By nine o’clock the next evening, Nate was stressed and frustrated. He’d spent the day in tense meetings with the Royal’s CEO, including an especially angering one with Charlotte’s jerk of an ex-husband. Daniel Mabry had a chip on his shoulder, and Nate longed to knock it off. But hopefully, Charlotte would start getting checks in the mail without her having to resort to wage garnishments and legal battles, and Taylor would get his visits with his Dad.

But after his late afternoon flight home, Nate had to go over the new plan for the city’s rebuilding project. They had to get it done before he left for Tampa the next day. And so he’d pushed on, while the clock ticked later and later.

Finally, he pushed his chair back from his desk. “I’m done for the night, Sam. I have an appointment I can’t break.”

“Of course. Tell Charlotte hello for me.”

“Feeling impertinent tonight, Sam?”

“Not particularly. She’s a nice girl. I hope things work out for you.”

Nate forced a smile. “Me too. I admit I’m not feeling very confident though.”

As he strode to the garage, he texted Charlotte that he was coming over. Fortunately, her only reply was one word. “Ok.” Not exactly enthusiastic, but she didn’t tell him to take a flying leap either.

When he pulled up in her driveway and got out of the truck, he saw her open the door and slip outside. Scattered moonlight danced over her skin as she walked to the edge of the porch to meet him. She looked so beautiful, he froze on the bottom step, looking up at her.

“Anxious to see me, or do you not want me to come inside this late?” he asked, teasing her softly.

“Taylor’s asleep. I don’t want to wake him up.”

“Ah.” He climbed the steps and stood looking down at her, trying to make out her features now that they were lost in shadows. “I’m sorry I’m so late, but I had to see you.”

“Why?”

“I wanted to ask you to come to Tampa with me for the weekend, and I figured I’d better ask in person.”

“Nate, I could never afford to fly to Florida. I was excited to be able to buy decent groceries today.”

“I’d fly you there in my private jet. I’d take care of everything. All you’d have to do is relax and enjoy yourself.”

“No way can I let you spend that much money on me. No way.”

“Would you let me do it for Taylor? Think how much he’d love it. I have a giant pool that looks over the ocean, a theater room, a game room.”

“Now you’re trying to bribe me.”

Nate reached out and touched her shoulders, waiting to see how she reacted to his touch. She stiffened for a moment but then relaxed, so he pulled her closer. “Of course I am. I really want you to come.”

Charlotte shook her head, her hair sliding across his hands at the movement. “But see? This is what I mean. You try to throw money at everything. You know I hate that. I would have thought a billionaire would be better at negotiations.”

“What do you mean?”

“Don’t you know what would be most likely to convince me?”

As he puzzled over her question, he ran his hands down her arms and slipped his arms around the small of her back. She leaned into him as if she was melting, and her meaning became clear. He truly was an idiot.

With his heart hammering, he pulled her close against him. Her head tipped up in clear invitation and he bent to answer it, hoping she wanted this as badly as he did. With his lips scant inches from hers, he paused. Keep it slow, man. Then he touched his lips to hers.

But at the softness and sweetness of her lips, and the sheer wonder of this being Charlotte he was kissing, he couldn’t restrain the flood of desire that swept through him. With emotions raging through him like fire, he deepened the kiss, and to his surprise, she didn’t pull back. In fact, she slid her hands from his chest, up around his neck and held on.

He broke away from her lips as his drugged brain remembered that he was going to take this slow, but then he discovered the fragrant softness of the spot beneath her ear. He left a trail of kisses there.

Charlotte made a sound in her throat that vibrated beneath his lips, then she pushed back against his chest with gentle, half-hearted pressure. Instantly, he loosened his grasp and she stepped away.

He watched as she moved to the porch rail, which she leaned against as she stared at him with dark eyes. What was she thinking? Feeling? His heart beat so hard, his pulse roared in his ears.

“There. Now you know my weakness,” she said at last in her sweet-toned alto.

He chuckled. “You like kisses.”

Her laughter was as soft as the moonlight, and just as magical. “Your kisses, you idiot.”

“But you couldn’t have known that before.”

“I suspected. And now that I’ve had them it’s going to be harder to deny myself.”

“Then don’t.” Nate stepped towards her, but she held up a hand, warning him to stay away.

“It was a bad idea, coming out here in the dark with you.”

“Charlotte, I think I’ll go crazy if this conversation heads where I think it will.”

She turned away then, pressing her hands to her face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to be a tease. I just wanted to give in once.”

He closed the distance between them. Even though he needed to tread carefully, he wrapped his arms around her from behind and spoke softly in her ear. “Tell me what you’re so afraid of.”

“Of being hurt again, like I was before. Of getting broken by the stress and power and selfishness that comes with wealth. But mostly, I don’t want Taylor to be hurt anymore. Do you know what it was like to make the choice to divorce Daniel, knowing I’d be separating Taylor always from one of his parents?”

“I can’t imagine,” Nate said, curling his fingers through hers.

“But I wanted a better life for him,” she continued. “I wanted him to appreciate the little things in life, and know what it means to work.” She made a sound between a sob and a laugh. “Maybe not struggle as much as we have the last few months, but I’m working hard to build the best life I can for him. And to me, that doesn’t mean spoiling him.”

Nate was silent, taking this all in. He wondered what had gone on in her marriage before. He knew much more about the man’s finances now, thanks to Sam’s hard work, but that was just numbers on a report. He knew a lot of the world’s richest people. They ran the gamut from charitable, innovative, and hard-working people to sleazy, greedy mucks. He’d pegged Daniel Mabry within five minutes of meeting him. He understood why Charlotte wanted Taylor to be a better man than his father.

“I’m so sorry, Charlotte.” With gentle hands, he encouraged her to turn so he could hold her. She pressed her face into his shirt, and from the way her body shook, he knew there were storms raging inside her though she didn’t cry. He rubbed her back, and thought that here was one of those problems he couldn’t solve with money. In fact, money was the last thing that could fix this. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t going to try.

“Charlotte, will you come with me? I want to show you that I’m different. I know I messed up a little by buying you the salon.”

“A little?” she asked, chuckling.

“Okay, a lot. But I wasn’t trying to buy you. I was trying to help you. There’s a difference there, you know?”

“I guess so.”

“Will you come? What’s the worst that could happen?”

“I could decide I don’t want to be part of your life.”

Frowning, Nate nodded. “Yeah. That would suck.”

“Having second thoughts?” she teased him.”

“No. How do you think I’ve been so successful in business?”

“By working too much and never being satisfied with what you have?”

“That was unnecessarily critical. Though I guess you’re right in a way. I’m trying to fix that. I want to spend time with you, and this is the best way right now. Will you come?

She was quiet for minute. “Okay, yes.”

“Did you say that so I’ll leave?”

“Yes. I don’t want the neighbors to get ideas about what you’re doing here this late.”

Nate kissed the top of her head and forced himself to back away. As he went down the steps, he called back. “Just remind them that you’re making a payment on The Snip and Clip salon.”

“You’re hilarious.”

Nate acknowledged her sarcasm with a salute and laughed as he walked to his truck.