A Marriage Fit for a Sinner by Maya Blake

Author:Maya Blake [Blake, Maya]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2015-09-30T23:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TEN

ZACCHEO SCROLLED THROUGH the missed calls from Eva on his phone as he was driven away from the private hangar. Romeo had relayed her increasingly frantic requests to reach him. Zaccheo had deliberately forbidden his number from being given to her until this morning, once he’d confirmed his return to London.

His jaw flexed as he rolled tight shoulders. The number of fires he’d put out in Oman would’ve wiped out a lesser man. But Zaccheo’s name and ruthless nature weren’t renowned for nothing, and although it’d taken three days to get the construction schedule back on track, his business partners were in no doubt that he would bring them to their knees if they strayed so much as one millimetre from the outcome he desired.

It was the same warning he’d given Oscar Pennington when he’d called yesterday and attempted an ego-stroking exercise to get Zaccheo to relent on his threats. Zaccheo had coldly reminded him of the days he’d spent in prison and invited Pennington to ask for clemency when hell froze over.

No doubt Eva’s eagerness to contact him was born of the same desire as her father’s. But unlike her father, the thought of speaking to Eva sent a pleasurable kick of anticipation through his blood, despite the fact that with time and distance he’d looked back on their conversations since his release with something close to dismay.

Had he really revealed all those things about his time in prison and his childhood to her?

What was even more puzzling was her reaction. She hadn’t looked down her nose at him in those moments. Had in fact exhibited nothing but empathy and compassion. Pushing the bewildering thought away, he dialled her number, gratified when she picked up on the first ring.

‘Ciao, Eva. I understand you’re experiencing pre-wedding jitters.’

‘You understand wrong. This wedding isn’t going to happen. Not once you hear what I have to say.’

His tension increased until the knots in his shoulders felt like immoveable rocks. He breathed through the red haze blurring his vision. ‘I take it you didn’t miss me, then?’ he taunted.

She made a sound, a cross between a huff and a sigh. ‘We really need to talk, Zaccheo.’

‘Nothing you say will alter my intention to make you mine tomorrow,’ he warned.

She hesitated. Then, ‘Zaccheo, it’s important. I won’t take up too much of your time. But I need to speak to you.’

He rested his head against the seat. ‘You have less than twenty-four hours left as a single woman. I won’t permit anything like male strippers anywhere near you, of course, but I won’t be a total bore and deny you a hen party if you wish—’

‘I don’t want a damn hen party! What I want is five minutes of your time.’

‘Are you dying of some life-threatening disease?’

‘What? Of course not!’

‘Are you afraid I won’t be a good husband?’ he asked, noting the raw edge to his voice, but realising how much her answer meant to him.

‘Zaccheo, this is about me, not you.’

He let her non-answer slide.

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