Hot for Love (Bachelor Billionaire #2) (19 page)

He
looked at her with a hurt look on his face.

“
He
shouldn't have asked her out.”

“
What
did she say? I bet she said no and gave him some lame excuse, right?”

“
She
told him she was going back to work and wanted to get an apartment.
She said she needed to get her life together so that I could have
mine back.”

His
mom shook her head.

“
If
you let her go, she's eventually going to find someone. You can't
expect her to be alone forever.”

“
She
doesn't want a relationship.”

“
Neither
do you, right?” she asked. “You two need to get your shit
together before you lose each other.”

“
I
have to go.”

“
I
love you son. You need to make a decision. I just hope you make it in
time.”

Josh
went back into the house. Lisa was sitting on the couch with Tammy.
He stopped at the living room door.

“
I'm
going home. I don't feel well. If you want, you can go with me, or
you can have Jack drop you off later.”

“
Are
you okay?” Lisa asked. “What's wrong?”

“
I
don't feel good. I need to go home. You can stay here. Have my
brother bring you home.”

Lisa
stood up and walked over to him. She put her hand on his forehead and
felt it.

“
You
don't have a fever. Is it something you ate? Do you need to go to the
doctor?”

“
It's
not like that. I'll be fine. I'll see you later.”

Josh
turned to walk away. Lisa grabbed his arm and pulled him back. She
got in front of him and looked up into his eyes. He was filled with
emotion and could not imagine what she saw on his face. Josh looked
away from her, trying to hide his feelings. Did he care about her? He
didn't know what he felt. She put her hands on his cheeks and pulled
his face down to look at her.

“
I'm
going with you. You're not leaving here without me. Let's go.”

Lisa
took his arm and walked out the door and to the car. He opened her
door for her to get in.

“
Are
you sure you're okay to drive?” she asked.

“
I'm
fine.”

The
drive home was tense. He was so upset and didn't want to say anything
to hurt her feelings. It wasn't her fault that his brother asked her
out. It made him feel good that she turned him down. His feelings
were hurt that she was so concerned with getting out of his
apartment. He liked having her there. They got along great. Every
moment that he was home, they spent together. Josh was shocked that
she was willing to go back to work so quickly. She hadn't even
mentioned it to him. Was she that anxious to get away from him?

She
rubbed his arm and watched him.

“
Are
you sure you're okay? Is there anything you need? You seem upset,”
she said.

“
I'm
fine.”

“
I
really wish you would talk to me. I get that you don't owe me any
explanation or anything. I'm worried about you. You're my friend and
I care that everything is okay. If you're upset, I want to know. Talk
to me.”

“
You
just can't wait to get away from me, can you?” he asked.

“
What?
Why would you say that? I enjoy spending time with you.”

“
I
just need to be alone to think.”

They
pulled into the driveway. He opened her car door and closed it behind
her. Josh unlocked the door to his house and walked away.

“
Josh,
I want to talk to you,” she yelled after him.

“
I'll
be out in a bit.”

He
walked into his office and shut the door.

Lisa
went to her room and closed her door. What the heck happened? She
knew Josh was in the kitchen getting things ready. The next thing she
knew, he was in the living room ready to leave. There was no way she
was letting him leave without her. They went there together.

She
needed to go back to work and give him some space. He was probably
tired of having her there every moment. Josh was a bachelor who used
to go out often. Since she had been there, he had not gone out at
all. She noticed, but didn't want to mention it to him. Every second
he was home, she was with him. Maybe she was smothering him. That was
probably why he wanted to leave without her. He just wanted time to
himself. The quicker she went back to work, the better it was for
him. She would be gone a few days each week. He would have time to
himself.

Once
she was back to work for a few weeks, she would find an apartment.
Lisa needed to be on her own, and he needed his bachelor life back.
The thought of leaving his place broke her heart. She loved being
there. It was comfortable and safe. He always made her feel like she
belonged. It was her home. It was the first place she actually felt
at home, since she was a little girl. The thought of him bringing
women to his apartment upset her. She didn't want to think about him
with anyone.

Why
did she feel so strongly about his life, she wondered? It hurt so bad
that he wanted to leave his mom's house without her. She knew she had
feelings for him. Shit! No way. That can't happen. She didn't believe
in that. Feelings got people in trouble. She didn't want to get hurt.
He would get tired of her. Maybe he already was.

She
walked out of her room and went to his office. Just as she was about
to knock on the door, she heard him on the phone. His voice became
louder, but she couldn't make herself walk away. He was furious. She
could only hear his side of the conversation. Who was he yelling at?
It was not like him to get that loud. The whole time she had been
there, she had never heard him like that. She stood close to the door
to listen.

“
I
don't care.”

“
That's
a bunch of bullshit.”

“
It
doesn't matter.”

Who
was he talking to? She could not hear the other person's response to
each of his comments. Then she figured it out.

“
You
had no right to ask her out without talking to me first. You didn't
even have the balls to do it in front of me. You waited until she was
alone.”

She
had no idea that he heard his brother ask her out. Why was he so
upset? He didn't have feelings for her.

“
I
don't know. It was pretty obvious that she wants to get away from me
as fast as fucking possible.”

“
Yes.
I had no idea she was planning to go back to work this week. What the
hell was she talking about giving me my life back? Funny she hasn't
asked me what I want.”

“
I
have no idea. You know I can't do love. When have you ever seen me in
a relationship?”

“
I
know she is the first woman I have brought around. You don't
understand how I feel. I can't do love.”

It
was driving her crazy that she could not hear what his brother was
asking him.

“
Whatever.
She is off limits to you. Leave her the hell alone. I need to go.”

Crap!
Lisa hurried back to her room and shut the door. She fell onto the
bed with her face in the sheet. What did he mean she hadn't asked him
what he wanted? He doesn't do love. She didn't want to be in his
apartment when he chose to bring a woman home. No way did she want to
hear what they did or have to face her in the morning. He didn't have
feelings for her, but he thought he had the right to tell his brother
to stay away from her. Who did he think he was? She felt like going
out with his brother just to show him she was her own boss. Lisa had
taken care of herself just fine since she turned 18. She didn't need
someone telling her what she was and was not allowed to do. Not even
Josh. She didn't have a dad, and she didn't need one then.

She
got under her covers and turned off the lights. Lisa heard a knock on
her door, but she didn't answer. Slowly the door opened and light
from the hallway crossed her bed.

“
Lisa,
are you awake?”

His
voice was soft and made her quiver. She made sure she was still and
kept her breathing even.

“
Sweet
dreams, beautiful.”

She
felt her breathing freeze. The sound of his voice was comforting to
her. Lisa felt tears in her eyes as he walked out and shut the door.
She wanted to yell and stop him, but she didn't. It was time for her
to move. She dreamt about being with him since she was young. They
had become good friends the past few months. She didn't want anything
to mess that up.

Josh
drove Lisa to her appointment first thing in the morning. Neither of
them spoke on the drive. As they sat in the waiting room, Lisa
thought about her dream the night before. She dreamt that Josh
professed his love to her and they had amazing sex. Sex in her dreams
with him, was better than any sex she had ever had in real life. The
dream probably happened because of his comment in her room just
before she fell asleep. He hadn't mentioned it yet, so hopefully she
had not called out his name. That was way to embarrassing.

“
Lisa,”
Josh nudged her.

“
What?”

“
They
called your name twice already. Are you going to keep thinking about
me, or are you going to go into the room?”

“
Shut
up! I wasn't thinking about you,” she said, as she stood up.
“Are you coming with me?”

“
Do
you want me to?” he asked. “If you weren't thinking about
me, who was on your mind? Your face is all red.”

“
Come
on,” she snapped, as she grabbed his hand and pulled him to his
feet.

His
hand was so warm, and she felt a spark shoot up her arm. She dropped
his hand fast and walked away.

The
doctor examined her ankle and gave her the all clear. No more therapy
and no more doctor visits. She was excited. Josh had a sad look on
his face. The doctor told her she could try going to work, but if she
had a hard time, she needed to stay off a little longer. He told it
might be hard on her ankle to be walking on a moving plane. The
altitude could also possibly make it swell. She would have to test
and see. Lisa was excited that she would be able to drive again. Her
car was in Josh's garage and he had started it every couple of days
to keep it running.

Josh
opened the car door for Lisa to get in. She stood still and looked at
him.

“
What?”
he asked.

She
put on her best innocent look and tilted her head to the side as she
pushed her lips forward.

“
Can
I drive?” she asked.

“
You
want to drive my car?”

“
Please,”
she said as she pouted.

“
Why
don't you practice on your car first?” he laughed.

She
sighed.

“
Fine,”
he said. “You better be careful.”

She
grabbed the keys from his hand and hurried to the other side, before
he changed his mind. He laughed as she rubbed her hand along the side
of the car and leaned down to hug it.

“
Get
in here,” he laughed.

“
I
have been in this car enough times, but now I get to drive it.”