“Yeah?” Scott asked, seeming unimpressed.
“Yes, Scott. I care about her. I want to see where that can go.”
“You. The guy with the revolving door in his pants.”
“Hey. Am I not entitled to want more? Do I not get to change the direction of my life because I’ve found the right girl and I want to be with her? You found that with Brittney, and you’re happy. In fact, you love to remind me of it. All the time.” Zane again looked Scott square in the eye. “Please don’t torpedo our friendship because I’m looking for the same thing that you have. It’s not fair.”
Scott drew a deep breath through his nose and leaned against the doorway into the dining room. “You have to swear to me that you will not intentionally hurt her.”
“Of course.”
“You promise?”
“Yes.”
Scott clapped his hand on Zane’s shoulder. “Okay then. You have my blessing.”
“Now tell me where she is.”
“She’s at Black Crescent.”
Just when Zane thought he couldn’t take another shock to the system, he got another. Black Crescent was the exact last place on the planet he wanted to visit. Was this the universe’s way of forcing him to deal with every sticking point in his life all on one day? If that was the case, bring it on. He was done letting BC define him. He certainly wasn’t going to let it stand in the way of what he really wanted—Allison. “Got it. Thanks.” Zane reached for the doorknob.
“Don’t make a fool of yourself, okay?”
Zane opened the door. “I won’t embarrass Allison, if that’s what you’re trying to say. I would never put her job in jeopardy.”
“Good.”
“As for me, I’ve already made myself look like an idiot. Things can’t get any worse.” With that, Zane rushed down the driveway to his car. He knew that his conversation with Scott was as close as they would ever come to working things out in regard to Allison. If this next part went well, he and Scott would hopefully return to their affable, hypercompetitive dynamic. Another outcome to wish for.
“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” he muttered to himself when he pulled into the Black Crescent parking lot. He’d come here a few short weeks ago to come clean to Joshua Lowell about the anonymous DNA report he’d received and shared. Unfortunately, Josh had left the office. It took several hours, but Zane had been able to track him down in a bar in the neighboring town. Zane wished he could erase that entire chapter of his personal story with BC. He never should have gotten involved. He never should have let Josh get under his skin.
He pulled into a space with a decent view of the entrance, rolled down the windows and sent a text to his assistant letting her know that at best, he’d be late getting in the office. In truth, he hoped against hope that he and Allison could work everything out and he wouldn’t feel driven to go to work at all.
An hour passed. Then another. He knew better than to waltz into that office and ask for her, but damn he was tempted. He didn’t want to wait. Impatience was gnawing at him. But he stayed put, running through the words he wanted to say, praying that somehow it all worked out. Even with all that preparation, he wasn’t truly ready when Allison walked out of the BC building, looking like a million bucks in a sleek black skirt, white blouse and heels. She was smiling. A big, wide grin. And it stole more than a breath. It knocked the wind out of him.
The Zane of old would’ve allowed her facial expression to send him into a downward spiral. How could anyone walk out of that building and be happy? But he knew that his old thinking had gotten him nowhere. It had left him running in circles. Allison’s business was important to her. It must have been a good meeting. He had to believe that whatever had happened in that building had made her happy. And that made him happy, which was yet another reason to see BC in a different light. Yes, his old life had been ended by forces within that company. But his new life, the one that left him with a sliver of a chance with Allison Randall, had started at the same time.
He jumped out of his car and called her name. “Allison!”
She startled, then swiped off her sunglasses. “Zane? You came to Black Crescent? Are you insane?”
“Maybe a little,” he muttered to himself.
“What in the world are you doing here?” she asked, incredulous, marching toward him.
He rushed over to her and didn’t wait another minute to just come out with it. “I’m sorry. So sorry about last night. I was wrong.”
She shook her head. “No, Zane. I was wrong. I should’ve told you back on the island. Before anything happened. That was wrong of me, and I’m sorry that I did it.”
Relief washed over him in a deluge. All was not lost. He took her hand, loving the feel of her silky skin against his. “It’s okay. I forgive you.”
“If anything, it should tell you how much I was worried about messing things up with you. I had to have my chance, and I couldn’t bring myself to jeopardize it by coming clean.”
He brought her hand to his lips and kissed it. He wanted to be able to do that every day. Forever and ever. “That’s the sweetest thing anyone has ever said to me.”
She turned for an instant and glanced back at the building. “I hope you know it’s just a job. I mean, I will kick some serious butt for them, but it’s what I do. It’s not out of some grand allegiance to the company or the Lowell family. It’s out of a commitment to being a professional, working hard and supporting myself and Kianna. That’s
