Gabe
Page 20
Unconsciously she’s mirroring everything we did that night.
"I'm so sorry. So sorry, beautiful girl."
Her nose crinkles in surprise. “What do you mean? Sorry for what?”
I lift her hand to my lips and kiss the tips of her fingers. "I know you don't like the idea of just living together. You're a good girl."
She stares at me, perplexed. I can see the moment that she figures out what’s going on. Her eyes drop to my other hand, clenched into a fist resting at my side. She gasps and her eyes dart back to mine, searching.
I squeeze her fingers, looking deep into her eyes. "And I love that about you. So let's get married."
“Oh my god. I didn’t think you remembered.” She pulls me in for a soft, lingering kiss. Then just like last time, she plants a little kiss on the tip of my nose. “Yes. I still think you’re loopy.”
“No, I’m just in love.” Then I proceed to show her just how much I love her. I can’t put my usual moves on her considering how stiff I still am but I’m more than willing to let her be the strong, in charge woman I know she is. A while later, she collapses next to me, panting almost as hard as I am.
She lets out a little sigh. “Oh Gabe. I guess charming isn’t so bad sometimes.”
“Sasha? I want to tell you something."
After she’s caught her breath, I turn my head until my lips brush her forehead.
"I made a promise to Zack not to be a criminal. But you are the one who makes me want to be a good person. I'm not worthy of you but I'm going to spend every day trying to be the kind of guy you deserve. A good guy."
"Not too good I hope. You know I like bad boys,” she teases.
“For you, I'll always be as bad as you want me to be."
THE END
You just finished reading the third book in the Blue-Collar Billionaires series. Stay tuned for a special excerpt of the previous book in the series, FINN.
Author’s Note
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~ FINN (Blue-Collar Billionaires #2) ~
is available now!
Finn Marshall survived several tours in Afghanistan before the billionaire father he barely remembers changed everything. Now he has it all: money, cars and most importantly, power. Power to track down the woman who left him for a richer man.
Marissa dragged herself out of poverty one client at a time, so she's thrilled when her company, Maid-4-U, gets a huge contract for a luxury penthouse. Until she sees who owns it.
Now to save her struggling business, Finn demands everything she once promised him. Money can't buy him happiness but it can buy him one thing:
REVENGE
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EXCERPT of FINN (Blue-Collar Billionaires #2)
© August 2014 M. Malone
RISSA
My fingers curl around the tight band of my pencil skirt. Usually I'm wearing the same basic uniform as the rest of the maids, casual clothing covered by a green and yellow Maid-4-U apron that Daphne designed for us last year. But today, I'm here to bring the signed contract to the client and see the area we'll be working in. I have to look professional. Put together.
I swallow against a wave of nerves and run my hands over my hair again. The unruly red curls tend to have a mind of their own so I’ve pulled them back into a low bun. I can’t screw up this job. This could be the start of a whole new wave of luck for our business. Daphne is the optimist, but secretly I’m starting to agree with her that this new deal is a sign.
Our luck is finally changing.
After my moment of self-reflection, I walk into the lobby. It’s not as impressive as I imagined it would be. Considering the amount of money we’ve been offered to clean this place, I was expecting solid gold floors and diamond encrusted door handles. But it’s just a plain entryway painted builder white.
There’s a man behind the counter. I nod at him and then take a seat on one of the couches in the waiting area. Mr. Stevens is supposed to meet me here and take me up so I can see the property and meet the owner. After about ten minutes, I pull out my cell phone. Where is he?
What is it with rich people? They always think everyone else should be on their timetable. It makes me think about Andrew. He’d done this type of thing often. He would rush me along but consistently show up late or not at all when I needed him. The only time he’d really shown emotion was anytime someone mentioned my relationship with Finn.
I close my eyes.
Even now years later just the thought of him is enough to bring tears to my eyes. My sweet, Finn. His family lived in the same trailer park and we’d shared the experience of being the trash from the wrong side of the tracks at our school. He’d been my first kiss, my first love. My first everything. Then after school he’d gone off to the army and things had never been the same.
I’m suddenly pulled from my thoughts by the sound of my name. The man behind the front desk is standing now, peering at me with interest. “Miss Blake?”
“Yes, that’s me.”
“Mr. Stevens just called. He told me to let you up immediately.” He stands and walks to the elevator. I follow him on and then watch as he inserts a key from the massive ring in his hand. He twists it and then punches the button for the twelfth floor. I watch in surprise as he steps back out. The doors close behind me and the elevator hurtles upward.
The nerves I felt downstairs come back full force when the doors open with a ding. I step out of the elevator and into a hallway. There are doors at the end of the hallway in both directions. I let out a little sigh. It all seems a little rude, to summon me up here but not have anyone waiting to show me where to go.
I look down the hallway to my left. The door to 15B is partially open. That must be it, then. I walk down the hall, my feet sinking into the deep luxurious carpet. When I push open the door, it doesn’t make a sound.
“Hello?”
I walk inside and then stop in awe. It’s so beautiful. I never even knew that apartments like this existed in Norfolk. The ceilings are much higher than normal. I estimate that they must be at least fifteen feet high. The room I’m standing in has two large, deeply stuffed couches angled to face the windows. To my left is a beautiful gourmet kitchen with tall, cherry cabinets and gleaming stainless steel appliances. There’s a hallway to the side that must lead to the bedrooms.
I’m going to be working here? As I look around in wonder, I have to ask why the owner even hired me. The place looks pristine already.
There must be some mistake. Maybe the owner just wanted to meet here so we could talk about the contract before he shows me the apartments in the building that actually need cleaning. But even still, I’m sure the other apartments in the building must be lovely, too.
“Hello? Sir?”
It hits me then that I don’t even know the owner’s name. Mr. Stevens has been my contact throughout this entire process and although there was a company name on the contract, I didn’t even think to ask the name of the representative the company would be sending over.
“Do you like the view?”
The deep voice comes from the shadows of the hallway. Even though I just called out for someone, it startles me. And all at once, it reminds me that there’s no one else here. When I agreed to this meeting, it was under the assumption that Mr. Stevens would be present as well. But now I’m alone with some man that I’ve never met.
A man with a voice that’s both haunting and terrifying.
“I do. This is a beautiful place,” I answer, hoping that he’ll come out from the hallway so I can see what he looks like.
I really hope he’s not creepy or some kind of jerk, the way Tara thought. But even if he is, I’ll have to deal with it because we can’t afford to lose this contract.
“I bought it just this year. I enjoy surrounding myself with
beautiful things.”
His words are strangely inappropriate yet I’m enthralled. I should be angling closer to the door so I can get the hell out of here if he does anything weird. But I can’t move. There’s something about his voice. The way he speaks. It’s familiar and heartbreaking all at once.
“You pulled your hair back. Hair like yours should never be restrained.”
Even before he steps forward, my traitorous heart skips a beat. How could I ever forget that voice, the voice that promised me that I’d never be alone, that he’d always be there? That we’d be a team. The voice that told me I was everything before I was foolish enough to throw it all away.
“Finn?”
** Download FINN (Blue-Collar Billionaires #2) now!
BLUE-COLLAR BILLIONAIRES
(- an Alexanders Spin-off Series -)
Book 1 - TANK
Book 2 - FINN
Book 3 - GABE
Book 4 - ZACK*
Book 5 - LUKE*
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Book 0.5 - Teasing Trent - FREE
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Book 4 - All I Need is You ~ Eli + Kay
Book 5 - Say You Will ~ Trent + Mara
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
New York Times & USA TODAY Bestselling author M. Malone lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area with her three favorite guys: her husband and their two sons. She likes dramatic opera music, staid old men wearing suspenders, claw-foot bathtubs, and unexpected surprises. The thing she likes best is getting to make up stuff for a living.
She writes steamy contemporary romance and family sagas.
www.MMaloneBooks.com
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GABE (BLUE-COLLAR BILLIONAIRES #3)
Copyright © February 2015 M. Malone
Editor: Daisycakes Creative Services
Proofreader: Leah Guinan
CrushStar Romance
An Imprint of CrushStar Multimedia LLC
This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places, and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotation embodied in critical articles and reviews. For information address CrushStar Romance, 2885 Sanford Ave SW #16301, Grandville, MI 49418
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ISBN-10: 1-938789-22-9
ISBN-13: 978-1-938789-22-9