The Billionaires’ Prize (The Heiress Merger #2)

12. Alex

12

ALEX

Six hours.

It’s been six freaking hours since I walked out of Katherine’s apartment, and my body has vibrated with restlessness, unable to settle the entire time. I could barely focus during the meeting, and only part of that was my client’s fault.

Because of her.

Katie Bird.

“Nah, nah, nah. No way!” Kingston’s voice carries down the wide hall and bounces around the foyer.

“That’s what I’m talkin’ about. Way to move the puck!” Gabe claps his hands.

I shrug off my suit jacket, drawn to Katherine’s living room, eager to see her. Long dormant feelings bubble to the surface, reminding me of the first time I went to pick up a girl for a date. Confused, excited, trying to play it cool and failing miserably.

“Head in the game, Johnston!” Kingston shouts.

The apartment smells of tomato sauce and pepperoni. My mouth waters, and the stress of the afternoon starts to melt away.

Gabe and Kingston perch on Katherine’s couch, beer in hand. They look coiled tight, ready to launch into the air at any moment. Pizza boxes cover the monstrous coffee table and hockey commentators chatter on the TV, but I ignore all that as I glance around for her.

The woman who tied me up in neat little knots in just forty-eight hours.

Her apartment is gorgeous, cozy, neutral, with a tidy jungle of house plants, but she’s nowhere in sight. I drape my jacket over the back of the sofa, and Kingston gives me a chin thrust of hello. I return it with one of my own.

“Hey, how’d it go?” Gabe’s always checking in with me.

After all this time, there’s a part of him that still doesn’t believe we’re friends. It’s like he expects me to ghost him. That uncertainty is in direct opposition to how he lives his life. Out there, like he doesn’t care what anyone thinks of him.

But with me, it doesn’t even matter that we live under the same roof these days. Or that we workout together every morning or hang out every chance we get. He’s still waiting for the shoe to drop.

Right now, he watches me with lifted brows, waiting for my answer.

I shrug. “Fine.”

His lips twist. I know he wants details, but there aren’t any I can offer. In the scheme of things, today was just one more meeting and not worth bringing home from the office. Gabe, however, is a talker. He’s never thrilled with my one-word answers; despite that, he offers me a beer rather than ask questions.

“Thanks.” I twist off the cap and lift the bottle to my lips, relishing the icy liquid. “Where’s Katherine?”

Kingston rocks forward, ass hovering above the seat cushion as he claps his hands. “Let’s go. That’s it. That’s it!” A half second later, he nods his head toward the door behind him. “Getting dressed.”

His attention never wavers from the TV, but he’s connected to her almost tangibly. There’s an awareness there that makes me pause. The man’s incredibly relaxed, even though he’s obviously into the hockey game.

My gaze darts between him and Gabe. They’re both a lot more chill than when I left. Kingston’s hair is damp, and he doesn’t have that sad puppy vibe about him, and Gabe isn’t agitated.

“Come grab a slice,” Kingston says, dropping back into his seat as he reaches for his plate.

He braces his elbows on his thighs.

Cocky.

That’s what’s different about him. About both of them. My spidey senses tingle as I watch them wolf down their pizza, shout at the TV, and give each other the side-eye.

Something’s going on. Between them? Or between them and Katherine?

Her voice carries through her bedroom door. I can’t understand exactly what she’s saying, but she doesn’t sound pleased. Kingston hits the mute button as the three of us turn toward her room and listen.

She’s quiet for a long moment, and then all I can make out is, ‘. . . don’t care what mother wants.’ There’s a beat of silence and then ‘. . . not on the clock.’

“Must be Amelia,” Kingston says, glancing over his shoulder at me.

“Her sister,” I tell Gabe.

“Makes me glad I never talk to my family,” he murmurs, reaching for his beer.

I got super lucky in that regard. My parents were firm but fair, loving but disciplined and caring with strong boundaries and expectations.

“What do you think her mom wants?” I ask Kingston, unable to wrap my head around this mother/daughter relationship.

“She likes to think she’s in control. I’m guessing she feels like Kat stepped out of line somehow.”

“Probably doesn’t like Kat getting this sort of attention,” Gabe adds, turning back to his plate and the game. “Her grandfather would have lost his mind over the way the media is stalking her. Bad press is what he would have said.”

He doesn’t say it, but I can see the annoyed twitch in his jaw. According to Gabe, he wasn’t good enough for the Chanler family. Still isn’t. And the dead guy is probably rolling over in his grave if he knew where Gabe’s dick has been the last twenty-four hours.

“So her mom’s filling the old man’s shoes?” I ask, redirecting the conversation toward a living nemesis.

“Guess we’ll find out tomorrow,” Kingston says.

When she goes back to work, he means.

I pull out my phone and shoot off a text to Roman, letting him know that he’ll need to keep an eye on Mrs. Winthrop in addition to the paps. Then, I circle the coffee table and take a seat at the bottom of the U-shaped sectional. I’m hungrier than I thought I was. Not just for food, but it’s a start.

Kingston hands me a plate, and I plop a fully loaded slice onto it.

“Might be worth looking into,” Gabe says, head moving back and forth with the plays on the screen. “Her mom sounds unhinged, and that’s coming from me.”

I grunt and take a big bite. He’s not wrong. His parents gave him plenty of experience in that department.

Flavor explodes over my tongue, and I almost moan. “New place?”

The lettering on the box says Slice of Heaven , which I’ve never heard of before.

“Yep.”

“Not bad.”

“What the fuck ever.” Gabe leans across the coffee table, snags another slice, and then tosses it onto my plate. I’m not done with the first one, but I’ve obviously got some catching up to do. “We could hear your taste buds orgasming from here.”

“Yup,” Kingston chimes in.

Is this how it’s going to be now? These two are as thick as thieves? I’m glad Gabe’s found someone who likes hockey as much as he does, truly, because I’m a baseball guy myself and enjoy an odd football game sometimes. Still, it feels weird how quickly they’ve taken to each other.

Or maybe they’re just putting on a harmonious front for Katherine’s sake.

There’s a soft click, and I glance over my shoulder. Katherine’s gaze finds mine immediately like she’s seeking me out. And damn, that feels good. Like I haven’t made all this up in my head. Like she wants me here. Wants me as much as I want her.

My cock is already half hard, and she just walked into the room. Damn. I’ve got it bad.

Her footsteps are light as if she’s gliding on air. I can almost reach out and touch her when her head whips to the right and she all but runs to the kitchen, scooping up what looks like a cereal box.

“Is this chocolate?” she asks, her voice high and happy.

What the hell is happening? She’s bouncing on the balls of her feet like a kid in a candy store.

“Yep.” Kingston leans back and looks her up and down. “She wasn’t allowed to have cereal as a kid,” Kingston murmurs as if that explains why she’s hugging the box like a teddy bear. “But she loves the stuff.”

Damn, if her eyes don’t sparkle like he hung the moon and all the fucking stars.

The tension is thick, like two lovers who are counting the minutes until they can get away again.

They did it.

That’s why King looks like a cat who chomped a canary and she has that post orgasm glow.

Her hair’s damp, her skin flushed, and her lips curve up into a spectacular grin. It’s the sort of smile two people on the inside of a joke share.

I want that.

The intimacy. That kind of connection with someone. The history.

But an alarm goes off in the back of my mind, reminding me that love comes with costs. And sometimes, the price tag is super steep.

Katherine giggles, then focuses on the box in her hands, fingernail skimming the cardboard. “Well, I don’t know what it says, but I can’t wait to try it.”

She disappears for a few moments and comes back empty-handed. Kingston’s still leaning against the back of the low sofa as she leans down, wrapping an arm around him from behind and giving a little squeeze.

“Thanks.”

“Welcome,” he replies.

I push my dark thoughts away and finish my pizza crust just as Gabe jumps up, cheering.

“What happened?” Suddenly, Kingston’s attention is back on the game and Gabe.

Katherine isn’t phased. She straightens, giving a little eye roll. “Anyone need anything?”

She turns to me, holding my gaze, and my abs tighten as if she were physically hiking her fingers down them. I’m lost in her. The blue-green gems of her eyes. The way she stays locked in the moment with me, unhurried.

You.

I mouth the word.

I need her.

The corners of her dewy pink lips curve up.

Gabe and Kingston argue with the TV and each other, not even noticing the goddess rounding the couch. My chest loosens when she settles next to me, her thigh brushing mine.

I can breathe again.

Gah, I want to pull her into my lap and touch her all over. Slide my fingers beneath the delicate pink fabric of her loungewear and feel her skin. I bet she’s extra warm from her shower. Slick.

Her shoulder knocks against mine gently. “Missed you. How’d your meeting go?”

I lean forward to put my plate and bottle down, then drape my arm over her shoulders, pulling her against me.

“Could have been better,” I admit.

“Oh?” She presses a hand over my stomach, burrowing close. Her chin tips up and she searches my face, and that’s when I realize she’s not asking out of politeness.

She cares.

Outside of my family and Gabe, I’m not sure I’ve ever had that. Certainly never felt like this before. I want to tell her everything. Share secrets. Which is crazy. Part of my job is keeping secrets.

“There’s salad, too,” Kingston says, eyes glued to the fight breaking out on the ice. He nudges a bowl across the coffee table at us.

“Thanks,” I say, but neither of us move. Holding her is exactly what I’ve been hungry for. She smells like a dream. Rich and exotic and, at the same time, soft, almost delicate. There’s a hint of sweetness and spice, two words I’d use to describe her.

She watches me, an expectant look on her face. I should have figured she wouldn’t let it go. Gabe’s always saying how persistent she is. He used to act like he hated it, but I always knew that he admired her tenacity.

I lift a shoulder. “Think I’m going to have to let somebody go.”

“Oh, no.”

“Not the first time, but I can’t have people cutting corners.” This is not the career for that. Lives are on the line.

“Of course not.” She gives my leg a squeeze. She might as well strike a match and touch it to kindling. Before I can reach for her, she leans forward and grabs my plate. “May I?”

She’s too good to be true and only getting better as she comes out of her shell. “Help yourself.”

She picks up her train of thought and continues, “I mean, everyone’s human, but you can’t have your bodyguards being distracted.”

From her lips to his agents’ ears.

She plucks a piece of pepperoni and nibbles it. Seeing the slice of sausage slide between her lips makes my gut tighten. Damn, she’s pretty with that little smattering of barely there freckles.

Tucking her legs under her, she pivots sideways, practically in my lap. I cup the side of her knee, keeping her like this. Connected. In our own little bubble.

“I was distracted,” I admit, tugging her hair gently with my other hand.

She takes a bite and then offers the pizza to me. Holding her gaze, I take a bite. She watches me chew, and my heart flutters in my chest. I swear I feel her fingertips caressing my jaw, tracing down my throat.

“Couldn’t stop wondering if you were missing me the way I was you,” I whisper. “If you were thinking about last night. Wondering what you were doing. Who you were doing it with.”

Color rises in her cheeks as she nods and I know I was right. She and Kingston finally gave in to their chemistry.

I tug her hair again until her chin tips up and she shows me that smooth, creamy column of her neck.

“How was your shower?”