She rolled over and found Ryan sitting on a chair near the small wooden desk, reading over papers. She sat up against the pillows, pulling the covers up with her.

A little late for modesty, but what the hell. "Morning," she mumbled.

"Morning." He dropped the pen and pushed the papers aside, then stood and walked over to the bed. Leaning down, he planted a long, thorough kiss on her lips.

Nothing awkward or hesitant about it, she thought, and all her anxieties fled. "That was nice," she said softly.

He grinned. "Want breakfast?" He pointed to a Dunkin' Donuts bag waiting on the table.

"You managed to go out, pick up breakfast and get work done, all while I slept?" She glanced at the digital clock, which read 9:07 a.m.

"You were out cold."

"Because someone wore me out last night." Her skin tingled with the memory.

He met and held her gaze, warmth and desire evident in his eyes. "Someone wants to wear you out again," he said, slipping a hand beneath the sheet so he could cup and fondle her breast, arousing her with his touch.

She moaned, making sure to keep her noises more quiet this morning. "I need to get home though."

"Sam?" he guessed correctly.

"Yep. I never meant to spend the night." She flipped the covers off and began to scramble for her clothes.

"Why don't you shower first and then I'll take a quick one and drive you home?" he asked.

She glanced up, last night's clothing hanging from her arms. Just looking at the man made her hungry for him all over again. "Wouldn't it be quicker if we showered together?" She fluttered her lashes at him too innocently, her suggestive tone all too obvious.

Zoe didn't know how much time they would have together once his secret was revealed. Once he ripped Sam from their lives. She didn't know how to cope with all her conflicting emotions and yet somehow she managed to focus only on the here and now. On Ryan and this moment in time.

He obviously felt the same way because he laughed and they did as she suggested. Then they drove back to Zoe's house, where despite her protests, Ryan walked her to the front door.

Even if she wouldn't admit it aloud to him, she appreciated that he was brought up to be a gentleman because she was grateful for the few extra minutes alone with him. Unfortunately, she had something to tell him before they parted that would definitely kill the mood. "Zoe…"

"Ryan…"

They spoke at the same time and she laughed.

"Ladies first."

She hugged her arms close to her chest. "I really don't deserve for you to be so nice to me."

He raised an eyebrow in surprise. "I'm not sure what you're getting at, but if you're feeling insecure, I can assure you that you were amazing in bed." A teasing grin twitched at his lips, his dimples showing when he allowed a full-blown smile.

She flushed hot, remembering the feeling of making love with him, his body buried deep inside hers, filling her completely.

"Did you know you're adorable when you blush? Which I've managed to get you to do quite often." He brushed her cheek with the back of his hand.

"I'm very anti-Mediterranean that way. My olive complexion should protect me from giving myself away," she muttered.

"Well I wouldn't want you to be able hide your real feelings from me. Now what's on your mind?"

She shifted on her feet. The summer sun had yet to reach its peak, yet she was blistering hot, both from nerves and from being around Ryan.

When it came to a guy or a relationship, she was usually the one in control. But she couldn't get a handle on her feelings for this man. "I…We…Last night was amazing," she said first, not wanting to gloss over something so important to them both.

"Yes, it was." His voice dropped an octave. "But I hear a but coming."

She shook her head. "Not a typical but."

"What then?"

"Look…" She exhaled hard and forced her gaze up from her shoes to his face. "We met because of Sam. Because you're her uncle and you want her in your life. And we didn't tell her about you because I needed to be sure of you and your character."

He propped his shoulder against the screen door. "And now you are?"

"Unfortunately, I am." He was a good man. The best kind, really. She reached for his hand, holding it tight. "We need to tell Sam the truth." Her stomach hurt just saying the words.

She couldn't begin to imagine the fallout from the actual revelation. But it was time. She no longer had any justification to keep the truth from her family and Sam. They all had to stop living a lie, especially Zoe herself. She had to stop pretending Ryan could actually be a part of her life. She was becoming too attached to a man who was just passing through and who would leave nothing but spiraling upheaval in his wake.

Ryan glanced down at their intertwined hands. He opened and closed his mouth, unsure of what to say. He'd been so focused on last night and on Zoe, he hadn't seen this one coming. True, he wanted Sam to know he was her uncle, but he'd been content to wait until the time was right. He and Zoe had been so close, the last thing he'd considered doing was putting a wedge between them.

Which made him wonder about her motives for doing so now. Could she be using his relationship with Sam to keep him at a distance? It was possible. After all, he'd seen her wariness this morning. He'd watched her wake up, stiffen and take too long to figure out how to handle the situation. No doubt, if she'd awakened before him, she would have bolted. For reasons he didn't yet understand, he sensed Zoe was afraid.

He wanted more time to figure her out. To figure them out.

Yet she'd offered him the opportunity he'd come for and he couldn't turn her down. "You're sure the time is right?" he asked.

Zoe dropped his hand, putting physical and emotional distance between them. She tipped her head to one side and sighed. "As sure as I'll ever be. I just need a chance to break it to my parents first."

"Of course. And then what?" He flexed and unflexed his hands, nerves taking over.

Questions raced through his mind. Was she going to talk her parents into just letting him take Sam home, once they got through the New Jersey red tape, or did she plan to have him stay in town awhile longer? And how would Sam react to discovering she had family after all this time?

"I don't- " Zoe started to speak.

"Elena, they're back!" Sam's voice struck him in his gut, and prevented Zoe from revealing her thoughts.

Zoe shot him a suddenly frightened look. He understood and wondered if Sam had overheard any part of their conversation.

The young girl fumbled with the lock on the screen door, but finally worked the catch, opened the door and waved them inside. "Come in! You left so early you never opened your presents," she said to Zoe.

Sam didn't meet Ryan's gaze, but that wasn't unusual and once he saw her excitement and smiles, his concern eased. She was too happy to have heard a thing. Now all he had to worry about was Zoe viewing his embarrassing gifts.

"Do you want to help me unwrap them?" Zoe asked Sam.

"Already done." The young girl grabbed Zoe's hand and they walked into the family room.

Ryan followed and seated himself on a chair across from them so he could watch.

Sam shook her head, her ponytail flipping behind her. "Elena said if you were gonna be rude and leave, we could still enjoy the traditional parts of a party, so I already opened the presents, well all except for the ones from Ryan," Sam explained in a rush, as only a teenager could.

"I see. And what did I get?" Zoe asked, laughing.

"Aunt Dee and Uncle John bought you a subscription to an online dating service that lets you pick out whatever traits you want in a guy. They said you'd better make sure he's Greek."

Ryan didn't have to glance at Zoe to know she was blushing. He also didn't have to look down at his clenched fists to realize the thought of her with any other man didn't sit well with him at all.

Sam ran through a litany of other gifts until she reached the end. "And Elena and Aunt Kassie said you already got your gift from them, not that I know what they mean."

Ryan did and his gaze met Zoe's, every moment of last night passing between them in that one look.

"And this is from me." Sam pulled out a pillow that she'd been hiding behind her back. "I made it myself," she said softly, suddenly shy. "Since you have one that Ari made you, I wanted you to have one from me, too. So I could be a real sister, too."

"Oh, Sam." Zoe pulled her into a huge hug and over her shoulder, Sam met Ryan's gaze with a pleading one of her own. One that begged him, the "social worker," not to take her away from these special people.

If only Sam knew the real damage he could do. He glanced from the hugging women to the hook-rug type pillow that said Sisters & Best Friends 4 Ever. A wave of nausea swept through him as he realized that in telling Sam the truth, he'd be depriving her of the security she had finally achieved in her otherwise unsettled life.

How could he do that to her? Ryan wondered.

Yet how could he not?

Sam pulled out of Zoe's grasp. "It's Ryan's turn to give you his presents." She stepped back to reveal the wrapped packages on the table behind the sofa. "We bought one of them yesterday when we went shopping, but there's an extra thing here and I don't know what it is. But I helped him pick out the big one." She pointed to the larger gift as she practically hopped from foot to foot in eager anticipation of the big reveal.

Zoe's eyes narrowed as she took in the presents. "Hmmm. What could Ryan have bought me? I think I'll open this one first." Zoe winked at Sam and started peeling the wrapping off the larger present.