The Billionaire Cowboy's Carolina Girl (Contemporary BWWM Romance) (5 page)

My long lost cowboy thrust into me hard, panting and letting out a deep groan. The world seemed to tip on its side, and again I fell into the purity of a perfect release, another orgasm sweeping over my system... longer and more intense than the last. At the same time, Joe's body tightened and reached for his own, much-needed release. He shuddered against me, his body tensing and jerking against mine, releasing his seed deep inside of me. He stayed buried deep inside of me, falling against me and kissing me, beckoning my lips to his. He brushed my hair to the side and buried his face in my neck, inhaling deeply.
 

"I never forgot you for one moment, Anita Lee. I never fell out of love with you, and I've been looking for you all this time." I sighed, clutching his body against mine. "Don't you feel the same way?" His voice was deep and husky, speaking to a part of my soul that I'd kept hidden for years.
 

"Yes... no. I don't know," I said. "This all happened so fast."

"That's okay, Nita. We don't have to talk about it now. We'll speak on it tomorrow." He reached over and flicked off my light, pulling away from me. I realized my arms felt cold without him... and that I knew exactly what we were meant to be. But just for that moment, I didn't speak. I let Billy Joe ease a pillow under my foot and bring me a glass of water. He got back in bed with me, holding me until I fell asleep. My dreams were fitful and strange; it had been so long since I'd fallen asleep in someone's arms. And here I was again, giving it a try.
 

When I woke in the morning, it was late, and the sun filtered lazily through the windows. I groaned and reached next to me, expecting to find Billy Joe Wootton. But where he had been, there was only air.

"Billy! Joe!" I shouted, my voice echoing. The only sounds came from my snoring dog at the foot of the bed. Tears pricked at my eyes again, falling down my cheeks. I'd made a huge mistake last night — and now Billy Joe was gone.

Desperately, I called Eleni, weeping so hard into the phone that I could barely speak.
 

“Calm down, calm down. Start from the beginning,” she said. I recounted what had happened with Billy Joe Wootton, the cowboy billionaire who was supposed to be the darling of Million Dollar Matchmaking.

“I’m so sorry, Eleni. I didn't know what I was doing.” She made an exasperated noise.
 

“You know... I don't care about the business, Anita. I care about you. And I'm pretty sure that Billy Joe didn't go back to Austin without saying goodbye. That just doesn't make any sense.”

“You're right! It doesn't make a lick of sense!” I nearly shouted into the phone, and I heard Eleni's long sigh. She was used to my more sensitive, emotional personality, but I knew it exasperated her at times. “I can't make it anywhere today. My damn foot.” I started crying again, needing Eleni's voice to reassure me that everything would be okay.

“You stay right where you are, and I'll make sure you're okay when I get off of work later. Can you get food and water for yourself? Or are you really that bad off?” Wiping my tears aside, I laughed. Eleni's words were harsh, but her voice was tender. I knew she and Danielle would be there in an instant if I asked.

“I got my wheelchair and some crutches that the hospital gave us.”

“You know, hospitals don't just
give
you equipment like that. Did you pay for them? Or was it your secret admirer?” Eleni snorted. “You know, I really don't believe that this man has taken off without you. He seemed pretty set on…”

I didn't hear the rest of what Eleni was saying. All I heard was three dogs scrambling to the door, rushing to greet the man who had just returned. I pulled on a long t-shirt and hobbled into my wheelchair, inexpertly rolling myself down the hallway to the front door. Just as I reached, the door, Joe pushed his way inside to greet me and my menagerie of animals. The dogs leapt up in celebration, and even my cats came to circle his legs again.

“What on earth, Billy Joe?”

“It’s Joe these days. But you can call me whatever you want to. Hopefully for the rest of our lives…” Billy Joe Wootton knelt down on one knee, right before me.

“What on earth are you doing? You just popped out of here, and now what? You’re…”

“Proposing.” He reached into the deep pocket of his jeans and pulled out a small velvet box. He opened it up, and inside was a ring more beautiful than any I’d ever seen. The white gold ring had channel set diamonds all along the band. In the center set a sapphire, as deep blue as Billy Joe Wootton’s eyes. I gasped, my mouth going dry. My heart fluttered.

“I hadn’t exactly imagined a proposal like this. Not in a wheelchair in my crappy little house.”

“I can take you out on the town if it means you’ll say yes.”

“Billy…” My voice was soft. “Yes” was on the tip of my tongue, but somehow, I couldn’t quite say it. “We can’t… You’ve always known we can’t.”

“Who says? I never wanted any of the things my parents gave me. And now I have more money than I know what to do with. I lived out everything that they wanted. And where did that get me? All I want is you.” Tears streamed down my cheeks, and I looked at him again, putting my hand to his face.

“Are you sure?”
 

“I’ve never been more sure of anything in my life. Of all the women I’ve met in this world, you’re the very best of them.” I gulped, wiping away my tears again.
 

“What are you going to do… whisk me away to Austin in your private jet and… wife me?”

“I don’t think I’ve heard ‘wife’ used in quite that way before. But yes, that’s pretty damn much what I had in mind.” I paused for a long moment, letting my fingertips brush over the stubble on Billy Joe’s chin. Tears flooded my eyes again, and I nodded.

“Yes, yes. Okay. Yes, let’s do this… I can take the dogs and cats right?”

“There will be room enough for your entire crew at the new place. My house has been quiet for far too long. And I’ll be damn glad for any company I can get. I got plenty of space for them while we get that ranch tidied up and paid for.” Billy Joe took the ring from the small velvet box and slipped it onto my ring finger. It slid right on, fitting like it had always been there. I drew my breath in sharply.

“It’s too beautiful. I can’t… I don’t even know what to say.”

“Just say you’ll stay with me for all the days of my life…”

“And you’ll fly me off to Austin in the morning?” I threw my head back and laughed.

“Well, little missy, I think we need to let that ankle get a little bit better. And I think I’m just the man for the job… Plus, you look pretty damn good lying back in that bed. I think I could get used to looking at the ring on your finger… and nothing else, well, I guess except for that silly ankle boot.” He drew me up into his arms and kissed me, holding me close. It occurred to me that this was the thing I’d been missing for so many years… and it seemed like we’d never have to be apart again…

“Anita Lee, get your fine ass out here and look at what we got going.” Billy Joe’s voice rang through the house. I stepped out of the kitchen and around the corner, spying him out on the porch where we’d had our tiny wedding the month before. I hurried over to him, trying not to smile. I had to keep a straight face for once… It looked like it might be a big day all around.
 

“Well, I’ll be damned. They came early,” I said. The architect and his construction crew were out at the front of the property, measuring out the foundation for my dance studio. Even though my physical therapy hadn’t taken care of everything, I was getting to the point where I’d be able to teach dance… well, in a little while, anyway.

“Good news, ain’t it? They’re going to break ground right before the fall… before it gets cold and rainy.”

“Cold? It doesn’t get
cold
in Austin. Not really.”
 

“Not enough that it’ll stop construction. You’ll be out there dancing in the spring.”

“Well…” I said, grabbing his arm to steady myself. “I’m thinking I might have to wait a little while longer.”

“Foot bothering you again?” He looked at me with concern in his eyes and put his arm around my waist.
 

“I’m happy to say it’s not…”

“Anita… then… what’s happening here? Are you?” I nodded, staring deep into Billy Joe’s cornflower blue eyes. Even though he generally went by “Joe” these days, I hadn’t been able to drop the Billy from my speaking… even though it reminded him a little too much of his family. He wasn’t any part of that old family anymore. We were building a new one.
 

“Pregnant. Due in April. I might be dancing again pretty soon after that, though. At least I hope.” Billy Joe swept me up into his arms, twirling me and setting me down gently. He was always careful of my foot — maybe a little too careful.
 

“Well, I reckon that makes me the happiest man on this earth,” he said, kissing me tenderly, and pulling me close. Outside, the construction crew broke ground on my new dance studio. Happiness was all around us… and it was indeed just like a fairy tale. It turns out that Billy Joe was after that happy ending all along… and he was willing to move mountains to get it. I threw my arms around him and melted into his body, ready to keep on living our dream.

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“The Billionaire’s Matchmaker” is a companion to “The Billionaire Cowboy’s Carolina Girl.” “The Billionaire’s Matchmaker” tells the story of Anita’s sister, Eleni, and her struggle against falling in love with one of her clients. If Anita’s all about fun, Eleni is all business… and it’s her billionaire who has to convince her that there must be a balance between work… and romance.

Read on for an excerpt from “
The Billionaire’s Matchmaker:
”

Dammit, Eleni. Focus.
 

I started walking to the back of the shop, looking up and down the bar for the billionaire that I thought I was looking for. I sighed and took out my phone, checking to see if Anita or Danielle had sent me a text to let me know about the billionaire's arrival time. I walked back up to the front of the shop and stood there stupidly, waiting for the man to appear. Just as I looked down to my phone again, I heard my name.

“Eleni, right?” The same rich, crisp voice I'd heard on the phone before was now saying my name. In person. The sexy guy with the nice jeans had stood up and was walking over to me.

“I… I... yes, I'm Eleni. How do you know my name?” I almost backed up against the wall. My personal fantasy had gotten up to say hello. And somehow he knew my name.
 

“Oh, I didn't mean to startle you. I'm Josh Everett. We spoke on the phone?” The words coming out of the man's mouth didn't quite compute in my brain, and I knitted my brows together, trying to put the pieces together. This man wasn't a billionaire. He didn't look like a billionaire. More like a retired model, heading towards forty with a touch of salt and pepper around his temples. Like Jeffrey Dean Morgan's half-brother, maybe. But not a billionaire.

“Is this some kind of joke?”

“Hey, I might not be as handsome as the pictures online, but I assure you, I am Josh Everett. President of Everett Technologies. We spoke today?” He said it again, like we'd spoken. And strangely enough, his voice
did
sound quite like the man on the phone. Warily, I extended a hand and stepped closer, trying to regain my composure.

“I… uh... apologize for the misunderstanding, Mr. Everett.”

“Josh,” he said, taking my hand and holding it for a touch longer than necessary. I looked into his eyes and watched him smile. My mouth went dry, and again I grew aware of the desire creeping its way through my body.
 

“Eleni,” I said, lifting my free hand to my hair again, untangling it and brushing it aside.

“We'd established that. You
do
look just as beautiful in person as you do on your website. Well, maybe even more.” I laughed at the absurdity of it. This man was complimenting me. And somehow, I couldn't comprehend his existence. Not as a billionaire, anyway. Sure, I'd seen some of my clients in jeans before, but hell, that was usually when they were leaving for a destination date in their private jet. But this man... he looked comfortable. Somehow comfortable in his skin, easy with himself... suited to the jeans and t-shirt. And probably suited to any buttoned-up bespoke suit too.
 

“I, um, I'm sorry. I didn't know what you looked like.”

“Oh, you weren't curious at all?” The billionaire took back his hand, leaving mine feeling empty, and he stepped back over to his table. “Have a seat. I took the liberty of ordering for you. The almond essence latte... it's what I get whenever I come here.” I raised an eyebrow.
 

“How would you know that I'd even want a latte?” I stepped over and sat down, trying to regain my composure. “Or that I'm not allergic to tree nuts.”

“Well it says on your bio that you're a coffee freak, and this is their signature coffee. I guess I took a risk. Isn't that what your business is all about... taking risks to get the reward?”

“Well, I look at it as a more calculated risk.” I lifted the steaming latte to my lips and sipped. The flavor of almond was bold, but without the bitterness that you sometimes taste with almond extract. It was all sweetness, mixed with the rich darkness of a bold coffee and the creaminess of whole milk. I sipped again, pausing, savoring the taste. Normally, I was an espresso shot kind of girl. Or, at the very least, black coffee brewed strong... with just a splash of milk. The coffee was decadence itself, with none of the seriousness of the espresso I usually chose. It tasted like an afternoon off, like a tiny vacation in the middle of the day.

“It's good isn't it? So good it takes your words away?” I smiled and looked into those big blue eyes.

“Yeah. It's... not what I'd usually get. Thanks, I guess. Even though it was presumptuous to order for me.”