His Billion-Dollar Dilemma Read online

  He nodded dumbly as she fled from the room. All the wind had been taken from his sails and he sat adrift, waiting for his brain to reengage.

  What the hell have I gotten myself into?

  Chapter Five

  Helen ran to her room and leaned against the door after closing it. Her knees wobbled, her heart raced, and her lips still tingled from kissing Simon. Holy hell, that had been good. Intense. Exhilarating. Awesome. She almost sang the last word.

  After pushing through the initial panic, she’d even managed to try one of the moves she’d often read about in books, nibbling across his lips. She had no idea if Simon had enjoyed the kiss, he’d held himself so stiffly, but then he’d probably been kissed by hundreds of women much more expert than her.

  If only David hadn’t interrupted them. No. Even if David hadn’t shown up, she wouldn’t have gone much further. Baby steps, get used to kissing, and maybe next time with a little more partner participation, then perhaps he could move on to putting his hand on her hips, holding her loosely. Even managing that would be considered a huge victory. She would give herself one day to experiment. One day to forget Simon was the enemy, and use him to recover that piece of herself that had been damaged well over a decade ago. She’d regain her sensuality if it killed her.

  After tossing and turning most of the night, Helen made her way downstairs to the kitchen. She could hear deep voices coming from the heart of the home, one of which was Simon’s. Her heart raced just thinking about seeing him again. Giving herself a stern lecture to act her grand old age of twenty-seven and not the giggly teenager she felt like, she pushed open the kitchen door.

  Jason stood in his usual position, behind the counter, taking breakfast orders. Liam was already dressed in jeans and a T-shirt, tucking into a plate of eggs and bacon. Lorelei sat next to him, wearing a silk wrap, hair still damp and her face clean of makeup. She was so beautiful. Helen resembled a scarecrow next to her. And Simon, he had on jeans and a short-sleeved button-down shirt in a light brown color. His hair was damp, a dark curl falling over his forehead. He smiled as they locked gazes, then pulled out the chair next to him.

  “What can I get you for breakfast, Helen?” Jason appeared beside her and placed a steaming cup of coffee on her place mat.

  “Really, Jason, I can get my own breakfast. Don’t you ever get a day off?” Helen stirred a teaspoon of sugar and some milk into her coffee.

  “I don’t consider this work. I love to cook for people. Don’t tell Liam, though, or he may stop paying me,” Jason said with a smile for his employer.

  “And lose you to someone else? Not a chance. I know when I’ve got a good thing going,” Liam said.

  “Well, in that case, are those your breakfast muffins I smell baking?” Helen asked, sniffing the air.

  “Yup, they’ll be ready in a couple of minutes. I made them especially for you,” Jason added.

  Simon shot a glare at the cook’s back. He couldn’t possibly be jealous, could he? Nah, they’d only shared a kiss, which while for her might be monumental, was probably more of an everyday occurrence for the handsome man.

  The green-eyed monster tugged at her guts. Now who was feeling jealous?

  Jason placed a huge plate of eggs, bacon, and toast in front of Simon before refilling his coffee cup. “Eat up, man. You’re gonna need your strength to keep up with Liam on the bike,” he said.

  “Not anymore,” Liam replied. “I’ve got something worth living for now. I’m not going to be taking any chances.” He leaned over and kissed the top of Lorelei’s hair.

  “Well, it’s been at least fifteen years since I was last on a motorbike, and I’ve never ridden off road. So I’ll probably be lagging far behind all of you. Just come back and pick me up on your return,” Simon said.

  “Don’t worry. David falls off on a regular basis. We stop all the time to help him,” Liam said.

  “So, while the men are getting all muddy, Helen, I thought we women could visit a couple of the markets, have a nice lunch and then maybe a spa treatment. What do you think?”

  “Sounds wonderful,” she said. Except it was the day away from Simon, reducing her time to experiment with him. “What time do you want to leave?”

  “Whenever Mandy and Alina are ready,” Lorelei answered.

  “About eleven thirty then,” Jason said with a laugh. He put a fresh-baked muffin in front of Helen. The steam and aroma of the spices and banana made her stomach rumble in anticipation.

  She glanced at the clock above the door; it was now eight thirty. “That’ll give me a couple of hours to learn some basic Russian phrases.”

  She pulled apart the muffin, forgetting it had just come out of the oven. Dropping it back onto the plate, she was even more surprised when Simon took her hand, placing a gentle kiss on each of her singed fingers. The burn from the muffin had nothing on the scorching heat left by his lips.

  “Thanks,” she mouthed, hoping Lorelei and Liam were too engrossed in their breakfasts to notice the blush creeping up her face.

  “All part of the service,” Simon whispered back. Then he gave her a smile that melted her insides.

  She peeked through her lashes across the table. Both her hosts had huge grins on their faces. Busted.

  “Maybe we should all stay together today,” Lorelei said.

  “No, no, it’s fine.” Helen was disconcerted at the breathlessness of her voice. He’d just kissed her fingers and already she was about to turn into a puddle. She’d better revise her experimentation plan.

  He gave her another sexy smile, as though he could read her mind, before finishing off his breakfast.

  …

  Simon put his fork and knife on his plate and finished the last dregs of his coffee. Helen beside him was popping small pieces of the now-cooled muffin into her mouth. He wanted to kiss her. Badly. Last night’s teaser kiss was eating away at him. He wanted more, much more. But he also realized he had to take things at a glacial pace with Helen. The last thing he wanted was to add to her intimacy issues. If he made things worse, he’d deserve whatever punishment David, and probably even Liam, would give him.

  Unable to sleep after she left his room, he’d reread her proposal. It showed some surprising insight into the engineering market and was a solid business plan. There was real potential. However, it wasn’t what he did. If he changed his MO at this stage it could open the door to all kinds of issues in future. And his only motivation would be his developing emotional attachment to Helen. Still…

  His musings were interrupted by David’s arrival, without Alina.

  “Morning, all,” David said. His gaze darted between Simon and Helen as though still confused about the nature of their relationship. It wasn’t Simon’s place to enlighten him. If Helen wanted to explain then that was up to her. She winked at him, a secret smile on her lips. It seemed she wanted to see her brother sweat a little.

  “Liam, can I use your computer or get your wifi password? I have a few reports I need to send to New York,” Simon asked.

  “Sure, no problem.” Liam stood and Simon took that as his cue to leave as well. Before moving away from the table, Liam bent down and gave Lorelei a long, lingering kiss. A wicked idea spurred on by Helen’s wink took over Simon. He raised an eyebrow to Helen, silently asking her permission. Her smile was all the encouragement he required and he bent and gave Helen a long kiss as well, although he was careful to keep lots of space between their bodies so she didn’t feel pressured. When he lifted his head, Helen seemed dazed but not upset. She gave him a wobbly smile; no hint of panic clouded her gorgeous blue eyes.

  An hour later, Simon leaned back in Liam’s comfortable office chair and stretched his arms in the air. As Liam had entered the password into Simon’s laptop, they’d had a productive discussion about a problem Simon had with one of his recently acquired tech products. Liam promised to have a look at the software and see if he could spot the issue. That one conversation alone had been worth the delay in his return to New Yo
rk. If it worked, Simon could sell the product to the military and make billions.

  Oddly enough, it was the triumph on Helen’s face after their kiss in the kitchen that lingered as the true victory so far that weekend.

  After a sleepless night he should be lethargic, running on empty. Instead he felt energized, excited even. He was looking forward to a day doing guy things with Liam, Jason, and David. And then an evening in Helen’s company would be the bonus to a very different day. If he was back in New York, he’d be reading reports, analyzing new business opportunities. Maybe, just maybe, if the weather were fine, he’d go for a jog around Central Park, but he’d have his earbuds in and be listening to some dry economic lecture and not enjoying the day.

  By the time they returned to Liam’s house late in the afternoon, Simon was covered head to toe in mud and he hadn’t laughed so hard or so long in all his life. Despite his fears, he’d been able to keep up with the others. And true to Liam’s prediction, they’d had to rescue David more than once when his bravado had been greater than his skill.

  The four men were sitting on the terrace, still in their riding leathers, enjoying a beer, when they heard car doors shut on the drive.

  “Sounds like the women are back,” Liam said.

  Simon saw his host visibly relax, although he’d been happy and laughing throughout the day; a contentment and peace came over him at the knowledge that his wife was home. Simon recognized the signs, because it was what he was experiencing at the thought of seeing Helen again.

  If anything this weekend should make him want to set sail and never come back, it would be the joy that flowed through him now. Tomorrow he’d be back in New York and would never see her again. Damn it, no, he wouldn’t let that happen. The best businessman could sense an opportunity, pursue it through to the end. He’d do that with Helen.

  …

  Helen wiped damp palms on her black pants and followed the other women toward the terrace where they could hear the men laughing. Although she’d somewhat dreaded the thought of spending the day in stilted silence with her new sister-in-law, it hadn’t been bad. Alina had done her best to converse, and the few expressions Helen had managed to learn in Russian had helped to break some of the ice. In fact, with the help of a translation app on their phones, they’d managed to communicate quite well.

  The wine at lunch had flowed as readily as their laughter, so Lorelei suggested they visit the attached spa while they waited for the alcohol to work its way out of their systems before they drove back home. The other women had elected to have body wraps and massages. But as Helen wasn’t comfortable with strangers touching her, she’d opted for the facial package instead.

  She ran a finger over her left eyebrow, to make sure some of it was still there. The beautician had suggested a bit of threading and before Helen knew what had happened, her brows had been turned from bushy to perfectly arched. That, plus the expert makeup application, and she hardly recognized herself in the mirror. When the other women had seen her, they’d insisted she ditch her glasses and wear the emergency pair of contacts she always carried with her in case her glasses broke.

  So, here she was, eyes naked and exposed to the world, about to see the man who turned her insides to a quivering Jell-O dessert. Don’t be an idiot. Simon’s not likely to notice my little improvements. It had once taken David two weeks to realize she’d cut a whole twelve inches off the length of her hair.

  “You look gorgeous,” Mandy turned and whispered to her as she lagged behind the others. “Now square your shoulders, lift your head, and give him your biggest smile. I bet he’ll fall off his chair.”

  Sure girlfriend, because one afternoon at the spa has turned me into Angelina Jolie. But she followed Mandy’s instructions anyway. Because defying the outgoing brunette was as easy as trying to swim against the tide.

  Following the other women out onto the terrace, she nearly ran into Mandy when she stopped. Helen peeked around the tall woman’s back, wondering what had halted the others so suddenly. Four filthy men stood in front, arranged like a badly organized police lineup, covered head to toe in caked-on mud. Eight bottles of beer sat on the round metal table where they’d been lounging.

  “I thought you guys were going for a bike ride. I didn’t realize you were going to have mud baths,” Lorelei said. She evaded Liam’s grasp as he tried to pull her against him.

  “We were waiting for you ladies to come home and wash us up,” Liam said.

  Lorelei squealed as Liam lifted her up and threw her across his shoulder in a fireman’s carry.

  “Liam, this is outrageous. We have guests,” she said. The giggle she emitted as he playfully slapped her bottom counteracted her stern words.

  “Our guests can look after themselves for a few hours. We have reservations at Bottega for eight p.m., everyone. It’s Jason’s night off. A car will pick us up at seven thirty,” Liam said, Lorelei still slung over his shoulder. “Now, if you’ll excuse my wife and me, we have some cleaning to do.” With that announcement he strode through the door.

  “Don’t you dare, Jason,” Mandy said to her fiancé.

  “If you come with me peacefully, I won’t need to throw you over my shoulder,” Jason said.

  “Huh, I’d like to see you try,” Mandy retorted, then turned and ran toward the house as Jason chased after her.

  David held out his hand and Alina took it with a warm smile before they, too, disappeared into the house.

  That left Helen and Simon standing, facing each other, across the deserted terrace.

  “Do you want a drink?” He pointed at the cooler propped against one of the chairs. “I think there’s only beer, though.”

  Helen searched his face, covered in mud, which seemed to make his eyes greener. Rather than rush off to the shower he seemed happy to stay with her. “I’m not really into beer, but I’ll get a glass of wine from the house. Are you sure you don’t want to wash up?”

  An odd light flashed in his eyes before he answered. “No, I’m good. You will come back, won’t you?” He looked almost afraid that she’d disappear.

  “Yes, of course.”

  She returned a few minutes later with a glass of the white wine from Liam’s vineyard. Simon had pulled off his borrowed riding leathers and sat in his jeans and T-shirt; his face was still streaked with mud. He looked relaxed and so sexy.

  “You’ve changed again,” he said when she sat next to him on the terrace. When she glanced down at her trousers and green top she’d put on first thing in the morning, he continued. “Not your clothes, your face. You’ve lost the glasses and tweaked a few things. A tiny part of me hopes the changes are to impress me, but an even bigger part wants it to be because it’s something you want.”

  “I guess it’s a combo of both,” Helen said. “I wanted to make the changes, but perhaps you’ve been a bit of an impetus. At first I wanted you to take me seriously as a business professional…”

  “And now?” He leaned forward and ran his hand from the tip of her index finger up to her elbow.

  Rather than set off a wave of panic, it caused a cascade of nerve endings to come alive all over her body. “And now I want you to see me as a woman,” she whispered.

  “I do,” he answered. “A strong, amazing woman.” He smiled, dislodging a few flakes of mud that fell onto his jeans.

  “Are you sure you don’t want to get cleaned up?”

  A gleam entered his eyes. “Something wrong with my mud mask?”

  “No, it’s just…” It makes you so rugged and sexy I can’t think straight. “…it looks uncomfortable.”

  He rubbed a hand over his jaw and a shower of dried mud peppered his shirt. “It is a bit itchy. Care to help me get rid of it?”

  Her gaze ricocheted to the house where the others had disappeared. Simon’s soft laugh brought her eyes back to him.

  “Unfortunately, I don’t think we’re ready for that,” he said. “How about some water and a flannel here on the terrace?”

&nb
sp; This could work. Kisses were fabulous but eventually more than lips needed to become involved. “All right, wait here. I’ll get a damp cloth.”

  …

  Helen returned a few minutes later carrying a bowl of water and a couple of towels thrown over her shoulder. Simon swallowed and braced himself for a sensory onslaught. Thankfully he was already sitting, because he was pretty sure she’d notice her effect on him if he was standing. His jeans fit a bit too snugly to hide much.

  He wasn’t quite sure what it was about the thought of being touched by Helen that turned him on, but it did. Maybe it was her innocence and hesitancy, or maybe it was the combination of bravado and fear that made him want to challenge and protect her at the same time.

  When Liam had slung Lorelei over his shoulder and gone upstairs for some obvious husband-wife time, envy had pulled at Simon’s gut. He’d wanted to do the same to Helen yet knew it was impossible. Maybe one day. Which was the other thing that scared the pants off him, his wanting there to be a day when Helen looked at him the way Lorelei gazed at Liam. She was going to be his employee, for God’s sake, even if only for a few weeks. He couldn’t have an affair with her. And that’s all it could be, an affair. Because considering the disaster of his parents’ marriage, the last thing he wanted was to enter that institution. But based on the envy in Helen’s eyes as she’d watched all the couples at the dinner table last night, she was looking for a permanent relationship.

  She put the bowl down carefully on the table before soaking one of the towels in the water. The dry towel she draped across his chest. He extended his legs so she could stand between them. With her bottom lip between her teeth, she put one hand on his shoulder before placing the damp towel over his face. When the mud had softened a bit, she began to gently wipe it away with the other side of the towel.

  “How did you manage to get so dirty? I thought the helmet and goggles would have protected you?” Helen asked.

  “They did. Until Liam, Jason, and I stopped to have a drink and took off our headgear. Unfortunately, David chose that moment to wipe out in a huge mud puddle, drenching us in the process. By the time we sorted him out, the mud had dried.”