Snowbound with a Billionaire

by Jules Bennett

  Like she hadn’t just seen them. Not only that, this look was certainly not a turn on. It was, however, quite laughable.

  “Maybe I put that robe away,” she muttered, swallowing the laughter. “At least you have something to wear until your clothes are done.”

  His eyes narrowed. “You did this on purpose.”

  Now Raine did laugh. “Oh, I wish I’d thought that far ahead. I swear I thought I had a big white bathrobe on the back of the door. I can go find it for you.”

  She started to pass by him when he grabbed her arm. “What do I do if she cries?” he asked, his eyes darting to Abby.

  Raine looked to the baby who was smiling up at the miniature spinning mobile of bears above the swing.

  “She seems pretty happy,” she said. “I’ll only be a minute. It’s probably in the other bathroom or in the laundry room. Besides, you were amazing with her in the middle of the night. I never thanked you.”

  Max shrugged. “You’d been up enough times and needed to rest. I figured if I did anything wrong, you’d intervene.”

  Raine smiled. “I was so glad to just lay there, I wouldn’t have stopped you.”

  She moved away before he could stop her again. The image of Max Ford in her living room wearing a silky robe, watching a baby while waiting on a fluffier robe made her chuckle. If only his dad could see him now.

  As much as Raine had despised Max’s father, she knew, even to this day, Max wanted approval from the man. But no matter how many awards, how many movies or charities Max worked with, his father had never accepted Max was following a dream and loving what he did.

  She recalled Max telling her one time that his dad had always wanted him to go into the family business. Since Max was adopted and an only child, there was no one else to inherit Tom Ford’s dynasty.

  But even before Max became famous, and a power broker in his own right, he’d had zero desire to be a restaurateur.

  Within moments, Raine had found the robe and met him back in the living room. He hadn’t moved an inch, and his eyes were locked on Abby.

  “How long will she stay in that thing and be content?” he asked.

  Raine shrugged. “She really is self-entertaining. She’s just cranky through the night.”

  Max took the other robe, peered down at it, eyed the baby and then looked to her.

  Laughing again, Raine rolled her eyes. “You can change. I swear Abby won’t look.”

  Dropping the silky robe at his feet, Max displayed all his glorious muscles and potent male virility right in her living room. Keeping his blue-eyed stare locked on Raine the entire time, he grabbed the new robe and slid into it.

  The man was gorgeous, and he knew it. Jerk.

  “Looks like the snow is finally letting up,” he stated, tying the belt as best he could around his waist. “You have plans for Valentine’s Day?”

  Raine crossed her arms and smirked. “Oh, yes. Abby and I plan on wining and dining on bottles of goat milk and decadent chocolates.”

  Max laughed. “I’m serious. You don’t have any plans?”

  “Do you really think I would’ve just had sex with you if I had plans to be with someone else in two days?”

  Max nodded. “No, but I thought I should ask.”

  “It’s after the fact now,” she said.

  He stepped forward, looking both ridiculous in that robe, yet sexy. “Maybe we could do something, since we both don’t have plans.”

  Raine took a step back, holding up her hands before he could reach out and touch her. “Wait a minute, Max. I’m not looking for a Valentine or a date. What just happened between us was only you and me working off some tension and past memories. That’s all.”

  “Old friends can’t go out and enjoy the day?”

  Go out? Sleeping together had been one thing—an amazing fantasy come true that she wouldn’t soon forget—but to go out where people could see her on a date...

  She couldn’t afford any misstep in this adoption. And Max Ford was so recognizable that there’s no way they’d go unnoticed.

  “Old flames gallivanting around town where my father is mayor? Uh, no.” She hated her father’s status, except when she could use it to her advantage. “Besides, Valentine’s Day doesn’t mean much to me.”

  “Because you’re single?”

  Raine laughed. “Because it’s just a day. I don’t need a sentimental holiday to remind me of what I don’t have.”

  She turned from him, not wanting him to read any more into what she said...or didn’t say. She squatted down in front of Abby and flicked at the spinning bears. The baby smiled, eyes transfixed on the toys.

  “Don’t be embarrassed, Raine.”

  Her hand froze on the swing as she threw him a glance over her shoulder. “Excuse me?”

  “That didn’t come out right.” He took a seat in the chair closest to the swing and rested his arms on his knees, leaning forward to look her in the eye. “We all had dreams. Some didn’t come true, others did. I just don’t want you to feel embarrassed that I asked about Valentine’s Day. If you don’t want to do anything with me, I understand. But the offer is there if you choose to.”

  Raine resisted the urge to snicker as she turned back to Abby. “I’ll be fine.”

  Because his offer of a pity date was really topping her list for Valentine’s Day. She’d much rather spend the day alone than be with someone who was only passing through and felt obligated to throw extra attention her way.

  And the sex did not count. She’d been on board with that, and its sole purpose was to clear the tension between them.

  Yes, that was the second time she’d thought that, but she wasn’t trying to convince herself. Really. It had meant nothing. Just two people, taking advantage of the situation of being forced together.

  Raine came to her feet. “I need to get this wood upstairs before I hop in the shower.”

  Max stood, placing a hand over her arm. “I’ll get it.”

  She watched him walk away in that ridiculous robe and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry...or take a picture and sell it to a gossip magazine.

  “I’ll go check on your clothes,” she called after him.

  Raine stopped the swing and lifted Abby out. “You’re so lucky you have no clue what’s going on. Word of advice? Stay a kid.”

  Because adulthood truly sucked sometimes. Sexual tension, worry over making a wrong decision, anxiety over making family happy...at one time she’d wanted to please her parents, but, as Raine got older, she quickly learned pleasing her mother was an impossible feat.

  That was one thing Raine swore on her life that she would never let Abby worry about. Raine would be her baby’s number one supporter and Abby would never have to wonder where she stood.

  Nine

  Max resisted the urge to groan as his mother rambled on about how this prime opportunity would be perfect for him and would help the community as well. It was a win-win...or so she kept telling him.

  “The timing is perfect,” she informed him.

  Day two was coming to a close, and the snow had stopped, but the streets were covered, and cars were still parked in their little snow mounds.

  “Mom, you know I love theater, but this is such short notice.” He gripped the phone and turned from the bedroom window. When Raine had finished her shower, he’d come up here for privacy when he’d called his mother, and he’d also wanted to check the fire. Plus he felt putting some distance between him and Raine was best for now. After they’d had sex earlier, his libido had decided to join the party late, and he wanted her even more now.

  And seeing her with dewy skin and silky wet hair hadn’t helped. He’d had to get out of her presence quickly, but now that he was up in her room, the steam from the bathroom billowed out as did her fresh jasmine scent, probably from some exotic lotion or soap she made.

  “Honey,” his mother went on. “This is what you do. The play won’t open until the first of April. You have almost two months to prepare, and si
nce it’s only a week long, you’ll finish just in time to get back to L.A.”

  She had a point, several in fact, and they were all valid. And he really did love the Shakespearian Theater in Lenox. That’s where he’d gotten his start. And where he’d met Raine.

  Her soft voice filtered up from the first floor. She was singing again, as she did most of the time when she thought he wasn’t around.

  When they’d been teens and she’d sang on stage, he’d fallen so hard, so fast. Returning to the same stage suddenly didn’t sound so bad.

  “I’ll do it,” he conceded. “Can you have someone email me the script? I’d like to know a little more about what I’m getting into here.”

  His mother squealed with delight. “I knew we could count on you, Max! This will really raise a lot of money for the theater. It needs renovations that only a good chunk of funding can repair. You don’t know how proud I am of you.”

  Max chatted a bit longer, making sure Elise was doing okay and feeling good. She assured him that she was fine but worried about him being alone with Raine. He blew that off because there was no way in hell he would discuss his out-of-control emotions where his ex was concerned.

  And he would not analyze the fact he felt it his civic duty to help fix up the place where he had first fallen in love with Raine. So he wanted the theater to be back to its perfected state...so what? That didn’t mean anything more than it was. When Max hung up, he glanced at the clock and realized it was Abby’s bedtime. He turned off the overhead light and clicked on the bedside lamp to get the room ready for her. Not that he was growing cozy with this baby routine; he was just trying to help, that’s all.

  By the time he started toward the steps, Raine was coming up, clutching Abby to her chest and a bottle in the other hand.

  “Sorry,” he said as they met on the landing. “I didn’t mean to be in the way.”

  “Oh, it’s fine. I was working on some seed packets downstairs, so we’re good.”

  When she started to move on up, Max touched her shoulder. “Can you come back down and talk, once she’s asleep?”

  Raine’s gaze held his, and he didn’t know if she was worried or scared of why he was asking her for more time alone.

  “Just to talk,” he added. “I’d like to talk to a friend right now.”

  Her eyes softened, shoulders relaxed and a sweet smile spread across her face. “I’ll be right back down. I think that heater is doing a good job in the living room. I’ll meet you there.”

  Somewhere along the way, tripping over chickens, getting felt up by goats and having sex on her bathroom vanity, Max felt as if they’d forged this new bond, something deeper than they’d ever had before. That could be the sex talking, but he truly didn’t think so.

  In any event, that didn’t stop him from wanting to know more about the past—about what the hell had actually happened.

  Max headed down to the kitchen to check the fridge, but when he glanced in and only saw goat cheese and some other questionable items, he decided it may just be best to avoid a snack. If he stayed here any length of time, he’d lose weight.

  He was used to caviar, steak, fine cuisine. God, at this point he’d settle for a hot dog as opposed to asparagus, but Raine would probably kick him out in the snow if he mentioned the mystery meat.

  After several minutes, Raine came back down, empty bottle in hand. As she rinsed it out in the sink, she eyed him.

  “So, what’s up?”

  Leaning against the counter next to her, he shrugged. “Just spoke with my mother. She asked me to do some theater work while I’m in town.”

  Raine held his gaze for a moment before turning back to her task, shaking the bottle and resting it vertically in the strainer. She dried her hands and Max waited. Surely she’d have some input, some reaction.

  But she said nothing as she walked over to the back door and checked the locks, flipping the back light off.

  “It’s cold in here,” she stated, then walked into the living room.

  “She said it’s for some charity to benefit the arts and that the theater needed some major renovations,” he went on as he followed her into the comfy room. “I know it’s short notice, but I’m warming up to the idea. Might be nice to go back to the place where I got my start.”

  “I wouldn’t know,” she muttered as she strode toward the couch.

  Max stood in the wide arched doorway watching as she picked up a few toys and a pink blanket from the floor. She stacked everything up into a neat pile in the corner and turned back to him.

  “What?” she asked.

  Resting his hands on his hips, Max shrugged. “You tell me. You don’t think I should help out?”

  “Not my business to say one way or another.”

  “Really? Then what did you mean a minute ago by you wouldn’t know?”

  Raine raked a hand through her messy hair and sighed. “It’s been a long day, Max, and I kind of need to sleep when Abby does, because, in case you didn’t notice last night, she’s not the best sleeper.”

  “Why do you do that?” he asked, stepping farther into the spacious room.

  “Do what?”

  “Run. When things are uncomfortable, you run to avoid them.”

  Her glare searched his for a second before she laughed. “You’re kidding right?”

  “Not at all.”

  He stood directly in front of her, ready to battle it out if need be, but she wasn’t going anywhere. Not this time.

  “I thought we weren’t going to rehash this,” she said. “If you want to talk about running, then maybe you should turn that judgmental finger away from me and point it at yourself.”

  “I never ran, Raine. I wasn’t the one who got scared.”

  In a split second her palm connected with his cheek, shocking the hell out of him.

  “Scared?” she repeated. “You have no idea how scared I was when you left. You have absolutely no clue what I went through, so don’t you dare tell me about running and being scared.”

  Max rubbed his stinging skin and took in her tear-filled eyes. “What happened, Raine? What terrified you so much all those years ago that it would resurrect such strong emotions?”

  She blinked back tears and looked away, shaking her head. “Dredging up the past won’t change a thing, and trying to do so is just making this time between us now uglier. There’s no reason we can’t be civil.”

  He grabbed her shoulders. “We were a hell of a lot more than civil earlier. Don’t you dare even think of denying the fact we were good together.”

  “You don’t get it, do you?” she asked, jerking free of his grasp. “You are here by chance, Max. I have a life here, a baby who depends on me. As much as I wanted what happened between us to be simple and not get to me, it has.” She released a deep, shuddering breath. “It made me remember, made me think of things I have no business reminiscing about. And when you mentioned the theater, that was the last straw, and I was taken right back to that time we met.”

  Max listened, his heart clutching, as her voice cracked on the last word. Right now he hated himself. Hated how he’d upset her, hated that he’d left—even though he had done everything to get her to follow—and he hated that fate had slammed him back into her life so suddenly that neither of them knew how the hell to handle all these emotions. Shaking his head, he sighed. There was so much between them—anger, resentment, betrayal.

  “Listen,” he said softly, meeting her watery gaze. “I didn’t bring that up to make you remember or to hurt you. I just wanted a friend to talk to, and you understand me. Despite all the time that’s passed, Raine, I’m still the same man.”

  “The same man as what?” she whispered. “Because the man I fell in love with shared the same dream as me. The man I adored and felt safe with would’ve never hurt me.”

  “Hurt you?” he asked. “You think I wasn’t hurt? You ignored me, Raine. I worked damn hard to get a place ready for us. I had a small apartment with a little balcony, and I
couldn’t wait to show you.”

  Raine jerked back. “What? But...I waited to hear from you.”

  Max’s heart thudded in his chest as he absorbed her shocking words. “I called.” He wanted so bad to reach out and touch her, but not yet. Not when emotions were so raw. “I called every day. Your mother told me that you weren’t home or that you were sick. Finally she told me that you couldn’t bring yourself to call me because you’d changed your mind, and you were dating someone else.”

  Tears slid down Raine’s pale cheeks. “She lied.”

  Max watched as confusion and doubt washed over her, and that pit in the bottom of his stomach deepened. All this time he’d thought she’d purposely given him the brush-off, but, now, seeing her shock, he knew they were both victims here.

  “You didn’t have a clue, did you?” he whispered, his own shock spearing his heart, causing the ache to settle in all over again.

  He didn’t know what was more agonizing—Raine ignoring his plea or someone else sabotaging their dreams.

  “No.” She opened her tear-glistened eyes. “You wanted me?”

  Max stepped forward, closing the distance between them. “I couldn’t wait to get you out of here, Raine. I hated leaving you behind, knowing you wouldn’t be appreciated and loved like you were with me.”

  “Your career took off so fast,” she said. “I kept seeing you with women in the tabloids, and, when I didn’t hear from you, I just...”

  Max closed his eyes, unable to see the hurt he’d involuntarily caused. He was a coward. Knowing he’d caused even a moment of anguish for Raine put a vise grip on his heart.

  Why did he take her mother’s word for it? Why didn’t he fight harder? Hindsight was layering guilt upon his shattered heart, and he deserved every bit of angst. He’d brought this upon himself for not going after what was most important in his life.

  “When I couldn’t get in touch with you, I worried I’d made a mistake in leaving. I thought about coming back.” His voice was thick with emotion. “Instead, I turned reckless when your mother said you’d moved on. I didn’t care what happened to me.”