Page 43 of Eluding the Billionaire
A guy with almost the same blue-gray eyes as Drew steps forward, and they hug. “How’s it going?” the guy asks Drew, and he just grins back at him. This has to be his brother. It’s not possible that two people could have the same unusually colored eyes and not be related.
Drew turns back to me, grinning. “Katie, I’d like you to meet my mother, Aileen, and my brother, Rory. Mum, Rory, this is my boss, Katie.” I scowl at him for his use of the word boss, but he knows I don’t mean it.
His mom takes my hand. “Aye, right! I cannot believe this wee bonnie lass is ye boss.” My eyes widen. If I thought Drew was hard to understand sometimes, I have no hope of understanding his mother’s stronger accent.
Drew seems to notice my confusion and leans down to me. “It means she likes you.”
I blush, and his mom swats him on the arm. “I feel sorry for yer, having to deal with this un. He can be an eijit. Maybe you can knock some sense into him.” I smile. I’ve heard people use the word eijit before, so I know she means idiot. I imagine Drew has done some crazy things in his time that would give his mom sleepless nights.
Drew squirms and quickly turns to introduce Jackie before he walks his mother over to the table with a stack of his books on it. He’s beaming as he takes two copies of the book from the pile, signs them, and hands one to his mother and one to his brother. This is a softer side of Drew I’ve never seen before, and it makes my heart ache to know that in a few days this special man will walk away from me again. I turn and walk back outside to look one more time at the castle.
Minutes later, Drew joins me. “Why do you keep disappearing on me?”
I point up the road to the glimpse of the castle wall. “Edinburgh Castle is beautiful. I guess you don’t notice it so much having grown up near here, but to an American like me, it’s pretty amazing.”
He smiles. “Aye, it is … Ah, I was wondering … would you like to join my family and me for dinner tonight?”
I do a double take. “You’reaskingme to join you?” This has got to be the first time he has asked rather than demanded. He’s making it so hard for me to put some distance between us.
He looks down at me with his head tipped to the side. “Katie, I wouldn’t ask if I didn’t want you to come … And it will just be at the hotel. With the interview tomorrow, it won’t be a late night.” He says the word interview like it leaves a nasty taste in his mouth. I know he hates the idea of the interview, which is why he wanted his family—and me, for some reason—to be here for this part of the tour. It was one of his nonnegotiable conditions, according to Jackie.
“Okay. Maybe you need someone to make sure there’s no more late-night drinking.”
He chuckles. “That’s never going to work when you’re the reason for my late-night drinking.”
That’s the second time today he’s insinuated that he got drunk last night because of me.
We arrived at the studio just before dawn this morning, and immediately, Drew was rushed off down a corridor to makeup. Jackie ushered his mother and brother toward a table that had been set up with coffee and tea facilities while I just stood and watched all the activity around me. I haven’t had a coffee yet myself, because honestly, I don’t think I could keep it down. Today, the butterflies are not only fluttering in my stomach, but they’re doing a full acrobatic routine that would earn them a ten at the Olympics. I can only imagine how Drew is feeling.
“Are we all set?” I ask Jackie when she comes to stand beside me. She’s just returned with Drew, who is now over talking to the producer.
To the people gathered around him, he probably seems cool and calm, but I can tell he’s nervous. The smile he’s giving the producer is strained, and he keeps looking over at the door like he expects someone to come through it any minute. I know how much he hates being the center of attention and being in the public eye. Even having all these people fussing over him can’t be easy.
The producer walks away, and I wander over to the small group who he is standing with. “Drew, can I have a word?” He nods sharply. “Please excuse us for just a moment,” I tell the group, then take his elbow and lead him away to a quieter corner.
“Are you okay?”
“I’m either going to freeze or puke my guts up. I’m just fucking glad there’s no live audience.” I reach my hand up and place it on the cool crisp cotton of his shirt in the region of his heart. It’s racing. We look deep into each other’s eyes.
“You’ve got this,” I tell him when someone announces five minutes.
“Kiss me,” he demands gruffly.
Without even thinking, I stretch up, and he bends down. Our lips come together in a kiss full of emotion and heat. My hand still resting on his chest feels the beats steady as the kiss lengthens. He breaks the connection first.
“Good luck,” I whisper. He nods, then turns and walks over to the producer.
I follow to take my seat between his mom and Jackie.
“All right, hen?” his mom asks as she reaches for my hand. “Ye shakin’ like a leaf, lass.” I look down at our clasped hands. Her old, work-worn one covering my younger one. It reminds me of my own mother and how she has always comforted me when I’ve been worried.
“I’m worried for him. I know how much he hates doing this kind of thing.”
She nods. “Aye! But ye have to let ’em fly. My Andrew has always flown close to the sun. One day, when ye have bairns of your own, you’ll understand.” I’m not sure I’m following what she means about having children of my own one day, other than that she tries not to worry about Drew following his dreams. Either way, her tone and the squeeze of the hand are reassuring.
The interview starts slow with a simple recap of where he grew up and his SAS training. His answers are clear, with a sprinkling of humor. He talks about his time in Iraq and Afghanistan, which is the basis of the book. The audience is going to love him.
Then, just as the interview is coming to an end, the host asks, “Now, all the women out there are dying to know—is there a special someone in your life?” They aren’t supposed to ask him questions about his personal life. The questions should all be about the book.
