Page 66 of Just a Bit Captivated

Aiden could no longer hear the children’s laughter and shouts. He could barely hear anything besides his heartbeat in his ears.

After a moment, Zain moved toward him. It seemed as though he moved with an excruciating slowness that made the scene feel as if it were playing out underwater or in a dream.

Aiden didn’t move. He didn’t trust himself not to run to him if he did. His eyes roamed hungrily over Zain’s chiseled features, over his tall body hugged by the splendid dark suit, before going back to those chocolate brown eyes that seemed to be trying to burn a hole in Aiden’s face.

Zain stopped two feet away from him.

Neither of them spoke for a long, charged moment.Aiden was distantly aware that he was trembling violently, his whole body straining toward the older man, needing to be closer.

TheAdam’s apple on Zain’s stubbled throat moved. He opened his mouth, but seemed to change his mind as his eyes flicked to something behind Aiden.

Zain’s lips thinned. He pushed his hands into the pockets of his pants and said stiffly, “Do you really think you need bodyguards to protect you against me?”

“My parents—they insisted.” Christ, Aiden had never felt so tongue-tied. He didn’t know what to say, acutely aware of his bodyguards listening to their every word.“Let’s—let’s walk?”

Zain gave a clipped nod.

They walked at an unhurried pace, both of them looking straight ahead, their shoulders six inches apart.

It was fucking torture, to have him so close but not be able to touch.

“How long—how long are you going to be in the US?” Aiden said as they walked deeper into the park.

Zain’s hand seemed to twitch toward him.He put it back into his pocket. “I’m leaving tomorrow.”

Oh.

His limbs suddenly weak and heavy, Aiden sat down on the nearest bench.

After a moment, Zain took a seat beside him, their knees a few inches apart.

Aiden stared at his own hands, inhaling shakily.

Silence stretched.

In his peripheral vision, his bodyguards shifted slightly.

Lifting his head, Aiden glared at them.“Can you give us a little privacy? You don’t need to listen to us to bodyguard me.”

The men exchanged a look and retreated about ten steps away. It wasn’t much, but at least now they couldn’t hear everything Aiden said.

Not that Aiden had any clue what to say. There was so much he wanted to say but couldn’t. So much he wanted to say but shouldn’t.

“I shouldn’t have come here.”

His shoulders tensing up, Aiden said,“Why not?”

He expected Zain to say that he wasn’t gay. He expected Zain to deny having any attachment to him. He expected the usual “no icky emotions” bullshit Zain tended to pullwhen the strength of his feelings made him uncomfortable.

But he’d never imagined what Zain said next.

“I’m married.”

Aiden felt like he’d been punched in the solar plexus.

“What?” he croaked out, whipping his head to Zain.

Zain didn’t turn his head, his profile stony. “I had no choice after Gadiel ran away with his bodyguard. Al Sharabi would have had him killed for such a public humiliation.”

---