Page 70 of The Billionaire's Heart

“Welcome home, Mr. Gallo.” Mia says as she takes my briefcase from me and places it on the floor.

“Come here.” I pull her into my arms and inhale her scent. Now I feel like I’m home. “God, I missed you.”

She wraps her arms around my neck. “I missed you, too. This is a very big house all by myself. How have you lived here alone all these years?”

I lean back to look into her eyes. “I’m rarely home.” My forehead rests on hers. “Can I kiss you?”

“I was hoping you w..”

I don’t let her finish her sentence. All I hear is her giving me permission and my lips land on hers. Once again, she tastes like honey.

We kiss like teenagers for a few minutes until Mia finally has had enough of me. “Okay. We need to stop.” She smiles at me.

“Why?” I kiss the tip of her nose.

“Because I made dinner, and it’s getting cold. Come.” She grabs my hand and starts us towards the kitchen, but very slowly.

“Um. Mia?”

She turns her megawatt smile towards me. “Yes?”

“Why are you walking like a penguin?”

Without missing a beat, she says, “It’s the new thing. Haven’t you seen it online? It’s all the rage. It’s what the kids are doing.”

I watch her waddle as if she doesn’t have knees and I can’t watch it anymore. Swooping her up and into my arms, I carry her to the dining room table and put her in a seat. “Sore from kickball practice?”

“Ugh. Yes, and I have no idea how I’m going to play tomorrow when it took me twenty minutes to get my cleats off my feet!” She drops her head into her hands.

Trapping her to her chair, I lean in close. “Maybe, if you’re nice to me, I’ll run you a bath and then put some cream on your sore muscles.” The excitement between us grows exponentially almost immediately.

Mia stares into my eyes and nods.

“You need to use your words, sweetheart.”

“Yea, um… yes. That sounds lovely.”

We stare at each other for a few moments. “Are you hungry?” she asks me.

Shaking my head, “Not for food.”

“Me, either.”

That’s all I needed to hear. I pick her up again and carry her up the stairs and into my bedroom. As I plop her down on my bed, I point at her. “Stay here.”

She nods as I go into my master bathroom and start the water. Mia hasn’t been in the master bathroom, at least I don’t think she has, and if she thinks the bathtub in her suite is big — wait until she sees mine.

My bathtub, I mean.

It’s huge.

I smirk at my own pun.

“Okay. In you go.” I urge Mia into the bath that I’ve drawn up for her. The salts will help with her sore muscles. At least that’s what my trainer tells me. I’ve not tried them yet.

I watch with bated breath as Mia undresses in front of me and it takes all my strength not to touch her. I have to keep reminding myself that she’s sore. Instead, I collect her clothes and deposit them in the hamper and then grab the lighter and start lighting candles.

“Oh, Ian, this feels so good.”