Page 7 of The Billionaire's Kiss
I didn’t want to offend any of them, so I kept my lips shut tightly. Orla laughed as she saw my reaction to the question. “The Irish do drink a lot. But I wouldn’t say they’re the best at partying. From what I’ve heard, Americans take partying to levels we can’t even comprehend.”
“I would like to give you all a bit of advice,” I said. “Don’t take any drugs anyone offers you. And don’t leave the club with strangers, either. Have fun, drink all you want, dance with whoever you want, but get into the vans we provide and come back here with our drivers—alone. Don’t bring some random back with you. God only knows what might happen to you.”
“Aw,” Orla said with a grin. “You’re a mother hen, aren’t you?”
“As a matter of fact, I have been called that from time to time. I just don’t like to see people get hurt.” I really didn’t want to see anything bad happen to Orla—or any of the other guests. “Plus, we have a bit of nightlife here at our resort as well. The restaurants have live bands each night. Sometimes the bar does, too—on weekends mostly. You don’t have to venture out to get a good taste of the Austin nightlife.”
“You are a sweetie.” Orla got up as the last drink was handed out. “Now that we’re all armed with drinks, shall we get on with this tour? I’d love to see more.”
“Oh, me too.” Mona hopped off the barstool to flank me on one side while Orla flanked the other. Mona made a small huffing sound as if it miffed her that Orla had come along too.
The three of us couldn’t all fit out the door at the same time, so I opened the door and let the two of them walk out first. Holding the door open for the others, I exited last. We’d be going out the side door to the garden patio, so I was now in the front of the group. “Okay, we’re going to go out this door here. If you follow me, we can get this tour going again, starting with the garden.”
Mona made such a loud huff—presumably at now being at the back of the line—that I almost laughed. Orla had been right, the girlwasin heat, it seemed.
But my eyes weren’t on Mona. I only had eyes for Orla, who smiled at me over the rim of her glass.
I had to turn around, pulling my gaze away from hers. She was mesmerizing me with such ease, it wasn’t even fair. Not that I could let her know. Somehow, I would have to play it cool—that would be the best way to pull her towards me. When a woman took the first step, the game always went faster than if she had to be chased. At least that’s what I’d seen happen with Cohen—the playboy among my brothers.
Cohen was smart in many ways. Business, of course, and a lot of other areas. But his way with women was pure brilliance. Not that I’d ever overly thought about being able to get a woman into my bed as quickly as possible, as he liked to. But Orla was different. So I figured I’d borrow some tried and true moves that I was sure would work.
Moving the tour along fairly quickly without rushing it, I knew everyone had to be jetlagged and needed a good nap. “So, here we are in the lobby again. I would like to wish you all a good afternoon, and I look forward to seeing you around the resort this coming week.”
Turning away from them, I headed to my office. As I left, I felt a pair of eyes on me, burning a hole in my back. I didn’t turn around.
When a hand slipped down my arm, a chill ran through me. Not a good one, either.
“Warner,” came Mona’s high-pitched voice. “Where would you suggest my mother and I have dinner this evening?”
I had to turn around and give her my attention. And when I did, I saw Orla grinning at me, her lips curving only slightly as she shook her head. “You should check out the menus in your room. They show what food is served in each of our restaurants, all of which are amazing in their own way. I’m sure you’ll find any one of them enjoyable.”
“Where doyoulike to eat?” she asked with a lilt to her nasally voice. “Perhaps we could dine together this evening.”
There was no way in hell I’d be dining with her. I hadn’t ever dined with any of our guests, and I wasn’t going to start with her. “I love all the places here at the resort. And unfortunately, I’ve already got dinner plans tonight. I’m sure you’ll have a great experience, though.”
“I suppose.” She turned and walked away with her head down.
For a moment, I felt kind of bad. Not that I was going to change my mind, but I did feel sorry for her.Poor thing. She doesn’t realize she just tries too damn hard.
Orla raised a hand, waving at me. “Thanks for the tour, Warner.” And then she turned and walked away.
I stood there, frozen, as I watched her leave the lobby and get into the elevator with the rest of her group. I waved, looking only at her, but out of my peripheral vision, I saw that some of them waved back at me. And then the elevator door closed, and I turned to go to my office.
I took a seat behind my desk and laid out my arms, folding them to create a pillow as I rested my head on top of them. I wasn’t exactly sure why I felt so dreamy, like my head was floating on a cloud. I’d had two alcoholic drinks, so that might’ve enhanced the way I was feeling about Orla. Whatever it was, I liked it.
Knowing that she’d be leaving made it easy to let go of the usual fear I had in relationships—that I would lose her. IknewI would lose her. But my mind was occupied by the things we could do while I still had her. With other women, I usually spent far too much time thinking about all the what-ifs.
With Orla, there were no what-ifs. There were only facts. Like the fact that we had a spark. Like the fact that I couldn’t find a thing about her that I didn’t like. Like the fact that this would not last.
The lack of fear over the unknown was a huge pro as well as a huge relief. I’d always felt that fear with every woman I went out with since I was sixteen. But Orla didn’t inspire any fear in me. She only inspired other things—arousing things.
I wanted to try new things with her. I’d already done something I’d never done before—drinking in the morning. What else would the lass inspire me to do?
All I knew was that I had to find out. I had to find out what her satin-smooth, alabaster skin felt like against mine. I had to feel her rosy red lips succumbing to mine. My fingers itched to tangle in her auburn curls. But first, I would have to play the game and get her to come to me. I couldn’t get impatient, either. Somehow, I would have to play it cool, become a different kind of guy. The kind that women throw themselves at.
For the first time, I felt completely out of sorts about a woman. But if this feeling was wrong, then I didn’t want to be right.
