Safe Word (12 page)

“Oh look at you!” she exclaimed, completely ignoring Zane and making a beeline for Melody.  “It’s been such a long time...too long!  The last time you were here you couldn’t have been a day older than twelve!” she said.  Then she grabbed Melody and hugged her tightly.

“Mom,” Zane protested, sounding embarrassed.  “You’re suffocating her!”

“It’s okay!” Melody interjected, even though it
was
kind of hard to breathe with his mother squeezing the life out of her.  She hadn’t expected such a warm welcome, but she hugged Zane’s mom back, taking it all in stride.

“It’s about time you brought a woman home!” the older woman clucked, gently scolding Zane.

“Mom!” he hissed.  He appeared to be completely mortified.  It was cute.

“Come into the kitchen, I just took cookies out of the oven,” she ordered.  “They need eating.”

The next thing Melody knew, she was seated at the kitchen table with a tall glass of ice cold milk and a heaping plate of cookies in front of her.  Zane sat next to her, and across from her was his mother.  Melody couldn’t help but notice the way Mrs. Shepherd watched Zane like a hawk.

“Have another one!” she urged, offering the plate to Melody.

“Oh, I must have had six already!” Melody protested, feeling like a pig.

“I won’t tell anyone if you don’t,” Zane’s mother winked.  In that moment, she reminded Melody of Zane in the best possible way.  And so, Melody smiled and accepted another cookie.  They really were delicious.

“Zane, finish your milk,” Mrs. Shepherd ordered.

“I’m good, Mom.”

“You’re too thin,” she fretted.  “Have you been eating?”

“Yes, I’ve been eating,” he replied with the patience of a saint.  Then he stood up and looked out the window.  “What’s Dad up to today?  I thought he’d be in by now.”

Zane’s mother rolled her eyes.  “Who knows?  I think it’s another landscaping brainwave of his.  That man is so restless it drives me crazy!  Whatever happened to just sitting in front of the television like all my friends’ husbands did when they retired?  Why does your father always have to have a project on the go?”

Zane smirked.  “I’m going to run out and check on him,” he said, pushing his chair back from the table and standing up.  Then he explained to Melody, “Sometimes he doesn’t know when to stop.  I don’t want him hurting himself out there.”

“The same goes for you!” his mother called after him.  “Don’t you overdo it, you hear?”

Once Zane was gone, his mother turned and looked at Melody apologetically.  “I’m sorry about all that,” she said sheepishly.  “I know Zane is a grown man and I baby him too much – that’s what his father tells me constantly.  But when you see your child in a hospital bed barely clinging to life, well...” 

She began to tear up and had to stop talking.

Melody reached across the table and took her hand, wanting to comfort her.  “It’s okay,” she reassured Zane’s mother.  “My mom can be the same way with me, although I wasn’t in a car accident the way Zane was.  That must have been horrible.  I can’t even imagine.  He doesn’t talk about it much...”

“I think it’s difficult for him,” his mother replied knowingly.  “It was a dark time in his life.  Not only did he almost die, but he lost his independence for a long time.  He had to move back home from Australia, and it all happened on the heels of a bad breakup...my poor boy.  But enough about that!  I’m so glad you’re here!  And I’m so happy he has you in his life!”

Melody hesitated and then asked, “Zane told you about me?  After talking to Zane’s dad outside a few minutes ago, I wasn’t sure...”

“Oh don’t pay any attention to him,” Mrs. Shepherd replied with a roll of her eyes.  “That man is incapable of listening.  Even as I’m talking to him I can see he’s not paying any attention to what’s coming out of my mouth.  All he’s doing is thinking about his next project!”

Melody grinned.  “It sounds like he’s quite the handyman.”

“Or he likes to think he is, anyway.  Honestly, I don’t understand why he won’t just let Zane get a professional to come in and renovate properly.  He’s offered countless times, but Charlie keeps insisting he wants to do it himself.  My son and his father are two peas in a pod,” she grumbled. 

“Headstrong?” Melody guessed.

“No.  Cheap!” Mrs. Shepherd laughed.  “Well, Zane would call it sensible rather than cheap, but that’s just semantics games.  I bet you would never know he’s a billionaire by the way he lives, would you?”

Melody nearly choked on the cookie she was eating.  “He’s...a billionaire?”

“Well yes.”  It was his mother’s turn to look surprised.  “You mean you didn’t even know?”

“He told me he got a big settlement from the car accident and he dabbled in the stock market...”

“He did more than dabble.  He made a killing,” Zane’s mother replied.

“He did?”

“Oh yes.  He took the money and became an entrepreneur.  He threw himself into it, investing in business franchises and real estate left and right.  He was pretty much obsessed with it when he was in the later stages of his recovery.  It gave him something to think about aside from his injuries, I suppose.”

“Ah, I see.”

“I don’t think he even set out to make that fortune.  He approached what he did the way some people play with video games.  It was a hobby to him.  But it paid off big,” Mrs. Shepherd said, looking as though she still couldn’t believe it.  “He sold off mostly everything a year or two ago and walked away with more money than anyone can spend in their lifetime!”

“Whoa.”

“He’ll kill me if he knew I was blabbing!  He says I talk too much which is why he never tells me anything.  But I just assumed you already knew, considering you’re, well...you
are
his live in girlfriend, right?”

Melody’s face went white.  Clearly there were some things Zane told his mother...

Mrs. Shepherd was looking at her expectantly but Melody didn’t even know how to answer the question.  She desperately wanted to say yes because she desperately wanted it to be true.  But was it true? 
Was
she Zane’s girlfriend?

Thankfully Zane and his father came into the house right then, saving Melody from having to confirm or deny anything.  It was perfect timing.

“I convinced Dad to come in and have a rest,” Zane announced triumphantly as his father sat down at the table and helped himself to a couple of chocolate chip cookies.  “But technically I think it was the cookies that were persuasive, not me.”

“I was just telling Zane that a swimming pool would be perfect out there, don’t you think?  We could do a covered patio with a big area for grilling at one end and a nice big hot tub down at the other end.  Oh, and a pool house – we need a pool house!” Zane’s dad said excitedly.

“We do
not
need a swimming pool!” his wife huffed.  “You don’t even like to swim!”

“I know but...”

“
No
!”

Zane chuckled, clearly used to his parents’ affectionate, yet heated banter. 

“I think this is our cue to leave,” he told Melody, grabbing a few cookies for the road.  “Thanks for the snack, Mom,” he said, leaning down to kiss his mother on the cheek.  “Dad, don’t start any new projects without me!” he cautioned. 

Then, amidst goodbyes from his parents, he led Melody outside.

“I can’t believe you just sprung that on me!” Melody told Zane once they were back in his car.

“Yeah I know they can be exhausting,” he grinned.  “I hope they didn’t scare you off?”

“No, that’s not what I meant,” she corrected him, feeling flustered.  “Your parents are great.  But I can’t believe you just took me over to their place with no warning and no time to prepare!  That’s like...like tossing someone who can’t swim into a lake and telling them to figure it out!”

“Prepare?” Zane repeated, looking at her incredulously.  “Melody, there’s no written exam...”

“You told your parents about me.”

“Well yeah, I guess.  Haven’t you told your parents about me?”

“Kind of,” she shrugged.  “Back when I moved in with you I told them I was living with a friend.  I kept the details vague.  Any time they ask I change the subject.  It’s better that way.”

“I see.”

“Your mom asked me if we’re dating,” Melody blurted out.

“Oh.”  Zane grimaced.  “Sorry, she gets nosy sometimes.  I guess it’s because I keep my private life private.”  Then, after a long, pregnant pause, he asked, “So uh...what did you tell her?”

“I didn’t know what to tell her.”

“Oh.”

“Zane, can you pull over?” Melody suddenly asked.

He did as requested, looking at her with concern.  “Are you okay?”

“Zane, I don’t think I can keep doing this,” Melody blurted out.

“Doing what?”

“As much as I want it to, our arrangement isn’t working for me,” she admitted, forcing herself to be completely honest – and completely vulnerable.  “I want a relationship.”

“Oh.”  It was clear from Zane’s reaction that he hadn’t realized what Melody was trying to say.

Summoning every ounce of courage she could muster, she clarified, “I want a relationship with
you
.  And if I can’t have that, well, I’m just not sure where this, uh, arrangement of ours can possibly go.  And I feel like I have to tell you because otherwise we’ll just get more and more involved and when it ends it will be that much harder for us both...or for me, anyway.  I don’t quite know how you feel.”

“It doesn’t have to end,” he told her quietly, his mood somber.  Then, almost as though he couldn’t quite believe it, he asked, “Do you really mean it?  You want to be with me?”

“Yes.”

“I want you, too.”

Melody could barely contain her surprise.  “You do?” she asked, her heart pounding in her chest.  “But all this time I’ve thought you only wanted to fool around with me.  We were friends with benefits and that was it.  If I’d known, well...how come you didn’t tell me how you felt?” she demanded.

He sighed.  “I wasn’t sure you’d feel the same way.  In fact, I was certain you
wouldn’t
.  I kept thinking that at some point you’d decide I was a sick perverted freak and want out, just like Alexandra did.”

“I wouldn’t do that.”

“I didn’t think Alexandra would do it either.  And I don’t think I could handle that kind of rejection again.  So I thought if we didn’t ever go down the relationship road...well, I don’t know what I thought.  I just expected it would be easier, somehow, if we kept things casual.  I’m an idiot.  It wasn’t easier.  And it didn’t feel casual.”

“So um...what happens now?”

“This,” Zane murmured. 

With that, he leaned in and kissed her on the lips, slowly and passionately.  It was a long, lingering kiss that left Melody with goosebumps on her arms and butterflies in her stomach.  It was perhaps the best kiss of her entire life.

“You have no idea how many times I’ve wanted to do that when we weren’t playing,” he confessed when the kiss ended.  “It was killing me.”

Melody was beaming from ear to ear, and she wasn’t afraid to let Zane see it. 

He grinned back and took her hand, squeezing it affectionately.  “I want to take you out tonight.”

“Like, on a date?” she asked.

“Yes, like on a date.  In all the time we’ve been friends we’ve never been on a proper date,” he pointed out.  “I mean we’ve hung out, sure, but I want to take you someplace nice and treat you the way you deserve to be treated.”

“So you’re going to take me to the river and throw me in the water again?” she joked.

“Ha!  Maybe I will,” he winked.  “But probably not.  I was thinking more along the lines of something completely cliché, like us getting all dressed up and going to a fancy restaurant in the city.  So what do you say?  Will you go on a date with me this evening?”

If Melody smiled any wider, her face was probably going to crack.  But that was okay.  Everything was okay!  It was funny how her outlook on, well,
everything
had suddenly changed now that she finally knew her feelings for Zane were reciprocated.

“Of course,” she told Zane gleefully, squeezing his hand back.  “I would love to go on a date with you tonight.” 

She was now officially dating her best friend, who also happened to be her Dom, lover and
boyfriend
.  What more could a girl ask for?  Could her night possibly get any better?

Melody was going on her first date with the man she lived with.  That was...odd.  But it was also rather convenient because when she had trouble deciding what to wear, she simply shouted down the hall. 

“Help me!” she called as she stared forlornly into her closet.

“What is it?” Zane asked, appearing at her bedroom door with his hair freshly washed and still damp from the shower.  “Are you okay?”

“I don’t know what to wear,” she grumbled.

“
That’s
what you shouted for help with?” he asked in disbelief.

“It was important,” she told him defensively.  “So are you going to just stand there
judging
me, or are you going to help me decide what I should wear?  I was thinking maybe this red dress, but then I wondered if it’s too low cut.  Maybe it’s more of a club dress than a fancy restaurant dress.  Maybe the black one would be better?”

“You’ll look gorgeous no matter what you wear,” Zane assured her.  “Either dress is good!”

“Well you’re no help.”

“Fine, go with the black one,” he told her.  “I remember the last time you wore it.  I could hardly keep my eyes off you.  It clings in all the right places!” he grinned, giving her a deliberate long, lustful look.

“Ha!” she snorted. 

She picked the dress up and looked at it thoughtfully, already a bit turned on simply by letting Zane pick out her clothing for her.  She loved his dominant streak and she loved submitting to him.  Almost hopefully, she turned to him and asked, “Are you going to spend all night being a pervert and groping me?”

“Of course not!” he gasped, wide eyed and feigning shock.  “Not on our first date!”

“Mmhmm, because you’re so virtuous,” she teased, her voice dripping with sarcasm. 

“I am.  Now take off your clothes.”

Melody’s eyes widened.  “We’re playing again?  Right now?” she asked, secretly pleased.

“No.  As much as I’d love to play with you, we don’t have time for that right now,” Zane replied, shaking his head.  “Our dinner reservation is at eight, and if we don’t hurry we’ll be late!  So get those clothes off and I’ll zip you into your dress.”

“Oh, right.”  Part of Melody wanted to suggest they skip dinner entirely and just retreat to the master bedroom for fun and games.  But she also really wanted to have a proper date with Zane – after all, it had been a long time coming! 

“Shit,” Zane cursed suddenly.  “I think I left the bathroom tap running.  Be right back!”

As Zane hastily retreated to the bathroom, Melody quickly shed her clothes, selected the sexiest lingerie set she owned and put it on.  Then she pulled the black dress on and, with the back still unzipped, set to work applying her makeup and curling her hair. 

By the time Zane returned, she was almost ready. 

She heard him before she saw him. 

Her back was to him, and her head was in her closet as she dug around trying to find her sexy red pumps.  Zane walked up behind her and tried to surprise her by brazenly groping her butt.  It didn’t work; she barely even jumped although she very much enjoyed the attention. 

But when she turned around, she practically fell over due to what she saw.

“You’re wearing a suit!” she exclaimed, reaching out to touch the collar of Zane’s crisp white button up shirt.  “And you’re wearing a tie, too!  And you even
shaved
!” she marvelled, stunned by the transformation. 

Zane had always looked good no matter what he wore.  She’d even seen him in a suit once before, at the wedding they had reconnected at.  But this was different. 

At the wedding, he had worn a nondescript, off the rack suit just like every other male guest.  But now in what appeared to be a very expensive designer suit, Zane looked like...well he looked like a wealthy, successful, powerful businessman.  He looked like a billionaire.

“Wow!” Melody breathed, unable to take her eyes off him.

“It’s nothing, just a suit I used to wear back when I was involved in a business venture that required me to turn up to meetings,” he mumbled, looking uncomfortable by the attention.  “Besides, enough about me...look at
you
!  You’re stunning,” he told her earnestly.  “You’re the most beautiful woman in the world.”

Melody turned bright red.  “I am not,” she mumbled.

“You are to me.”

“Zip me?” she asked, turning her back to him.

When she felt his hand on her back, miniature explosions went off inside her.  He was careful as he zipped up the dress, not just with the fabric but also with her.  The tenderness in Zane’s touch made Melody melt.  She wanted him so bad!

“Thanks,” she said, turning back around to face Zane. 

The way he was looking at her said more than words ever could.  The expression on his face mirrored Melody’s feelings for him.  Feeling as excited and uncertain as a teen on her very first date, she stood there dumbly for a moment, dazed and in disbelief over all that had happened.

“We’re going to be late,” Zane told her. 

“Oh, right!”  With that, Melody grabbed a wrap out of her closet and picked her favorite little clutch up off her dresser.  Then she took Zane’s arm and allowed him to lead her out to his car.

“We’re doing this all backwards, aren’t we?” he remarked as he got behind the wheel after opening the passenger door for Melody.  “Normal people go on dates first and
then
do all the other stuff we’ve been doing.”

“Normal is overrated,” Melody replied.

“I’m glad you think so.”

They drove in silence for a bit.  This time it wasn’t familiar, comfortable silence between friends.  It was the nervous, slightly awkward silence of a couple on a first date.  It was hard to believe a Real Actual Date could change everything, but that was what it felt like to Melody.

She was finally getting everything she wanted – sex, love, friendship...
all
of it.  It was surreal.  Life didn’t usually just work out perfectly like that, did it?  But being a cynic served no purpose, she reasoned.  Trying her best to push the irrational fear that there had to be some sort of catch out of her mind, Melody looked over at Zane and smiled.

“What?” he asked, smiling back when he caught her looking.

“You look so different without stubble,” she told him, reaching out to stroke the clean shaven, smooth skin of his jaw.  “It looks good.”

“Well don’t get used to it,” he cautioned.  “Sure, I’m pulling out all the stops on our first date but by the third one I’ll be back to my usual scruffiness.”

Zane looked every bit as sexy with stubble as he did without, so whatever he decided to do was fine by Melody.  But even though she was completely unbothered by his threat, she couldn’t help but get a bit mouthy.  “Is that so?  Well then you’d better make sure our dates are
amazing
.  I expect nothing short of a cruise around the world for our second date,” she joked.

“Seriously?” he asked.

“What?  No.  No!”  Melody’s eyes widened.  Sometimes she forgot that Zane was filthy rich and actually could afford extravagant things that most people could only ever dream about.  It was easy to do considering he wasn’t one to flaunt his wealth.  “I was only teasing,” she quickly assured him.

“Good.  You’d better keep your expectations low for our next date,” he winked.  “I’ll probably take you to the movies on dollar Tuesday in my sweatpants.  And after the movie if you’re
really
lucky I may take you out for a gourmet meal at that weird little taco stand across the street from the movie theater.”

“I know you’re joking, but that actually sounds pretty perfect,” Melody told him, loving that he hadn’t allowed wealth to change who he was or the way he lived his life.  “Can we do that sometime soon?  Please?”

“You bet,” he agreed immediately.  “But for the record, I won’t actually wear sweats.”

“Ooh, fancy!”

“You bet.” 

The city lights twinkled above them.  The streetlights were, of course, artificial...but Melody thought they looked every bit as beautiful as stars.  To be fair, at that moment she probably could have found beauty in anything.  She was on top of the world.

They pulled up to a stop light and Zane took the opportunity to lean over and kiss Melody. 

“Kissing you feels different, too,” she observed once he had pulled back and resumed driving.  “Your skin is so smooth.  There’s no stubble scratching me!  It’s nice.”

“Well maybe I could shave for you every once in a while,” he relented, grumbling playfully as though to do so would require a great sacrifice on his part.  “But it would only be once in a while!  Don’t think you’re getting rid of the stubble forever!”

“I wouldn’t want to.”

“No?”

“I like kissing you after you’ve shaved, but I love how scratchy and tickly the stubble feels in, um, certain other places,” Melody said pointedly.  She wished she and Zane could pull over in a deserted alleyway and go at it like animals right there in the backseat of his car. 

But they had a dinner reservation.

“I will take that into consideration,” he vowed as they pulled up in front of one of the trendiest and priciest restaurants in the entire state.  “We’re here.  I guess we should go in?”  If Melody wasn’t mistaken, Zane was also tempted to ditch their date to go do more scandalous things.

“I guess so.”

As much as Melody didn’t want to be there, it was difficult to be upset about it.  Zane hadn’t made them a reservation at any old place.  It was a swanky upscale gourmet restaurant in the heart of the city.  It had created quite a buzz when it had opened, so Melody had certainly heard of it before...but seeing it in a magazine or on television was nothing like seeing it in person.

As Zane and Melody walked inside, she was struck by how beautiful everything was.  It wasn’t the sort of restaurant she had ever imagined herself setting foot in, never mind dining in.  It was way out of her price range...but not out of Zane’s, apparently.  Every time she remembered he was a billionaire, she had to pinch herself.

Once inside, they were greeted by the hostess.  Then they were immediately whisked out to a private indoor garden at the back of the restaurant.  Melody had never seen anything like it before.  It was like something out of a dream.

It was the most peaceful and gorgeous garden Melody had ever seen.  The ambience and tranquility were beyond words.  There was a small pond that had a small waterfall running into it.  The sound of the water was so relaxing.  Even better, there were delicate, colorful butterflies flitting about in the glow of the miniature lights that wound around every tree.

“This is unreal,” Melody gasped as she struggled to take it all in.  “Look at it!  Look at all the butterflies.  And the roses...oh, there are so many roses!  Mmm, they smell so good.  This is unbelievable, Zane!  I could stay here forever.”

“I thought you’d like it,” Zane replied, watching her reaction intently.  “I was going to bring you here for your birthday next week, but I couldn’t wait.  This garden was the whole reason I brought you here, actually.  It’s pretty cool, huh?”

“It’s very cool!  Is this part of the restaurant?” she asked, simultaneously grimacing at the mention of her birthday and touched that Zane had remembered it.

“No.  I suppose they don’t want butterflies landing in people’s food,” he reasoned.  “The garden is a place to have pre-dinner drinks.  But not too many people know about it and only VIP guests are allowed back here.”

“It’s like the exclusive, members’ only country club of restaurant lounges!” Melody laughed.  Then, curiously, she asked, “How did you find out about it?”

“A business partner of mine from a few years ago brought me here to celebrate a merger.”

A woman in a crisp black uniform arrived with champagne, then.  And she didn’t bring them a glass each.  No, she brought them an entire bottle.  And damn, was it good champagne!  Melody had to remind herself to slow down so she wouldn’t get embarrassingly drunk before the main course was even served.  The last thing she wanted was a repeat of the last time she’d had too much to drink...

Before the server left, she set a classy looking black leather bound menu down on the table.  “Our drinks selection,” she explained.  “I’ll give you two a moment to look it over.”

As Melody and Zane sat together at the small wrought iron table, he reached across the table and took her hand.  She gazed into his green eyes and saw utter adoration in them.  It was so intense that Melody, deeply touched, had to look away.

A beautiful, vibrant butterfly flitted past.  Then it circled back and landed on the tablecloth near Zane.  He looked down at it and smiled.  Then he held his index finger out, moving slowly.  As Melody looked on, he somehow managed to coax the butterfly to land on him briefly before it gracefully flew away.

Melody loved seeing that gentler side of him.  For a moment she couldn’t help but stare.  Sometimes she found it tough to wrap her head around the many sides of Zane Shepherd. 

He was her best friend, the playful, mischievous guy who force fed her ice cream and tossed her in the river.  He was her Dom, the one who tied her up, spanked her and made her beg, teasing and denying her simply because doing so excited him.  And he was also the sweet, considerate billionaire who was wining and dining her like she’d never been wined and dined before.