The Teacher's Billionaire (5 page)

Before she could even search for a doorbell, the massive front door swung open. A rail thin man dressed in a black suit, who didn't look strong enough to even open the door, took several steps toward her.

“Miss Taylor, please come in.” Much like his appearance the older man’s voice was professional but devoid of any character.

Uncertain how to respond, Callie searched her brain for something to say. “I’m a little late. Traffic was horrible through Providence.”

Brilliant just brilliant
, Callie thought immediately wishing she could take back the words.
He must think I'm an idiot.

The man, who she guessed was a butler, merely nodded. “If you will please follow me.”

Not much of a conversationalist, are you?
Then again maybe butlers weren’t supposed to be. She didn't exactly run into them every day. Maybe people like her father expected his employees to be seen and not heard.

Like an obedient child, Callie followed the older gentleman deeper into the opulent mansion, and with each step her heart beat faster. Desperate she tried to focus on the beautiful surroundings rather than her rioting nerves. The walls were lined with framed portraits that looked as if they belonged in a museum and beautiful antique furniture filled the rooms she passed. Yet despite her best efforts, it wasn't helping.

She’d never experienced an anxiety attack before, but she knew without a doubt she was having one now. Her heart raced. Her breathing was rapid. And she felt about ready to jump out of her skin.

Relax. He's only a man not some super human being.

The knocking sound penetrated the ringing in Callie’s ears. As if from a great distance, she heard a male voice respond and the butler pushed open the door to an extremely masculine study complete with dark wood and leather furniture.

“Miss Taylor has arrived,” the butler announced to the room’s occupant.

Without consciously thinking, she ran her sweaty palms down the sides of her skirt and took a tentative step forward. She assumed Warren Sherbrooke would be waiting for her on the other side of the door. But he wasn’t the man Callie now found greeting her.

Dylan knew she was disappointed. He could sense it with every fiber of his being. He also knew he was the cause of her disappointment, and that displeased him. Though he had no idea why. It didn’t matter how this woman felt about him. Today he had to act as host in Warren’s absences, plain and simple. He hadn't even planned on being here this weekend. He was supposed to be in Chicago today on business. But when his mother called very late the night before asking him to meet Callie today, he sent his Vice President of Operations in his place to Chicago and came straight here instead.

“Callie, it’s nice to see you again. Please have a seat.” Dylan smiled and gestured toward the leather sofa but remained standing until she sat down.

As she settled herself on the sofa, he pretended not to notice how her skirt rose up exposing her thigh when she crossed her legs. Like the skin on her face and arms, her legs were tan and Dylan instantly found himself wondering if they felt as smooth as they looked. Uncomfortable with the path his brain was taking, he pushed the irrational thought from his mind. He needed to stay focused.

Linking his fingers together he leaned forward and set about explaining Warren’s absence. “Warren planned on arriving early this morning, but he didn't feel well enough to fly today. He spent last night in the ER with a severe case of food poisoning. He and my mother hope to leave sometime tomorrow. It'll depend on how he is feeling though.”

Personally he didn’t think they’d be able to leave Florida until Sunday at the earliest. For his stepfather to go to the hospital, he must have been feeling down right awful. Warren hated going to the doctors. And he never let illness stop him unless he was literally too sick to get out of bed.

“
He’s very disappointed. . .” Dylan stopped mid-sentence when the door to the study opened.

“
Have you heard from mom and. . .”

This wasn’t what he needed now, Dylan thought when his half-sister entered the room. She’d already made her opinion known about Callie’s visit, and he didn’t need a repeat performance of their earlier argument. He especially didn’t need it in front of their guest. It was already apparent that Callie felt uncomfortable. Dylan didn’t want to make the situation any more awkward. The last thing he wanted was for her to leave before Warren arrived. He’d promised his stepfather that Callie would be there, and Dylan wasn’t a man to take his promises lightly.

“
I talked to them early this morning when they got back to their hotel room.” Dylan paused before continuing. His manners dictated that he make formal introductions even though he knew they weren’t necessary. The look on Callie's face told him she knew exactly who Sara was. Still it was the polite thing to do.

Don’t say anything stupid Sara.

Clearing his throat he prepared himself. “Sara, I’d like you to meet. . .”

“
You don’t have to tell me who
she
is,” Sara snapped. Her voice dripped with contempt. “Or why she’s here.”

Dylan knew what his sister was implying. Unfortunately, he couldn’t control what she said. Once again he wished she’d taken his earlier suggestion and gone back to New York where she spent much of her time.

Despite the less than polite greeting from Sara, Callie appeared to remain relatively unaffected by it. “Mr. Sherbrooke invited me here. I didn’t ask to come.”

One for the new girl on the block
. Dylan suppressed a smile. While he loved his half sister, he often didn’t approve of the way she treated people. Unfortunately more times than not, people just accepted her behavior because of who she was which only reinforced her actions. Apparently, Callie didn't plan on taking any crap from her though.

Sara stared at Callie momentarily at a loss for words. Something that didn't happen often. “Well. . .You still waited till the election was just around the corner to contact him. You can’t deny that.”

It didn’t take a rocket scientist to see that the sisters’ first meeting wasn’t going well. So before either could escalate the situation, Dylan stood and moved towards Sara.

“
She didn't contact him, Sara. But now isn’t the time to discuss any of this.” Taking her by the arm he lead her towards the door. When she started to protest, he gripped her upper arm tighter. Narrowing his eyes he added, “We can talk again later.”

He heard her huff and mumble something that sounded suspiciously like she won't be around for long. “What was that?” Dylan asked leaning closer so Callie wouldn't over hear him.

“
I said she won't be around for long. Once the media gets wind of this, they're going to hound her till she climbs back into whatever hole she climbed out of.” After her final comment Sara yanked her arm free and left without another glance in Callie's direction.

Closing the door behind Sara, Dylan returned to his seat across from Callie. “Don’t pay too much attention to what Sara said.” He needed to smooth things over. “She’s used to being Daddy’s Little Princess and isn’t happy that she might have to share him. It’s nothing personal.”

Callie met and held his steady gaze. “Please don’t make excuses for her. Things don't get more personal. But I don’t blame her for being upset.” She paused and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear.

Every time he’d seen her she had her long hair tied back in a ponytail except for today. Now she had it tied back in a loose bun. As he watched her move the strands of mahogany colored hair that escaped, he found himself wondering what she looked like with her hair loose. His gut told him the sight would be breathtaking and his hands itched to free her hair to find out if he was right.

“
I’d probably be angry too if I was her.”

Once again he found himself admiring Callie Taylor. Most people wouldn’t be so understanding. In fact he couldn’t imagine any of the women he knew acting like her. Instead they would most likely be acting much more like Sara instead.

“
If you talk to Mr. Sherbrooke please tell him I hope he's feeling better. Since he isn’t here right now, I’m going to head out. It was an unusually long drive, and I still need to check in to my motel.” Without waiting for a reply, she stood.

Dylan immediately came to his feet, his manners too ingrained not to. “Please stay here. A room has already been prepared for you.” He moved towards her.

He didn’t want her to leave yet. If she left now, he feared she wouldn’t return when Warren arrived. That was the only reason he’d made the request. Or so he told himself.

Deep down though he knew there was more to it. Dylan wanted her stay because he wanted to get to know her better. He still wasn't one hundred percent certain he trusted her intentions regarding Warren, although he now leaned strongly in that direction. Her resistance to meeting Warren when he'd first approached her appeared to real to be an act. If she was after something why refuse to meet him? Plus she seemed so unlike the people he dealt with on a daily basis. He found her to be a refreshing change.

Callie shook her head and a brief look of sadness passed over her features . “No, thank you. That probably isn’t a good idea. I’ll give you my cell phone number in case Mr. Sherbrooke gets back tomorrow.” Searching through her purse she pulled out a small notepad and a pen. After jotting down her number, she handed him the slip of paper and moved towards the door. She’d only taken a few steps when Dylan reached out to touch her arm. The second his hand came in contact with her skin an unexpected surge of desire swept through him.

“
At least have dinner with me tonight.” It was the least he could do. She drove all the way down there after all. It wasn't right for her to spend the whole night sitting in some motel room alone. Not when he could do something about that.

He was barely touching her, yet bolts of energy zigzagged up her arm and through her body. She’d never experienced a sensation quite like it before.

“
Thank you, but no.” Callie didn’t want him to think she expected anything from him. “I don’t want to disrupt your plans.” Surely he had something planned. A date with some gorgeous model or wealthy socialite. He was after all more handsome than anyone should be. Not to mention rich. Either attribute would easily attract women, but when they were wrapped together in such a nice package they made a man irresistible.

Dylan stepped closer and moved his hand from her forearm to her shoulder. “You wouldn’t be disrupting anything. Actually you’d be saving me from eating alone.”

Callie nearly laughed. She doubted he needed saving from anything. Ever. The man oozed competence.

Go for it, a tiny part of her brain encouraged. What do you have to lose? Besides what else would she do all night? Get take out and read a book? Watch television?

“
Okay, but I want to check in first.”

Dylan didn’t object. After agreeing to a time, she told him where she was staying and with a sigh of relief Callie left Cliff House.

***

By the time she stepped out of the shower a little later, Callie was seriously beginning to wonder if her entire trip was jinxed. First her father hadn’t been able to fly up there, then the motel had mixed up her reservation and her room hadn’t been ready. Finally to top it all off there had been no hot water for her shower. If things kept going the way they were, she might just pack up tomorrow morning and go home and forget about the meeting with her father all together.

Right now though she needed to concentrate on getting through dinner with Dylan Talbot. Whenever they were together, she felt off balance, drawn to him in a way she hadn't felt before. Callie couldn’t fully explain it. Granted he was worthy of god status. Any woman with eyes would agree. But she’d been around handsome men before and not been affected by them in the same way. It unsettled her, and she wasn’t sure how to handle it.

“
Just remember who he is and who you are. Men like him don’t get involved with elementary school teachers. Even if they are excellent teachers who have the Massachusetts State's Teacher of the Year award to prove it.” Callie told herself as she looked through the outfits she packed. She didn't have many options. She didn't want to wear Lauren's violet skirt again. And it seemed like a good idea to save her other skirt for her meeting with Warren. Depending on where they were going for dinner shorts might be to casual, so that left only the red sundress. Nervously, Callie cut the tags off the dress and slipped it on. The bodice of the dress was form fitting with a low cut back and full skirt that ended just above the knee. Callie chewed on her bottom lip as she examined her appearance in the full length mirror. While the dress would definitely look better on her friend Lauren, she had to admit it flattered her figure. She only wished the top wasn't designed to fit so snugly.

That evening Dylan took her to the Spiced Pear an upscale restaurant located at the start of Newport's famous Cliff Walk. Although Callie felt nervous, she found Dylan surprisingly easy to talk too. So easy in fact that before she knew it their waitress finished clearing away their dinner plates.

With a heavily laden dessert tray in one hand, the pretty well endowed bleach blond waitress returned to their table. “Would either of you be interested in dessert?” As the woman spoke her eyes never left Dylan’s face. And Callie got the distinct impression that the dessert she was offering Dylan wasn't on her tray.