Page 117 of Where We Bloom

“That’s all I’m telling you for now, bumble.”

Miller laughs behind the wheel, and Billie narrows her eyes at me.

“Okay,” she says, squeezing my hand. “I can be surprised. Just give me a hint.”

“No.” I chuckle and shake my head at her. “Trust me.”

“I do.”

She looks out the window as we maneuver through Manhattan, and I can’t look away from her.

I’ve never had a woman come with me on a business trip, and despite the initial day’s hiccup, it’s been an amazing few days. We both managed to get a lot of work done, the meetings I’ve endured have been fruitful—even if another board member could have handled them—and I’ve smiled more than I thought possible. My life feels so … complete. And if I can do one thing well for this woman, it’s spoil her to distraction.

That includes tonight, when I’m determined to give her the best night of her life.

“It’s too early, baby,” Billie moans the following morning, scowling as I try to wake her up.

“I know,a ghrá.But we have to get to the airport. You can sleep on the plane.” I brush my fingers through her soft hair. “It’s another long flight. You can even shower on the plane if you want to.”

She sighs and turns onto her back. “I think I’ll miss this place.”

“The penthouse?”

She nods and stretches, and I can’t resist reaching out to glide my hand down her chest, between her breasts. “I like it here. It’s ridiculously over the top, but it’s also comfortable.”

“Then I’ll keep it.”

If she wants it, it’s hers.

“You could probably make a killing if you sold it. What’s it worth, about ten million?”

I lean down and kiss her lips, then her cheek. “Two hundred million,” I whisper in her ear, and then I laugh when she simply gapes at me.

“You … I … for fuck’s sake.” She pulls a pillow over her face, making me laugh more as I pull it away.

“Come on, we need to get going.”

“You’re already dressed,” she says, looking me over. “Get naked and snuggle me. I need some skin-on-skin contact.”

“No distracting me. You need to get dressed because no one gets to see you naked but me, and we need to get going. Let’s go, bumble.”

She sits up, yawns, and then climbs out of the bed, headed for the bathroom.

“It’s not my fault someone kept me up all night, screaming his name,” she says as she walks away, her bare arse in full view, making me hard all over again.

“Itisyour fault,” I call after her, “for looking like that. Now, let’s go. I won’t tell you again.”

While she gets dressed and finishes packing, I cross to the hidden coffee station here in the bedroom and brew her a cup of coffee.

“Has that been here the whole freaking time?” she asks as she pulls on a pair of leggings and a flowy tank top that looks sexy as hell. She tosses a jumper on the bed that she plans to wear on the plane.

“Aye,” I reply, passing her the mug. “I forgot it was here, honestly.”

“That’s handy. We need that at home in Montana.”

Home. I fecking love that she considers the Montana house home even though she’s only technically lived there with me for a week. “Consider it done.”

“Thanks.” She smiles softly and, with the mug in hand, turns to finish gathering her things. “I don’t know how I’m going to packall of this.”