Page 12 of Wilde Sanctuary

“No, it’s not about the money.”

Charlie smiled in what she hoped was encouragement. “Then what is it?”

“Why?” Rhett’s eyes narrowed. “I’m not going to sell, so you don’t have to feign interest.”

Charlie’s smile fell. “You really don’t think much of me, do you?” She pulled her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, hugging herself to ward off the sudden chill that had nothing to do with the temperature in the room. “What have I done? Not my father, not his company, but me. What have I possibly done to give you such a poor opinion of me?”

“Charlie—”

“Oh, don’t. I’m going to bed. You can sleep in your truck.” She untucked her legs and, not giving him another look, headed to the bedroom.

She’d almost made it when a clap of thunder sounded so loudly she dropped to the floor in a crouch with her hands over her ears. Even with her eyes squeezed shut, the accompanying flash of lightning was as bright as daylight. She let out a scream, wrapping her arms over her head.

A loud crack rent the air, a tearing sound of wood splitting, followed by a crash as a tree came down so close Charlie thought she was about to be flattened. The ground shook with the impact, and she whimpered in fright. She could hardly hear the storm over the sound of heart started pounding in her ears, and she struggled to breathe evenly.

“Hey. Hey, it’s alright. I’ve got you.” Rhett’s deep voice gave her something else to focus on apart from the storm.

She opened her eyes to see him crouching in front of her, his hands hovering midway between them as if uncertain if he should touch her. Another boom of thunder sounded and before she realized it, she had launched herself into his arms.

“It’s going to be alright,” Rhett said, tucking her head into his chest and gathering her close. “Summer storms aren’t common down our way. They’re usually further away in the mountains.”

Being held by him shouldn’t feel as good as it did. There are plenty of very good reasons to not get involved with Rhett, but as Charlie relaxed in his arms and focused on his voice, her breathing calmed, and she didn’t want to be anywhere else. She slid her arms around him, and he dropped a kiss on her forehead.

“What was that noise?” She asked in a small voice.

“A tree coming down. Sounded pretty close, too.”

“Oh.”

“It’s going to be ok, beautiful. I promise.”

Despite everything, she believed him. Even with the rain smacking against the windows and the wind howling through the trees, she believed him.

Rhett settled against the wall, pulling her sideways onto his lap, his powerful arms around her. She felt worlds away from the violent storm outside.

She pulled back from where her face was buried against his chest. “Rhett?”

He reached up to smooth a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “Mmm?”

“I thought you didn’t like me.”

Charlie’s eyes were bright, her cheeks hot as she stared up at him. This was worse than being a teenager with a crush. Her stomach was in knots.

“I like you,” he said simply.

Her brows knit in confusion as she frowned.

“I like you,” he said again, turning her chin gently with one finger so their eyes met. Clear blue and amber tangled. “Charlie. You are the most beautiful woman I’ve ever met. You’re funny and determined, and I like you more than I should, considering I’ve known you for less than a week.”

“And because of who my father is,” she said.

He nodded. “And because of who your dad is, yeah.”

Her memories of her childhood were of waiting up as late as her nanny would allow for her father to come home, only to fall asleep on a small chaise lounge in the entryway of their Manhattan apartment. She would see him for a brief few minutes on the weekend if she was lucky. When she had been old enough, she was sent to boarding school, spending holidays alone in the empty apartment her father barely slept in.

Sometimes she wondered what her life would have been like if her mother had lived. Charlie was barely two years old when her mother had left her with her father to marry a tech billionaire. She’d died shortly afterwards when the private jet she’d been in had crashed.

“Is that why you seem into me one minute and then ready to rip my head off the next?” She asked, a twinkle in her eye and her lips twitching.

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