His Intern: A Billionaire and Virgin Romance Page 9

  “This is the last place I thought I would find you,” I said, smiling. Apparently, he could cook.

  Zach turned around with a surprised look on his face. He wore a white t-shirt that hugged his biceps and flannel pajama pants that hung off his hips like he was doing them a favor.

  He grinned at me. “I thought it would be nice to make breakfast.”

  “I think it’s nice of you to make breakfast too. Be careful or I’ll think you’re the domesticated kind.” I walked into the kitchen and sat down at the breakfast table.

  “Not a chance, sweetheart.” He glanced over his shoulder and winked before turning back to the stove. Something was different about him but I couldn’t put my finger on it. He seemed more free.

  When the food was done Zach laid it out on the table. Toast, scrambled eggs, bacon, orange juice and there was a box of cereal, too.

  “Are we expecting anyone or is all this just for us?” I asked.

  Zach put a plate in front of me.

  “All for us so you don’t have to hold back,” he said and smiled at me. I smiled back and dished food for myself. Zach watched me fill my plate before he did the same.

  I took a bite of the eggs.

  “This is good,” I said.

  “I can cook,” he said. “But, don’t call me domesticated. I’ll go wild and bite your pretty ass.”

  “Just my ass?” I took another bite and tried not to laugh at the warning look on his handsome face. “What’s the occasion?”

  Zach took another bite and spoke with the food in his cheek.

  “With what I have planned today, you need a good breakfast.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “What do you have planned?”

  He smiled at me again before he answered me. I realized what was different about him. He wasn’t as cocky or arrogant, as usual. In fact, he was very normal. That was saying something. Zach was a pain in the ass on a good day. If he was in a bad mood most people scattered so they wouldn’t get in his way. The Zach sitting opposite me was different. Maybe he somehow felt the need to be what he believed society wanted him to be – namely a player. How exhausting.

  “We’re hiking up the mountain today,” he said.

  I paused before taking a bite of toast.

  “Hiking?”

  Zach nodded. I shook my head immediately, putting the toast back down on my plate.

  “I don’t hike, Zach.”

  Zach looked at me, his eyes twinkling. “Well, Miss Woods,” he said and I bristled.” I guess you’ll just have to see what it’s like to be told what to do.”

  I rolled my eyes but I couldn’t help smiling at him. He grinned at me again before taking another bite.

  “What’s got you in such a good mood?” I asked.

  Zach shrugged. “When you wake up next to a pretty girl that tends to happen. If I’m being honest…I usually try and sneak out while they’re still sleeping. Why am I not doing that with you? You slip something in my food?”

  I smiled, unable to stop myself from blushing. He had that effect on me. Lately, I’d been blushing at every compliment like I was a lovesick teenager. “You wish. Playboy.”

  “Used to be.” He waggled his eyebrows. “Hell, maybe I still am.”

  After breakfast, we got ready. Zach had taken the liberty to order hiking clothes for me to go up the mountain seeing that I owned nothing of the sort. When I put on the clothes I was surprised to find they fit perfectly.

  “Did you measure me while I was sleeping?” I asked when I emerged from the bedroom where I’d been changing. Zach looked up at me and smiled. He was dressed in a similar outfit, complete with gloves.

  “I can tell your size just by looking at you. It’s a talent I have.”

  I smiled but his words cut me. It was a perfectly innocent comment, but I couldn’t help thinking that it was a talent he’d picked up because of how many women’s bodies he’d seen. I forced the thought away. I couldn’t think this way. I knew who Zach was, I knew why I was here. I’d known this for a while now. If anything, I should welcome the reminder to not fall too hard for him. He had admitted to being a playboy. I needed to keep that in mind and not fall too hard – as if I had a choice in the matter.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  I nodded. “Ready.”

  Zach left me unstable most of the time – I didn’t think I would ever be completely ready for him, but that wasn’t what he’d asked.

  He drove us through Aspen and finally stopped at the base of the mountain. We got out and Zach carried a backpack. I had nothing to carry so I looked up at the path we were set to follow.

  “That’s a long way up,” I said.

  Zach laughed. “You can’t already be backing out. What happened to the girl who worked so hard to get to the top?”

  “That’s not the same thing,” I said. Zach shook his head, still laughing and walked to the start of the trail.

  “It will do you good,” he said. “Fresh air and all that.”

  The hiking trail took a lot out of me. I didn’t have time to exercise often and the mountain air was thinner than what I was used to. Being surrounded by nature was wonderful, though. Aspen trees grew from the mountainside all around us and birds chirped merrily in the branches above. The mountains loomed in the background.

  After a while, my thighs were screaming and my calves cramping.

  “Can we stop?” I asked. “Just for a bit.”

  Zach turned around. His cheeks were flushed, but he looked like he hadn’t exerted himself at all. “Come on. You can’t be tired already.”

  I leaned forward with my hands on my knees. “Some of us have to work for our money,” I said. “I don’t spend a lot of time in the gym.”

  “You’re not even carrying the pack,” he said. “I should be the one complaining.” He put his hands on his lips and smiled. “You look pretty fucking hot all sweaty like that.”

  “Don’t even try.” I shook my head as I panted loudly. He offered me a bottle of water, and I sipped it slowly, trying to figure out another way to gain myself a break. The water was ice cold, running down my throat. The cold spread to my other organs, cooling me down. Despite the weather I was sweating from exertion.

  “Come on,” Zach said.

  “That wasn’t even five minutes,” I protested. The breakfast had been a sweet gesture, but I felt like it hadn’t been enough to warrant this torture.

  Zach shook his head and walked the few short steps to me. He grabbed my hand and started walking so I had to stay beside him.

  “I will be worth it. I promise,” he said.

  I wasn’t so sure about that, but I couldn’t turn around and go back and I didn’t want to whine the whole way like a child. Zach had done his fair share of sulking since we’d started working together and I wasn’t going to be like that.

  It felt like a lot longer before we finally reached the top, but the moment we did I realized he had been right.

  It was more than worth it.

  The view was spectacular. It took my breath away. I stood on the edge of a small cliff, looking out over a valley that was lush and green. Snow-capped mountains reached up into the sky in the distance, but in front of me was scenery the likes of which I’d never seen before.

  I turned to Zach.

  “This is spectacular,” I said.

  Zach smiled. “I knew you would like it.”

  Like it? I turned back to the view. I loved it. As far as I could see it was just wild growth. Nothing about this part of the land was touched by human hands. It was raw and pure. The sight of it made me emotional. Suddenly, I wanted to cry. I swallowed hard.

  “Come,” Zach said. “Sit down.” He stood by a bench I hadn’t even noticed. I walked to him and sat down beside him. The bench looked out over the valley and it was warm in the sun. He reached over and squeezed my thigh, smiling at me in a way that had my pulse spiked and heart racing. What the hell was I doing?

  “This is amazing,” I said. The words didn’t des
cribe it well enough. I couldn’t put what I saw into words. I didn’t have to, though. The only person I would want to tell was right next to me.

  “We used to hike up here when I was younger,” he said. “My mom used to complain just as much as you did.” He laughed, lost in the memory. “And my dad would tell her that she always complained and she always insisted on doing it again. And she did. Countless times. It’s worth it, she used to say.”

  I nodded. It really was. I hadn’t realized this place was so special to Zach.

  I looked at him again. His eyes were evergreen, the same as the brush down below, and they were far off, caught in some distant memory.

  There was so much more to this man than I’d thought at first. When I’d met him, I was sure he was just a spoiled brat, no deeper than any other kid who had been born into a lot of money with nothing to keep himself busy. As I got to know him better and managed to peel back the layers one by one, I found someone different beneath that hard, uncaring façade. Zach had so much more to him and he was hurting in a lot of ways.

  It was like I had found a treasure map and I was following it along the complicated turns and twists that were his personality. I wanted to mean something to him, to be the kind of woman he wanted to change for. That wasn’t realistic, though. I had to keep reminding myself that this was just a vacation, a story, a game. None of it would matter once we got back home and as soon as I was done with my job and his image was clean, I wouldn’t matter either.

  Contracts didn’t last forever and that was all this was. A contract. A contract I’d given up my virginity for. How stupid was I? What did I think? A hot night of passion would be okay after all those years of saving myself? A torrent of emotions washed through me, but I forced myself back into the moment. I couldn’t miss out on the view, both in front of me, and beside me.

  Besides that, we still had a few days left. Until then, I would enjoy myself and try to live like there was no tomorrow.

  I turned and touched Zach’s face. “This is where you kiss me.”

  “Right?” He leaned in and pressed his lips to mine, forcing me to open my mouth and tilt my head. His tongue brushed by mine before dominating me with long strokes. I sucked soft at first and then harder, wanting him to know that I was more than interested.

  I was, unfortunately, sold out for him.

  Chapter 11: Zach

  The end of the week brought the highlight of our week. I had reserved a table for two at Element 47, a five-star restaurant in the Little Nell hotel. I wanted to spoil Hailey a little, show her my gratitude for everything she’d done and everything she’d been on this trip.

  My mood had changed

  Not only had Hailey managed to make the trip something amazing – she was the kind of person who kept my mother’s memories precious even though I was sharing them with someone new– but she had become something more than just a PR agent to me. This was aside from the sex, which I had to admit was fantastic.

  Tonight, was going to top off the trip just right, even if it was our last night. We were leaving for Denver in the morning and everything that we had become would come to an end. It felt like everything we had learned about each other would stay behind here when we drove back to the real world.

  I shook off the thought. It would be bittersweet, but I wouldn’t let that put a damper on things. I was going to enjoy the time we spent together.

  I glanced at my wristwatch.

  “Are you almost done?” I called up the stairs. “We’re going to lose our reservation if we run too late.”

  “I’ll be down in a minute,” Hailey called, her voice muffled through the closed door. I walked to the mirror in the entrance hall. I had chosen a black suit for the evening. The suit had a satin weave so it shimmered a little when I moved. I had my hair slicked back and I was clean shaven.

  Hailey hadn’t chosen the suit for me, but I knew she’d be impressed. I wanted to surprise her, show her that I was capable of cleaning up well if I chose to and look as good as I could.

  I heard her door open and walked back to the living room where I waited for her at the foot of the stairs.

  She rounded the corner and I froze. She wore a gold dress that hugged her curves perfectly and flared out a little at the bottom. It had a scoop neckline and she wore a delicate necklace. Her hair was curled elegantly and hung over one shoulder, pinned to the side to bare her neck. Her breasts called my attention down to them, and her nipples budded beautifully. I licked my lips and pressed my hand to my chest as my cock twitched and swelled in my slacks.

  Fuck me.

  As she stepped down, black heels showed from underneath the dress.

  I looked her up and down. She stopped halfway and smiled shyly at me.

  “Wow,” I said. “You look fucking amazing.”

  She blushed, her innocence still ever present. The alpha male in me woke up and growled, low and deep. Fuck she left me needy like no other woman had before her. “I like your suit,” she said when she reached the bottom of the stairs. I took her hand and kissed it. “You look good. Really good.”

  “Oh yeah?” I smirked like I didn’t already know. “I chose it, for you. It isn’t blue, but it’ll work.”

  She giggled. “Don’t make me fall for you, Zach.”

  “Never. Let’s go,” I said. “We can’t be late. I’ll have you know that punctuality is important in your line of work.”

  Hailey rolled her eyes but she was smiling. I smiled, too. We had come a long way from that first day when I hadn’t been able to be in my own office at seven.

  I opened the car door for Hailey and she stepped in carefully. When I walked around the car I glanced at her silhouette through the dark windows. She looked just like the women in my world – she cleaned up beautifully and she had an exquisite fashion sense. But that was where the similarity stopped. Everything about Hailey was genuine. She didn’t once pretend to be something she wasn’t. It had taken her a while to open to me and there were times when I still had no idea who she was deep down inside, but whether she showed herself to me or not, she was genuine.

  She was a breath of fresh air compared to the women I spent my time with until now. They all hid themselves behind money and plastic surgery, using their social standing to make up for what they lacked in character. They all believed that the world owed them because they were at the top of the food chain.

  With vanity and pride flowing freely it didn’t matter how much makeup they wore or how expensive their clothes were. It didn’t matter what size diamonds they had in their ears or who their fathers were. Being with Hailey shed a new light on my life. I was starting to see where all the holes were, all the things I’d conveniently ignored.

  Maybe it was the fact that we were alone here, that we were caught in a bubble in a romantic spot. Maybe, when I went back home, all of this would fall away and I would slip back into my old life like nothing had ever happened.

  All of it felt like a dream, one that I would wake up from soon. She expected me to be a good man, but she was in the minority.

  I opened the car door and slid in behind the wheel. I glanced at her. She looked like a goddess with her golden dress and perfect profile. She smiled at me.

  “Tonight will be fun.” I reached out and touched the side of her face, brushing my thumb over her full bottom lip.

  “I believe it will.” She captured my hand against her face and turned slightly, kissing my palm.

  “Be careful. I might have to let the beast out.” I waggled my eyebrows.

  “I’m hoping so.” She pulled her hand from my face and tried to play it cool.

  I shook my head and smiled as she busted out laughing.

  Fuck me. I was falling for her too.

  ****

  Element 47 was a modern restaurant with an authentic feel. When we were seated by the maître ‘d I looked around and took in the ambiance of the place.

  The decorations were mostly wood and suede with dark blue leather seats and booths
and a luxurious carpet stretching out beneath our feet. The tables were decorated with wine glasses and silverware. We were seated along the barrier that divided the restaurant in two at a small table that felt private even though we weren’t in a booth.

  “This place is beautiful,” Hailey said, glancing around.

  A waitress came to our table. She smiled and welcomed us, giving me a wine list. She ran through the specials and then left us alone to decide what we were going to eat.

  “I don’t know what to choose,” Hailey said when we’d been reading the menu for a while. “There’s so much I want to try.”

  I smiled at her. She was like a kid at Christmas. I had lost that awe for the things in my life. It was time I got it back.

  “How about we both order something interesting and then share? That way we both get to taste double.”

  Hailey smiled and nodded. “I’d love that.”

  “Good. What the lady wants, the lady gets.” I let my eyes linger on her while she looked over the menu.

  When the waitress returned to take our starters order, I ordered a baby beetroot salad with a pomegranate vinaigrette and ricotta. Hailey ordered curried cauliflower soup with apple shavings and crisp capers. I ordered a dry white wine along with it and the waitress disappeared.

  “There was a time when I used to never order the same thing on the menu twice,” Hailey said after the wine had arrived. “I used to order everything, even if I didn’t know what it was.”

  “Why did you stop?” I asked.

  “Because I got too busy to eat out often. And if it’s a place like this the chances of me ever coming back here to work my way down the menu isn’t very good.”

  Unless she came back often with me, I thought. But that wasn’t realistic.

  “Have you spoken to your dad today?” Hailey asked.

  I nodded. I chatted with my father almost daily. I had to keep up with what was going on at the business. We didn’t have time to discuss more than that. He was too busy for more than just a quick update.