Page 6 of Loving a Billionaire

His breath stalled in his throat. He couldn’t let her leave now, especially since her actions made him confused, and he hated feeling confused.

When she tried to move past him, he grabbed hold of her arm. “Hey, Talia, I’m truly sorry about today. I’m extremely exhausted, and I must apologize. I’ve been up for forty-eight hours straight making a business deal.”

The smile she gave him was fake as her gaze bounced between his eyes and the grip he had on her arm. “That’s all right. I understand.”

He didn’t want her to leave like this. Ariki would be upset at Austin for brushing her off so easily. Austin pulled on her arm and her legs bumped against his exposed knees, making his robe part, displaying part of his knee. Her gaze fell to his knee and her eyes widened. He nearly laughed. What was with her innocent act?

“Talia, since I don’t want you to think that coming here was a total waste of your time, will you do something for me?”

Slowly her gaze lifted and met his eyes. “What’s that?”

“Will you give me a kiss?”

Confusion consumed her expression along with the crimson color spreading to her beautiful Polynesian cheeks. Once again, he wanted to laugh. She acted like an innocent girl, fresh out of an all girl’s school. That’s probably what Ariki had done – found him a girl who was soon going to become a nun.

When he first saw Talia standing in his living room, she looked like most of the girls Ariki had fixed up for him; sexy dress, with long hair flowing over their shoulders. Talia was no different, except she was a lot prettier and her hair was wound in a bun. He really liked how toned her body was, but he especially liked her shiny black hair. Touching it to see if it was as silky as it appeared was tempting, but he really was tired and needed sleep. However, he could spare a few minutes for her kiss. It would give him something to dream about.

“I... don’t think so, Austin. Not this time. As you said, you’re really tired, and I should be going.”

This one was a tease. Ariki must have paid her good money to trick Austin. Well, he couldn’t have that. He’d show his friend who was in charge now.

Playfully, he tugged on her arm, pulling her nearer. “Come on, sweetie. I don’t want you leaving here thinking you haven’t earned your payment.”

Suddenly, her bright red face faded, leaving it almost white. Panic coated her wide eyes. Even her lips quivered.

She licked her lips and gave him a shaky smile. “Well, if you insist. Now let me go.”

The fear in her eyes worried him. So perhaps he’d been mistaken about Ariki’s joke. Obviously, this woman was nervous. Either that or she was a very good actress.

Her chest rose and fell quickly, and the gushes of air coming out of her mouth blew across his face. He should stop this immediately. He’d never been one to force a woman, and he wasn’t going to start now.

Her legs shook as she stepped toward him. He held up a hand to stop her. “Talia, I’m not going to make you do anything if you don’t want to—”

Suddenly, she fell against him. Whether she’d tripped, or if falling was done on purpose, she landed halfway across his lap. Her face flamed a deeper red as the palms of her hands moved over his chest. One slipped inside of his robe to his neck, and he sucked in a breath. The touch was electrifying and jolted him alert.

Her eyes widened. Up this close he could see the color was brown, a very lovely brown. Almost a rust color, in fact. Her skin was lighter than most of the Polynesian people on this island.

Mumbling her apologies, she tried to stand, but all she could manage was to fall on his lap again. The embarrassment was evident on her bright face. He felt sorry for her, and he should try to make her relax so the awkward moment would pass quickly.

“It’s all right, Talia.” He stroked her soft bare arms. “I’m not going to hurt you. Take a deep breath and try to calm yourself.”

She closed her eyes and must have given up the idea that he was a scorching stove setting her on fire, because within seconds, her body relaxed, and she sat sideways on his lap. He continued to rub up and down her arms until her ragged breathing sounded mostly normal. Her body still quivered slightly, but she seemed more in control, now.

“Are you feeling better?” he asked.

She opened her eyes and met his stare. “Yes, Austin.”

Her voice was so soft, he could hardly hear. It almost sounded as if she sighed his name. When realization finally hit him, his heart leapt. Shehadsighed his name, and it sounded so sweet the way it rolled off her tongue.

Had this innocence of hers been an act? Because now her eyes told him a different story and fear was not a chapter in this tale at all. Her gaze moved slowly over his face, coming to rest on his mouth. Was she going to kiss him? He’d only accept it as long as she didn’t think he was forcing her.

“Talia, if you don’t want to kiss me, you don’t have to.”

“I don’t?”

“No.” He trailed his fingers from her shoulder, up her neck to her face in gentle caresses. “I don’t know what Ariki told you about me, but I’m not forceful.”

“That’s good to know.”