Embracing the Fall (6 page)

He wanted to have them both. It was a complication that they knew each other. Evan
told himself that he had made a commitment to Zoe to see to her friend and that’s
exactly what he would do. The attraction he felt for Ziporah was just something he
was going to have to lock away until he was free to pursue it.

Since Ziporah already knew him he came up behind her. “So, we meet again.” She startled
a little, but when she looked back and saw it was him, a dazzling smile lit up her
face. He returned it and slid an arm across her waist to grab her opposite hand and
spin her into a twirl with a flourish that even Gage would be proud of. She was laughing
when he brought her back in to his side. He motioned with his chin toward Cami. “Introduce
me to your friend.” It wasn’t a request. He was a Dom and it was a subtle way for
him to test the waters to see how she would react to his authority; he said it with
a smile to soften the command, but it was an order all the same. She smiled back and
reached out just in time, as Cami had turned to leave. Ziporah towed her back with
a yank.

“Cami,” she said over the music, “this is Evan. He’s the friend of Gage and the Marshall
clan that Zoe told us about. Evan, this is Camille. Cami for short. My nearest and
dearest.”

He hadn’t let go of Ziporah’s hand, so he used his free one to reach out to shake
Cami’s. Like a switch had been flipped, the flirty buoyant attitude faded from Cami’s
eyes. Her smile didn’t falter, but Evan caught the shift in her mood and that she
took a tiny step in retreat. He noted as well that she whipped her free hand behind
her back to keep away from the handshake he offered.

“Nice to meet you,” she said with that bubbling smile still in place, even as he could
actually see the lightness of her spirit fading away. “Welcome. I’m so glad you came.
If you’re a friend of Zoe’s, the first drink is on the house and I’ll even throw in
a slice of pie.”

She was panicky and ready to bolt. But she was a sexual submissive who had been researching
for months about the lifestyle and what it meant to be what she was. He kept his hand
out and said, “Cami, take my hand.”

He felt a myriad of things when she bolstered her courage and shakily placed her hand
in his.

The man in him was dazzled by her beauty. The Dom in him was challenged by her retreat.
And the heart of him was wrenched by the vulnerability she was trying so hard to hide.
In two short minutes, her fate was sealed. She would be his, he promised himself.
Period.

Z could hardly believe Evan was here at last. She had been distracted by thoughts
of him all afternoon. The judge had noticed, and it was so bad he’d asked her if she
needed a recess to pull herself together.

There was just something so mouthwatering about him that she could not get him out
of her thoughts. He had the same commanding air about him that Gage, Brice, Trevor
and Cade all had. That presence that forced the attention of everyone around them.
He wasn’t for her though, she reminded herself. No matter what she said to Cami, the
whole BDSM thing was not her cup of tea. No way. No matter how drool-worthy, nobody
was her Master. But, as she let her gaze travel up and down the length of the gorgeous
man in front of her, she couldn’t help but wonder what it was going to be like to
walk on the wild side with him. If ever there was a man who she would enjoy letting
take control like that, she thought she just might be staring at him.

She didn’t need or want more than that. It had taken her quite a while to realize
that relationships didn’t work for her. Her work came first, then Cami, and what energy
she had left over didn’t leave a lot of time for romance. Besides, she had found that
men couldn’t handle her no-nonsense approach, anyway. She was forward and abrupt and
the few guys she had met who were turned on by that, for some reason, didn’t turn
her on.

Evan was still holding her hand, and the zings she felt zapping up her arm were giving
her goose flesh. He winked at her, all slow and lazy, and Z swore she felt herself
blush. God, she hoped he couldn’t see it if she did. How embarrassing. She forced
herself to look away so she could get a grip and caught the change in Cami. Shit.

Real Cami had gone bye-bye and fake Cami was smiling like a robot. Over the years,
Cami had perfected hiding her emotions when things got too real for her. She could
put up a front and be nothing but sunshine and roses, even while inside, her world
was crumbling. For Cami to be doing this now meant only one thing – she was attracted
to Evan. Nothing scared that woman more than a man she thought was sexy. So on one
hand, this was perfect. On the other, it was going to be a battle for her friend.
Cami had to face that fear and climb over it like a hurdle in order to then climb
the next one, which was taking her first steps into a world that scared her almost
as much as it intrigued her.

Z knew that Zoe hadn’t told Evan about the change in plans, so he wasn’t expecting
her to join their party. They would find a way to break it to him later tonight. For
now, Cami came first. She always had since they first met. Even before that terrible
night, Z had felt a protective connection to her. After that night, it had only gotten
stronger. If this guy affected Cami so much from just meeting him, Z knew that this
was the right choice for them. The right choice for Cami especially.

So she made a snap decision. She was still holding both of their hands and gave them
each a squeeze. “Hey! I gotta hit the restroom. Evan, will you dance with Cami while
I’m gone? Thanks.”

She told herself that she wasn’t abandoning her best friend. She was merely acting
like a mother bird and kicking her from the nest so she would be forced to spread
her wings and fly. If Cami was in fact a sub, and she liked this guy as much as Z
thought she did, then Z couldn’t think of a better way for her to find out or a better
time to start.

Z felt no guilt whatsoever about ducking out when Cami was scared. Dr. West had said
that it was time for Cami to face those fears and take back what had been stolen from
her. It was past time. Besides, her cousin the cop was dancing right behind her and
there was another cop, plus three really big and scary guys, here tonight that would
happily rip Evan’s arms off if he got out of line. That was why she had invited them
all here in the first place.

“Don’t go.” The order was not unexpected. Who it came from, however, was. Evan leaned
in and whispered in her ear, “Your friend has frozen up like a popsicle. You leave
now, and I guarantee she’ll bolt like a rabbit.”

“How can you …?” Z was shocked. Cami was still smiling with serene politeness and
gave every outward appearance that all was well in her world. It had taken Z ages
to recognize when Cami did this. How in the hell did he see it when he’d never even
met her before? Z looked at Even in a new light and not a small amount of awe. In
her experience, men just weren’t this observant or considerate. Ziporah made a mental
note to buy Zoe flowers. The girl had picked out the perfect Dom.

“It’s in the eyes,” he said, and turned to smile gently at Cami. Yeah, it is, Z thought.
Only how did he see it?

“Well, you’re a big, strong boy.” Z leaned close to him and taunted, with her lips
brushing his ear as she spoke. “Don’t let her.” Then she sailed away with so much
swing in her saunter she nearly threw her back out.

Her exit was ruined however, when her cousin caught up to her just as she rounded
the bar. “Hold up there, Zip. What was that?” Much in the same way she had done with
Cami, Brandon yanked her by the arm and turned her to face him.

“What are you talking about?” Z tried to keep a cool and unaffected expression on
her face. It wouldn’t do to let her overbearing and protective cousin see she was
upset and jittery over the possibilities turning in her head. He loved to see her
coming apart at the seams, but only as long as he was the one holding the seam ripper.
Anybody else upset her and he turned into a beast.

“I’m just going to the bathroom detective, sheesh.” She tried to keep her voice nonchalant
instead of touched; nobody in the world loved her quite the way this man did. “Am
I breaking some law that I’m not aware of?”

“Cut the shit for once, Z.” Brandon was all seriousness and just his expression alone
let her know he wasn’t fooled. Didn’t mean she was going to make it easy for him.
“What? Let me go. I have to pee.”

“There are so many things going on right now I don’t know where to start. Are you
really going to be petty enough to make me list them?” He ground his teeth so hard
she was surprised they didn’t crack when her answer to that was nothing but stony
silence and a raised eyebrow.

“Okay, be a bitch about it then.” With a growl he tugged her to the hall where the
music was muted and the only people around were the ones headed in and out of the
bathrooms. Then he backed her up to a wall and started ranting in a low enough volume
that only she could hear.

“First off, I wanna know how you got on fucking Evan’s radar. That guy is dangerous,
Zip. He’s into crazy shit I’m not going to tell you about, but I don’t like the way
you lit up when he was talking to you.

“Second. What the fuck? Some guy–forget who at the moment–lights you up like that,
and you pass him off to Cami?

“And that leads to three. Why in hell are you handing Cami off to a guy? Which brings
this trip through Wonder-fucking-land back to the first problem: Evan God Damn Grant?”

Ziporah was speechless. “That’s a lot to pick up on from watching two minutes on the
dance floor.”

“I’m a cop. Observant is a job requirement.”

“Now I’m the one who doesn’t know where to start.” She ran her unsteady hands through
her hair and tried to bring order to her thoughts. “Cami.” Of course, as always, her
first thoughts were of her friend. “Cami is fine. You and three other big strong men
are out there. That’s why I asked you all to come in the first place. Plus it’s only
a dance or two. Nothing is going to happen in the middle of her bar and I highly doubt
a man Gage Hollister introduced me to is going to try anything shady, anyway.” She
reached out and put a comforting hand over his heart. “Cami likes him. I could tell
the minute she looked at him that she does. Bran, she hasn’t liked somebody in forever,
it won’t hurt to see if maybe this can go somewhere.” She smiled and tried to lighten
the mood. “Even if that somewhere is just to bed. If anybody on this planet needs
to get laid good and proper, it’s Cami.”

“But, Zip.” Brandon got that tender tone in his voice that he only got when he was
being very careful with her and every time he did, it made her cry. “You like him,
too. Don’t give me that look, and close your mouth. I saw your face when he touched
you and I saw the look on your face when you decided to pass him off.” His big calloused
palm cupped her hand where it still rested on his heart and he said, “I know you and
Cami have a bond. We all love her. But, you gotta stop putting your life on the back
burner for her. She’s your best friend, but you have got to stop being Maryann to
her Ginger. Sweetheart, didn’t anybody ever tell you?
You’re
supposed to be the leading lady in your own life, cuz.”

Absurdly touched, Z felt tears clog her throat. “Gilligan’s Island? Really? I swear
you stopped growing at twelve.” She pulled him in for a tight hug. Then sniffed and
said, “Now, for God’s sake, stop watching Nick at Night before Angie finds out and
leaves you for a real man.”

“She watches it with me. She loves Lucy.” His grin was as idiotic as his taste in
entertainment.

“Urgh,” she scoffed, “you guys
are
perfect for each other.”

“Now,” she continued, “I love that you are concerned. I know what you are trying to
say, but you are worried for nothing. Cami and I are great. I’m not taking a back
seat, really. This is just a guy, Brandon. He could be any guy, it’s just like I’m
passing up on a dress we both like or a pair of shoes–or wait–not shoes.” She winked
at him. “I’d gladly strangle her if the right shoes were on the line. In fact, we’d
probably fight to the death over that.”

“I’m calling bullshit on that. I know you.” He took a breath and added, “I’ll let
that go though. You’ve been her mother hen for so long now; no way am I going to make
you see it standing in a bar for a five-minute chat. Let’s talk about this ‘just a
guy’ then. I don’t like either of you tangling with him.”

“Brandon.” Ziporah dropped her hands and stood tall to give him her best lawyer look.
“On that point, I’m going to tell you it’s none of your business who either Cami or
I date. You have always tried to stick your nose in when it comes to who we date,
but this is not the Victorian era and we are not your chattel. The both of us can
make those choices for ourselves.”

“I know.” Brandon gave her his best bad-cop expression and crossed his arms over his
chest. “And you’ve both told me to fuck off every time I’ve tried to step in. I’d
like to point out that neither of you stuck with any of the jerk-off’s I hated, so
that should speak to my record. And this guy is different, Z. He’s into kinky shit
like Brice.”