The Teacher's Billionaire (8 page)

In slow motion Callie saw Dylan lower his head and lean towards her as if he intended to give her a goodnight kiss. Instantly her heart started hammering against her chest. Anticipation gathered in the pit of her stomach and spiraled downward. Then just like that she was sucker punched when he dropped a brotherly kiss on her check.

“
If you change your mind call me.” With his final comment he turned to walk away but suddenly stopped short. “Did you see that?” he asked looking back at her.

Shrugging she asked, “See what?”

“
I thought I saw a flash of light. Must have been a car. Why don't you go inside before I leave.”

***

“
I see you're back from your date. Anything interesting happen?” Sara asked coming up behind him. Dylan had just entered the main foyer hoping to retreat to his room without running into his half sister. It had been a long couple of days between work issues and playing host. He wasn't in the mood for another one of his sister's childish tirades tonight.

“
Not now Sara.” Dylan walked around his sister and started up the stairs wishing he'd used the service staircase in the kitchen after grabbing his drink.

Undeterred Sara followed him. “I can't believe she had the audacity to show up here. Who does she think she is? I can't wait till her face starts showing up on magazine covers and the media starts digging through her life. Then she'll be sorry.”

“
Your father invited her. Remember? And maybe you should give her a chance. You might like her Sara.” Dylan opened the door to his room but didn't go in.

“
Wow! That didn't take long. She's already gotten to you with her small town girl routine. I can't believe it.” Sara threw her hands up in the air.

“
I'm just playing host Sara, for your father's sake. I want things to work out well for him. That. Is. All.” Dylan stepped into his room. “I don't want to hear anymore about it.” With that he closed the door before Sara could reply.

Carrying the scotch he'd poured before coming up, he walked out onto his balcony. He couldn't stop thinking about what he'd said to Sara about only wanting things to work out for Warren's sake. It
was
true. Still, he hadn't been completely honest with Sara.

He’d been physically attracted to Callie the first time he’d meet her. But there was more to it than that. Something about Callie affected him on a deeper level. In a way no one had since the back stabbing bitch Francesca.

Propping his bare feet up on the balcony railing, Dylan leaned back in his chair and gazed out across the ocean. He’d gone onto the private balcony to clear his head. Yet, the scene outside Callie's motel room kept playing over and over in his head. Ever fiber in his body had urged him to capture her lush full lips with his. To give her a kiss she wouldn't soon forget. Thankfully his brain had kicked in at the last minute reminding him who she was and why he was with her. In the end he saved them both a lot of awkwardness and dropped a brief kiss on her cheek.

Then there had been that flash of light. Had it been just a car passing by or had it been a flash from a camera. The paparazzi hadn't bothered him since his break up with Francesca. Why would they now? Had someone learned who Callie was? Sara's comment about the media and getting rid of Callie suddenly came to mind. Almost as quickly he dismissed the notion. Sara might be upset, but she wouldn't jeopardize her father's campaign.

It must have been a car driving by.
Pushing all thoughts of the evening's events from his head, he focused on the star filled sky.

Normally the relaxing view and the breeze coming up from the Atlantic would clear his head but not tonight. Instead he found himself wishing for a certain someone’s company. As a rule he never brought the women he dated to Cliff House. In his mind it was the family’s private home, yet sitting there he couldn’t help wish that he could share the view with Callie. He’d learned a lot about her during their time together, and he knew how much she loved the water.

She’ll see the view tomorrow when she comes.
Dylan finished off his scotch in one long swallow.

He needed to keep reminding himself that Callie was Warren’s daughter not some random woman he’d meet at a club or society event. If he did maybe he could squash the feelings he had for her. Feelings he didn't want. Feelings that were gaining momentum. A long time ago he promised himself that no woman would get inside his heart again. He didn't plan on breaking that promise, not for Callie Taylor, not for anyone.

Chapter 5

Callie pulled up to Cliff House’s security gate the next day eager to finally get this meeting with her father over with. In her opinion the first time doing anything always seemed to be the most difficult and awkward. She didn’t expect this to be any different.

Despite this fact Callie wasn’t as nervous today about meeting her father as she had been on Friday afternoon. Perhaps she had Dylan to thank for that. He'd told her a lot about Warren when they’d spent the day together. Or maybe it was because her mind was so worried about how the rest of her father’s family would react, that it couldn’t be bothered with anything else.

Her brief meeting with Sara told her that not everyone wanted to welcome her into the family with open arms. What if her father’s wife and their son shared Sara’s sentiment?

Stop worrying about it
. Callie parked and got out her car.
If they don’t like me, there’s nothing I can do about it. Remember he invited me here. I didn't ask to come and after today I never have to come back if I choose.

After being greeted by the same expressionless butler, he informed her that Mr. Sherbrooke was waiting for her in the study.

As Callie followed the butler through the mansion, she let her eyes wander. It appeared as if no one else was around. Did that mean only her father was home? Or did that mean the whole family was waiting for her together? She knew she wasn't ready to meet the whole family at once. Talk about overload.

A feeling of deja vu washed over her when the butler stopped and knocked on the same closed door. Clasping her hands in front of her, Callie waited as the butler spoke.

Almost as soon as the butler told the room’s occupant she was there, the door opened further and Callie found her self staring into eyes identical to hers.

If she’d had any doubts about their relationship, they were gone as she stood staring at Warren Sherbrooke. She’d always wondered who she’d inherited her unusual eye color from. Everyone else in her family had some shade of brown eyes, yet she had eyes so blue people often commented on them. Warren Sherbrooke’s eyes were the exact same shade. The pictures she'd seen on the internet hadn't done them justice.

Smiling tentatively, Callie extended her hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Mr. Sherbrooke. I hope you're feeling better.”

Somehow calling him Mr. Sherbrooke seemed too formal considering this was her father after all. At the same time calling him dad didn’t feel right either, and she didn't want to appear rude by calling him Warren.

Momentarily his eyes got misty. For a second she thought he might cry, but then he returned her smile. “I'm much better. Please come in.” Taking her by the elbow, he led her to the leather sofa. “We have a lot to talk about.”

That was an understatement if she’d ever heard one. She had a million questions. And with her mother gone, he was the only he who could answer them. The only problem was she didn't know how to start.

Should she just take control of the conversation and ask him the questions which had been plaguing her since she learned the truth? Or should she let him set the pace and tone of the conversation?

Man, she wished there was a Dummies Guide to Meeting Your Father for the First Time book. There seemed to be one on everything else these days.

“
Would you like something to drink?” Warren asked once they were both seated. “Or something to eat? I thought we could join the rest of family for lunch, but if you’re hungry a light snack can be prepared now.”

Though only a casual drinker Callie thought a glass of wine might be a good idea, but she didn’t say so. After all it
was
only ten o’clock in the morning. “I’m fine thank you. I ate something before I left the motel.”

“
You have your mother’s smile,” Warren said after a moment of silence. “She was a wonderful person. I was sorry to hear that she passed.”

When it came to her mom’s death, her emotions were still to raw and Callie fought back tears. “She was a great mother. There wasn’t anything she wouldn’t do for me.”

For the next several minutes Warren asked her questions about where she’d gone to school and what grade she taught. All the while the only thing Callie wanted to discuss was how her parents had met, and why he hadn’t tried to keep in contact with her mom. But how could she bring up the subject without seeming rude?

“
Dylan told me you only recently learned about me,” Warren said. She’d just finished telling him about her students.

The mere mention of Dylan’s name had her remembering the brotherly kiss on the cheek he’d given her the night before. Although it’d been innocent enough, it set her skin on fire and left her yearning for more.

Now isn’t the time to be daydreaming
.
There will be plenty of time for that later.

Callie refocused her thoughts away from Dylan. “I always thought my father died in a car accident. That was what my mom told me. Her friend told me the truth after she mailed the letter to you. Mom asked her not to, but she felt guilty about keeping it from me. She felt it was only fair that I know.”

An unexpected stab of anger pierced her heart. Damn it. They’d always been so close. Knowing that her mom had lied to her hurt like hell. She hated lies. For as long as she could remember her mom drilled into her that lying was bad. That nothing good could ever come from lying.
To bad you didn't follow your own advice Mom.

Again her father’s eyes filled with unshed tears. “I never knew Ruth was pregnant. She never said a thing to me.”

She’d been unsure of how to ask him about his relationship with her mom, but now seemed like the perfect time. Taking a deep breath, she slowly exhaled and hoped he wouldn’t think her question was too personal. “How did you and my mom meet? I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about it since I learned the truth but I can’t come up with anything.”

Without saying a word, her father stood. Swaying slightly he grabbed onto the back of his chair.

“
Are you okay? Maybe you should sit back down.”

“
I'm sorry. This food poisoning has taken a lot out of me. Would you retrieve the photo album on my desk?” Warren answered sinking back down into his chair.

Callie stood to grab the large leather book on the desk. “We can do this another day, when you're feeling better. It's really okay.” The book in her hands was heavy, and she wondered how many years of memories were contained inside.

“
No. I'll be fine, Callie. Enough time has already passed,” Warren insisted taking the book. “Growing up I would spend several weeks here during the summer with my family. When I got old enough, I would often spend weekends and school vacations here by myself.”

“
I was probably about sixteen when I first meet your mother. She would often be working when I went into her parents’ store,” he continued. “Unlike a lot of people, she always treated me like a regular Joe. She never tried to impress me. Honestly, I don’t think she even liked me the first time we meet.”

Pausing, he smiled as if thinking of forgotten memories. “But we became friends.” Warren flipped through the pages of the photo album on his lap. Stopping at a page near the back, he removed a photo from its protective sheet.

“
Whenever I was here, we spent time together. Things continued like that for several years. Then the winter before my last year at Harvard our relationship changed.”

Callie accepted the photo Warren held out to her. The picture had been taken at the beach. In it her parents stood with their arms wrapped around each others waist. Both were smiling as if they didn't have a care in the world.

“
You started dating?”

Warren nodded. “Very few people knew. My parents weren't here much that year, so they never had any idea. I planned on telling them when I saw them that fall, but in September your mother just broke things off. She wouldn’t take my calls, and she returned my letters unopened.”

She knew the important parts of the story from there, at least from her mother’s point of view. “Did you ever try to see her. Talk face to face?”

“
No, I let my pride get in the way of that. Now I see what a mistake that was.” A severe frown settled on Warren’s face, and Callie truly believed that he was deeply sadden by the events of the past.

“
Maybe if I had, she would’ve told me,” he said in a voice not much above a whisper.

The remorse in his voice tugged at Callie’s heart. Could someone sound that sincere and be lying? “According to her friend, Helen, my mom wanted to protect you. She knew how important image was to your family.”