Czech Mate by Sloane Taylor Page A

hiccups subsided, a void the size of Texas took up residence in her heart. How could she be in love with a complete jerk ? She burrowed deeper into the pillow, breathing in his scent and remembering all their time together on this bed. And the tears started again.
    Damn you, Honza, for giving me hope.
    The door scraped across the high carpet pile as it opened. She cringed, not wanting to hear his words when he banished her from his room, hotel, and worse, his life.
    The mattress sank as he settled on the edge. His slow breaths and clean scent were memories she wanted to lock away to savor later. In a day or two, when the need to have some shred of him ripped through her gut.
    “Lacey, I…” Two words soft-spoken, almost shy, were all he managed to get out before he cleared his throat.
    Christ , now the real humiliation begins .
    She needed him to hold her, make all the bad disappear, and return the happiness they had shared. But that wouldn’t happen. If only she could slip back into that oblivious zone she had mastered as a child, maybe his rejection wouldn’t hurt so bad.
    He laid a warm hand on her shoulder. His fingers curled a strand of her hair.
    “I wish to apologize. My words were cruel, spoken in anger, without considering what harm they would create for you.”
    His hand massaged the knots along her neck and relaxed the tension spots.
    As apologies went, he had a good start. She rolled over and bit back a gasp at his pale drawn face.
    “I should have controlled my anger and discussed this calmly with you.” He rested his hand on hers and attempted a weak smile. “Apparently, I am not good with these things.”
    And then, complete silence.
    That’s the best you’ve got?
    She wanted to whack him.
    “Dragan, we both said things we shouldn’t have.” She wrapped her other hand over his. Always easier to be the one who leaves than the one left behind. “I’ll just stash my stuff and leave.”
    “Lacey…”
    His words fell away and broke the last shard left of her heart.
    She bit her bottom lip, holding back all the things she wanted to tell him. How could she have been so stupid as to let herself believe this man would ever want her for more than a week? Her body was encased in lead and ready to sink to the bottom of the Vltava River. She forced herself off the far side of the bed and stumbled into a wall of solid man.
    “ Souložit !”
    He enfolded her in his strong arms, almost squeezing the life from her. God, he felt so good, so right.
    “Please, Vic.” The last thing she needed was his sympathy. “Don’t make this harder.”
    “I do not want you to go today, or any other day.”
    She pushed against his chest, but he held her tighter.
    “Lacey, stay with me.”
    Damn, that sounded so good, but the fuckfest she’d started out with had turned a one-eighty. Sex for the sake of it, with him and definitely not another man, no longer had an appeal. That unknown thing called love had shimmied into her heart.
    “What did you say to me in Czech the night of the banquet?”

    His palms grew damp and his stomach twisted in knots. He hated his weakness, fear, or whatever other cowardly word that raced through his mind at not expressing his love to her. He either acted like the man he should be and took the chance or risked losing her forever.
    Her solemn hazel eyes stared up into his. Did he see hope? Desire? Sadness? His future? Souložit . He had to stop this ridiculous guessing game and tell her, even if she laughed at him or ran screaming from the hotel.
    He cupped her cheeks as if that would stop her from fleeing once she heard his words. After a gulp and quick prayer sent up to any saint who had the time to listen, Dragan finally gathered the courage to speak from his heart.
    “I have fallen in love with you, Lacey Blake. I do not know how this has happened or why, but I cannot seem to stop it. Nor do I want to. I also do not want you to return to America. I want you to stay here. In Prague.