After-Party Consequences: A billionaire romance for fans of scorching one-night stands with consequences and fake dating in 2024! (Billion-Dollar Bet, Book 3) (Mills & Boon Modern) by Heidi Rice

Author:Heidi Rice [Rice, Heidi]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2024-10-10T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER NINE

SOMETHING’S WRONG.

Cade frowned as Charlotte slept in the leather seat opposite him in the Landry jet.

Why did she still look so exhausted? And why did he feel uncomfortable about the fact she hadn’t put up more of a fight this morning? Wasn’t having her at his mercy exactly what he’d flown out to Lake Como to achieve?

But he couldn’t shake the uneasiness in his gut as he observed the slow rise and fall of her breathing.

He’d been braced for an argument when she’d appeared for breakfast at the hotel. So he’d made sure he was well ahead of her—by setting up a team to relocate her business to San Francisco for the rest of the summer and getting his EA to handle any issues with her visa status. But there had been no fuss, no more angry words. Instead she’d spent breakfast discussing options for her workspace and accommodations with his property management team on the West Coast while picking at her food.

From the fascinating conversation he’d listened in to with interest, he’d discovered she was a smart, erudite businesswoman who knew what she wanted but could also be flexible and take expert advice when needed. Both qualities Cade considered invaluable when making a startup like hers a success.

She’d appeared worn-out last night, once he’d taken the time to really look at her. And while she’d finished what needed to be done this morning once they had boarded the Landry jet in Milan—settling on a space hire in the Embarcadero and a condo in the same building as his—she’d barely touched her lunch before dropping back to sleep.

He’d driven himself to exhaustion too, once—especially during the early days—pulling eighteen-and twenty-hour shifts, fuelled on coffee and adrenaline and ambition for weeks on end. He knew what it looked like when the inevitable crash came. So why was he so upset at the thought of Charlotte burning herself out?

Her welfare wasn’t his concern.

But as she shifted on the seat—struggling to find a comfortable position—he undid his belt. Touching her probably wasn’t smart. He’d learned that yesterday evening when her stunned reaction to his knuckle buzz had left him hard and aching. But he needed her well-rested by the time they hit New York. Being photographed at the party tonight would establish her as his summer date—and hopefully give the media what they wanted so they would leave him the hell alone. Plus, he hoped to run into Zane deMarco—who had some explaining to do about the candid shots of him getting up close and personal with a Helberg employee at a pretzel stand while he had already racked up at least one other date for the summer so far.

He unclipped Charlotte’s belt and scooped her into his arms.

Her eyes opened just as he got a lungful of her scent. The streak of sensation hitting his groin wasn’t helped by the sight of her wide green eyes and her heavy sigh.

‘What are you doing?’ she murmured, still groggy.

‘Taking you to the bedroom in back,’ he said.

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