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zack swallowed .

her face turned hard but he could see the vulnerability in her eyes .

he knew what she wanted him to say , but lord help him , he did n't know how to say it .

he 'd thought he could , he thought it 'd be easy , but now that it was show time , his throat constricted and the words would n't form in his head .

you 've made yourself clear .

`` but , annie , we had fun . ''

he thought he saw her smile before she turned away .

`` but we want different things out of this relationship and you 're not being fair if you keep stringing me along .

he placed a hand on her shoulder and gently tried to turn her round but she would n't budge and he would n't force her .

he heard ragged breathing and realized it was his .

oh hell , he was going to lose it .

she stepped away from him and he could see the tears rolling down her cheeks .

she opened her door and waited .

he could n't let go of the one person in his life who cared about him , zack dimarco , not the billionaire but the regular guy .

he could n't let the one person who made him smile walk out of his life forever .

the one person he wanted to be with .

oh lord , was he sure ?

was his mind playing some sort of trick ... ?

`` i think i need to sit down . ''

but he remained standing , staring at annie .

would this woman make him give up his ranch for the la glitz ?

would she want him to attend parties with her ?

no way-she definitely disliked them .

would she make him give up his most valuable possession-his freedom ?

did she want the full-time commitment , the white picket fence and children ?

and for the first time in his life , zack realized he was ready for those things too .

but only if he could have them with her .

she was perfect all right , and exactly what he needed .

`` annie , '' he stood close , inhaling the scent of soap and shampoo .

there were tracks on her cheeks from her tears and he touched them , wishing he had n't caused them .

she turned her face away , but he knew what he had to do now .

he touched her chin and made her look at him .

her eyes were deep pools , ready to spill at any moment .

`` i 'm sorry i put you through this , '' he whispered .

`` it 's just i did n't know until now . ''

`` that i love you , annie . ''

her body stiffened as a tidal wave of relief flooded his .

he 'd said it-for the first time in his entire life , he 'd used the l word .

but annie just stood there , her lips slightly apart , staring up at him .

he 'd said the wrong thing .

or he 'd said the right thing , but too late .

he brushed a damp lock of hair from her forehead .

he wanted to kiss her there , feel her hot skin on his lips one last time , but he did n't dare .

`` i thought you prefer busty blondes , '' she said .

god , she was beautiful-all damp curls and moist , pink skin .

he barely controlled a shudder as she blinked wide-eyed up at him .

it was easier to date them because i 'd never fall for that sort of girl . ''

`` but you said yourself , you do n't want a relationship . ''

he could hear the ache in her voice .

what a complete ass he 'd been .

`` i never wanted to end up like my parents , '' he said .

dredging up the past would open old wounds , but he needed to explain .

`` my dad gave up his dreams for my mother .

and because of that , he hated her .

they were madly in love when they married .

but with the jobs and the pressure of raising a large family , he lost his talent for song writing .

he could have been successful .

bob made him successful after he died , but ... '' he shrugged , leaving the sentence hanging .

`` and you do n't want to end up like your father ? ''

it seems we both have father issues . ''

`` yeah , well , you 've come to terms with yours .

`` so be gentle with me , annie .

outright rejection is n't easy on a commitment-phobe who 's made up his mind to make a commitment . ''

annie frowned , her eyes searching his .

`` so you meant what you just said ?

she fell into him , pressed her body against his and suddenly the room spun out of control and zack felt unbalanced .

his grip tightened around her and he pulled her closer .

she laughed into his chest .

his heart did somersaults .

she pressed her fingertips to his lips and he kissed them .

`` i 'm not like those other women .

he grinned , relief wrapping around his aching heart .

it felt even more right the second time .

`` i love you too , '' she murmured when they finally came up for air .

`` so does this mean you 'll sleep with me now ? ''

he grinned and bent to kiss her again , so eager to taste her lips , but she pulled away .

oh , hell , now what ?

`` i have a confession to make , '' she said .

`` unless you 're going to tell me you 're an alien , i do n't care . ''

she grinned and dodged his lips .

`` my confession is that i was n't really flirting with rick the other night .

i was just pretending to . ''

`` and you 're a terrible flirt . ''

`` i feel like i hardly know you at all sometimes . ''

it was now , anyway .

a week was n't long enough to know everything about one person , but it was long enough to know he was in love with annie .

`` we 're going to have the rest of our lives to find out everything about one another . ''

`` as long as we spend the rest of our lives on your ranch in montana .

i think i 've had enough of la . ''

but you 've lived here your whole life . ''

he felt himself grinning .

he 'd wanted her to leave the city but he 'd never force her .

`` i 've realized i do n't quite fit the la image .

my idea of a great night is going to bed early . ''