The Tycoon's Vacation (Baby for the Billionaire - Book Two) (8 page)

“It sure as hell feels like you meant to do it and you put your full weight into it,” he said with a smirk. He was regaining his composure and once again acting like the one in control. She narrowed her eyes as he mentioned her growing weight. She then put her hand protectively over her stomach, reminding them both she carried a child in there.

“I’ll be back, this discussion is in no way over,” he told her, in what seemed far more of a threat than anything else and stomped out the door.

Drew walked down the street, feeling more frustrated than ever before in his life. It was more than obvious he still wanted her with a need frightening in its intensity but he needed to set that aside.

She was carrying his child and that meant she needed to marry him. He would’ve been far happier in a time where he could simply drag her down the aisle and make her marry him. It would be so much easier than playing these stupid games.

He wasn’t a man used to being told no and he found he didn’t like it. He hadn’t expected her to fall into his arms at first glance but he certainly hadn’t expected her to still be full of hostility. He’d messed up with one small lie and she’d just have to get over it.

He figured she was like other women though and she had her price. He’d make her a comfortable woman and in turn he’d get to be there to raise his child. He couldn’t even think about her meeting another man his child would call dad. He was the baby’s father and no other man would play that role.

He stopped in a local pub and ordered a double bourbon. He never drank so early in the morning but unless he wanted to walk the streets with an obvious arousal and steam coming out of his ears, he needed something to soothe his desire and his temper. He had to smile at how quickly anger had turned into burning passion.

He’d never in his life, experienced so much desire for a woman. He forgot a woman as soon as he walked out the door. He enjoyed women, he loved their soft curves and he loved their hair and laughter. He loved everything about them but he never ever got hung up on just one. He didn’t think it was possible for him to want one woman more than he wanted anything else. Hell, he’d throw away millions of dollars for one more night with Trinity.

He signaled the bartender and ordered one more drink. He had a feeling it was going to be a very long day and he was getting ready for round two with Trinity. He had to smile at her spunk, though because he had a feeling being married to her was never going to get boring.

Drew arrived at her shop later in the afternoon and was very proud of himself for acting so calm. He walked in the doors and after she glanced up to see who it was, she went back to what she was doing, as if he wasn’t there.

He was getting really tired of her acting like he was non-existent. He walked over to her work station and stood there, with their body’s touching. He knew she couldn’t ignore him if he was touching her. He wouldn’t mind finishing what they had started earlier anyway.

“Have you ever heard of giving people their space?” she finally snapped at him. He smiled as he heard the tension in her voice. His presence affected her far more than she wanted to let on.

“But darling we should most definitely get used to touching, as we’re going to be married,” he came right back with.

“I’m not going to marry you,” she said slowly, like she was talking to a child.

“Well then the neighbors are going to talk about you being my mistress,” he told her. “Our child will be looked down upon because her mother is shacking up with her dad,” he added as if he was unconcerned.

She was so frustrated with the man, she had to give up on the arrangement she was working on because she was destroying the expensive flowers. She began putting things away and glanced at the clock. She still had a few hours to go before she could close the shop. She really wanted to storm out the doors but it wouldn’t do her much good anyway, as he’d most likely follow her.

“I’m not going to be living with you so that won’t be a problem,” she finally calmed down enough to say to him. It still came out between clinched teeth.

“I’m going to be a full time father to my child, so we’re going to be together one way or the other,” he threatened her. She threw up her hands and stomped off to the bathroom. She stayed in there for a while, trying to figure out what she was going to do about the man.

When she walked out, he was at the counter with a woman, who had her biggest bouquet on the counter. She was flirting openly with him and Trinity was surprised to feel the coil of jealousy in her gut. She told herself she didn’t want to be with him and she didn’t care who he flirted with but when the woman let out a giggle and fluttered her eyelashes, she had to fight not to claw at her.

“It was so great to meet you and I hope you have a wonderful time at your mother’s,” he said with a flirtatious smile. The woman actually blushed before she finally turned around to leave. Trinity stood there, open-mouthed as he turned around.

“I used to work at a local hardware store when I was a teenager and luckily your register was similar so I took care of the sale,” he said to her as he handed her the receipt. She looked down and noticed he’d way overcharged the woman. “I wasn’t sure how much you were selling the bouquet for so I took a guess from some I’ve purchased before. I hope it was correct,” he finished.

“No, you actually sold it for twice the amount I would’ve normally sold it for,” she said. She was shocked the woman paid so much. Trinity was thinking she needed to hire an attractive guy to work in her shop. Maybe then her sales would go way up.

“Seriously? You’re charging far too low for your arrangements, then,” he told her.

“I don’t need your business advice, Drew,” she snapped. She knew he was most likely right but she was worried she’d lose business if she charged too much and she’d rather have a lot of customers, who were paying less than take the risk. It meant she had to work more hours and far harder but it was working out.

“So I hope you have come to your senses by now. I can arrange a wedding within a couple of days,” he said in a conversational tone. She couldn’t believe he was so overconfident he felt he could criticize her and talk about marrying her in the same sentence. He really needed someone to come along and knock him off of his pedestal. She was more than willing to be the one to do it.

“Okay, I’m going to tell you this for the last time and I hope you’ll hear it this time. I’m not going to marry you. What happened on the island was a mistake and should’ve never taken place. I’m not going to repeat that mistake by becoming your wife. After the baby is born, we’ll talk about visitation but right now she’s in my stomach so you can go ahead and leave for the next four months,” she said and walked towards her front doors.

She pulled the door open and looked at him expectantly. He looked at her with narrowed eyes, trying to decide what to do. He was really considering that shot gun wedding idea. It was becoming more and more appealing.

He finally walked over to the door and pressed his body up close to hers. He was happy when she didn’t back down but glared up at him instead. Her passion turned him on. He smiled down at her and kissed her before she knew what was happening. It was a short kiss, to show her he was far from giving up.

“I have some errands to run today but I’ll be back,” he told her with promise. She stood there and watched him walk down the street. She had a mixture of relief and sadness, watching him walk away. She was determined to protect herself but the man was so confident and had so much sex appeal it was hard for her to remember who she even was when he was around.

She closed the door and went back to work on some bouquets. She had a wedding coming up and it was a lot of work getting all the arrangements ready. At least it wasn’t prom season, she thought with relief. The money was always good but her hands were done for by the end.

Drew walked down the street and climbed into his car. His forceful approach was obviously not working, so he was going to have to try something new. His father had always liked to say you caught more flies with honey than vinegar, so maybe he needed to change his methods of trying to catch her. Of course, he really didn’t understand that saying, since he didn’t know why anyone would want to catch flies. He drove to his hotel and forged a new game plan.

Chapter Six

Trinity got ready for the new day, not wanting to step outside her tiny apartment. She knew Drew would most likely be there and she didn’t know how long she was going to be able to resist his charm. It was easier for her when he was being demanding and arrogant but when he turned on the sex appeal, she was a goner. She was hoping he’d take the hint and disappear for a while, so she didn’t have to fight him and herself too. The baby kicked her hard in the ribs, as if she didn’t like the thought. She rubbed her belly and whispered soothingly to her daughter.

She was always starving in the mornings but didn’t have the energy to fix much, so she grabbed a muffin and poured herself a large glass of milk and got ready for her day. She’d be alone at the shop all day and noticed it was starting to bother her. She needed to hire a couple people but she didn’t want to pay out the money until she absolutely had to. She was thinking it may be a better idea to work for someone else so she could at least be around other employee’s. Even though it had been her dream to own her own place, she was finding it lonely.

She walked the few blocks to her shop, looking around everywhere, a bit disappointed not to see Drew. She scowled at herself for that thought as well. She didn’t want him to be around and she needed to always remember that. She blamed her disappointment on her hormones, since they were going crazy.

She turned her key in the lock and flipped the open sign around. She always took such pride when walking through the front doors because it was all hers. She had worked hard to make her dream come true and took a lot of pride in the small but beautiful shop. Her touch was present in every square inch of the room.

She put her purse away and stepped back to the floral station, to begin making some bouquets for walk in clients. She had a few orders needing to be delivered but other than that, it was a slow day.

The bell over her door rang and she looked up to see Drew striding inside, looking far too good for so early in the morning. She should’ve known he wouldn’t wait long before stalking her again. She was surprised though, by the instant quickening of her heart.

“Good morning, how are you today?” he asked her, as if they were strangers. She looked at him suspiciously, wondering what he was up to.

“I’m fine and yourself?” she asked.

“I’m wonderful. I’m in need of several bouquets,” he responded, before sticking out his hand. “My name is Andrew Titan but my friends all call me Drew. I own several resorts and am in need of a new florist,” he said with a completely straight face.

“What are you up to, Drew?” she asked, far too tired for games.

“I decided we need to start over from scratch, so here I am, being completely honest,” he told her, with a twinkle in his eyes. She found it really hard to resist the man when he was acting so charming. She decided to play along for the moment.

“It’s nice to meet you, Drew. I’d love to help you with some arrangements,” she said and took his still outstretched hand. She wasn’t prepared for the fire that shot down her arm from his simple touch. She tried pulling away but he held on tightly. The man should have a warning label attached to him. He was seriously dangerous to the female libido.

“The pleasure is all mine,” he said in the sexiest voice she’d ever heard.

“What kind of arrangements do you need?” she asked, finally managing to pull her hand free. She had to resist the urge to rub it against her leg.

“I’ll leave that up to you. I have three orders I need sent to prospective investors and I want to send a huge one to my cousin’s wife. She gave birth a while ago and I realized I never sent flowers. That kid is the cutest thing ever and she deserves the biggest arrangement you can possibly make,” he said.

Trinity was surprised by his request. He’d gone all soft eyed talking about the baby. She had never taken him for the kind of guy to love babies, maybe she really didn’t know him all that well, she conceded.

She walked back over to her cooler and started selecting different flowers. Drew followed her around and lifted the buckets for her, transporting them to her work station. She tried to shoo him away but he was determined, so she just let it go.

“I’ve been lifting these buckets just fine on my own,” she said to him, with a little bit of exasperation.

“You need to take care of yourself,” he said, while pointedly looking down at her stomach. She figured it was easier to let him help, verses continuing to argue with the man.

“How long have you had this place?” he asked her.

“I opened a couple of years ago. It was always my dream. I’d like to expand someday and have a larger shop, with gift items and live plants as well,” she told him.

“Do you do well?” he asked.

“I’m doing a lot better than I thought I would. With the baby coming though, I’m going to have to hire some help and that will cut into the profits,” she explained.

“I know it’s really difficult for small businesses to succeed,” he said.

“I’m doing better than some,” she said. She tended to look at the positives of things verses the negatives if at all possible.