Page 11 of The Bride's Billionaire

But how to go from spontaneous, carefree, no strings attached, to talking about life and real things and last names and phone numbers, he didn’t know yet. All he did know was that staring into her face, singing with her onstage, he felt strong and brave. He knew he could conquer anything while looking into her eyes.

That, and her lips were begging to be kissed. He lost track of how many times he’d caught himself staring at their fullness, wondering how they would taste. Was he in a position to start some kind of long-distance relationship? He was. He was also in the middle of a major reconstruction of his company, cutting back in areas and investing in new directions. He was insane to be out this late. Tomorrow morning, he had a pitch to a huge potential client, one he hoped to nail before he left the country. But now that he knew he wanted the beautiful Kayla in his life, he couldn’t end the night without a surety there either. And a part of him just didn’t want it to end. Pretending they had all the time in the world had been one of the best evenings he’d had in a long time.

They wandered along, hand in hand, mostly quiet, watching the people around them until he heard familiar sounds. “Bossa nova.” He squeezed her hand. “This up here is something to see.”

They rounded the corner and the Ba Ba Shack came into view. It was a bar, sort of. But the customers hung around outside of it, mostly sprawled out on the sidewalk or standing in groups. They downed the beers they took out of the fridge inside, leaving money in the jar on top.

“What?”

He held a finger up to her mouth. “Listen. I read about this place online.”

They moved closer and joined the groups standing around on the sidewalk. He peered in through the open front door. The place was packed; a group of men at the back played music. “This is classic Brazil.”

The mellow music, the somewhat jazzy traditional beat of bossa nova music filled him with nostalgia. Only he wasn’t longing for something far away, but for what stood right in front of him. “Come here.” He tugged her gently to him, held her hand, and put the other hand around her back. They moved together, and though it was a different beat than the samba, they fell into the same synchrony.

She leaned her head on his shoulder. He loved how perfectly she fit into his arms, as perfectly as she matched his personality. They swayed, a soft wiggle to their steps as they automatically added a bit of samba, their hips in unison. He held her; her hand in his felt like a caress, and the world slowed to a standstill. He didn’t want it to creep forward ever again.

“This is nice.”

“Hmm.”

They swayed, moving around on the sidewalk and the street in front of the Ba Ba Shack, ignoring everyone around them.

The music picked up and so did their feet. She backed away, shaking her hips, coming close again, and then she spun into him. He dipped her low, their faces close, her eyes intense, full of emotion. Then he lifted her, and she spun into him.

People around them cheered. Tyler was surprised to see a small crowd gathered around them. They started clapping to the beat and cheering him and Kayla on. He met her eyes and then shrugged.

A glint lit her eye. “What d’you say we give them a show?”

He threw back his head and laughed. He loved this woman. “You’re on!” The music changed again to a classic samba, so they stepped to it. The band played faster, and Tyler and Kayla moved faster, picking up their pace to the music until their feet flew as they twisted and spun and danced. He needed total concentration, but it was easy to match Kayla, to follow her steps. He swallowed, wanting to place his hands on her hips, stall their motion, and pull her tight up against him.

When the music finally ended, the crowd cheered, calling out, clapping and bouncing in the street. “You are girlfriend, no?” a man shouted to them.

They shared a look, Tyler not wanting to ruin the moment, said, “She’s pretty special, isn’t she?”

“Special, yes! You marry?”

The crowd cheered. Kayla beamed and waved to them.

“Oh, she waved, she happy.” Another one of the men pointed to Kayla and then to him. “You ask her.”

“Agora. Agora. Agora,” they chanted, laughing, cheering, and swaying together in their enthusiastic insistence that he ask her now.

So he turned to her. “Why not?” He got down on one knee. “In the spirit of spontaneity and with the understanding this is all in good fun, nothing binding, I can’t let the crowd down. And so, Kayla of the no last name, would you continue this wonderful fun we’ve had tonight every night for the rest of our lives and agree to be my wife?” A thrill of happiness jolted through him as he imagined what that would truly be like. Kayla. For the rest of his life. Every night as wonderful as this.

Joking aside, he wanted that. As he stared into her eyes, the world paused again, and for a moment, he saw the same desire in her, knew she liked the sound of that as much as he did. Perhaps he had a chance.

But all too soon, time sped up again, and she laughed. “Yes! Why not! Yes, I will marry you!”

He knew it was all in fun, but the crowd didn’t, so they went crazy. The owner of the Ba Ba Shack gave out free beers to everyone, and soon the entire street had kissed their cheeks and wished them congratulations.

“You have something.” A woman took one of Tyler’s hands and one of Kayla’s. “Hold onto this. It’s special.” She reached up and pinched Tyler’s cheek. “Be good to her.”

“Ouch. I will, okay.” He winked at Kayla. “Now I feel like we’re doing the annoying part of a wedding receiving line.”

She shook her head. “None of that. This night is about all the fun.”

“You got it.” He held up his hands and bowed to the crowd. “Obrigada.” (thank you.)

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