Built for Love
(Bachelor Billionaire #5)
By Sharon Cummin
Copyright © 2015 Sharon Cummin
All Rights Reserved
Warning: This story contains explicit sexual content that is not intended for those under the age of 18. All characters appearing in this work are fictitious and the age of 18 and older. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.
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Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Chapter 26
Chapter 27
Epilogue
Chapter 1
Heath
Heath pulled into a driveway that was surrounded by trees. The address on the mailbox matched the one on the paper he was holding in his hand. His GPS had directed him in its computerized tone to the exact location. He began the drive up the long, dirt drive and looked around at all of the trees.
It was a beautiful piece of land. He had built his own home in an area where there was privacy, but it was nothing compared to the little piece of heaven he was heading towards. The trees were full and green. He could only imagine what it would look like in the fall or even the winter.
The house came into view, and he was a little surprised. It was a large two-story home. He could tell it was built to blend into the nature surrounding it. It looked as if it might have been a summer home or maybe one used as a weekend getaway. It also looked like it hadn't been used or kept up in years. There was so much potential there. It had a porch that wrapped around the house. Just off the porch on the side of the house was a huge garage.
It was like all of the trees in the very middle were cut away just for the house. There was probably an acre of bare land surrounding the house before the trees leading into the woods began. The grass seemed to be okay. He wasn't sure if it was cared for or just protected by the trees. He couldn't imagine being that separated from the rest of world. It looked so peaceful and quiet.
It was a woman that had called him for the remodel. She said her name was Tara. There was only one car in the driveway when he arrived. He parked his truck and got out to look the house over from the outside. Heath wasn't going out on any jobs, so he wore his dress pants and a nice button-up shirt to do the estimate. It shouldn't be too bad, he thought. He knew he wouldn't need more than one team of guys on it. That would be fine. He had a group that wouldn't be needed for a long while. Heath wasn't sure how much the woman was willing to spend, but he could definitely see why she wanted to work on it.
He was writing on a pad of paper just as the the front door opened and a woman walked out. She was tall and pretty. He couldn't help but notice the darkness under her eyes and the worry on her face. Her hair was pulled up into a messy bun on top of her head. Heath had been doing his fair share of worrying and brooding, so he knew a worrier when he saw one.
Two small boys came bolting out the door, ran down the porch steps, and began running circles around Heath. He looked down and shook his head.
"Get back in the house boys," the woman scolded them.
They both laughed as they continued running around Heath. He couldn't help but get sidetracked by the chaos around him.
"One, two," she began.
Those two boys were back in that house before she even got to three. Not bad, he thought.
"I'm so sorry," she said. "They are only three and four. It's not easy keeping them inside when a stranger is here. They want to show off and entertain you."
"That's fine," he said quickly. "What exactly is it you would like done?"
When he stepped closer to the porch she was standing on, he thought she looked familiar. He looked back down at the paper, but he didn't recognize her name. Maybe he knew her from town, he thought.
"I'm not completely sure," she said shyly. "I just know that I want it to look different."
He couldn't believe she hadn't even thought through or planned what she wanted before she called for an estimate. They walked around the outside before opening the door and walking in. The house smelled of fresh baked bread. He couldn't help but sniff in the amazing scent surrounding him.
They walked through all of the rooms and talked about her options. His mind ran wild with the things that were possible with the house. She let him know around how much money she had to work with. He was surprised by the large amount. For that much, she could just move, he thought.
Her phone rang just as they were discussing knocking a wall out to combine two bedrooms upstairs. She let out a huff as she slid her finger up the screen to decline the call.
"You can get that if you need to," he said.
"That's okay," she said. "It won't be any different if I answer in a few minutes."
Heath tried to concentrate and write down all of the things they were discussing, but he kept getting distracted by the noise the boys were making as they ran around the house.
The woman's phone rang three more times while they were walking through the house.
"Maybe you should get that," he said.
"No," she said. "It's nothing that can't wait."
When he was sure he had enough information to figure things out, he let her know he would be in touch with her on his ideas and the details.
He drove away from that house thinking about how lucky he was to live alone.
Chapter 2
Heath
Heath walked into his house and went straight for the fridge to grab a beer. He kicked his shoes off, unbuttoned his dress shirt, and plopped down on the couch in front of his television. His head went back against the couch as he closed his eyes.
How could that woman not know what the hell she wanted to do, he wondered? It was rare to run into that kind of problem. Usually, people had a million ideas that weren't even reasonable and he had to talk them out of it. Her biggest thing was that she wanted it to look different. How different, he thought? Why? He had to wonder about her situation. She looked beyond stressed and like she hadn't slept in days. Her kids were running crazy. She looked as if she were going to crumble into tiny bits at any moment. Through all of that, she was baking bread for her little guys. What was her life like, he wondered?
Heath opened his eyes and lifted his head. He reached for the remote to turn on a game he missed from the weekend, and his eyes caught a picture on the mantel of his fireplace. It was a picture of Lisa and him at an apple orchard. There were pumpkins and hay surrounding them. He remembered that day. Their lives were different then. He was the most important person in her life. That was back when he still held onto the tiny bit of hope that they would end up together. Heath cared for Lisa for as long as he could remember. She'd come over his house, and they would hang out together. He knew she li
ked to watch his neighbor play ball outside, but he never realized how big her crush was exactly. He was happy and forever in debt to Josh for saving her from that fire. It was devastating to think about what would have happened that day. Heath knew Josh was a great husband and loved her very much. She was happy, and that was all that mattered. None of that changed the fact that it was hard for him to deal with.
He'd been keeping his distance from all of his friends. There would never be another woman for him. His was taken by one of his best friends. He had come to terms with that. Heath had no interest in ever having a relationship or marriage, and he most definitely didn't want kids. He had always pictured having kids with Lisa and could never imagine doing that with anyone else. Being around those two little boys earlier in the day made that decision solid.
Heath was taking on more business to keep himself moving along so his mind wouldn't wander. His company was doing very well, better than it had ever done. He was very pleased with how much it had grown and how many people he was able to employ. It meant a lot to him to be able to give jobs to people in his community. Heath didn't need to work. He could live forever on the money he already had, but he enjoyed his work. His guys were great. He enjoyed giving as well. Heath built homes for people who couldn't afford them. His company had already given fifty families a place to live. That was very important to him.
He sat back and watched the game. Then he pulled out the stuff from earlier and wrote up plans for the woman he met with. He made sure to add things that would change the appearance of things. She was very sure of herself on that and only that. When he was pleased with what he had come up with, he emailed it to her with his phone number and let her know she could text or call to discuss it. He knew he had to be up early in the morning for court, so he decided to go to bed. He could do that since he was alone. The only one he had to count on was himself. Nobody else was worried about where he was or what he was doing.
Julie was facing the piece-of-shit that had hurt her. Heath was going for sure. It was crazy to find out someone had done something so cruel to her and she'd hidden it all those years. The poor girl had to have suffered inside. She hadn't even told her brother, and they were extremely close. For whatever reason, she kept it to herself. Heath couldn't believe Ethan was the one to find out and help her. Of all people, he would have been the last person Heath would have picked for Julie. She turned his ass around. That man would have done anything for her. Heath was a little worried about how Ethan was going to handle the day. As much as he didn't feel like seeing everyone, he knew what he had to do. It wasn't about him. It was about Julie and Ethan.
Heath pushed himself to get off the couch and go to bed. He turned off all the lights, locked up, and crawled under the covers. As he was drifting off to sleep, the woman from the house in the woods came into his mind. What was her story, he wondered? He had a strange feeling when he thought about her but wasn't sure why.
The next morning, he pushed himself to get ready for the day. It was going to be hard on everyone, especially Julie and Ethan. They had all agreed to be there for whatever the two of them needed. He just hoped it wasn't going to jail for beating the guy to a pulp and made a note in his mind to watch his friend the entire time. There were times in the past that Ethan overstepped himself. Heath didn't want him beating the guys ass before he was even sentenced, but he wouldn't blame him if he did. Heath would have done the same for Lisa. That wasn't his job anymore though. He shook his head and walked to his closet to see what he should wear. It wasn't his day in court, but he didn't want to look like a bum either. He grabbed a pair of nice Docker pants and a Polo shirt. Once he was showered and dressed, he headed to court. They all agreed to get there before Julie. She needed to know she had a huge support system behind her.
Heath, Gavin, Becky, Josh, and Lisa were all waiting when John pulled the car up with Ethan and Julie in it. They all hugged her and told her how proud they were of her. All Heath could think about was how sweet Julie was. She would do anything to help anyone that asked her. He just couldn't understand how someone could hurt her the way that asshole had. Heath could never imagine forcing a woman to be with him. He'd never lift a hand to a woman, no matter how pissed she made him.
Julie faced the asshole with her man beside her and her friends surrounding her. Heath could see in her eyes how hard the day was for her. Ethan looked just as rough. The judge put the guy away for a long time. Relief covered Julie's face. Her biggest fear was him being released. She was worried he'd come after her again. That wasn't going to happen. With the guy's record, he had the book thrown at him. She also had so many people that loved her and would keep her safe.
When they walked outside to leave, Heath checked his phone and shook his head with a growl. John looked over with narrowed eyes.
"Everything okay?" he asked.
"Fine," he said. "Just a pain-in-the-ass client, and we haven't even started the project yet."
He recognized the number the text had come from. It was on the paper the day before.
Unknown: I'm not sure about these plans. Maybe I shouldn't make the changes. I don't know what to do.
Heath wanted to keep his guys busy, and that team didn't have a build scheduled for a long time. He was hoping the remodel would do it. The more he thought about the woman, the more he thought maybe he should just give it up. It was going to be a lot of work getting her to agree on what she wanted. One more meeting, he thought. He'd give it one more shot.
Heath: Can I come by and talk about it with you today? We can sit down and compare what you want to what I came up with.
It only took a second for her to answer.
Unknown: Yes. What time?
Heath: I have to run home and grab the folder. I can be there in an hour.
He changed the name in his phone to Tara so he would know next time she text. There was no way he wasn't going to hear from her again, even if it was just to say she had changed her mind about getting the work done.
Just as he put his phone away, Gavin walked over to him.
"John's taking them home. The rest of us are going out to lunch. Will you go with us? We haven't seen much of you lately," Gavin said.
"I can't," Heath answered. "I have to run and meet a client about a job. I'll catch you guys next time."
Without a goodbye to anyone, Heath took off for his truck and got as far away as he could.
Chapter 3
Heath
Heath thought the entire drive about how he was going to work with Tara. He'd had pain-in-the-ass clients before and had always been able to pull out the charm and have them loving his ideas. He knew what he was doing and was very good at his job. She would be eating out of the palm of his hand by the time he left her house. He was sure of it.
He grabbed the folder from the seat beside him and got out of his truck, slamming the door behind him. Two boys came barrelling out the front door with their mom on their heels.
"Jason and Jordan," she yelled after them. "I want you both at the table, with your hands washed, in five minutes."
The two boys stopped in their tracks and looked back at her.
"I mean it you two," she said. "Leave Mr."
"Heath," he interrupted.
"Leave Heath alone," she said. "It's time for lunch. If you're really good, I'll let you eat in front of the television while I talk to Heath about the house."
Both boys ran back into the house. Heath shook his head and laughed.
"Do those two always have that much energy?" he asked without thinking.
"More than you know," she said. "It takes all I have just to keep up with what they're doing. Do you have any kids?"
Tara motioned for him to join her in the house. He walked up the steps and in through the door.
"Not me," he said with a chuckle. "I have a nephew and a couple of nieces on the way."
"Really?" she asked. "I take it from the look on your face that you don't want kids."
"I used to, but things have
changed," he said. "My friends are having enough for all of us. One of them is having twin girls. I'm not really their uncle, but that's what they'll call me. We're a very close group."
"Have you eaten yet?" she asked.
"No," he said. "I was at the courthouse when you sent the message. I ran straight home to get the stuff I needed. I'll get something after I leave."
She narrowed her eyes and gave him a questioning look.
"I didn't mean to pull you away from your work. I'm sorry about that. I just made lunch for me and the boys. It's nothing impressive. If you don't mind sandwiches and macaroni and cheese, we can eat while we talk about the house."
"It wasn't for work, it was personal. I was supporting a friend, and that's okay," Heath said. "You can eat. I'll get something later. I don't want to impose."
"I hope everything's okay. There's enough food. I made plenty of mac and cheese," she said.
"Okay, if you have extra. My friend will be fine. She has a man who loves her and will be there for her. It involved an ex who didn't want to go away. I'd rather not talk about it. It's pretty rough. She'll be fine though. We all care about her," he said. "Can I do anything to help?"
Heath felt out of place. He'd never been offered lunch at a home before. Usually, they offered him a drink, but that was it. He found himself explaining to Tara where he had been. She was just a client. There was no reason for that. He was relieved when she let the subject drop.
"If you wouldn't mind, can you grab some bowls out of the cabinet right there next to you?" she asked. "You're going to know where everything is in my house anyway."
Heath heard her laugh and couldn't help but laugh with her. She had an infectious kind of giggle.
"Two glass and two plastic," she added.
"Have you lived here long?" he asked.
"The boys and I moved in about a month ago. It was our vacation home. I always wanted to live here full-time, but that didn't work out until lately."
Built for Love (Bachelor Billionaire #5) Page 1
