An Heir For The Billionaire
Page 3
"So if I were to do something a little crazy like kiss you..." Releasing one of her hands, he slowly raked a hand through her golden locks, watching the strands fall from his fingertips - strand by strand. She closed her eyes and sighed, her soft sigh sounding like music to his ears and bringing back memories; memories that he'd savoured over the years in the odd instances where he let himself think of something other than work.
Katrina opened her eyes. "I'd say sometimes you need to do something crazy from time to time."
Damon smiled as he lowered his lips to hers. As he drew closer to her the smell of her perfume drifted up to his nose and spurred his arousal. He ghosted his lips across hers and a sweet, soft sigh that sent his dick into a frenzy escaped her. He fought to hold himself back, wanting to savour the feel of her soft lips against his, before deepening the kiss.
Placing her palms against his chest, she leaned into him, parting her lips with a soft moan and inviting him in. Damon accepted the invitation, savouring her sweet response as their tongues touched. Her hands fisted the front of his shirt and she moved closer.
She was such a temptation to him - she always had been and he suspected always would be. With great reluctance Damon ended the kiss before he got carried away. There was no doubt that the attraction was still alive and well between them, despite the years that have passed.
As he pulled back and their eyes locked an idea came to him. It was crazy, but then again maybe crazy was what he needed. He might as well take some chances, he had nothing to lose. It was painfully evident that she wanted a new life, and he needed the assurance that his years of blood, sweat and tears didn't go to waste. The more that he thought about it, the less insane the idea became. All he needed to do was convince Katrina to marry him and have his baby...
Chapter 4
"Damon?" Katrina frowned at Damon's sudden intense and distant expression. It wasn't exactly the type of expression she'd have expected after him kissing her and it made her uneasy.
The distant expression faded and he was back to her, giving her a soft, sexy smile. "I'm sorry. Got distracted for a moment."
She returned his smile with some hesitation. "Good distracted I hope..."
Damon brushed his knuckles against her cheek. "Very good."
"So how long are you staying here? I don't even know where you live yet or what you even do for a living."
He opened his mouth to answer and paused. "You know, I think I just had a change in plans and I'll be staying until Monday morning."
Because of me? She chewed at her lower lip and wondered if she was wise to hope he was staying for her. He'd broken her heart once already and even though being in Damon's presence brought back many good memories of the past, the truth was she didn't know the new Damon.
So learn, a voice in the back of her mind urged her.
"Were you planning on leaving in the morning?"
His grin widened. "It was all in limbo depending..."
"On?"
Movement from inside the hotel caught her eye over Damon's shoulder. Trying to look natural, she leaned a little to the left and had to fight a smile from forming on her lips at the sight of Farrah on the other side of the window, pointing to Damon and waving her hand in front of her as if she were going to faint.
So hot! Farrah mouthed, giving her the A-ok sign with her fingers.
Damon began to answer, but his words were lost on her as she tried to motion for Farrah to go away without Damon noticing. Her distress over Farrah watching only spurred Farrah into more inappropriate motions. Nodding towards Damon's back Farrah began to press her tongue against her cheek while making jerking motions with her hand to her mouth.
"Oh-my-God, I'm going to kill her," Katrina growled. She'd meant to only think the words, but to her horror she'd verbalized her thoughts, breaking Damon from whatever it was he was saying.
"Who?" Frowning Damon turned around and froze as he watched Farrah continue the obscene gesture.
Being spotted Farrah immediate stopped, blushed slightly and gave them a timid half-wave. Not waiting for them to return the greeting she scurried off and out of sight.
With his head cocked and an eyebrow raised, Damon turned back to Katrina. "Friend of yours?"
It was Katrina's turn to blush, a deep crimson. "I ummmm. See. Well..."
Damon patiently waited as she stumbled over her words, a quizzical expression pasted on his handsome features.
"Well. Yeah. But. See." Oh dear God, she groaned inwardly. "She feels I don't get out enough and date and..."
"Get laid," Damon offered, with a twinkle of humour in his eyes.
Lowering her eyes Katrina covered her face with her hand. This had to be one of the most embarrassing moments she'd had to endure in a long, long time - if ever.
"You know. I was hoping that maybe we could just hang out this weekend, maybe reconnect. But I'm sure we could fit that in as well."
Damon's light chuckling prompted her to bite the bullet and lower her hand to peer up at him. "She was just messing around," Katrina attempted to explain.
He stopped laughing, but the amused grin remained on his face. "I figured as much."
"Which brings me to my question for you."
"Which is?" The amusement in his expression increased.
She paused, not sure if she was being bold in confronting him or being egotistical to think he'd do something like come home for a reunion just for her. But she had to ask the question. "Did you come here just to see me?"
His eyes locked with hers once again, and she felt the same shiver of anticipation run through her that she'd felt when he'd kissed her. She waited on bated breath.
"You are the sole reason for me being here."
"But why?" She reached out to him and fingered the soft cotton of his black button-down shirt. She really loved the material - so soft - and gave her a reason to touch him, even if briefly. "I mean, if you wanted to see me then you could have called. It's been ten years. Anytime." Another bout of hurt hit her. If he still wanted her after all these years then why didn't he come back for her? She wanted to say it didn't bother her, but it did.
Damon sighed and lifted his hands up, palms out and shrugged. "I don't know Katrina. I suppose a part of me was scared you'd refuse to talk to me. And I've been focused on work, way too focused, I know this now. I've had some very messed up priorities."
"So what changed it now?"
Damon paused, his expression darkening, indecision flashing in his eyes. After a moment a smile spread across his lips. "Things change."
Their eyes locked and a moment passed between them.
"Have you had supper? You didn't go to the reception did you?"
Katrina shook her head. "Nope and I am."
Damon stood and extended his hand to her, "Come on. Let's get out of here."
*****
"Now, be forewarned my secretary ordered the vehicle. Not me. I wouldn't drive anything so pretentious in Bangor," Damon explained as they entered the car park attached to the hotel.
Katrina frowned. "Pretentious?"
Damon chuckled. "Yeah. Pretentious." They rounded the corner and Katrina's eyes caught sight of what had to be the car he was speaking of, a candy apple red Ferrari. It stuck out like a sore thumb, surrounded by assortment of economy cars and SUV's in the parking garage.
"Wow. You're driving that?"
Walking over to the passenger side of the car, Damon unlocked it and assisted her into the low sitting car. "Yup."
Katrina was surprised at his dismissive attitude towards the vehicle. It was gorgeous. She settled back in the black leather seat. It was so lavish and comfortable. Her eyes scanned the interior of the car in awe.
"You don't like it?" she asked as he opened the driver's door and slid in next to her, starting the car. The powerful engine roared to life, sending a tremor of excitement through her. This was the first time she'd ever been in a Ferrari. So cool.
He placed his hand on the gearshift preparing to p
ut it into drive. "Oh I do. It's a fantastic car. But it just sticks out too much here, like I'm trying to impress someone or something. Becky must have assumed I'd want it since it's what I drive home." He threw the car into first gear and pulled out of the parking slot.
"At home?"
Damon glanced at her out of the corner of his eye as he negotiated the parking garage and exited onto the street. "Yeah, I live in New York now."
"Really?" Her spirits lifted. He was on the east coast. Granted it was about a ten hour drive away, but still close. If they hit it off... She stopped her train of thought in its tracks. The last thing she wanted to do was look past the weekend and get disappointed.
"Yeah. Moved there a few years ago. It made much more sense to be there from a business perspective."
"And so do you live right in Manhattan or in Jersey."
He glanced over at her and smiled. "Manhattan. Near Central Park."
Katrina was impressed. He drove a Ferrari and lived near Central Park? He really did do very well for himself; at least it appeared to be that way. "Wow, that's impressive. Business must be good."
He flashed a sexy smile at her that made her heart rate accelerate. "I guess you could say I've done okay for myself," he conceded. "In some areas of my life anyhow." His gaze dropped from hers moving lower to her chest, making the heat flare up between her legs.
She turned her eyes away and frowned. "Where are we going to eat anyhow?"
"Is Mama Mays still open?"
"Believe it or not, it is." Katrina smiled at the mention of Mama Mays. Mama Mays was the little mom and pop pizza place on the border of Bangor and Brewer that they used to eat at every noon hour when in high school. A rush of memories filled her head and her smile widened. Without thinking she placed her hand over his on the gear shift, lacing her fingers with his.
His hand tightened on hers, causing her to glance over at him, catching his gaze for a brief moment before he shifted his eyes back to the road. "So I was thinking we could take a little trip down memory lane?"
I already am, Katrina mused. "What do you have in mind?"
"I was thinking that we have ourselves a couple of slices of pizza, maybe a Coke and then go to the lookout."
Cocking her head to the side, Katrina grinned. "Do you plan on seducing me with pizza and taking me parking, Damon Garratt?"
Damon gave her hand another squeeze, downshifting. "We could forgo the pizza if you like and skip to the parking."
He glanced over at her and caught her eyes, a mischievous gleam shone in his eyes - the same gleam he used to get when he was teasing her when they were young. No matter how much things had changed, they stayed the same. She certainly wasn't expecting there to be such a familiarity. It was both arousing and unsettling.
"We can't forgo Mama May's now that you have me excited over it!"
Arriving at Mama May's, the parking lot was virtually empty, which was unusual for a Friday night. As Damon slid the car into a parking slot, Katrina couldn't help but notice eyes examining the car.
"You're right."
"Huh?" Damon parked the car and glanced over at her, eyebrow raised.
"The car sticks out. I think every set of eyes in the area is on us."
*****
Opening the car door, Damon offered his hand to Katrina assisting her out of the low sitting car. "Does Mama May still work?" He doubted it; she'd been nearing sixty when they were in high school.
Katrina grinned. "Believe it or not. She does."
"Wow."
"Her son, Richard, more or less took over for her a few years ago though."
She straightened and adjusted the skirt of her dress that had risen dangerously high on her thighs. Not that he minded - not one bit.
"Hey!"
Damon's eyes lifted, a brow cocked. "Huh?"
She pointed two fingers towards her eyes scowling, but there was amusement in her eyes. "My eyes are here, buddy."
Damon grinned. "You wore the dress, woman. He nudged her out of the way with his hip and closed the car door, locking it. "Can't blame a guy for looking."
"Not like you haven't seen them before," she teased, looking up at him with a hint of seduction in her gaze, as he took her hand on his and they made their way into the pizzeria.
Damon's dick jerked in his pants. He remembered alright. The years hadn't dimmed the memories of her silky thighs, or the soft sighs and moans she'd make whenever he spread her legs and indulged in her. He gritted his teeth and gave his head a quick shake, trying to clear the memories from his mind, partly scared the building erection in his pants would be visible to her.
As they entered the pizzeria, the succulent smells of cheese and pepperoni greeted their noses and he found his stomach grumbling. The place hadn't changed in ten years. He looked over at the booths, still red vinyl, but just more worn and cracked. A couple had red duct tape covering the cracks.
Memories came rushing back to him, punching him into the gut, forcing him to remember all the good times he had, before he allowed himself to become consumed with wealth and building his empire. To his surprise, he felt himself growing emotional - something he hadn't allowed himself to do since he first found out about the cancer. Sure, life hadn't been perfect when he'd been young, being tossed from foster home to foster home, but he had his share of good times - most of which involved Katrina.
"Damon?" A tug on his hand and Katrina's soft voice once again pulled him from his trip down memory lane.
Damon fought back the emotion and looked down into Katrina's concerned face.
"Are you okay?" She tightened her grip on his hand, her frown deepening.
"Yeah, of course." His eyes gave the pizzeria another scan. "Memories. Ya know?"
She nodded and gave him a smile. Her eyes surveyed the restaurant as his had. "Yeah. Lots."
"Katrina sweetie!" A soft voice exclaimed coming out from the kitchen. Damon turned his attention towards the kitchen and to his shock and amusement; an older version of the May he remembered came rushing from the kitchen and around the counter. Her hair had turned completely white and was pulled up into a bun at the top of her head. She'd also gained a few pounds, giving her the sweet grandmotherly look. "Haven't seen you in ages dear."
May pulled Katrina into a hug. "Where have you been hiding yourself?" She took a step back, but kept Katrina at arm's length. "You look beautiful. And who's this handsome man of yours?" May's blue eyes lifted their gaze to meet Damon's and narrowed.
Damon could see the wheels turning in her head as recognition slowly began to emerge, lighting up her eyes. "Well, I'll be... Damon Garratt!" She released Katrina and pulled Damon into a motherly embrace. "I can't believe it." As she held onto him, her hold not nearly as strong as she intended, the smell of baby power drifted to his nose.
She pulled away from him and took a few steps back to eye them both. A large smile emerged on her lips, delight in her eyes and she clapped lightly. "Are you two kids back together?"
Not sure what to say, Katrina spoke up. "No. Damon just came to town for the reunion."
May's face fell. "Awwww. I always thought you kids were perfect together." She directed her attention to Damon. "Are you with anyone?"
Damon shook his head and grinned. "No, Ma'am."
"Kids? Ex-wife?"
Again, Damon shook his head. "No, Ma'am."
Her face lit up again. "Then you two have a second chance."
Damon looked down at Katrina. Sensing his eyes on her she looked up and caught his gaze, her face reddening. "I think I'd like that Mrs. May," Damon stated.
"Oh, wonderful." She clapped again. "Let me get you two a pizza. Meat right?"
Laughing Damon confirmed with a nod. How does she remember that? He mouthed down to Katrina.
She didn't respond, but grinned. It didn't seem to surprise her at all.
Chapter 5
"Oh-my-God, Damon! I'm thinking this was a really bad idea," Katrina groaned out, through chattering teeth. It felt like her
spine was going to be pushed up through her mouth as the Ferrari bounced and bumped over the dips of the dirt road leading the to Look-out.
The words had barely gotten out of her mouth when a loud scraping noise sounded from under the car. She grimaced.
Damon laughed. "Don't worry, it's insured."
"I think they have limitations due to reasonable use on that insurance though." They hit another dip, heard another angry grating sound from under the car and Katrina yelped, her head bouncing against the roof of the car.
"You okay?"
"Yeah." She rubbed her head a moment and then gripped the seat, praying for it to end. He reached over and touched her leg, just above the knee and she immediately felt her desire for him flare up.
Just when she thought she couldn't handle another moment of the rough ride, the car reached the summit and drove into the clearing, which overlooked all of Bangor. Katrina let out a sigh of relief falling back into the seat as Damon parked the car and shut off the engine.
He looked over at her giving her a sheepish grin. "Sorry about the rough ride. A Ferrari isn't exactly made for off-roading."
"It's okay. I was considering getting a new spine anyhow." Undoing her seat belt, Karina stretched and wiggled in the seat attempting to work out the kinks the rough ride caused within her.
Chuckling Damon got out of the car and walked around the front of the car. Katrina watched him walking around the car, taking a moment to admire him. He walked with such power and authority; it sent another rush of arousal through her. She squirmed in the seat as the heat between her legs grew more intense.
"Care to join me outside. It's a beautiful night," Damon asked opening her door and offering her his hand. She took his extended hand and as she got out her dress inched its way up her thighs. She noticed his gaze quickly lower to her legs and then just as quickly back up to meet hers.
"I noticed that," Katrina teased pulling at the hem of her skirt as she straightened.