Her Billionaire Heartthrob - Kaylee Baldwin Page 0,9

are very talented.”

“I’m a hard worker,” she volleyed back.

“I have a feeling it’s both things, equally.” They stared at each other for a beat, the room charged with energy.

“Well, I probably need to get back to work.” Viola stepped back even though they weren’t actually that close, but the emotion flowing between them made it feel like they were. “Is the coast clear?”

He peeked out the window between the blinds. “Appears to be so. Though, I’m not sure how I’ll make it to my car without my new security detail.”

Her cheeks turned hot. “It worked.”

“It sure did.” His gaze lingered on her a moment, making Viola feel as if she were short of breath, for a different reason, of course.

“Well, have a good trip,” she said dismissively, looking down at her tablet without seeing a thing.

He cleared his throat and opened the door. “Would you like to get together some time while I’m here?”

She looked up, incredulous. “So you can ditch me again? No thank you. I’ve learned my lesson.” She sat back in her chair and folded her arms, an eyebrow raised.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “About leaving you like that. I wasn’t thinking.”

“Enjoy your stay, Liam.”

He took it as the dismissal it was and left the office, the door shutting firmly behind him. In his absence, the room felt bigger than it had before.

Chapter 5

Liam left Viola’s office, realizing something he should have realized a long time ago: he’d really messed up.

Before he’d even met her in Hawaii, before they’d sat beside one another in the SUV taking them to the wedding party dinner on the first night they’d arrived, he’d noticed her in the lobby of their hotel. She’d thrown her head back, laughing at something, and it had caught his attention. Straight from the text he’d been sending to someone—he couldn’t even remember who now—he looked up and was arrested by her. He’d seen beautiful women before, sure, but something about her had struck him as real, unfettered in a way he wasn’t used to in his circle of acquaintances.

But in reality, he’d fallen for her before then, even. Because they’d been emailing each other back and forth for a few weeks, discussing wedding plans—things like toasts and night-before parties. She was witty and charming, and it didn’t take long for him to look forward to her emails. He hadn’t known anything about her then, for all he knew she was married or as old as his mother, but he’d been excited to meet her.

But when he climbed into the SUV beside her and he realized that this same woman from the lobby was the enchanting woman he’d been messaging? He was already so far gone for her that it wasn’t even worth trying to dissect when it had started.

They’d talked into the night, long after everyone else broke up after dinner to explore or go to bed. They’d walked the beach, holding hands and later kissing. Liam couldn’t remember ever feeling so alive.

And then the Albuquerque store, a constant pain in his side, proceeded to implode. An embezzling manager who was also having an affair with the assistant manager, it was the kind of thing that made the news and turned their store into the butt of a joke.

Not unlike he was today, unfortunately.

So he’d gotten ahold of his pilot and headed straight for the airport. It wasn’t until he was somewhere well over the Pacific that he remembered Viola waiting for him, but by then, the stress of his real life intruded, making Hawaii and his time with Viola feel like more of a dream.

He was an idiot.

Liam avoided the crowds of people on Main Street and slipped over Spring Street to a packed souvenir shop he recalled seeing. There, he bought sunglasses, a hat, and a navy Eureka Springs! hoodie. His disguise complete, he headed out to find all the buildings that Viola had pictured in her office. First one on his list: The Old Grand Theater. That was something he had to see.

Chapter 6

“If you can’t find someone to go with you, I’ll give my ticket to Fern,” Viola’s grandma called from the living room. She sat in her favorite chair, pulling together some concept drawings for the spider that Viola didn’t even want to know about, while watching one of her grisly crime shows. Viola hated those things and couldn’t imagine why her grandma loved them so much.

“I’ll find someone,” Viola insisted. “You’ve been looking forward to meeting Dane Lowbridge for months.”

“I