The Billionaire’s Girlfriend Bet - Leslie North Page 0,25
over. He ran over her townhouse in his mind’s eye, and she was right—save sticking it in the backyard, where it would rapidly deteriorate, her house wasn’t big enough to receive something like that. A fact he had sort of overlooked in his eagerness to do something nice for her.
“I really wanted you to have it. But you’re right.”
She smiled up at him, squeezing his arm. “That’s very nice of you, though.”
“Can we just pretend that you accepted my gift, and it’ll fit nicely in your home gym?” he asked.
“Absolutely. And trust me, in this imaginary home gym, it fits wonderfully.”
He grinned, getting lost in the contours of her face again. “Fine. But I still need to do something nice for you.”
She swatted at his arm. “No, you don’t.”
“But I want to,” he insisted, stepping closer to her. Michelle had a magnetic quality to her. He couldn’t ignore it, much less step away. It was like wherever she was, he wanted to be there too. Their few days between each visit had started feeling more and more like an eternity.
“Well, that’s sweet of you.”
“How about I just move on to the next nice thing I was trying to plan for you?” he asked, reaching for her hand. He started swaying slowly, almost like they had on the dance floor at dinner last week.
A blush stained her cheek, and she watched him shyly. “What could it possibly be?”
“I remember a certain someone told me they’d run a 5k a day if they could,” he said, finally sliding his hands over the tops of her hips. They were mere inches away, but he still craved more. Closer. All of her. “Well, I found out there’s a 5k coming to a neighborhood near us this Saturday. Wanna do it?”
She gasped. “Really? Do you know what the entry fee is?”
He shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. I’m paying.”
“Blake—”
“Don’t you naysay me. I have money, and I’m going to spend it on you.” When her blush deepened, he added, “On things that you want to do, and make you healthy and all that shit. So, yes. If you can find the time to run the 5k, and childcare for Mollie, I say we do it.”
Her eyes lit up. “We?”
He laughed. “Oh, didn’t I mention? I’m going to struggle through this 5k as well. If you’re doing it, I might as well give it a shot and try something new.”
She squealed, tossing her arms around his neck. “Blake! This is going to be so fun! You’re going to like it. Even if you walk the whole thing.”
“Thank you for the early vote of confidence.”
She giggled into his shoulder. “That’s not what I meant. It’s just a nice activity, whether you walk or run.”
“Uh-huh,” he said, squeezing the tops of her hips. “Cover your tracks all you want, I know what you were trying to tell me.”
She shook her head, tenderness shining in her eyes as she looked up at him. “Blake, you are a very special man.”
And with the way she was looking at him, he was tempted to believe it. It wasn’t that he thought poorly of himself, but for some reason, when Michelle said it, it really meant something. She had a way of lifting him up, higher than even he could lift himself.
The truth was that he only wanted more of her.
And for however exciting it all was, it scared the shit out of him.
9
Saturday morning at seven, Blake was knocking on her door.
Michelle raced to answer it. She’d been waiting for a half hour already, jumpy with nerves and caffeine. It wasn’t that the 5k scared her. No, it was Blake.
He was proving himself left and right. Showing up as a thoughtful, well-rounded gentleman who was insanely gorgeous and who just happened to have more money than she’d probably ever seen in a bank account at one time. Really, Blake was everything that she’d ever dared to want and then some. He was everything she needed. Part of her was still scared that he was a little too perfect—that there was a flaw she was missing or overlooking, and that her trademark horrible taste would come back to bite her in the end. But another part of her—a part that was growing stronger every day—wanted to believe in him. In them. Which meant that she had a lot of decisions to make, and soon.
Blake’s smiling face behind her front door dissolved some of the nerves that had plagued her since waking up. She’d barely