Page 53 of Seduced By a Billionaire

“Orphaned and in shock, I’m sure.”

“I don’t remember a whole lot about that first year. I remember snippets of my mom, her perfume, her holding me, singing to me at night…reading me stories.”

Kyle put his hand to his chest and said, “That hurts my heart.”

“It was a long time ago. I’m all grown up now.”

“And yet our experiences become part of who we are. They never really leave us,” he said quietly.

Sadness clouded her features, “After five years of being shuffled around from foster to foster, I landed with an older couple, he was the pastor of a church. They had already raised a family and wanted to give something back. They met me during my week at their summer church camp. They inquired about me and my circumstances and ended up taking me on. It wasn’t meant to be permanent, but they fell in love with me and I with them.”

“You were lucky you found each other. Fate is a funny thing.”

“Fate, is that what you think it was?”

“What else?”

“Coincidence?”

“I thought I was supposed to be the cynical one,” Kyle said lightly.

“Not cynical, just realistic. When your parents fall out of the sky you tend to stop believing in miracles and mysticism.”

“And yet your adoptive father was a minister.”

“Yep ironic isn’t it? I’m not saying I have no faith, but I stopped believing in happily-ever-after a long time ago. Life is cruel and not discerning about who it crushes. Kids, rich, poor, no one is immune.”

“Yes, I can personally attest to that.”

The waiter arrived with a breadbasket and poured some olive oil on a plate, shaving some fresh parmesan cheese and ground fresh pepper on top. “I’ll be back momentarily with your soup.”

“Thanks.”

The warm bread smelled yeasty and delicious and Ella wasted no time grabbing a piece and dipping it in the oil concoction. Rolling her eyes heavenward she moaned, “Hmm, so good.”

Kyle’s eyes crinkled as he smiled warmly at Ella. Tearing a slice in half he dabbed his own bread, turning it over to coat both sides and stuck the whole thing in his mouth. “Oh yeah, that’s what I’m talking about,” he said while chewing.

“Your soup. Please enjoy,” the waiter refilled their wine goblets and motioned to a young staffer to top off their water glasses.

Kyle leaned back in his seat and studied Ella. She was beautiful, yes, but beyond that she had depth and a keen intelligence. She was interesting, exciting, warm, and fully engaged with life. Rather than break her, her difficult childhood had made her grab life by the balls and go for what she wanted. He admired her resiliency and that her humor had stayed intact.

She glanced up and caught him staring, “What?”

“Just admiring the view.”

“Do I have oil on my face?” she said self-consciously wiping her chin with her napkin.

He chuckled, “No nothing like that.”

“Well, I’m full already.”

“You’d better jump up and down to make room then, you don’t want to miss out on their daily catch. It’s always amazing.”

As if he had conjured it up, their meals arrived. He was right—it was scrumptious, and Ella practically licked her plate clean. Her cheeks were flushed from the wine and her eyes were bright with happiness.

“That was phenomenal. Thank you, Kyle.” He nodded his head in response.

“Let’s blow this joint,” he said. “We can walk around the marina and I can show you my boat.” He slipped several large bills into the leather folder and stood up.

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