Bargaining for the Billionaire (16 page)

He grimaced. “I know it's early for you, but I want to get this done as early as possible so I can plan the rest of the evening.” He narrowed his gaze on her. “I'll even make you breakfast.”

She arched a brow. “Make it coffee, hot and strong, the way I like my men, and you're on.”

He smiled. “Done. Sure you don't want breakfast? I could go run by Pike Place while you're in the shower. I honestly wasn't even sure if you'd still have company when I came over this morning.”

She shook her head, that sad loneliness seeping into her gaze he'd seen too many times before. “He didn't stay.”

Grayson pursed his lips, unable to hide his irritation. The men she chose to keep company with were losers. Most were barely out of college and still sowing their wild oats, which meant when they were done with her, they went on their merry way. He couldn't remember the last time she'd told him one actually
had
stayed. “You deserve better, you know.”

Cassie folded her arms and her gaze shifted to something behind him. She stood for a moment and stared with sightless eyes, looking suddenly lost and exposed. The same expression rose every time he brought up the subject. Cassie put on a strong show for the world, but beneath her bravado lay a soft heart, one she didn't show to many people. And this was a sore subject for them. Cassie had a reason she kept her heart under lock and key. Before he'd deployed, her boyfriend Tyler had asked her to marry him. She'd turned him down, because his job scared the hell out of her.

Grayson recalled the exact conversation, when she'd shown up at his place at eight o'clock at night, beside herself. She'd paced his living room.
“I can't be that soldier's wife, Gray, who waits and worries, her insides tied in knots, wondering if her husband will come home this time.”

The announcement that Tyler had gone missing in action hit her hard. When he was officially declared him dead a year after he went missing, Cassie drew into herself. Three years later, she still hadn't gotten over his death.

As if she'd caught herself drifting, her gaze snapped to his again, and she jabbed a pointed finger at him. “No lectures about my bad taste in men. Not all of them are like you.”

He reached up and thumbed her chin. “At some point, Cass, you have to let him go and forgive yourself. You deserve to be happy, too.”

 She sighed, the fight draining out of her. “I'm not sure I do. He died thinking he was little more than my latest boy toy, Gray, because that was what I essentially told him. I can't forgive myself for that. Besides, this isn't about me. This is about you.” She hiked her chin to a stubborn angle and flashed him a brilliant smile. “I'm not going to rain on your parade. You make me coffee, and I'll go shower.”

“Deal.”

She hugged him again. “I'm so damn happy for you. One of us needs to be. I'll be quick.”

He knew she wouldn't be. Cassie didn't go anywhere without doing her hair and makeup. Which meant an hour passed before she emerged again. He was surfing the Web on his phone, reading the latest news, when she finally pranced back into the room, hair perfectly arranged to look like she'd merely run her fingers through it, makeup done to look “natural.”

He shook his head. “You recall me telling you that the man you end up with would need deep pockets? I take that back. The man you end up with also needs patience. And lots of it. We're just going to your shop, Cass, not some elite party.”

She pursed her lips, shooting him a glare. “Coffee?”

He nodded in the direction of her kitchen, around the corner. “Just finished brewing.” He called out to her as she pivoted and hightailed it into the kitchen. “You're welcome.”

She mumbled something he couldn't make out, though if he knew her it was likely some form of playful insult. He went back to reading his article. Ten minutes later, she emerged again, her designer stilettos arriving in his line of sight. “Okay, I'm ready.”

He took a moment to close the app he'd been searching and lock his display before he looked up at her. She stood before him with a pastry in one hand and a travel mug in the other.

He furrowed his brow in disapproval at her choice of nourishment. “I could have made you a healthier breakfast than that, you know.”

Her face twisted in disgust as she bit down on the icing-covered sugar bomb in her hand. “What, that vegan crap you eat? No thanks.”

This made him smile. It was another long-standing argument between them. Most women he knew ate like birds. Cassie ate like she'd die tomorrow, with seemingly little care for things like cholesterol. “I'm not vegan, and they're called vegetables. You ought to try them sometime. That sugar will have you crashing in less than two hours.”

She grinned and lifted her coffee mug in salute. “Which is why I have caffeine. Good coffee, by the way.” She winked and strode for the front door like a woman on a mission, heels click-clacking across her immaculately polished hardwood floors. “Come on. Before my sugar high wears off.”

“Sooo….” Hannah grinned at her over the counter. “How'd last night go?”

Maddie couldn't stop the hot flush from rising into her cheeks. She waved a nonchalant hand and went back to lining the books on the window display. The latest erotic bestseller. People clamored for it, so despite the fact that their specialty was old and rare books, they opted to carry this one as well. They'd carried the first four in the series, and repeat customers had come back for the next. “It went good. We ate, we chatted, I spent the night…”

“Oh my God,” Hannah squealed, coming up behind Maddie at a fast pace. “Deets, babe. Give me the deets.”

“It was…hot. Grayson is Grayson, and he charmed me right of my panties.”

She darted a glance at Hannah, who grinned from ear to ear. “So,
does
he look good beneath you?”

Maddie laughed. Over a year ago, they'd had a similar conversation when Hannah had been in her position. Maddie had been the one to convince her best friend to take a chance on an affair, with Cade. Hannah had asked her then: if she could do that weekend with Grayson over again, would she? Maddie had given her a flippant reply meant to disguise her true feelings.
“Maybe if I could tape his mouth shut. He could just…lie there and look pretty.”

Hannah had seen right through her, of course.

“I didn't tape his mouth shut. I rather like his mouth. But he did tie my hands, and yes, he looks very pretty beneath me.” Maddie rolled her eyes. “God, Han, his body has changed. Muscles on top of muscles and washboard abs.”

Hannah waved a hand. “Wait, wait, wait, back up a step. He tied you up? Seriously?”

Maddie shook her head. Her face had to be as red as a tomato by now, because she was a thousand degrees and burning up fast. “Let's just say it was his idea of a trust-building exercise. Apparently, he has a kinky side I did
not
see coming. I have to hand it to him, though. It was incredible.”

“Good for you. So, you're seeing him again, I take it?”

Maddie nodded. “Tonight. He suggested dinner and a movie, but I'm not sure I care what we do. We could sit at his place and watch the news for all I care.” She sighed. “I'm kind of grateful you and Christina forced me into this.”

Hannah's smile came out again, this one soft and pleased and heartfelt. “It's working again. Between you two, I mean.”

Maddie couldn't help the dreamy sigh that escaped her. “Yeah. It's still there. Like it never left. Like we're picking up where we left off.”

Hannah nudged her shoulder. “You're in love with him.”

Maddie dropped her gaze to the display. “I'm not sure I ever stopped, but yeah. I'm falling hard all over again, and it honestly scares the crap out of me. Part of me is still waiting for the other shoe to drop, but I'm not allowing myself to overthink it.”

Hannah gave a decisive nod. “Good.”

Maddie flashed a sheepish grin. “I'm thinking of going to Victoria's Secret and buying something sexy. Do you care if I take an hour off to run over there?”

“Nope. We're slow. Go now. I'll finish setting that up.” Hannah winked at her. “Get something naughty.”

“Thanks.”

Maddie grabbed her purse from behind the counter and exited the shop, whistling an upbeat tune she'd heard on the radio that morning as she made the six block trek. Three blocks from her destination, a couple emerged, arm in arm, from the doorway of an expensive jewelry shop. They halted on the sidewalk in front of her and turned to each other, giving Maddie their profiles.

She came to a dead halt as recognition dawned. Grayson. With another woman. Her heart launched into her throat and blood
whoosh
ed in her ears. For several moments she could do little more than stand there and stare. Surely it wasn't what it seemed, but they related to each other with familiarity. The woman stood intimately close, her eyes illuminated as she smiled up at him. She was gorgeous, too. Small, standing a good head and shoulders below him, with a tiny, curvy figure. She had dark hair, cut in a cute, short style, with side-swept bangs that fell over her forehead. Her dress showed off her tiny waistline, and the short, flowy hem accented her shapely calves.

What got her, though, was the gleam in the woman's eyes as she peered up at Grayson. They were too far down for Maddie to hear much more than the general hum of their voices, but his lips moved as he said something. He must have made some sort of joke, for the woman tipped her head back and laughed, then playfully swatted his chest.

They clearly knew each other well. The woman lifted onto her tiptoes to wrap her arms around his neck. Grayson bent, wrapped her in his embrace and returned the hug. He turned his head, murmuring something in her ear, then kissed her cheek before releasing her. When the woman disappeared into the store again, Grayson pivoted in Maddie's direction, only to come to an abrupt halt. Panic flashed in the depths of his widened eyes as his gaze landed on her.

Tears flooded her eyes, a vise clenched at her chest. After everything she'd shared with him, all her secrets and her fears, he'd lied to her. Again. He'd told her he had something to do. She'd assumed he meant grocery shopping or something, but clearly she'd been wrong. It wasn't some
thing
but some
one
.

Her face grew hot, and a thick lump formed in her throat. Her chest clenched with the hurt reverberating through her. What a gullible fool she'd been to ever think he was different, that he really had changed. But he hadn't. It was just lies on top of lies, and she'd been naïve enough to believe him.

Dejection sank over her. Like it had with Matt. She'd let him into her life, had happily gone with him to that party. Because she'd trusted him.

And here she was, ready to give Grayson her heart again. She should have known last night was too good to be true.

Grayson shook his head and stepped in her direction, fear rising in his eyes. “Maddie, it's not what it looks like…”

Those words from his mouth hit like a slap in the face, confirming what her heart told her. She blinked back the tears threatening to spill over.

“Go to hell, Grayson.” She glared at him, then pivoted, stalking back the way she'd come as fast as she could without resorting to running. Running would look desperate. Then he'd know he'd gotten to her. And she couldn't—wouldn't!—let him know he'd hurt her, that he'd broken her. No man would ever know he'd broken her, not ever again.

She'd only gone a few steps before Grayson appeared in front of her, forcing her to halt or plow right into him. His brow was furrowed, those chocolate eyes full of regret and searching her face. “Would you stop and listen?”

A single tear escaped her tight control, leaking down her cheek, but Maddie swiped it away with a dash of her hand. “To what? More lies? I trusted you. God, what a naïve fool I've been. All you've ever done is lie to me, but I had myself convinced you were different now.”

She stepped around him, but Grayson grabbed her arm, stopping her retreat, and pulled her back to him.

“Goddamn it, Maddie, for once in your life will you just listen?” He glared right back at her. “You always go off half-cocked, without bothering to talk to me first. It really sucks, you know that? You keep saying you trust me, but clearly you don't.”

Her lower lip wobbled, and despite her best effort, the tears slipped out, one by one leaking down her cheeks. “I not blind, Grayson. I saw you! Any fool within three blocks can see the way she adores you.” She shook off his hand. “Let go of me. She can have you, because I'm done playing your fool.”

He flinched as if she'd slapped him and drew up straight. Tension radiated off him and his jaw tightened.

“Well, I should hope she's fond of me.” He threw a hand in the direction of the store, behind them. “That was Cassie. God, as far as we've come, clearly we still have a long way to go. The hard part is, I can't blame you. I've made mistakes I can't take back. You're right. I should've been a little more honest, clued you in on my plans, but I didn't want to ruin it. But Cassie's right. After all the lies I've told you in the past, even a small one could end us up right back here. She's been trying to warn me this whole time, and I didn't listen.”

He dragged both hands through his hair, holding long bangs back off his forehead, and stood staring at her. After a long moment, he dropped his arms to his sides, dejection rising over him. His shoulders rounded as he blew out a defeated breath.

“Trust is a decision, Maddie. You have to be willing to meet me halfway, to decide once and for all whether or not you truly forgive me for the past and are willing to give me the benefit of the doubt sometimes. We can't move forward until you do. But that's a decision only you can make.” He started moving again, walking backward down the sidewalk the way he'd come. “I love you, Maddie. You're it for me. So if you decide this is something you truly want, I'll be waiting. You know where to find me.”