Romancing My Love (Love in Bloom: The Bradens) Contemporary Romance (18 page)

THE CHÂTEAU RESTAURANT was another one of the restaurants at the Astral, and it was a world away from any restaurant Rebecca had ever been to. Dimly lit, with waiters donning bow ties and black vests and patrons that smelled of money, it should have been intimidating, but thankfully, Rebecca drew upon her belief that people were people and money was like clothing—strip it away and the wealthy were just like everyone else.

She hadn’t been nervous about meeting Pierce’s cousin Treat or his wife, Max, until the second she saw them crossing the restaurant lobby. They were a handsome couple, both with thick dark hair, Max’s long and wavy, Treat’s cropped short and neat. Treat was well over six feet tall and dwarfed Max’s petite frame. He had one hand protectively around her shoulder, and his dark eyes locked on Pierce. The family resemblance—and the realization that she was meeting a member of Pierce’s family—hit her like a brick.

Gulp
.

Pierce looked amazing in his dark suit and light blue dress shirt. He’d told Rebecca a million times how great she looked in her little black dress, and still there was something nerve-racking about meeting his family. She had no family to speak of. Her mother had been an only child, and her grandmother had died when Rebecca was a toddler. Rebecca’s mother hadn’t seen her own father since she was an infant. Pierce had become, she realized, the closest thing to family she’d ever had besides her mother. 

“Pierce.” Treat opened his arms and embraced him.

“It’s good to see you.” Treat turned a sincere smile her way. “And you must be Rebecca. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

He kissed Rebecca’s cheek while Pierce hugged Max, who was simply stunning. Her dress was similar to Rebecca’s, a simple black, above-the-knee number. She was wearing it with heels that weren’t low enough to be dowdy and weren’t high enough to be slutty. She, like Rebecca, wore very little makeup, which made Rebecca feel at ease.

“Hi, Rebecca. I’m Max.” Max leaned in close and hugged her.

“Hi, Max, Treat. It’s nice to meet you both.”

Pierce slid his arm around Rebecca, and her nerves calmed a little more.

“I hope you brought pictures of Adriana,” Pierce said as they followed the hostess to their table.

“Treat has a thousand pictures of her on his phone.” Max laughed.

“There’s nothing wrong with being proud of our daughter.” Treat pressed a kiss to the back of Max’s hand.

That was something Pierce had done so often that Rebecca wondered if all the Braden men were as charming as Pierce, and apparently, Treat.

Once they settled into the intimate corner booth, Rebecca took a moment to drink in the surroundings and remembered what Chiara had said about the owner decorating the restaurants to honor his family members. The restaurant featured enormous scenes from motion pictures, which Rebecca guessed featured the movies that Pierce’s brother Jake had been in. It warmed her insides anew, that family was so important to Pierce. And as Treat shared some of his favorite pictures of his daughter, she realized again the magnitude of what it meant for Pierce to introduce her to Treat and Max.

“She does look like your mother, Treat.” Pierce leaned close to Rebecca as he scrolled through the pictures. He pointed out Treat’s brothers and sister in some of the pictures and told her a little about each of them.

They ordered dinner, and Treat and Pierce caught up on siblings and cousins.

Max leaned across the table. “Are you still nervous?”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Oh, no, not at all. But I’ve been where you are. I remember how overwhelming it was to meet Treat’s family. At least it’s just the two of us. We’re the easy ones.”

“Easy ones?”
Are there hard ones?

“Well, you know, big families tease a lot, but Pierce and Treat are the oldest siblings, so they’re more reserved, I think.”

Treat leaned down and kissed Max’s cheek. “Is she telling tales about me?”

“I’m telling truths.”

The waiter took their order, and Treat filled their wineglasses. “Pierce, tell me about the Grand.”

Rebecca’s ears perked up. She hadn’t wanted to ask about the acquisition, because Pierce seemed like he didn’t want to talk about it when she’d brought it up to him before work that morning.

All hints of Pierce’s smile disappeared, replaced with hooded eyes and a deep, serious voice. “It’s a mess, Treat. They’ve got liens on the property for unpaid payroll taxes, and it appears that the records we were shown weren’t accurate. Based on those books, the company should have a net worth of twenty-seven million, but with the new information my team turned up, it looks more like twenty-two million.”

“Are you going to walk away or offer him less?” Treat asked.

“I think it’s got potential, but he’s not interested in anything less than the original offer, and I’m not going there.” The muscle in Pierce’s jaw bunched.

“Pierce, there are plenty of other properties, and if you let this one sit, if he really wants to sell, he’ll come down. You know how this works.” Treat reached into his jacket pocket and took out his phone. “I received notice today about a casino over in Vegas that’s having trouble. Maybe it’s time to switch gears.”

“I want this location. I know I can turn it around, and Jeff—he heads up the due diligence team—thinks that there are several areas where we can achieve higher profits. I just need to wear Benson down.”

“Excuse me, Pierce.” Rebecca touched his leg.

“Yeah, babe.” There was an edge in his voice. He was in work mode. Uptight work mode, in fact.

“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to interrupt, and I don’t claim to know much about any of this, but wouldn’t an earn out be an option in this situation?” She held her breath. She had learned about earn outs in one of her finance courses during a practical application study.

Pierce and Treat shared another look, one Rebecca couldn’t read.

“An earn out,” Pierce said.

“Yes.” Her heart beat faster as she recalled all that she had learned. “F
or example, the business was worth twenty-seven million dollars with your original estimate, and you believe that based on the net present value of the next five years’ projected earnings, the present value is twenty-two million. Couldn’t you offer twenty-two million with a two-year earn out? If the property exceeds the projected income on which the offer was based say, in two years, then you commit to pay them a percentage of the income earned over that projected amount. Maybe ten percent? Not to exceed the original offer of twenty-seven million?
”

Pierce blinked several times. “Rebecca, how do you know about earn outs?”

“Well, I don’t really. We had a practical application project in one of my classes. I love the way business and finance work hand in hand, so I came up with an idea. When I brought it up to my professor, he said that it’s called an earn out.” She shrugged. “It seems like a great option, but from what he said, most business owners don’t like earn outs. They want to sell and be done with it, but with a business that’s in debt, well, that owner might be willing to agree to an earn out so he can get the liens paid off with the proceeds of the sale. And now that the liens are out in the open, it’s not like they can hide them from the next potential buyer. So really, it’s in his best interest to take it.”

“Rebecca, would you like a job?” Treat smiled.

“Seriously, woman. What are you doing waiting tables?” Max asked.

“Oh, I love my job.”
Treat couldn’t be serious. Could he?
He looked serious.
No, he’s just being nice instead of telling me that I have no idea what I’m talking about. I should shut up
.

Pierce was strangely quiet.

Rebecca moved her hand from his lap. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said anything.”

He reached for her hand, and as he spoke, he had the same calculating look in his eye that he’d had when he was reviewing his files.

“Bec, it’s a brilliant idea. I was so locked into trying to make the return on investment for the current offering price work for us that I didn’t even bother to think outside the box.” Pierce shifted his eyes to Treat. “Genius, right? Win-win?”

“Absolutely, if your team’s sure you can make the business sustain itself and turn a profit,” Treat answered. “And, of course, if they’ll go for it.”

“Pierce, did you have any idea that Rebecca knew this much about acquisitions?” Max asked.

“No, but if there’s one thing I’m learning about Rebecca, it’s that there’s a lot more to her than she lets on.” He gazed into Rebecca’s eyes. “I don’t think there’s a damn thing she can’t do.”

No one but her mother had ever had that much confidence in her abilities. She hoped he wasn’t just being nice. “It was just an idea. I mean, I know it’s not that big of a deal.”

“That’s where you’re wrong, Rebecca.” Treat locked eyes with Pierce. “Pierce and I have more than thirty years in the business between us and neither of us came up with that option. It’s a very, very big deal.”

PIERCE LAY IN bed Saturday morning with his eyes closed, thinking about dinner with Treat and Max Thursday night. After dinner that night, while Pierce reviewed the documents for the acquisition again and called Jeff and his attorney, Rebecca had fallen asleep. Pierce crawled into bed behind her and he’d lain awake most of the night thinking about how she’d pulled the earn-out option out of thin air, and he’d thought about it all day Friday, too. Then again, she had been handling her mother’s medical bills, her mother’s tax issues, and had been going to school for business. Maybe it shouldn’t have surprised him, but he’d known plenty of business school graduates, and very few, if any, would have picked up on the rarely accepted earn-out option as a consideration for the Grand.

He felt Rebecca stir beside him, and he kept his eyes closed, unwilling to let go of the peaceful moment and face the day. He could lie there with Rebecca all day.

Her breath whispered across his cheek. “It’s Saturday, and neither of us has to work.”

He opened his eyes, and she was smiling down at him with heavy lids. “What’s our plan for today?”

He rolled her onto her back, slid his thigh over hers and his hand beneath her camisole, brushing the underside of her breast with his thumb.

“We have to buy Luke and Daisy a gift, remember?”

He kissed her softly. “Right. Good thing you remembered. I was thinking about staying in bed all day.” He lifted her camisole and as he kissed his way up her belly, he remembered that he was going out of town on Sunday.

“Bec, I have to go to LA to hammer out the deal with the Grand. I’ll probably only be gone a few days, leaving Sunday night and coming back Tuesday, if all goes well.”

She ran her fingers through his hair and frowned. “See? You’ve ruined me.”

He arched a brow.

“Before you, I never worried about spending my days alone. Now? The first thing that went through my mind was,
Two whole days?
And after my heart went a little crazy, my next thought was,
How will I sleep without you?
”

He grinned. “My evil plan is working. Let me sweeten the deal. After I come back, the next weekend is Luke and Daisy’s engagement party—will you come with me and meet my family?”

She drew in a sharp breath. “Pierce, I’d go anywhere with you, but are you sure? That’s more serious than meeting your cousin. Don’t feel pressured to—”

“Babe, the only pressure I feel right now is between my legs.” He reached down and slipped out of his skivvies, then drew her panties off and moved over her. “Will you come home with me?”

“Of course.” She eyed the condoms on the bedside table.

“Don’t worry. I would never do something you didn’t want.”

“Oh, I want, Pierce Braden. I want big-time, but it’s just a few more weeks.”

“Weeks? I can handle that. I’ve waited for you my whole life.”

LATER THAT AFTERNOON, Pierce and Rebecca walked through the mall trying to decide on a gift for Luke and Daisy. It had been ages since Pierce had stepped foot in a mall. He was used to crowds at his resorts, and of course, in the casinos, but while he loved being with Rebecca, the crowded mall brought his protective instincts to the forefront. He realized that he was sizing up every man who walked by, and while he wasn’t usually a judgmental guy, if they looked the least bit shady, he drew her closer.

“Where do people shop for an engagement gift?” He pulled Rebecca closer as three teenagers pushed past them.

“Gosh, how do I know? I’ve never been to a real engagement party.”

He pulled her into a photo booth in the center of the mall.

“I’ve never been in one of these,” Pierce said as he pulled a five-dollar bill from his wallet.

“I have, with my mom. They’re so fun.” She waited for Pierce to sit down inside the booth; then she sat on his lap with her arms around her neck, and he tugged the curtain closed.

He pulled her into a kiss just as the first flash went off.

“Ready? Look surprised!” She whispered into his ear, “I want to blow you.”

He didn’t have to feign his surprise. The flash illuminated the booth and caught him wide-eyed and openmouthed.

“Ha! Gotcha!” Rebecca kidded as he pulled her close for the last picture.

They both smiled, or so he thought. When the pictures developed and dropped from the silver slot, the third picture revealed Rebecca looking at him like he was everything she ever wanted.

“God, I love you,” he said as the second copy fell from the machine.

“How could you not? I mean…” She held the pictures up. “Look how cute I am.”

They each kept a copy of the filmstrip. Pierce folded his in half and put it in his wallet, and Rebecca put hers into her purse.

“Do you mind if we stop in at Hallmark? I want to get a few things.” Rebecca reached for his hand and guided him toward a display of calendars. She picked up one and rifled through the pages, then another, and then a third.

Pierce would never tire of watching her. She wore jeans that hugged her ass and the black boots that she’d been wearing the first night they’d met, with a simple white cotton shirt. The outfit probably cost her next to nothing, but to Pierce, she looked like a million bucks.

“What are you looking for specifically? I can order you a beautiful leather day planner.”

She smiled up at him. “This isn’t for me. It’s for you.”

“I won’t use one of those. I’d probably lose it, and I’d definitely forget to write in it.”

She pressed her hand to his chest. “That’s just what I was thinking. So, instead, let’s get one of these.” She picked up a small desk calendar, the type that were meant to have the pages discarded at the end of each day.

“Why do I need that? Kendra keeps my calendar.”

“Yes, I know she does, and thank God for her. I thought we could put it by the bed and each night I could write a little reminder, like,
Turn phone on
, or if you have a meeting coming up, like dinner with Treat, I could write,
Make reservations.
”

He rolled his eyes. “Did Kendra ask you to do that?”

“I don’t even know her. You’ve never introduced us.” She set it back down. “Never mind. I was just trying to help.”

He pulled her against him. “I love the idea, and I love you for thinking of it. Kendra’s been trying to get me married off for two years, and her biggest complaint is that I forget those types of things.”

“I’d imagine it’s your family’s biggest complaint, too, since you miss their calls the most.”

They paid for the calendar and went to check out the mall directory.

“Rebecca.”

Pierce turned at the unfamiliar male voice and tightened his grip on Rebecca’s hand as a handsome, muscular man approached.

Rebecca pulled from his grasp and hugged the man. “Andy, hi. This is my boyfriend, Pierce. Pierce, this is Andy. He does personal training at my gym. Chiara in HR is his girlfriend. He’s the one who hooked me up with her.”

Pierce shook Andy’s hand. “Nice to meet you, Andy. I’m glad you sent Rebecca our way.”

“Well, all I did was get her in to see my girlfriend.” He turned back to Rebecca. “So, I know you got the job, but I haven’t seen you for a few days.” He lowered his voice. “I guess you found a place to live? No more parking lots?”

Parking lots?

Rebecca’s eyes widened. She shot a worried look at Pierce, then turned her attention back to Andy. “What? No. I rent a room in a house, but lately I’ve been staying with Pierce.” Her words fell fast and shaky.

“Good, because I was worried.”

“No need to worry. I’m doing great. Hey, we’ve got to go. I’ll catch up with you at the gym.” Rebecca walked away without waiting for Pierce.

He forced himself to push past the confusion simmering in his mind.
A place to stay? Parking lots?
“Nice to meet you, Andy, and thanks again for connecting Rebecca with Chiara.”

He caught up to Rebecca. She was walking fast, her lower lip trapped between her teeth, her brow furrowed.

“Let’s try Macy’s,” she suggested.

“Rebecca, what did he mean by
no more parking lots
?” He flashed back to the evening when they went to the parking garage to get her bag and she didn’t let him near her trunk.

“Nothing.”

“Rebecca, we said no secrets, remember?” They were entering Macy’s, and as Rebecca practically dashed toward the back of the store, Pierce reached for her hand. “Bec, slow down. Please?”

She stopped walking, faced him with her brows drawn together, and crossed her arms. Her chest rose and fell with heavy breaths—and in those few seconds, he understood.

“Okay. I stayed in my car for a few nights, okay?” She spoke quietly and held his gaze with a distraught expression.

“Babe.” He reached for her hand, and she shrugged him off.

“Don’t.” She turned away. “Can we please just get the gift and talk about this when we’re not in public?”

“Forget the gift. I don’t care about the stupid gift.” He was trying to wrap his mind around Rebecca sleeping in her car, which was a tough pill to swallow. If he added the fact that she hadn’t trusted him enough to tell him that she was living in her car when they met, it burned like hell. “Let’s go talk now.”

Tension thickened with each passing minute on the silent drive back toward Pierce’s house.

“Do you mind if we go someplace other than home to talk?” Rebecca asked in a soft voice.

He reached for her hand. “Sure. The park?”

She shrugged. “Someplace where there aren’t a million people maybe?”

Pierce drove to the River Trail and walked down by the river. The sound of running water was soothing but not soothing enough to quell Pierce’s simmering emotions. He knew by now that pushing Rebecca wasn’t the answer. She’d explain when she was ready, and he respected that, walking silently beside her. He draped his arm over her shoulder and tried to be patient as they walked down the quiet, rocky trail along the riverbank. A breeze rustled the leaves of trees as they passed beneath. A dirt clearing led to the edge of the river, and without a word, Rebecca crossed the clearing and sat on a rock by the water. Pierce sat beside her and leaned his elbows on his knees, trying his best not to let her see his eyes. He knew they’d betray him and she’d see how badly he felt for her. It wasn’t pity, but he knew that love and caring could mimic pity in her mind.

“I came here the week after my mom died. I’m glad you chose this place to talk. I feel safe here, like she’s nearby for some reason.” Rebecca looked out over the water.

Pierce put his arm around her again. “You’re safe, Bec. I’m here, too.”

She nodded. “I know.”

“Bec…”

She turned sad eyes toward him and drew her shoulders back. “You didn’t bring your sunglasses.” She smiled, but it was forced and it faded quickly.

“I don’t pity you, Becca. I love you.”

She looked down at her hands and drew in a deep breath. Her hair curtained her face. “I know you do.”

Pierce tucked her hair behind her ear and lifted her chin. “Talk to me, please.”

She nodded and dropped her eyes again, then looked out at the water. “I told you that Mr. Fralin let me and my mom stay in our apartment. Well, after she died, I stayed for another few weeks. I kept thinking that I’d get a job and raise enough money to afford to live there, and eventually I got the job at King’s Bar, but that was only about two weeks before I met you. I felt so trapped. I owed Mr. Fralin two months of rent when she died, plus almost six more weeks for letting me stay afterward while I pulled myself together, and every day I stayed it cost him money in unearned rent. I felt guilty, and even though I had years to prepare for my mom dying, I wasn’t prepared.” She blinked at the tears that dampened her eyes.

Pierce drew her against him and kissed her temple. “I don’t think anyone’s ever prepared, no matter how long they have before it happens.”

“Yeah,” she whispered. She sat silently for a long while, rubbing her hands together and gazing out at the water. When she finally spoke again, some of the strength had returned to her voice.

“When I met you, I was staying in my car. It was only a few nights, and then Andy hooked me up with Chiara, and I got the job and rented a room from Daphne.”

He didn’t know which hurt more, knowing she’d had to stay in her car or knowing she’d kept it from him. “Is that why you wouldn’t let me near your trunk when we picked up your bag?”

She nodded, still not meeting his gaze.

“Rebecca, you slept over at my house. We were so close. I know we moved quickly, but why didn’t you tell me?”

“That would have gone over really well.” She crossed her arms, then uncrossed them and pushed from the rock to her feet. “Oh, hey, by the way, I live in my car. Tell me you wouldn’t have run the other way.” She turned her back to him, and Pierce rose and placed his hands on her shoulders from behind.

“I wouldn’t have run the other way.”

She scoffed. “Then you would have wanted to fix it for me.”

How could he deny the truth? “Becca—”

“I know we said no secrets, but this is a little different, don’t you think?” She turned to face him, and the determined look in her eyes was reminiscent of the first night they’d met, when come hell or high water, it was her against the world. But she wasn’t alone any longer.

“No, I don’t. Honesty isn’t pick or choose.”

She rolled her eyes. “It is when you’re living in your car and you meet a guy who you really, really like—and he looks like his clothes cost more than your car. Pierce, my life is so far out of your realm that you couldn’t possibly understand it.” She took a step away, and he reached for her hand again.

“Rebecca, my life wasn’t always what it is now. This isn’t about living in your car. This is about trusting me with the truth. Would you ever have told me?” He didn’t know what to think. He felt hurt, but at the same time, he knew that wasn’t her intent, and he
wanted
to understand everything about Rebecca, including, and maybe most importantly, this.

“Yes. Later. Much later.”

“When? When I asked you to marry me? When we had kids? When would you have trusted me enough, Rebecca?” His voice escalated and he paced, trying to calm himself down.