Page 9 of The Billionaire's Temptation

Clarissa shuffled uncomfortably on her feet. “My mother…she had a lot of…uh…debt after she passed. There were so many medical bills and I just…well, I inherited that debt from her and…I haven’t gotten them paid off yet.”

He understood what she wasn’t saying. “And now you’re terrified of credit, am I right?”

She shrugged, neither confirming nor denying his statement. “I pay for everything I need with cash, except for the rent on my apartment, which I pay for with a check each month.”

“That’s very conservative of you, but seriously, you have money, Clarissa. I don’t think you understand how much.”

She shrugged, her gaze sliding self-consciously to the money he’d dropped onto the table. “You’re right. I still think this is all some sort of nightmare and I’m going to wake up to find out that I’m late for work. Or fired.”

He chuckled and leaned forward, pulling her into his arms to hug her comfortingly. “That’s not going to happen.” He kissed the top of her head and stepped back, but not before they both felt the magnetic pull.

“I’ll check in with you tomorrow, okay?”

She smiled and shook her head. “You don’t need to do that. I’m a grown adult. I’ve been taking care of myself for a while now.”

“Even so, I’ll still check in with you. You’re in a different world now.”

Before she could argue with him, Levi walked out the door.

Five minutes later, Levi was still sitting in his car in the driveway, staring up at the house, wondering if he should spend the night. He had a deep sense of foreboding in his bones. But was he being ridiculous? What could possibly happen to Clarissa? She was certainly safer here than at that crumbling dump of an apartment.

Pressing the button to start his car, he forced himself to concentrate on driving home. She would be fine, he told himself. She was a strong, intelligent woman!

Chapter 3

Clarissa returned to the dining room, prepared to rinse off the dessert dishes and put them into the dishwasher. Or maybe just hand wash the dishes. There were only three bowls. It didn’t make sense to waste water and energy on running the dishwasher.

But as soon as she stepped into the dining room, she found the dishes were gone. When she found the door that led to the kitchen, she discovered Martha wiping the last of the dishes and smiling contentedly as she stacked everything on the shelves.

“Dinner was absolutely delicious, Martha. Thank you. And I’m so sorry for the short notice.”

Martha wiped her hands on the dishtowel. “Oh, Ms. Fu…uh…Donata, it was my pleasure. I truly enjoy cooking, so please let me know if you have a craving for anything in particular.” She smiled as she folded the towel onto the counter. “Any challenge would be greatly appreciated.”

Clarissa grinned and nodded. “Okay, challenge accepted.” They laughed and some of the tension in Clarissa’s shoulders eased. “I guess I should head off to find a bed to sleep in tonight.”

“Would you like me to show you to the owner’s suite?”

Clarissa raised a hand and shook her head. “No, please, I’m sure you’re tired and ready for bed. I can find my way upstairs.”

Martha hesitated and Clarissa smiled and nodded, then hurried out of the enormous kitchen. It was about five times the size of her apartment and glossy with white cabinets and stainless steel appliances. There was a six burner stove, several ovens, and a refrigerator large enough to fit her entire bed inside!

Sighing, because she really wasn’t sure what she was doing here, Clarissa found the grand staircase and made her way up to the second floor. Peering into each of the bedrooms, she was impressed all over again. Each room had a different color scheme and “feel” to the décor. But it was the room at the end of the hallway that caused her to gasp aloud. It was massive! The owner’s suite had an enormous bed that faced the floor to ceiling windows that looked out onto the gardens and, further out, the pool. Joseph had installed twinkle lights into several of the trees and Clarissa smiled at the fairy-tale world.

“Too good to be true,” she murmured and turned around, exploring the rest of the suite.

There was an equally enormous bathroom with, not just double showerheads, but also what she assumed were steam spouts in the shower that was so big, it could probably fit an entire basketball team.

She hadn’t brought anything with her, but miraculously, she found a closet filled with women’s clothing. There were two closets facing each other. One was filled with men’s clothing, which she assumed was her late father’s wardrobe. But the other closet contained four walls of designer clothes. Some were in her size and others were in a size smaller. Apparently, the previous owner’s weight fluctuated a bit. But the clothes that were in her size were stunning! For about an hour, she tried on various outfits, enjoying the huge mirror that curved to show off her figure from several different angles.

“This is luxury!” she laughed, tossing another sweater onto the growing pile of clothes. She’d hang all of them up, carefully storing them back where she found them. The owner of those clothes would want them back. No one would willingly leave clothes like this!

Finally, exhaustion pushed her towards the bed. She’d found a relatively old tee shirt to sleep in, ignoring the silk negligees, some of which still had tags attached, and padded barefoot to the bed. The sheets were unlike anything she’d ever experienced before. They were soft and silky and her legs felt like they were cocooned in flower petals! Plus, everything smelled so fresh and clean! Even after she washed her sheets, nothing ever smelled this good!

As she drifted off to sleep, Clarissa made a mental note to ask Martha how she made everything smell so good!

Chapter 4

Waking in an unfamiliar bed wasn’t a usual occurrence for Clarissa. When she opened her eyes, blinking against the bright sunshine, it took her several moments to remember where she was. When the events of the previous night came back to her, she sat up and looked around.

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