Daddy by December (The BAD BOY BILLIONAIRES Series) (10 page)

Before Meg even got a
chance to go around and open the door for her Jessie had pulled her seatbelt,
opened the door and hopped out.  She dashed up the winding gravel road.

“Wait for me,” Meg
called to her but as usual Jessie had more pressing things on her mind than
waiting for her mom.  Meg sighed and opened the back door to get Jessie’s bag
then she followed her daughter at a slower pace.  As she climbed the steps
Jessie rang the bell.  The door opened immediately.  Patrick and Juliet Donovan
stood in the doorway, all smiles.  Patrick bent down to gather his only grandchild
into his arms while Meg stepped into her mother’s hug.  Then she dropped
Jessie’s bag in the corner.

“I’ve got to go, guys. 
I have a meeting downtown.”  She leaned over to her daughter who still clung to
her grandfather's shoulder.

“Kiss?”  Meg was awarded
with a big fat wet one on the cheek.

An hour later Meg
arrived at Drake’s office, the completed first draft in hand.  For the first
time since she’d been visiting his office he was late.  She was sitting alone
in the waiting lounge, absorbed in a story on her Kindle ebook reader, when a
deep voice made her jump.

“I would love to know
what you’re reading.”

When Meg looked up
Drake was smiling down at her, his briefcase still in hand.  He looked like
he’d just come in from a meeting.

“You should have seen
your face,” he said.  “I hope I didn’t catch you in the middle of a love
scene.”

Meg could feel her face
color but she got up and laughed it off.  “Only a mild one,” she said as she
picked up her bag.  Actually, he'd guessed right.  She’d been enjoying the love
scene of a juicy romance novel and it had been anything but mild.

“Sorry I’m late,” he
said, as they headed for his office.  “My meeting went longer than expected.”

“Not a problem. 
Business first,” she said, giving him a cheeky look, “or else you won’t be able
to pay me the balance on my ghostwriting fee.  So meet away.”

He laughed at that. 
“There may be a recession on but I think I’ll be able to manage your fee.”

They settled down in
the office and skimmed through the first few chapters together, with Drake
filling in the blanks for some areas where she’d had questions.  But then in
the middle of the fourth chapter he stopped her.

“I’ve been talking all
day.  I could do with a drink.  What would you like?”

“Oh, ginger ale please,
if you have it.”

Drake’s office was
equipped with an alcove into which he disappeared.  When he came out he was
carrying two cans of ginger ale and two glasses filled with ice. After he’d
served her he walked over to the plush sofa by the window and sank into it with
a sigh.

“Long day?”  she asked
as she took a sip of the bubbly liquid.

“Yes, one of those days.” 
He began to loosen his tie then he stopped and looked at her.  “Do you mind?”

“Not at all.”     

He pulled off the tie
and opened a couple of buttons at his collar, revealing just a hint of  broad
chest, then he sighed and relaxed into the chair.  He took a long drink of his ginger
ale.  “I needed that.”  He rested the glass on the coffee table.  “How’s
Jessie?  Created any art masterpieces lately?”

“She’s fine, thanks.  She’s
working on a paper mache duck at school this week so she took it with her to
show my parents.”

“Oh, she’s with her
grandparents today?”

“For the weekend,” Meg
told him.  “I like to let her spend time with them every few weeks.  The house
is big and there’s a lot of space where she can play.  She and the
neighbourhood kids are good friends, too.  She loves going there to play.”

Drake nodded as he sat
forward and rested his elbows on his knees.  “I guess she gets lonely
sometimes, not having a sibling to play with?”

“You’ve got that
right,” Meg said emphatically.  “She keeps pestering me for a little brother or
sister.  I don’t know why because she’s now old enough to know it takes a mommy
and a daddy to make a baby…” Her voice trailed off and her heart did a skip as
she stared at Drake.  Now how had she ended up down that garden path?  What had
they been talking about again?

Meg breathed a sigh of
relief when Drake rescued her from the foot she’d put in her mouth.

“Have you ever heard of
the South African Dance Troupe, The Leaping Lions?”

She shook her head. 
“No, never.”

“I’ve seen them perform
once.  Excellent group.  They’ll be in Wisconsin this Saturday, performing in Muskego,
a small town just outside of Milwaukee.  Would you like to go with me?”

“To Milwaukee?  That’s
two hours away.”

“So?”  he said with a
shrug.  “It’s the weekend.  We can take our time and cruise over to Wisconsin
then cruise right back.  It will be a nice drive.”

She thought about it a
moment.  Of course she would love to go.  She hadn’t gone out in ages, and to
see an international dance group?  That had to be good.  But the question was,
what effect would it have on her?  With each passing week it was as if she’d
grown more and more emotionally attached to this man.  But one day the memoir
project would be over and then what?  She knew she'd better be careful or else she’d
be in for a bad fall.  And going out on a second date with Drake might just be
the thing to send her over that cliff.

“I don’t know…” she
began but she stopped when he held up his hand.

“Give me one good
reason why you can’t come,” he said, a look of challenge in his eyes.  “You
don’t have Jessie to worry about.  You’re almost done with my project and you
have the whole weekend ahead of you.” 

Well, wasn’t he sure of
himself? 
She cocked an eyebrow at him.  “And what if I
already have a date?”

That one knocked him
off balance.  He blinked then a slight frown creased his brow.  “Oh, sorry.  I
hadn’t thought of that.”

He looked so worried
that Meg had to put him out of his misery.  “All right, I admit it.  I don’t
have a date.  And I don’t have much of an excuse not to go.”

“So you’ll go with
me?”  He had an eager look that made him look a whole lot younger.

“Yes,” she said with a
note of finality, “I will go with you.”   Best to say yes before she changed
her mind.  If she didn’t go she would spend the rest of her days regretting
it.  And you only live once, right?  That settled, she smiled at him.  “What
time should I be ready?”

“I’ll pick you up at
four-thirty,” he said.  “I like to give myself an extra hour just in case of
heavy traffic.”

“I’ll be ready.”  And,
just like that, she had another date with Drake Duncan.

And just to be sure she
wasn’t dreaming, when she got to her car thirty-five minutes later she pulled
out the brochure Drake had given her.  The Leaping Lions in Wisconsin.  It
hadn’t been a dream at all. 

She could hardly wait
for Saturday afternoon.

******

Drake had never seen
Meg look more beautiful than she did when he picked her up on Saturday afternoon. 
As if to fit in with the exotic atmosphere of the show she’d rolled her
chestnut hair into a French roll and to the side of the thick plait of hair
she’d placed a gold clip with a crimson hibiscus of silk.  Her hairpiece was a
fitting complement to the flowery pattern of the form-fitting dress that hugged
her curves and swirled in a soft, colourful cloud around her ankles.  A short
gold jacket and gold sandals completed her elegant attire and Drake could not
have been more proud to have her by his side.

They got to the
Continental Hotel, the venue for the show, with a good forty minutes to spare
and used the time to admire the South African art on display in the lobby. 
They were browsing when Drake was recognized by the show promoter and invited backstage
to meet the performers.  Meg had seemed perturbed by the attention but
eventually she calmed and even exchanged a few words with some of the dancers.  Before
they left, the promoter made them promise to drop by the after-show party.

As they headed for their
reserved seats Meg raised an eyebrow.  “A party, huh?  I hope you can dance.”

Drake gave her a rueful
grin.  “Not very well, I’m afraid.  But maybe I’ll pick up a few moves from
tonight’s show.” 

And what a show it
was.  After a spectacular performance with dancers dressed in elaborate
costumes in vibrant colors and dances which seemed more like acrobatic feats,
Drake and Meg left the hotel’s grand ballroom in a daze.

“So, are you glad you
came?”  Drake asked, although he could already guess what her answer would be.

“Am I ever!”

He stared down at her
face, wide-eyed and radiant, and he knew he had done the right thing in asking
her out for the show.  She looked like she hadn’t had this sort of
entertainment in a long while.  He opened his mouth to tell her how beautiful
she looked when there was a shout and he turned to see Mr. Promoter heading
toward them.  Crap.  He’d been hoping to avoid the man.

But when their
garrulous host reminded them of the party Meg looked so eager that he didn’t
have the heart to say they were leaving.  Another thirty or forty minutes
wouldn’t kill them, he guessed.

The anticipated thirty
or forty minutes turned into almost two hours.  The South African dancers and
their managers were just as entertaining off stage as on.  They insisted on
teaching their guests some of their dance moves and then, before Meg and Drake
knew what was happening, they found themselves in the middle of a Congo line. 
By the time they were able to escape it was almost midnight.

As they walked back to
the hotel lobby Drake took her hand.  “I’m sorry I kept you out so late.  You
must be exhausted.”

“Me?”  Her eyebrow shot
up.  “It’s you I’m worried about.  How are you going to manage, making that
long drive back to Chicago?  We won't get in till two in the morning.”

“Don’t worry.  I’m wide
awake.  I can make it.”

She bit her lip.  “I
don’t know...”

“Hey,” he said gently,
“we can stay here if you like.”  At her doubtful look he said, “I think my
credit is good at this place.”

That made her smile.  “I
should think so.”

“So come on,” he said,
"let’s get ourselves booked in.  We can head back early tomorrow morning.”

That night, just a few
strokes before midnight, Drake walked Meg to the door of her hotel room.  When
she turned her face up to his he could see the shadows of sleep clouding her
eyes.  “Good night, Meg,” he said softly and then, giving in to the urge, he
pulled her into his arms.

She did not resist. 
She melted against him, her soft breasts pressing against his chest, and he yielded
to the temptation of those lips that had been tormenting him all night.  He
bent his head and took possession of her mouth, groaning as she opened to him. 
He wrapped his arms around her, crushing her to his chest, then he kissed her
until she clung to him as if she had no more strength left.

Finally, as much as he
wanted more, he let his arms slide down and away and then he stepped back.  Her
lips slightly swollen from the kiss, she was breathing heavily, gazing up at
him from heavy-lidded eyes as she leaned back against the door.  Was there any
sight as sexy as a woman who’d just been thoroughly kissed?  God knew, he
wanted her more tonight than he ever had before.  But no, he had to stay cool.
He could not afford to rush and spoil everything.

“Goodnight, Meg,” he
whispered again, his voice hoarse this time.

“Goodnight, Drake,” she
whispered back and then, with an air of resignation, she turned and pushed her
key card into the door.  “I’ll see you in the morning,” she said softly then
turned the handle and went into her room, closing the door behind her.

Drake stared at the
solid wooden panel of the door and cursed this barrier that stood between him
and the woman he desired.  He wanted to take her in his arms and make sweet
love to her but he could not.  Slowly, he turned and walked to the elevator
then took it to the penthouse floor of the hotel where a suite had been
prepared for him.  This was where he wanted her, her body writhing under his in
an ultra-soft king-sized bed into which their bodies would melt.  But it was
not to be.  Not tonight, anyway.  He would have to do his best to take his mind
off Meg.

Somehow, he had to cool
down.  Drake stripped and dropped his clothes on the bed then walked naked to
the bathroom.  He turned the water on and stood under the stream as it cleansed
his body and cleared his mind, making him alert again.

He threw on the
luxurious robe the hotel had provided and walked back to the living room where
he flung himself onto the sofa.  From where he sat he had the perfect view of
the suite’s telephone.  He stared at it.  God, he wanted to call her.  Even if
nothing else came of it he needed to hear her voice.

Just as he was reaching
for the phone it began to ring.

******