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Like I’d ever let something as minor as another girl deter me from going after a guy. Poaching was a speciality of mine and it had been a while since I’d had a decent challenge. I had to give Zac credit for getting the girlfriend comment in nice and early, he’d already outdone a lot of the guys I’d known. It would almost make me sad to corrupt him but the heady thrill of the chase consumed me, promising my next feel-good hit so I pouted and tilted my head on an angle.
‘Maybe I will,’ I said, looking up at Zac from beneath my lashes. His eyes widened but I was too intoxicated by the rush of endorphins to care and leaned in closer until my mouth was within a whisker of the sensitive spot where his jaw and ear connected. ‘But I’d much rather find out for myself,’ I murmured huskily, making sure my lips brushed against his skin.
Zac’s breath hitched in his throat and he swallowed deeply, fixing his gaze on a spot over my shoulder. His body language screamed at me to back off but he was just too polite to voice it. He got around it by locking his jaws so tightly together I expected to hear a grinding sound and I swear he’d stopped breathing. It was like I’d pressed some invisible pause button by accident and left him frozen.
What have I done?
Moisture gathered in my eyes as tears threatened to spill over, but I didn’t cry over guys and I certainly didn’t cry over rejection. I’d had a lifetime to get used to that feeling. Zac’s body language reached deafening level and snapped me out of my stupor. I pulled away to give him some space but foolishly risked a glance at his face as I sank back onto my heels.
A slight red tinge crept across the top of his cheekbone to the tip of his ear and he eyed me warily. Within a millisecond I could tell that I’d blown it. A barrier had gone up between us and it wasn’t one of mine. Being on the other side was as effective as a bucket of cold water being dumped on me and it doused the more stubborn flames.
‘I’m sorry, I… That was…’ My voice quivered and then died altogether. If I could have wound back the clock, I would have but the damage was done. Goosebumps erupted over my arms but my hands were still held within Zac’s grip so I couldn’t use them to chase away the icy chill that coursed through my veins.
First my snark had failed and now one of my best come-on’s to date had been nothing short of a disaster. Everything had been fine earlier so it had to be something to do with either Charlie or Zac. Ridiculous as it seemed, I found it easier to consider the possibility that Zac was impervious to me. Or maybe the tree somehow zapped my powers?
No, my ‘powers’ lay on the wash stand of my en-suite bathroom. Mum made a point of telling me how much I looked like my father, then in the same breath telling me how ugly he’d been. She’d been right all along…without the lenses and the make-up I was nothing.
‘Alice?’ Zac’s voice sounded tentative. Concerned. ‘You’ve gone really pale. Are you OK?’
‘No,’ I blurted. How many ordeals in one day was a person supposed to be able to cope with? ‘I’ve had a really shitty day, that’s all.’
‘Do you want to talk about it?’
‘Talk about it?’ I stared down at our joined hands, the only connection we had left, and bit back a sob. What was it about him had that allowed him to get under my skin? ‘I can’t even look at you any more.’
‘Is this because of—’
‘Just forget it.’ I snatched my hands back and stumbled to my feet. The wide open space of the park now suffocated me and I yearned for the sanctuary of my room. ‘I’m sorry you got caught up in my latest crisis, Zac.’
‘What crisis?’
I ignored him and made a beeline for Charlie. ‘We need to go now, Charlie Bear.’
He looked up from my phone which he’d obviously found. ‘But we haven’t had our picnic yet,’ he said, his eyes beseeching mine.
A tear spilled onto my cheek but I dashed it away with the back of my fingers. ‘I know, and I’m sorry.’ Yet again. I’d done nothing but apologise all day.
‘Is that why you’re crying again?’ He hadn’t bought the shampoo theory then?
‘A little bit,’ I said, forcing a smile onto my face for his sake. ‘I really need to go home but how about a movie afternoon instead? And we could have our picnic on the floor?’
‘Yay!’
‘Come on then, let’s get out of here.’ I turned to leave but found Zac stood right behind me with his arms crossed in front of him.
‘What about your hands?’ he asked.
‘I’m sure I’ll survive,’ I said, throwing his own words back at him again. Uncanny how I could remember nearly everything he’d said, word for word.
‘Did you walk here then?’
‘No, I dro—’ My shoulders slumped and jogged another tear free. I couldn’t possibly drive a car. We were trapped.
‘Where are your keys?’ Zac asked, interpreting the rest of my sentence.
‘In the front pocket of my rucksack. Why?’
‘Great. I’ll drive.’
‘But—’
‘Do you have any better ideas?’ He strode towards my bag then hitched it over his shoulder like it weighed nothing, scooping up the blanket in the same movement. ‘Charlie, can you grab the ball for me please, mate?’
Charlie of course obliged—the traitor—and happily trotted back towards the car with Zac. Just like that, he had assumed leadership. I ought to have kicked up a stink rather than set the women’s lib movement back to the Fifties but after the day I’d had, Zac was welcome to take control. They both stopped and looked back once they realised I wasn’t with them.
‘Alice?’ Zac called.
‘Coming,’ I said, breaking into a trot to catch up.
The damage might have been done but there was still a chance I could fix it. No matter what, I didn’t want Zac to leave with a bad opinion of me, regardless of how true it might be with everybody else.
Chapter five (#ulink_4f72611d-dc6d-5081-9bea-26c772ced965)
Patient
Charlie ran on ahead; this time on a mission to collect every single red leaf that had fallen so I fell in step beside Zac, maintaining an appropriate distance from him. We walked together in amiable silence but it wasn’t long before my legs reminded me of their close encounter with the branch. The backs of my calves and the insides of my knees and thighs stung as if I’d been attacked by a porcupines.
Every time they brushed together, I had to swallow a yelp and ended up walking like some macho cowboy. Either that or a heavily pregnant woman. Zac’s guard remained up for the whole walk but at least he’d stuck around. When we arrived at the car park, his feet dragged to a stop and he whipped his head around to face me.
‘I’ve got to drive that?’ he asked, thumbing towards the only vehicle parked there.
‘What’s wrong with my car?’
‘It’s…’ He swallowed. ‘Pink.’
‘Yes, it is.’ Thank goodness I’d mastered deadpan. A bit of banter might just help get things back to how they’d been before I’d fucked up. It certainly couldn’t do any more harm.
‘You drive a bright-pink car.’
‘Full marks for observation but I prefer to think of it as hot pink. It sounds less garish, don’t you think?’
‘Hot pink?’
‘That’s right.’
‘And I’ve got to drive it?’
I shrugged, refusing to let my lips even so much as twitch. ‘Only if you’re man enough. Now, if you could just unlock the doors so we can get in?’ At my request, the locks whirred and the lights flashed. ‘Thank you.’ I walked over to the car, grateful to have my back to Zac for a moment. My jaw ached from biting back my grin. ‘OK, Charlie Bear, you know the drill,’ I said, gingerly opening the passenger door.
Charlie didn’t quibble over getting in whereas Zac continued to stare at my car, apparently traumatised. He still hadn’t moved by the time I’d smashed up my hands some more getting Charlie clipped into his car seat.
‘Is there a problem, Zac?’
‘Huh?’ He mentally shook himself before my eyes. ‘No, no, not at all.’
‘Glad to hear it.’ I carefully lowered myself into the passenger seat for what had to be the first time ever. ‘I wouldn’t want a four year old to show you up, after all. If you ask nicely, maybe he’ll share some testosterone with you?’
I had to turn away to hide the massive grin splitting my face so I didn’t get to see Zac’s reaction but, within seconds, the driver’s door opened. Zac sank into the vacant driving seat without saying a word and slid the key into the ignition just as Charlie piped up from the rear.
‘What’s testos…test…test-oster-thingie?’
Perfect. It gave me the excuse to avoid detection for a little longer so I spun around in my seat to answer. ‘Testosterone, Charlie, is the stuff that separates the men from the boys,’ I said, shooting him a wink.
‘Hey, I saw that.’ Zac jabbed me in the thigh with his index finger and set free a wave of hope that my redemption plan could work.
‘And if you’re a real man,’ I continued, ignoring Zac’s interruption, ‘then you’re more than macho enough to wear pink clothes and drive pink cars without worrying about corrupting your manhood.’
‘I’ve got a pink shirt,’ Zac protested. ‘And a tie with some pink in it.’
‘Excellent, then this should be a doddle. Let’s go…’
Zac gnashed his teeth together and grumbled something under his breath but he reached behind for the seatbelt and buckled up. ‘Do you need a hand with yours?’ he asked. ‘If you’ll pardon the pun.’
‘That would be good, thank you. I think I managed to rip even more skin off when I sorted Charlie’s.’
Zac leaned across to grab the seatbelt before I’d finished speaking. His running shirt must have been drying out because there was a slight aroma coming off him from such close quarters. It didn’t register as unpleasant though. Quite the opposite, in fact, so I breathed in deeply, albeit subtly since I wasn’t a complete moron.
Once I was safely belted in, Zac turned the key in ignition and the engine roared to life. He put the car into first gear, then reached for the handbrake but didn’t release it. ‘What’s wrong?’ he asked.
‘Huh?’ I looked up from my lap to find him staring at me.
‘Is it your hands? Are they really bothering you?’
‘No.’ My response was met with two arched eyebrows. ‘Well, I mean yes, they hurt like hell but I’m OK. Why?’
‘You look…worried.’ He took his hand off the handbrake and put the car back into neutral. ‘I’m insured to drive any car if that’s what’s bothering you?’
‘No, it’s not that. Although good to know and I probably should have checked first—’
‘Do you always ramble when you’re nervous?’
‘Ugh. Fine. This is going to make me sound like a total loser but it just dawned on me that you’re the only person aside from me to get behind the wheel of my car.’
‘Ah…’ His eyes softened with understanding. ‘I promise I’ll drive carefully.’
‘You’d better. I’ll have you know this car is my pride and joy.’
‘Duly noted.’
I waited until Zac was on the road and moving before I spoke again. ‘So what do you usually drive?’
‘A Land Rover.’
‘Oh, but of course.’ I smacked the heel of my hand off my forehead and successfully stabbed myself in the head. ‘How very manly. I should’ve known. Which model? Discovery? Defender?’
Zac took his gaze off the road for a second and grinned. ‘Freelander. The three-door version.’
‘Nice. Let me guess…it’s green, right?’
‘A-ha, no. You’re wrong.’
‘Black?’
‘Nope.’
‘Silver.’
‘Yep. Um…Alice?’
‘Yes?’
‘Where am I supposed to be going?’
‘Oh. Ha-ha. Oops.’ The rest of the journey consisted of me giving Zac a series of directions and it left little opportunity for conversation. I toyed with the idea of taking him the long way but he would have sussed me out as soon as we arrived at the house so I led him directly there. Going home wasn’t nearly as daunting when I knew there was nobody else there.
Zac made the final turn and pulled up outside the gates. His jaw dropped and he stared open-mouthed at the driveway on the other side. ‘You live here?’ he asked, finally finding his voice. ‘Are you like royalty or a celebrity or something?’
I let out a choked laugh. ‘Hardly.’ My response earned more raised eyebrows from Zac but I wasn’t about to elaborate, especially not with Charlie in the car. ‘There’s a remote control to open the gates on my keyring.’
‘Oh, right. I wondered what that was for.’ Zac found the button then waited for the gates to open before driving through and cruising slowly along the driveway to take in the scene. ‘Wow, nice place,’ he said, bringing the car to a standstill in front of the house.
‘If you say so,’ I mumbled, earning another quizzical glance until Charlie saved me from an interrogation.
‘Can I show Zac my bedroom, Aunty Alice?’
Zac made a tiny sound; a sort of gasp in reverse. He wasn’t the first person to wonder about my relationship to Charlie and he sure as hell wouldn’t be the last so I pretended not to notice. In a backhanded way, I found it extremely flattering. If I ever had a child then I’d want him—or her—to be just like Charlie.
‘It’s fine with me, Charlie, but it’s up to Zac really.’
‘I’d love to see your room, Charlie, but I seem to recall you saying you were hungry so why don’t you show me after you’ve had some lunch?’
Impressive.
‘Yay,’ came Charlie’s standard answer to anything that involved getting his own way. ‘Can you sit next to me, Zac?’
‘Um…’ Zac’s gaze darted to meet mine. ‘I don’t—’
‘There’s plenty of food,’ I said, butting in before he could decline. ‘You’re more than welcome to join us.’ He still didn’t look convinced so I went for the clincher. ‘Think of it as our way of saying “thank you”.’
