AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Yeah.” She released her clutched hands, rubbing them up and down her slacks to dry her clammy palms. “It’s just thinking about the accident. I’m fine, sorry. Maybe we could put on some music for a few minutes to get my mind off it.”
Lies, lies, lies!
“Sure.” Mr. King moved like lightning, tapping the touchscreen between them until he settled on a SiriusXM modern pop station. A peppy song from some band she’d never heard before purred through his flawless black speakers, so smooth Genevieve felt like she was sitting in the front row of a live concert. “Is this station okay?”
“It’s perfect. Thank you.” Anything to keep the conversation at bay right now.
Ten minutes later, he opened a wrought-iron gate with his touchscreen and drove down a long paved private road. A modern A-framed mansion with multi-pane glass windows peaked through the evergreen trees. Genevieve’s mouth drifted open as she took in the scene. His mansion, nestled front and center at the end of the driveway, faced a pristine meadow encasing the Roaring Fork River with white-capped mountains silhouetted in the distance.
“Wow, Mr. King, this place is breathtaking.”
“Uh…yeah, thanks.” He parked and twisted his hands on the steering wheel. “Would you like to come in?”
“Oh, no thanks. I think it’s best if I just wait here since we’re on a time schedule.” She glanced at the six-car garage and another separate outbuilding with eight more garage ports, blinking as she processed it all. “That is, if this is the car you want to take?”
Mr. King bobbed his head. “This car is good. Like I said, it sure would be fun to try out its speed if we have time. Um, I’ll be right back.” He flung open his car door and took off toward his mansion.
Genevieve giggled as his lean, fit form disappeared into his unnecessarily huge estate. Was he proud of what he’d earned? Or did he feel guilty about it? What a conundrum this man was. If Jed owned something like this, he’d advertise it to the world. Now that she thought about it, though a different style, Jed did, in fact, own places like this, and he did just that. Mr. King, however, didn’t seem to want to flaunt his wealth. He hid his cars. He hid his mansion. He hid the sexy, bold side of his personality. What else was he hiding and why? She wasn’t sure, but she certainly aimed to find out.
Five
GENEVIEVE
Mr. King opened the trunk of his Tesla with the click of a button and tossed a shiny black suitcase next to his briefcase and her bags. He slid in beside her and started the engine, mapping their route to The Outlaw Resort and Casino. They listened to the peppy pop station until they reached a forested highway outside of Aspen that would take them through Colorado, followed by Utah, and finally to Nevada.
Genevieve nibbled on her lip, unable to deny her interest in everything about this quiet, mysterious man. “I think I’m good without the music now if you are.”
“Sure.” He tapped on his touchscreen, enveloping them in peaceful silence.
“Tell me, Mr. King,”—she ghosted a smile—“why are you embarrassed by your success?”
His head jerked back. “Embarrassed? I’m not embarrassed.”
“Really? Then why do you conceal it? Why so casual about it all? You park your expensive cars where no one can see them. You host all the company holiday and team-building parties at venues around Aspen instead of even once opening the doors to your impressive estate. You wear top-of-the-line Brioni, but one has to know designers to recognize your style is tailored. Your suits and business shirts are obviously custom fit.” She flailed a hand toward him, motioning up and down. “I mean, come on, you look hot wearing that, and you have to know it, but you don’t flaunt it. Why? Why make that much money and not want to draw people’s eyes?”
His lips twitched. “You think I look hot?”
An amused giggle escaped her lips. “That’s what you took away from what I just said?”
In all honesty, he was insanely hot. He looked like a refined Italian fashion model. The glasses embellished his intelligence. The floppy brown hair could be gelled to a wavy pattern that would scream groomed. And if he stuck his hands in his pockets and tilted his chin up toward the sky like he owned the world, he could be on the cover of a magazine.
She eyed him up and down as he sat poised, steering around a curve one-handed. Oh yeah, I think you look insanely hot! “What would you do if I said yes?”
Mr. King’s head swiveled toward her. “What would I do?”
“Yes, what would you do?”
He curled his fingers tighter on the wheel. “I’d ask you out.”
Holy moly! It was her turn to gulp down a breath. Why had she led the conversation this way? She always took things too far, and this was not the conversation they needed to be having. They needed to be discussing how she wasn’t girlfriend material and desperately needed his help, but just when she thought this man was a shy recluse, he turned it on and said exactly what she thought he wouldn’t.
“I wish I could say yes,” she whispered.
His eyes widened. “Then do.”
Genevieve shook her head. “I can’t right now, I’m sorry. Mr. King, I…” She pulled her lip between her teeth. “I might as well come out with it… I have a shady past”—she sighed—“and some serious, serious baggage.”
He glanced at her pinched features. “What would you say if I told you that I’m not surprised?” His eyes held a hint of challenge. “And that it doesn’t deter my interest in you?”
