She hesitated, rather taken aback at his comment. How could he possibly know who she was? She glanced around briefly. “Where are we going? Aren’t we having dinner at the hotel?”
“They have a nice restaurant but I have the yearning for something specific. I booked a table at Antonio’s. It’s a Mexican restaurant not too far from here.” He winked at her. “A stroll in the fresh air is just what we need to build up a proper appetite.” He took her hand and hooked it around his elbow as he led her outside. “Besides, it’ll give me some time to get to know you better.”
“As I said earlier, I don’t see the need for it. Our ways will part in Key West tomorrow.”
But it won’t, will it, Taylor?
She pushed the wayward thought from her mind. It had been a shock to come face to face with Zeke Rothman but also a blessing in disguise. At first, her integrity had kicked against the obvious solution the chance meeting offered, but the longer he pushed her to remain at his side, the thinner her resolution to walk the straight and narrow path became. He gave her an out to her dilemma and she’d be stupid to let the opportunity pass her by.
I might not have a choice in the end. She frowned at the thought. She hated deceit, but for once in her life, she would be forced to use a situation to her advantage. If only Peyton would answer her damn phone! Then I wouldn’t be in this mess.
Peyton Jackson was her bestie from a young age and the only one who could offer her salvation—hideout on The Seven Keys Island—where she’d moved to since she fell in love with Zeke’s cousin, Stone Rothman.
“Don’t count on it, Taylor.”
Zeke’s gruff voice yanked her attention to him. She glanced sideways at him and was startled at his stern countenance. It was evident he didn’t like her attention wandering while in his presence.
“Count on what?”
“Walking away from me tomorrow.”
He cut off her laugh with a piercing look and spurned the attempt to withdraw her hand from his elbow by squeezing it against his body. “You believe otherwise?”
“Let me remind you, Mr. Rothman, our agreement was dinner and a lift on your cousin’s chopper to Key West. Neither one would culminate in a desire from me to prolong our association.”
“Of course, you’re right. I stand humbly corrected.”
Taylor flashed a cynical look at him. “Just like that?”
He shrugged as he winked at her with a wide smile. Her heart skipped a beat at the wicked gleam in his eyes.
“I’m happy to let fate pave my way.” He waited until she relaxed. “But with you it’s different.”
“Meaning?” Taylor held her breath. Of all the celebrity cousins, she’d always been partial to Zeke. Maybe because she had a preference for blonde men and there was no denying she was drawn to the magnetic pull that oozed from him. For the first time in her life, she wanted to be desired and lusted after.
And loved. Don’t forget that.
The thought shook her. She didn’t know the man and here she was already building sandcastles and white picket fences with him as the central focus in the vision. Something that had never featured in her future plans.
He leaned closer and whispered against her temple. “I’m going to challenge fate, little one. I want you and I’ll be damned if I’m going to let you walk away from me until I’ve had my fill.”
Within a breath, her back went stiff. She glared at him.
“Thank you but no thank you. I’m nobody’s lollipop to suck on until your ears pop from the sugar rush.”
His face lit up with a devilish smile.
“Just the reaction I was hoping for.”
She stopped in her tracks, forcing him to follow her lead. She was hard pressed not to stomp her foot on the pavement as he looked at her with an amused glimmer in his silvery eyes. He had turned into the devil with that gleam that sparked a shiver of fear inside her.Suddenly, she realized that with Zeke Rothman, she was in way above her head.
“Listen to me, Zeke Rothman, and listen well. I have no interest in becoming your plaything or sex partner for that matter. Especially not to have your fill! I don’t need pity sex. I have a very satisfying sex life and you don’t factor into it.” She dragged in a breath. “You never will.”
“Good, because I have no interest to factor into your sex life.”
“What the devil is that supposed to mean? You just said—”
“I’m after much more from you, Taylor Banks.”
“Stop playing with words and—”
“We’re here. Shall we? I’m starving.”
Taylor had no option but to trot inside the restaurant as he held open the door for her. The host, Liam, as the name pin on his shirt identified him, smiled welcomingly at them. Zeke Sinclair was going to be the death of her. He was way too sharp and intelligent to cross swords with. She’d already lost too many verbal battles in their short relationship for her liking.
Time to sharpen your talons, Taylor. Don’t let this man get under your skin.
She was afraid it was too late for that. He wasn’t just under her skin. He’d taken residence inside her loins and was stringing her libido like a maestro orchestrating Mozart’s Molto Allegro!
Zeke kept the conversation light throughout the meal, intending on cracking the armor she’d erected between them. Why she, a complete stranger, held such an appeal to him he had no idea, but there was no denying the attraction he felt towards her was more than purely sexual. The husky tones of her voice found resonance deep inside him, as if it was the start of a song that played nonstop and soothed his troubled soul. The way she pronounced vowels had a slight lilt of a Northwest accent that sounded like a playful melody to his ears. He could happily sit there all day simply listening and smiling at the way it thrilled through his body.
After a satisfying starter of Margarita granita with spicy shrimp and a scrumptious main course of Yucatan-style chicken and onion stew, he sat back in the booth and stared at her thoughtfully.
“Taylor Banks.”
Her eyes darted to him as he rolled her name on his tongue. He searched his memory, knowing he’d heard the name before. Instinct told him she knew more about him than she was letting on. If there was one thing that Zeke hated, it was to be on the back foot. He wouldn’t rest until he equalized the playing field. Knowledge was power, and at present, she had it over him. But not for long. He had honed his mind over the years working with intricate and difficult NanoTechnology by compartmentalizing every little detail. He’d find the chamber in his brain where her name had been filed in … before they finished dessert.
The way she shifted in the chair under his perusal confirmed his suspicion. She was hiding something.
They were seated in a booth at the back corner of the restaurant, secluded from the other diners by large potted plants and a glass brick wall. Of course, Zeke had specifically requested this one. He wanted an intimate atmosphere seeing as he fully intended to woo her before they returned to the hotel. Since he’d looked into her eyes the first time, he came to realize exactly how Stone and Parker had instantaneously known they’d met their soulmates. It had been like an explosion in his brain. His insides had felt like a fist was squeezing around his body, to be followed by a warmth that wrapped snugly around his heart and tickled his soul with a promise of fulfillment. It had been the strangest feeling but he fully embraced it. As part of his Dom training, Danton had taught him to depend on his instincts. He’d learned to trust those offering him comfort, and which filled his mind with peace. Like her essence flowing from her had given him.