How to Avoid a Billionaire

by Tressie Lockwood

  To her surprise, the guard remembered her. He offered to call Jodie, Ryder’s assistant to let her know she was on the way, but Melanie said it was a surprise. She couldn’t believe the phony smile and the airy tone she’d used. On the elevator, she gripped the package in shaking fingers. Each ding of the bell made her wince. Her stomach convulsed, and she shut her eyes.

  When the doors opened, she didn’t immediately move. A deep voice, so like Ryder’s, made her jump. “Coming out?”

  Her eyes snapped open, and she stared at him. He looked like Ryder, but wasn’t as sexy, and his hair didn’t shine like Ryder’s. In fact, nothing of this man came close to her former lover except his easy smile, the same oily smile that was her undoing.

  “Are you Christian?” she asked.

  He brightened. “Yes. How do you know me, beautiful lady? Wait, don’t tell me. You’re Melanie. I should have realized.” He reached for her hand before she could respond, and he drew her off the elevator while he held the door open. His gaze slid to her hair, and she reached up to try to tame it. Ryder had claimed to love the texture and the disorderly nature of her mane.

  Somehow she managed to chat with Christian as if nothing bothered her. He flirted and teased her, wholly insincere. She saw that now. Blood rushed through her ears, and butterflies held sway in her belly, making it tough to focus on Christian’s words, but she managed to glean that Ryder was out to lunch.

  Melanie held out the bag she’d packaged the necklace in. “Please give this to Ryder.”

  Christian seemed to get at last that something bothered her. “Do you want to wait for him?”

  “No, just give this to him. Thanks.” She jabbed the bag in his hand and turned to leave. A second elevator was just arriving, and she hurried onto it before Christian could say more. Back on the street, she started in the direction of her car and then stopped. Handing over the gift to his cousin didn’t give her satisfaction. She wanted to shout at Ryder, smack his face, and humiliate him in front of whatever client he was seeing.

  She marched down the street and soon came to the restaurant where Christian had said Ryder dined. After her eyes adjusted to the dimmer interior, she gazed around, leaning to see around patrons and restaurant staff.

  “May I help you find your party, ma’am?”

  She was about to answer the host when she spotted Ryder. All thought left her mind, every word she’d intended to say. He held the woman’s wrist and whispered something to her. Even as she bent her head forward, the curtain of silky chestnut hair covering part of her face, Melanie would have recognized Shana anywhere. Of course. That’s the type he’d said he liked at the beginning, didn’t he? The tall, long legged, model-thin type. She was the biggest bai chi of them all.

  Ryder decided to return to the office. He wanted to clear his schedule for the rest of the day. When he strode into his office a few minutes later, Christian followed him in. “Well, she’s as beautiful in person as you said. Those eyes are different on a black girl. I see why you’re hooked. Curvy.”

  Ryder spun around. “Melanie was here?”

  “Yeah. She gave me this.” Christian tossed him a bag. “She seemed a little upset. Did you leave her bed too soon, man?”

  Ryder opened the bag and peered inside. He recognized the jewelry box, and dread struck him hard in the chest.

  “Hey, Ryder, you okay? You look pale.”

  “Christian, get out.” His tone must have been dark enough for his cousin to get it the first time. The door clicked shut behind him. Ryder dialed Melanie, but she didn’t answer. When her voicemail came on, he spoke as calmly as his storming emotions allowed. “Melanie, there’s been a mistake. Call me.”

  He started to call Jodie but instead walked out to her office. She sat at her desk busily typing away. Since he normally called her to come to him, she seemed shocked to see him there. “Something up, Ryder?”

  “You got the necklace I asked for?”

  She nodded. “Of course. You pointed out the exact one, which isn’t like you. Normally, you leave it to me.”

  “That didn’t clue you in?” he growled.

  “Clue me…” The blood drained from her face. “This one was different.”

  She confirmed his suspicions, and he clenched his fists at his sides. He had intended to ask her to give him the necklace so he could take it to Melanie himself. Christian had interrupted. “Tell me what the note said.”

  “You don’t want to know.”

  “What did it say?” he ground out. She told him, and he swore. He left her office before he followed the impulse to fire her. This wasn’t Jodie’s fault, although he longed to punish her for the mistake. If Melanie felt the way he did, and he believed she did from the look in her eyes when he dropped her off at her place late Sunday night, then the note and the present had hurt her. He didn’t know how he would make it up to her if she deigned to forgive him, but he would do all in his power to get her to listen.

  He drove to her apartment and checked the parking lot for her car. Upon locating it, he jogged up to her door and rang the bell. When she didn’t answer, he pounded on the door and kept knocking until a neighbor opened his door. Ryder glared until the guy disappeared, and he turned back to hear Melanie undoing the locks. She peeked out, but he barged in and slammed the door behind him.

  “You have no right, Ryder!”

  “I have every right,” he shot back.

  She put her hands on her hips, and he noted the red, swollen eyes. His chest constricted, a feeling that didn’t happen often in his life. He hated the sensation, but he hated her hurting more.

  “You said what you had to in the note, so why do you think you have a right to barge in here?”

  “Because I love you.”

  She blinked at him. He didn’t try to drag her to him or kiss her. He let his words and his open expression tell her everything she needed to know. When she didn’t respond, he continued.

  “I made a huge mistake. I asked Jodie to buy the necklace for you. I intended for her to give it to me so I could put it on you myself. She assumed…”

  “This was no different than all the hundreds of other times you bought off a woman to get rid of her.”

  He frowned. “That’s an exaggeration.”

  “Yeah, right.” A tear rolled down her cheek, and it was if someone punched him in the gut. “You didn’t think enough of me to get the gift yourself. That’s how you operate.”

  “I promise never to do that again.”

  Her eyes widened. He stepped closer and raised his hands but dared not touch her. He didn’t want to force her to accept his apology.

  “I’m all those things you think of me and more. I’ve misused women, tossed them aside. I’ve manipulated circumstances for my own gain. I can’t pretend I’ll change overnight, but what I can say is if I want to give you a gift, it will be done at my own hands. I will write the note, and it will say how much I love you, Melanie Cai. Whatever makes you unhappy, I will work to improve. I don’t promise to be perfect, but I will strive to be close.”

  A chuckle burst from her, and she covered her mouth and swung away. He moved up behind her and grasped her upper arms. Longing overcame him as he leaned down and breathed in her familiar scent. He did love her. He’d figured it out on Sunday, and while he had screwed things up, he would not stop trying to make it right.

  “Angel,” he whispered. “Say you forgive me.”

  She sniffed. “I’m not sure if I believe you.”

  “I may have seduced a few women in my past, but I’ve never told any of them I love them.”

  She eyed him over her shoulder. “A few, huh?”

  He shrugged and then turned her to face him. “I’ve never told anyone I love them.”

  “Not even your dad?”

  “No.”

  “Then how do you know it’s love?”


  He thought about it. “Because I was miserable when you left on Sunday, aching to have you stay, but I was excited to know I would see you again. I can recognize a woman in love, and I dared to believe I saw it in your eyes. What I saw was what I felt—for you.”

  “Ryder.”

  He drew her closer and tangled his fingers in her hair. She wore no shoes, so the top of her head didn’t reach his chin. He leaned down and nuzzled his cheek in the soft cloud. “We can take it slow.”

  She pulled back. “Really?”

  “Yes. As long as it takes for you to be sure.”

  “You have a lot of making up to do.”

  “I know, and I will every day and every night.”

  She smiled with genuine happiness that threatened to break his heart. This love thing scared the hell out of him, but the alternative of not having her was unacceptable. He had a lot of learning to do, and he would make sure his sexy angel taught him well.

  Chapter Eight

  Melanie lay on a towel on her belly and yawned sleepily. The boat rocked gently, and the waves splashing against its side took away every care in the world. Nothing could be better.

  “Are you sleeping, angel?” a deep, rumbly voice asked. She could have creamed her panties listening to it. Hell, she’d done that plenty of times.

  He sat down beside her on the narrow, cushioned bench, and she did her best to scoot over and moaned. “You’re too big.”

  He leaned over her. “You didn’t say that last night.”

  She laughed. “Funny.”

  “Or this morning, or this afternoon.”

  “Okay, okay. I get your point. Somebody thinks very highly of himself.”

  He raised an eyebrow at her and reached for the back of her bikini, something she’d worn just for him. They were in semi-private being on his boat with no others nearby. At first she’d thought her curves too generous and her belly so far from flat, but Ryder had looked at her as if she were a holiday meal. Now she let him look all he wanted and even modeled for him.

  “Let me help you put sunblock on your back,” he offered. “I don’t want that beautiful skin to burn.”

  She smirked. “I already did it, sir. You just want to touch me.”

  “Is that so wrong?”

  “No.” She submitted to him as he squeezed a dollop of the cream into his hands and rubbed them together. Just as she expected, he moved nowhere near her back but started on her thighs and worked his way up between them. She bit her lip and smothered a moan when his fingers brushed her pussy. “Ryder.”

  “I was thinking,” he said, cutting off her protest. “Why don’t you move in with me?”

  She brushed his hands away and flipped over, sitting up. “I thought we were taking it slow.”

  “Tomorrow is our first anniversary, angel.” He touched her cheek. “That’s slow enough.”

  “Boy, when you’re ready, you don’t hold back.”

  “Do you doubt my love?”

  She lowered her gaze and drew her knees up to wrap her arms around them. Ryder had been devoted, seeing her as often as his schedule allowed. If she made even the smallest peep of dissatisfaction with something, he made it right. He didn’t spout love sonnets, but the man spelled out with his actions what he felt for her.

  “Ryder?”

  “Yes?”

  “Why haven’t you pushed for me to tell you I love you? Does it only matter how you feel about me?”

  “Is that what you think?”

  “I’m speculating.”

  He leaned in and paused an inch from her mouth. She closed the space and parted her lips. His tongue darted between them, and he kissed her to the point that her head spun. She brought hands up to his chest to push him back, and he allowed it.

  “When you look at me,” he whispered, “your eyes light up, your lips part, and sometimes if I’ve been away on business too long you tremble when I take you into my arms. If that’s not love, what is it?”

  She stared across the lake. A boat sped in their direction and would pass by within a few minutes, she judged. “That could be physical attraction.”

  “Is it?”

  “No.” She sighed and focused on him. “I’ve been afraid to say it because to me it means I’ve accepted everything about you and the relationship we have right now. When we’re alone together, it’s heaven. When we’re apart—hell. Then there’re the times when the cameras flash and the women try to entice you so they can become your next lover. I’m not jealous, per se. I know you’re into me. I can see that when you look at me, and it feels incredible. It’s just saying those words is a big deal, a really big deal.”

  He grasped her ankle and pulled until her leg straightened, and he ran a palm up her inner thigh and cupped her pussy. She moaned and leaned back on her elbow. When he nabbed the string at her hip and tugged, she bit her bottom lip. He grinned. “I’ll convince you it’s time.”

  She grasped at the string, but he’d already unraveled it, causing her bikini bottom to slide down, exposing the small patch of hair above her clit. “Ryder, someone will see. That boat…”

  “Is gone.” He untied the other string, and soon the bikini bottom lay on the flybridge floor. “I’m going to eat you until you can do nothing else but scream you love me for the world to hear.”

  She slid back along the bench. “That’s playing dirty.”

  He caught her ankle, and she made no move to pull out of his grasp. His biceps flexed, but it looked like he made no effort at all. “That’s the only way I play. You’ve figured that out by now.”

  Her heart stuttered in her chest. He was right. She’d learned the truth months ago about what he’d done with Antwon, sent him away just because he wanted her. By then it was too late. She already loved Ryder and wouldn’t consider leaving him, but she had given him a piece of her mind about manipulating the people in her life. She had demanded the truth about what had happened to Shana, and Ryder confirmed he had sent her away. He’d been reluctant to tell her why, but when she thought her friend abandoned her for no reason, he explained. She had cried while he held her.

  Ever since Shana left, Melanie had been getting the recognition she deserved at work, and had recently taken on the full-time role of designer. She loved it.

  Ryder pulled her from her thoughts when he stood and placed a knee between her legs. He gazed down at her heat with fire and lust in his eyes. “Now let’s see how many times I can make you come before you give in.”

  He bent down and ran his tongue along her moist slit. She squirmed, moaning. “Ryder, stop. Let’s go below at least.”

  “No, right here.”

  Somewhere not too far away a boat’s engine revved. Ryder locked onto her clit and he sucked hard. She keened, her hips coming up off her the cushions. Rather he dipped a finger between her wet folds and glided deep inside her. At the same time, he flicked her bud with the tip of his tongue.

  The other boat drew closer.

  Melanie knotted fingers in Ryder’s hair and tugged. He raised her closer to his hungry mouth, hands on her ass. From nowhere, a powerful orgasm bolted through her core. She shoved a fist to her mouth, but whined in pleasure anyway. Ryder backed off enough to blow on her clit. She wiggled because of the aftershocks, and when he judged the sensitivity ebbed enough, he attacked again, his cruel mouth taking her to higher heights than the last time.

  “Mmm, so much come, angel,” he murmured. “I’ll have to eat it all.”

  “Ryder!”

  He leaned his forearms on both her thighs, pinning her down. Melanie thrashed about, looking around. At least the bench back was high enough no one would see her naked snatch, but her thighs were visible and with Ryder dipping his head between them, everyone would know what he did. She’d never be able to show her face if any of his immediate neighbors happened by.

 
“Still nothing?” Ryder asked. He stuck two fingers in her pussy and worked them in and out. Then he coated his thumb with her juices and pressed it gently to her anus. She felt faint. Anal sex with Ryder took pleasure to another level. The initial discomfort had gone with his gentle loving, and he knew how much it got her off.

  “Don’t you dare,” she told him.

  He looked up at her. “Are you sure about that?”

  She opened her mouth to speak, but before words could fall from her lips, he plunged his thumb home. She cried out, her voice echoing across the water. Ryder worked all three digits in and out of her, and leaned in to suck her clit between his lips. Inside his mouth, he flicked his tongue over her bud at a rapid speed. She came harder than the first time and shouted his name. He kept up the onslaught through a third and fourth orgasm, not caring who came and went. At last he let her rest, and she panted, turning onto her side. He sat across from her in shorts, a tent at his crotch.

  She sat up and moved the couple of steps around the table and knelt in front of him. “I love you.”

  “I should have waited, but I needed to hear you say it.”

  Her heart stirred, and she bent to kiss his thigh, his skin warm from the sun and tanned the way she liked it. “Don’t take it back now. I have to repay you.”

  “Indeed? How will you do that?”

  She reached behind her, yanked the string on her bikini top, and let it fall. Ryder’s eyes locked on her breasts.

  She climbed onto his lap and held onto his shoulders. Ryder jerked his shorts low to unleash his hard cock. Melanie encircled the shaft with her hands and guided it as she sank down onto it. Ryder released a hiss between his teeth, and his fingers bit into her hips. She held onto him tight and began riding his dick as hard as she could.

  “If this is payback…” He grunted and lifted her up only to let her fall over and over on his cock. Their bodies slapped together as they pumped into each other. Ryder squeezed her ass cheeks and drove himself deep. She shut her eyes, whimpering his name and bounced. When a boat engine whirred close by, Melanie no longer cared. All she wanted was Ryder until she passed out, sore and satisfied.