“This is what you want?” she asked, licking her lips.
“This is what Jake, Brent, and I all want. A chance to prove to you how good it can be for all of us. We want you, Zoe.”
“I can’t give you what you want.”
“You can give us a chance and time. A chance to prove ourselves to you and the time to prove we want you for more.”
He cupped her cheek. “We don’t care about your past, Zoe. We want your future to be with us.”
“You can’t speak for your friends, Connor.”
“No, I can speak for myself.”
“And what do you want?”
“You, at my house, in my bed, naked.”
Zoe gazed into his eyes. She saw the need in his depths. Zoe recognised the pain inside him. She felt something similar most days of her life. Every where she travelled to, she tried to find a home. Law Castle had looked like the right place to be. These three men had her scared. What if she settled down, made some friends, and they left you?
You’re worried about something that might never happen, Zoe.
The pain of being alone hurt far more than the pain of knowing no one cared for you. She’d spent so many years trying to find the love she’d lost out on when she’d ended up in the system. Zoe wanted to have a small memory of it to keep her going.
“Take me back to your home, Connor.”
She placed her hand in his and waited for him to lead the way.
****
Jake was pacing the front room. He could kill his fucking friend. Brent sat nursing a scotch while he stared into the dead fire. It was the height of summer. The flames would be flickering inside in a couple of months. He wanted to slap Brent.
When they’d pulled up at The Dugout, Brent had been walking round to the front. His clothes covered in mood and water. Zoe had long gone according to Vicki. After Brent described in great detail what had happened between them, Connor had gone in search of their woman while Jake took Brent home.
“Could you stop pacing? You’re giving me a headache,” Brent said.
“I’m giving you a headache. You didn’t go after Zoe. She could have hurt herself. Shit, she may have hurt herself for all we know.”
“Connor will call us if he can’t find her. She pushed me down hard, Jake. I thought she’d gone back into the bar. I’m not wearing any underwear, and on the fall I hurt my balls, all right. I’ll be lucky to father children.”
Jake laughed. The way Brent had described the shove he took, he wasn’t surprised if the guy’s balls were stamped on.
“She wanted me to take her, Jake. I was already horny, and then her jeans were in the way. Before I had chance to explain properly she was gone. She looked at me with so much hurt in her eyes.” Brent shook his head taking another sip of scotch.
Jake sat down next to his friend. “Connor will bring her back.”
“They have a connection. I’ve seen it.”
He didn’t need to say anything. Jake had seen the connection between Connor and Zoe. They’d both been hurt in the past. That was clear to see. “We’ll form our own connections.”
The sound of Connor’s truck pulling up on the driveway didn’t leave Jake with a lot of hope. Jake sat in his seat wondering what the next few minutes would bring.
The front door opened. No other sound came, and he couldn’t make out another set of shoes. Seconds later he felt a presence at his back. Both Jake and Brent turned. Zoe stood in front of Connor. She looked tired.
He stood up as Brent spun around.
Her eyes were wide as she looked at both of them. “I found her walking down the dirt road towards her apartment,” Connor said. “She’s going to stay here for tonight at least. I’m going to get her settled in.”
“Are you all right?” Jake asked.
She nodded her head. He couldn’t do it anymore. Jake walked over and wrapped her in his arms. Her natural earthy scent surrounded him. He kissed her cheek and moved down to her neck. Jake couldn’t help but feel like he’d come home when her arms went around him.
“Thank you for inviting me to your home,” she said.
He pulled back, staring at the streaks left by her tears. “You’re always welcome here.” It saddened him to see the emptiness inside her. “I’ll leave you to get washed.”
Connor moved her down the hall to the stairs. Before she moved past the sitting room, Zoe’s gaze moved to Brent. “I’m sorry for pushing you.”
“No harm done, angel. You’ve got a lot of strength inside you.”
“I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“No harm. I’m good as gold.”
She left the room. Jake sat down on the spare chair in the room. His heart ached inside his chest. He never knew how much having her in his home would affect him. “You made her cry.”