast,
before meeting up with his brothers at the construction offices where they laid
out the plan for the night. According to him, Travis had to stick around that
morning for a meeting about the resort that he hadn’t been able to change, but
the rest of them were going to head up to Dallas around noon. Zane had been
antsy to get out of town, so he told his brothers he’d just meet them there.

Now,
three hours behind the wheel of one of the stealthiest cars Zane had ever been
in, as well as being surrounded by the exhilaratingly subtle scent of V had
left him in a highly frustrated mood. Not necessarily in a bad way, but not in
a good way either.

He
felt fine, and the smile on his face was genuine, but Zane was more than ready
to back V up against the wall of the elevator they were now standing in and
fuck her senseless. Except for the fact that there was a little old couple
beside them, he might’ve done just that.

Ok,
he wouldn’t have, but it was fun to pretend.

The
hotel Travis booked for them was a nice one, which sort of explained the high volume
of people checking in at two o’clock in the afternoon. Exactly five hours
before they were expected to meet for dinner at some fancy steakhouse not too
far from the hotel. According to the voicemail Travis left on his phone, this
was going to be an interesting get together, and Zane wasn’t quite sure he was
ready for it.

“Where
are we going for dinner?” V asked as they made their way into the lavish room.
Had it been up to Zane, he wouldn’t have chosen such an expensive room, but
Travis had booked it, paid for it, and left no options for Zane to say
otherwise. So, here they were.

“Ruth’s
Chris?” Zane repeated what his brother had told him, a name that sounded quite strange
to him, but after clarification, Travis had ensured him that was the proper
name.

V
stopped abruptly, spinning to face him, and he was startled by the look on her
face.

“What?”

“Have
you ever been there?” V was acting as though he should know about it or
something.

“No.
I’ve never been to Dallas either,” he reminded her. They’d had that
conversation in the car on the drive up. They both had that in common. Neither
of them had been much for traveling up to this point in their lives.

“They
have one in Austin.”

“Well,
the answer is still no.” He tossed the suitcases on the king size bed, before
turning back to her. “Come here.”

V
didn’t move, but neither did Zane. He merely cocked his head and smiled.

“You’re
evil, Zane Walker.” Laughing, she moved into him, pressing up against him and
then pushing up onto her toes, so he didn’t have to lean that far down to kiss
her. And that he did.

By
the time he was finished kissing her, he’d managed to sneak his hands up
underneath her dress, cupping her ass and grinding his erection against the apex
of her thighs.

“There’s
no time for that,” V pushed against his chest, successfully breaking his hold
on her before stepping away.

Zane
swatted her on the butt, smiling once more. “There’s
always
time for
that.”

“Not
right now there’s not. I need to get ready for tonight, and if we’re going to Ruth’s
Chris, I’ve got work to do.”

What
the hell did that even mean?

Zane
watched as V opened her suitcase, pulled out some sort of small travel case and
then disappeared into the bathroom. Grabbing the remote, he flopped down on the
couch to watch television. He needed five minutes to change, which meant he had
plenty of time.

V
emerged from the bathroom several times over the course of the next few hours,
but Zane had no idea what the hell she’d been doing in there each time. The
only thing he did know, the woman stole his fucking breath when she finally
said she was completely ready. He figured that was his cue to change shirts and
grab his hat – five minutes tops.

Mental
note:
when V’s in charge, schedule at least fifteen
minutes to change.

Zane
found himself changing once, and then again which had been hard to do
considering he only brought one outfit. As it turns out, V knew fashion and
what he had opted to wear, although more than suitable for a steakhouse was not
up to par with her.

As
they walked out of the hotel, hand in hand, Zane had a hard time walking beside
V. He’d much rather be walking behind her. Those fucking shoes made her legs
look ten miles long, her calves were sculpted to perfection and that damn short
skirt swayed just enough, he knew if he watched long enough, he might be able
to get a glimpse of her tight little ass. When he’d mentioned as much, he’d
earned a slap on the arm and a quick kiss on the lips.

Opening
the door for her, Zane waited while she got in, and yes, being the man he was,
he tried to sneak a peek, but somehow V managed to remain perfectly decent the
whole time. Much to his dismay.

When
they arrived at the restaurant, Zane handed the key to the valet and met V on
the sidewalk after the second attendant had opened her door for her. He’d much
rather it’d been him, but he hadn’t been fast enough.

Mistake
on his part. One that he wouldn’t let happen again.

Taking
her hand, they made their way inside where a young hostess asked their names
and then led them to the back of the restaurant where a large group was already
gathered. V’s hand tightened in his when they approached the small group of men
and women, most of whom Zane didn’t recognize.

Kaleb
and Zoey were already there, which Zane was grateful for considering they were
the only people he knew. However, his brother quickly rectified that situation,
introducing both him and V to everyone at the table. Thanks to all of the
commotion, Zane wasn’t sure he’d be able to keep the names straight.

V
chose the seat beside Zoey, leaving Zane to sit on the other side of her, right
next to a big guy with blonde hair and unusually intense blue eyes. If he
remembered correctly, the guy’s name was Cole. By deduction, he would like to
think he was correct, considering he knew Luke and Logan McCoy were twins, and
they were seated on the opposite side of the table as him and V.