Taming The Billionaire. Dani Wade

he could see her eyes cataloging everything she’d seen tonight—which wasn’t much. Still, she tried. “But there are so many rooms—”

      “Which have been stripped. Or I assure you the mattresses are nothing but dust and springs by now.”

      He held out the oversize T. “Your attire, my dear.”

       Three

      Even with the sound of heavy rain outside, Willow could still hear every squeak of the leather when Tate moved on the couch. And he moved a lot.

      Too bad it wasn’t thundering still.

      As the furniture protested yet another turn of Tate’s big body, Willow contemplated their current situation in the dark. She knew Murdoch had said they never had visitors, but she never imagined a big house like this wouldn’t at least be set up for the possibility. This was the South. Hospitality was an actual way of life down here. All these rooms lying dormant would be unheard of.

      It was a type of isolation Willow couldn’t imagine.

      She should be sound asleep right now. Between the tense drive and the stress of meeting her new boss, exhaustion weighed down her bones. But her unexpected dousing in cold water and ceiling tiles had her hyped. And every squeak of the leather told her Tate was in the same boat.

      As one particularly restless move was followed by a long sigh, Willow finally gave in. She sat up and projected her voice above the noise of raindrops hitting the windows. “This is ridiculous. Come to bed.”

      Hmm...that probably wasn’t the right way to put it. Now that her vision had adjusted somewhat to the dark, she could see his head and bare shoulders rise above the back of the couch. “What did you say?”

      She should have been intimidated, but she was over that by now. “Come sleep in your own bed. You’re never gonna get any rest over there. And neither am I.”

      “What’s that supposed to mean?”

      “That every time you move that couch creaks. It’s even noisier than the rain outside.”

      He slowly got to his feet. To her relief, he wrapped a blanket around his shoulders, covering the light skin that she wanted so badly to see. To cover her awkwardness over having her gorgeous new boss approach the bed she was sleeping in, she said the first thing that came to mind.

      “At least the one good bed left in the house is the size of a football field.” Frankly, she felt a little lost in all this yardage.

      “I’m not a small guy.”

      To that, she could attest.

      “But I don’t think this is a good idea,” he said.

      “I think we’ll manage,” she said, her sense of humor asserting itself. “I won’t think less of you if you put pillows down the middle. After all, I want you to feel safe.”

      Even in the dark she caught his pause. “Shouldn’t that be my line?” he asked. She detected a touch of amusement. Probably the best she could hope for with him, especially since his progress had slowed considerably. Did walking toward her on the bed have to resemble a death march?

      Not that he should be too eager, but still...

      “I’m not the one who needs convincing,” she reminded him. “And if I don’t get some sleep soon, I’ll have trouble proving my worth to my new boss tomorrow.”

      This time she was granted a chuckle, and he finished making his way across the room. The bed shifted a little as he lay down, but he seemed to stay as close to the edge as possible. Heck, her arm fully stretched out wouldn’t come close to reaching him.

      “No pillows?” she finally asked.

      “I think I’m safe.”

      You wish. She tried to relax, tried to sink into the most comfortable mattress she’d ever lain on, but it wasn’t happening. Then he suddenly spoke.

      “Considering how well you’ve taken everything that’s happened tonight, I think you might have earned a point or two in your favor. Hopefully your new boss will agree.”

      She huffed out a little laugh, then consciously forced her muscles to clench, then relax. It was the only thing she knew of to distract herself from his presence. So close, but still a good distance away.

      That’s the way she should want it, but a niggling desire wouldn’t be smothered. If what he’d said was true, she’d have to learn to live with lusting after her boss in the quiet recesses of her own mind.

      Though she’d thought sleep wouldn’t show up, considering the thoughts running rampant through her brain, the steady sound of the rain, the exhaustion she couldn’t fight any longer and the even breath of the man a few feet away eventually lured her under.

      She woke to a different environment altogether. Instead of rain, sunshine peeked through the slats that protected the windows. Heavy covers kept her warm. Her body, her muscles, felt languid, almost liquefied in her relaxation. Then something shifted against her leg and sleep was immediately a thing of the past.

      Suddenly the weight against her back and lower body made more sense. It wasn’t a heavy blanket. It was a man.

      Her heart picked up speed. She lay on her stomach. His chest seemed to be covering part of her back. Now that she knew what to look for, she could see his fingers against the covers on the opposite side of her body. His warm, musky scent clung to the sheets, tempting her to draw in a deep breath.

      But would even that slight movement wake him up?

      As incredibly sexy as this was, and as much as her body throbbed its approval, the last thing she wanted was to face him knowing his leg had slid between hers. Why hadn’t he stayed on his side of the football field?

      He shifted, rubbing a warm, hairy leg against the sensitive skin of her inner thighs. The shirt he’d given her hung almost to her knees, but now she had a feeling her panties were exposed...and probably a little damp.

      She needed out now. But how did she do that?

      Above her hair, she heard a heavy sigh. The big body half covering hers stretched, pressing harder against her. A certain part of him was making its approval well-known. Willow bit her lip to keep a groan inside. Why did he have to feel so good?

      Then he went absolutely still.

      She squeezed her eyes shut. I don’t want to deal with this. And she certainly didn’t want him to see how much she enjoyed waking up to his body pressed against hers. But as he shifted infinitesimally, she braced herself for the inevitable awkward confrontation.

      “Oh no,” he groaned softly behind her.

      Oh yes. The only thing to do was guard her expression as best as possible and brave this out. Twisting around, she tried to blink innocently. “Sleep well?”

      “Not my usual,” he said, his voice deep and gravelly enough to send tingles along her nerve endings.

      She tried to ignore his heavy eyelids, sleepy expression and tousled black hair. But this whole “barely awake” look was short-circuiting her overloaded brain. “Pardon me?”

      “Sleeping is usually a solitary experience.”

      Even though the past twelve hours had proved that guests weren’t an option around here, she had a difficult time believing this hot, virile male only slept alone. “Seriously?”

      Pulling away, he sat up on the edge of the bed. With him facing away from her, she couldn’t read his expression. She had a feeling that was on purpose.

      His voice was low when he spoke, though not as gravelly as earlier. “I haven’t slept in the same room with another person since I was a teenager.”

      As he walked away, Willow marveled for a moment. Considering