“Yep,” she said, standing up and straightening her chair.
We walked out to the SUV, and the driver took our bags, placing them neatly in the back. He opened the back door for us, and I waited until Sara was comfortably in before climbing in behind her. She already had her appointment book out and was scanning through the numbers in her phone. As the driver pulled away, I glanced back at the driveway, seeing the remnants of where the elk had been the night before. I was just glad they came and got it already.
Sara spent most of the drive to the airport on her phone, calling clients and then giving Alison some details on the what to turn off in the clinic itself. I was amazed at her demeanor, and she was almost entrancing to watch. She was not only professional, but she was incredibly kind at the same time. Every person she called asked her if she was all right and wanted to know when she would be back. It was obvious her clients loved having her as their vet, and most of them, the ones without immediate need, opted to reschedule with her instead of taking their animal to another vet. Luckily, she didn’t have any house calls for the larger animals to go to.
As she talked to Alison, I turned my head and looked out the window, trying to give her as much privacy as I could. She sounded excited, but at the same time, she was a small-town girl going headfirst into one of the craziest cities in the world. A twinge of doubt began to flood me, and I questioned myself about what I was really doing bringing Sara to New York City with me. Of course, what I told her was true. I wanted to keep her safe. No. More than that, I needed to keep her safe. But beyond the safety and the scary stalker stuff was something else. There was definitely a lot more to my reasoning of pulling her all the way across the country with me. If I was going to make everything work, keep her safe, comfortable, and secure, I needed to at least be honest with myself.
The truth was, I liked Sara a lot, probably even more than I wanted to admit to myself. Deep down, I knew bringing her to New York could possibly lead to her wanting to stick around, wanting to be near me, wanting to have a life with me even if it wasn’t in Bonanza. They were extremely big thoughts that were probably more ridiculous than anything I had entertained before, but I couldn’t help myself. She was too special to me, too much a part of me at this point to give up. I had promised to be a gentleman and that was a promise I fully intended on keeping. I would not go out of my way to make her feel uncomfortable. All that would accomplish was her freezing up and blocking me out even further. I never promised not to try and win her back, though, which was a completely different tactic.
She was going to be on my turf this time, in a city she didn’t know, relying on me to show her around and help her relax. That was exactly what I was going to do, but when I did it, I was going to make sure she had the time of her life. There was no way I was going to fail at this. I had home field advantage, after all. I knew every good spot in the city, and I knew what to do to blow her mind.
When we got to the airport and pulled around to the gate to the hangar bay, she looked over at me slightly confused. The planes were taking off down the runway, but they weren’t commercial planes like I think she was expecting. I hadn’t even thought of telling her about my jet.
“Why are we at this airport?” she asked wide-eyed.
“I have my own jet.” I smiled as we pulled into the bay.
I got out and helped her down, leading her up the stairs and into the jet. She was completely blown away by the fact that it was like an apartment with wings. She walked around like she was seeing the world through completely different eyes. That was when it hit me that Sara was about to be taken deep into a world she had never experienced before, a world where everyone waited on you, you were surrounded by comfort at all times, and money was no object. It made me think back to when I was the same way, right after I had sold my algorithm and had virtually become a billionaire overnight. I showed her to our seat where we would be during takeoff and landing.
“Would you like some champagne and chocolate?” I asked. “The flight’s pretty long back to New York. The chocolates were imported from Sweden, so they’re kind of my guilty pleasure.”
She just blinked at me, and I laughed, pouring her a glass and powering up the huge flat-screen TV. I handed her the remote to let her select the in-flight movie. As we took off, she just sat back, completely taken back by what she was experiencing. By the time we were at cruising altitude, though, she had relaxed a bit. Every mile that passed, I couldn’t help but feel more and more elated. This woman who had taken over my mind was finally on her way back to my hometown, and I was determined to make it work.
Chapter 31
Sara
Okay. I wasn’t completely naïve about the world around me, but what Ryan was showing me was un-freaking-believable. I was totally freaking, not believing what was going on around me. If it wasn’t enough that we had flown to New York in a luxury personal jet, when we arrived, they pulled Ryan’s Mercedes around to meet us. He helped me into the car, and I sat in awe as he raced toward the city. We were driving through Manhattan in a Mercedes Benz that probably cost more than my house when I bought it. And Ryan, he looked so different in that environment like he was a completely different man but in a good way.
Awestruck, I watched the city pass by me as we drove through. It was so much different than anything I had ever experienced before. The buildings were tall, reaching higher than I could see out of the window. The sidewalks were packed with people, some looking like they had to get somewhere fast, some tourists, and some just enjoying a stroll through the city. There were more people on one city block than I had ever seen out and about in Bonanza. I looked forward as the car began to slow, and Ryan took a right-hand turn into a parking garage beneath one of those tall, shiny buildings. As we went lower into the space, I blinked, trying to adjust to the darkening of the lights. We pulled up at a gate, and Ryan grabbed the key from his visor, waving it over the stand outside. The gate slowly slid open, and we drove forward into his private parking garage.
“Is this just yours?” I asked.
“Yep,” he said. “It’s my building, too, so I snagged a private parking area.”
“Oh,” I said with a chuckle.
We slowly crept down through the garage passing row after row of expensive cars. I wanted to ask him if they were his, but I had a really good feeling I knew the answer to that already. Finally, we reached the end, and he pulled quickly into the space. He closed the moonroof and hopped out of the car, coming around and opening my door. I reached up and took his hand standing up and stretching my arms over my head. I turned to grab the luggage, but he had already shut the door.
“Don’t worry about that. Someone will be bringing it up,” he said. “There’s a service elevator.”
He nodded to the side as two people smiled and walked toward the car. He tossed the keys to one of them and put out his arm for me to take. I shook my head and walked with him to a private elevator with large golden doors. We got inside, and I looked around feeling like it was nicer than my own bedroom. There was a bench that stretched around the entire thing, plush carpet on the floor, and everything was absolutely spotless. I held my hands in front of me and watched as he put a key in, and we started going up all the way to the top floor.
When we got out, there was someone waiting, holding the front door opened. Ryan thanked them and walked me inside, shutting the door behind us. The place was absolutely stunning, and I had a hard time not letting my jaw drop to the floor.
“Come on,” he said. “I’ll give you the tour.”
We walked from the front area through a doorway into a large open space. The living room was sunken in, and the entire front of his penthouse was floor-to-ceiling windows looking out over Central Park. My eyes grew big as he walked me through, showing me the huge kitchen where everything was marble, the private dining room through a separate doorway, and the guest bathroom that looked like a giant bathhouse with a square tub resembling a small pool. I followed him down the hallway an
d stopped in front of two large double doors.
“And this is your suite.” He smiled, opening both of the doors and walking in.
I gasped. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. I felt like a princess in a castle. There was an attached bath with the same large tub, a sitting room, and a bedroom with a bed so big, I was pretty sure I could sleep with four other people and still have room for a couple of cats and dogs. It was so overwhelming, and I couldn’t believe this was where I would be staying. I was so distracted, I nearly fell right over my luggage, which had already been delivered to my room.
“Make yourself at home here,” he said. “Anything you want is yours. I’m going to leave you to get comfortable and go unpack my suitcases.”
“Okay,” I said, staring at the huge painting hanging above the bed.
He chuckled and walked out, closing the doors behind him. I tiptoed around the room looking at all of the little trinkets and lavish furniture strategically placed throughout. I oohed and aahed at everything like I was in a museum. When I felt I had a good handle on everything in the room, I pulled up my suitcases and started unpacking. My small-town wardrobe looked out of place in that lavish room, but it was what I had to work with. When I finished putting everything away, I slid the suitcase into the giant walk-in closet and quietly opened my doors, going to find out where Ryan had run off.
I walked past each room and peeked inside, shaking my head at the décor. I didn’t know if he had the place decorated or if he had done it himself, but it was breathtaking. Finally, I found Ryan in his personal office on the phone. He smiled and nodded at me, sitting behind a big mahogany desk, tapping his fingers on the wood. I had to admit, sitting there like that, he looked both commanding and downright sexy. There was no use in denying it, especially to myself, but I kind of hoped he wouldn’t be entirely a gentleman while I was there. I had already had that thought before we even got on his plane. No matter what my feelings were about him on a romantic level of trust, I still thought he had a rocking body, and my attraction to him wasn’t slowing down in the least.
When we were still on the plane, I had snuck several glances at him, and I had to admit, it made the heat rise in my chest. He was so sexy, so handsome, especially looking extremely important surrounded by his luxurious lifestyle. I was starting to warm to the idea of a fling with him while I was in New York. I was definitely not looking for any other prospects, and my desire for him had not gone away. I didn’t know how long I would actually be in the city, but I knew it would only be for so long. Still, while I was there, being right down the hall from him, watching him walk around the house, I was definitely going to lose my resolve, and I wasn’t sure that was an entirely bad thing. Would it be so wrong to have a short-term relationship with a hot billionaire before going back home and living off memories for the rest of my life? I sure didn’t think it sounded like a bad idea, nor did I really feel bad at the thought of walking into it knowing it was only temporary. Hell, he had done it, and I had done it in the beginning when I first met him, so why would it be any different there?
I stood there in the doorway, leaning against the frame, watching him talk. He finished his conversation and hung up the phone, looking at me with those seductive blue eyes. He smiled charmingly and looked me up and down, bringing a flash of heat to my face. Maybe I wasn’t as brave as I thought I was.
“Are you hungry?”
“I’m starving.” I smiled.
“Good,” he said, standing up. “Come on. There’s an excellent little Italian bistro down the street. I’ve missed their food.”
I nodded and followed him out of the apartment, hoping what I was wearing would be okay. We rode the elevator down to the lobby and made our way two blocks down to the restaurant. The hostess held the door for us and smiled as we entered. Suddenly, I felt completely out of place, noticing that it was a bit fancier than I’d thought. However, before I could say a word, we were immediately shown to a table in a private dining room off to the side.
“Do you mind if I order for us both?” he asked. “The food here is absolutely to die for.”
“Not at all,” I said, staring down at a menu written in Italian.
The waitress came into the room and filled our water goblets before turning and telling us the specials. I felt like I was in a foreign country, not used to Italian food like that. He ordered for both of us, and when the food arrived, my taste buds danced. I had never had something so decadent in my life, and I was pretty sure I could eat there every day for the rest of my life and never get tired of it. Ryan just sat across the table from me smiling and chuckling at my responses and eye rolls to the food. He had ordered several bottles of wine to go with the dinner and every time I turned around, my glass was full. It was really good wine, nothing like what Alison and I drank from the General Store back home. In fact, as I sat there in the chair, watching the waitress clear the table, I started to think the wine had been a little too good. I could feel myself loosening up, and I realized I was definitely buzzed.
When we stood up to leave, I wobbled back and forth, grabbing the chair for support. Okay, maybe I was wrong, maybe buzzed was a bit of an understatement. More like more than a little drunk with the floor looking slightly slanted in front of me. I had not expected to drink that much, but I had completely let down my guard and threw caution to the wind.
“Well there.” Ryan laughed, coming around to help me. “Someone let the wine go straight to her head.”
“Shhh,” I said. “Don’t tell anyone.”
“Your secret is safe with me,” he whispered.
He put his arm around my waist and led me back out to the street where the warm spring air felt good on my skin. I was really glad I only had to walk a couple of blocks. Otherwise, Ryan might have had to carry me. Still, I couldn’t deny it felt really good to have him touching me again. As we started to walk away from the restaurant, someone shouted out Ryan’s name. I looked up to where the voice was coming from and saw a man rapidly approaching, a phone in his hand.
“Ryan,” the man said. “Does Natasha know about your new girlfriend yet.”
“Bugger off,” Ryan said, shooting him a dirty look.
He took my hand and pulled me rapidly up the street muttering under his breath about the damn paparazzi. I had completely forgotten about the media and how intrusive they were in Ryan’s life. Just hearing the name Natasha brought me right back to my senses and put a serious damper on my mood. When we got home, I felt this overwhelming crushing sadness, something I had forced myself to ignore when I’d broken things off with him. I thanked him for dinner and closed myself in my room, wanting nothing more than sleep.
Chapter 32
Ryan
I woke up early the next morning, grabbing a cup of coffee and heading to my office. I had a ton of work to get done, but my mind was only halfway focused on what I was doing. I made some phone calls, keeping my door wide open and one eye constantly on the hall. I was waiting impatiently for any sign of Sara. I had really thought we were going to have an amazing time out together and was excited she even agreed to go to dinner with me. Then, the damn paparazzi had to go and ruin the mood. I was so interested in our conversation and her adorable intoxication that I had completely forgotten to think about the fact that the press was constantly lurking around every corner and that I wasn’t in Bonanza anymore. My night had been cut short, and I didn’t like that.
I had to say dinner had gone perfectly, with wine, conversation, laughter, and most everything that we used to do when we were actually together. She had been super impressed by the restaurant and that we had our own private dining room. Even the food seemed to impress the hell out of her, which was cute to watch. She was so tiny, but man, she could put away some food, and I loved to see it. I wanted her to enjoy her first meal out in New York.
Sure, Sara had been a little buzzed, maybe even a little drunk, but we had been on our way to an even better evening than we were already having. We could have gone on
a night stroll through the city, looking at the lights, or maybe come back and watched a movie together, cuddled up on the couch. The sky was the limit at that point, but I knew I wasn’t ready to call it a night. But no, that damn journalist had to come out of nowhere and bring up Natasha right in front of Sara. Why they couldn’t let her go, I still didn’t understand. They acted like I was the most important person in the world and my love life was of national interest. I hadn’t even seen anything about the normal hot-headed celebrities, just me and this damn Russian scandal. I was really tired of hearing the name Natasha from anyone. It was screwing up everything in my life, and I really had thought when I went to Bonanza, it would begin to simmer down a bit. I had put my love life completely on hold after Natasha, not even going out to the bars for a random hook-up.
Part of that was intentional, though. My PR rep had called me to her office immediately after the story broke and laid it out for me, letting me know that finding another girl needed to wait. She knew my taste in women wasn’t the best and bringing another scorching romantic affair into the media’s eyes would only fan the flames to what happened. I needed positive press, not more negative, and I needed to show the public I was responsible, business-minded, and most importantly, trustworthy. No one would do business with an untrustworthy company, and that could be a killer to my plans before I even started.
I needed to let the whole Natasha debacle blow over until no one even thought about it anymore. In the meantime, I didn’t need any extra negative attention, and she knew I was like a magnet for negative attention, especially when it came to women. Personally, I had no problem following that advice, considering I’d had enough of relationships after that time with Natasha. I needed to get my head back on track and get back to being the man motivated to change the world with my ideas. When I had met Sara, though, I’d changed my mind about the relationship thing, and on the plus side, she pushed me to be a better man all around. My PR rep loved it and had given me her blessing when it concerned Sara. She even went as far as to answer questions to the press and actively promote the idea of the two of us. She hadn’t asked before she did it, which upset me a little, but at the same time, I couldn’t deny it was definitely doing something fantastic for my reputation. My PR’s involvement was probably the reason the paparazzi was still hunting me down.
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