For a moment, her eyes fluttered closed and she let herself drown in the sensual feel of his lips sliding over hers with a pulse of possessive, sultry energy she’d never experienced before.
It wasn’t long, and it wasn’t entirely sexual, even though it was meant to arouse.
The embrace was more like a covetous demand, and Ellie’s heart was skittering, even as he slowly released her mouth.
His gaze clashed with hers, his gray eyes tumultuous and greedy. Her body responded, a deep-seated need for Zane to touch her so acute that she could barely suck in a deep breath.
Finally, Ellie pulled her gaze away, no longer able to see what she knew was reflected in her own hungry stare. “She’s gone,” she murmured as she stepped back from him.
“I don’t care,” Zane answered huskily. “Dance with me,” he ordered, grasping her hand again and tugging her toward the ballroom floor.
He sheltered her as he plowed his larger body through the crowd, making her a path so she didn’t have to dodge around people to follow him. She was breathless by the time she tripped onto the dance floor, tumbling straight into Zane’s arms.
“I’m not a very good dancer,” she confessed.
“I am. Just follow me,” Zane replied as his arms tightened around her and he began moving expertly to the slow melody the orchestra was playing. “Relax,” he urged, rubbing one hand gently down her back.
As she began to match his movements automatically, Ellie felt her body melt against him, and she gently laid her head against his shoulder. It became obvious very quickly that he could competently move around the other dancers. “How is it that you dance so well?”
“I’m a Colter. My mom has been involved in charity events as long as I can remember. She taught every one of us when we were young. Most of us try to be at her events out of respect for what she does.” He paused for a moment before he added, “Except for her billionaire auctions. Almost all of us managed to bail out of that one.”
Ellie laughed softly, loving the feel of his deep voice vibrating against her. “She auctions billionaires?” She had to have misunderstood.
“Yes. If she thinks it will help get her causes out to the general public.”
“Tell me.” Ellie was curious and wanted to hear the whole story of Aileen’s event.
Zane relented, his tone disgusted. “One year, she decided to put billionaires from around the country on the auction block. One night only. One date only. It raised a fortune and got a lot of attention, so now she’s trying to do it again.”
“Did any of the Colter brothers attend?” Ellie questioned, noticing he hadn’t said all of them had gotten out of the event.
“Only Tate. He was still single at the time. The poor bastard. Luckily, he ended up with a winning female who was around eighty years old and just really wanted to talk about her grandkids all night. But he would have been okay with anybody. That’s Tate. You know he was always able to charm any female, even in high school.”
Zane’s voice was thoughtful, so Ellie asked, “Do you think you couldn’t have done just as well?” Women were obviously falling all over Zane, albeit not for the right reasons. But somehow she had a suspicion that he didn’t feel like he measured up to his brothers.
“I’m a nerd scientist, Ellie. I’m just…different. You know I don’t do small talk well, and all of my siblings can charm the hell out of anybody at any kind of party or event. Chloe might not like going to them, but she can play the perfect hostess when she has to.”
Leaning back, Ellie looked at the accepting look on Zane’s face, and it made her heart swell. “You don’t have to be anybody else,” she said fiercely. “You’re not that nerdy kid anymore, not that there was ever anything wrong with that. You’ve grown up and matured into the hottest guy I’ve ever seen. So what if you don’t want to talk about the weather unless it’s out of the ordinary? Small talk is boring, and you have more important things to discuss.”
He raised an eyebrow. “You think I’m hot?”
Zane was teasing, but Ellie was fairly certain there was still a small doubt in his mind about his personal value when compared to his brothers.
Ellie tightened her arms around his neck, the effects of the champagne she’d guzzled making her feel a little bit less inhibited. “I find intelligent men incredibly sexy. You have gorgeous eyes, a hot body, and a mind I admire. You’re tenacious, and you’re the only person who was still searching for me when everybody else thought I was dead. You’re my hero. I would say that puts you pretty high on the fuckable scale for reasons that have nothing to do with your money.”