Page 43 of The Billionaire's Heart

“Are you okay? You look pale,” Ian asks as he approaches me.

I only nod.

“It’s a lot, isn’t it?”

I nod again.

“Want to talk about it? You know, with words and such?” His smile breaks the tension I’m feeling.

“Yeah. I suppose we should at least have our stories straight, huh? And I don’t know much about you except you like Italian and Thai food, so I suppose we should know more about each other.”

Now he’s the one only nodding.

“I’ll start. Do you need to write any of this down?”

He shakes his head and takes the seat on the couch Brinna was just sitting on.

“Okay, well. As you may have already read, I grew up in foster care. My parents were drug addicts and the only adult thing they did was put me in foster care. I have no idea why they didn’t want me, but I’m thankful, from what little information I doknow about them, that they had. Who knows where I’d be now if they had kept me.”

I take a deep breath and wait to see if Ian will ask any questions, but he stays silent, so I continue. “I did well in school and graduated high school, but my dream has always been to work with brides and bridal dresses, so I never went to college. Besides, once I turned eighteen, my foster parents kicked me out since I wasn’t earning my keep, so college really took a backseat to shelter and food.”

“How long have you known you wanted to own your own bridal shop?”

I smile as I look off into space. “For as long as I can remember. I saw a bride on television, not sure what it was since I was little, but ever since then, I just knew that’s what I wanted to do.” I shrug my shoulders. “Anyway, that’s when I met James, and we started dating. We moved in together quickly, and life moved on. We worked, well… I worked. James delivered pizzas for a living. He never really had a dream. I don’t think he ever saw himself doing anything, ya know? He just enjoyed hanging out with his friends, so that’s what we did when we were off. Hung out.”

“Did you ever tell him about your dream of having your own bridal shop?”

I shake my head, “I did once, but he told me it was stupid, that weddings were stupid. All that money spent on one day out of your life just to end up divorced was ridiculous. He just didn’t get it, so I never brought it up again. I always thought it was a pipedream, anyway.”

“Until now.”

“Until now.” I agree. “Well, after I caught James fucking our next-door neighbor one afternoon when I came home early from work, I collected my stuff and moved out that day. Fortunately, I found an ad for a roommate needed that night and that’s how Iended up with a party crowd. After a while, the landlord kicked us out because of their extracurricular activities, and I moved in with a bunch of creepy guys.”

“Is that how you ended up in Hibiscus Harbor?”

“No. Well, kind of. I knew I needed a new start. Temping as a receptionist in Knoxville would not give me enough money to survive, and I was so tired of the cold. So, one day, I spun around, closed my eyes and pointed at a map. Bingo. Hibiscus Harbor. That was a few weeks ago, and here I am. I moved down here on a Saturday and started at your country club the next Monday.”

I watch Ian nod his head as he listens to my story. Hearing it out loud, I wouldn’t be surprised if he calls this whole thing off. I would if I were him. Why would he want to get mixed up with a foster kid from the sticks?

“What’s your favorite color?” He takes me by surprise with his question.

“That’s easy. Pink. What’s yours?”

“Blue. What’s your favorite food?”

“Another easy one. BBQ ribs. Yours?”

“Steak.”

“Just steak? No sides or anything?”

Ian shakes his head with a smile. “Give me all the steak.”

“What’s your favorite type of movie?”

“That’s easy. Anything with explosions. Yours?”

“Romance, obviously. Did you play any sports in school?”

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