Billionaire Bad Boy (5 page)

But he didn't hear her over the roar of the engine and
wind. She hung on tighter. Her arms and legs began to throb.

When it felt like they were heading in a straight
line, she opened her eyes a fraction and quickly looked around. The scenery
flew past and the wind dragged at the sleeves of her jacket, plastering it to
her body. She was thankful she was wearing a helmet, despite her initial
concern about helmet-hair. To hell with looking good in front of the most
gorgeous man on earth—at least she'd still have her brains.

But as the initial danger of falling off subsided, she
didn't feel very consoled by that thought anymore. Flat hair looked really bad
on her.

Despite her growing confidence in Zack's riding
abilities, she still felt extremely vulnerable. There was nothing between her
skin and the open road except the Spice Girls.

She gripped the handle tighter, but the muscles in her
hands and fingers cramped up. Forget principles, this was a matter of life and
death. One hand let go of the handle and gripped Zack around his waist. The
other arm followed and she leaned into his back. Better. Safer.

After a few minutes she relaxed and was able to
appreciate the scenery and the hard muscles infusing his body.

Eventually they turned off the freeway into Fullerton.
The bike slowed and they pulled up at the California State University. Zack
took off his helmet and swiveled around.

Reluctantly, she let go of his waist. He rubbed his
ribs and grinned down at her.

"You've got one hell of a grip for a little
lady." His grin faded to a smirk. "Guess you were pretty
scared."

"You were speeding! And I prefer my limbs the way
they are—attached to my body."

He laughed under his breath. "I was doing the
same speed as everyone else. It just seems faster on the bike because you're so
vulnerable. So did you like it?"

"It's was okay."

"Just okay?" He eyed her suspiciously. "I
bet you loved it."

"So what are we doing here?" she asked,
ignoring him. They'd stopped near the entrance to the Fullerton Arboretum. There
were only two other cars parked nearby. The heat had driven most people into
air conditioned shopping malls or to the beach. Annie had never been to the
Arboretum before, although it was one of those places she'd always meant to
see.

Zack lifted the compartment at the back of the bike
and pulled out a small pack. He slung it over his back, pulled the straps onto
his shoulders and headed off along the path that led into the Arboretum.

"Hey!" she shouted after him, her temper
rising. "Are you going to answer me or do you just expect me to
follow?"

"Are you hungry?" he called back over his
shoulder.

She hesitated then said, "Starving."

He tapped the pack. "Then I expect you to
follow."

She chewed her lip then cursed under her breath. Yep,
arrogant. "Damn you, DiMarco. I could just strangle you right now."

"Now, now," he teased without turning
around, "violence never got anyone anywhere."

"No," she muttered, "but it's a great
way to relieve stress."

Her hunger won over her frustration and she followed
him at a trot. He'd better not expect her to follow him around like a puppy dog
for the rest of the week. She wasn't one of his female groupies, hanging on his
every word. She had a mind of her own and she intended to exercise it at every
possible opportunity, especially around Zack.

Some time later she wondered if they were going to
keep walking until they'd reached the other side of the park. Just when she was
about to give into her grumbling stomach and ask him when they'd be stopping,
he did.

"Will this do?" he asked.

They stood on a low hill surrounded by spectacular and
unusual flora overlooking a small lake. Sunshine glinted on the water, dappling
the leaves on the overhanging trees. Despite the heat, a breeze made the spot
pleasant, particularly in the shade.

"Perfect," she said.

He laid down the pack and pulled out two sandwiches. "Hope
you like pastrami."

"Love it. What else have you got in there?"

"Just a couple of sodas and apples."

"No beer?"

"I thought you didn't drink beer."

"Of course I drink beer." Twice in fact.

He shrugged. "I didn't think you did, and I
didn't want you to start today when you've got to ride home on the bike in one
piece."

"You think I'd fall off?" she scoffed. "What
sort of idiot do you think I am?"

"I choose not to answer that on the grounds I may
incriminate myself."

"Smartass."

They ate their sandwiches in silence. Zack lay on his
side, propped up on his right elbow, his long legs stretched out. His jacket
lay discarded alongside Annie's. She'd removed hers as soon as she got off the
bike. No need to be seen wearing that hideous thing any longer than necessary.

At first she tried to look everywhere except at Zack,
but her traitorous eyes couldn't stop turning to him. He was handsome, in a
Wild West kind of way. That languorous pose displayed the corded muscles under
his T-shirt to perfection. His hair hadn't suffered at all by being under the
helmet—strands of it flopped across his forehead, messy, sexy. He was
gorgeous. What hot-blooded woman could deny it? Certainly not the one sitting
beside him, trying hard not to get caught out staring.

"When you've finished staring, maybe we could
discuss our plan."

Oops. "What plan?" she asked casually.

He turned to her and those chocolate eyes looked good
enough to eat as his gaze roamed with leisurely arrogance across her face. "How
we're going to turn you into a new woman."

Annie swallowed the last bite of her sandwich too
quickly and nearly choked. She suddenly felt uncomfortable about the whole
deal. Trying to be someone she wasn't was...wrong, deceitful. No, more than
that. It hurt. Yeah, that's what bothered her. It meant
she
, the real
Annie, wasn't good enough. She forced down the emotions those thoughts stirred
up. Long forgotten emotions she wished would stay that way.

But they wouldn't. Not while Zack relished the task of
changing her into a wild child. It was as if he couldn't wait to see the
results of his handiwork.

And that was just downright insulting.

"So, what's the plan?" she asked through
clenched jaw. She tried hard to banish her insecurities—they were for a
later time, when she was alone and he wasn't around to unsettle her with his
confidence and come-here eyes.

"Tonight, I'll take you to a bar. We'll have a
few beers, maybe some spirits if you're coping okay, then—"

"Of course I'll cope," she snapped.
Relax,
Annie. It's his problem if he doesn't like you the way you are.
She knew
that. So why did his eagerness hurt?

"Then tomorrow, I'll take you shopping."

"Shopping? For what?"

"Clothes. You can't wear that jacket if you want
to hang out with me. You need some outfits that will make you more comfortable
around people like your potential client."

Yep, she'd guessed right. He was embarrassed to be
seen with her. That hurt, more than she liked to admit. Sure, she wasn't as
well endowed as the women he usually hung out with, but she wasn't
that
bad.

Was she?

"You made me wear that stupid jacket," she
countered.

"Don't remind me. I'm just glad no one recognized
me under the helmet."

"Yeah, lucky," she sneered. "Anyway, my
clothes aren't all terrible."

"After rummaging through your entire wardrobe
earlier, I now know what you like to wear. None of it is appropriate for the
image I'm trying to create."

Image. So it was nothing to do with her, just an
image
he wanted her to project. Fine, she could deal with that.

"And what image would that be?" she asked
sweetly, playing along.

"Sleazy Hollywood agent wanted by everyone."

"I'm not sure about the sleazy part."

"Me either, but it's my gut instinct and I'm
going with it. We'll turn you into the woman every man wants to sleep with and
every woman wants to, well, sleep with."

Annie laughed.

Zack grinned back. "That's better. You should do
that more often."

Embarrassed, she immediately stopped smiling. Then
scolded herself for being too contrary. "I don't know about all this. I'm
not sure I can pull it off."

"Why not? A change of clothes, hairstyle and more
makeup and you'll at least
look
the part. Besides, you've got a great
teacher."

She cocked a brow at him but said nothing. He didn't
really get it. He didn't understand that it was more than just clothes and
makeup. It was confidence, and she had a severe lack of that commodity in group
situations, especially when everyone else oozed it. Of course, a man like Zack
wouldn't ever understand that. He had it all—looks, money, sex appeal. He
was perfect—probably always had been. How could he ever come close to
understanding what it was like being a nerd? Hell knows, other people had tried
to change her—her father for one—and not succeeded. What made Zack
think he could?

"So what else?" she said. "Are you
going to take me to some parties?"

He shrugged. "I don't really attend many."

"Oh? That's not the impression I get."

His eyes narrowed. "And where did you get that
impression from?"

"I, um, have to read the gossip pages in the
papers. It's part of my job."

"Sure, I bet it is," he growled. "They're
wrong anyway. I never attend half the things they have me at."

Yeah, right. Just like he never slept with half the
women they have him sleeping with.

A prickly silence settled into the dense air
surrounding them. Annie wanted to say something, anything, to diffuse it but
Zack seemed to be brooding. Eventually she decided to return to the one thing
they had in common—changing her into a social butterfly. She might as
well accept that it was going to happen, temporarily at least.

"So apart from getting drunk and spending money,
what else are you going to teach me, oh Master?"

Finally he chuckled. He seemed as relieved as she was
to get the conversation flowing again. For someone so arrogant and confident,
he was surprisingly sensitive about his own image.

"I'm going to teach you to ride a
motorbike."

Annie let out a small yelp of protest. "You've
got to be joking."

He shook his head.

"There is
no
way I'm getting on that
machine again after today. Especially to ride it by myself. It's dangerous. Didn't
you notice me shaking after I got off?"

He shrugged. "I thought I just made you
nervous."

"In your dreams, DiMarco."

His brow furrowed but a smile played at his mouth. "Pity.
I thought I had some kind of affect on you. It was good for my ego."

"Like your ego needs any help."

"Hey, my ego's as fragile as the next guy's. Especially
when a woman doesn't even crack a smile when he makes a joke."

"You haven't said anything funny!"

"Gee thanks. Now I'm shattered."

She rolled her eyes but smiled anyway.

He lay on his back and closed his eyes. "Well, at
least I don't have to teach you attitude. You've got enough of that to knock
poor little Doggie back to his mommy in New York."

"His name's Dug-E."

But he didn't seem to hear her. His breathing became
soft and his arms, crossed over his chest, rose and fell to an even rhythm.

Annie watched him. Did he really think he actually
made her nervous? Unbelievable!

Unbelievably sexy, too. Her admiring gaze traveled the
length of him. His sheer size was magnificent, as was the bulge in his jeans
that was rumored—according to gossip—to be as impressive as it
promised. An image of him naked flashed through her mind and it was all she
could do not to jump him and have her way with him.

She let her eyes roam back up to his face. The strong
contours of his Italian heritage were a perfect canvas for the high cheekbones,
straight nose and almond shaped eyes. And the soft lips, strung into a cheeky
bow, was way too delicious too ignore.

She imagined kissing those lips, right now, as he lay
on the grass beside her. Would he wake up? Would he kiss her back? She felt
like Sleeping Beauty in reverse. Zack was certainly a beauty all right—but
this was no fairy tale and she was no Princess Charming. More likely he'd wake
up and run a mile.

But since she could never have him on a more intimate
basis, surely a little kiss would be all right. Just a little peck on those
yummy lips, to taste them. The opportunity would soon pass if she didn't grab
it. All she wanted to do was touch his mouth with her own before she lost her
nerve.