Page 75 of Starry Skies, Stolen Kisses, and My Best Friend's Brother

Mae glances around.“Seth, this is utterly ridiculous.”

“I know.We’re two grown adults who have managed to keep their hands off each other for six full weeks.We can handle a business trip together.You know, he told me last night he wanted to go with us.Or at least send another old boyfriend of yours along.Every time I tell him no, he pretends he’s going to call up the government and sell out.I’m getting tired of it.”

Mae puts her finger on my chin and forces me to look her in the eyes.It’s a dangerous thing because every time she does that, I have to remind myself that kissing her is still off-limits.Even though we haven’t exactly been abiding by that rule.

She waves her other finger around in the air.“I didn’t mean my dad, though he has been getting worse.I promised to Facetime him every night from my very own hotel room.But that’s not what I’m talking about.I mean all this.The private jet.How much money do you have anyway?”

The plane taxis down the runway.The jet has a dozen seats, all incredibly comfortable with white leather.Behind us is a lounge with couches and a nicely stocked bar.Other than the flight attendant and the pilots, it’s just us on the plane.

“The jet isn’t mine.I have a friend in Vegas who has a few, and he lets me use one whenever I need.Most of the time I fly first class, but I’m not driving two hours to get to the airport.He lives in Vegas, so this was a no-brainer.”

She blinks at me.“You have a friend who has a few private jets?”

I shrug.“I do.We’ll see them tomorrow after we’re done with the conference.”

“I guess I just don’t understand.I knew you were a successful businessman, but I mostly thought that meant you had a good 401k and an extra-cushiony savings account.”

Mae’s eyes dart between my designer watch, tailored suit, and the plane’s leather seats, and I can’t help but wonder how the realization about my wealth will affect her, if it will change how she sees me.It makes me a little nervous, but I’m ready to have her share in all of this.

“Marry me.”

She jerks back, her eyes wide.“What?”

Okay, so maybe I should’ve explained more before I blurted out those words, but I’m tired of holding it in.

“I mean it.Marry me and all this”—I wave my hand around the plane—“is yours.”

She frowns.“I don’t want your money.”

“I know.But it is a perk.Marry me.I mean it.”My throat goes dry.I didn’t expect any resistance from her.

“Seth.We can’t even kiss in public because we’re afraid my father will ruin you.Do you suddenly not care about your family?”

I reach for her hands.“Mae.From the second you jumped into the car with me with the silly Marry Me sign, I’ve thought about what that might be like.I’m absolutely in love with you.To the point that over the last several weeks, I’ve nearly ruined my family’s business at least three times.But I am loyal, and I do love them.This could either solve everything or ruin it.Either way, I get to be with you.”

She sighs and looks out the window for a moment before bringing her gaze back to me.“I’m not marrying you.You may not care what happens to your family, but I still do.”

“Take your father out of the picture.If he wasn’t an obstacle, and we were just heading to Vegas for a fun weekend, would you elope with me?”

She closes her eyes, and I know she’s picturing the future.I lean forward and whisper in her ear, just to help her out.“We’d build a big house on the top of the hill where you’ve always imagined living.Both you and I will work for the resort, me as managing director and you as marketing operations manager.We’ll have a few kids, and they’ll grow up tubing down the river and helping Uncle Ethan with the corn maze.We’ll take amazing vacations to Paris, Bangkok, and Dubai.We will be together every second of every day, and when we’re not, we’ll send each other silly text messages and Facetime.”

Her eyes flash open.“Of course I would.But that’s not our reality.If we get married, that house you speak of will be gone, and a huge satellite dish will be going up in its place.”

I grab her hand and kiss her knuckles.Her face flushes.Then I tell her everything.From the lunch with Eli to my calls with David.

“Keith’s contract is different than the ones Eli is dealing with, so I wasn’t able to purchase it.Apparently the landowners directly next to the property were given larger sums of money, and Green Bank hasn’t released them to be purchased by investors.However, we discovered a loophole that will let you buy it because you’re his heir.But I can’t just give you the money, and I can’t partner with you.It has to come from you.If we’re married, my money is your money.Marry me, and then you can buy your dad’s land for twice what it’s worth, and he can retire from the county, and we get our happily ever after.”

“It’s risky,” she finally says.She fidgets with the rings on her fingers and doesn’t look at me.

“It is, but it’ll work.”

“It’ll also change our presentation a little.We talked about how it’d be cool to use my dad’s houses for more permanent residences, but that didn’t seem possible.Now it is.I want to market that.”

“That’s a good idea.”

She frowns.“Are you only asking me to marry you to get your hands on my father’s land?Because if that’s the case, I don’t want to marry you.”

I chuckle and pull her into my lap.“No.I want to marry you because I’ve been all over the world searching for the right woman, and she’s been at home all along.You’re the only woman I ever want to be with, and this is the only way I can see it all working without the rest of our world falling apart.”

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