Forever Rain (Rain Will Fall Trilogy #1) (25 page)

“Why are you wide awake and sweaty?” I asked, taking in his disheveled appearance.

“My trainer was here at 6 a.m. and worked me over in my gym.”

He had a trainer? No wonder his rock hard body was in incredible shape.

“Thought you may want to have breakfast before it’s time for lunch.”

“What time is it?” I looked around the room for a clock but didn’t see one.

“A little after nine.”

“I would love to go for a run, or I can use a treadmill if you have one in your mini mansion.”

“My mini mansion does have one indeed. Come on, I’ll take you.” He turned to leave.

“Wait! I don’t have any clothes.”

“Sure you do. Let me show you around your closet.”

We walked to it where he showed me a couple drawers with everything I needed to go to the gym. I could work out for a couple weeks without wearing any of the clothing twice. I quickly chose some running clothes and tennis shoes.

Jordan took a hold of my hand and led me downstairs and toward the back of the house.

“Good morning, Jordan. And this must be Zoe.”

I looked across the kitchen to see a woman walking toward us. Her brown hair was pulled back in a bun and her amber color eyes were kind and friendly.

“Morning, Becky. Yes, this is Zoe Caine.”

Becky shook my hand then patted Jordan on his arm. “She is just as lovely as you described her, Jordan. You did well with this one.”

I looked at up at Jordan and he was smiling. I shook my head ruefully at him but he paid no attention to it.

“You are off to the gym then.” Becky said, taking in our appearance. “I’ll have a nice hot breakfast ready when you get back. I make a mean eggs benedict.”

“Thank you, Becky. I look forward to it then.” I smiled across at her.

Jordan took me outside. I stood for a moment and took in the beautiful morning. Birds chirped in the trees. A warm breeze was blew and the humidity caused a glint of perspiration on my skin. The pool had three water features with water cascading over the sides and a waterfall with rocks that added to the natural forest feel of the place. There was a four-car garage detached from the house and an adjoining building at the back of the garage.

“This is the gym,” Jordan said as he keyed in some codes on the keypad. We stepped into a modern gym with state of the art equipment. “I have a brief meeting with my security detail, but take your time. You can listen to music on the individual equipment or on the surround sound system. I also have a virtual screen on the wall that goes through different terrain with magnificent scenes from all over the world. Here, take a look.”

He picked up a remote control and clicked some options while looking at the blank wall in front of us. It came to life with images from the majestic scenes and I was in the middle of the scene. “There are TVs with the same options.” Jordan showed me the music features and choices, but I asked him to leave it on and program it for an hour of running. Jordan swooped in for a quick kiss on my lips then took his leave.

It felt good to get back to working out my weary muscles. I enjoyed the feeling of having a strong body and did not like to go more than a few days without some cardio. Soon the sweat was trickling down my chest and back.

I looked up to see the wall was a virtual TV screen that was showing me running on a track, then me jumping on the top of a rock in the Grand Canyon. The scenes changed every few minutes taking me through a forest, down hills, and back up to mountaintops, as if setting the pace of my workout with just enough cardio for me to not hit the wall so to speak, and I thoroughly enjoyed the routine.

The session ended and I started the cool down by walking on the treadmill as the screen displayed glaciers with an eagle soaring above the ice, then taking off over the icy waters of the ocean. “Fragile” by Sting played as I admired the magnificence of the colossal stationary ice, some giving way slowly and breaking off into the ocean. The song ended and I stood for a minute taking it all in then stepped off the machine.

I turned around to look for a towel. Jordan was standing at the back of the room, legs apart and arms across his chest with a remote control in his hand. We stood across the room in silence, our gazes locked, grey eyes gazing into blue, intense and real. He had taken a shower and changed into a grey T-shirt and cargo shorts with casual summer sandals.

Jordan turned off the screen, picked up a towel and slowly made his way toward me.

A shiver went down my spine as I felt like hunted prey that would welcome being captured by her captor because she knew he would mark her as his. I held my breath as he stood in front of me.

He ran his thumb across my bottom lip. I closed my eyes as he wiped off the perspiration with the towel. His lips replaced his thumb as he pulled my bottom lip into his mouth nipping it lightly then drawing away. Jordan looked down at me.

“Magnificent. Pure manna from heaven. That is what you are.” He took both of my hands in his and held them to his lips. “Yes, I will have more than your body. Soon you will give me what is mine.”

His words sounded like a promise. A done deal. That it was only a matter of time before I stopped denying what I really felt for him. I could lose my head and heart to this man that will stop at nothing to claim me, mark me as his.

“Come on, beautiful lady.” He led me back outside and we went upstairs where he started the shower and got some clothes from the closet that he insisted were mine.

I showered and washed my hair. In record time I was back out and slipping into the gauzy cream colored summer dress Jordan chose for me with some sandals. I looked around for underwear but didn’t see any.

“You don’t need it.”

“Excuse me?”

“Underwear. Rule number one…no underwear when you are here with me. It is the only piece of clothing you do not have here.”

He was joking, right?
“I can’t possibly walk around your house with my ass hanging out when you have your staff here.”

“I promise to fire them if they look under your clothing. The only one seeing that fine ass is me.” He walked up to me and pinched me there.

“Ouch!”

“Now be a good girl and finish getting ready so we can eat. I’m starved.”

Deciding not to argue about it, I went to the dressing room to dry my hair and pull it into a high ponytail.

Back downstairs, Becky had two places set at the breakfast nook that was the size of my dining room in my house.

“Look’s great, Becky,” Jordan said.

Becky beamed as she served the scrumptious food. “Enjoy. Let me know if you need anything else.” She went back to the kitchen.

“What does your staff do when you’re traveling or in Europe for an extended period of time?”

“They travel with me. Well, some of them do, like George, my personal bodyguard, and then there is my driver. I also have a personal assistant, Helen. You know, Helen, right?”

I nodded my head. She was very protective of Jordan and knew the ins and outs of his company.

“And one of my attorneys travels with me, and others if needed. I have a domestic management company that takes care of my residents along with gardeners, housekeepers and the like, except for Becky. She goes through me.”

“Hmm.”

“I will be going to Brussels next week for a few days,” he said.

“When are you leaving?”

“Monday evening. Should be back on Thursday. I wish you could go. Brussels is beautiful, you would love it.” He held one of my hands on the table then brought it to his lips and kissed my knuckles.

“That is on my bucket list of places to visit. Along with Italy, Sweden, Germany, Bora Bora…my list is long.” I smiled at him, but he was serious.

“I want to take you to all those places. I want to show you the world. Will you let me?”

God, this man was killing me. The sincerity in his eyes and his words made me want to give over to his request and do anything he asked. I squeezed his hand and let it go. We continued eating in silence.

“Just give me some to take it all in.”

“OK. I can do that.” He smiled at me, satisfied that I was not totally against thinking about a relationship with him. We finished our meal and got up from the table. “Time for the tour then.” He reached for my hand again and took me to the downstairs office.

Chapter 25

“The furnishings are beautiful.” Well-appointed pieces of gleaming furniture showed off intricate details on the legs of the desk and matching chairs. An impressive stand-alone wet bar was off to one side of the room in the same wood as the other pieces.

“They were custom made for this room in Belize. The wood is mahogany.”

“Were you deep sea fishing or scuba diving?”

“Well, I did both when I was there but my main purpose was business. I bought an island.”

“Is that a joke?”

“I never joke about real estate.”

We were standing at the windows overlooking another area of the backyard with views of a gazebo and some type of stream with water running over rocks and into a pond filled with beautiful blooming lilies.

“Is it for your own personal use or investors?”

A couple weeks after graduating from college a group of us went to Belize where we learned to scuba dive. We had a blast and some of us had been back a few times since then.

“Personal. I will have a home built on it soon and a small golf course.”

Holy shit!

“Wow. That is a great accomplishment, Jordan.”

“Hmm.”

That’s all he had to say about buying an island? OK then.

“Use the office any time you need to, and anything else here for that matter. Now on to one of my favorite parts of the house that has nothing to do with work.”

He grasped my hand again and we went further down the hall where he opened a door to the downstairs bedroom suite. Like the rest of the house, this room was elegantly decorated in cream-colored French country weather furnishings and white linens on the bed.

“Um, Jordan. I have a funny story to tell you. About 10 years ago you took me to a winery in east Texas. We toured parts of the wine trail, so we decided to get a room at a bed and breakfast in the area. I loved the furnishings in the room. I thought it was the most romantic room. Anyway, the bedroom was very much like this one. Is that just a funny story, coincidence or…”

Jordan silenced me with a kiss before I could finish my sentence. “Neither. I have a confession to make,” he said as we stood in the middle of the room. “There is not much in this home that was not done with you in mind.”

“What?”

“Jenna and David’s first home, although much smaller than this one, was of similar design on the outside. I remember you loved the rustic charm of the wood and stone with huge beams and a porch. You said if you ever had a home custom built it would be of that style. I even remembered that you love high ceilings. I bought this land five years ago, but did not want as much land, so I divided it into three-acre lots. There are thirty homes in this subdivision. Mine was the last home to be built.”

I was flabbergasted and not sure if I should be happy or mad. If I got upset at him for going to extreme measures to please me, then I should tell him and walk away. Yet he was willing to live with all these memories of me in his life even though he wasn’t sure that I wanted to be with him in any kind of relationship. Well, except sexual at this point.

If I was happy…I just needed more time. I reached up on my toes and pulled his head down to my lips and kissed him softly. Letting go, I turned around and held my hand out to him to continue the tour.

We walked across the hall to the library. Jordan opened the glass doors leading into the room.

I stopped short at the door and gasped as I took in the room. Bookshelves lined every wall except for the area at the back of the room with three huge floor to ceiling windows and the two glass doors on this side of the room. There was a small sitting area to the right of the room with two wing back chairs and a coffee table. In front of the windows was another sitting area with two matching Denver leather chaises sitting on what was surely a Persian rug. There were several books that were artfully displayed in various areas of the library and a collection immediately caught my eye. I headed straight to them.

Could it be?

Yes.

They are.

“The works of William Shakespeare.”

I looked at Jordan and this time I couldn’t help it. Tears gathered in my eyes blurring his image. I blinked and they fell on his hand. I was lost for words, so I just let the moment of silence speak for my appreciation of the works of one of my most beloved writers. I collected myself and ran my hands reverently across the light brown leather books. First editions, seven books in all.

“You didn’t miss a trick, did you?”

“When it comes to you, no.”

“You did good, Jordy,” I whispered.

I held on to his hand as we walked slowly around the room. There were hundreds of books. Some rare and collectable, others current. He pointed out books that I’ve read and some that he thought I would enjoy reading. I sat on one of the lounge chairs and took in the sunny day outside, again taken by the beauty of the place, inside and out. Jordan knelt on the floor beside me and kissed me, taking my breath away. I felt the urgency in his kiss as if he thought I would disappear from his life again. The kiss ended and I held his beautiful face in my hands to gaze in his eyes.

“I am here. Right here with you. I’m so proud of you, not just for your financial accomplishments and mega millions that you have, but also for the person, the man, that you are. I could not be more proud of you. Equally, I’m honored that you want me in your life and that you didn’t forget about me or allow me to forget about you,” I told him.

“You are it for me, Zoe. I have traveled the world over, but my heart stayed with you.” He put his forehead on mine, our faces so close together that I was inhaling the air he exhaled.

It was sweet agony. What was I waiting for? Then I knew. I knew what I needed to do and I would do it tomorrow. The feeling of rightness that would bring me to the realization of what I needed to do had dawned on me and I suddenly felt at peace with myself and with all that Jordan had done.