go, he decided to push her buttons just as hard as she was pushing his. “What if it turns out that I’m your right person? And you’re mine?”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Zara stared at Rory with an expression he couldn’t quite read—a mixture of what looked like panic, disbelief, and maybe even regret—before she threw back her head and laughed.
When she caught her breath again, she said, “I thought you were serious there for a second.”
Rory had felt this way only twice in his life. The first time a challenge he couldn’t ignore had been laid in front of him was when his mentor had accused him of stealing his designs. He’d vowed then to prove to both his mentor and the rest of the world that everything he created was totally original.
And now, with less than a dozen words, Zara had challenged him to prove to her that the two of them were the right people for each other.
Had he known it from the start? Had this been why she’d gotten under his skin so easily? Because he’d been fighting the inevitable loss of his heart to her? A heart he’d believed would be better kept under wraps, rather than risk hurting anyone else the way he’d hurt Chelsea.
Only, he’d never counted on meeting a woman like Zara. Her strength on all fronts constantly stunned him, from her pursuit of her career to her relationship with Brittany.
Zara would never let Rory get away with hurting her. If he made a mistake, she would call him on it, and he would change. Because she was worth changing for.
Five and a half days.
He now had five and a half days left to convince her that come Saturday, the very last thing either of them would want to do was cut loose from each other.
He knew better than to push her further today on the “right person for each other” argument, however. She was wary enough of relationships that it would be far better to lull her, at least for a little while, into believing that she was safe from losing her heart to him…while he did everything in his power to make damned sure that she did.
Especially now that he had finally realized he was well on the way to losing his heart to her.
“Time for hot chocolate,” he said. “I would say clothing optional, but I’d hate for any of the scalding liquid to spill on your skin.” They dried off, then put on their clothes and headed into the kitchen.
He appreciated how comfortable she seemed in his home as she sat on the couch by the picture window, tucking her feet beneath her and opening a blanket over her lap. On Friday, when he’d brought her here to sleep off the Prosecco, he’d been surprised—and more than a little taken aback—by how much he liked having her in his space. Today, he simply let himself enjoy it.
“Why did you choose to live in a home attached to a lighthouse? I’m not knocking it,” she clarified before he could respond. “This view is extraordinary, and I love unique houses like this. But you’re quite a ways out of town, and it must feel like you’re on the edge of the world during a storm.”
He was about to respond when she took a sip of her drink. Her eyes closed in a look of ecstasy he was becoming familiar with. He now knew two things that made her look that way—orgasms and his hot chocolate. He hoped to find many more by Saturday.
“I hate to admit it, but you weren’t overselling your hot chocolate-making skills.” She took another sip. “I could happily bathe in this.”
“And I could happily lick it off you,” he offered.
She wagged her finger at him. “You’re going to have to put your one-track mind back into your pants for a few minutes. At least until you tell me why you’re so fascinated by lighthouses.” She pointed to the right front leg of his coffee table, where he’d etched the outlines of a tiny lighthouse. “Everything you make has a lighthouse on it, doesn’t it? It’s your business logo too.”
Rory had always been better at joking around with people than being serious. Off-the-cuff responses were his specialty. But that wouldn’t be enough for Zara. “I was eight years old when I took out the Laser sailboat without asking my parents’ permission. I thought I knew what I was doing, that nothing could swamp me. If you think I’m cocky now, you