Objectively, he had a nice body. I wasn't going to lie just to prove to myself that I wasn't attracted to him, physically speaking. That would have been a foolish thing to do. It would have been like saying you didn't want a perfectly delicious fudge cake slice because for whatever reason someone else had been given it instead.
I liked to appreciate beauty whenever I saw it. In this world, we can so caught up with mundane concerns, when we do see something, or someone, we like it often feels cathartic and doubly strange. Ethereal, almost. I was a baker. That meant I had an aesthetic appreciation for fine textures, flavours, colours and the subtle interplay between ingredients. Since I was a young girl, I knew that the relationship I had between food and emotions was something special. I don't mean to boast, but it felt like food was art, pleasure and survival itself.
If Zachary's body could have been described in one way: to me, it was a five-star feast. A veritable feast. There was a harmony between all the individual components was like the chef had struck gold by discovering the perfect menu.
As for Zachary, he was at first shocked that I was looking at him so freely. Was it because he was more used to being the one who held the upper hand in our interactions? I guess it didn't matter in that moment. I even think he liked it, but no surprises there, eh?
His eyes were brimming with intrigue. Holding his palm out to me as though he wanted me to touch him. 'If I wasn't lying on a hospital bed, I'd take my chances with you, Candice.'
'Is that right?' I murmured, a smile seemed to be tugging around the corner my mouth. Out of a whim, I placed my hand in his. And that's when I felt it. It was like most familiar sensation, the warmth of his finger tips was like stepping into a luxurious foam bath. His touch seemed felt entirely natural.
'What did you do last night?' He looked surprised that I'd complied. At that moment, I wasn't thinking straight, but I was in no mood to be cautious. If anything, my nerves were shattered, too tired to think straight. And strangely enough, Zachary touching me didn't seem feel so bad. I was flattered that he found me attractive and desirable. I doubt he really meant anything by it.
'Why do you want to know?' I shrugged my shoulders. His hand was wrapped around my mine and tugged me towards him, indicating that I should sit down on his bed. His eyes held no room for protest, not that I minded being so close to him.
'I think you'd be an interesting person to get to know. I want to know all the boring details. Besides, I could think of worse ways to spend the evening. Me! I'm a survivor,' he beat his free hand on his chest in a display of strength.
'Thank you,' I smiled at him. 'That's the nicest back-handed compliment I may have received in my life, Zachary. Did they give you a personality-altering drug?'
Zachary placed my hand flat on his chest, so I could feel the steady pulsations of his heartbeat. I raised an eyebrow, wondering if I was in another dimension, one where we had just decided to enjoy the moment for what it was. Being alone with him was an intimate experience.
'Do you feel that? That's the sound of an alive heart. I don't know what it is about you, Candice, but something inside me knows â or scratch that â demands, that if I saw more of you, maybe it would be beneficial.'
My jaw dropped as I processed his words. 'Is that your roundabout way of asking me out on a date?' There was thickness in the back of my throat which I clamped down on.
Zachary laughed at my answer. He seemed like he found my stunned response endearing. 'I want to take you out â scout's honour. One important thing you should know about me is that I value persistence. We both have that in spades. How about it?'
My cheeks must have been fire-engine red as though I was in the most embarrassing and awkward situation of all time, but, admittedly, it was irresistible the power he had over my burgeoning interest in him. Yet, I wasn't going to be swayed that easily by his honesty, no matter how tempting he was.
I wasn't just going to drop Jonny for him because my lady bits were practically pleading with me to accept. That would have been an awful thing to do in the circumstances. I was made of stronger stuff. This wasn't a romance film.
I didn't want to appear like I was a piece of trash. Whatever happened to loyalty? I wasn't going to give into silly little urges, no matter how much that snake of a voice whispered in my ear that I had a good opportunity in front of me. What kind of person would that make me? I had morals. I was raised right. This was the type of situation I'd seen countless times on TV â shitty soap operas (although I admit, they had their perks. Stress management!) that always showed the characters jumping in and out of bed with any old Stacey, Tracey or Casey.
I was going to have the upper hand, the power, the control over the situation, and that meant to never ever succumb to anyone. Fate decreed that I had a perfectly good boyfriend in Jonny. Jonny was the best, I really liked him. You would too if you met him.
Although, that didn't stop me from doing something I probably shouldn't have done, but I blamed it on my contact with the guy currently lying on the hospital bed, awaiting my response with a keen eye.
'Since you asked so nicely,' I smiled sweetly, allowing my words to have an impact. His hand squeezed mine, tense with anticipation. His chin was firmly set. 'I'll be honest with you, Zachary. You asked me how I spent my evening. I went out on a date with my coworker Jonny. Sorry, I guess?'
His warm, steady, supple hand dropped mine as though I'd turned into a leper. 'Well. That explains it,' he said cooly.
He wasn't really the type to keep his feelings in check when he was displeased, I noted. But to give him credit, he didn't look shame-faced or embarrassed. Instead, his brows furrowed as he turned his eyes back to me with a mildly intrigued expression. He was connecting the dots.
'Explains what?' I said, scratching my nose.
'You got laid, didn't you,' he said bluntly. Even though I should have expected it, I couldn't help laughing in shock.
'That's a personal question. As if I'm gonna tell you that! I may have almost killed you, but don't think we're best friends,' I retorted, crossing my arms.
He shook his head, as if my words bounced off him and landed in a bin bag. 'You're right. That was ungentlemanly of me.' He seemed like he didn't even mean it. 'Moving on, your dad is a generous guy,' he smiled sincerely. Slight pause. A thought occurred to him. 'He certainly thought we were friends. I don't know what gave him that impression,' he quipped, with a gleam in his eye.
'Acquaintances, more like,' I muttered. Unfazed, he gave me a haughty flash of a smile as though he was lord of the hospital.
Before I could seize his pillow and take out my annoyance on him, the door opened and a young woman, around my age, glided in carrying a magazine, coffee cups and a shopping bag. She looked familiar, but I could place her in the context of my frazzled memory.
'Zach, sorry I took so long to come back. The hospital cafe has really awful food, so I popped down to Waitrose instead. Only for you, loser,' she smiled affectionately over her shoulder as she closed the door.
'Hetty! You're a lifesaver,' Zachary grinned and laid back further in his bed, watching the beautiful girl raise her eyebrows on seeing me.
She narrowed her eyes at me. 'Are you the bitch who almost killed him?' Her voice was so sweet, mellifluous and well-spoken, it was a surprise to hear her use the insult.
I swallowed uneasily. 'I'm her.' I raised my hand, wondering who she was. 'Nice to meet you.'
'Don't worry, I don't hold grudges. Everything was explained. Zach's alive â if he can survive military school, then he can survive anything,' she laughed breezily as she unpacked the bag and handed Zachary a pasta salad which he started to stuff in his mouth like he hadn't eaten for days.
She rolled her eyes at him and looked at me in a friendly way as if to say 'Guys, right?'
I couldn't help warming to her easy-going attitude. 'I'm Candice, by the way.'
She tore at the wrapped with her perfect white teeth. 'I know. Your dad's so lovely. Seriously. Without you two, I don't know what condition he'd be in. Thank you, Candice.'
Even though I didn't feel I deserved her praise, I decided that I liked her even more.
Zachary was looking at us over us as he stuffed pasta down his gullet. He managed to take a breath to say. 'Candice, meet my ever-reliable sister, Heather.'
She smiled warmly at me, then got distracted by Zachary complaining about the disappearance of the remote, which she proceeded to take out of her bag and dangle in front of his face, a cheeky smile on her face.
Zachary greedily snatched the remote and switched on the television.
Stunned, I stared at Heather and remembered that I'd seen her face from the magazine spread. I couldn't believe I was meeting his sister in these circumstances. The one who was marrying a duke's son. She was so down-to-earth in contrast to her brother. However, you could tell they were siblings â they definitely enjoyed creating mischief everywhere they went.