This is Love (High Stakes Billionaires)

by C. J. Thomas

  Things between us were moving at the speed of light. Even with my clingy heart pounding hard inside my chest, reminding me there were only a few hours left before I had to go home, I didn’t want to fuck it up. I had to be careful. If I wasn’t, I would surely get burned up and spit out into a million different pieces before I even knew what had happened to me.

  Standing on wobbly legs, I dug my fingertips deeper into my scalp.

  I didn’t expect Nolan to return the favor of washing my body when I decided to soap his. I didn’t plan on doing it. It just happened without thought. And I still couldn’t believe what I had done. I had never done anything like that before. I didn’t know what possessed me to make that bold move. Perhaps as a way to say thank you for making each encounter more about me than about him. Maybe I did it because he gave more than I could ever possibly give back. Or maybe I did it because I would find any excuse to get my stomach to flutter and my heart to race as my hands moved over his solid muscled body.

  I spun around and tipped my chin back, washing the soap out of my hair.

  When I was finished, I unknowingly took my breasts inside my hands, pretending they were Nolan’s on me. My eyes closed and I positioned myself deeper beneath the steady stream of cool water pouring over my shoulders. Each little touch set me off. I was addicted to the passion Nolan sucked out of me. And as the ache between my legs grew more tempting by the minute, I couldn’t hold back any longer.

  My lips rounded upon first contact.

  I circled my tender ball of nerves as my stomach clenched.

  Nolan did things to me that no man had been able to achieve before.

  I pushed a finger inside me. Clamping down on my hand, I whimpered.

  But before I allowed myself to get too far, I pulled my hand free determined to keep my building anticipation focused on tonight. He hadn’t been gone for more than five minutes, but I couldn’t wait to see him again.

  Turning off the shower, I had high hopes that maybe he was still here.

  It was foolish to think, and even stupider to chase him, but that was the kind of draw the man had on me. Grabbing a fresh towel off the rack, I quickly wrapped it around me as I ran out to the front, only to find that he had already left.

  It was better that way.

  He needed to go, as I needed the time alone to process the last 24 hours.

  Because if he could have me wrapped around his finger so easily, then I could only assume that I wasn’t the only one to have fallen for his charm.

  I moved to the kitchen and slammed down a cup of water before picking up my phone and calling Sienna. She needed to hear what had happened, had to screw my head back on straight.

  Combing my fingers through my wet hair, I leaned against the counter and started laughing when my gaze landed on the dishwasher. If it wasn’t for that machine breaking, I might not have ever had the chance to meet the man I couldn’t stop fantasizing about.

  After the third ring, Sienna finally answered. “So how was your date?”

  “It wasn’t a date.” My lips pinched, stifling the burst of laughter I felt boiling deep in my gut.

  “Uh-huh.”

  I bit my lip as I smiled. “Okay, maybe it was.”

  She snickered. “You know it’s okay to admit these kinds of things.”

  “Maybe I didn’t want to jinx myself.”

  “Did he kiss you?”

  I pushed off the counter and exited the kitchen. Moving back into the bedroom, I began picking out the clothes I was going to wear on the hike I planned on taking. The bed was a complete mess and it looked like a bomb had exploded in the room. Reminders of Nolan were everywhere, including his scent that made its way into everything I owned. “I had him in my bed last night.”

  “Yes!” I imagined Sienna throwing a fist in the air to celebrate. “You’re a naughty girl, Sophia.”

  I plopped my big bottom on the bed and rolled my eyes.

  “So how did you do it?” Her voice begged for details.

  “I didn’t have to do anything.”

  “C’mon. Dets, girl. I want to know the dirty dets.”

  I laughed. “Nolan made every move, I just followed along.”

  “Give it to me dirty,” she cried.

  Over the next several minutes I told her about the party, starting with the gown. She wondered if it came with sexy lingerie, too, and we discussed how it should have. But then I also told her about how awkward it was mingling with the upper crust and how uncomfortable I felt at times.

  “Now you know how I feel,” Sienna said.

  “I feel sorry for you,” I retorted, always knowing that Sienna came from a high-status family who demanded her life. But I had never thought much about it until now because when we were together, we were just women in our early twenties who were beginning our careers. But now I knew how stuffy it could be and the reason why she lived her life so spontaneously.

  Then I told her how Nolan had to settle a family emergency and how I was harassed the moment he was gone.

  “Holy shit,” she said.

  “I know, right? Hands all over me with everyone around. The dude was a creep.”

  “Did you tell Nolan?”

  “Didn’t have to. He saw everything.”

  “What did he do?”

  “What do you think? He saved his princess from the evil villain.”

  I could hear Sienna’s fingers tapping away on her keyboard through the phone. “Okay don’t be mad, but I just did a quick internet search on Nolan Foster.”

  I sat forward. “And?”

  “And I can’t believe that I haven’t met him.”

  I shook my head. “What are you saying?”

  “What I’m saying is he’s a Foster. One of the Fosters.”

  Everything froze and I swore I stopped breathing. Sienna was talking like I should have known who he was. And I was afraid to learn more about Nolan, scared that Sienna might reveal something about him that I didn’t want to know.

  “I can’t believe you’re actually looking him up,” I sighed.

  “I’m doing you a favor and now that you’re fucking him, wouldn’t you like to know if he has a criminal history?”

  “You don’t need to worry.”

  “Because you asked him?”

  “Because I know he doesn’t.” I stood and dragged my feet over to the window with a knotted belly.

  Though I couldn’t tell Sienna the exact details of what the woman last night said to me, I couldn’t stop my mind from going there, either. Maybe I was just an easy conquest for the mountain men deprived of women. Maybe Nolan had made a bet with his brother, Travis, to see who could sleep with me first. Because anybody who had any kind of presence on the internet had to be larger than life, and, with it, a history that wasn’t going to be conducive to dating.

  When Sienna was silent, I knew that she was busy reading up on whatever she’d found on Nolan. “Where is Gary? Shouldn’t he be making you breakfast in bed or something?”

  “OMG.” She gasped. “His brother is Cooper Foster.”

  “Yeah, so?” I said in a sharp tone, completely annoyed she had ignored my question.

  “He mentioned Cooper to you?”

  “No,” I deadpanned. But I knew why Sienna thought maybe he had. I had said it like Cooper was as familiar to me as Nolan’s. But, really, all I could think was, Jesus, how many of them are there?

  “Well, his name should be familiar to you.”

  “And why is that?” I arched a brow.

  “Because he’s expected to be Colorado’s next governor.”

  My palm hit my forehead. Shit. “Forgive me if I don’t follow politics.”

  “No doubt my father knows the Fosters, but I wonder if he has met Nolan.” Sienna was mostly talking to herself, but I knew we were both thinking how the web of connections between her family and Nolan’s most likely overlapped.

  “Just stop,” I mumbled with closed eyes.

  “Woman, you hit pay dirt.”
>
  Falling back onto the bed, I stared up into the ceiling and said, “I didn’t ask for any of this.”

  “But you deserve it.”

  I blinked, wondering if I did deserve any of this. Nolan was great. Brilliant. Sexy. And amazing when it was just the two of us. But I didn’t belong in his world. I liked simple, and last night was anything but simple. And now that Sienna had opened up the bottle of information on who exactly Nolan was, and what family he came from, I was left with more questions than answers.

  “It doesn’t matter. Once I leave here, he will be quickly forgotten.”

  “When are you coming back?”

  “Tomorrow.”

  “Please tell me you’re going to see him again.”

  My lips pressed together in a slight grimace. “I’m supposed to see him again, tonight.”

  “At least pretend to sound excited.”

  But how could I be when I was afraid that I might be getting myself into something much bigger than I’d originally thought? Something that I might not be able to step away from as easily as I hoped.

  “You still have your computer open?”

  “Yeah. Why?”

  “Look up Audrey Rothschild.” I paused to let her write the name down. “And get back to me on what you discover before tonight. I want to know if I’m being played or not.”

  20

  Nolan

  “She’s in there, isn’t she?” Audrey crossed her arms and cocked her hip out.

  I shut the door as quietly as I could before blocking Audrey with my large frame.

  Her eyes narrowed as her lips pursed.

  She could insult me. Spread lies about me. Tell the world I was something I knew I wasn’t. But I would never allow her to take her anger out on the innocent person tucked away safely inside my family’s condo. Sophia was completely oblivious to the ticking timebomb that had made its way over here this morning, and I planned to keep it that way.

  “I want to see her.” Audrey’s lips pinched.

  “You don’t even know who you’re talking about,” I said as I put my hands on her shoulders in an effort to guide her away from the condo.

  “Oh, yes I do.” She dug her heels in, trying to stop my advance. “Travis told me everything.”

  “Travis is an idiot,” I said with one hand on her arm, the other pressing between her shoulder blades. Guiding her to the stairs, the last thing I needed was for Sophia to see me with the woman everyone was expecting me to date.

  “Nolan, I heard what happened last night.” Audrey put up less resistance as we headed down the stairs.

  Keeping my attention on the parking lot below, I chose to ignore most of what she was saying. It didn’t take me long to spot Audrey’s Range Rover—the one her father had purchased for her for graduating university—parked in the spot reserved for our condo, and I knew that I had to get her behind the wheel and driving away before Sophia peeked through the front curtains.

  “Everyone was talking about me,” she cried.

  “No one was talking about you.” A dull headache put pressure between my eyes.

  Audrey stopped and snapped her elbow hard enough to loosen my grip. Turning to face me, humiliation was written in the lines crossing her face. “You know that’s not true. I heard from multiple sources and none of what was being said made me look good.”

  Before I realized I was even doing it, I felt myself cringing away from her repulsive behavior. It was always about her. What people said, what they thought. I couldn’t believe I’d ever found her attractive. Each over-exaggerated facial tick, each whiny word that passed over her lips, even how she was over-dressed for just going through town made me understand everything that made Sophia so refreshing. When compared with Audrey, Sophia was pure sunshine.

  “You know this is your fault.” Her painted lips pinched.

  “C’mon.” I took a step forward, nudging her closer to her vehicle. “You have to go.”

  She stomped and pouted. “I should have been with you last night, and you know it.”

  “I never promised you anything.”

  Audrey flung her hair over her shoulder and turned around to face me. “You know what’s funny? After realizing you weren’t coming, I decided to attend alone. And guess what? You weren’t there.”

  I lowered my chin and stepped closer. Feeling her personal space disappear, she backpedaled and let her shoulders hit her car door. “You went to the fundraiser last night?”

  Pushing out her chest, acting like she was proud of the fact that she had the courage to attend without me, she said, “Like I would allow you to stomp on my reputation like that.”

  My eyes narrowed. “I don’t know what you heard, but I only speak highly of you.”

  She barked out a disbelieving laugh. “Where were you? Because I looked everywhere for you, and I couldn’t find you anywhere.”

  With my head rising, I murmured, “Something came up. I had to leave early.”

  She closed the narrow gap between us and raised her brows. “She must be pretty.”

  “It’s time for you to leave.”

  She arched a sharp brow. “Not until you tell me who she is.”

  With one hand on my hip, I stared into her shameless eyes, again wondering how I’d ever found her attractive. She didn’t deserve to know the details of who I was dating, who I was sleeping with. These were my decisions, my choices to make. It was time for her to realize that we were never going to be the prince and princess that everyone so desperately wanted us to be.

  “Fine.” She dug in her handbag, pulling out her car keys. “Travis will give me her information.”

  Glancing back toward the condo, her threat was expected. Though I was willing to bet that nothing would come of it. Travis was known to make bad decisions, but he was smart enough to know when to hold back.

  Toying with my shirt, I turned back to face Audrey who had adopted sad puppy dog eyes. “Nolan, baby. What happened to us?” She pressed her chest against my abdomen as she reached for my face. “I thought we had something special.” Her gaze fell to my lips and I knew that she wanted me to kiss her.

  And that was the problem. Audrey’s personality could flip faster than pancakes and go from being angry to trying to seduce me in the same breath. It was draining to be around—and she was exhausting. And I wanted none of it.

  My cell phone started ringing just as I was peeling her hand off my face. Turning her around, I opened her car door and said, “You have to go.”

  “Nolan—” she protested.

  Glancing at the display screen, I knew that I couldn’t let this call go to voicemail. “It’s work. I have to go.”

  “Nolan, this isn’t over. We have to talk about what’s going on with us.”

  “Later. Right now, I’m busy.” I pointed to my cell phone.

  Once Audrey climbed into the driver seat, I shut the door and answered the incoming call. “Noah, what’s up?”

  “Wasn’t convinced you were going to answer.”

  “Kind of in the middle of something,” I said, stepping back so Audrey wouldn’t run over my toes as she backed out of the parking space.

  “Then I won’t waste your time.” My brother’s tone grew more serious. “How quickly can you get to the office?”

  My brow pinched. “I’m still in Vail. I had the fundraiser last night.”

  “Ah, right.” He sighed.

  “Trevor’s in the city. Did you call him?”

  “Trevor isn’t a good fit for this. You know how quiet he is. I need somebody who can talk freely about the prospective fields in Wyoming.”

  “He’s perfectly capable and comes out of his shell when needed.”

  “I need you.”

  “Then you’ll have to wait.”

  “How long?”

  “At least until tomorrow.”

  “Shit,” Noah cursed. “Anyway, how did it go last night? Sorry I couldn’t be there.”

  “Good. I’m about to tally up the final num
bers.”

  “Hey, I heard about you not taking Audrey.”

  My eyes closed as I let my head fall into my hand. Pinching the bridge of my nose, I couldn’t believe how this decision to not take Audrey kept snowballing into something bigger than it actually was.

  “That’s cold, brother. Even from you.” He laughed.

  “It’s complicated.”

  “Dad called and mentioned it, so—”

  “Jesus.” I rubbed my hand over my face. “Dad needs to focus on Mom. For Christ’s sake, they’re on vacation.”

  “And don’t tell him I told you, but he’s doubting your ability to run the company.”

  I lifted my head and looked around the parking lot with a furrowed brow. “Everything is going to be fine. I’ve got this.”

  “I know you do.”

  I could hear hesitation in his voice. “But?”

  “I’m worried how this will effect Cooper.” He sighed. “I mean, if you can’t make things right with Audrey, you know she’ll convince her father to pull his support from Coop’s campaign.”

  My abs clenched, knowing better than anybody the dangers that Audrey presented.

  “All I’m saying, Nolan, is for you to fix this before it explodes.”

  21

  Sophia

  With my backpack slung over my shoulders, I hiked up the steep hill, thinking about Nolan.

  After hearing the surprise in Sienna’s voice when she learned Nolan was part of the Foster family, a family I frankly didn’t know anything about, I couldn’t stop the doubt I felt from seeping into my thoughts.

  Sure, Nolan was amazing and treated me like a princess, but we came from two very different worlds. Worlds I was convinced wouldn’t mesh. I knew how hard I’d had to work to get to where I was, and I questioned whether he could say the same.

  Sucking back a deep breath, I struggled against the lack of oxygen at this higher elevation.

  If it wasn’t for his incredible knack to bring me to orgasm time and again, I might not be having such a difficult time deciding if I wanted to see him again tonight or leave us at a one-night fling that would be hard to forget.