Unbridled Billionaire

by Dani Wade

  Then the rip came, and Presley’s new panties were nothing but shredded fabric. Kane covered himself quickly. Then her. Nothing could have prepared her for the feel of his hardness pressing against her, into her. Presley reached for his hips without thought, only aching need. One hard pull of her hands, and he drove into her.

  Her back arched. Her head strained back as everything within her tightened around him. Kane’s deep, guttural groans filled her senses. Then his weight came down on her as he started to pump.

  Time and space gave way to sensation. The heat of his body. The smell of musk and cologne. The rough texture of his skin against her inner thighs. The delicious pressure of his body inside hers.

  Kane shifted up on his arms, and the change made Presley’s world explode. She had a vague sense of the frantic working of his hips and a sudden pressure as he cried out. It was all wrapped up in the intense wonder of the moment as Kane collapsed into Presley’s arms.

  For a brief moment in time, everything was perfect in her world.

  Ten

  Kane didn’t look in the mirror over his bathroom sink as he washed up. He focused instead on one task at a time. Wash his hands. Button up his shirt. Zip up his pants. Buckle his—ah, the belt was missing.

  But he couldn’t ignore the slight, almost imperceptible, shaking of his fingers.

  He hadn’t realized that, by encouraging Presley, he would unleash a tigress—not in a kinky way, but in the fierce way Presley made love. That intensity had reached a part of him Kane hadn’t been prepared for her to touch.

  I need a moment...just a moment more. The mantra was the only refrain in the stunned silence of his mind.

  He would not think of Emily. Would not think about how this act, with this woman, far surpassed anything he had experienced before. How was that even possible?

  I need a moment.

  Far from ready, he stepped back into his bedroom, only to realize he might have been gone longer than he’d thought. Presley sat primly in the chair by the floor lamp, fully dressed. The small pool of light in the darkened room emphasized her isolation. At first glance, she looked exactly how she had when she’d come in here, but a closer look revealed the difference. The disheveled thickness of her hair. The slight twist at the waistband of her dress, giving it an off-kilter look. The shoes she had yet to slip onto her carefully placed feet.

  “I need to go home.”

  The husky edge to her voice stirred him again, almost obliterating the actual words as he remembered her cries echoing in his ears. Then what she said truly registered.

  Trying to keep things light, he asked, “Isn’t that usually the man’s line?”

  Her eyes widened slightly, planting guilt in his heart for teasing her.

  “I’m not really used to the protocol of these situations,” she finally murmured.

  Boy, he was an ass. But he’d been trying to ease her into being comfortable with their new, well, whatever this was. It certainly wasn’t business. But it wasn’t wholly pleasure, either, if their current strained conversation was any indication.

  For a moment, Kane’s fists clenched.

  He hadn’t intended things to go this far—though that was a lie if he thought long and hard about it. This woman held a unique attraction for him that he didn’t understand and wasn’t sure he was entirely comfortable with. In truth, he hadn’t intended things to go this far tonight. But the sensations had quickly swept him away, like a river with category-four rapids.

  He didn’t realize he’d been staring until she reached up to smooth her hair back into place. When that didn’t seem to work, she instinctively gathered it and put it back into its regular ponytail. Only she had no tie to hold it.

  Without thought, he stepped to his chest of drawers. He took a ribbon from the valet box and extended it toward the woman who’d just rocked his world.

  “Thank you,” she murmured, then tied her hair back. She didn’t ask where the ribbon was from.

  Kane didn’t offer.

  Instead he knelt before her, resting his palms against her elbows. She had folded her arms over the front of her body, as if to protect herself from whatever came next. Her expression was carefully neutral. He could feel a slight tremble beneath his touch and wanted to smile. It reminded him of his own off-balance reaction just minutes earlier, but he kept his amusement to himself.

  Instead he strove for a semiserious tone. “There isn’t one particular protocol,” he assured her. “Only whatever makes you the most comfortable.”

  Presley acknowledged him with a nod, but it was a few moments before she spoke. “I’m not really a stay-all-night kind of girl.”

  So why was he wishing she was? That she would spend the night in his arms and really reel him in? Which was exactly what he didn’t need. Shouldn’t want. Yet he couldn’t deny his strongest inclination.

  Except in the face of her own needs.

  He wasn’t the sharpest tool in the shed, but Presley knew what she needed right now. Kane would give it to her.

  Guiding her back downstairs, he bundled her up into her wrap once more. The silence between them on the drive to her family home wasn’t comfortable—Presley fiddled, squirmed just a little—but Kane found himself reluctant to break it.

  He simply couldn’t shut down the thoughts whirling in his brain enough to make intelligent conversation.

  Like a sneaky teenager, he turned off the SUV’s lights and kept down any unnecessary noise as he approached the house. Somehow he knew Presley was too fragile for another confrontation with her stepmother. What she probably needed right now was simply to be alone.

  Oddly enough, he didn’t resent that. Even though he wanted the complete opposite.

  He pulled right up to the side door, so she wouldn’t have far to walk to get inside. He knew she’d be even quicker to slip out of the vehicle than normal.

  He finally found his words when she stood just inside the open door, blinking in the glare of the cab lights as she gathered her sparkly clutch from the floor. He just couldn’t let her go without telling her.

  “Presley...”

  She froze, her gaze caught in the intensity of his as if she couldn’t look away. He didn’t want her to. She needed to see that he meant every word he said.

  “Presley.” He swallowed. “You were beautiful tonight. And I’m sure as hell not talking about your dress.”

  * * *

  Kane stared at his hands gripping the steering wheel for long moments, shocked to realize he was second-guessing himself.

  Normally, he’d never drop in on someone this early unannounced. But he knew enough about Presley to know she’d been up for a while and was probably already in the stables. Plus, this was a working racing establishment. More people than just Presley would be up and running.

  This doubt was ridiculous.

  He’d woken this morning with Presley on the brain—and his body had not been happy about his empty bed.

  He was a grown man, unconcerned about appearing too eager. Besides, his interest would probably be the best thing for Presley to know. He’d made no mistake about wanting her, enjoying her, last night. He’d definitely like a repeat—a lot of repeats far into the future—regardless of contracts, agreements or money.

  So get your ass out of the SUV and find her.

  As soon as Kane opened the door, the sounds of early morning he’d heard every day of his adult life washed over him. Even though these weren’t his stables, his horses, those sounds still brought peace, belonging and anticipation of a job he loved—no, not a job. A way of living.

  Did Presley share those same feelings as she greeted her mornings?

  Wow—philosophical Kane was getting damn touchy. Kane focused on the crunch of his boots on the gravel as he crossed to the already bustling barn. One of the hands
on his way out held the door for him. The lowered light of the stables made Kane pause and blink to adjust.

  Curious, he stepped to the stall that had been the focus of so much drama the other day and glanced inside.

  The mare turned her head his way, curious about the new visitor. By way of greeting, he clicked his tongue softly; the sound caught her attention, and she neighed a quiet hello. This conversation of no words continued for several minutes before she deemed it safe enough to approach him.

  “Hello, lovely girl,” he crooned.

  After a few strokes of her head and neck, she turned to nudge her lips against his palm.

  “Sorry, girl. I came totally unprepared this morning.”

  That was probably an understatement. He had no idea what he would say to Presley, no idea what he would do. He’d simply woken with a need to be near her. So here he was.

  “Ah, a cardinal sin when visiting the stables,” Bennett said from his left. The stable manager stepped closer. “But then again, animals always think they’re the reason you dropped by, so why wouldn’t you bring a gift for them while you’re at it.”

  He reached into his pocket and held a sugar cube out to Kane. They shared a grin, because they both knew Bennett spoke the truth, then Kane fed the treat to the mare. No sooner had she lifted it delicately from his palm and crunched a few times before she returned to search for more. Kane shook his head as her searching lips tickled his palm.

  “Sorry, girl.” He turned to Bennett. “She doing okay? No ill effects?”

  Appreciation flashed in Bennett’s expression. “Doesn’t seem like it. Her usual handler came back from vacation two days later, and that settled her down pretty good.”

  Kane nodded. “I’m glad.”

  “You here to see Presley?” Bennett asked.

  “If she’s not busy.”

  “She’s always busy, but if you’re willing to wait her out, you might get somewhere.” He gestured toward the inner recesses of the building. “I’ll show you where to find her.”

  Kane steeled himself for any awkwardness. Her virtual sprint from his place last night concerned him. Knowing Presley, she’d probably done some second-guessing herself this morning—hell, all night—and he wanted to put her at ease.

  Bennett took a left turn at the large cross aisle Kane remembered from before, then headed down to the open double doors at the end. Stepping back out into the bright morning sunlight left Kane blinking for a moment, then he noticed he was on the side of the stables where several training paddocks were set up. The white-painted railings looked neat and in good repair.

  “Presley is down in the far paddock, where the jumps are set up.”

  A flash of heat engulfed Kane. His stomach turned. “Jumps?”

  Bennett nodded. “She’s working with a new horse, training him for shows for a client.”

  No matter how harshly Kane told himself this was a common activity for any horse owner, he could not bar the images that flooded his brain. Emily preparing herself and her horse for the approaching jump. Emily’s eyes going wide the minute she realized something was very wrong. Emily’s body twisting as she hit the hard ground in an unnatural position.

  He sucked in a breath, drawing Bennett’s attention. “You okay, Kane?”

  From somewhere beyond his boiling emotions, Kane dug out a smile and a “sure thing.”

  Bennett seemed to buy it. “I’ll let you walk on down, if you don’t mind. I need to head back in.”

  Kane thought he said, “No problem,” but he honestly wasn’t sure. Bennett smiled, waved and went back the way they’d come, so Kane’s response must have been adequate. He stood where he was, braced against the storm inside him, afraid the minute he relaxed he would either collapse or lose the contents of his stomach. And he wouldn’t be able to explain away either.

  He tried to think logically but couldn’t at the moment. So he stood baking in the heat—outside and in his head—just trying to survive the next few minutes.

  He could see the horse and rider making rounds in the paddock. Warming up, maybe? The jumps weren’t that high. It was a standard early training setup. People jumped horses and went to competitions all the time. Kane had even attended a few since the accident and experienced no discomfort whatsoever. So why did he still feel like he was going to puke up the breakfast he’d wolfed down?

  The horse paused, Presley holding him at rest. Would she be able to tell Kane was here if she looked this way? Suddenly the steel traps on his legs loosened. He walked to a nearby stand of trees, but the shade didn’t give him any relief.

  At least, not that he noticed.

  The horse started forward again. She’s fine. Everything’s fine. The mantra didn’t help. The approach to the first low jump was flawless, but Kane didn’t stick around for the execution.

  He didn’t remember the walk back to his SUV. Didn’t even remember much of the drive. He only remembered the grip of his hands around the steering wheel as the SUV took him as far away from Presley as possible.

  Eleven

  “So what did you do to ruin this relationship? Or are you the only woman in history who could make a deal that was purely business with that man?”

  Presley stared at Marjorie, startled for a moment to have her own fears spoken out loud. “What?”

  “Well, he hasn’t been here since the party the other night. Maybe he’s just tired of having to defend you everywhere he goes.”

  Her stepmother had been more than a little irritable since Kane’s rebuke the other night. Presley had hoped she would get over it, but she’d apparently decided instead to take her ire out on Presley.

  “Everything’s fine. I’m sure he’s just busy.”

  “So it is solely business.”

  Presley’s cheeks started to burn as memories of their one night together rose in her mind. She did her best to push them away. The last thing she wanted was to think about that while Marjorie watched her for any clue as to what was really happening between her and Kane.

  She hadn’t talked to Marjorie about sex, even during puberty. She had no intention of starting now.

  “I forgot something in the barn.”

  She turned on her heel, but Marjorie continued to speak behind her. “Presley, you come back here and tell me what’s going on right now.”

  So you can tell all your friends and they can all smile sympathetically every time I walk into a room for the next six months?

  Presley kept right on walking, all the way to her truck.

  It had been three days since Kane had dropped her off that night. She hadn’t expected him to rush right over, but a phone call, maybe...a text, even... Some acknowledgment of what had happened between them.

  Nothing. Not a single word in three days. And call her old-fashioned, but an innately feminine part of her wanted Kane to make the first move. Somehow prove to her that he was still interested.

  It looked as though she wasn’t going to get her wish.

  But they still had a contract, and as uncomfortable as this meeting might be, Presley needed to know if the deal was still on...or if she was going have to find the funds to pay the Harringtons what Marjorie owed in full. That could be a purely business conversation, right?

  She was still wondering how the heck she would pull that off when she drove her truck into the circular driveway of his house in town. Part of her wondered if he would even be here. But it was the end of the day, and she’d figured there was a fifty-fifty chance that he’d finished his work at the Harrington stables. His SUV by the garage told her she’d guessed right.

  As she climbed the front steps, the clip of her boots on the stone reminded her she was still in her work clothes. Great. She was just reinforcing the image of not being good enough, with dirty clothes and muddy boots and hay in her hair. This p
lan might have been poorly thought out.

  But this was her. He could take it or leave it.

  The thought brought a smirk to her lips, and she forced herself onward. Kane might not be interested in her as a bed partner after having tasted her once, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t still be business partners. She’d spent three days wondering if he’d renege on his contract. It was time to put the doubts to rest.

  Kane didn’t look surprised when he opened the door. Presley only hoped her expression was giving away as little as his. He didn’t speak, simply stepped back and motioned her inside. Not very promising.

  She stomped over the threshold but quickly caught herself once she realized what she was doing. Neither leaving a trail of tiny dirt clumps nor walking like a three-year-old having a tantrum would reflect well on her. But the more her nerves jangled, the more anger crept in.

  Turning to face him across the foyer, she noticed that she’d crossed her arms over her middle but allowed herself the defensive gesture. She needed comfort, to say the least, as she jumped right in.

  “Wanna tell me what’s going on, Kane?”

  “Hey, Presley.”

  His even response as he closed the door threatened to wiggle through all the defenses she was building. She did her best not to read anything into it as he gestured her into the living room. She got a quick impression of leather furniture complimenting the dark wood floors before she turned her focus back on him.

  She refused to soften her tone as she asked, “Have you been okay, Kane? Sick?”

  “No,” he said with a shake of his head. “I wish I had that kind of excuse. But we both know I don’t.”

  “I don’t know anything. Care to enlighten me?”

  Instead of giving her an excuse, any excuse, he started to pace. His own boots beat out a tattoo across the floorboards. The view of his strong back and tight rear made her mouth water. But the scowl on his face when he turned around was enough to make her look away.