He drummed his fingers on the pane of glass. Could he wait that long? Ever since he'd made up his mind to call her he'd worked on his speech. Eventually he decided to just wing it. His words would all depend on her mood anyway. Surely she wouldn't be mad at him any longer, not after two days.
He wondered if she'd thought of him at all. He'd thought of her, constantly. Not even selling StanCorp had made him feel better. Usually off-loading a company pepped up his mood, but not this time. This time it would take only one thing to lift him out of the doldrums—hearing Annie's voice. No, more than that—kissing Annie. Better yet, making love to her. Feeling her body beneath his, warm, supple and eager...
Damn. The office wasn't the most convenient place to be thinking about Annie naked. He picked up the phone again and dialed her work number, this time getting through all the digits. No answer. He dialed her cell phone. No answer. He'd have to visit her at home. Now. What he needed to say couldn't wait any longer. He'd always been the sort of person to confront his fears and it was time to tackle this one head on. Before it was too late.
If it wasn't already.
CHAPTER 17
Annie got the phone call that Dug-E had signed when she got home. Bob, unable to contain his excitement, said he was coming over with the contract for her to sign as Dug-E's representing agent.
She had enough time for a quick shower and change of clothes.
The knock came as she stepped out of the water. Wrapping a towel around her she opened the door without looking through the peephole.
"That was quick... Oh."
Zack stood in the doorway, arms flexed at his sides, feet slightly apart and face unshaved. He wore a dark suit, his tie a little off-center, and sunglasses which hid any emotions he might be feeling. But intense vibrations crossed the space between his body and hers.
"What are you doing here?"
"Bad timing?" he asked. His voice was as rough as the Rockies. "Do you want me to leave?"
"No. I was expecting someone else."
Zack didn't move but his eyes, barely visible beneath the dark glasses, roamed across her towel-clad body. It was a possessive gesture and sent a thrill through her.
"Who were you expecting?" There was a hint of a threat in his tone.
She almost smiled. He was jealous.
"Just Bob for our regular after-work tryst."
His mouth fell open and his brows rose above his sunglasses.
"Just kidding," she sang as she turned and walked back inside. "He's bringing around Dug-E's contract for me to sign."
She heard him follow her inside before he said, "So you got Dug-E? Good. I knew you would. Was it the bike that convinced him?"
"No." She swung round, ready to face him now that she'd regained her composure. Wow, he was handsome. She bit the inside of her lip and forced herself to concentrate. She was not going to end up in bed with him. "I went as myself. No motorbike, no flirting, no tight leather pants. I couldn't represent him as someone I wasn't. I'm not so bad really. And anyone who doesn't like me as I am can lump it. That goes for you too." She felt better, lighter. If only she'd said something like that to her father when he'd been alive, maybe he wouldn't have kept pressuring her to be someone she wasn't.
As if caught by a hook, slowly the corner of Zack's mouth twitched up until his lips stretched into a broad smile. He came to her and placed his hands on her shoulders. He stared into her eyes, lifted one hand and traced her cheek with his fingertip. She went weak at the knees and hot all over. It wasn't fair. She wasn't supposed to give in so easily.
"Good," he said. "I like the real Annie better. I'm sure Dug-E will too."
She nodded dumbly, his words not quite registering. She tried to think of the right words to tell him she wasn't going to sleep with him again while her insides did back flips. He really wasn't making it easy for her.
"Um, Zack, we can't—."
But she got no further. He placed a finger to her lips and kissed her forehead tenderly. "Ssh. I've got something I have to say or I'll explode. I've missed you, Baby. These last two days have been...boring."
"Boring?"
He smiled crookedly down at her. "Okay, they've been worse than boring. They've been hell."
She drew in a deep breath to still her trembling nerves, but she wasn't giving in just yet. There were things that needed sorting out before she would submit to the powerful urge to shower him with kisses.
"Good," she said carefully. "They've been hell for me too."
His grin was just like the one in the photo she'd seen of him as a little boy. Cheeky. Happy.
He bent his head and kissed her lips tenderly. It was agony. She wanted more but she resisted. She had something to say.
"Annie?"
"No more, Zack." She put her hands on his chest and pushed him lightly away. "I need to know what I am to you. I need to know what you want."
Zack swallowed. This wasn't going to plan. "I want you."
"In what way?"
Her face turned hard but he could see the vulnerability in her eyes. He knew what she wanted him to say, but Lord help him, he didn't know how to say it. He'd thought he could, he thought it'd be easy, but now that it was show time, his throat constricted and the words wouldn't form in his head.
She nodded. "I see. You've made yourself clear. I think you should go now."
"But, Annie, we had fun."
"Yeah, we did." He thought he saw her smile before she turned away. "But we want different things out of this relationship and you're not being fair if you keep stringing me along. I can't do it anymore. I'm just not like that. I know that now."
She choked back a sob. He placed a hand on her shoulder and gently tried to turn her round but she wouldn't budge and he wouldn't force her.
He heard ragged breathing and realized it was his. Oh hell, he was going to lose it. He was going to lose her. But what should he say? And how? Nothing seemed right.
She stepped away from him and he could see the tears rolling down her cheeks. She opened her door and waited. He couldn't move. He couldn't let go of the one person in his life who cared about him, Zack DiMarco, not the billionaire but the regular guy. He couldn't let the one person who made him smile walk out of his life forever.
The one person he wanted to be with. Forever.
He pushed his hands through his hair. Oh Lord, was he sure? Was his mind playing some sort of trick...?
"I think I need to sit down." But he remained standing, staring at Annie. Would this woman make him give up his ranch for the LA glitz? Would she want him to attend parties with her? No way—she definitely disliked them. Would she make him give up his most valuable possession—his freedom? Did she want the full-time commitment, the white picket fence and children?