Chapter 10
Jo
When I woke, Zane was still asleep beside me, his face turned toward mine. His eyelashes were dark against his skin. He looked vulnerable in sleep. All the intensity that normally radiated from him was calm. I reached out with my fingertip and brushed a stray lock of hair off his forehead and my heart lurched in my chest.
I loved Zane.
The realization froze me. I’d gone and done it again. I’d exposed my heart to someone who was bound to break it. How could I have been so stupid?
Zane’s eyes flickered open and he smiled. I forced myself to smile back, but my heart was breaking.
“What is it?” Zane asked.
“I … nothing.” I couldn’t admit it to Zane. I could barely admit it to myself.
“Is it your ankle?”
“Yeah.” My injury was an easy excuse. The swelling was way down but it was still painful.
“There’s no reason to think you won’t recover.”
“No, I suppose not.”
“Besides, if you need a little extra physical therapy, I’d be happy to oblige.” That sensual light that always warmed me inside appeared in his eyes. “Do you need something for the pain?”
“No, but maybe I could use a little distraction.” I knew Zane was bad for me in every way, but I wasn’t strong enough to resist. Not yet.
~ * ~ * ~
Jo
Two days before we were due to leave, I knew I couldn’t take it anymore. I looked across the table at Zane. “I think we should get everything out in the open.”
Zane turned his attention to me. “What everything?”
“This.” I waved my hands around in a circle.
Zane rubbed the back of his neck. “Jo, I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”
“Us. This thing we have. We’re going back to our lives soon.”
“Now my life includes you.”
He wasn’t going to make this easy. Why wasn’t he going to make this easy? “It’s clear that this is just a short-term thing.”
Zane sighed. “How is that clear?”
“We won’t even be in the same place. I’m going to go back to New York to get therapy for my foot. I’ll be preparing to return to the tour. You’ll be off somewhere training. It doesn’t seem likely we’ll ever even see each other again.”
Zane jabbed his finger in my direction. “That’s bullshit. If something is important, you make the time. You make it work.”
“We’re very different, you and I.” I didn’t let myself think of the ways we were in sync.
“Of course we are.”
“Too different, don’t you think? I know what they say about opposites attracting, but people need to have values in common.”
Zane froze. “You don’t think I have values?”
“I think we have very different values.”
“Wait a damn minute. You don’t know shit about my values. Actually, scratch that. You should know something about my values. We spent all this time together and you don’t know anything about me? You claim you don’t know anything about me?”
“This isn’t going anywhere and we should admit it.”
“I’m not about to admit anything. I don’t know why you’re pushing me away. I don’t know why you’re saying these things. You’re hitting me with this out of the blue.”
“It’s not out of the blue. This is what I’ve thought the whole time. I wouldn’t even say we’re together. We’ve just been hanging out.”
“Hanging out? You think this is just hanging out? I mean nothing to you?”
“It’s been fun. You’re a great guy. A sexy guy. But the fun is over. We both have other things to focus on.”
“So you just want to leave and that’s it.”
“I think that would be best.” I stood and turned away.
It had been upsetting, but I’d had my say. If it was this painful now, I didn’t want to imagine what it would be like if we tried to stick it out a few months. I headed to the bedroom and pulled out my suitcase. I was leaving now.
~ * ~ * ~
Zane
I’d handled Jo all wrong. I’d bungled it. I needed to apologize—grovel if need be. I loved her and I wasn’t going to let her slip away.
I jogged back down the beach and up the stairs to the house. As I entered, I noticed the quiet. I headed straight into the bedroom, dreading the worst. Jo’s things were gone. Jo was gone. She’d left. She’d left me.
~ * ~ * ~
Jo
Darcy poked her salad with her fork. “How are things with your hottie?”
I didn’t pretend not to know who she meant. “He’s not my hottie.” Zane wasn’t mine. He’d never be mine.