The Billionaire From Portland

by Simply BWWM

  “Listen, I’ll talk to him about what he’s doing with you when he wakes up. I don’t want you to worry about your job at the magazine or anything else. He may be the only owner of the magazine, but I am still his big brother and I still have some kind of influence over him. I’ll do my best to make him back off that, and you should be able to keep your job, if you even still want it. I can’t imagine having him for a boss.” He cringed and returned her look of sympathy.

  “Also, I’m going to be staying here until he is out of the hospital, so I won’t be able to drive you back and his car was totaled in the wreck, so we may have to get creative about how we get you back to Los Angeles, and it may take a few days. I’ll look into it. You are so welcome to stay here as long as you like. I’ll see about getting you back into the city as soon as possible.” He clasped his hands in his lap and leaned forward over his knees, shaking his head.

  “I really am sorry about this, Gabriella,” he said softly. He was more than sorry, he was livid. He couldn’t believe that his brother had tried to force something with her the way that he had; or rather, he could believe it and he wished he couldn’t. Antonio moved to stand up and she reached over to him and took his hand.

  “Thank you, Antonio.” Her voice was low and sincere. “I know none of this is easy on you. I’m here for you if you need to talk, or if you need anything at all.” Kindness reflected in her eyes, and he found himself staring into them, wishing he could lose himself completely in them.

  She squeezed his hand and he looked down at their hands together and then looked back up at her, unable to speak for a moment as he found himself wishing he could hold her. He finally nodded and smiled and let her hands go as he stood up and went out to the car to get his bags.

  Gabriella watched him go, his solid back vanishing out of the doorway. She shook her head, wondering how in the world two such different brothers ever came from the same family. He was kind and generous, thoughtful and compassionate, and Julian was everything that Antonio was not.

  She knew Julian was lucky to have Antonio, but she didn’t know if he knew it. She thought about him then, lying unconscious in the hospital bed, and hoped that he would be alright, and she hoped that when he came out of his induced coma, that he might have a different perspective of everything.

  She spent the day quietly, reading and relaxing, looking out of the windows of the house onto the lake. Antonio was in the library most of the day on the phone, doing business, she guessed, and trying to take care of things for his brother.

  She went into the kitchen late in the afternoon to see what there was to cook for dinner, and found that it had been fully stocked for the weekend. After a short time, she had a meal prepared for them. She decided that the dining room might be too formal for just the two of them, so she took the meal into the den and lit the fireplace, giving them a cozy atmosphere, and then she went to the library to tell him that dinner was ready.

  He finished his call and hung up the phone just as she came into the room. Giving her a genuine but small smile, he rose up from the desk and moved around it to her.

  “Are you all right? Finding everything okay?” he asked in a gentle tone.

  She nodded. “I am. I just wanted to let you know that I made dinner if you’re hungry. You’ve been in here all day, so I thought you could use something to eat.” She gave him a smile in return.

  His eyebrows rose and he looked a little surprised. “Dinner! Yes… I hadn’t even thought of that. I have been so busy in here that it didn’t really cross my mind, but you’re right. I haven’t eaten anything today and I need to. Is it in the kitchen?” he asked curiously, following her out of the library.

  She shook her head. “No, I thought it would be nice to eat together in here,” she said, heading to the den. He walked behind her and sat with her on the sofa before the large glass table that was laid out with the meal she had prepared.

  “This looks wonderful!” He laughed a little and they sat down to eat.

  She asked him about his cousin Marcus and he mentioned that Marcus was doing well, and she asked him about his family life growing up, and after a while he was reminiscing about days when things were much easier with Julian; when his brother wasn’t causing mayhem and mischief.

  “He wasn’t always the problem child that he is right now. There was a time when he wanted to be as good as he could be, and it meant something important to him to be a Medici, but it’s been since college that he has acted like that.” He shook his head and looked up at her.

  “I may not like how he is and what he does now, but I am grateful that he brought you into my life, even if it was an entirely selfish move on his part,” he told her with a sort of shy smile.

  She grinned back at him. “That is one thing I’m really grateful for as well,” she replied, glad that if she had to be there, she was there with him rather than his brother.

  He helped her take the dishes back into the kitchen and then they walked back into the den together and he sat beside her on the sofa before the fire, gazing at her with less inhibition than he’d shown since he got to the house.

  “I don’t know why you still give my brother the time of day, or why you’re even still working at the magazine of your own accord, but I am glad that you are, because as selfish as it may be, it keeps bringing you back in my life, and I like that.” His eyes were steady on hers and they could both feel the growing heat between them; a heat that had nothing to do with the fire they were sitting in front of.

  “Tell me about your family and what it was like growing up for you,” he said, watching her and letting everything and everyone else in the world go as he did. She shrugged and began telling him about growing up in San Francisco, her best friend Lila, and how much her life changed when she moved from San Francisco to Los Angeles. He asked questions and he listened, and she found that everything they shared made it all seem more interesting as they talked about all of it with each other.

  Their conversation moved over many topics, and as the night descended outside, a feeling of coziness grew inside, as they sat before the fire with one another, both of them loving the closeness as they talked and got to know one another much better.

  They drew nearer together as the night wore on, sharing soft touches on the arm or the hand and gazing into each other’s eyes as they spoke and shared the night, and both of them were wishing that they could be just a little closer, though neither of them made the move to do it. When the hours were late, and neither of them could stifle more yawns, they admitted to being tired and hugged each other goodnight.

  Antonio pressed his mouth to her cheek and held it there for a lingering moment before he let her go, both of them just a little breathless, a little stirred with deeper emotions, with growing desire and need. They parted slowly and reluctantly, and both of them retreated to their bedrooms.

  He took a cool shower, reminding himself that she was there because of his brother, not him, and that he had no business going after her, no matter how much he wanted her and wished that he could take her into his arms and have her.

  She slipped into a deep bubble bath and stayed in it until the water was cold, though her desire for him was still as hot as it was when they had embraced just before bed. She slid into the sheets and let her head sink low in the pillow, wondering how it would all go with both brothers, and with her. She wished that no matter how it went, she could be with Antonio. She may have wanted him when they were in the city, but having spent time with him alone in the cabin had made her desire for him that much stronger.

  ***

  Two days passed, and in those two days, Gabriella and Antonio had spent a good deal of time at the hospital and the rest of the time finding every excuse that they could to be around one another at the house, and talk to each other, and be as close as they could without going over any lines or unseen, unspoken boundaries.

  They were both at the hospital when the doctors finally brought Julian out of his medically induced coma and h
e awoke. He was surprised to see Antonio, and he was angry with Gabriella. He told his brother that he wanted to talk to her alone, and against his better judgment, Antonio left them alone to talk.

  Gabriella sat at the side of his bed, looking at him with a mixture of sympathy and disgust. “You’re lucky to be alive,” she told him, wondering if he even really knew it.

  He looked at her in complete irritation. “You’re lucky to still be sitting here. Why haven’t you gone back to Los Angeles?” he asked in annoyance. “I told you that you had two choices, and you haven’t been in my bed yet, which means that you must be trying to lose your job.”

  Fury rose up in her and she glared at him. “I’m here because of you! I’m here because you tricked me into being here, you lied to me, you got drunk and wrecked your car… which is in pieces by the way, and there hasn’t really been a way to get me home from here yet!

  I wouldn’t be sitting here if it wasn’t for you! I’ve been in this hospital waiting for you to wake up, hoping that you were going to be all right, and now when you finally do wake up, all I get is your acidic attitude!” She tried not to snap at him, but she was wrestling with herself over just how horrible he had been to her, while hoping that he was going to be all right. It was a confusing blend of emotions.

  “Well,” he said coldly, moving his bed to sit up a little higher. “Don’t let me keep you. You leave anytime you’re able to, go back to Los Angeles, and when you get there, you better give some serious thought to keeping your job with the magazine. I won’t make any decisions here, but when I get back, it’s do or die time, baby.” He narrowed his eyes at her. “Get out,” he snapped.

  She bit her lip and held back tears as her chest tightened and she stood up, staring at him and wondering how anyone could be so horrible. She turned and walked out of the room and Antonio stood up quickly from the chair he had been sitting in when he saw her leave the room. He took one look at her face and knew that it had gone terribly. He was torn between going after her and going to his brother who had just woken up.

  Sighing in frustration, he went in to see his brother. Julian was scowling when Antonio walked in the door. “What’s going on, brother?” he asked hesitantly, not even sure that he really wanted to know.

  “That bitch is still here. Get her out, Antonio. I don’t want her up here,” he shot out viciously.

  Antonio went to him and tried to reach out for him, but Julian pushed his hand away. “You can get out too,” he grumbled, and Antonio stood there in silence, looking at his brother and shaking his head.

  “All right. I can see that you need to rest. I’ll be back tomorrow,” Antonio told him in a low-level voice, and then he walked out and closed the door behind himself. He found Gabriella in the car and he could see that she had just wiped tears from her eyes and her face.

  He sat beside her quietly for a few minutes and then spoke as they drove back to the cabin. “I’ll talk to him. I’ll try to get some sense going in his head. He can’t treat you like that,” he told her encouragingly. “You’ll keep your job, if you want it, and it will all work out.” He hoped. He didn’t really believe what he was telling her, but he hoped.

  She shook her head, looking out of the car window as the trees and snow swept past them. “He’s right. I don’t know what I’m doing up here. I never should have stayed. I should have gone the moment you got here. What does he need me up here for?” she asked without really wanting an answer. “I’m going to leave as soon as I can.”

  Antonio felt like she was slipping away from him. If she went back to Los Angeles and quit the magazine or was fired as his brother was so adamant to have done, he wouldn’t see her again and she would be gone.

  “There’s a storm coming,” he told her. “It’s a bad one. Winter storm. They were talking about it at the hospital and on the local news. You’re not going to be able to get out today or even tomorrow. I think it’ll be the day after tomorrow when you’re going to finally be able to go. You have to stay at the cabin until it passes, and then I guess if you want to go, you can.” He felt like he was suddenly racing a clock, and if he didn’t work hard at the small amount of time that he had left, he might lose her, and she would be gone forever.

  She turned and looked at him in surprise. She hadn’t heard anything about a storm, but the dark clouds that had been chasing them back to the cabin were a strong indicator that he was right about what he was saying. She’d have to stay two more days and then she could go. Then she was going to try to figure out what in the world she would do with her career because her career working at Julian’s magazine was going up in flames.

  They reached the house and went in together. She headed up to her room to freshen up and try to think about what she was going to do. She washed her face and fixed her makeup, and walked to the French doors that opened onto her balcony. There was a storm coming. She could see it sweeping over the lake below and the trying to catch itself on the lofty pine tree tops as it rolled in, thick, dark, and menacing.

  She watched it for a few minutes and then she picked up her book and went down to the den and started a fire. She was sitting on the sofa, focusing on her book as the air outside filled with thick fat snowflakes, creating a wall around the house, when Antonio walked in and saw her there, and everything in him drew him to her.

  He had been trying to keep thoughts of her from his mind all day, focusing on business and his brother, staying in the library to work, but she looked so inviting beside the fire, so beautiful and warm, and it was more than he could do to keep himself from her any longer.

  Walking to the sofa where she was, he lowered himself down onto the cushions and she looked up at him, smiling as she closed her book and set it on the table.

  “I know I shouldn’t be happy about this, because this isn’t where you want to be, but I’m so glad that you are here with me right now. I know it’s because you can’t get out, but I’d like to think that if you had a choice, you would want to stay here with me.” He felt bold and uninhibited, and he knew he had no business saying anything of the kind to her, but he wanted her to know it. He wanted to tell her just how he felt, to stop holding any of it back from her, and to give her the chance to choose him, if she wanted to.

  She felt her heart skip as he spoke to her. She was so glad to hear what he told her, to know that there was more than just the chemistry that she felt for him. The hot kiss that they had shared on her doorstep hung heavy in the back of her mind and the heat from it wrapped itself around her and seemed to pull her to him.

  Gabriella reached her hand out to him, taking his in her fingers, and she squeezed it gently. “I’m glad to be here, and I’m glad for this time with you, though I do wish that it had been something else that had put us together this way,” she said with a soft voice.

  He was losing himself in her eyes and it felt like a magnet was pulling him to her as he leaned close, unable to keep his distance from her any longer. He lifted his hand to her cheek and held it, closing the distance between them and brushing his lips against hers. She gasped lightly, drawing her breath in as his mouth closed over hers and he kissed her tenderly.

  Her heart began to race as she felt him move closer to her, and the rush of heat, electricity, and emotion that coursed through her made her want more of him than the slow sweet kiss he was giving her. She slid her arms around him and pulled him close to her, holding him as their kiss deepened and she grew breathless.

  Antonio’s fingers drifted down from her cheek to her neck and then to her waist, where his hand closed around her and he pulled her nearer to him. She felt the butterflies erupt in her, all of them dancing wildly as if they were on fire, and the fire they ignited in her began to spread quickly throughout Gabriella’s body. The more he kissed her, the warmer she grew, and the more she wanted of him.

  Following the whispering desires of her heart, she leaned herself back on the sofa and took Antonio with her in her arms, his kiss growing more urgent on her lips, his arms and han
ds tightening on her. He lifted his mouth for a moment as he laid on top of her, and he looked down at her, taking in her eyes, searching them to see what she wanted.

  She smiled at him and touched her fingertips to his face, leaning up to kiss him. He kissed her in return and then looked at her once more. “Gabriella… I’m not sure what’s going on between you and Julian, but I want this to happen between you and me. What do you want?” he breathed, gazing into her silvery blue eyes again.

  “I want you,” she answered softly. “Nothing but you. All of you.” She closed their lips together and wrapped her arm around the back of his neck, holding him against her, and there was nothing more she needed to say. He groaned softly as he moved himself over her, his kisses growing more urgent as mouth moved from hers to her cheek, and then down her neck to her chest.

  She arched her back as his lips and tongue moved over the upper swell of her breasts, and he pulled open the buttons on her sweater, pushing the material away from her body and canvassing her skin with his hands. The sight of her cream-colored lacy bra frosting her dark breasts beneath made his groin ache for her even more, and he slipped his fingers beneath the delicate material, pulling it from her and letting it fall to the floor beside them.

  Cupping her breast in his hand, he squeezed it gently and covered it with hungry kisses and teasing gentle bites as she gasped and curled her fingers in his hair. When he lifted his mouth from her, she reached for his shirt, pulling it off of him and bringing him to her, longing to feel his bare chest against hers, loving the warmth of it, and the intimate connection with him.

  Minutes later they were nude; their bodies heated and pulsing with desire as their hands explored one another, their hearts raced, and every touch, every kiss made them even hungrier for each another. Electricity vibrated through her as his hands closed firmly on her thighs and he slid them apart, moving himself between them.