Page 5 of The Billionaire Touch

The aroma of coffee mixed with the masculine fragrance of his aftershave tickled her nostrils. He smelled breathtaking. Kate was one inhale away from burying her nose against his neck and taking a greedy gulp.

He swayed closer, the move barely noticeable, before he caught himself, running his hand along the length of his dreadlocks, and she had the oddest sensation that he wanted to touch her.

Kate flushed.

A frazzled Spencer Travis was adorable. Three wipes later, the coffee stain was lighter but still visible. She wished she drank it with cream or milk, then the stain wouldn’t be as bad. Picking up the stain-removing pen, Kate started from the corners. The spot had started to dry at the edges, forming a brown wall.

“Is it coming out?”

Kate swallowed. “Sort of.”

He stepped away and looked at the widening puddle in the center of his shirt.

“Maybe if we dry it.” Grabbing the tail of Spencer’s shirt, she tugged him towards the hand dryer beside the sink.

“I don’t think—”

Instead of the loud blast of air she expected, a low swooshing sound filled the space. “You’ll see, once it’s dry it will be as good as new.”

“I doubt that.” He looked at his watch. “How much longer do you think this will take?”

They’d only been in the bathroom for ten minutes, not even an expert could remove a stain in the short period. “What’s the rush? Hot date?”Very smooth, Kate.The latter was said in jest, but she hoped that wasn’t it.

“Actually,” he said, looking at the almost dry shirt-front. “I am meeting a friend for a double date in forty minutes.”

“Oh.” It was her turn to be tongue-tied.A date.Of course he goes on dates, Kate. Did you think he sat around waiting for you to spill drinks on him?

“I don’t think this is coming out. And unfortunately, it doesn’t leave enough time to go home, change, or swing by the dry cleaners before this stain sets.”

“I’ll do it!”

“You’ll do my laundry?” His brow wrinkled.

“All of it.” She threw the contents back into her purse. “Helping you get ready for your hot date is the least I can do since I created this disaster,” she said with the bravado of a champion. Knowing he was going to have a romantic evening with another woman twisted her stomach in the worst way. She was selfish enough to want him all to herself. If the next forty minutes was all she was going to get, Kate would gladly snatch it.

Spencer stared at her as if she’d grown horns, and maybe she had.

“Coming?” she asked. “You want to get to your date on time, right?”

CHAPTERTHREE

Spencer

She smelled damn amazing and now his car smelled of strawberries.

By the time they pulled into his driveway and walked through the front door, his body was locked onto her every movement, gesture, and the throaty sound of pleasure she’d made after seeing his home.

It took effort to remember Wren was waiting for him to have drinks or the girl who’d spent the last few weeks playing hard to get.

Kate was an unexpected breath of fresh air. A tad too insistent, but not in a bad way. She was considerate. And whether she realized it, he believed she was as socially uncomfortable as him. She hid it better, behind a wall of chatty quirkiness that was disarming.

“You have a beautiful home,” she said, kicking off her pumps. Walking through the open living space, she headed for the djembe drum in the corner of the room. “I didn’t take you for a drummer.”

“I’m not. It’s a Kwanzaa gift for Amari; I’m his Big Brother.” He didn’t know why he was explaining himself, but at her intrigued stare, he wanted to share a part of his life that was important. The desire to open up to someone he’d only met this afternoon was new territory. Scary. Yet, there was no dismissing his quickening pulse each time she glanced at him. He wanted this woman in every way. “I’m Amari’s mentor, he’s eight, and this year he has a part in the end-of-year event at his school.”

The drum was custom made with etchings of Amari’s favorite animals in bright colors, then finished in a light stain.

“I think he’ll love it.”

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