♥ HOW MUCH FOR AN HEIR'S HEART? - ZARRY ♥

Finale Finale

With tears blurring his visions, Harry grabbed his bag then slammed out the front door. Did he really think he could change this man with a bunch of kisses and a few nights of passionate lovemaking? He may have the Midas Touch, but no amount of gold could turn this marriage into a real one.

He stumbled, and a firm hand yanked him up short. Harry whirled and came face-to-face with Zayn, dark exasperation clouding his features.

"What are you-?"

"We need to talk."

"I'll be late." Harry pulled at his grip, but in vain. Harry had no choice but to follow Zayn back into the apartment.

After he slammed the door behind them Harry backed away, crossing his arms. "What on earth are you doing?"

'I changed my mind. People do that sometimes."

But not you. Harry swallowed. "Okay."

Zayn took a deep breath, releasing it in a rush. "Is it about me co-chairing Tomlinsons?"

Harry's chest contracted painfully. "No. This is a big thing for them, Zayn," he said softly. "It means they trust you. You're truly one of them now and all that entails."

"And what about you?"

"Is that being a Tomlinson something you want? Wait." Zayn held up a hand when Harry opened his mouth. "For a second, I forget about our deal- the money, the press. What do you really want, Harry?

Fear rioted through Harry. He took a deep, shuddering breath meant to give him strength. Instead, it robbed him of all rational thought.

"The party- those people... I'm just a country guy who still believes in love and you..." Harry waved his hand in Zayn's direction. "And now with the added weight and prestige of the Tomlinson dynasty, where does that leave me?"

"You think we've made a mistake."

"Yes, I do." It was out there now, no going back. "I'll... I'll pay you back-"

Zayn blinked, clearly taken aback. "Don't be ridiculous."

Harry forced himself to rise above the hurt and resentment. He'd pretended he could handle this maturely, but the truth was stark. He'd his heart, and nothing short of Zayn's in return would have satisfied him. But Zayn didn't offer it. Zayn had been nothing but honest with Harry, laying down everything clearly. Harry had gone into this with open eyes and now he was the one wanting to change the status. Zayn probably felt pressured and Harry couldn't blame him.

Harry's heart plummeted to his feet. "So it's just me you don't want."

Escape, run. The fight or flight response snaked low in Harry's belly and he shifted his weight, his calves aching from his hesitation. The air seemed to throb with life, the silence growing louder as Zayn stared at him.

Then he smiled, shaking his head.

Harry's icy fear instantaneously melted into irritation. "You think this is funny?"

"I'm not laughing at you, Harry." Zayn reached for Harry but the irritated lad slapped him away, taking a step back for good measure.

"And I thought I couldn't read what was right in front of me."

At Harry's fierce glare, Zayn's amusement dropped like a stone in water. A thousand unsaid words jumbled about in his head, none of them clever, none of them sane. Zayn took a steadying breath to prepare himself. Still, he didn't know what to say.

The Billionaire negotiator suddenly lost for words. Ryan would laugh and probably tease him till eternity, he thought.

Finally, he spoke. From his heart. "Even when I left home, after I made my money, lost it, then gained it again, I always felt something was missing," Zayn said slowly, picking his words with care. "Even with all the answers, there's..." He struggled with the admission before finally saying, "There's a hole. For years I thought it was guilt because I couldn't change the past no matter how much money I made." Zayn allowed himself one moment of grief before shoving it away in the past, where it belonged. It was time to focus on the future.

"But now I know it's something else." He studied Harry keenly, trying to get handle on his thoughts. Harry's head was bowed, eyes focused on the floor, fingers threaded together in front. A lonely picture of defeat.

Zayn nearly groaned. Zayn had put those doubts in Harry's head with his own stupid hesitation. Not anymore.

"You asked where it left you. It's here as my husband. Let me finish, Harry," he growled when Harry's eyes snapped up and opened his mouth. "Yes, this started out as purely a business deal. But right here, right now-" Zayn broke off, took a shaky breath. "You touch me on a deep level, a level that includes both my head and my heart, in ways I never thought possible. Yes, my past was tough and shaped me into who I am today. But that's not who I am inside." He finally took Harry's hand and placed it on his chest, and his throat clogged with emotion. "You saw that."

Harry closed his eyes briefly as if Zayn's words pained him. But when he opened them, Zayn was blown away by the love shining in those green depths.

"I want you as my husband, my friend, my lover. I don't need the Tomlinsons to feel like I belong because I know I already do with you. I love you."

Harry couldn't breathe, couldn't move. The look in Zayn's eyes was so bare, so raw. So desperately needy that it made Harry want to cry. He felt the prick of tears behind his eyes. And when the first tear slipped down his cheek, Zayn reached out and caught it with one finger.

Slowly, Harry smiled joyfully, throwing himself into Zayn's arms, "I love you, Zayn. I love you."

They came together in a kiss, a tender kiss that gradually turned from gentle to aching in the blink of an eye.

Zayn finally pulled back to search Harry's face. "I want what Lottie and Louis have. A family, a future. A place I belong to." Zayn's voice dipped lower almost breaking. "Children."

The love blazing from Harry's eyes floored him. Humbled him. And filled him with so much joy that Zayn felt like shouting it from the rooftops.

Harry was his. Now. For ever.

"Are you going to kiss me again, or what?"

Zayn laughed and as he bent to accede to Harry's demand, muttered, "I love you, Harry."

Harry's contentment seeped out against the gentle pressure of Zayn's lips, the promise of more, much more, to come.

Much later that day, Harry lay beside Zayn, his fingers entwined in Zayn's in the cool silence. Zayn had finally unplugged the phone after the third call from his office and the second from first Lottie, then Louis. Harry sensed Zayn had detached himself but knew he only had to touch Zayn to bring him back to himself.

Harry knew Zayn's demons, knew them and still loved him for it. He squeezed Zayn's hand, glanced up at his husband-to-be and basked in the realisation that Zayn was finally his.

The gentle beep of Zayn's mobile permeated the air but he ignored it, instead saying, "Lottie told me she'd talked to you about Xander."

"Mmm." Ridden with guilt, Harry had finally confessed his involvement last night. "You know what she said? 'If you'd come to me, I'd have believed you'." Harry shook his head. Lottie's blind acceptance of his innocence in the spy spot still stunned him

The rumble of Zayn's laughter filled the bedroom. "Man, we don't need anyone to complicate our lives. We do that ourselves." He dodged Harry's nudge. "Lottie also asked me to help mend the rift between the Paynes and the Tomlinsons."

Harry paused, recalling the look on Abel's face last night following their revelation of Zayn as Javadd. Betrayal? Anger?

"It won't be easy. Abel is on the other side and he is-" Harry searched for the right word,"- very committed to his bitterness."

"I live for a challenge."

Harry laughed. "Don't I know it."

Zayn lifted himself up on one elbow, studying Harry intently. "Are you ready for this- for the entire country to finally know the complete details us, the saga?"

"For as long as you want me, Zayn Malik," Harry dramatically drawled, running his hands softly in the beautiful mess of Zayn's hair.

"Javadd Malik," Zayn corrected, before placing a gentle kiss on Harry's lips, a promise of things to come. "And that would be forever."