Sam smiled, which he didn’t do often. “You have no idea how much I’m paid.”
Charlotte shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. It isn’t enough.”
“At least she’s flying out tomorrow,” he said.
Hesitating only a minute, Charlotte asked, “Does she always sleep somewhere else when she comes for a visit?”
“Yes. Nate always insists she get a room somewhere. She stays at his house in Tampa sometimes, but he knows it would cause talk in a town like this.”
“No kidding. I went to dinner with him once and you wouldn’t believe what I’m being accused of.”
Charlotte hated the way Alexa and Nate looked so perfect standing together. Clearly, they had a history she knew nothing about and Nate cared enough about her to protect her reputation. He didn’t seem nearly as worried about hers.
Taylor loped up the bleachers, grinning from ear to ear. Charlotte gave him a high five and congratulated him on his game. Jill tickled his armpits and teased him about the time he threw the ball and got it stuck in the fence.
Charlotte smiled at their interaction, but her eyes wandered over to watch Nate and Alexa again as they walked back toward the bleachers. Sam stood, and so did Charlotte. It was time to go.
She tugged on the brim of Taylor’s cap. “Come on, buddy. What do you say we all go get some ice cream to celebrate since Jill is leaving tomorrow?”
Taylor jumped and whooped. “Yes. I want chocolate.”
Grabbing his shoulders, she steered him down the bleachers. Nate and Alexa stood below, obviously waiting for Sam. Feeling awkward, Charlotte smiled politely, but didn’t quite meet Nate’s eyes before she moved to walk by. But then a strong, gentle hand grasped her arm. She looked up, meeting Nate’s eyes. They were intense and questioning.
“Not even going to say hi?”
“I didn’t want to intrude.”
Nate’s jaw clenched for a moment. “You could never be an intrusion. I wish…” he lowered his voice and leaned closer, “I wish I was free tonight.”
Charlotte tossed Jill her keys and motioned for her to walk ahead with Taylor. “Alexa made it clear that she has some claim on your attentions.”
His whole expression darkened and he led her a few feet away. “Did she? I promise you, the only claim she’s ever had on me was one of friendship.”
He still grasped her arm, and his thumb began running back and forth over her skin in a subtle caress. “I’ve got some meetings I can’t miss tomorrow, but can I come over and see you, even if it’s late?”
“I don’t think that’s a great idea.”
“Just to talk.”
Charlotte sighed. “Okay. You’d better get back to Alexa before she kills me with that glare of hers.”
Nate dropped his hand and Charlotte stepped away, calling over her shoulder, “See you later, Sam.”
Chapter Fourteen
By nine o’clock the next evening, Nate was stressed and frustrated. He’d spent the day in tense meetings with the Royal’s CEO, including an especially angering one with Charlotte’s jerk of an ex-husband. Daniel Mabry had a chip on his shoulder, and Nate longed to knock it off. But hopefully, Charlotte would start getting checks in the mail without her having to resort to wage garnishments and legal battles, and Taylor would get his visits with his Dad.
But after his late afternoon flight home, Nate had to go over the new plan for the city’s rebuilding project. They had to get it done before he left for Tampa the next day. And so he’d pushed on, while the clock ticked later and later.
Finally, he pushed his chair back from his desk. “I’m done for the night, Sam. I have an appointment I can’t break.”
“Of course. Tell Charlotte hello for me.”
“Feeling impertinent tonight, Sam?”
“Not particularly. She’s a nice girl. I hope things work out for you.”
Nate forced a smile. “Me too. I admit I’m not feeling very confident though.”
As he strode to the garage, he texted Charlotte that he was coming over. Fortunately, her only reply was one word. “Ok.” Not exactly enthusiastic, but she didn’t tell him to take a flying leap either.
When he pulled up in her driveway and got out of the truck, he saw her open the door and slip outside. Scattered moonlight danced over her skin as she walked to the edge of the porch to meet him. She looked so beautiful, he froze on the bottom step, looking up at her.
“Anxious to see me, or do you not want me to come inside this late?” he asked, teasing her softly.
“Taylor’s asleep. I don’t want to wake him up.”
“Ah.” He climbed the steps and stood looking down at her, trying to make out her features now that they were lost in shadows. “I’m sorry I’m so late, but I had to see you.”
“Why?”
“I wanted to ask you to come to Tampa with me for the weekend, and I figured I’d better ask in person.”
“Nate, I could never afford to fly to Florida. I was excited to be able to buy decent groceries today.”
“I’d fly you there in my private jet. I’d take care of everything. All you’d have to do is relax and enjoy yourself.”
“No way can I let you spend that much money on me. No way.”
“Would you let me do it for Taylor? Think how much he’d love it. I have a giant pool that looks over the ocean, a theater room, a game room.”
“Now you’re trying to bribe me.”
Nate reached out and touched her shoulders, waiting to see how she reacted to his touch. She stiffened for a moment but then relaxed, so he pulled her closer. “Of course I am. I really want you to come.”
Charlotte shook her head, her hair sliding across his hands at the movement. “But see? This is what I mean. You try to throw money at everything. You know I hate that. I would have thought a billionaire would be better at negotiations.”
“What do you mean?”
“Don’t you know what would be most likely to convince me?”
As he puzzled over her question, he ran his hands down her arms and slipped his arms around the small of her back. She leaned into him as if she was melting, and her meaning became clear. He truly was an idiot.
With his heart hammering, he pulled her close against him. Her head tipped up in clear invitation and he bent to answer it, hoping she wanted this as badly as he did. With his lips scant inches from hers, he paused. Keep it slow, man. Then he touched his lips to hers.
But at the softness and sweetness of her lips, and the sheer wonder of this being Charlotte he was kissing, he couldn’t restrain the flood of desire that swept through him. With emotions raging through him like fire, he deepened the kiss, and to his surprise, she didn’t pull back. In fact, she slid her hands from his chest, up around his neck and held on.
He broke away from her lips as his drugged brain remembered that he was going to take this slow, but then he discovered the fragrant softness of the spot beneath her ear. He left a trail of kisses there.
Charlotte made a sound in her throat that vibrated beneath his lips, then she pushed back against his chest with gentle, half-hearted pressure. Instantly, he loosened his grasp and she stepped away.
He watched as she moved to the porch rail, which she leaned against as she stared at him with dark eyes. What was she thinking? Feeling? His heart beat so hard, his pulse roared in his ears.
“There. Now you know my weakness,” she said at last in her sweet-toned alto.
He chuckled. “You like kisses.”
Her laughter was as soft as the moonlight, and just as magical. “Your kisses, you idiot.”
“But you couldn’t have known that before.”
“I suspected. And now that I’ve had them it’s going to be harder to deny myself.”
“Then don’t.” Nate stepped towards her, but she held up a hand, warning him to stay away.
“It was a bad idea, coming out here in the dark with you.”
“Charlotte, I think I’ll go crazy if this conversation
heads where I think it will.”
She turned away then, pressing her hands to her face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be a tease. I just wanted to give in once.”
He closed the distance between them. Even though he needed to tread carefully, he wrapped his arms around her from behind and spoke softly in her ear. “Tell me what you’re so afraid of.”
“Of being hurt again, like I was before. Of getting broken by the stress and power and selfishness that comes with wealth. But mostly, I don’t want Taylor to be hurt anymore. Do you know what it was like to make the choice to divorce Daniel, knowing I’d be separating Taylor always from one of his parents?”
“I can’t imagine,” Nate said, curling his fingers through hers.
“But I wanted a better life for him,” she continued. “I wanted him to appreciate the little things in life, and know what it means to work.” She made a sound between a sob and a laugh. “Maybe not struggle as much as we have the last few months, but I’m working hard to build the best life I can for him. And to me, that doesn’t mean spoiling him.”
Nate was silent, taking this all in. He wondered what had gone on in her marriage before. He knew much more about the man’s finances now, thanks to Sam’s hard work, but that was just numbers on a report. He knew a lot of the world’s richest people. They ran the gamut from charitable, innovative, and hard-working people to sleazy, greedy mucks. He’d pegged Daniel Mabry within five minutes of meeting him. He understood why Charlotte wanted Taylor to be a better man than his father.
“I’m so sorry, Charlotte.” With gentle hands, he encouraged her to turn so he could hold her. She pressed her face into his shirt, and from the way her body shook, he knew there were storms raging inside her though she didn’t cry. He rubbed her back, and thought that here was one of those problems he couldn’t solve with money. In fact, money was the last thing that could fix this. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try.
“Charlotte, will you come with me? I want to show you that I’m different. I know I messed up a little by buying you the salon.”
“A little?” she asked, chuckling.
“Okay, a lot. But I wasn’t trying to buy you. I was trying to help you. There’s a difference there, you know?”
“I guess so.”
“Will you come? What’s the worst that could happen?”
“I could decide I don’t want to be part of your life.”
Frowning, Nate nodded. “Yeah. That would suck.”
“Having second thoughts?” she teased him.”
“No. How do you think I’ve been so successful in business?”
“By working too much and never being satisfied with what you have?”
“That was unnecessarily critical. Though I guess you’re right in a way. I’m trying to fix that. I want to spend time with you, and this is the best way right now. Will you come?
She was quiet for minute. “Okay, yes.”
“Did you say that so I’ll leave?”
“Yes. I don’t want the neighbors to get ideas about what you’re doing here this late.”
Nate kissed the top of her head and forced himself to back away. As he went down the steps, he called back. “Just remind them that you’re making a payment on The Snip and Clip salon.”
“You’re hilarious.”
Nate acknowledged her sarcasm with a salute and laughed as he walked to his truck.
Chapter Fifteen
The next Friday afternoon Charlotte locked up her salon as soon as she finished with Delynn’s niece. Luckily, she’d been able to reschedule her weekend appointments, but she hated losing potential clients by being closed. How had Nate talked her into this?
Oh yeah. With the best kisses she’d ever experienced or dreamed about. Nate was one talented guy.
If only he’d been a bad kisser, she could have moved on and been perfectly okay right now. Instead, she was more confused than ever.
As she walked back to the house, practically baking in the heat of the intense May sunlight, she saw Lanelle walking over from her house. Even though she had a lot to do, she didn’t mind the chance to chat with her friendly neighbor.
Lanelle met her on the porch. “The lawns look nice.”
Charlotte nodded and opened the front door. “I’m going to have to start mowing more often now that the grass is growing faster. I tell you though, I’m not looking forward to mowing this summer when it’s hot enough to boil me alive.”
“Well, that’s why I came over actually. I was going to tell you that Nate hired a boy from the high school to do the mowing from now on.”
“What?” Charlotte asked, spinning around. “But he can’t do that.”
Lanelle tilted her head. “Why not?”
“Because he’s not supposed to spend money on me.”
“He can spend money on me if he wants to,” Lanelle said cheerfully, slipping into her favorite spot at the kitchen table. “He does nice things like that for people all the time. Paul and I are getting old and our income is tight. If someone who can afford to wants to do something nice, I won’t say no. And I’m sure the kid is glad for the money.”
Charlotte shrugged, but said, “You can do whatever you want of course, but Nate is not paying to have my lawn mowed. You don’t mind if I keep using your mower, do you?”
“Heavens no! But why won’t you let him help you out? I mean, now that you two are a couple, it’s natural for him to do nice things for you.”
Charlotte poured Lanelle a glass of iced tea, which she kept around mostly for when people visited. “We are not a couple.”
Lanelle rolled her eyes. “Oh, give it up girl. The man is batty on you, and here you are taking off on a weekend trip with him.”
“It’s complicated. And nothing is happening between us. It’s more of an experiment to see if I could ever…consider it. And I hope you don’t mind, but I have to pack or I’ll never have everything ready by the time Taylor gets out of school and we’re due to leave.”
“I can help,” Lanelle said, unperturbed. She picked up her iced tea and followed Charlotte back to her bedroom.
Smiling a little, Charlotte resigned herself to having company. She pulled her suitcase out of the closet and started sifting through her clothes. Light summer pajamas, a stack of underwear, and her flip flops were soon stacked neatly on the bed. As she turned back to her dresser to get some shorts and t-shirts, she was surprised when Lanelle came and stood beside her. She was holding the small stack of panties.
“Oh no, dear. Cotton? Come on. I know you have something prettier than these.”
Charlotte grabbed the stack and put them in her suitcase. “Yes, but it doesn’t matter. No one is going to be seeing them but me.”
“Of course not. But a girl always feels more confident when she’s wearing something lacy underneath.”
Lanelle opened her underwear drawer and brazenly dug through it until she victoriously held up a pair of black lace bikini cut panties. “Here you go. Let’s see now. Oh, here are a couple more pairs. Now, a bra to match.” After another moment of sifting, she held up Charlotte’s only sexy bra. She didn’t even know why she still owned it except that it seemed wasteful to get rid of all her pretty things.
“I am not taking those,” Charlotte said firmly.
Lanelle carried her finds over to the suitcase. “But look, they don’t take up any room. What’s the harm?”
Charlotte sighed dramatically. “Fine.” But only because she knew this was a losing battle. She’d take them out after Lanelle went home.
While Charlotte packed clothes she decided were practical, Lanelle kept adding clothes that were decidedly frivolous. Like her long, drapey black gown and a floral chiffon dress. She was also adamant that Charlotte needed both the black strappy heels and the yellow super-high, “what was I thinking when I bought them” heels.
“You’re being so much help,” Charlotte said, her voice dry.
“I know. You’ll thank me when you get there. Now
, let me see your swimsuit options.”
Charlotte knew this wasn’t going to go well. She pulled out a plain black one piece and tossed it into the suitcase.
Lanelle’s mouth dropped open. “Are you kidding me?” She waved her hands up and down Charlotte’s body. “You have that figure and you’re wearing that swimsuit?”
“I’m not wearing a bikini, so you can forget it. I don’t even own one.”
With a knowing look on her face, Lanelle stepped back over to the dresser. With unerring instincts, she opened the bottom drawer and found the teal one piece with its daring v-neck front and an Aztec design in gold foil printed over it.
“Now this is more like it.” Lanelle pushed it deep into the suitcase as if afraid Charlotte would take it out. And she would.
Lanelle tossed back the rest of her iced tea. “Looks like my work here is done. I need to get back to my place because my friend Joy is coming by to play Skip Bo.”
Charlotte followed her out and accepted the empty tea glass, while trying not to look relieved. “It was nice seeing you,” she said politely.
“You too, sugar. Have fun. And for Pete’s sake, loosen up a bit.”
With her quirky neighbor heading back across the lawn to her own house again, Charlotte glanced at the clock and went into panic mode. She ran to Taylor’s room and packed his clothes, then started gathering toiletries. All too soon, it was time to go pick up Taylor at school, and she had no time to repack her own suitcase. Sighing, she told herself she didn’t have to wear things just because they were in her suitcase.
Thirty minutes later, she pulled up to her house again with Taylor almost bouncing in his seat with excitement. She had to give Nate that. Seeing Taylor’s simple pleasure in this trip outweighed any doubts she had.
Exactly on time, Sam pulled up behind her car. He was giving them a ride out to the private airfield where Nate kept his jet. She pulled their suitcases outside and Sam loaded them up.
“Nate doesn’t keep a driver?”
“Not in Chester. But he does in Tampa of course.”
“Of course.”
The Trouble with Billionaires (Southern Billionaires Book 1) Page 10
