Chapter Dedication to- ChasingShadows89

For constantly being my go to person for everything. For encouraging me to write and being the person I run ideas by. For believing that I can write another damn book and being there to cheer me on. You da best girl! Enjoy it!

& Ron the Moth. Who has spent the last 2-3 hours bugging the shit out of me whilst I produce this chapter. You fly f*cker.

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I never considered it weird, waking up beside Zak, who was flat out on his back, book on his chest and glasses still on his face. I remember seeing him with his mouth slightly open and smiling, before removing his glasses gently and setting them on the side along with the book, before going back to sleep myself.

I don't know how many times I woke throughout the morning. The events of yesterday had seemed to have zapped my energy completely and now I was sat in Zak's bed like a spare pillow. I'd wake and Zak would be there, I'd wake up again and he would be in the garden, passing the large windows and looking in to make sure I was okay, I'd wake again and he would be gone.

One note that he had left, was letting me know that he was going back to Avery's to clean up and to sort reviewing material. I didn't know when he had left the note, so it could have been 5 minutes or 5 hours from me waking up and getting it.

"Hey there, Sleeping Beauty."

My head lifts from Dracula to find Zak stood against the door jab, looking fresh out of a magazine. His black shirt fits him perfectly as he folds his arms across his chest. His black jeans nip his waist and support a silver belt buckle.

I smile instantly. "Hey there yourself."

"How are you feeling?"

"A little drained. How long have I slept?" I ask realising I haven't seen my phone since I've arrived.

"It's a little before 1pm. So a while." He answers.

A yawn steals my reply making me raise my hand over my mouth. "Sorry." I manage.

"Don't worry about it. After my exorcism, I nearly slept 2 days, the only reason I didn't was because Aaron is prankster. Although he did tie my laces together and clingfilm my hotel room door."

I put my hand over my mouth to stop a laugh escaping. "Oh dear."

"Wasn't my words." He chuckles. "I got food. Ready to eat?"

Before I can answer, my stomach tells me, him and probably half of Vegas that we were ready for food. My cheeks flush in embarrassment. "Guess so."

"Stay there. I'll bring it in." He says when I go to get up.

"Oh. Um.. Okay." I answer putting Dracula back onto his side table.

"You're not used to this kind of treatment, are you?"

"That obvious?"

"Well get used to it." He replies before disappearing.

I frown at his reply, but thanks to his disappearing act, I can't question him on it. Looking into the garden, I notice a white blur shoot across the garden and grin. Gracie was home!

Clambering out the sheets, I cross his room and stand at the window, watching her race around with a ball in her mouth. Apart from his beautiful home, she was the best thing about cleaning his house... I guess I can add him to that now too.

"Well you don't listen very well." He notes making me look over my shoulder.

"Gracie is back."

"I picked her up after Avery's." He says carrying in a plastic carrier bag and 2 bottles of water into the room.

"Have I ever told you that she is awesome? I'm serious, look at that fluffy tail." I beam looking at her.

"She is the best decision I've ever made. Come and have this." He says sitting on the end of the bed.

I move across the room and climb back onto the bed and fold my legs. Zak begins bringing out the boxes and setting them down between us before popping the lids open.

"We got pancakes, omelettes, fresh fruit, and French toast." He says before adding. "I know it's lunch time, but you haven't eaten breakfast and it's the most important meal of the day."

"This is amazing." I answer looking at all the food. "Thank you." Plucking up a strawberry, I eat it and hum. "These are amazing. Try the strawberries." I tell him.

"I will, when I'm happy to know you've eaten something."

I pause. "Please don't watch me eat. I get paranoid."

"I'm not going to. But I will be slowly hoovering up the French toast. So you better get yourself a slice." He answers picking up a slice and jamming it between his teeth. Fishing his phone out of his pocket, he presses a few buttons and starts playing music from the house speakers.

"Oh wow." I murmur looking at the ceiling as the music filters down through. "Who sings this?" I ask taken by the soft tones and vocals.

"This? Mimi Page, she did the music to my documentary for the Demon house."

I frown "Demon house? As in..-"

"I bought a house in Indiana. Infested with Demons."

My eyes widen "Are you crazy? Did you get hurt?"

Zak pauses before sighing. "Whatever happened that night, in the house, it... Do you want to watch it? The documentary?"

Looking at the food surrounding me, I am about to answer when the vocals reach a high octave making me look up at the ceiling, less than a second later, my skin is covered in goose bumps as my hair stands on end.

"Holy shit..." I breathe in awe.

"You okay there?" He laughs.

"Why do I feel like I'm entering another realm?"

"Her music does that." He says when I look at him. "You connected with it."

"That's.." I shiver before laughing with nerves. "Is it scary?"

"Well.. Actually you better not, especially after last night. I shouldn't have asked. It's not something you need to see." He frowns.

I reach out and grab his wrist as he goes to get up. "I want to watch it. As long as you're there.."
He contemplates it but soon agrees when I tell him that I'll go and watch it alone at night when I go home, if he doesn't let me.

"We will watch it a little later, I want this food gone first."

I salute "Sir, yes, sir."

We go back to eating and chatting about random things, from favourite food, to colours. Hitting minor and major subject topics.

"Have you spoken to Avery today?" I ask him.

"I rang her this morning, whilst I was at her house, explaining the funky smell of sage. She asked about you. You're close as sisters, aren't you?"

I nod "If it wasn't for the age gap, I'd believe we were suppose to be twins."

"It's nice, to be close with someone like that."

"Are you close with your family?" I ask.

He nods "I am now. Wasted years on being an ass and putting them at a distance. Thought I was being a rock star and pushing them away. Turns out I need them more than I realise."

"We all need someone." I tell him cutting up my pancake before eating it.

"That we do.."

I look around his room, at that large windows and manly interior. "I know it's a bit late in asking, but no girlfriend? Or boyfriend?"

He laughs. "It would have been a bit late, you're right. The answer is no, I don't have any women companion at this moment. And I'm on the hetro side of the fence."

"Well that's good to know. Even if it is a bit late."

"What about you? You were seeing some guy called Joel right?"

"Hmm. What an utter disaster that turned out to be."

Zak tilts his head to the side "How come?"

Sighing, I explain the story of catching Joel in bed with another woman and my poor reaction of being sick on her clothes.

"Go on. Laugh." I say waiting for it.

"Laugh? Why would I laugh? That must have been awful." He says with concern.

"It was. You know how pathetic I get when I'm sick." I answer.

"I didn't mean that-"

"I know what bit you meant. But we don't think of that." I sing tapping him lighting on the leg before picking up another strawberry and eating it.

"Oh, I know what I've forgot!" He exclaims, turning and almost falling off the bed to get to the plastic bag. A few seconds pass and he comes back with a small pot. "I got chocolate sauce for the strawberries too."

My eyes widen "Have I ever told you that you're my hero?"

He chuckles "No, but please, tell me all about it. Just ignore the size of my head when it swells up."

I laugh "Got ya."

We laugh it off before he  says "But seriously, that must have been hard for you to deal with, you were with him for a while."

My lips part to answer when I cock my head "I never told you that."

The expression on his face says it all, as I wait for his reply. "I uh... I might have spoken to Avery about it. Him."

"Why?"

"He turned up last night. At yours. She told me, he was drunk." Zak says making my body stiffen.

"Are they-"

"Everyone is fine. Mavis apparently cleared him off with her broom." Zak says causing me to relax. "Also your phone has been going off all morning. I haven't checked it, I wouldn't. But you have a ton of missed calls from him."

"Yeah well, he can wait." I grumble, sitting back on the bed.

"Hey, no. You keep eating. You're feeling shitty because you haven't eaten. You need your strength Riley, don't make me spoon feed you. Cause I will." He warns, making me roll my eyes and pick up a piece of French toast.

"He still clinging on in there?" Zak asks a beat later.

"Clearly. I don't know why. He made me feel like utter shit by the end of the relationship. Hence the fridge of self love at my apartment. Avery found out all the photos and put them on there for me to start loving myself."

"Your sister is a smart woman."

"She is also a gossip, it would seem."

He nudges me with his knee. "Don't get moody. She was only worried and I did stick my nose in. So if you're going to blame anyone, it should be me."

"Well look at you two, partners in crime and tag teaming already." I tease.

"Stop, we aren't." He answers eating a strawberry.

"Whatever." I pout before winking at him playfully.

A few minutes pass of us just eating and enjoying the music playing through his home speakers when he decides to throw up a curveball.

"So we gonna address last night or not?"

The pancake in my mouth quadruples in size making it almost impossible for me to swallow. After the personal struggle, I open my water and drink it down before putting the cap into place.

"We're avoiding it then." He decides.

"No, I just... What do you want to address?" I ask.

He stops and looks at me with a cocked brow. "Come on, don't make this harder on me. There's been a couple moments between us. You know there has."

"I know.. But-"

"But what?"

I squirm unsure of how to word it and whether he will take offence to what I am going to say.
"Now I'm making you uncomfortable. Fuck." He mutters looking away.

"Why would you be interested in me?" I ask.

He turns around "What?"

"You heard."

"Why would you be interested in me? Avery is a dab hand at looking people up and I've seen the women you've been connected to. All beautiful, skinny and in amazing jobs."

"What do they have to do with this?"

"Everything." I answer immediately. "I'm not the kind of woman you usually go for. I'm not your type."

"How can you possibly know-"

"Your whole life is a circus show! It's all over social media. I'm not an idiot. Zak.. Yes there has been a few moments between us. Last night being a big one. Do I find you attractive? I'd be mad not to. Do I think you're out of my league? Absolutely, and I'm okay with that. I'm okay with being your friend. If that's what I am to you?"

He looks at me annoyed, probably for calling his life a circus. It wasn't done intentionally to piss him off. But I was trying to explain to him how public his life is, so trying to say that he isn't interested in a certain type of woman is a complete lie.

"Friends? That's all you want?"

"Isn't that all you want?" I question him back.

He shrugs "I- I thought so but then you change everything on a dime. This whole shitstorm with Rachel really messed my head up."

"I'm sorry she did that."

Zak sits forward and scratches his head in frustration. "For a while, I only wanted to consider you as a worker, but then we started talking and it went into friendship."

"Okay." I answer.

"Then Rachel fucked things up and since we sorted it out, I... I don't know Riley. I'm acting different. I'm thinking different. I'm worried about you a lot of the time, when you're with me, you're with me and I've never had that."

I watch as he struggles with it all. "Are you lonely Zak?"

"What? Why would you ask that?" He frowns.

"Because perhaps what you're feeling is companionship, someone to talk to? Someone to liste-"

"Don't try to disregard how I feel because you're not feeling it too!" He snaps before standing up and pacing his room. "I like you, Riley. Believe it or not. I don't care. It hit me the other night in your kitchen, when we were making food and laughing over spaghetti. When I saw the photos on your fridge. How you did last night despite everything, how cute I found it when you walked into the wall and gave a little oops. We got something, I don't know what it is, but there's fire there and we can either play in the flames or let it go out and wonder what it could have been."

"I don't know if I believe you." I admit making him sigh hard.

"I get that my timing is shit. You're vulnerable after last night. I should know better. But I can't pretend I didn't enjoy seeing you asleep on my chest. Or.. Or you wearing my shirt. Or my rosary. Or reading to you, even when I knew you were asleep, because I wanted you to sleep peacefully and not have nightmares. Or-" Zak pauses "Am I wasting my time?" He asks suddenly..

I blink "No.. No. I get it. I do but.."

"But you don't believe me?"

I'm about to shake my head and say no when the oxygen in my lungs is stolen and my heart falls over itself in my chest as his lips land on mine.

I'm wide eyed, stunned and completely speechless.

He pulls back slightly "Close your eyes."

I do as I'm told and wait as he kisses me again. This time, my mouth seems to remember how this goes and I return his kiss. His hand weaves around the back of my neck, keeping me close as I grab hold of his shirt, looking for stability as my head begins to swim.

This is happening. This is really happening.

When my teeth nip his bottom lip, he moans and sends a spark of excitement through my body. I want to do it again and again, but my mind pulls me to a stop and I pull myself away from his mouth.

It takes a couple seconds for him to open his eyes and stop looking so dazed. When he does, there's an 'I knew it' look on his face.

"Believe me now?" He asks playing with a piece of my hair.

"Did you really read to me in my sleep, to stop me having nightmares?"

He nods. I hide my urge to throw myself at him for being so damn cute. I'd probably hurt him, if I did...

"And you think the kiss was to what? Convince me that there's something worth investigating?" I wonder.

"Did it work?" He asks.

I grab his shirt and pull him in "I might need some more convincing."

"Yes, Ma'am." He chuckles bringing me in close again.

If I was wearing socks, his kisses might have blown them off.