Page 63 of The Billionaire Love Match

“Your whole family?”

He nodded. “Just me, my mom, and dad. Do you have a big family?”

“Just a brother,” she said. “He’s almost ten years older. We’re not super close. Nothing dramatic. He’s just so much older. Lives in Michigan.”

“Does he have kids?”

“Two. I hate not seeing them. I wish we were closer. Geographically and otherwise. Back to you. You said...” Casey paused, seeing a guarded look on his face. She stroked the back of his hand. “You said was your father’s favorite place.”

“He died when I was seventeen. Pancreatic cancer.”

She squeezed his hand. The look on his face made her heart hurt. “Oh, Colt. I’m so sorry. I don’t even—I can’t imagine what that’s like.”

She waited as he took another sip of wine. He seemed to be having an internal debate about what to say. She didn’t want to push him, but she wanted to know every single thing. Every secret. Every hurt. And they only had three hours. There was nothing he could reveal that would push her away. Except the Mr. Casual mask and she prayed he wouldn’t put it on.

“It ripped the bottom out of my family,” he said. “Everything changed. I mean, obviously, it would, but it changed us. My mom, especially. She is...” He traced the lip of his wine glass, staring down into it. “She was different then. Happy. Lighter. He brought out something in her that’s gone now. It feels a little like I lost them both.”

“I’m so sorry,” she said. “I guess she must be pretty tough, running BeaconWood. That’s a huge business.” His eyes jumped up at her and she smiled. “I googled you. Remember?”

“Yeah.”

“We don’t have to talk about this if it’s too hard.” She leaned forward, grabbing his other hand so she held them both. “Colt, it’s just...I feel like we only have this time. And so much rests on it. I want to enjoy and not feel the pressure of that, but it feels—”

“Heavy. Rushed.”

She nodded. “I mean—and sorry for bringing up the show—it’s almost over and I have no idea where we stand or what the ending looks like. And that terrifies me.”

He met her eyes. Tonight they looked more green. She loved how they changed in different lights. Or was it moods? She remembered having a mood ring in junior high—a smooth, oval stone that was supposed to change color based on your feelings. Either it didn’t work or hers was broken because it stayed dark blue, which meant “happy-love.”

“I know,” he said. “This feels...crazy. But it also feels real. And that’s the thing that terrifies me. I don’t date much.”

“The playboy billionaire? Really?”

“Honestly, those headlines are just that. I’ve taken women out, but I haven’t had an actual girlfriend since high school. Before this show, I hadn’t kissed anyone since then either.”

“But you kissed like everyone on the show. Which, by the way, was incredibly difficult to watch.”

Colt got up suddenly and crossed over to her side of the table. Her heart sped up at his closeness and her body felt like it was on high alert. He sat beside her, putting an arm around her shoulders and drawing her close. His pupils were large as he leaned in.

“Casey,” he said, his voice just a whisper. Everything in her lit up at his touch, his face so close. “I hate everything about this show. Except for you. I shouldn’t have ever signed on to do it. But I can’t be sorry, because of you.”

He brushed her hair behind her ear, fingers lingering on her cheek. Her chest felt warm and her heart raced at the touch.

“I’m not sorry either,” she said, her voice low and husky. They stared at each other, his hand still on her face. “Colt, will you kiss me? I’d like to see how different it is without cameras.”

“Don’t you remember?” he whispered, putting his rough cheek to hers, his breath reaching her ear. She closed her eyes.

“Remind me,” she said.

He kissed his way from her cheek to her lips, soft at first, like they were meeting for the first time. She put her hands in his hair and pulled him closer, deepening the kiss into something maddening. The passion and heat rose between them until Casey had to pull away, breathless, her face flushed.

“Oh!”

Sarah and Marco stood beside the table, grinning. “Don’t mind us,” Marco said. “Dinner can wait.”

Colt squeezed her hand once more and crossed back to his side of the table. “Shall we eat?” he said.

He served her some of each dish. “I’m never going to be able to eat all this,” she said.

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