The Billionaire's Second Chance (53 page)

“Oh you!” Shannon laughed as she immediately clutched the bed
-
sheet against her nakedness. “Settle down there Bevis!” she chuckled while she swept her masses of curls into some semblance of just awakened order.

“What time are we leaving for Connecticut?” Shannon
queried,
making
mental note of the time he indicated
while she
set about figuring out what had to
be
do
ne
in order to be ready on time.

As she stood up bringing the sheet with her to wrap securely around her nakedness he playfully swatted her
bottom
with a naughty thump and laughed at her attempts at modesty. “After the way you rode off into the wild overnight I think the sheet covering your delicious body may be overkill.” he said with meaning shining from his amused eyes.

Shannon blushed furiously at his mention of her uninhibited love-making and smacked him on the arm as he passed by.

“I couldn’t help myself, sir.” She joked. “If
it wasn’t your intent to be
rav
ished, I suggest you keep a certa
in appendage undercover in the future.” she added sweetly while sweeping her hand down the front of his jeans to make the point.

“Wench!” he cried before swatting her ass again and turning her in the direction of the dressing room.

“Dress code – casual.” he added before he turned to leave her in peace to get dressed. “Oh, and Mrs. A has thrown together what
can only be described as a CBB.

“CBB?” Shannon asked. “Please enlighten me.”

Laughing Nick told her that CBB meant country boy breakfast which included every form and fashion of breakfast meat known to man along with piles of fluffy eggs and mini-pancakes covered in real maple syrup.

“Me thinks she feels we might need to fuel the engine.” he snicker
e
d
,
delighting in Shannon’s flustered expression.

When she blushed furiously and flew off in the direction of the dressing room muttering about privacy and everyone knowing they’d been engaged in some outrageously intimate
workouts
,
Nick
laughed even harder at her obviously embarrassed reaction.

“Half an hour is al
l you get,
woman!” he growled. “I want your cute butt at the breakfast table tout de suit.”

Ninety minutes later after a staggering breakfast that left Shannon stuffed
,
they were ensconced in the limo, bags stowed in the trunk
,
making their way to Nick’s childhood home.

She’d decided on a pair of black jeans with high leather boots and a soft cashmere top because even though it wasn’t exactly cold, her California reality meant that the cooler mornings and evenings of an early east coast autumn meant she had to keep covered if she didn’t want to get a chill. She liked the elegant draping of the soft grey sweater and how it perfectly molded her breasts in the satiny cups of the demi-bra she’d chosen to wear. She knew he’d be hard pressed not to ogle her chest and found a wicked sense of her inner tease pushing to the forefront.

The Allen’s had been all kinds of happy and delighted that morning as the husband and wife duo had set about getting Nick and Shannon off on the next leg of their adventure. The Missus had kept feeding them until neither one could move while the Mister scurried around stowing bags and packing a hamper full of
fresh
baked zucchini bread and almond cookies which Nick’s mother loved.

As they set off in the bright sunshine Shannon could not have been happier and judging by the self-satisfied grin and manly swagger on full display, Nick was likewise as filled with joy. Her cowboy pirate was a happy camper this morning.

The trip was full of happy chatter as Shannon encouraged Nick to tell her all about his childhood home and share his heart-felt memories of days gone by before he had lost his father.

Shannon remembered thinking how alone he was when she’d first spied the private bedroom on the Barrett jet. It had clutched at her heart then, the notion that he’d been as isolated and lonely as she had been
for so many
years. A
s he talked
,
she
sensed
that his feelings of
isolation
had taken hold not long after he found himself head of the household and responsible for his mother and sister’s well
-
being. She
still
had both her parents and struggled to control her emotions when she thought of Nick coming to terms with such a huge loss at
so
young
an
age.

Something tugged at her heart as she considered another loss that he had yet to learn of. It wasn’t right she knew
,
to keep such a secret from him after their promises of total honesty but truly, she didn’t know how to even bring it up.

Her miscarriage had been a loss yes
,
but since neither of them had known about it beforehand, Shannon had difficulty even acknowledging that it had happened at all. Maybe if she’d had some advance knowing, perhaps if she’d been healthier and less damaged things would be different today but the truth was she had zero frame of reference on this matter except to recount how she’d been hit by unexpectedly staggering pain, blacked out while driving and awakened sometime later in the hospital to be told a ruptured cyst had triggered a series of health crises that ended with her losing a baby she hadn’t known about and leaving her with a nasty bump on her head. Even now it didn’t seem real to her.

Nick sensed when her thoughts drifted away and wondered what had caused the sudden shift into thoughtfulness as Shannon stared silently at the passing scenery. This wasn’t the first time he’d been aware of something crowding Shannon’s thoughts which
she clearly
wasn’t quite ready to share.

He searched and searched for what could be driving this quiet introspection on her part but when no alarm bells went off in his head Nick relaxed a bit and decided to let things lay where they may at the present time. When she was ready to tell him what was going on he’d welcome her openness but wouldn’t pry or prod until then.

As had become a favorite pastime
,
Nick reached for her hand and lifted it to his mouth where he pressed a series of delicate kisses along her knuckles. He kept her hand in his and fondled the jewelry he placed on her ring finger with open satisfaction. When Shannon lifted adoring, smiling eyes his way Nick didn’t care what secrets she kept as long as she continued to look at him like that.

The car trip passed quickly and before too long Nick was letting Shannon know that they would be arriving at his mother’s home before too long. A sudden burst of nerves exploded in her tummy at the prospect of meeting the mom he and Jules clearly adored. She hoped Alanna Barrett would approve of Shannon for her son and tried to control her breathing in the hopes that the butterflies performing a Cirque du Soleil routine in the pit of her stomach would settle down.

They made their way through a picture perfect slice of Americana when they reached his home town. Quaint shops and cafes with outdoor seating dotted the main street
. It was easy for
Shannon
to imagine
Nick’s family as it once had been
,
enjoying what looked to be a suburban paradise.

Colonial style houses along tree-lined streets appeared in her view delighting Shannon with the calm and quiet ambiance of the family oriented hamlet tucked away in a staggeringly beautiful corner of Connecticut. It was ….. unspoiled and completely delightful.

Nick sat forward in anticipation once the car turned onto his street as he chattered on pointing out the baseball field where he’d played as a youth, the house that Ned had grown up in and even the huge oak tree where Becky Taylor had let him kiss her one summer evening under heavy branches covered with dark green leaves. When she had pouted at him upon hearing that he’d kissed another girl he’d roared with laughter and dimpled her to within an inch of her life when he declared that he’d been a rugged thirteen year old with raging hormones the summer that he’d lusted after the older and wiser Becky. At fourteen and endowed with some serious boobage Nick had practiced the fine art of teenage make-out sessions with the precocious girl. She had to laugh along with him when he revealed that Ned too had engaged in some intense spit-swapping sessions with the very same teenage Lolita.

With a smile still lighting up her face Shannon was awestruck when the car turned into a long driveway in front of a big, white house set far back from the road that looked like a movie set.

A two story colonial with columns on either side of an arched doorway, Shannon marveled at the wide trellises surrounding the first floor windows that were still draped with late summer roses and climbing vines. They gave the house a romantic flourish that she found appealing.

The upstairs windows were framed with wide dark shutters that contributed an elegant touch to the overall look. Huge trees graced the deep front yard
.  A
s the car pulled further into the driveway she saw that an addition had been built off the far side of the house showing French Doors leading to a wrought-iron balcony on the second floor which she guessed was the master bedroom.

An actual white picket fence completed the suburban look and feel of Nick’s childhood home and as the car moved toward the rear of the house she spied a basketball hoop hanging off the detached garage that had the look of a miniature version of the gorgeous white house.

The whole effect was enchanting, warm and inviting making Shannon sigh with pleasure as the car slowly came to a halt. The presence of a very expensive looking sedan
which she easily identified as a top-of-the-line Mercedes
,
indicating that someone else was at home
,
sat in front of the garage.

Nick bounded out of the car with boyish enthusiasm beating Mr. Allen to his door opening duties. He was around the rear of the car and pulling open Shannon’s door before she had a chance to catch her breath. Clearly excited
,
Shannon giggled at Nick’s obvious pleasure
, placing
her smaller hand in his much larger one when he reached out to help her from the limo.

Mr. Allen was unloading their bags as Nick pulled her along toward the back door entrance to the fabulous house. The
comfortable
boots she wore had wonderful high heels that reduced some of Nick’s height advantage.  She enjoyed the sensation of his hand gripping hers as he threw open the door and hollered in greeting.

“Mom! We’re here.” he yelled just like any boy would upon returning home. The controlled and serious business tycoon had vanished and been replaced by a relaxed, smiling
,
giant of a man with those seriously sexy dimples and a wide smile lighting up his face. Shannon didn’t know which was more appealing, the happy charming man pulling her further into the house or the house itself.

The back door had opened into a modest mud room that led to a charming kitchen decorated with glass doored cabinetry
and
long marble covered counters which overflowed with cooking tools and accessories. A wide deep window was set above a double farm sink where a window sill crowded with stoneware pots spilling over with all manner of herbs and succulents added a homey touch. There was a brass kettle on the big professional looking stove underneath a low shelf crowded with spices and several bottles of cooking oils.

Whatever trepidation Shannon may have been experiencing at the prospect of being presented to Nick’s only parent was swept away by the down-to-earth charm of the women’s welcoming and well-used kitchen.

She didn’t know quite what to expect next when a small-framed woman dressed in a simple silk blouse and straight skirt with a very chic bobbed hairstyle appeared in the doorway. Wearing a pair of stylish pumps that looked suspiciously similar to the ones Shannon drooled over in her own wardrobe, the woman was definitely well put together but not fussy or uptight in any way as far as Shannon could tell at first glance.

“Nicky!” the woman cried in obvious delight as she reached with open arms to embrace her clearly beloved son.
Still clutching Shannon’s hand he moved into his mother’s arms
, bussing
her noisily on the cheek with a son’s affectionate kiss of hello.

“Mom.” he murmured gently. “I’ve missed you.” he admitted as his mom treated him to a heartfelt bear hug that brought tears to Shannon’s eyes.

The moment the hug relaxed Nick tugged Shannon forward and beamed at his mom while he performed the best introduction he could in the circumstances.

“Mom, I’d like you to meet Shannon Reynolds.” he informed her with a wide smile in Shannon’s direction.

With that Alanna Barrett turned her full attention on Shannon where she stood nervously by Nick’s side
,
silently praying
for the woman’s acceptance and approval.