Blue Collar Billionaire: An Older Man Younger Woman Romance (A Man Who Knows What He Wants Book 73)

by Flora Ferrari

  “What do you mean you do? You still haven’t told me where you were last night. And why in the hell didn’t anyone call me?”

  So much for plan a.

  “Aaron, I can see there’s no point in beating around the bush. I have no idea how to tell you this, and it happened so fast and I’m sorry that you're finding out this way, but I’m in love with your daughter.”

  His eyebrow raises on one side as his eye on the other completely closes as his head pulls back. “Huh?”

  “I’m in love with your daughter and we’re engaged to be married.”

  Suddenly his lips come together and he sticks them out as his head turns to the side and both his eyes open normally. “Come on man. No b.s. Can you just tell me what’s going on?”

  “I did. No messing around.”

  His eyes drift from me to Ariella and she pulls her hand from her lap and turns her wrist over displaying her ring.

  “Is this some kind of joke? It’s not April first is it?”

  Both my eyebrows raise and I exhale hard. “Aaron. No jokes. No games. This is real. I’m in love with your daughter and I proposed to her last night and she said yes.”

  His body stills as he stares at my face. He’s in that primal flight or flight response were he’s sizing me up to see if this is really happening and what his next reaction should be. We’re friends and he’s a logical guy, which are two reasons right there why he doesn’t want to throw a punch. Not only that, and I’d never bring it up or rub it in his face, but also I’m way too big and strong for him. He wouldn’t have a chance, and I wouldn’t let him, or anyone, come in-between his me and his daughter.

  “Can. You. Please. Step. Outside?”

  I look at Ariella and she nods. I look back at Aaron. “Brother, we’ve been friends a long time and I know you’re probably questioning that right now. I’ll honor your wish, but I also have to say I know you too well. I can read your face and I know what could happen next, but it’s not going to…you will not raise your voice at her or I will come flying right back in here, busting down the door if I have to and you know I can and I will. That’s all,” I say and I step outside.

  I’m walking a tightrope right now. I build homes, and other properties, for a living. I know how sacred the home is and the last thing I want to do is insult a man in his…anyone for that matter, especially my best friend.

  I walk over to my truck and lean against it looking toward the house. If I see sudden movement or anything unusual from my vantage point through the window I’ll be in there instantly.

  But I have to respect their privacy and their space…for now.

  But what’s more important is that Aaron has to respect us and that includes our space and our privacy.

  And our space is my home now, and we’re going to need a lot of privacy if he can’t handle this.

  But I hope he can relax his mind and accept this so everything can stay how it is between the three of us.

  **********

  I don’t look at the clock on my phone or anything, but I know a lot of time has already passed when I see Ariella’s mom’s car roll to a stop behind my truck.

  “Hey Beau,” she says.

  “Hey Angela.”

  “How come you’re standing outside?” she asks with a puzzled look.

  “You might want to sit down before I tell you.”

  “Is everything okay,” she says as her eyes open wide and her body freezes up.

  “Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. It’s just that something happened, something really great, and Aaron and Ariella are inside talking about it right now.”

  “Ummm okay. Do you want to tell me…what that might be?”

  “Ariella and I are engaged.”

  She starts laughing and slaps her knee. “Come on. What’s really going on?”

  My lips close tight and I nod.

  She starts laughing again but not in the way as if I said something funny. I know that laugh. It’s the one that says… “Okay, here we go. This is about to get really interesting.”

  She shakes her head before she buries her face in her hand as she walks inside. But the key is she’s still laughing.

  As crazy as it sounds I know what that means…Ariella and I have the one ally we need most.

  CHAPTER 16

  Beau

  “Beau,” Angela says. My eyes have been fixated on that front door for well over two hours now. As someone who’s always on the go, always working, and always full of energy, it’s not like me at all to just remain in one spot for so long.

  And especially not while staring at a door. When I see a door my first thought is to hang it or reinforce it. It’s in my blood.

  But the one I’ve been staring at? All I’ve been able to think about is throwing my shoulder into it breaking it down and storming in there and taking my girl.

  And I will leave with her today…one way or another.

  “Yeah,” I respond.

  “You wanna…come back inside?”

  I lean forward coming off my truck and moving towards the front door. Angela just watches me with a straight face, no indication of what’s about to happen when I walk inside. For all I know Aaron’s hiding behind the wall with a two by four ready to slap me in the forehead.

  But that’s not the case at all. Aaron and Ariella are seated in the living room and as soon as I enter Angela sits down too. But she’s quickly back up and pouring me a glass of lemonade which is in the center of the coffee table.

  I tip it back, downing the entire thing. I was parched out there in the sun, now let’s see if Aaron tries to burn me right here in his living room.

  “Just tell us,” he begins. “Is this real?”

  “Yes! Absolutely.”

  “And you don’t think you’re making a big mistake?” he continues.

  “No! Absolutely not. And you know why?”

  He just sits there staring at me.

  “Because if you have to think something through then you’re probably not one hundred percent sure, right? I’ve never had to think about this for one second. This is right in every way. Ariella is beautiful, intelligent, and thoughtful and we connect on so many levels. Well, okay I may not be beautiful or as smart as she is, but that’s where we balance each other out,” I say being honest but also trying to lighten up the thick air that seems to be filling the room.

  “We’re perfect for each other in every way. And I know what you’re probably thinking. This is going to interfere with what a parent is most concerned about when they have an eighteen-year-old daughter…her education. But how in the world can that be the case? Not only will she get a textbook education from U.S.C., but she’ll also get a practical hands-on education that only someone like me can provide. I can introduce her to people that will help with her career, people that inspire her, and people that care about her…not to mention I’m all of those people as well. I’m going to help her, push her, inspire her, and damn do I ever care about her and want her to reach her full potential in and out of the classroom as she continues to blossom into a woman.”

  My eyes catch Angela’s hands move over as she places them on top of Aaron’s.

  “And all the college, and career, and professional stuff aside I simply love her. I think she’s the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen and I mean that whether she’s dressed up all fancy or just lounging around the house in sweatpants and a T-shirt. You know me…I’m a blue-collar kind of guy. I don’t need fancy. I need real. I need a real woman who’s got the same kind of interests as me and isn’t afraid to get down and get her hands dirty on a construction site…and imagine that. A construction site that she designed. And to be frank with you when it comes to my hands, well,” I pause thinking if I really want to say this or not but to hell with it, “I just can’t keep them off her. You two created the perfect young woman and you’ve brought her up with so much love, respect, and nurturing…she’s ready to fly from the nest and frankly I think she took off from the nest quite some
time ago and hasn’t stopped soaring ever since. I want to soar with her, right there side by side forever. And that’s why I put a ring on her finger, because this is absolutely real for me and lasting. And you know when I do anything I do it to last. And we’re going to last forever, no matter what anybody says or thinks.”

  Angela is the first to finally crack a smile when she says, “It is a beautiful ring, Beau.”

  My eyes move to Ariella and I see how happy she is, even though she’s got her poker face on. Then my eyes drift down to the ring…that displays for the world to know that she is mine. And I try not to laugh thinking about the scratches she put on my back last night when she claimed me, in one of her many ways, as well.

  But the true way we’ve claimed each other is in our hearts. And that’s what matters most.

  Aaron turns to Angela and suddenly they both start busting out laughing.

  “What?” I ask.

  “Mom! Dad!” Ariella says.

  “I’m sorry, Beau. Do you want to sit down?” Aaron asks.

  “Not until you tell me what you’re laughing about,” I say. I don’t find this funny at all. I’m being sincere and honest here and I expect an adult response to my direct and honest answers.

  “We’re not laughing at you, Beau,” Angela says.

  “We’re laughing at us,” Aaron says.

  “Come again?”

  “History is repeating itself,” Angela says. “When I got pregnant at eighteen and I had to tell my parents they absolutely lost their minds, as you might imagine. They said we were too young, too immature, too…well everything. But look at us now.”

  “But the truth is they were probably right,” Aaron jumps in. “But we managed to work it out. And we didn’t just work it out, we had a blast doing it even when times were tough and money was short.”

  “So we talked and we came to the conclusion that if Ariella wants to make the same ‘mistake,’” Angela says raising her fingers in air quotes, “like we did, then she might as well do it with a man we know, trust, and love to death.”

  “And one that will be there to guide her through it all,” Aaron says.

  “I’m right here you know,” Ariella says. “I’ve managed to ‘guide’ myself pretty well on my own so far thank you very much.”

  Suddenly Aaron, Angela, and I all bust out laughing.

  “What? This isn’t funny” Ariella says.

  Angela gets up out of her seat and goes over and hugs her daughter.

  “Don’t try and hug me now after what you said,” Ariella says, but it’s a playful rejection of her mother’s hug attempt and soon Ariella is laughing right along with us.

  “Well then why don’t you guide yourself right over there into your fiancé’s arms then,” Angela says. “I know he’s been waiting patiently for you out in the hot sun.”

  Ariella maneuvers out of her seat avoiding her mom and then stops and looks at her before wrapping her up in a big mother-daughter hug.

  “I love you, mom,” she says. “Thanks for trusting me.”

  “I love you too, princess,” she says.

  And with that Ariella dashes over to me and throws herself into my arms and everything is right again.

  “I thought we were going to miss the sunset you were out there so long,” she says into my ear as I feel tears of joy stream down her face and land on mine as her cheek presses hard against mine.

  “Never. We’ve gotta catch ‘em all to get to that thousands and thousands number I was talking about…and I don’t plan on ever missing a single one.”

  “Okay kids. Get a room!” Aaron says. Little does he know we already did, or maybe he does.

  At this point it doesn’t really matter whether he knows or not, because all I know is I’ve got my woman in my arms and my best friend is still my best friend.

  And I probably have Angela to thank for all of this. I would say she’s an expert mediator, but that’s not the right word.

  She wasn’t settling a dispute. I know she was in my corner the whole time fighting for me…fighting for me and Ariella…for us…for our love.

  EPILOGUE

  Ariella

  Four months later

  “You know he built it for his wife,” I say as we watch the sunset behind the Taj Mahal.

  The sun, which is now a yellow circle, is coloring the entire sky with the most amazing shade of orange I have ever seen.

  “As he should have,” Beau says as I feel his hand wrap around my shoulder.

  The way the sun’s rays bend and wind around the white marble dome is breathtaking. There’s really nothing like the way they bathe the stuccoed walls, minarets, and garden in such a shot shade of pink and orange haze.

  And my mind has been in a haze ever since he proposed to me a few months ago. My head is still in the clouds although I was able to focus and get a perfect 4.0 my first semester at U.S.C., and as a reward we’re here exploring India over the winter semester break.

  But what I would never take a break from is him. He’s by my side constantly, helping me with my school projects and allowing me an insider’s look at what he’s working on.

  And of course we’re even closer each and every evening when we make slow, sweet, deep love as we stare into each other’s eyes. It’s become something of a tradition, and coupled with our quickies, which seem to happen about three or more times a day, it’s the perfect way to finish off the day.

  Not to mention it allows me to fall asleep, completely spent, in his arms.

  And in the morning he’s right there behind me, holding me, keeping me safe all through the night. There really is no better way to wake up.

  And there is no better vacation for us right now than India. The food…the people…the architecture…the sights…the sounds…the smells…all amazing.

  And the most amazing part is I get to share it with him.

  And we’ll be sharing something else next year. Make that two something else’s.

  A wedding and our first child.

  We wanted to get married sooner, but when we started to tell friends and family they insisted that they needed time to prepare so we have to wait until May when classes are out and people could take early summer vacations to fly in to L.A.

  I can hardly wait.

  And of course my dad has agreed to give me away. It might seem strange, but I think it’s beautiful that he’ll be giving me away to his best friend.

  But he’s not exactly “giving me away.” I’ll still be close and I know my mom and dad will be over a lot, especially once our first child is born.

  I swear when I think things couldn’t get any better they just do.

  “It’s kind of nice that they don’t really look favorably on alcohol here,” I say.

  “Why is that?”

  “Because my first thought is how nice it would be to have a glass of champagne to celebrate this moment,” I say.

  “True, but let me guess...your second would be how much you enjoy being completely in your element with all your senses firing at one hundred percent in this country because you just love experiencing all India has to offer at full strength.”

  “Exactly,” I say. “And experiencing it all with you.”

  He leans in and we kiss.

  “What was that?” I ask hearing a clicking sound.

  “Oh…I may have just went off and…you know…put a camera on a tripod over there in the corner of the room and set it to take time lapse pictures of us so we have our Christmas cards ready for next year.”

  “You didn’t!”

  “I did.”

  “You’re a genius! We could even use them for our wedding invitations somehow.”

  “We can use them for whatever we want, because they’re ours.”

  “And you’re mine,” I say.

  “And you’re mine,” he says.

  Beau places his hand on my stomach. “And this little one is ours. Together.”

  “Forever and always,” I say.

  �
��Ready?” Beau asks and I already know what he’s talking about without even asking.

  “Ready!” I say.

  We add a little space between us so the orange light can shine through. Beau places his near hand on my stomach and his far hand on the side of my face. We both lean in carefully from our upper bodies and our lips lock.

  Click!

  The camera captures the moment and then we move in closer and hug properly and kiss without worrying about getting the perfect shot.