More than anything he couldn’t forget their lovemaking. With Celine he had encountered emotions he’d never had to deal with before. Strong emotions. Overwhelming emotions. Emotions that even now were shaking him to the core.

  Nor had he forgotten the words she’d spoken before leaving... “I don’t know about the woman who broke your heart, Zion, but the pain is keeping you from ever loving another. At some point I hope you discover that what you have bottled up inside of you is wasted energy. And it’s negative. Replace it with positive energy and then make it useful. That’s the only way your heart will heal.”

  For years he hadn’t wanted his heart to heal. But what about now? Had he met someone who’d made the healing possible? Someone who made him want to get rid of all that wasted energy? All the negativity?

  Someone who gave him a reason to stop running?

  For years he’d thought himself incapable of displaying such heartfelt emotions for a woman. But thanks to Celine he was now feeling them, whether he wanted to or not. And the feelings were deep, deeper than anything he’d ever felt before. Why was he willing to let it be wasted energy?

  Suddenly, it occurred to him that the emotion he was feeling wasn’t lust, as he’d assumed. It was something a lot more meaningful, stronger and more potent. Heat suddenly began engulfing him. Heat and something else. Emotions were bombarding him, fighting within him. Negative versus positive. Which one would he allow to win?

  He drew in a deep breath while thinking he wanted Celine in a bad way, but not just sexually. There was pleasure and then there was an even deeper pleasure in knowing you could care enough for a woman to want to make a difference in your life and in hers.

  It was hard to believe that he, of all people, the last member of the Guarded Hearts Club, was finally seeing what all his godbrothers had already seen. Love in all its splendorous colors. He’d discovered that there was indeed a woman out there who could make him look at things differently. A woman who made him totally aware, sensuously and otherwise, that he wasn’t meant to be alone.

  The bottom line was that he had fallen in love with Celine.

  When it had happened, he wasn’t absolutely sure. It could have been back in LA when they’d gone to that escape room, or even before that when he’d first laid eyes on her on the stairs. Or maybe it had happened the night she’d shown up at his condo, after successfully escaping from her kidnapper. It didn’t matter when it had happened, exactly; the important thing was that it had.

  However, there was the biting possibility that she didn’t feel the same emotions for him that he felt for her. But as far as he was concerned, if she could do the impossible and make him fall in love with her, then he could certainly do the same and persuade her to fall in love with him.

  Before that, though, there was something he had to do, which was to bring closure to what had had him on the run for all these years. It was time he faced the truth, whatever it was, and time he told his father why he’d left the States to move to Rome. His dad had a right to know, and they would handle it together. Zion believed that no matter who his biological father might be, he would always be Langren Blackstone’s son. In his heart he believed his father would feel the same way.

  After he found closure with his father, Zion planned to go to LA and visit Celine. She’d invited him to do so, but at the time he hadn’t been ready to accept her invitation. Now he was.

  A crackle of energy passed through him and he knew that he was no longer bound by any rules of his own making. He was now a bachelor unbound and he hoped she was ready for the likes of him.

  Leaving his place at the window, he slid into his jeans. Since he wasn’t sleepy he wanted to get started making a special piece of gemstone for a certain lady. The woman who’d captured his heart. It would be the most important jewelry he’d ever created.

  * * *

  Celine smiled at Desha. They were finishing up dinner at her favorite restaurant, Andrew’s. She had been back in LA for a week and this was the first time she and her best friend had a chance to spend together. First, she had moved out of her father’s home. Then word had quickly spread that she was the CEO of Second Chances. The media were clamoring for interviews, trying to find out how she’d kept it a secret for so long. Of course, when they’d contacted her father, he’d pretended to have known all along, refusing to let word get out that she’d kept it from him, as well.

  After she filled in her friend on those happenings, they spent the rest of the dinner talking about Zion.

  “So there you have it, Desha,” she said, as she sat back after confiding everything. “I’m in love.”

  Desha grinned. “I can see you falling in love with Zion Blackstone. The man is hot.”

  Celine nodded. “I wanted to tell you I was with him in Rome and why, but couldn’t. You would have been the first person my dad contacted about my whereabouts, and I didn’t want to put you in the middle of anything.”

  “No problem, and you’re right. When you didn’t tell him where you were he began blowing up my phone. I ignored his calls at first because I figured he was the reason you had extended your stay in Rome. That he probably wanted you to do something you didn’t want to do, and you were avoiding him. When he kept calling, I finally answered and told him that although I didn’t know where you were, you had contacted me to let me know you had decided to extend your time in Rome and that you were okay. I had no idea you were in hiding and he was concerned about you.”

  Celine rolled her eyes. “He was so concerned with my well-being that he was willing to stage my kidnapping. I’m still upset with him about that.”

  Desha nodded. “I can’t blame you. And I saw the headlines in this morning’s paper. You coming out and making a statement that you and Nikon were not engaged and had never been engaged...well, that pretty much called him a liar.”

  “His problem and not mine.”

  “Have you heard from Nikon since returning to town?”

  Celine took a sip of wine. “He had been blowing up my phone, so I blocked his calls.”

  “What about Zion? Have you heard from him?”

  Celine shook her head sadly. “No, and I don’t expect to. I fell in love with him but he didn’t fall in love with me. But it doesn’t matter. The time I spent with him was special and I will forever have my memories.”

  “Now who’s the liar? It does matter and you know it. This is the first time you’ve admitted to loving anyone since Jerome. I think you should have told Zion how you felt.”

  “Doing so would not have served any purpose, Desha. I knew all about his rules.”

  “But he broke a few for you, right?”

  “Yes, but I’m sure he’s regretting doing so now,” Celine said, taking another sip of her wine.

  “What about your father? Is he still mad at you for moving out?”

  “Yes. He won’t take my calls, and I’m sure after today’s headlines he’s more angry than ever. I’m happy living in my own place and that’s what matters. My happiness. I allowed him to manipulate me for too long.”

  A short while later, as Desha and Celine were leaving Andrew’s, seemingly out of nowhere they were bombarded by paparazzi. Cameras flashed and reporters hollered out questions to Celine, all talking at once.

  “Ms. Michaels, is it true that your father and Nikon Anastas arranged for you to be kidnapped to boost their star-power ratings?”

  Celine frowned as she kept walking, trying to ignore the mikes being shoved in her face and the cameras flashing in her eyes. “No comment.”

  “And what about the speculation that you were a part of the plan and hadn’t been kidnapped at all?”

  Celine slowed her pace for a second, but kept walking, while Desha kept a tight grip on her hand, pulling her on. She wondered if that was the lie those two kidnappers who’d been charged were saying in their defense.

  “According to your father, you weren’t a part of their plan and you were somewhere hiding out for your safety,” said another reporter. “If so, where were you?”

  When they reached her car, Desha took the keys from Celine. “Get in,” she said. “I’ll drive.”

  Celine was grateful for that, and once she and Desha were in the car with seat belts in place, they sped off.

  Chapter 23

  “I’m glad you decided to come home, son, and I hope you’re planning to stay through the holidays.”

  Zion glanced across the breakfast table at his father. He had arrived in Atlanta a couple of days ago, after two weeks working on his special piece of jewelry in his cottage in Italy. He’d spent the first day home sleeping off jet lag. Then he had spent as much time as he could with his father. They’d gone to play golf and to pick up a Christmas tree. And he had done something he hadn’t done since his mother died—help his father decorate it. He thought the two of them had done a fairly decent job. For as long as Zion could remember, his parents and all their neighbors would kick off the holiday season early by putting up and decorating their trees before Thanksgiving.

  “Yes, Dad. My plans are to remain in the States until after New Year’s.” Possibly even longer than that, if he could convince a certain woman to fall in love with him, he thought.

  “Good. That makes me happy.”

  And more than anything he wanted that for his father. Happiness. Zion had yet to tell his dad what needed to be said. Namely, a secret he didn’t want to hide any longer. And he would stay here with his father for as long as it took, to help him get through the news of his wife’s betrayal.

  “Dad, there’s something I need to tell you. It’s something I couldn’t tell you before now, and because I couldn’t I ran off to Rome to live.”

  His father stopped drinking his coffee and placed his cup down. Concern was etched on Langren Blackstone’s face. “What is it, Zion? What could possibly have made you leave your home and the country you love so much?”

  Zion glanced over at his father and studied him like he’d done so many times over the past nine years. He’d always looked for some blatant evidence that the man sitting across the table from him was indeed his father and not some no-name guy with whom his mother had engaged in a one-night stand.

  “There’s a chance I might not be your son, Dad. At least not your biological son.” There, he’d said it. The truth was out, and as he continued to watch his father for any sort of reaction, he noticed Langren hadn’t even blinked.

  “May I ask who told you that lie?”

  Although his father’s expression remained the same, Zion detected fury in a voice he knew Langren was fighting to keep calm. Zion saw no reason not to tell him the answer, although he wasn’t sure it was a lie or not. “Mom told me the last time we talked, while we were at the hospital.”

  Zion would never forget that day. His mother had deliberately sent his father out of the hospital room, asking for him to check on something with one of her nurses. When Langren had left them she had told Zion that there was a chance, due to a one-night stand she’d engaged in, that Langren was not his biological father.

  “Your mother was wrong. You are my biological son.” Langren then rubbed the top of his balding head a few times before saying, “And just so you know, I’m fully aware of the affair your mother had with that guy.”

  Zion’s mouth nearly dropped open. “How? Mom said she didn’t intend to tell you. That she would take the secret to the grave with her.”

  “She didn’t tell me. I was home when she got in that night. She hadn’t expected me to be there, but I had cut my business trip short. She’d been all dressed up, like she had been out for a night on the town. She said she was to meet up with your aunt Darlene, but Darlene canceled at the last minute and your mom decided to go anyway.”

  Langren paused and added, “Alyse had looked good that night and I immediately knew she had been with someone.”

  Zion lifted a brow. “How did you know?”

  “His scent was still all over her.”

  Zion didn’t say anything. The only thing he could do was to wonder how he would have reacted if he’d come home from a business trip early to discover his wife had been with another man.

  “And you didn’t question her about it? You actually let her get away with it?”

  Langren took a sip of coffee before saying, “Yes. A part of me felt I’d driven her to do what she’d done, Zion. Alyse was a woman who wanted attention. I had gotten so caught up in trying to move to the top of the company, taking assignments I didn’t truly need to take, but took anyway. During that time my goal was becoming salesman of the year, not husband of the year, and my marriage suffered.”

  “But regardless, Dad. That didn’t give Mom the right to cheat on you with another man.”

  Langren remained silent for a moment before he replied. “I loved your mother and I believe she loved me. But that one night, she made a mistake.”

  Langren paused a minute as if deliberately allowing time for what he’d said to sink in before he continued. “This might be too much information I’m about to share, but under the circumstances I don’t believe it is. That night, I suspect your mother wanted to tell me the truth...would have told me the truth. But the minute I realized what she’d done, I swept her into my arms and we showered together. I was intent on erasing that other guy’s scent off her. Then I made love to her to wipe away the memory of what she’d done from her mind, as well as my own.”

  Zion frowned. “And just like that you forgave her?”

  Langren leaned back in his chair. “Yes, just like that I forgave her. One day you will understand love, Zion. And when you do, you will know how it is to love someone even with their mistakes. I can tell you, from that day forward, your mother tried being the best wife to me, and I tried being the best husband to her. I wanted to make sure she would never be driven to repeat what she’d done. I accepted my part in her mistake and we moved on.”

  Zion pondered what his father had said, and then he asked, “What about when you found out she was pregnant? Did you not think that perhaps she was carrying another man’s child?”

  “Yes, I thought about it, and I would be telling a lie if I said the thought hadn’t bothered me at first. But then I decided it didn’t matter. Your mother was my wife, whom I loved, and I would love her child regardless of whether I fathered him or not.”

  Zion had always known his father was a good man. This proved just how good he was. “So I guess it remains a mystery. Don’t you want to know if I’m truly yours?”

  Langren stared at him. “You are truly mine, Zion. I am your biological father.”

  Zion took a sip of his own coffee and then met his father’s stare. “How can you be so certain?”

  “Because you wear the Blackstone mark.”

  Zion lifted his brow. “What Blackstone mark?”

  “The one on the upper right part of your ass. It was there the last time I changed your diaper and I suspect it’s still there.”

  Zion felt the intense pounding of his heart. “You know about my birthmark?”

  Langren chuckled. “Yes. I have one in basically the same place. So did my father and his father. I suspect if you marry, your son will have that same mark, as well.”

  “Mom never knew.”

  “I guess she didn’t. Since she never confessed to the affair, I never wanted to bring it up. We did talk about how much you favored me while growing up. I assumed it was a foregone conclusion that she knew you were mine. Evidently I was wrong.”

  “She told me that you thought I was yours, but that she wasn’t sure.”

  “Well, I am sure. I regret that your not knowing was why you fled from home after she died. I couldn’t figure out what drove you away. I figured it was grief.”

  Zion shook his head. “It was partly that, too, but mostly it was my fear of letting something slip that would give her secret away. I didn’t want to hurt you.”

  “Well, now you know it truly wasn’t a secret, that I already knew and that I’m more than certain you’re my biological son. I regret that Alyse told you anything. It only planted that idea in your head. If you want to do one of those tests to rest your fears, go ahead and waste your money. But you are my son, Zion. I know that the way I knew your mother’s secret. I loved her and she loved me. In fact, from that day forward, she told me how she felt about me every day. I knew I was a man loved.”

  A man loved. Zion wondered at what point a man could be so certain about a woman’s feelings for him. Even with his mother’s betrayal his father was certain of her love and had forgiven her for her mistake.

  “Now that you know the truth, Zion, will you come home more often?”

  “Yes, but there’s another reason I intend to come home more frequently.”

  Langren lifted a brow. “What’s the reason?”

  “I met someone and she lives in California.”

  A huge smile spread across his father’s face. “Who is she? Tell me about her.”

  Zion was about to do just that when his cell phone rang. It was York. He started to ignore it for the time being, but decided to go ahead and answer it. He hadn’t told any of his godbrothers he had returned to the States, but he was certain his father had, since he talked to them pretty regularly.

  “This is Y,” he said to his father. “If I don’t take it, he’ll only keep bugging me.”

  Langren chuckled. “Sounds like something York would do.”

  Zion clicked on the phone. “What do you want, Y?”

  “I figured you haven’t been keeping up with the news lately, but you need to turn on the television.”