Read Online Take What You Want by Ann Lister - Free Book Online Page B

with nothing
but the guitar to conceal it. And it was the concealed 'it' that had
him hardening, even knowing his fiancée was on the other end
of the phone.
    “ Danni,
I don't want to hurt you,” he said softly.
    “ Keeping
this from me hurts, Chase. Be honest and we'll deal with it
together,” Danni said. “Tell me. Just say it.”
    “ Okay,
then, yeah. The answer to your question is: yes. I am.”
    Chase heard Danni's voice
catch, suspected his admission felt like a slap to her face. He
wished he could take it back; wished he could change the way he felt,
too, but he couldn't.
    “ Have
you acted on it?” she asked.
    “ Fuck,
no! Why would I do that?” he asked. “I'm in love with
you.”
    “ And,
I love you, Chase, but something tells me you've come close to acting
on this attraction with him. I can hear it in your voice. Do you
think he feels something, too?”
    Chase squeezed his eyes
shut. He did not want to have this conversation – especially
with a hang-over, but he also knew Danni wouldn't let it go until she
was satisfied she knew exactly what was going on. Chase stepped back
to the bed and sat down on the edge of the mattress. Alex's parting
words popped into his head, asking him to talk to Danni and get this
out in the open once and for all.
    “ He's
interested, Danni. We talked about it last night, but he knows I'm
with you, so it won't go any further. You have my word.” He
could hear her muffled sobs and knew she was crying. It killed him
knowing he had hurt her like this, when she had done nothing to
deserve it. “Maybe I should fly out and spend some time with
you. Would you like that?”
    “ Running
away doesn't fix it, Chase. He'll still be there when you fly back
home. Then what? Do you think you'll be able to ignore him?”
    “ I
don't know what you want me to do, Danni. Tell me what you want and
I'll do it.”
    “ What
have you done about this in the past?” she asked.
    “ It's
never gotten to this point.”
    “ What
do you mean?”
    “ The
interest has always been … one-sided,” Chase said.
“This isn't something I ever imagined would become a problem.”
    “ Is
Zander gay?”
    “ He's
bisexual,” Chase said. “He likes men and women …
equally.”
    “ Like
you,” Danni said.
    Chase drew in a deep breath
and slowly released it. “I love women.”
    “ But,
you're also attracted to men.”
    “ Yes,
Danni, I am, but I'm not going to act on it.”
    “ Maybe
you should,” she said.
    “ What?
No! I couldn't do that.”
    “ Why
not? I'm out here for two months, Chase. It's not like I'll be
there to stop you. Maybe you should act on it and get it out of your system.”
    “ I
don't think it works like that, Danni.”
    “ I
suppose not,” she said with resignation. “I guess this
is something that is going to follow us around for the rest of our
lives, isn't it: with you always wanting a man – in addition to
me?”
    “ You're
more than enough for me,” he said.
    “ Obviously
not, since you're hot for our neighbor.”
    “ Danni,
it's not like that.”
    Silence fell between them,
until Danni finally spoke again. “I need to think about this,
Chase. Can I call you later or do you already have plans?”
    “ I'm
always here for you, Danni. Call anytime you want.”
    Chase
listened to the silence of her ended call for several seconds before
shutting off his phone. His heart ached for the truth that was now
between them, but there was also a sense of relief of having it
finally out in the open. He thought of calling the airlines and
booking a flight to see her, but she had classes all day and he had
clients to deal with, so it made no sense to spend the money. But if
it meant keeping Danni in his life, he was willing to do whatever it
took to make her happy.
    He stood in front of the
bedroom window again and looked across the hedges toward the pool.
Alex was still sitting in the shaded area the table umbrella offered.
His fingers worked down the frets of the