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“I don’t think so,” Miranda grins at him. “Sounds like you did it to yourself, big brother.”
“If this is what having a sibling is, can I get a refund?” Zach jokes, and Miranda sticks her tongue out at him.
“We should probably go, Brooke.” She stands and walks to Brooke, where she tries to dislodge her arms from around Zach’s waist. “Come on, Ridge is going to have a damn conniption fit when he’ll see you. Get your shit together, woman.”
They both hug Zach goodbye, with Miranda taking a moment to whisper something into his ear. He gives me a blank look, making me shiver in my seat, and not in a good way.
Watching Zach interacting with Brooke and Miranda is so fascinating to me. He is a completely different person than when he is alone with me. Same thing happened on the plane with Lexi. And when he was flirting with the flight attendant.
They all seem to get his light and happy side. I, on the other hand, seem to bring out his inner, darkest side. Can’t say that I’m flattered.
“Are you okay?”
I am so lost in my thoughts, I didn’t even realize when Zach walked the girls to the door and came back into the living room.
“I think so,” I whisper, although, I am scared to death. The unknown is killing me, and right now, my entire relationship with Zach is one giant unknown. “You saw my brother?”
“Your parents, too,” his lets out a dark laugh. “It was fun. You should’ve been there.”
The way he says it, coupled with the way he is looking at me, like I did something wrong, again, is setting my anger off.
“I would’ve been, Zach, had you told me where you were going. But I woke up all alone, unsure of where my life was going to go once you got back home.”
“So now that we’re married, I have to inform you of every move I make?” His sarcastic tone only adds fuel to my fire.
“No, you asshole,” I get up and scream into his face, then turn my back to him, stomping my feet up the stairs.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” He catches up with me, standing in the doorway of his bedroom, watching me as I throw the few clothes I have with me in the duffle bag I had packed for Vegas.
“I’m leaving, that’s what. You want to play some crazy head games with me? Fine, you win. You broke me,” I open my arms wide, encompassing the whole damn world in them.
“I broke you?” he shouts back. “I did nothing but make sure you’re well taken care of. Now you want to be a bitch and act like I’m the bad guy with this whole fucking shit!”
I pull the zipper on my bag so hard, it almost rips from the seams, the sharp edge stabbing the side of my thumb.
“Ouch, damnit,” I cry out in pain, dropping the bag to the floor.
“Hunter,” Zach is right at my back now, but I don’t want to look at him. I am mad, at him and at myself, confused, and I just want some peace and quiet.
“Did you get in touch with your attorney?” I need to know if he started the proceedings for the divorce, or annulment, or whatever he’s going to do next.
“Yes.”
With just one word, Zach Cavanaugh manages to tear off another little piece of my heart. It hurts in a different way than it has for the last seven years, and I let it soak in, envelope me in my sadness and misery. It’s where I am the most comfortable nowadays.
The barely twenty-four hours of happiness I found with Zach in Las Vegas had felt weird, like an out of body experience. Now I’m back to normal. I can breathe again like this.
“Good,” I whisper. “That’s good.” I rub a hand over my chest, jumping when his own hand comes over it.
“Hunter…”
“Don’t say anything more. It’s okay,” I pat his hand with my other one. “It’ll be okay.” I say it more for my benefit than his.
His lips touch the back of my neck, making me shiver. I love it when he touches me like this. I love all the ways that he touches me.
I just love him.
I drop my chin to my chest, giving him more access. I feel him nuzzling me with his nose, moving my hair out of the way until he finds my bare skin.
