No Matter What (The Billionaires of Sawgrass #4) - Delaney Cameron Page 0,2
her glance, she realized he bore a slight resemblance to Reece Diamond. From what she’d seen, the two men had more in common than movie-star looks. They also thought they were irresistible to women.
Robin might have been inclined to dismiss the rumors surrounding the CEO of Diamond Jet Service if she hadn’t heard a firsthand account of Reece’s exploits from one of her longtime customers. Trina Farmer’s wild tale about her daughter’s involvement with the hotshot pilot had given credibility to the gossip circulating on social media. As the saying goes, there’s no smoke without fire.
Two months ago, Reece had been someone Robin knew only by reputation and had no expectation of meeting. That changed when she started dating Wade Hannon. It would have been impossible to quantify her disappointment when she learned her new boyfriend was connected to the playboy billionaire. She hadn’t yet crossed paths with Reece, a state of affairs she hoped would continue. Robin had no use for men who made a career out of playing the field and didn’t care how many broken hearts they left in their wake.
Wade was cut from a different cloth. He was serious-minded, dedicated and scary-smart as evidenced by the string of letters after his name and the number of degrees on the wall of his office at the oceanic institute. He also wasn’t put off by Robin’s background or lack thereof.
Kait, her roommate and business partner, agreed that Wade was the best thing that ever happened to Robin. This wasn’t hyperbole. Her previous boyfriends had been little more than a vast desert of wasted time. They’d come and gone without an ounce of regret on her part. That wouldn’t be the case with Wade. This time her heart was involved.
Along with all the excitement of her first love was an awareness that the stakes had risen. Her happiness had suddenly become intertwined with someone else. If by some chance things didn’t work out with her and Wade, there would be no going back to business as usual. This shift in perspective made it imperative that she proceed carefully. It was also the rationale for her decision not to tell Wade about her biggest (and most embarrassing) fear. Doing so could destroy her chance for the happily-ever-after she’d dreamed about for so long.
Chapter Two
Reece urged Gypsy into the house. They’d just returned from a morning walk during which his dog had once again been snubbed by the snooty Pekinese next door.
“You might as well give it up, girl. Your age is against you, and your pedigree is questionable.”
Gypsy ignored this well-meant advice and ran over to her water bowl.
Reece had found the terrier/lab mix wandering around the airfield a few years ago. Although she’d appeared well-cared-for, she hadn’t been wearing a collar. He’d posted signs in the area in hopes of finding her owner, but no one had called to claim her. Rather than take Gypsy to a shelter, Reece had kept her.
“You’re getting a bath later on today,” he told her as he hung the leash on the hook by the door. “In the meantime, take a nap in your own bed. Not on my couch.”
Gypsy stopped lapping water long enough to send him an innocent stare, as if such an idea would never occur to her. The light brown hairs he found on the throw pillows suggested otherwise.
He grabbed his keys off the counter and headed to the garage. Reece liked fast planes. It only made sense that his fascination with speed would carry over to his land-based modes of transportation. Along with a vintage Ferrari, he owned a Porsche 911 and the latest Lamborghini to roll off the production line.
His stepbrother had texted him last night about meeting for breakfast this morning. The two men didn’t see each other often. Their jobs kept them occupied in different parts of the city, and they didn’t have any interests in common. Reece’s father had mentioned having a party to celebrate Maxine’s fiftieth birthday. He wondered if that was what Wade wanted to talk about.
Reece had lost his mother when he was four and Addison was two. His memories of her were limited to a shadowy figure who’d smelled like flowers and spoken in a soft voice. Instead of hiring a nanny, his father had asked his unmarried sister to move in and take care of his two young children. Aunt Leigh had lived in the Diamond family home until his father married Maxine.