Page 17 of Billionaire Unexplained: Kaleb

I frowned at her. “But you’re not intimidated?”

She flashed me a sly smile that made my dick hard all over again.

“Nope,” she answered as she plopped her gorgeous ass in the chair across from me. “You might be surprised by how many people I stand up to on a daily basis. Some people find me intimidating, too, but I’m actually not. I’m just used to fighting for what I want. I’m not usually the kind of woman who does stupid things, breaks into houses, or blubbers like a child on an unfamiliar shoulder. Most people don’t know me at all, Kaleb. Sometimes I think it’s easier if they don’t.”

I shrugged. “Being a mystery makes it less easy to get taken advantage of by people who aren’t looking out for your best interests.”

“Exactly,” she said wholeheartedly. “I’m in a vicious profession. It’s not possible for me to wear my heart on my sleeve. I’d get crushed in a heartbeat.”

Shit! We really did have a lot in common. Although I was dying to know what she did for a living, I knew I couldn’t ask. “Same here,” I echoed.

She toyed with the handle of her mug for a moment before she finally spoke. “I know we agreed not to discuss our professions, but I’m almost sure that you’re some kind of businessman. And I think I’d really hate to be your adversary.”

I didn’t contradict her since she was correct. I could be a major asshole when I was trying to get what I wanted for KTD. “Why?” I questioned, wanting to hear what she had to say.

She frowned. “I’m not sure I’d like that part of you as much as I like the Kaleb I know right now.”

“I’m not sure you would, either,” I admitted bluntly.

I bought out companies that were often in trouble. I was the hardnosed destroyer of plenty of hopes and dreams during that process.

“Lawyer?” she asked like she was hoping I’d say that I wasn’t.

“Nope,” I said obligingly after I took a sip of the coffee she’d made.

“Thank God,” she replied with obvious relief.

I smirked. “You obviously don’t like lawyers.”

“They’re necessary,” she said as she wrinkled her nose. “But I can’t say I’ve ever met one that I honestly liked. In my world, they’re always laser focused on getting what they want.”

“Well, lucky for you that I’m not an attorney.”

“But you’re educated,” she stated firmly.

“I went to Harvard,” I readily admitted.

She folded her arms across her gorgeous breasts. “I knew it. You sound like an Ivy League guy sometimes.”

“Is that a problem for you?” I asked grumpily.

She shook her head. “Not at all. Getting an Ivy League degree is a huge achievement, but I can hold my own, even though I never made it to college after high school.”

Okay, now I was really curious. She was extremely bright and unnervingly perceptive. Judging from her previous comments about her work and her intelligence, I’d assumed she was in some kind of highly specialized work that required a higher education. “Was college in your plans after high school?”

“Yeah,” she said wistfully. “But plans change. I took an opportunity that could be very lucrative instead of going to college. My parents barely made ends meet, and I had to make the practical choice.”

If her parents had been happily retired in Newport Beach, she had obviously made the right decision. I doubted that they’d suddenly come into a lot of money on their own, and it was an expensive place to retire.

“No regrets? Everything worked out for you without college?” I asked carefully.

She smiled. “No regrets. I may not be a college grad, but I read voraciously when I’m not working. I don’t think you ever stop learning. What about you? I’m going to assume that your expensive degree made you pretty successful. Are you happy with all of your life decisions?”

I knew that college wasn’t everything. It was a huge boost toward success, but I’d known plenty of college grads who were total idiots without a lick of common sense.

“For the most part, yes,” I explained. “I’m successful. I have an amazing family and some good friends.”

“I hear a ‘but’ in there somewhere,” she prompted. “Do you ever feel like something is missing?”

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