The only thing he cared about was seeing Hope.
He got his wish the moment he turned. She stood at the top of the steps, looking incredibly beautiful, the dim lights casting a glow upon her face and gown–an angel in blue. She wore the dress.
The vision of her nearly took his breath away.
Pride filled him.
She looked majestic. The color of the dress on her skin had her glowing.
Although the ballroom was packed, she and Sammy parted the crowd easily. She'd be swarmed by men listening to the quiet whispers. He could not blame them though, she was exquisite. Any man would die to have her on his arm.
He made a mental note to keep her close to his side once she and Sammy got closer.
His heartbeat began to quicken as she lifted her skirts to carefully descend the steps with Sammy at her side assisting her.
He inhaled deeply, absentmindedly his attention returned to the crowd of guests milling around him.
Zayn finally managed to extricate himself from the desperate clutches of his admirers. There had been a time when he'd thrived on his looks to attract women, a time he loved the endless parade of them, not anymore. Making his way across the floor, he steered clear of the girls attempting to approach him. The only thing he cared about was Hope.
He ignored the crowd. He ignored the group of whispering women. A low murmur began to rise as he walked past them all, the confusion and chatter growing even louder as he closed in on his target.
"Hope." He whispered.
He suddenly had to touch her with a desperation that bordered on insanity. She didn't move as he stepped closer to her and stopped only a foot away from her that the tips of his shoes brushed against the hem of her gown.
Hope stood rigidly, very nearly losing her grip on her composure, the painful pinching of her toes forgotten. She swallowed, she couldn't look away, couldn't breathe, couldn't even scream if she wanted to.
His eyes flashed with a hint of amusement.
Hope felt the eyes of every woman there on her and heard a hundred whispered conversations.
Zayn grasped her hand firmly with his own warm, strong fingers and raised her knuckles, the merest brush of his lips against Hope's hand. She felt the effect of the kiss throughout her body, going hot all over and her skin flush with color which he would be able to notice. Her reaction embarrassed and annoyed her, fighting the urge to jerk away from the contact.
"You look exquisite as always."
Hope shivered at the pleasure radiating from his voice.
"It's a creation, thank you for providing the dress. . .and shoes." She replied, with a warm blush coating her cheeks.
"It was my pleasure entirely." He murmured.
Her lashes fluttered upward at the gentleness he conveyed through his words, and as their eyes met, he offered her the warmth of the smile she'd alway loved. The smile she knew.
A certain stillness enveloped them as they stood, knowing every pair of eyes watching them.
"Are you enjoying the evening?" He asks, casually, scanning the crowds above her head. His eyes caught on to something past her. He waved with a smile, but Hope didn't bother to turn and see who it was he was greeting from afar.
He met her eyes once more.
"I am. Everything looks beautiful." She commented, gesturing in one sweep to the flowers decorating tables, the ice sculptures on the buffet tables and the playing tables lined up along the back of the ballroom. "I've never been a part of something like this. I feel like I've stepped into a movie."
The cute smile curving his full mouth melted her heart. He appeared so much younger and approachable when he smiled. She'd thought he was gorgeous before, but when he smiled, he was irresistible.
Hope couldn't stop herself from grinning back.
"It's a great cause we've been holding here at the hotel for the past two years. We target to benefit charities. People reach deep into their pockets to give back to those in dire need. Trips, cars and the like are auctioned off to the highest bidders, whatever money we gather tonight goes to those charities."
"Zayn!" A voice called out from behind her.
Zayn lifts his arm and waves.
"Come, I'd like to introduce you to some of my friends."
Zayn reaches for her hand.
Blinking quickly in surprise, she shook her head instinctively. She couldn't trust herself to speak, her stomach doing a little flip flop.
She wasn't ready to mingle. Swallowing heavily, Hope tried to calm the turmoil racing through her.
She felt like a pawn–being moved from one side to the other. All she wanted was to yank her hand away but realized her mind wasn't in tune with her body, gripping his arm firmly.
"It's all right, Hope. They don't bite." He reassures her with a wink.
Hope stiffened as he offered her his elbow to tuck her arm in. He pulled her close to his side, and glanced around to note that thankfully the party had resumed. She was sure she was being scrutinized from afar.
She could smell his cologne. The familiar masculine smell of him made her relax slightly.
Patting her hand in reassurance he led the way to a group of three men.
"Gentlemen."
The three handsome strangers turned to the sound of his voice, large smiles adorning their faces. The tallest one out of the three was obviously more handsome than the other two. He had black hair, slicked back and styled. His equally thick brows outlined stunning green eyes.
"Zayn, mate!" The tallest one greeted first, smacking Zayn on the shoulder.
"Jack, good to see you man."
"My man, we've missed you!" The second tallest of the group approached with brown-copper hair, broad cheekbones, a well-defined jaw–Hope caught sight of strong white teeth and immediately sensed his jovial attitude. She could tell he smiled and laughed often with the way his eyes crinkled deeply in the corners, evidence of a life loaded with endless fun and laughter.
"Dominic, likewise." Zayn replied, accepting a manly handshake.
The last friend was blond haired and tan skinned, as though he spent much of his free time outdoors. His face was so smooth, his demeanor so polished and bright–Hope had never seen a man with such nice, smooth skin except Sammy. He had a twinkle of mischief in his eye as he and Zayn shared a combination of a handshake and one-armed hug.
"Benedict. Always the life of the party."
Hope quickly gathered all three men held different personalities. They must have many endeavors in common and shared many adventures but each one executed traits the other did not carry.
Hope was closely behind Zayn giving them room. Turning back to her, he reached for her hand, bringing her closer to his side.
"Benedict, Dominic and Jack, allow me to introduce you to Hope. Hope these are my closest mates. We've been through thick and thin."
Three pairs of eyebrows raised in pleasant surprise. Hope prayed they couldn't read the vulnerability she was feeling.
"The pleasure is all mine, I'm sure." Dominic said, sending her a playful wink and kissing the back of her hand carefully.
"Behave yourself." Zayn warned.
Dominic releases her and holds his hands up and backs away with a laugh. "No harm done."
"He's protective already!" Exclaimed Benedict landing a mock punch to Jack's arm.
Hope managed a faint smile.
"Your noble servant at your service, my lady Hope." Benedict greets, bowing slightly. "If Z here gives you any trouble I shall plant him a shiner his pretty face will never forget!"
The men roar with laughter.
Hope flushed from the roots of her hair to the tip of her toes. Despite her embarrassment, she found Benedict and Dominic indulging. It was obvious they cared for one another deeply. Their bond runs far deeper than friendship.
"Hope, I'm Jack, the least obnoxious of these bunch." He extends his arm and captures her hand in his own.
His handshake was firm yet warm. His smile was soft and his green eyes observant.
"I'm pleased to meet you all. Thank you." Hope replied with a small smile of her own.
It appeared from their expressions that they were surprised by her presence beside their friend. She could tell they were curious. What was so unusual about being introduced by Zayn that had them so intrigued?
Zayn ushered them all to a nearby table and the men sat and caught up. She was relieved to have a few minutes to sit. The discomfort from her shoes was distracting and the longer she stood the more pressure and pain she was in. She wished she could slip them off to find some real relief but she knew if she took them off, she could never force her feet back in.
All she could do was internally sigh with relief.
"How's the real world treating you Z?" Benedict asked, resuming their conversation.
Jack was the one who was the quietest out of the bunch. From time to time, Hope caught him staring at her intently. It didn't make her uncomfortable, it just had her wondering what was going through his mind.
She remained quiet listening to their laughter and adventures. Cheers from the back of the ballroom caught her attention and she immediately spotted Sammy at the poker tables, his companion his signature drink. He must have strayed towards them when they had parted. A cluster of people watched and cheered him and another in a match.
"Hope, how did you and Zayn meet?"
Hope's attention returned to the men at the table and stared at Jack blankly as he was the one who directed the question at her. A moment passed, his gaze flickering to Zayn then back to Hope's clasped hand.
Hope felt a small jolt of panic quickly settled in the pit of her stomach. She could not, would not share with them the circumstances which led her to stumble across Zayn.
Zayn quickly intervened on her behalf. "Hope is here visiting with my sister's best friend, Sammy."
Hope's stomach knotted.
"Visiting? From her British accent I would have imagined she lived here." Jack noted with a chuckle.
Hope didn't move, didn't even breathe.
"She moved to California a few years ago as an executive assistant to help my father further expand his hotel empire in the states." Zayn answered. "We've been in discussions for her to say and assist me on new projects I have lined up."
Hope kept her surprise concealed. Zayn hadn't even blinked as he smoothly lied. She was grateful to him.
"She is a lovely executive assistant." Jack commented with a smile.
However, Jack's eyes appeared distant, even as he watched Hope closely and the arm Zayn had draped around the back of her chair. Their idle talk resumed much to her relief. But she could tell he wasn't paying attention to the conversation as much as he was studying them and their close proximity.
There was more he wanted to ask, she was sure of it but he refrained.
Hope adjusted the skirt of her dress and crossed her legs avoiding eye contact. It wasn't so much that he made her feel uncomfortable but the way he was staring at her intently like he was trying to figure her out, she didn't like much. It was too obvious. The other two friends didn't seem to question her presence. If they did, they were too polite to show it.
They sat for about half an hour while Hope watched people milling about, mingling and dancing.
A loud applause broke out in the direction of the gambling tables. Sammy's loud exclamation rose above the clapping and congratulations as he stood, fists raised in victory. He must have won the match against his opponent, Hope thought with a smile. Passed the bodies, she witnessed his megawatt smile and the hands shaking he was receiving from the audience.
There was one particular woman who stood out in a sexy-red tight dress and thick, wavy blonde hair. Her figure was voluptuous appearing in her mid-fifties, approaching Sammy seductively. Hope watched closely as her close friend's face pales when his eyes land on her.
The blonde points a long red acrylic fingernail at his chest and smiles seductively. She practically brushes her voluptuous, large breasts against his arm and slowly skims his chest with a pointy finger nail. Then she leans in and whispers something close to his ear.
Sammy's mouth drops open in shock.
Hope's eyes widened, alarm filling her.
What was she saying to him? Does he know her? However, before she could see what happens next, much to her irritation, her attention is disrupted by the small group of men once again.
They were all standing except for her. Quickly she stood, wincing as she did from the pain in her feet and smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress consciously.
"It was an absolute pleasure to meet you, Hope." Benedict murmured.
Jack and Dominic say their farewells as well leaving her and Zayn alone.
"Would you like to dance?" Zayn asked, extending his hand to her. "A little bird told me you've been practicing."
Reginald must have told him, Hope thought with a smile.
Especially since he knew she had no experience since their visit to the nightclub. She had been practicing with Sammy for the past two days and Reginald witnessed it when he arrived to clear their breakfast that first morning.
It wasn't as difficult as she originally imagined. At least slow dancing was easier than dancing on her own. When Sammy witnessed her awkward movements he stopped her at once.
"Don't dance like a white dad at a church picnic, I want you to dance like a stripper whose rent is due tomorrow!"
"I could never do that." Hope said, shaking her head. "Strippers dance provocatively, don't they?"
"Of course they do! Stripping pays more than unemployment! Why else do you think they do it?"
He left Hope bewildered. Sammy could be excessive with his advice. Some she applied and was grateful for, as for the others, she completely deleted from her mind.
Thank goodness this wasn't that type of party to show off her awkward dance moves but dancing with a partner, she could do. She found it easier. It was intimate.
The string quartet had just finished the current piece and started to play another.
Accepting his invitation with a nod, Zayn's fingers clasped hers, soft and warm, his fingers threading though hers tenderly when she took the first step she nearly groaned.
The only downfall was her heels. She wished she could kick them off. Her feet were on fire.
Searching quickly over her shoulder for Sammy and the blonde she noticed they were no longer standing where she last witnessed them together.
Who was that woman? And what could she have said to shock him. Hope had never seen Sammy so spooked. He looked like he saw a ghost.
Wrapping his arms around her, Zayn lifted her briefly off the ground as he pulled her close.
Hope gasped in surprise.
This was different....
Hope felt herself flush as his scent enveloped her like a blanket. She forgot all about the painful throbbing in her feet, Sammy, and the catty whispers as she lost herself in the little bubble of privacy they created. Resting her hands against his chest, she watched his eyes sparkle as his nostrils flared.
Hope's breath escaped her, unable to look away for the burning intensity of his deep blue gaze as he moved her. Led her. It was easier to dance with him than she thought. It felt like she was floating on air. It felt natural. It was intimate. As if she was born to dance with him, to be in his arms.
Marveling at how natural, how right it felt to nestle against him this way, she felt his large, warm, gentle hands slowly caress the length of her back from her waist. All of her insecurities and doubts were brushed away by his tender touch.
"Looks like the practice paid off." He voiced a wicked whisper.
"I see Reginald has been reporting my daily activities to you." She whispered back with a soft smile.
His eyes danced with amusement.
Aquamarine.
His eyes were the most extraordinary shade of pristine aqua-blue, just like the dress she wore. Staring into those crystalline eyes, seeing herself swimming in them, she forgot what happened to her, the pain and suffering during her short life, everything.
Nothing could hurt as long as she was in his arms.
They felt like home.
She longed to caress his face, to savor the feel of his skin before she vanished from his life.
"Like what you're seeing, Hope?" Smiling as he held her gaze.
She stared up at him in open mouthed bewilderment.
He was flirting with her.
Abruptly, she found her voice. "You're shocking!" She breathed.
"I have not yet begun to shock you, love." His voice wicked soft, the playful look fading from his eyes.
He gathered her closer, squeezing her against him. A shock of pleasure rushed through her at the contact of their bodies pressing together every inch down the length of them both. Her skin felt impossibly sensitive. His caresses turned hot, urgent. Gripping her hotly against him, Hope cried out softly, dazed, in confusion, desire, and need.
And what she received for not paying attention to the dance, was twisting her ankle in the too tight heels. Hope partly collapsed in Zayn's arms with a soft cry of pain.
"What is it?" Zayn grabbed her under the arm, alarm in his tone.
Hope shook her head, a deep blush creeping up her neck. "Nothing." But as she tried straightening up, a bolt of pain shot up her leg. It was hopeless to disguise the wince. "The shoes are too tight and I believe I twisted my ankle."
"You should have said something." Zayn's eyes narrowed at her feet, then frowned. "We're leaving."
Hope was horrified, wincing in pain. "It's your party, you can't leave!"
"I can do whatever I like." He said firmly.
Zayn hooks one arm under her back and the other arm behind her knees. Hope was scooped up in his arms, her huge skirt flowing over his forearm as he carried her through the room.
Everyone turned to look and Hope would have curled up and died from embarrassment. Zayn ignored the stares and mutters following them.
However, there was a crawling, uneasy feeling between her shoulder blades, that sense of discomfort and fear flowing through her. Like she was being watched with such intensity she felt the energy of the stare bore through her skin. It took every bit of control not to shudder.
As Zayn moved them, Hope resisted the urge to search past his face. It made her feel stupid for being so paranoid.
But she found herself too absorbed by the concern in Zayn's eyes, the tenderness that took her breath away.
Always her hero.
He carried all the way to the penthouse, never breaking a sweat.
"The key card is in the suit jacket. Grab it for me would you?" Zayn requested.
"You can put me down Zayn. I can manage." Hope replied, her face flushing a brighter red.
"Just do it." He instructed, the finality in his tone hinting there was no room for argument.
With no other choice, she slipped her small hand into the inner pocket along his breastbone, her fingers couldn't help but caress the hardness of his chest. He was firm and loaded with muscle.
It was as though the contact made its way from her fingers, up her arm, through her chest, passed her belly button and down deep into the center of her core causing it to throb like a small heartbeat.
Hope tensed in his arms. Every muscle locked in place to keep her reaction to him subdued.
He didn't release her until he sat her down on the sofa.
"Are you returning to the party?"
Hope subconsciously held her breath as he moved and kneeled down at her feet.
"I will not." His reply was firm.
"But there's so many women, I mean," Hope shook her head at her slip up, "people waiting for you. Surely you won't waste time here with me. I can tend to myself."
"There's no other place or person I would rather spend time with."
His firm hands removed the heels and settled on her feet.
Her hand clenched the fabric of the skirt as she stared at him in wide-eyed disbelief. "What are you–?"
Hope nearly groaned with pleasure as his fingers began a soothing massage of her toes. It felt so good she murmured her appreciation.
"Does this hurt?" He asks, putting pressure on her ankle.
"A little." She admitted, stiffening.
Zayn released her ankle.
"Thank you."
Zayn looked up, eyebrows drawn together, head tilted to the side. "For what?"
She looked him directly in the eyes. "For everything you've done for me. I can never repay you. . ." Her voice trailed off. "Your generosity has gone beyond any expectations I had."
He caught her eyes flickering to his lips. She was so ungraded, so innocent. Soft, pretty.
"Nonsense. You don't owe me a thing."
Involuntarily he leaned towards her, his lips tingling, sizzling in intense need.
"But I'll never forget it." She said softly, looking at him with gratitude that approached hero-worship.
Hope's face was the color of roses and cream as she chewed on her full, pink bottom lip. All he wanted to know was what her mouth would feel like, what her lips would be like against his own and how she would taste.
Zayn nearly groaned out loud, his pants tightening. She shouldn't be looking at him like the way she was. Inviting him to take liberties with her. He didn't believe she knew she shared her emotions so freely.
"Hope." He whispered as he leaned close.
It would be so easy.
She was trembling with anticipation.
His head moved down so that his lips were inches from hers. Her breath caught in her throat as her eyelids drifted down to shadow her eyes.
His feelings made no sense, and he didn't understand how they could be so strong when he barely knew her. She was the most achingly innocent, good, beautiful, decent woman he had ever met, and she was far too good for him.
So unlike the girls he'd known.
The opposite.
And for the first time in his life he was about to deny himself. It was wrong of him to take advantage of her. She wasn't some conquest. He shouldn't allow her to get involved with someone like him. He'd only break her heart.
This is what she'd been yearning for.
His scent and power cocooning her like a blanket. Swaying forward a little, her body arched towards him, feeling giddy. She held her breath in anticipation, her entire body clamoring for the feel of his lips touching hers.
Somewhere in her rational mind, she heard a warning that she couldn't quite hear, her brain losing all power over her body. Mesmerized by his blue eyes, she watched his expression of lust transform into an icy mask.
Instead of closing the distance between their lips, he shifted his face away from her, squeezed her hand briefly and released it quickly. Hope felt the loss of his touch as acutely as a knife to her heart.
"Your ankle is swelling. I'll fetch some ice and an elastic bandage."
Hope didn't dare move or even breathe as he slipped away and disappeared into the hallway, her forehead furrowed in confusion.
She closed her eyes, wanting to believe that what she felt was relief.
But knowing it was disappointing.
She wanted to feel his lips against her own so badly. Wanted him to be her first kiss. Was she prepared for such a discovery?
Insanely attracted to him, Hope never felt more alive, so aware of herself as a woman. He stirred her core to life. Awakened her heart. Her soul searching for safety and finding it in this powerfully handsome man.
He restored the confidence she never knew she had. She changed. Vowing to never get involved with anyone, never get close to anyone. Being around him changed her. She was becoming an entirely different woman.
The icy reality crushed her as she watched him disappear from her sight.
She would deceive him. Betray him.
Her heart broke. It made her heart ache. She was beginning to love him and that was not supposed to happen.
____________________________________________________________________
So did any you of your catch who the woman caressing Sammy's chest is?
Answer: Vivian Davis the cougar from His Yasmina.
Thanks for reading!
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-Shaz