The Barista and the Billionaire Page 3

  “We’re starting our life together,” I assured her. “Look, I know I’m being pushy, but from the moment I first held you, I’ve just had this burning need to keep you at my side. I don’t care if it’s conventional. I’m in love with you.”

  “You don’t know me,” she challenged. “What if I’m just some money-grubbing gold digger after your fortune?”

  “You can have it,” I answered with a shrug. “I’ll give you everything if it keeps you with me.”

  “You really do love me?” She looked up at me, tears pooling in her beautiful eyes. “This is okay? Falling in love so quickly?”

  “Everyone falls in love quickly,” I told her. “There just comes a moment in a relationship when you realize you’re in love. Does it matter if it’s a minute or a month? Does it change anything?”

  She shook her head.

  “Good. I’m glad we’ve straightened that out. No more running off?”

  “No more running off,” she agreed.

  “When do you want to get married?”

  “Don’t push me,” she said with a small laugh. “I should warn you, I’m not a gold digger, but I do have a mountain of debt. I hit some hard times a while back, and I’m just starting to get back on my feet.” She blew out a sigh. “I remember my parents always used to fight about money when I was a kid. I don’t want to do that. I swore I’d never live my life like that. So, I don’t want to hide my troubles from you.”

  “I’ll take care of you,” I said immediately. “What good is having a bunch of money if you can’t use it to help people you love?”

  “That’s not what I mean. I don’t need you to fix it. I’m fixing it. But I don’t want secrets. And I can’t stand being lied to. If we’re doing this, I need your promise we’ll always be completely honest with each other.”

  “I promise,” I swore to her. “In the interest of honesty, you should know I’ll be paying off your debts as soon as possible. I don’t want to argue, either. I don’t want to own you. I don’t want you beholden to me. If you want to work, of course, you can. But I don’t want anything so petty as money to keep you from feeling free.”

  “We’ll talk about it,” she said, and I knew it was the best I’d get for now.

  When we got to the house, I helped her out of the car and led her inside. My parents stood in the foyer as if they’d been expecting us. Most likely, they had.

  Chloe immediately stepped behind me, as if trying to hide, but my mother would have none of it.

  “Chloe!” She rushed forward and threw her arms around my girl. “I’m sorry we missed you last night. It’s so lovely to meet you. I’m Gayle, and this is my husband, Oliver’s father, Brian.”

  “Nice to meet you,” Chloe said softly. “I’m so sorry about my appearance. If I’d known I’d be meeting you, I would have insisted Oliver let me change first.” As if this were my fault, she shot a glare at me over her shoulder.

  “Don’t be silly,” Mom insisted. She looked behind me then back at Chloe. “I don’t see any bags. Do you want me to have Susan run out and pick up some things for you?”

  “Yes,” I said, pulling Chloe free from my mom’s embrace. “That was my plan, anyway.”

  “Perfect!” Mom said, a huge smile on her face. “Come with me.”

  She took Chloe’s hand and led her toward the stairs. I watched them go, a little miffed that my mother had stolen Chloe away so quickly.

  “What happened to her clothes?” Dad asked, his gaze following the women for a moment before turning back to me.

  “She’s a barista,” I told him. “She had kind of a rough morning.”

  “Honest work.” He nodded his approval. “I like her.”

  “I love her.”

  “So you’ve said. And she feels the same?”

  “Yes,” I assured him. “I’m going to marry her as quickly as possible.”

  “Well, if it helps, I got your mom to agree to marry me in just three months by knocking her up. You could try that.”

  “Jesus, Dad.” I laughed, clapping him on the back. “Shotgun wedding? I never knew that.”

  “What, did you think you were three months early?” He rolled his eyes.

  “Honestly, I never thought about.” I shook my head. “You’re terrible.”

  “I’m efficient,” he shot back. “You’d better get up there before your mom starts showing Chloe baby pictures.”

  I groaned and headed for the stairs, taking them two at a time to the second floor. When I got to the top, my mom was coming from my room.

  “I like her,” she said, patting my arm.

  “I’m glad. Because I’m keeping her.”

  “I’ll have Susan pick up some things for Chloe and bring them up. I gave her a robe. Let me know if she needs anything else, okay?”

  “Thanks, Mom. We’ll be okay.”

  “She’s very nervous. I remember when your dad brought me home for the first time. I’d never seen so much glamour in all my life. Your grandparents couldn’t have been sweeter to me, but I still felt out of place for a long time. It was hard to even agree to marry your father until… Well, I finally saw the light. And Chloe will, too. Just don’t push her, okay?”

  “I’ll try,” I said. “But I intend to marry her. Soon.”

  “Yeah, you Davis boys always get your way in the end.” Mom kissed my cheek before heading toward the stairs.

  I opened my bedroom door and heard the shower running in the attached bathroom. After turning the lock, making sure Susan wouldn’t walk in on us when she returned with clothes for Chloe, I started dropping my clothes in a trail across the floor until I was completely naked and opening the bathroom door.

  Once the wall of steam dissipated, my cock jumped to attention at the sight of Chloe’s naked body behind the glass of the shower stall. Water ran down her perfect figure in rivulets, and I thirsted to lick every inch of her.

  “Can I join you?” I asked, my voice much calmer than I felt.

  Chapter Six

  ~ Chloe ~

  I jumped at the sound of Oliver’s voice. I hadn’t actually expected him to join me in the shower. Not with his parents downstairs.

  “Are you crazy?” I asked. “What if someone walks in?”

  “No one would dare,” he assured me, stepping into the stall with me. “Besides, I locked the door.” His gaze raked over my body. “Fuck, baby, you’re so beautiful.”

  Even through the heat of the water cascading over me, I felt a blush creeping up my face. We’d had sex the night before, but he hadn’t actually seen me naked. No man had ever seen me completely undressed, and I felt incredibly vulnerable.

  Before I could protest his statement, he yanked me against his body and crashed his mouth over mine. His tongue probed my lips, begging for entrance, until I opened for him, a moan escaping my throat as he kissed me, his hands roaming every inch of skin he could reach.

  Fire already coiled in my core, and it was all I could do not to climb his body. If he hadn’t captured my mouth so completely, I’d have begged him to take me, but all I could do was whimper and grind against him.

  He seemed to understand what I needed, though. He walked us backward until my back hit the wall, the tile cool against my skin. His hands gripped my thighs, and he lifted me to wrap my calves around his waist as he pressed his hard length inside of my aching channel.

  Unlike last night, there was no pain or momentary discomfort. It was just smooth, intense pleasure at being stretched impossibly wide around him.

  Oliver pulled out of the kiss, his gaze absolute fire as he stared into my eyes while his hips pistoned, his cock slamming into me, one hand curled into my hair, protecting my head from hitting the wall behind me.

  “So fucking perfect,” he growled, dipping his head to lick a trail of water from my throat. “Beautiful. Sexy. Mine. Mine. Mine.”

  The word became his mantra as pounded in and out of me until I screamed, my nails digging into his broad shoulders as wave after wave of ple
asure washed through my body.

  He followed me over the edge a moment later, pressing me hard between his body and the wall as he cried out. The feel of his shaft jerking inside my pussy drew an unexpected second orgasm that made my toes curl and my vision go fuzzy.

  Oliver gently set me back on the ground, his arms wrapping me in an embrace as he kissed me again.

  “You’re incredible,” he whispered, pulling back to gaze down at me. “I love you, Chloe James.”

  “I love you, too,” I admitted. “I really do.”

  “Marry me?”

  I smiled and shook my head. “I’m sure I will, Mr. Davis. But I believe I’ve asked for a little bit of time.”

  “Fine.” Oliver blew out a sigh before reaching for a bar of soap. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”

  He lathered his hands and proceeded to run them over my skin, starting at my shoulders, down my arms, across my chest, spending an inordinate amount of time washing my breasts before moving down my stomach, over my thighs and all the way down to my feet.

  Once I’d rinsed off, he got out of the shower and stood dripping on the tile as he carefully dried me with the fluffiest towel I’d ever felt in my life. Then he wrapped me in the robe his mom had given me before rubbing another towel haphazardly over his own body. He slung it around his waist then led me back into the bedroom.

  “Susan probably isn’t back yet,” he said, heading over to his closet. “You can hang out in the robe, or I can give you one of my shirts to wear for now.”

  “Shirt, please,” I said. “My pants are probably okay to wear.”

  “No pants,” he said. “I’m begging you, not with the pants. I can’t see your gorgeous legs when you’ve got them all covered up.”

  “That’s kind of the idea,” I said, giggling at him. “Besides, I can’t go downstairs in just your shirt.”

  “First of all, this is our house, and if you want to walk around butt-naked you’re free, and encouraged, to do so. Second, why the hell would we leave the bedroom?”

  “Because I’m starving,” I admitted. “We were so busy today, I never got a chance to eat.”

  “Oh,” he said, his face lighting up. “I can fix that.” He reached into the closet. A moment later, he handed me one of his button-downs then pulled on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. “I’ll pop downstairs and grab some food then be back up in a minute.” He kissed me quickly before heading toward the door. “The TV remote is on the nightstand if you want to watch something.”

  I waited until he was out the door to take off the robe and pull on his shirt. It was clean, but it smelled like him, and I buried my nose into the collar for a minute before walking back to the bed and sitting down.

  Looking around his room, I wondered if I could really just move in here with him. It was insane, but at the same time, I wanted it with my whole heart. I didn’t want him to pay off my debt, but it would be kind of nice to be taken care of in a more general sense.

  My cellphone chirped, and I dug through my purse to find it. Unlocking it, I saw Dot had finally answered my text from the night before. She said she hadn’t even made it to the party, and she hoped I’d had fun. She was going to visit friends and wouldn’t be around for a while. She loved me and hoped I was doing well.

  I shook my head as I dropped my phone on the bed. She was so flighty. I still didn’t believe she and I were anything alike. Still, the fact I was considering shacking up with a billionaire I’d literally just met may have been more telling than I wanted to admit.

  “I didn’t know what you were hungry for,” Oliver said, bursting through the door. “So, I brought a little of everything. And there are a fuck-ton of bags out here in the hallway, so I’m assuming my mother told Susan to go crazy.”

  I hopped up and took the tray of food from him, almost dropping it before I realized how heavy it was. While I carried it to the desk on the far side of the room, Oliver went back into the hallway then returned with his arms full of Macy’s bags.

  “That’s not all for me?” I stared at him incredulously. “I needed a pair of jeans and a sweater.”

  “I’m sure that’s in here,” he said, dropping the bags to the floor then going back out and returning with another full load. “For the record, this is all my mother, not me. I wasn’t even here for the conversation if you remember.”

  I shook my head. There was no way I could accept all of this. Most of it would have to go back. I looked into one of the bags and spotted a Burberry purse. I’d always wanted one and had even been saving up for one before I lost my corporate job.

  Dropping to my knees, I pulled out the purse and stared at it. Was this really what Oliver’s life was like? Such excess was completely beyond me.

  “If you don’t like something, just let Susan know, and she’ll exchange it,” Oliver assured me. I looked up to see him staring down at me, concern clear on his face. “Are you okay?”

  I nodded, blinking back tears as I ran my hand over the soft leather bag. The zipper was open, and when I reached inside, there was a matching wallet included. The cost of this probably would have paid off my Visa.

  “I don’t understand why she bought all of this stuff,” I said. “I don’t need any of this.”

  “It’s not about need,” he said, sitting on the floor next to me and wrapping his arms around me. “I’m sure my mother gave Susan a very detailed list of all the things she felt you should have. It has nothing to do with need or deserve or even want.” He turned my face to make me look at him. “Chloe, you’re going to marry me. Maybe not this month or next, but you are going to be my wife. You’ll live in this house and put up with horrible parties at my side. You’ll have my babies and be with me forever. I think my mom wanted to dropkick you into this lifestyle as hard as possible. Like jumping into the deep end of the pool. You’ll have to get used to me spoiling you eventually. So, take the purse. Take the clothes. Take the corporate Amex I’m sure she had tucked into that wallet. Take everything from me, because I’m going to take everything from you. I have your virginity, I have your love, I’ll have your hand, and I’ll have the rest of your life. So, take these things because they’re just things. What we really have is so much more important than arguing over stuff.”

  “How can you make turning into a spoiled little rich girl sound so beautiful?” I asked through the lump in my throat.

  “Because you know I’m right.” He wiped a tear from my cheek. “Come on. Let’s eat. Then we’ll see about putting a baby in you.”

  “Good idea,” I agreed. “Then you can spoil our kid and leave me out of it.”

  “Not a chance, princess. I’ll spoil you forever.” He grinned at me. “But you’re right, knocking you up is a good idea.

  Epilogue

  ~ Chloe ~

  Six Months Later

  “I can’t believe you knocked up to get me to marry you,” I said, rolling my eyes at Ollie as I rubbed a hand over my belly. I wasn’t showing yet, but I hadn’t expected to be a pregnant bride.

  “Well, if you’d agreed to marry me any of the thousand times I’ve asked in the last six months, we wouldn’t have had to have a shotgun wedding.”

  Okay, so he wasn’t wrong. I’d just wanted to be sure, completely sure, that we really were meant to be together. Though, really, within a couple days of living in his house with him, I was already positive of that fact.

  When I’d discovered I was pregnant, I knew I couldn’t protest the wedding any longer. I’d offered to take him up on his original offer of Vegas, but he’d had much grander plans.

  We sat alone at our table, watching our closest friends and family dance and take in the splendor of the French countryside, where he’d flown everyone first class to join us for our wedding.

  The whole spoiling thing hadn’t let up yet. I wouldn’t say I was getting used to it, but it was a little easier to take each time he went overboard on me.

  At the moment, the house was being completely remodeled for the baby, so we’d spent a
week together alone before the rest of our family joined us for the ceremony. It was beautiful here, and my husband was so sweet and doted on me almost to the point of annoying…almost.

  “Are you happy?” he asked, leaning over to place a soft kiss against my ear.

  “I don’t think I’ve ever been happier,” I admitted. As Etta James started to play over the speakers, I reached out and squeezed his hand. “Dance with me?”

  “Of course.” He stood, pulling me to my feet then leading me onto the dance floor. “I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of holding you in my arms.”

  “Just wait until you get an armful of this baby,” I teased. “I’ll be chopped liver.”

  “Doubtful,” he argued. “But possible. God help us both if it’s a girl.”

  I laughed as I leaned my head against his shoulder. We swayed together on the dance floor, and even though we were surrounded by people, we may as well have been alone for all the attention we paid them.

  “The first time we listened to this song together,” he said, “I promised to take you to Paris and make love to you on a rose-petal-covered bed. Do you remember?”

  “It was six months ago,” I teased. “If I recall, that was a pretty big night for me. I think I remember most of it.”

  “Well, whenever you’re ready for me to make good on that, just say the word. The car is on standby whenever we want to make our getaway.”

  Okay, so maybe, he’d never stop spoiling me.

  “We should probably talk to our family before we leave,” I said. “They traveled a long way to be here with us.”

  “Fine,” he said, with a fake sigh. “Let’s start with your family. Mine will be more forgiving if we take off before we get through them all.”

  We walked over to the table where my parents and my aunt sat together.

  “Mom, Dad, you remember Oliver.” They all shook hands. “And you know my Aunt Dot.”

  “I don’t think we’ve met,” Oliver said, taking Dot’s hand in his and kissing the back of it.

  “Of course, you have,” I argued. “She was the one invited to your party the night we met. I was supposed to be her plus one, but she never showed.”