the day.” His gaze pinned me. “I’m fine on money, and I can focus on my career and worry about you at the same time.”
“You what?”
He blinked.
I blinked. “Why didn’t I know that?”
“’Cause you never asked.”
Why would I? “Does Boogie know?”
“He knows about some of it.” Before I could ponder over that, based on the expression he made, something dawned on him, and he reeled. “Isn’t your trip to Disney supposed to be comin’ up? You haven’t said a word about it in a while.”
Just the reminder of my sacrifice made me flinch. And that reminder almost made me cry. I shrugged. “I postponed it. I got most of my money back. I have to get everything together for the shoot for my book. I can’t take a whole week off and be ready for it. I knew what I was doing letting her move the date up, but… I’m still a little disappointed.” More like a lot disappointed, but I couldn’t cry too much over it. It was my choice.
“Aww, Bianca.” He exhaled, dropping his head back at the same time as his hand settled over his heart. I’d swear those soft blue eyes glittered and his voice was pained as he said, “You’re killin’ me, kiddo.”
“I don’t want to kill you, and you don’t have to worry about me—”
“Too bad.”
Sometimes I wondered how it was possible for me not to fall in love with the same person once but twice. This was how, by him being so great.
It made me smile even though it was mostly bittersweet. “You’re a good friend, Snack Pack, but seriously, you don’t have to worry about me. I’m lucky that I have places to go, people I can stay with in the meantime. I just hadn’t told you because you have enough stuff to think about, and it isn’t like if I move somewhere else we’ll lose touch again.”
And that reminded me about fucking Jessica.
If that reminded Zac too, it didn’t show on his face at that point. If anything, he got this gleam in his eye that made me worry. “Yeah, you’re right, you got places to go. And none of ’em are that far,” he stated. “You’re comin’ with me.”
“What’s that?”
He was already nodding to himself, because it sure as hell wasn’t to me. He had his thoughtful face on. “Don’t worry about it. I’ll get it sorted. All you gotta do is be ready to go.”
Did he say I was going with him? “Zac. No.”
His focus was back. “Bianca. Yes.”
“No. I’m not your responsibility. If anyone, Connie’s my big sister and has to worry about me—”
“Didn’t you hear what I said? Worryin’ about you is like… lovin’ the goddamn sun on my face, kiddo. Like breathin’. It’s never not gonna happen.” He stared at me with those tight shoulders and tight face, going up to that impressive height that had me straining my neck to look at his handsome face. “Lemme figure it out. Stay with me as long as you need. As long as you want. I guess as long as I’m here and the White Oaks don’t get rid of me.”
There he went, killing me too a little. “Oh, Zac, they’d be stupid to let you go. You and the team are doing amazing.”
Yup, he was still staring down at me.
I cursed. “You’re a sneaky, manipulative little bastard, you know that?”
“Yeah. Pretty sure Mama’s called me the same thing a time or two.”
How the hell had today gone to shit so fast? “I don’t need you to feel like you have to take care of me.”
His shoulders dropped just a little. “Tell me you wouldn’t do the same for me.”
Damn it. He had me there, and he knew it.
His fingers wrapped around my wrist, warm and solid. “And even if you wouldn’t, I’d still do anything for you.” His voice was serious. “Maybe I fucked up and had my head up my ass there for a minute, but I’m always gonna worry about you. For the rest of my life. I’m never gonna be too busy to be there for you. You hear me?”
His words sliced me down the center. Flaying me wide. Leaving everything important and everything not important open and vulnerable.
So all I could do was press my lips together, look up at that face with its immaculate bone structure and straight into those soft blue eyes… and nod.
And all Zac did in that next second was lift his free hand and bury those long, valuable