Page 126 of The Thing About My Secret Billionaire

I’m right at the front now, her grandpa rising from his seat while looking between the two of us.

I hold Frankie’s gaze. If my heart had arms it wouldreach between my ribs and stretch with all its might to touch her, to hold her and never let her go.

“It changedme,” I declare.

There’s a general affectionate sigh from the audience.

I blink to force myself to break the spell and turn to Frankie’s grandpa. “Mr. Channing, nice to meet you.” I offer Sam my hand. “I’m Miller Malone.”

“Ah,” he says. “Mr. Malone. The one renovating the old arts barn and naming it after my late wife.” He takes my hand in both of his. “I can’t thank you enough. You have no idea how much it means to me. To us.”

“It’s my pleasure. I’m honored to be the one to restore it. Should be back to its former glory by spring.”

“I’ve heard a lot about you.” Sam winks.

“And I’m absolutely certain most of it is not exactly awesome,” I tell him.

“Well, you’d need to have a word with Frankie about that.” He starts to move away, but I stop him.

“Please, stay.” I turn to everyone else who’s in various states of either exiting the barn, or standing and staring at the unexpected show. “That goes for everyone. I know you came for a talk about the history of the sanctuary, but you might want to stay to hear about the future of it too.”

“Miller.” Frankie’s first word to me since she threw me out is stern. Her head cocks to one side and her eyes darken.

“Please, I know I’ve been an ass.” There’s a titter from the audience. “Sorry, unintended pun. And I know you probably never want to see me or hear from me again?—”

I’m silenced for a second by Frankie merely folding her arms and raising her eyebrows.

“But could you see your way to just hearing me out for a second?”

“Oh, I’m glad I made it for this,” says a voice somewhere behind me.

I turn to see the senior woman in the pink sparkly hat whipping around the outside of the audience with a walker, stopping at the end of the front row and dropping into its seat. A beaming smile fills her face.

When I turn back, Frankie is right in front of me, her face barely a foot from mine, her beautiful features rigid and uncompromising.

“Today is going so well,” she whispers for my ears only, barely moving her lips. “If you ruin it, I will never forgive you.”

“I’ve been working on the basis that you’ll never forgive me anyway.” God, her lips are so utterly irresistible. “This is me doing the best I can to put things right, despite that.”

“Let’s hear what the man has to say,” Sam says.

There’s a buzz of yeses from the crowd, many of whom have retaken their seats, and a very clear, “Definitely,” from the woman in the walker.

“It seems I’m outvoted,” Frankie says, taking a few steps back, widening the gulf between us to a distance I’m not sure I can bridge. This is going to be the toughest construction job of my life.

“Maybe it would help if I told everyone,” I suggest. “Confess my pure unadulterated awfulness to the whole crowd.”

Frankie snorts and rolls her eyes, like she couldn’t care less either way.

Since things can’t get any worse and my hope of success can’t get any less, I figure I should employ the one skill I’ve had since I wasa kid. Talking.

“Folks, I came to Warm Springs to stand up for my family. Right a wrong. Level life’s score.”

Some of the people sit back down.

“But then I met this woman.” I gesture to Frankie who’s not softened one bit.

“And by being around her, getting to know her, soaking up her kindness, her generosity, her endless capacity to care and do good and to love her grandpa, the donkeys, the sanctuary itself, and this whole town, I realized that the good thing I’d planned to do was actually…bad.”