Page 48 of Billionaire Unreachable: Wyatt

I couldn’t lie to him, so I simply answered, “I do. I wouldn’t have let you touch me if I didn’t.”

With that, I turned my back to him and slowly walked away so it didn’t look like I was running scared, even though that was exactly what I was doing.

I might trust Wyatt, but I wasn’t so sure I trusted myself when I was with him.

Wyatt

“Iheard that Shelby is spending the day with Tori tomorrow to get ready for the charity gala,” Chase mentioned casually after we’d finished up some work in my office. “Why didn’t you mention that she was coming with you?”

I shot my brother a warning look from my chair behind my desk, even though I already knew that he wasn’t getting his ass up from his chair to leave my office until he had satisfied his curiosity.

Chase was my brother.

He knew inviting anyone to come with me to this charity gala was unusual for me.

Hell, I even recognized that tone of voice he was using.

He was digging for information while trying to keep his approach nonchalant, hoping that I might spill my guts to him if he was subtle about it.

Chase had tried this ploy many times over the years. I wasn’t fooled by his laid back attitude. He was trying to figure out my real motivation for asking Shelby to come with me.

“I just asked her yesterday,” I informed him. “And since she’s doing me a favor by coming with me so I don’t have to put up with a bunch of superficial chit-chat, I gave Tori my credit card to take care of anything Shelby needs.”

“That’s kind of short notice for her,” Chase observed.

“Not deliberately,” I explained reluctantly. “I wasn’t sure that I should even ask her.”

My brother sent me a probing look. “Why?”

Frustrated, I raked a hand through my hair as I confessed, “Because I was a dumbass several days ago. I kissed her. She kissed me back, and then suddenly started acting like she regretted it. Things have been a little tense between the two of us. It took two fucking days for her not to look at me like she was terrified I’d kiss her again.”

Chase grinned, and I desperately wanted to deck him to wipe the smile off his face.

“I don’t think Shelby’s the type to be scared off that easily,” he observed. “So…you’re attracted to her.”

“I am,” I agreed grudgingly. “I thought that attraction went both ways, but I’m not so sure about that anymore. I don’t know what in the hell I was thinking. That asshole of an ex-husband of hers not only put her through hell emotionally, but he hit her, Chase. Maybe she just got scared.”

Chase, Cooper, Jax, Hudson, and Marshall all knew about Shelby’s history now because we were all working on solving the mystery of who broke into her home.

My brother shook his head slowly. “I think you’re on the wrong track with the assumption that she regrets it. She certainly doesn’t seem like she’s intimidated or afraid of any guy. What did you say after you kissed her?”

“Nothing. We were just talking before she decided she needed to get out of the room like her gorgeous ass was on fire. Taking off on me with no real explanation seems to be a habit for when she’s with me. I think I’d just told her that after what happened with Simone all those years ago, I wasn’t cut out for romantic relationships and that I usually preferred my solitude.”

Chase rolled his eyes and shot me a you-did-not-really-say-that-to-her look. “You said that after you’d just kissed her?”

I wanted to end this conversation like it had never happened, but I asked, “Why wouldn’t I say that? It’s true. Before Shelby came to stay with me, I did prefer my solitude.”

“Did you bother to mention that you feel a little differently since she’s been there?” he questioned.

“Probably not,” I admitted. “But obviously it was implied. I wouldn’t encourage her to stay if I didn’t want her there.”

“Take it from me,” Chase said drily. “It’s a really good idea to never assume that a woman knows what you’re thinking. That could very easily be misinterpreted. Like…yeah, I just kissed you, but it meant absolutely nothing to me because I’d rather be alone.”

I scowled at him. “That’s not what I meant, and I’m not as intuitive as you are when I’m talking to a female.”

“If you kiss a woman you really like, I’d strongly advise that you don’t immediately tell her that you’d rather have your solitude,” Chase said in philosophical tone. “Especially a woman like Shelby. I don’t think she’s the type to sleep with a man without her emotions getting involved.”

“She said she wasn’t ready for another relationship,” I said defensively.

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