4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Claire

Zach escorts me into the elegant home and I can't help but gape at the decor and the stylish people. I fidget as I look at my dress compared to every other woman in the room. I'm more prepared for an upper end bar-b-que than this elaborate fancy party.

Zach's hand squeezes my waist as he pulls me into his side. "You're stunning." Then he stupefies me by kissing my temple and I just about melt against him.

What is happening? How in the hell did I land on the arm of Zach Whitmore? Billionaire extraordinaire and savior of New Hope. I fight back a laugh as I imagine Alan's face when he notices his idol on my arm tomorrow at the wedding.

Alan is a real estate agent who has been emulating his business model after Zach, with no such luck. He's been trying to meet him for years and it never happened.

"Ah, there you are. About time buddy." A man of average height and several inches shorter than Zach comes into the foyer.

"Jason." Zach grins and there go my panties.

Zach's imposing but delectable at the same time. I've always found the older man attractive when I spot him on the cover of magazines, and at town events he puts on. He's the classic blue eye, blonde hair, swimmer body of the Gods type of man. But he always has an air about him showing he's constantly thinking and observing everything around him.

However, his grin and the shield he has around himself falls away with his friend. It makes him ten times more gorgeous if at all possible. This time with Zach is going to be the most memorable and exciting time in my life so far, and I pray I don't screw it up.

The two men do the bro hug thing. Then Jason steps back and looks at me with a warm smile.

"Claire, this is my best friend, Jason. Jason, this is my beautiful Claire."

My body heats with him, calling me his. Oh, how I wish it were so.

Jason lifts his brow, but his smile stays pleasant as he reaches his hand out. "Nice to meet you, Claire. Welcome to my home."

"Thank you so much for having me. Your home is stunning."

A little blonde comes over dazzling in beautiful jewels, immaculate makeup and a stunning evening dress, which makes me uncomfortable with my outfit of choice once again.

Zach, hyper-aware, puts his arm around my waist again and tucks me into his side. It's like all my worries vanish into the ether.

"Thank you so much. I'm Vivian, Jason's wife. I'm so happy you are here and with this big lug." The woman has the most sincere smile and wraps me in a hug that has me stiffening instantly. I'm not used to hugs, but I don't want to be rude and I work to settle myself down.

"You are the absolute cutest thing ever." She grabs my hand, opening my arms to get a full on examination of my outfit, and I fight back my cringe. I'm far from little, and I grow even more uncomfortable. "Just beautiful."

Vivian hugs and kisses Zach on the cheek. "So, where have you been hiding her? I didn't think you could ever get such a sweet thing."

Zach laughs, his gaze heats as he scans over me, and my nipples pucker.

Damn. This man has a powerful effect on me and it's potent.

"We've been wanting to see if what we have will last, and it's been a few months now, so I figured now was the best time to introduce you all." Zach delivers our cover story like a pro. He even has me convinced.

Vivian claps her hands together gushing over us and I feel a little selfish with all the attention we're garnering from the hosts. Thankfully, Zach free's us to leave. "Why don't you finish receiving all your other guests and I'm going to get my lady some wine?"

Vivian pouts. In all her elegant beauty, she makes it come across as adorable. "Fine, but we're catching up later. I need to hear all about this." She smacks Jason's chest. "I can't believe you didn't tell me."

"Hey, I didn't know. Honest." He smirks as he looks at Zach. "But don't worry, honey, we're going to get all the details."

Zach rolls his eyes and guides me out of the foyer and into the main room of the event, where there's no household furniture but round tables and chairs set up around the room. Enough to seat a few dozen people.

"Wow. This isn't a small gathering."

Zach chuckles. "For them it is. Vivian is a party planner and does events all the time, so this is downscale for her, but Jason wanted it to be as intimate as possible."

"How long have they been married?"

"This is their twentieth wedding anniversary."

"Twenty. Wow. They were babies when they got married."

Zach lifts his lips at the corner. "Twenty-two."

Okay so, he's around forty-two, he's double my age. I study him and I can't think of anything that makes me doubt my attraction to him. His age doesn't concern me in the slightest. It helps knowing this is a temporary thing, so I don't worry about getting worked up about it. But there's something to be said about him being a man and not a boy like my ex. It's a major turn on, a man who has his life in order and has accomplished so much already.

People come up to Zach, wanting to be around his powerful aura because he exudes it in doses. Everything about him makes you want to be a better version of yourself just so you can come close to reaching the power of him. It's an admirable trait to invoke in others and inspire them to grow. He has me wanting to reach for more. We barely know each other, but the thoughts of going to school are gaining traction.

He doesn't let people talk business, and he makes sure I'm never left out of the conversation. In fact, he keeps turning things around on me, forcing people to take notice, and I don't know how to take it in. I'm not necessarily a wallflower, but I'm not outgoing either.

We get a few minutes alone and I sip at my glass of wine as we stand off to the side. "So, which one is your ex?"

"None of them. She's going to be fashionably late. She'll want to make an entrance."

Once again I swipe my hand down my dress, but Zach grabs my hand, pulls it to his mouth, and kisses my palm.

I stand frozen as I watch his lips kiss my palm a few times. "What's going through your mind?"

Huh. What was the question?

Confused for a second, I gaze at him and he has a wicked smile on his face, like he knows what he's doing to me.

"Tell me, sweetheart. What has you nervous?"

I swallow harshly, trying to tell my knees to stop shaking. "I feel a little out of place. Everybody here is so high class. I'm just a data clerk with no college degree, no matter how much I wish I did have one." I shrug to pass it off, but the inferiority is there.

His gaze sharpens and his jaw clenches for a second. He lifts his hand to cup my cheek, as he's about to say something we get interrupted.

"Well, well, well, who do we have here? She's a little young for you, isn't she, Zachary?"

A gorgeous, tall, thin, blonde who personifies elegance herself seems to float over toward us while on the arm of a man around Zach's age, but not as handsome.

Zach moves next to me, wraps his arm around my waist, and I sink into his side as if I've belonged there my whole life.

The realization has me dizzy and excited, but disoriented.

"Natalie, Donovan. This is my girlfriend Claire. Sweetheart, this is my ex-wife Natalie and her new husband Donovan."

Damn. How am I supposed to compete with her?