The Billionaire’s Second Chance: A Small Town Romance

by Weston Parker

  “Something like that.” He laughed and led me back to where we’d parked. It was only once we pulled up at a small marina that I realized why he hadn’t flat out dismissed my question about a trip to the moon. “We’re going on a private cruise on the west arm of Traverse Bay.”

  The sun was setting, and the moon was a glowing ball that would sure look reachable once we were out on the water. I sucked in a breath, gripping his forearm as he led me over to the boat.

  “Are you kidding me? Just us? On that whole yacht?”

  “Yep.” He leaned over and pressed a kiss to my temple, sending my mind reeling into another round of its new favorite game. And in this edition of Real or Fake…

  Mentally shaking myself out of it, I smiled and followed him to the boat. Just go with it. Enjoy the trip and finally getting to be a real tourist.

  “This is going to be incredible.”

  “I couldn’t bring you all the way here and have you missing out on one of the most highly recommended experiences in town.” He slung his arm over my shoulders, drawing me close to his side and keeping me there as we boarded. “Welcome aboard, Anna. I’ve asked the captain to make sure he shows you the best views the bay has to offer. Told you I’d make it worth your while if you left your comfort zone for me.”

  “I didn’t doubt you for a second.”

  A member of the crew brought us each a flute of champagne as we pushed away from the land, floating on the calm waters without another soul in sight. I rested against the railing with my forearms on the cool metal and William standing behind me.

  His arms were around my waist, his jaw against my temple as we watched the people on the shore become small. The moment was intimate and private.

  And dare I even think it?

  Real.

  Chapter 27

  WILLIAM

  After our private sailing tour, whatever had been bothering Anna earlier had evaporated into thin air. I had a feeling it was about that ring I’d put on her finger, but as soon as she’d shown it to me, I’d known it had to belong to her.

  She wouldn’t have let me buy it for her just because, though, and since part of Jessie’s plan from the beginning had entailed me putting a ring on it, I hadn’t been able to resist. A very large part of me also got a far too intense dose of satisfaction by seeing my ring on her finger.

  Again, I was struck by how right it all felt. How completely normal.

  “What do you want to do now?” she asked once we were back on land. The smile she’d been wearing all day was back and since she’d been joking around with me again on the cruise, I figured we were okay.

  “There’s a bar nearby with live music. You interested?” I had my arm around her shoulders, and she was leaning into me just like she used to.

  She grinned up at me. “Always, but only if you show me whether you’ve gotten any new dance moves over the years.”

  “I’m still masterful at the sprayer and the robot, but I’ve got one or two new moves up my sleeve. Let’s take a car back to the hotel, have our bags sent up, and walk to the bar from there?”

  She nodded before a thoughtful expression tightened her beautiful features. “Hotel, huh? Did you book us one or two rooms?”

  “That depends on you.” I flashed her a smirk, but it wasn’t the same devil-may-care one the paps got. This one was way more lighthearted than that. “We have one suite, but it’s got two bedrooms.”

  She laughed before shaking her head at me. “Who said chivalry was dead? A suite with a bed of my very own? Whatever will I do to keep myself warm in such a vast and cavernous space?”

  I knew she was just joking, but I put my mouth close to her ear and whispered my response anyway. “I’ve got one or two ideas.”

  “Do you now?” She pulled away to meet my eyes, her own illuminated with amusement. “Like what? Order an extra blanket from room service? I’m sure the place you booked will be fancy enough to have room service.”

  “I was going to suggest calling down for a heater, but I suppose an extra blanket will do just fine. The space isn’t that vast or that cavernous. They were all sold out of those suites.”

  She snapped her fingers as if she were disappointed. “Darn. I think we might have to find a new hotel then. Only the best will do.”

  “Look at you, channeling your inner nightmare-tourist persona. I’m proud of you. That really didn’t take very long.”

  Batting her long, thick eyelashes at me, she pursed her lips in her best impression of a snooty pout. She couldn’t even pull it off when she was pretending. “I’m a quick study, Mr. Kent. Now, drive us to our hotel so that we can go experience this live music and dancing you speak of.”

  Dropping off the car and our overnight bags at the hotel went smoothly and only took a few minutes. More than a few people gave me curious looks in the lobby, but I simply gave them all polite smiles and ignored them when they looked like they were about to approach me.

  The bar was packed, but it was exactly the kind of place I’d hoped it would be. Flashing lights, loud music, and cold beer were definitely what the doctor had ordered.

  “I haven’t been to a place like this in years,” Anna yelled, pressing one of her fingers against my ear so I’d be able to hear her over the noise. “Is it just me, or does it get louder the older we get?”

  “Nah, it’s not just you. It’s getting louder to me too.”

  “Maybe we’re just getting old.” She grinned when I looked down to roll my eyes at her, then dragged me toward the bar.

  Using those feminine wiles no bartender was immune to, Anna managed to flag someone down and had two beers in front of her in no time. She cocked an eyebrow when she turned to hand mine over, dipping into a small curtsy when I complimented her on the speed at which she got us served.

  “Looks like I’ve still got it.” She gave her ponytail a sassy little flip before lifting her hands in the air and winking at me as she jerked her head toward the dance floor. “Let’s see those new moves of yours.”

  In a flash, she was being swallowed up by the crowd and it was all I could do to keep up with her. She found us a spot near the center of the floor, the lights casting her hair in all kinds of different colors.

  She’d taken out her ponytail, and her hair spilled around her shoulders as she swayed her hips to the sultry beat. I couldn’t resist joining her any more than I could’ve if she’d been singing a siren’s song. My arms wound around her, hauling her closer while trying not to spill either of our drinks.

  We drank and danced, laughing when we pulled the goofy moves we used to think were amazing when we were kids. A slower song came on after we’d finished our first few drinks, and I was glad my hands were free for this one.

  My leg slipped between hers as I tugged her closer to me again, and then I was lost in the way she moved. Her eyes were closed, her face tilted to the ceiling with one of her arms in the air and the other on my neck.

  The exposed column of her throat called to me, and I lowered my head to brush my lips against it. Her answering moan vibrated from her skin to mine, prompting me to do it again.

  “You ready to get out of here?” I whispered against her ear. My cock was trying its best to free itself from the confines of my pants, and my pulse was thrumming.

  Anna nodded and opened her eyes, taking my hand when I offered it to help her through the crowds. We had to dance our way off the dance floor to have any chance of escaping uninjured, and she was laughing by the time we made it out.

  “You’re really good at avoiding an elbow to the face. Is that a special skill you picked up in LA?” She teased me, but her pupils were still dilated, and I could see her nipples were still pebbled underneath the thin fabric of her shirt.

  “As a matter of fact—” The joke died on my lips when we spilled out onto the sidewalk and were suddenly bombarded by cameras and paparazzi.

  Flashes of light blinded us, and rapid-fire questions were being called out about our relationship, Angelina, and th
e shiny new ring on Anna’s finger. She jumped back when she saw them, flinching before burying her face in my shoulder.

  Shit. Fuck. Shit. Shit. No.

  “I’m going to get you out of here, baby. Just stay with me, okay?” Wrapping my arms as tightly around her as I could, I kept my head down and hurried to get her away as fast as possible.

  The rental car was parked at our hotel, which was thankfully not too far away. Some poor cabbie took pity on us and came to screeching stop as soon as my hand shot into the air. I piled Anna in first, then ducked in after her and told him to step on it.

  We escaped to our hotel room, but she didn’t stop moving even after the door was locked behind us. She’d remained tucked into my side until then but let go of me to stride into the bathroom. I tried to follow, but she shot me a tight smile and shook her head.

  “Not now, Will. I just need a minute to regroup.” The door shut in my face, and my heart dropped right along with my raging libido. Everything had happened so fast that I was still trying to wrap my head around how we’d gone from practically dry-humping on the dance floor to this moment.

  A second later, I heard the tap at the sink running. Resting my forehead against the gold inlay on the door, I put my palms next to my head and cursed the fucking press.

  “I’m so sorry, Anna.” I didn’t even know if she could hear me through the solid door, but I kept going anyway. “I didn’t expect them to be there. I don’t know how they found us. No one knew we were coming here. Someone must have identified me in the bar.”

  It didn’t make a ton of sense, even to me. It’d been dark in there, but after all the glances we’d gotten today, I couldn’t be too surprised that they’d tracked us down.

  “I swear I didn’t tip them off. I really just wanted this trip to be about you getting comfortable outside of your comfort zone. Nothing more.”

  Then why the fuck did you put a ring on her finger this afternoon?

  The voice in my head was losing his shit at me, demanding answers about what I’d done and why I’d gone about doing it the way I had.

  You didn’t have to turn it into a fake engagement thing. It’s not like you didn’t know you were adding fuel to the fire.

  “It doesn’t matter.” Her voice was soft when it filtered to my ears from the other side of the door that remained firmly closed. “This was the plan, wasn’t it? I just need some time to process. I’ll have a bath and meet you later, okay?”

  I banged my head against the wood a few times before stepping away and clearing my throat. “Take your time. I’ll be down at the bar having a drink if you want to join me when you’re done, okay?”

  “See you later.” It didn’t sound like she was going to take me up on my offer. Part of me wanted to stay in the room with her, but she’d asked for time, and I couldn’t guarantee I’d give her that if I stayed.

  It was much more likely that I’d end up trying to explain or apologize again, and then again. It might’ve been the plan to a certain extent—although I really hadn’t been counting on the press catching up to us here—but I still felt like shit over how it had gone down.

  After leaving the room, I went to the bar in the hotel lobby and ordered a double vodka on the rocks. About an hour passed before I started considering going back to the room. Clearly, Anna was calling it a night.

  I’d go check in on her, then get some shut-eye myself. There had to be a way to salvage our trip somehow. Since tomorrow was Sunday, I knew she had the day off. Maybe I could convince her to stay one more day, and we could head back early enough for her to be on time for work on Monday morning.

  Pushing my empty glass away, I pulled some bills from my wallet and tossed them down on the counter. Ideas for what I could do to make it up to her ran through my mind as I turned to leave.

  I saw her feet first, my brain too slow on the uptake with all my plans for Anna to immediately connect the dots. The shoes were familiar, though. Pink leather stilettos imported from Italy with golden locks over the straps above her manicured toes.

  No one around here would be wearing those things. My heart jumped to my throat at the same time that my eyes connected with her cool blue ones.

  Angelina stood only about three feet away from me, dressed to the nines with a sour look on her face. “Sit your ass down, Kent. We need to talk.”

  Chapter 28

  ANNA

  Dad never used to know what to do when I cried. He used to just wrap me up in one of his bear hugs, hold me, and offer to run me a bath. Apparently, his mother used to believe there was no problem that couldn’t be fixed with the proper amount of steam coming off the hot water to cleanse the mind.

  I doubted it had anything to do with the steam, but whatever the reason behind it, a hot bath always did wonders for me. My skin was all pruned up by the time I got out, but I felt a lot better.

  The paparazzi bombarding us like that out of nowhere had instantly overwhelmed me. I couldn’t even begin to imagine how Will dealt with living in the public eye like that. Seeing segments on TV about celebrities doing one mundane task or another or knowing that the tabloid photographers even watched them while they bought their vegetables was one thing. Being subjected to it firsthand was an entirely different animal.

  Even so, I shouldn’t have shut down on him like that. My flight or fight reflex simply hadn’t allowed for any fight. In this instance, it’d been all about flight for me.

  When I finally came out of the bathroom wrapped in a fluffy robe with a towel around my hair, he still wasn’t back from the bar. I smiled when I thought about going down there to join him. We could get a drink, I’d make a few jokes about how I’d clammed up, and hopefully, we could get back to having fun.

  The night was still young, after all. Especially for a city of this size. I wasn’t sure about going out again, but I’d flipped through the activities available in the hotel while I was bathing. They had a games room, an indoor pool, and a theater that showcased local comedians on Saturday nights. We wouldn’t even have to leave the premises to have a good time.

  Then there was also what we’d started back at that bar. Heat rushed to my cheeks when I remembered what it had felt like to be that close to him, his hands on my hips and his leg between mine.

  As I unzipped my overnight bag, the light caught on the ring on my finger. Seeing it there made me feel just plain giddy. I’d been taken aback at first, sure, and I knew it didn’t mean we were really getting married, but it still felt like it meant something.

  Even if it was nothing more than a gift, it really was beautiful, and more than that, it was from him. I’d always said I’d marry him with a plastic toy ring, and this wasn’t that. I still had the toy ring he’d given me as a promise ring when we were sixteen, and on occasion, I’d dust it off just to relive those memories.

  Whenever I looked at this one, I’d remember this weekend and all the times we’d spent together since his arrival back in Mackinac. I was trying really hard not to let it start meaning more than that, but I had a sneaky suspicion I was losing that battle.

  The weight of it was already becoming comfortable on my finger, and I was having a tough time remembering that it didn’t signify anything real. Sighing after I put on a clean dress, I braided my damp hair so that it hung over my shoulder, and picked up my purse.

  Here goes nothing.

  There were all these beautiful round pillars in the hotel lobby, and they extended into the bar area where I knew I would find Will. He could’ve gone to the restaurant on the roof as well, but I tried this bar first because that was where he said he’d be.

  I caught sight of him as I was rounding one of the pillars but drew up short when I saw he wasn’t alone. My heart flung itself with all its might against my ribs when I recognized the woman he was with.

  Angelina Cross.

  My breath got stuck in my lungs. She was even more beautiful in person. From the top of her sleek black hair all the way down to her sky-high, very expensive-looking shoes,
she was the picture of the kind of woman Will should be with.

  Gorgeous, put together, sophisticated. She was everything I wasn’t, and I was extremely aware of how insecure that made me feel as I watched them talk.

  I knew it was a private conversation and that I should just leave them to it, but it was like my feet had grown roots. They refused to move.

  Eavesdropping never does anyone any good. And yet, I found myself straining to overhear what they were saying.

  Soft jazz flowed from unseen speakers, but I’d gotten close enough that when I stopped breathing and really tried, I could hear them even over the incessant pounding of my heart.

  “I love you, William.” Angelina’s voice flowed like the smoothest, richest silk as she placed a dainty hand on his forearm. “I came all the way out here for you, didn’t I? I want you back, baby. We’re meant to be together.”

  Will’s chest rose on a deep breath, his eyes seemingly glued to the goddess in front of him. He was looking at her like he couldn’t believe she was standing right there, and I couldn’t blame him. I sure as fudge couldn’t believe she was.

  “What are you doing here?” he asked, but there was no cutting edge to his words. He sounded exactly like he looked—like he couldn’t believe she’d come all this way for him.

  “I saw you gallivanting with the blonde bimbo again and I knew it was time to intervene. I know what you said the other night, but seriously.” Wait, the other night? Blonde bimbo? “Who the hell is she to you?”

  “Anna was my high-school sweetheart,” he replied without saying anything about her calling me a bimbo. “Why? Are you jealous?”

  “Jealous?” Angelina scoffed. “Of that nobody? Please, William. Do you not know me at all?”

  His jaw clenched, but he didn’t respond. She rolled her eyes, leaning closer but not lowering her voice. “Why would I feel threatened by a girl like that when I look like this?”