Page 51 of The Billionaire's Runaway Bride

Smiling, I sigh and roll to face him. “Sore.”

He blinks his dark eyes and regards me with a knowing smile. I’m feeling the effects of every one of his pounding thrusts into me last night, and the tender area wakes me more, wondering if he’d ‘help me feel better’ right now.

“You’re not very vocal in the morning, are you?”

I shake my head. “Coffee.”

He closes the distance to kiss me, and he quickly proves that sex might be a much more exciting way to wake up.

Eventually, we both give in to getting up. It’s not a vacation, at least it isn’t for me. Caleb volunteered to help at the Goldfinch, and while it’s not a paid or highly obligatory position to be in, I know him well enough that he’s a man of his word and he’ll be there to help. It’s a commitment, and we plan to return quickly.

Marian told me not to hurry, and as we walk to get breakfast in town, Caleb confesses that while she did make that list, she suggested that he make a date out of it. I can’t picture her being upset that we stayed out last night, and she would certainly disapprove of us driving intoxicated.

“She’s a matchmaker, huh?” I ask once we sit down for breakfast. We nabbed a booth at the crowded diner. I thought the bar was decently packed last night, at least for a small town, but it’s even busier in here. From the smells of bacon and strong coffee, it’s no mystery why.

“I think so.” Caleb smiles at me while keeping his attention on the menu. His hand remains on the tabletop, and I enjoy how easy it is to reach out and take it. I rub my thumb over his knuckles, idly relishing the contact. It’s simple. It’s sweet. And it feels natural, so much more natural than any gesture—big or small—that I endured with Jeremy.

“I get the feeling she’s lonely,” he comments. “I’m an outsider looking in. I know that. I’m a misplaced New Yorker used to being surrounded by many. Marian seems to like the simpler life and I know she’s not looking to overbook herself, but in terms of staff and friends?” He shrugs one shoulder then yawns.

“I agree.” I already know I’m trying their pancakes and bacon, so I don’t need the menu. “When I arrived, I was a hot mess, but beneath the details of the situation and the emotional insanity of that day, I just knew she needed me.”

He raises his brows and glances at me.

“Well, I needed her. Much more, or at least for more immediate things like a place to stay and a way to make money. But I sensed that she needed me too. She’s still missing John, and I imagine it’s hard for her to keep the Goldfinch running since he passed, continuing with something she thought she’d be doing with him.”

“And no kids of her own.”

I nod. “She confided in me that she couldn’t have any, which is so sad. She’s so naturally comforting yet firm. She would’ve been a great mother. Infertility sucks.”

“But it looks like she’s adopted you.”

I smile. My fairy godmother. “And she doesn’t seem to mind you…”

He barks a laugh. “Doesn’t take crap from me either.” He squeezes my hand before releasing it. “Neither do you.”

“I don’t plan to either.”

But I can’t say what I do plan on. The sex is hot. Last night, with the way he pleasured me before considering himself, he’s showing me that sleeping with him isn’t only about sating our bodies. It’s deeper than that. Something else is starting to happen between us. I can’t define it, but I wonder if it’s love.

I’ve never been in love before. Not like this, where it’s easy and just happens no matter what. The feelings I have for Caleb are strong and stubborn. He hasn’t given up on me once, and although I fought it, I now know I had no chance of ever resisting him for good. We’re pulled to each other with a defiant force of attraction and that little something more.

It wouldn’t be fair to compare Caleb to Jeremy in a physical way. I had a repeat of that lesson last night. Caleb is all sinewy muscles and lean strength. Rugged despite living in the city and having a cushy job behind a desk. Jeremy was fake, trying to pose as a buff guy without the ability to back it up. And he had no job. No occupation other than trying to control my life. He technically had a title as executive officer at one of my father’s vineyards, but it was nothing more than a name. He didn’t do anything.

So many other differences are crystal clear as the coffees arrive. I don’t need caffeine to know it. I feel it and recognize it deep down in my heart.

Caleb is a lover. He is genuine—with me. He can be sweet and rough the same he can be demanding and patient. Best of all, he wants me because of who I really am. I’m still trying to figure out who I am and who I want to be. I had a taste of determining that in college, but after I met Jeremy, finding my place and identity in the world became a joke.

This gorgeous hunk sipping his coffee and groaning like a person coming out of withdrawal wants me. Not because my parents are the filthy rich Hendricksons, but because I paint a house with him and jump in a creek. Caleb isn’t interested in me for my family’s money. He’s not pestering me about the details of my trust fund. He’s not badgering me about who we’ll see at events and soirees.

Caleb is content to sit across from me at this noisy and crowded diner full of yelling kids and gossiping locals. He’s smiling at me again, that secret grin that intrigues me. It’s a heated look, something I’ll never tire of.

“You have a one-track mind,” I tease.

He chuckles. “What?”

“I know what you’re thinking about with that little smile you’ve got there.”

“Just thinking ahead.”

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