“And what exactly did you expect?” he asked, sipping her wine.
“I thought it would be more bachelor-like.”
“I’m not sure I know what that means. How does a bachelor’s place look?”
She shrugged. “I just thought it would be more about bells and whistles than comfort.”
“You have a lot of preconceived notions about me.”
Her eyes dropped to her glass and she remembered what Lucy had said about judging Declan unfairly. “You’re right. I do. I mean I did.” She lifted her gaze to his. “I’m trying to be better.”
Declan reached for her wine and deposited both of their glasses on the marble coffee table. When he turned back to her, he slid closer and his palm did a soft glide across her cheek before he took her hand. “I know why you’re afraid of me.”
“Why is that?”
“You think I’m like my father.”
“Like mine.” She paused. “Like my father.”
“My guess is they’re a lot alike. I see my mother’s pain. I see how she needs my father and he isn’t there.”
“I know you don’t want to hear this, but to leave like your mother has is brave. My mother wanted to leave but she never did. She died unhappy.”
He didn’t respond immediately and seemed to his drift into his thoughts for a moment. “I hope this wakes up my father.” Then in a lower voice more to himself than anything. “But I doubt it.”
“How is your mother?”
His shoulder sank into the couch, leaning into it but still facing Zoe. “Hurt. Emotional. I wanted to stay the night with her, but she wouldn’t let me. I called her best friend to stay instead. At least, I got her to agree to that. I didn’t know what else to do.” He scrubbed the evening shadow now present on his jaw. “Hell, at times like this, she needs a daughter around, not a son. Somehow I felt she needed another woman. I’m glad she had a close female friend.”
“Believe me,” Zoe said. “With three brothers, I can tell you that sometimes siblings only complicate matters. I mean, sometimes, it’s nice having a larger family. But sometimes it’s not so great.”
“I would think now would be a time you were happy for your brothers and the strength and support. It must be hard getting all this press.”
Her stomach knotted. It was doing that a lot the past week. She turned and slid down on the couch a bit, resting her head on the cushion and staring up at the ceiling.
“They don’t offer much support. In fact, they tell me as little as possible. It’s made it harder dealing with all of this. My father says he’s innocent.” She expected Declan to respond but he didn’t. Still, the silence between them felt okay. He was looking at her, his eyes warm on her skin. “I’d like to believe he is.”
Declan brushed his fingers along her hairline. “Of course, you do. He’s your father.”
She turned to her side, facing him as she leaned on the cushion. “Yes, but it gets more complicated. His innocence means someone else’s guilt. The man he’s blaming for all of this is so close to the family. I call him Uncle Ray.”
Declan took a few moments to respond. “So I guess that means you’re close to this man?”
“I have fond memories of Ray from my youth. He always had a smile and a way about him that wasn’t all business. He was at our family functions. Even at my college graduation.” She paused. “I love Ray.” Her lashes fluttered. “I love my father. I don’t want either one of them to be in trouble.”
“It’ll work out.”
“I’m not so sure.”
“Zoe…” He seemed to hesitate as if he wasn’t sure what to say.
She sensed he wanted to comfort her and it felt good. He felt good. Without another thought, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his. “Thank you,” she whispered against his mouth.
“For what?” he asked.
“For finding me tonight.”
Their eyes locked and held, and the intensity of the emotion she felt in those few seconds made her shiver. Never, ever, in her life had she felt this kind of powerful connection to a man.
“You found me tonight,” he said. “In my thoughts. I needed to see you.”
“I’m glad you came,” she said, her breath lodged in her throat. That he found comfort in her presence felt special. “This thing with your parents is bothering you.”
He nodded. “For some reason, you felt like the thing that would make it better. It’s crazy, I know, but still…it’s a fact.”
Feeling drawn to him, feeling attached emotionally, scared her. But it didn’t stop the thrill of his words. Or the yearning for him beyond the physical. She couldn’t make this go away. It was what it was. Even if she could, she wasn’t sure she wanted to. “I need you tonight, too.”