Page 91 of Billion Dollar Revenge

“I’ll make a trip when I've set up my studio, and I can trust the staff to lead without me.”

Then maybe I could go for a weekend-long break.

“Family is important,” he says in a serious tone. His voice makes me think he's talking about his own.

“I love how close you are with yours.”

“They’re very important to me. No matter how annoying my brothers are. Holidays, birthdays, any celebrations, we are always together.”

I smile, but I wonder what it would’ve been like growing up with three brothers. Noisy, I bet.

“Has it always been like that, or just since your gram got sick?”

Nova has told me and Summer about his gram’s because that’s how Jeremy and Nova connected. Gram has breast cancer and Nova's dad has colon cancer.

“We’ve always been close,” he says. “Do you want a drink with dinner?”

“Sure. I’ll grab it,” I offer, wanting to help.

He smiles. A devilishly handsome one and points to an area. “Glasses are in that cupboard. Wine is in the cellar. Take the stairs on the right and you’ll see it.”

I follow the directions and enter the dimly lit cellar. I admire the wall that's full of rows of bottles on wooden racks, stretched out with a variety of shapes and sizes. The air is cool and heavy with the rich aroma of aged wines. “Wow, this is crazy,” I mumble to myself. The lights cast a warm glow over the stone walls, highlighting the labels as I try to find something that looks good. He could have warned me he had this type of selection. I'm a little lost. I must’ve been there for a while because a warm hand snakes around my middle.

“Oh,” I breathe.

As his other hand wraps around my stomach, he snuggles into my neck, his heavy breath in my ear. His voice is low and quiet as he asks, “What are you looking for?”

The electricity of his touch makes it hard to talk. But I use the energy he projects to find my voice.

“Wine.”

He chuckles, digging his fingers into my ribs, making me squirm in his arm. “Naughty girl.”

“You have too many to choose from.”

As his nearness kindles feelings of fire, I focus on breathing deeply through my nose, but it also means I’m inhaling his delicious scent.

A hot ache grows in my throat. “Spicy.”

“Spicy? Huh. Good choice.”

When he moves, I mourn the loss of the heat from his proximity.

“This is the one, then.”

I grab the bottle of red from his hands, reading the red wine label as he continues talking.

“This peppery Shiraz will go well with our dinner.”

I expect to leave the room, but his arms tighten around me once again. He kisses my neck, and I swallow a moan, concentrating on holding the bottle and not dropping it.

My knees weaken when he runs his nose up and down my throat to the side of my neck.

“You make me crazy.” His voice, deep and sensual, sends a ripple of awareness through me.

“Later,” I breathe, clutching the bottle as I twist in his arms.

He doesn't move his face from mine. I gaze into his dark, broody eyes. He’s thinking, and I don’t get long to wonder what he’s thinking about, because he reclaims my lips, crushing me to him.

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