Page 33 of A New Chapter

Zack raised his eyebrows but didn’t add anything to the conversation.

“Did you ever do that, Daddy?” Gracie asked innocently.

Zack looked between the two of them and set his fork down. “Yes, I did. However, I only picked on the girls that I liked.”

“Well, I don’t like Robby! Can I be done now?”

Zack eyed her plate and said, “Two more bites.”

Gracie complied and then ran away from the table, shouting something about playing with her dolls.

Zack stood up to clear the table, and Emma jumped up to help. “She’s a lot like you,” Emma commented while they loaded plates into the dishwasher.

“How so?”

“Her exuberance for one and her sense of humor for two.”

“You forgot to mention her good looks.”

“Well, that’s a given.” She had said it off-handedly, but Zack stopped what he was doing and gazed at her intently.

“What? Friends can find each other attractive.”

“Yet they’re not supposed to act on it?” Zack smiled, but his eyes were dead serious.

His intensity did something funny to her insides. “Not if they want to remain friends,” Emma answered, refusing to back down.

“Why can’t they be both friends and lovers?”

Ok, the word “lovers” just made my spine tingle. “Because that complicates things.” Why do I feel like I am about to lose this argument?

“You mean sex?”

“Shh,” Emma hissed, worried that Gracie might overhear.

Zack chuckled. “You can’t even say the word, can you?”

“What word?” Emma felt the heat creeping up her neck, and she quickly averted her eyes.

Zack laughed louder this time. “Sex. You can’t say the word sex.”

Once again, Emma was reminded of why it was so difficult to be friends with this man. “That is ridiculous,” she said, becoming more flustered by the second.

Zack reached out and clasped her wrist in his steel grip. “Say the word, and I’ll let you go.”

“Real mature,” Emma said, but damn if a little giggle didn’t escape.

“Let’s hear it.” Zack tightened his grip on her wrist, which gave her spine another jolt.

Emma felt like she was burning up. She would have liked to blame it on the heat from the stove, but she knew better. Zack seemed to sense that victory was near, because his smile grew even wider. Emma scanned the area to make sure that they were alone, and then she looked him directly in the eyes.

“Sex,” she breathed.

Usually, she’d describe Zack’s eyes as light gray, but at that moment, they took on a different hue. A different shade of gray, she mused with a secretive smile. He hadn’t let go of her wrist, and now he yanked her closer until there was a mere sliver of space between them. Zack cupped her chin with his free hand and gently rubbed his thumb back and forth across her flushed cheek. Emma didn’t move an inch—couldn’t have even if she’d wanted to. Time was suspended. Her vision filled with only him. He tilted his head, eyes trained on her lips, and then…

“DAAAAAD!”

They broke apart abruptly just as Gracie rushed into the kitchen. Emma turned her back to them and resumed cleaning the kitchen.