Chapter 10: PART ONE

"Well, what do you expect when you didn't take it seriously enough to tell me something this enormously important?"

She had to remember this was the hurt talking.

"I was thinking of you." She twisted the wine glass. "You had this wonderful opportunity to do the thing you loved more than anything in the world, and I knew you had to focus on just that. A wife would have been a distraction to you."

"A wife would have been wonderful to come home to after every flight. Especially if that wife was you. And who said I loved it more than anything in the world? More than you?"

Bailey distracted herself with another sip of wine and tried to deflect the conversation. "Are you telling me that, in all these years, you never met someone else you wanted to marry? Not one single person?"

He leaned forward. "I told you that on the beach. You were it for me, Bailey. No one else ever came close. You have no idea how insane I was when I couldn't get in touch with you. Especially when I couldn't even pry anything out of your mother."

Bailey had had to do a lot of maneuvering back then, especially after Michael was born. Changing her cell phone number, returning Zack's letters unopened, getting her parents to tell him when he called their number that she had taken an extended trip and couldn't be reached-all painful but necessary. She lost count of the number of nights she cried herself to sleep, consoling herself with the thought that she'd done the right thing for Zack. That if he had to give up his dream, it would always be between them. Her parents did what she asked, despite the number of times they tried to convince her how wrong it was.

After a while, the pain subsided to a dull ache, one that had never left her even in all this time. But when Michael was born, he soothed that ache, and so did graduating from law school with honors.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you, but I really did think it was for the best."

"For who?" he challenged.

"For you. And maybe, after all, for me. Look. You've been living your dream in Alaska. I ended up with this great law firm in Naples. That's about as far from Alaska as you can get. It never would have worked logistically."

"Excuses, Bailey." His voice was harsh. "Nothing but excuses. We could have worked it out."

She shook her head. "I just wanted you to have that chance. Flying meant everything to you."

Zack's hand tightened so hard around the wine glass, Bailey was afraid he'd break it.

"You meant everything to me, Bailey. You were my world. Flying was my passion that I wanted to share with you because you were my heart." He studied her face, his eyes like twin lasers burning into her. "Nothing was as good without you."

Bailey felt sick. She had been so sure he would find someone else, some woman who would fit into his life in Alaska better than she would. Had she miscalculated so badly? Made the worst mistake of her life? But she'd been twenty years old and had thought she was making the right decision. For Zack. Had it been the right one for Michael? Her son had finally stopped asking who his father was and why she'd never told his father about him, but she wasn't fooled. One of these days, he'd start digging around. He was a bright guy and could find his way through the Internet.

Lordy!

She was smart enough to graduate twice with honors and become a junior partner in a prestigious law firm. How had she been so stupid and made such a mess of her personal life? Had she really thought she'd never, ever see Zack Elliott again?

"Bailey?" Zack's voice broke into her mental agony. "Are you okay? You got a strange look on your face all of a sudden."

"No. No, I'm fine." She hoped her smile didn't look as fake as it felt. She lifted her wine glass and took a quick sip. More than a sip.

"I sure wish I'd had the chance to share Alaska with you," he went on. "It was a great adventure, that's for sure. And I got to do all the flying I wanted. But it would have been a lot better if you'd been with me."

She didn't know what to say to that. Did he just feel that way in retrospect, or had he felt it all along?

He took both her hands in his. "Tell me the truth, Bailey. Was I not enough for you? Was that it?"

"Oh, Zack, no." Her heart cracked a little. "Don't ever think that."

"Let's find out if the magic is still there. That one kiss, well..."

Holding her hands, he rose, tugged her from the chair, and pulled her in close to his body. She was helpless to resist. The kiss, unlike the earlier one, began soft and sweet, just a touch of lips at first. His mouth was so warm and delicious, just the way she remembered. But heat flashed through every vein at the contact. Something familiar fired low in her belly.

And just like that, the magic slammed back, enveloping them. Despite the span of years, it had never diminished. If anything, the separation had only made it more powerful. What on earth had ever made her believe she'd gotten him out of her system?

He stroked his tongue across her lips, sipping from them, tracing the seam before pressing harder and forcing her mouth open. She welcomed the intrusion, letting her tongue duel with his in a dance so erotic she had to clutch his arms to keep herself steady. He was eager yet, at the same time, gentle.

Lips still fused to hers, he undid the tie of her ponytail and let her hair fall loose, sifting his fingers through it. The kiss went on and on, his tongue rubbing the tender skin inside. Her breasts felt swollen, her nipples so hard she was afraid they'd poke through her T-shirt. Zack slid one big hand down her back, cupping the cheeks of her ass and pulling her tight against him, the thick length of his erection pressing hard against her.