Page 32 of Loving a Billionaire

He stroked her cheek. “You are certainly a hard woman to figure out. Most women I know would have jumped at the chance to live in the penthouse suite.”

She shrugged. “It’s like you said – I’m not like most women.”

His heart melted. It had been doing that a lot since meeting her. He dropped his gaze to her mouth. It really wasn’t the time to kiss her, and yet, he just couldn’t resist. Not now. Not after realizing that she really wasn’t after his money. He would have known if she had accepted the suite with the job.

“No,” he said in a deep voice, “you’re not like the others, which is why I can’t stop thinking about you.” He swept his lips over hers, and she sighed, relaxing into his embrace. When he finally covered his mouth over hers, she didn’t pull away. Instead, she met his soft kisses, and even when he gradually deepened the kiss, she still responded the way he’d hoped she would.

Her arms were around his waist, and she moved her hands over his back in small circles. His body burned wherever she touched. Although he’d been with many women, none of them excited him the way Talia was doing now. None of them kissed this good, either. And especially, none of them made his heart melt. The strong burning in his chest was not heartburn, but for sure, his heart was involved with this particular emotion.

Did he believe in love at first sight? No, however, Talia was certainly making him think differently.

Suddenly, he felt her jerk in his arms. Then he heard the slapping of shoes on the pavement as someone started running. Talia swung around toward the man running away from them. In the stranger’s hand, he carried her purse.

She cursed and darted after the mugger. Finally, Austin’s hazy mind cleared, and he realized someone was stealing her purse. He muttered a curse and ran after them. Talia yelled at the man, but of course, the mugger didn’t stop.

It surprised Austin how fast she was. Of course, the first time he met her, he thought she worked out a lot, but seeing her in action, proved that she was definitely fit. In fact, she was gaining on the purse-snatcher.

Just inches away from the man, Talia lunged and landed on him. They fell on the ground at the base of a palm tree, and she maneuvered herself on top of the thief. The man beneath her struggled and appeared as if he would knock Talia off him and get away. Seconds later, she punched him in the face, which calmed the man considerably.

Once Austin reached them, he stopped. His breaths were coming fast and heavy, reminding him that he needed to start exercising regularly. To have this slip of a woman outrun him was quite humiliating.

She held down the man’s arms. “Austin, call 911.”

He fumbled with his phone, still amazed of what he’d just witnessed. As he gave the emergency operator their location, he watched as Talia expertly handled the thief.

Austin quickly pocketed his cell, and moved closer to her. “Talia? Let me take over. I’ll keep him still.”

“No, I’m good,” she told him over her shoulder.

Surprisingly enough, she appeared to be handling it well. Her hands were holding the man’s arms, and the way she placed her knees on him, made Austin realize this woman knew what she was doing.

“Austin?”

“Yes.” He stepped closer, still feeling out of place.

“Will you take my purse from him?”

“Sure.” Austin bent and pulled her purse out of the man’s hand.

The thief’s nose was bleeding, and his eye was beginning to swell. He shot daggers at Talia and muttered cuss words.

Time seemed to go quickly once the police arrived. They took down Talia’s and Austin’s information on what happened as they cuffed the guy and threw him into the back seat of the squad car.

When the police drove off, Talia bent and wiped off the dirt from her knees. Austin was still at a loss for words, and yet, he wanted to know more. As she rose, he circled his arms around her and gazed deeply into her eyes.

“Are you all right?”

She hiccupped a laugh. “Of course I am.” She caressed his trimmed beard. “Are you?”

“My sweet woman, I’m not the one who that man attacked, nor was I the one who chased after him.”

“I know, but... well, I’m still worried about you.” She trailed her fingers along his cheekbone. “You sort of lost color in your face.”

“Yeah, because I was scared to death you’d get hurt.”

She shook her head. “So you’re probably wondering why I didn’t get hurt, right?”

He nodded.