Rescued by the Billionaire (Billionaire Romance Novel) (5 page)

“Hi,” Kelly smiled at him.
 

“Good afternoon,” he announced. “Are you ready?”
 

“As I’ll ever be.” She turned to her friend, “Will you make sure she gets more medicine after she has lunch?”
 

Dawn nodded and bid them goodbye as they left. She hoped the two of them would have a great time. He was certainly handsome and seemed well mannered.
 

As they approached the car, he briskly walked ahead of her to open the door of his white Escalade for her. “Thank you,” she beamed at him. No man had ever done that for her; it was exhilarating.
 

He jumped in the driver’s seat and began driving to the Mexican restaurant. “Your friend seemed pretty nice,” he commented as he made his way onto the highway.
 

“Dawn? She’s my BFF. We’ve been best friends for about 20 years now. She watches Emma for me quite a bit.”
 

He admired hearing that Kelly had such a loyal friend, one that she’d known almost her whole life. None of the women he knew had any friendships with their female companions for that long. “I liked your house and all the pictures of your
darling daughter,” he smiled at her as he looked over to her.
 

“Thanks. She’s my pride and joy. I live for that little girl.”
 

When they arrived at the restaurant, he immediately got out and opened Kelly’s door. He waited for her to exit the vehicle before heading inside the restaurant where he, once again, held the door for her. For him, this was standard etiquette; men open doors for ladies, but to Kelly, this was completely unchartered territory. The hostess showed the couple to an intimate table in the far corner of the crowded restaurant.
 

Dave admired Kelly’s radiant reflection in the glow of the candlelight that was emanating from the center of the table.  He listened to Kelly’s sweet voice as she talked about her daughter and
described how they spent their time when she wasn’t working. He could listen to her forever. She appeared so bright—too intelligent to fast food.
 

“How come you’re a waitress?” he asked her; it seemed to fit the conversation since she was talking about her days off.
 

“It’s not the best job in the world, but it allows me to work the hours that I need so I’m there for Emma when she comes home from school. It also helps pays the bills.” She replied. “So tell me about what you do.” She still wondered exactly what he did for a living.
 

Dave marveled at how committed Kelly was to her child, but he totally understood the position that she was in. “I buy, sell and own commercial properties and invest in stocks.” He said as he
folded his hands under his chin, admiring Kelly’s beautiful blue eyes and captivating pink lips.
 

She began to feel uncomfortable; this was way out of her league. “What exactly does that mean?” she asked meekly.
 

“Basically, I acquire retail spaces and lease them out. Occasionally I’ll unload them if the price is right, but I find that it’s better to rent them so I have continuous revenue coming in off a single purchase. The stocks are just that. I buy, sell and trade them; they’ve made me a small fortune,” he smiled at her.
 

“What commercial properties do you own?” Kelly asked as she nibbled at her entrée.
 

“I own South County Mall and the Crossford Apartments as well as the Chase Run golf course. I
also own other commercial retail spaces, a few more apartment complexes, and two more golf courses, but they’re all back home.”
 

Dave did an outstanding job impressing her. She couldn’t believe she was having lunch with the man who owned one of the most prestigious living communities in the area as well as the busiest mall and an extravagant golf course.
 

“Back home?” Kelly asked. “Where’s that?”
 

“I’m originally from Los Angeles, California. I moved to St. Louis about three years ago.” He explained, taking a bite of his chimichanga.
 

“Wow,” she emphasized as she drank her water. “You’re not from here? Why did you move here?”
 

“Mostly business. I don’t like to purchase investments blindly. I wanted to visit the area, the commercial properties that surrounded the ones I intended to buy and get a feel for how much I could turn out to profit.” He took a drink, “I also needed a break from L.A.”
 

Kelly nodded, “I see,” she said, not sure what to say at that point. This man carefully planned every detail of his life it seemed. She didn’t know where she’d be in ten years from now, but he certainly had a plan.
 

While the two of them got better acquainted over lunch, Kelly’s phone went off with a text alert; it was Dawn. Kelly excused herself to the bathroom and left the table.
 

As she walked away, Dave admired her long legs in her short skirt, which seemed to start at
the floor and go all the way up to her neck. His eyes stared at her toned, round ass as it shifted while she walked across the restaurant. Biting his lip, his mind raced thinking of all the naughty things he’d like to do to her.
 

In the bathroom, she called Dawn to tell her how well their date was going.
 

“He’s been a pure gentleman! He’s opened all my doors, pulled out my chair and has told me so much about himself, but I don’t know if it’ll work.” Kelly said, worried how their relationship would play out.
 

“Why do you say that? He sounds great!”
 

“He’s a little too perfect. Like, he owns all of these commercial spaces—including South County Mall! And he also owns the Crossford Apartments
and some golf course—and that’s just here in Missouri! He owns more properties and businesses in L.A., that’s where he’s from.”
 

“What’s wrong with that?” Her friend asked quizzically.
 

“Dawn, I think he’s loaded! I don’t want him to believe I’m with him for his money. And what if he ever invited me to some fancy event? What would I wear? My T.J. Maxx special?”
 

She laughed, “It’ll be okay Kelly. Really. And so what if he’s rich? You’ve never dated a man because he’s had money. Hell, most of the guys you’ve gone with don’t even have jobs. You go and enjoy yourself. I’ll see you when you get home.”
 

Dave was scrolling through his phone as she made her way back to the table. “Sorry, I was just
checking on some things. How is your lunch?” he asked her.
 

“Good. Yours?”
 

“I have to say, it’s delicious! I haven’t been here for quite a while.”
 

As the two finished up lunch, Dave motioned to the waitress for the bill by signaling a check sign with his finger. Kelly texted Dawn to let her know that they would be heading home soon and promised to fill her in on all the details about their date. During the ride home, he reflected how great it was to have lunch with such an amazing lady. He considered himself fortunate; it had been so long since he’d met a real woman. His friend Charles had tried to set him up with women from the moment he’d arrived in St. Louis. Most of them were shallow and only had one thing on their
minds: his money. He didn’t get that vibe with Kelly. He could tell that she was completely devoted to her daughter and wasn’t interested in him for his money. She was the polar opposite of those types; she was friendly, thoughtful, gracious, warm-hearted and somewhat guarded. Though she’d answered all of his questions, she didn’t volunteer any extra information about her work, daughter or her past. He wondered about her history and asked why she was so private about certain matters.
 

Pulling up to Kelly’s house, Dave could see a small girl sitting in the living room window. He turned to Kelly and grinned.
 

“I sense you have someone awaiting you.”
 

Her face lit up as she saw Emma eagerly waiting for her to get out of the car. “She always
does that; sits there and waits for me. It doesn’t matter if she’s at home or Dawn’s house. It’s what she does,” she smiled.
 

“There’s nothing wrong with that. I bet that little girl loves her mom,” he admired, wishing he had children of his own.
 

“Nope, not at all. Dave, thank you for lunch. I had an excellent time. I hope you did too.”
 

“I had an excellent time,” he elaborated, grabbing her hand, delivering a gentle kiss to the back of it. “Will you call me later?”
 

Kelly blushed. Again, no man had ever kissed her like that. Chills ran down her spine. “Maybe,” she teased as she laughed.
 

“I certainly hope so. I’d like to take you out again sometime…. soon.” He added.
 

“I guess I should get in there before Emma comes out to charge your car. I’ll call you later.”
 

Kelly made her way inside as she waved goodbye to her date, still beaming a brilliant white smile.
 

“So how was it?” Dawn pressed.
 

“Momma!” Her little love bug exclaimed throwing her arms around her mom’s waist.
 

“Hi, Emma Buggy. Why don’t you play while I talk to Aunt Dawn?”
 

“Okay, mommy.” She giggled, making her way off to her bedroom.
 

“Let’s go in the kitchen while I make us a pot of coffee. I had a really great time.”
 

Kelly filled her friend in on the juicy details of their luncheon, including the hand kiss in his Escalade. As she recounted the afternoon, her mind raced a mile a minute. She hadn’t had that nice of a date in her entire life—and all they did was sit and talk over a meal. It was obvious that she had the hots for Dave.
 

“If I didn’t know you any better, I’d say that you’re doting over him,” Dawn said as she poured creamer into her coffee.
 

“Well, he was amazing, and I had an awesome time. He was just so… different. He’s not like anyone I’ve ever met; not even close!”
 

“So do you foresee going out with him again?”
 

“It’s funny you asked that. He actually told me, before I got out of his car, that he wanted to see me again soon!” Kelly was as giddy as a high school girl who’d had her first kiss.
 

“Well let me tell you what I found out while you were on your date,” Dawn said, matter-of-factly. “I did some research on the computer and you were right when you thought he was rich. He’s not just loaded, he’s a freaking
billionaire
!”
 

“Oh my God! Are you serious? I was out with a
billionaire
?” Kelly’s mouth suddenly went dry as she sat in disbelief. “Are you kidding me? Please tell me that you’re messing around. You’re playing with me, aren’t you?” She couldn’t get over what she heard.
 

“I’ll show you. Come here, I might still have it up on the computer.” The ladies walked over to the desktop and Dawn pointed to his name on the list of the top United States billionaires.
 

“Oh my God!” Kelly gasped. “If I would’ve known that he was a billionaire, I would’ve dressed much nicer. I can’t even imagine this.” Kelly’s smile began to return as she played with the thought of going on a date with a billionaire.
 

“It’s fantastic to see you smiling. I hope things work out in your favor; you deserve it.” She commended. “I like seeing you so happy.”
 

“I promised him that I’d call him later,” Kelly said, sipping her coffee. “And I intend to do just that.”
 

Chapter Four
 

When she returned to her job on Tuesday, she filled her coworkers in on all the details about her date—and who he was. As they listened to her story, the girls were shocked.
 

“It sounds like a fairy tale, Kelly!” Heather exclaimed.
 

“I know. It just seems so surreal. I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.”
 

“You should go for it,” Sarah encouraged her.
 

Business was usual; they were painfully slow once again. On her break, she called to check on her daughter, which she typically did anyway.
 

“Hi Kelly,” she answered the call.
 

“Hi. I was curious what you guys were up to today and was wondering how my munchkin is.”
 

“We’re not doing much to tell you the truth. She’s just been hanging out with Derek. He’s been working on painting the deck red so she’s been his big helper.”
 

“Oh, I bet he loves that,” Kelly chuckled.
 

“Actually, he is! She’s a great drink-taker.” She snickered. “When you dropped her off this morning, I meant to ask you if you’ve gotten a hold of Dave since your date.”