But having her make the first move mattered a helluva lot more than he'd expected.
Zach hit the accelerator and drove across the grass, stopping in front of Julia. She stood, her mile-long legs unfolding. Those incredible legs in stretch pants and red boots made him almost as crazy as the incredible woman inside them.
Julia sauntered forward, winding around a row of empty flowerpots. She didn't hurry or run, but then Julia never rushed through life. She made him find time to take a wild night ride, stop for a nap in a hammock or watch his children play from a purple glider. Julia had given him and his children so much. More than anything, he wanted to be the man she needed. The man she deserved.
She strapped on her helmet. "Let's go for a ride."
"Where do you want to go?"
Julia slid onto the bike behind him. Her arms locked around his waist without hesitation.
"Surprise me."
He lifted one of her hands to his mouth. He pressed a lingering kiss to her wrist before replacing her hand on his stomach. "I'll do my best."
Zach cruised out of the yard, easing down the curb to the street. Outside the front gate, he opened up the engine and threw away the boundaries. Highway lights whipped past, sky above, air swirling below under the bridge. The road hummed beneath him with all the ground flight release he'd always enjoyed in the past. And more. The allure of the ride was back, and he knew it wasn't so much the bike as the woman with him.
Now to figure out how to make the most out of whatever miracle had prompted her to give him a second chance. He needed the perfect way to romance this unconventional lady he'd married. The house had too much potential for interruption, and he wanted somewhere more neutral than his office. Then the perfect answer came to him, the ideal offering for a woman who valued a Crock-Pot family dinner more than diamonds.>Everything went still inside him.
What the hell had he just said? Apparently Julia had heard every word. Tears streaked down her face, just like the ones she'd shed in his office over his POW days.
No way did he want her staying out of pity.
Her hand drifted up. He clasped her wrist before she could touch his face. Emotions revved within him like an engine drone, faster, harder, without any hope that a simple flip of a switch would shut it all down.
He could feel every ounce of Julia's compassion pulsing through her. She was weakening.
He could take advantage of that weakness, press, convince her to stay a little longer as he'd done for years with Pam.
But damn it, Julia wasn't settling? Well, neither was he. He'd thought she was the one person he didn't need to jump through hoops for, the one person who didn't need him to put on a commander show.
He tightened his grip on her wrist. "If you want to prove all that love you say you have for me, then have the guts to stay."
Zach dropped her hand.
He pivoted away and out the door, needing to put as much distance as he could between himself and her soft touch tempting him to throw away defenses a lifetime in the making.
Chapter 17
Stunned by Zach's harsh words, so full of hurt, still hanging in the air, Julia stared at the half-open door. His wounds and lack of trust ran so much deeper than even she'd known.
The front door opened and closed. Softly. Zach wasn't a door slammer, no surprise, but the solid thud echoed with finality.
Oh God, she couldn't let him leave. Not like this.
Julia sprinted into the hall just as his motorcycle growled to life. She slumped against the wall, the sense of failure turning her legs to sawdust.
He'd needed her, just as he'd needed Pam, but Julia hadn't been able to pull it together and be there for him. She'd spouted all about love and being stronger, but hadn't come through for him when it counted.
Across the hall, Shelby's door opened and she slouched against the frame. An overlong T-shirt grazed her knees, one of Julia's pilfered from the laundry. The shirt declared board-like letters Woodworkers Kick Ash. Julia knew she certainly hadn't lived up to the motto tonight.
Shelby scratched her ankle with her toes. "Men can be such nimrods."
Julia welcomed the laugh, even a watery one. Comfort come from the most unexpected corner. "They sure can."
Shelby shoved away from the door. "Since it looks like neither one of us is going to get lucky any time soon, wanna go find some chocolate?'
"Yeah, hon, I sure do." She hooked an arm around Shelby 's shoulders as they walked down the hall. "I think we'd both benefit from eating our weight in M&M's."