Bargain Bride, Billionaire Groom Read online

  “O-kayyy.” Resigned to dealing with her, he swept his goggles from his eyes. Those vibrant blue discs and the lashes that framed them completed his sensational face.

  The reminder of how captivated he’d looked while making love to her sent waves of familiarity rolling across her body.

  Jio stuck his gloves in his pockets and plucked Lily from Golden’s arms.

  “Poppa,” Lily greeted, squirming with joy. “Hi!”

  Giving her a hug, he asked, “You came to see me, my princess?” His breath billowed in the arctic air, and his hand pulled the blanket tighter around Lily who was nodding, and smiling, in awe of him.

  “Grazie. I feel so happy,” he told her, then turned to Golden.

  She busied herself brushing the snow from her clothes, while memories of their last night together scalded her insides. When he leaned in to plant a dutiful kiss on her cheek, she moved away. He studied her with thoughtful eyes.

  You with the brass-balled nerves aren’t allowed to have any of my kisses! She silently fumed.

  He shrugged. Turning to Lily, he kissed the back of the hand she daintily offered up to him. So used to his European manners, Lily had come to see the gesture as her due.

  Golden’s breath froze on her lips while the rest of her warmed from the tenderness and affection he always showed her daughter. After the manager ushered them back inside, he politely excused himself.

  Hot and bothered, she followed Jio, unable to stop herself from studying the way his ski suit flattered every inch of his magnificent physique. She sneezed.

  “Doing okay?” Jio led the way to a waiting elevator and pressed the button to the main floor. He leaned against the metal rail. With Lily curled up in his arms, he stared at Golden with wary eyes.

  Beneath his ski suit, she’d bet the sweet potato patch that his chest was bunched and straining over her unexpected arrival.

  “I’m better than I have been in a long time,” she said, darkly pleased by the effect she was having on him. As the elevator moved, Lily became distracted by the floor lights blinking overhead.

  “You have every reason to be angry with me, Golden, and I promise you…” Jio’s mouth thinned with grim resolve. “I promise you when the time is right we’ll talk it all through.”

  She stared back at him stonily. “Hmm. You get to decide when the time is right?”

  Of course she planned to address his shenanigans, but right now? Watching him squirm like a hooked eel was looking pretty good from where she stood.

  His surprised stare grilled into her. She touched her neck to make sure she hadn’t grown an extra head because he had the look of a man who’d just stumbled on a new class of alien being.

  Jio lowered the tone of his voice, careful to speak in a casual, even manner. “You didn’t need to come. You should be in Maui. With Marcus.”

  She lifted her eyebrows. “You get to decide that, too?”

  What sort of man was he? How could he think she was the kind of woman who’d allow him to toy with her feelings? Her body? Then expect her to go play happy family with another man? What kind of a man would do to a woman what he did to her?

  Not that she was any better for allowing it, but damn it. He ran off. She didn’t.

  “You’re not supposed to be here with me. I did send you the divorce papers. I thought…I thought that’s what was best for you. Did you not get them?”

  “Jio, I got the papers the day before I was leaving to come here.” She matched his tone so that Lily wouldn’t pick up anything out of the ordinary. “And, since I’m just an average mortal without a jet at my disposal, I would have had to pay change fees for not one, but two tickets if I cancelled our flight. Besides, this will probably be one of few opportunities you’ll get to spend with Lily before I marry. And if our coming here presents a hardship for you? Well…I don’t care. Lily and I can have a winter vacation of our own. The heated indoor-outdoor pool looks wonderful. And with all the shopping and nightclubs in town, it looks like there are attractions here that will suit children, and single adults. Like me.”

  Danger shrouded Jio’s eyes as she flaunted her plans to enjoy herself, with or without him.

  “I’m happy to see you,” he gritted through a boxed jaw, looking so infuriated she had to bite her lip to keep from smiling. “I’m just…startled to see you. You took me by surprise, but it’s no problem. I’m still glad you’re here,” he assured her curtly. “Both of you.”

  “Good. Well, I can take Lily and we can unpack our things if you need to change.” She pulled out her cardkey from the pocket of her jacket to show him. “I’ve rented a room for us.”

  “You’ll stay with me.”

  “No. I will not.” Golden felt his gaze assess the stubborn angle of her jaw. When he didn’t argue, she stuck it back in her pocket and hid her trembling hand in its satin lining.

  Jio’s gaze swept over her face. “Golden, I—”

  The elevator doors opened up to a lodge rep standing on the other side. “Hello! Mr. Falcone, you’re just the person I was looking for. Chef wanted you to know he’s just received a leg of spring lamb that you might enjoy for tonight’s meal.”

  “I would,” Jio nodded. “However, my wife might prefer something else,” he added thoughtfully.

  “Lamb sounds wonderful,” she assured them.

  “I’ll be dining at my place up the lane tonight, with my family.” Jio completed his instructions by giving a time he expected to be there later that evening.

  “Very well, sir. We’ll send someone over to get the fireplaces going,” said the rep. “Ah, sir, there’s one other matter. Our reservations agents overbooked. All of our rooms were let to capacity, and we just got word that Prince Sebastiano and his entourage will be arriving late tonight.”

  “I see,” Jio looked taken aback. He frowned.

  It’s happening left and right tonight eh, Jio? Golden mused.

  “Let the prince have my suite of rooms here,” he said briskly. “The extra space in the chalet will be put to better use since my family will be joining me after all. Give me a few minutes to clear out my things.”

  “I will let housekeeping know. Shall I have Ludi bring the car around, sir?”

  “Please.”

  “Your place up the lane?” Golden inquired when the lodge representative walked away.

  He nodded. “My house. I decided to take a suite here when I thought you wouldn’t be joining me after…” his cheeks crimsoned. “Let’s just say it’s not energy efficient to occupy a house if I’m there alone. I normally have it rented out this time of the year. It must be kismet that you and Lily turned up. Now we can all spend time there. Together.”

  She followed Jio to a set of carved double-doors with a gold name plate mounted off to the side of the wall. Wolf’s Den, it read. He noticed her interest. “The rooms in these resorts are not just numbered. They are named.”

  “How nice,” she said, pretending to sound bored.

  His mouth tightened. He stared at her lips then looked away to lead her inside. Elk-horn chandeliers, wrought iron and log furniture nestled on a hand-tufted wool rug. He started the gas-lit fireplace to raise the warmth inside the room.

  “So, do you know this prince, Jio?”

  His gaze sharpened on her. “Yes. Why?”

  “I’ve never met a prince,” she told him, intrigued by the company that frequented this establishment.

  He surprised her by saying, “You met this one at Enzo’s memorial service. You just don’t remember. Have a seat, but don’t get too comfortable. We are going to Witchwood for dinner.”

  “Witchwood?” Did he name his houses, too?

  “My place up the lane,” he said, amused by the befuddled look on her face. “And after dinner, I’ll bring you both back here. Do you have warmer clothing than what you’re wearing?”

  Golden shook her head. “It’s April. Coming from the tropics, I made the mistake of thinking it would be warm here, as well. I never imagined how b
eautiful snow can be, or the brutal chill that comes with it.”

  “Both of you need warmer clothes. We’ll have to remedy that.” Jio passed Lily over to her. Then he excused himself to shower and change.

  Golden wandered around, admiring the suite and its cozily furnished rooms. It took up half of an entire floor. Beautiful and spacious, a long balcony provided breathtaking mountain vistas of snow-capped mountains and slopes of evergreens.

  Jio reappeared shortly, looking devastating in black wool-blend trousers and a thick black sweater. When he offered her a smile, she resisted its charm and wouldn’t give him one back.

  Jio shook his head and pulled a military style duffel bag out of the utility closet. Moving throughout the suite, he collected personal items of clothing and toiletries. He packed light whenever he traveled, buying whatever items were needed at the city of his destination.

  Even his offices had personal suites where he could shower and sleep. He hadn’t planned ahead for companions on this trip, however. Neither did he expect Golden to take him up on his offer and join him—not after that night in Maui. Still, showing up here looking beautiful, defiant and under-dressed as usual?

  She made him crave her that much more—this woman who should have been forbidden to him.

  She let him know it, too. No longer did she accept his embrace. She withheld even her politest kisses, and hugs, from him. These things he received the few times he saw her, these seemingly casual things that were a social duty to her he’d clutched to his heart like rare gems whenever he received them.

  The island-flower scent of her had lingered in his dreams. The cushiony plushness of her lips occupied his thoughts. Nor could he forget the way her body felt, or how she’d molded her tongue perfectly to his and opened her thighs to his questing fingers.

  The memory of pleasuring her had clung to his mind and body like mussels on a rock. Was this cordial, detached beauty the same woman from that night? He had to find a way to warm her up to him again. At least, enough to get her to dispose of the defensive cloak she’d wrapped around herself.

  He was to blame. No doubt his abandonment of her that night put it there. He’d wronged her by taking advantage of her. His lame-ass attempt to make it right by backing off so she could move on with another man only made things worse. All he’d managed to do was mock her efforts.

  So why was she here? For Lily, sure. She definitely wasn’t here to take up where he’d left off—but she was here for something. He could see it in the ice and fire she harbored in her eyes.

  Are you here to hurt me, beautiful? Because you will. You will.

  “We’ll have to outfit you properly for ski gear as well…” Jio paused to watch her study an oil painting of a lone gray wolf camouflaged among the ghostly white bark of an aspen grove. The wolf’s gaze was transfixed on something just beyond the trees, on an object it hungered for.

  The object wasn’t prey. It wasn’t a weak animal that needed thinning from the herd. Not at all. Just beyond the trees, a female wolf watched—and waited—for her mate to claim her…

  His jaw clenched. His heart clenched. God help him, he knew the soul-blistering yearning. “Golden.”

  She turned to him, her brows lifted in question. Duffel bag strapped over his shoulder, Jio waited by the doors for her. “Are you ready?”

  “Oh, yes. But my things—”

  “—are stored in your room. Safe and sound.” He tucked his ski jacket around her and Lily both, then ushered them out the double doors of his suite and through the lobby. A chauffeured black Hummer waited for them beyond the lodge doors.

  “First order of business…” Jio said as he helped her and Lily into the vehicle, “we are going shopping.”

  Chapter Seven

  The village of Whistling Creek, built along a network of rivers and bubbling brooks, featured a charming river walk lined with quaint restaurants, bars and boutiques. Restored Victorian homes mingled alongside rustic and cozy log cottages.

  Many of the village residences had also been converted into upscale shops whose doors, windows and eaves were draped with strands of colorful lights. Ropy summer vines twisted, dormant, alongside them.

  “Do you like it?” Jio asked.

  “Not bad,” Golden replied, faking yet another indifferent shrug.

  She was blown away! And, getting a truer sense of what her real-estate developer slash mogul husband did for such a fabulous living. “So, you don’t just buy, develop and sell property, Jio? You actually build towns and stuff?”

  He reached out to fondle her soft, large curls that hung down past his coat. “And stuff. The area had been an abandoned mining town, victim of three coal mining busts in the mid 1900’s. Our company developed the area in hopes of creating a strong sense of community—to include medical facilities, grocery and feed stores…”

  She tugged her hair away from him, and pretended to yawn. His jaw tightened, and he wouldn’t say much after that.

  At a store that sold and rented ski and sports gear, he wasted no time choosing several ski suits for her to try on. He did the same in the children’s section for Lily.

  With Jio’s help, Golden decided on a periwinkle blue suit with creamy wool trim, a ski bib, some turtlenecks and sweaters to go with it, and a ski jacket. Then she chose a pair of dark pink leather boots with shearling cuffs. Hats, gloves, and scarves followed each other into the shopping cart along with several sets of thermal underwear. Instead of buying boots and skis for Golden outright, Jio rented them.

  “Now that we’re equipped to take on the slopes tomorrow, are you ready for dinner, Golden? Or would you like to browse some of the other stores?”

  “Whatever you want, Jio. Lily and I will go with the flow.”

  “Dare I cling to one last hope that you might actually enjoy your stay here, with me?” he asked her politely.

  “Who says I’m not?”

  His eyes narrowed. The flame inside them warned her you are asking for it! What possessed her to come and court this—this rumbling hot spring of power? One he was obviously keeping a tight lid on? She tipped her chin up. It was a matter of when, not if she popped that lid, too.

  I’ll prove to you that I have power, too, Jiovanni. Because when the time comes? I’ll walk away from you. I will!

  ~~*~~

  “So this,” Golden observed as she gazed up at the thirty foot ceiling with dramatic spruce trusses, “is your place up the lane?”

  Ridiculously Beautiful Chalet in the Woods didn’t begin to cover it. The floor they walked on was swathed in polished wood planks with burled patterns. A half spiral staircase leading to the upper loft was pieced together with jumbo-sized split logs.

  “Welcome to Witchwood, Golden.”

  “Witchwood…” she repeated, fighting the enchantment closing in on her. The smell of fresh cut timber added to the open country feel of his mountain home. “Where are the three bears?”

  He laughed and placed Lily on her feet to roam. Golden followed him to a spectacular hickory table imbedded with dark blue spears of turquoise.

  “Let’s see—there’s me.” He placed his shopping bags on the table. “There’s you,” he looked at her with a smile dancing on his lips. Taking her shopping bags off her hands, he nodded in Lily’s direction. She was busy peering outside one of the glass doors, “And there’s the littlest bear prowling about at the moment.”

  Golden smiled at him. “And somewhere in this fairy tale, there’s a wolf.”

  His lids lowered. “Maybe. Maybe he’s about to go on the prowl. What do you think of that?”

  Her eyes rounded and her heart thudded, alerted to danger signs up ahead.

  “Where is your cattle baron, Golden?”

  “M-Marcus?” She licked her lips. “He’s in Maui.”

  Jio reached out and took her hand in his. “Hmm.” He gave her ringless hand a thoughtful stare. “His ring is not on your finger.”

  “Neither is yours, Jio,” she softly reminded him, and tugge
d her hand out from his. His on the prowl visual was more difficult to brush aside.

  “Ah, that. I did send you the divorce papers.”

  She nodded. She’d received them and signed them, but instead of dropping them off at the post office before leaving Maui, she’d set the envelope on the étagère, next to the front door.

  No longer was there an urgency to finalize her divorce. At least, not to appease Marcus since he obviously had feelings for someone else. As did she. While she had no plans to stay in her marriage, she’d send the papers off when she was good and ready.

  “Momma!” Lily’s cry directed them to a herd of deer standing outside the oak-trimmed glass doors, on a snow-covered knoll beyond the swimming pool. They joined her in admiring the scenery.

  “Shall I give you a quick tour while she’s being entertained by the wildlife?” Jio whispered.

  “I’d like that.” Golden smiled at Jio’s thoughtfulness when he turned the television on to a cartoon channel. He then double-checked the locks on the door to make sure it was bolted shut.

  While Lily marveled at the deer, they toured the rest of the home. Three of the six bedrooms they looked at came with full baths. The other three bedrooms, to include a master suite furnished with a chunky log showpiece of a king-sized bed, were located on the main floor. Each had patios with woodland and mountain views.

  Another two rooms were accessed by a different staircase than the split-log wonder off the great room, and each of those rooms had full baths, balconies and shared a living area.

  “Nice!” Golden exclaimed when Jio presented his home theater, a cozy room that sat twelve people, complete with cinema chairs upholstered in luxurious gray velvet. “My brother would be in heaven.”

  “Both of you are always welcome to stay here,” he said as they swung back over to the main living area to check up on Lily. She was curled up happily on the sheepskin rug with her blankie, sucking her thumb while watching television.