‘I wasn’t sure what ummmm meant.’
She put a hand behind his head and pulled him towards her. ‘It means, get your very fine arse upstairs.’
Chapter 25
When Kat opened her eyes the following morning, for a few seconds she thought she was dreaming.
A lean male body, his skin a rich golden tan against the white of her duvet, lay in bed next to her, the duvet pooled by his stomach. Unable to resist, she ran her fingers gently over the curves and ridges of his chest. She was no longer his bodyguard. As long as she was careful with her heart, she could touch as much as she liked.
When her fingers trailed lower, finding him beneath the sheet, his eyes blinked open.
‘Good morning.’
‘It is so far.’ His voice was raspy and she didn’t think it was because he’d just woken up. Leaning up a little, he sought out her eyes. ‘Are we still okay? No regrets about last night?’
Her hand squeezed him beneath the sheets. ‘You really need to ask?’
He laughed softly, pushing his hips further into her grip. ‘You might just be using me for sex.’
‘And if I am?’
His eyes burned into hers. ‘You can use me as much and as often as you like.’
Laughing, she wriggled over him, her breasts crushed against the wall of muscle that was his chest, her core aligned with the heat of him. ‘Then I think I should start now.’
His answer was a deep groan, before he clasped her head and stopped any further talk by giving her a searing, scorching kiss.
It was only later, when they were having breakfast in the kitchen, that Kat remembered the question from the previous evening that he hadn’t answered. The one sex had, unbelievably, managed to push to the back of her mind.
‘Why do you think your father wants you dead?’
He stilled, mug of coffee halfway to his mouth. ‘I see the honeymoon period is over already.’
‘Come on. Someone out there wants to kill you. Nothing’s going to stop me from worrying about that, not even sex.’ Her eyes met his and she smiled. ‘Though you did a pretty good job of trying.’
‘I did, didn’t I?’ He returned her smile before letting out a sigh and lowering the mug. ‘Honestly, I don’t know if my father wants to kill me. I only know he came out of prison at the weekend, and on Monday someone took a shot at me. The police believe the shooter was Lipstick Lady, so we may be worrying about nothing.’
She searched his face. ‘You don’t believe that any more than I do.’
His shoulders sagged a little. ‘I no longer know what to believe. When the notes first started to appear, I dismissed them, but as they became more sinister I started to wonder, what if?’ He looked over at her. ‘That’s when I was pleased, in a way, to get a bodyguard.’
‘Even if it was a messy, inexperienced one.’
He smirked. ‘Even then.’ As fast as his smile had come, it vanished. ‘But my father was safely locked away in prison, and all the evidence pointed to the stalker being a female fan, so I kept quiet, figuring I was being paranoid. Now he’s out, and the timing for the shooting … well, it could work.’ He dragged a hand down his face. ‘To really answer your question, I saw … things as a child that I shouldn’t have done. My statement helped put my father away.’
She experienced an alarming wrench on the heart she’d promised to be careful with. ‘I want to ask the question, but I’m not sure I can bear to hear the reply.’ When he didn’t volunteer anything, she placed a hand over his. ‘What did you see?’
‘What do you think I saw? I told you the type of guy he was. Of course, back then I thought he was a garage mechanic, so when school finished early and Mum wasn’t around to pick me up, I walked to the garage.’
A shadow crossed his face and she clutched at his hand, her heart breaking for the boy who’d had his innocence, his childhood, snatched away from him. ‘You don’t have to tell me. Not if it’s too painful.’
‘I don’t want secrets between us.’ He stared down at their hands, then back up at her, his voice now flat and emotionless. ‘The door wasn’t fully closed so I peeked around it, expecting to find Dad with grease on his overalls and a spanner in his hand. Instead,’ he paused to swallow. ‘Instead I saw him with a knife in his hand, and blood on his shirt. A body at his feet, the throat cut.’
Kat couldn’t stop the gasp that escaped. He’d seen things, horrific things, no ten-year-old should be subject to. And the mother he’d adored had been snatched away from him soon afterwards. So much for the privileged life she’d all but accused him of having.
Suddenly Kat had a fierce desire to visit Helena and William and wrap her arms around them, because it was they who’d rescued him and turned Zac’s life around.
‘What happened then?’ She continued to hold tight to his hand, unwilling, unable to let him go.
‘I scarpered. Thankfully nobody had seen me, so I started to walk home.’ He gave her hand a gentle squeeze and stood up. ‘I must have looked a state because one of the other mums stopped and offered me a lift home.’ Picking up his dirty plate, he took it over to the dishwasher. She suspected it was so he wouldn’t have to look at her. ‘Of course, nobody was in, so she asked me where my mum worked and took me to the Edwards Estate. Helena answered the door, took one look at me, and immediately called for someone to get Mum.’ He smiled, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. ‘Helena told me later that I’d scared the bejesus out of her. She’d never seen a face look as pale as mine. Apparently while she was waiting for Mum to come she kept looking for signs of a cut because she was sure I’d been bleeding to death.’
‘Dear God, Zac, the stuff you’ve lived through.’ Kat couldn’t put it into words how gutted she was for him, yet also how proud. ‘I can’t believe you’ve turned out so, well, normal.’
He began to laugh. ‘You didn’t think that when you stuck your nose around my apartment.’
‘Oh my God, the teapot collection.’ Another fist seemed to wrap around her heart. ‘They weren’t Helena’s, of course they weren’t. They were your real mum’s.’
‘Yes.’ His eyes skimmed past hers and to the clock on the wall. ‘And now I need to get moving or I’ll be late on set.’
***
He’d had enough of talking about his past. Though Zac had meant what he’d said, and he didn’t want any more secrets, he also didn’t want to be an object of pity for the woman he was more than halfway in love with.
Kat jumped to her feet. ‘No way are you driving yourself to the studio when it’s likely someone out there wants you dead.’
Tension caused every muscle in his body to tighten. ‘This isn’t your call anymore.’
‘Like hell it isn’t.’ She marched over to the hall and began to tug on her boots. ‘I’m driving you, no argument.’
Now, he felt a fizz of anger, along with the tension. ‘I thank you for the offer but I’m perfectly capable of dialling a taxi and getting myself to work. I’m no longer your responsibility, Kat. Mark’s probably got your next client lined up already.’ He felt a stab of envy for the lucky sod she’d be assigned to. They’d get to spend far more time with her than he would.