Page 19 of The Tycoon (The Douglas Brothers #1)

sutton

My woman is a voracious reader, and for the first time in my life, I feel as if she is completely out of my league. I am genuinely impressed.

“I don’t know how you can read in the car without getting sick,” I say, my voice lifting in awe. “It’s a talent I didn’t know that I wish I had until now.”

Laughing softly, Dolly carefully marks her place with her bookmark and closes her book. Turning her head to look at me, she adjusts her Saint Laurent LouLou sunglasses.

“It’s not that hard, Sir. You read your phone in the car, don’t you?”

Trying my best to keep my eyes on the road, I can’t help but give her another quick glance. I’m so glad she chose to wear the heart shaped sunglasses. It makes her look even more adorable in her lacy pink minidress.

“I do,” I respond, turning on my blinker.

Shrugging her shoulders, she runs her hand along the cover of her book.

I’ve noticed she does this a lot; it must comfort her in some way.

She also moves her feet over the sheets as she’s drifting off to sleep, almost like when a cat kneads into a blanket.

I doubt any of the other men in her life have noticed her idiosyncrasies.

If they had, they would never have let her go.

“Well, it’s the same principle. I’m sure you’d be able to, if you really wanted to. But that means you would actually have to, you know, read,” she teases.

Letting go of the steering wheel, I slap my open hand upon my chest. Widening my eyes behind the dark lenses of my sunglasses, my mouth falls open in faux offense. Oof, she is definitely growing bolder. I may have created a little, bratty monster.

“That hurts, Princess. I’ll have you know, I do read,” I reply.

Quirking her head, she leans in her leather seat towards me. I can feel the heat of her gaze, but I can’t tell if she’s admiring how handsome I am, or how much of a liar I am. I’d like to think the former.

“Uh huh.”

“Oh my God, I do! I’ll have you know I read all damn day long!” I retort, turning onto the street leading us to our dream home. “Meticulously going over reports and million-dollar contracts do count as reading. I assure you, I am very well read!”

Snickering under her breath, I catch her nodding her head. Wiggling her perfect body, her attention moves around as she takes in the newly built neighborhood. Her growing excitement is palpable. I start to feed off it.

“Ok, ok, I guess you do read. I’m sure it takes a lot of brain power and concentration to go over those very important documents,” she says.

“Thank you,” I reply.

“What I meant to say was reading for pleasure,” she retorts.

Humming low, I slow down my truck to allow her more time to soak in every little detail of the adorable street.

Once the Magnolia trees mature, and all the sod takes, this neighborhood will be picturesque.

I can already see us going for long walks during sunset.

First with a dog, and then with a cooing little baby in a stroller.

Did I just say that? Who the fuck am I? God, I am so whipped.

“Well, you got me there, beautiful. Maybe you can ease me into reading. Why don’t you start by reading to me at bedtime?” I ask, looking her way.

Lifting her lips into a full smile, she practically beams from my suggestion. I could kiss her senseless, she is too cute for words.

“I would love that, Sir!”

“Well, good! Let’s start when I come back from San Antonio on Saturday. I already know that I’m going to need your soothing voice to calm me down after this meeting,” I say.

“Of course, I’ll choose something extra smutty to read,” she says in a flirty tone.

Giving her a sly grin, my mind starts to drift towards tomorrow night.

There’s no doubt in my mind that I will need Dolly’s sweet voice and soft body to make me feel something again.

I don’t want to dwell in the letdown after this kill as I normally do.

In fact, I pray the beast wipes my memory as soon as the act is over. I don’t want to remember this one.

“Yes, please. Something very, very dirty.”

Reaching towards me, she dances her fingers over my thigh in a calculated move. If I wasn’t already slowing down my truck to turn into the driveway, I’d probably be crashing into the realtor’s Mercedes that’s parked on the street.

“Maybe we could then act it out, after?” she asks, her silky voice pushing all my buttons.

Taking in a shaky breath, I try to wrangle my immediate lust. I should make her pay for teasing me when I can’t do a damn thing about it, and I just might. I only have to wait a half an hour at most before I can give into my carnality. I can be patient; I can practice what I preach. Right? Sure.

“Oh, you know that I’m always up for that Princess,” I reply motioning towards the palatial house in front of us. “But first…welcome home.”

Turning her attention to the windshield, she lets out a loud gasp. Her entire body freezes as she stares at the white two-story modern colonial. This is exactly the reaction I was hoping for, she’s been rendered speechless.

“Do you like it, Dolly?” I ask, parking my truck in the driveway.

Nodding her head, she quickly unbuckles her seatbelt. I know she wants to jump out of the vehicle right this second, but she understands how serious I am about this one rule.

“Like it? Are you kidding? I love it!” she exclaims, her voice lifting to an almost squeal. “It’s perfect, I don’t even need to see the inside! I know this is the one!”

Her enthusiasm is contagious. I knew she would love this home, and I love the fact that she’s all in. With me, with this house, with our future. I’ve never felt more complete than I have since this pretty little thing walked into my life.

“Well, let’s go inside and make sure. This particular home builder is building a home with this plan, one street over. So, if you aren’t in love with the finishes, we can buy that one and have it custom built to your tastes,” I reply, opening my door. “We can rough it in the condo for nine months.”

I hear her snort as I close the door. I almost open it again to catch the full sound, but I’m distracted by my realtor as she walks up the cobblestoned driveway.

“Hey, Sutton, it’s good to see you!” she chirps, her heavily made up face pulling into a genuine smile.

Giving her a polite nod, I return her warm expression.

Nicolette has been my realtor since I bought my first home when I turned eighteen.

She has bent over backwards for me, and I will forever be grateful for her negotiation skills.

I will be even more so if she can make this particular deal happen.

“Hey, Nicolette, thank you for setting this up,” I say, stepping around the back of my truck. “Just one second, I have someone for you to meet.”

Opening the passenger door, I hold out my hand to Dolly.

She quickly places hers in mine and nearly jumps out of the vehicle.

As soon as her ballet flats hit the driveway, she quickly tugs on the hem of her dress to make herself presentable.

She’s lucky I was the only one who saw a flash of her panties.

I might just have to make her wear shorts under her dresses from now on.

“Sorry, Sir,” she says under her breath, noticing the slight change in my demeanor.

Leaning down, I place a soft kiss upon her forehead. My lips linger for a moment before I give her a small reprimand.

“I’ll let it slide this time, but you need to be more careful about how you leave my truck. I’m the only one who gets to see those pretty panties. Is that understood?” I ask, my voice low so only she can hear.

Nodding her head, she reaches towards the floor of the truck for her purse. “Yes, Sir. I understand. I promise I will be more careful from now on,” she responds, picking up the brown leather handbag.

Pleased by her answer, I wait for her to clear the truck before I close the door. Taking her hand, I lead her towards our realtor.

“Thank you, Princess. Now let’s see our house, hmm?”

Turning to look up at me, her excitement returns tenfold. As hard as she tries, she can’t help but bounce a little as she walks. I adore this little quirk of hers, I hope I always have the ability to give her a little pep in her step.

“Nicolette, this is my Dolly. Dolly, this is Nicolette,” I say warmly.

Moving to place her sunglasses on top of her head, Nicolette holds out her hand to Dolly.

Her hazel eyes sparkle with approval. If she happens to notice the still visible love bites gracing her skin, she doesn’t say anything.

It seems as if my Princess has instantly bewitched her just as she did with my Mama.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Dolly! Sutton tasked me to find you your dream home and I hope I have!”

Removing her sunglasses, she slips them into her handbag before shaking Nicolette’s hand. Squinting from the morning sun, she flashes her a sweet smile.

“I already know I’m going to love it! I have such a good feeling about it,” she replies.

Glancing back and forth between Dolly and me, Nicolette motions towards the front door with a flick of her head. With her cell phone in her hand, she leads us to our dream home.

“Well I just love hearing that! It really is a fantastic home. Now, just a heads up, this house just came on the market this morning. They haven’t been able to stage it yet, so it’s pretty bare.

But Sutton has always been so good at being able to conceptualize his living spaces so I’m sure he will be able to flesh things out for you,” she says, pulling up her realtor app to unlock the front door’s lockbox.

Looking at me, Dolly scrunches her nose at me. Even with them squinting, I notice a flash of wickedness behind her eyes.

“He’s really, really good at fleshing things out with me,” she says cheekily.

Shaking my head, I chew on the inside of my cheek to keep myself from smirking. My hand falls to give her a swift swat on her ass. Not enough to hurt, mind you. But enough of one to let her know that she’s skating on thin ice.

Jumping from the love tap, she gives me an apologetic look. ‘I’m sorry, Sir,’ she mouths, batting her innocent eyes.

Taking off my sunglasses, I fold them closed and place them into the interior pocket of my navy-blue blazer. Meeting her gaze, I hold it as Nicolette electronically opens the double doors.

“You will be, Princess,” I warn under my breath, the hint of a grin tugging my lips.

Glancing over her shoulder, Nicolette turns the black metal doorknobs and pushes the wooden doors open. Not seeming to pay any mind to Dolly’s wide eyes, she presents the house with a flourish of her hands.

“Welcome home, you two!”

Giving Dolly a nod, I allow her to head into our new home first. Following two steps behind, I watch for her reaction. Truth be told, I couldn’t care less what this house looks like. Just as long as she loves it, that’s all that matters to me.

“Oh my God! Wow!” she exclaims, her feet carrying her three yards inside before she turns around to look at Nicolette and me.

“It’s pretty wonderful, isn’t it?” Nicolette asks, closing the doors and stepping towards us.

Bringing her hands to her mouth, Dolly starts to laugh. It’s the sound of pure, radiant joy. I want to record it and listen to it first thing every morning to start my day off right.

“Oh, it’s more than wonderful! This is…this…I…I don’t even know what to say,” Dolly responds, her voice breathy and light. “I just…it’s like a dream!”

Chuckling low, I watch as she moves towards the open center of the home.

Spinning around on her heels, her blue eyes take in the wide-open space.

She continues to murmur words of excitement, her voice echoing off the board and batten paneled walls.

I almost take my phone out to film her, but Nicoette pulls me from the moment by leaning up to whisper into my ear.

“I think she likes it,” she says.

Glancing at her from the corners of my eyes, my head nods in agreement. My accountant probably won’t be too happy with me for what I’m about to do, but my baby wants this house. She’s going to get this damn house.

“I think that’s an accurate observation,” I say, fully turning towards her. Folding my arms over my chest, I quirk my head. “How much did you say they want?”

“You don’t want to have a full tour?” Nicolette asks, arching a dark brow in surprise.

Shaking my head, my shoulders lift into a small shrug. There’s no point in having a full tour, both Dolly and I have been pouring over the photos and videos online. My Princess is clearly happy to move forward, so I am as well.

“We’ll take one in a few minutes. So, I’ll ask again, how much do they want?”

Straightening her posture, her face brightens from my question. She normally does this when the price tag is large, I think she believes it softens the blow. Little does she know, it doesn’t do a damn thing but raise my blood pressure just a little.

“They’re asking two point nine,” she replies.

“MILLION?!” Dolly exclaims, padding her feet across the dark wooden floors towards us. “Almost three million dollars? You can’t be serious!”

Exhaling a tiny sigh of relief, I give Dolly a reassuring look. I hadn’t even looked at the price on the listing, I was expecting a whole lot more. It’s a good thing we live in the great state of Texas; Dalton would be paying triple up in Arizona.

“Princess, it’s ok. I’ve got it,” I say with a wink.

Opening her mouth to respond, she pauses for a second before nodding. She takes a step backwards out of respect, her eyes dropping to the floor. I was going to punish her just a little, but how can I right now? She’s being so damn good.

“Tell them that I will give them two-point five cash to close in thirty days. I will give them twenty-four hours to accept my offer but let them know that I will wave inspection if they pull the listing while they decide.”

Tightening the hold on her cell, Nicolette gives me a shit-eating grin. I can almost see the dollar signs flashing in her mind. She’s quite pleased at the prospect of her commission, I know she will find a way to seal this deal.

“I’ll uh, head back to my car and make some phone calls. Leave you two alone to do that tour,” she says, giving both Dolly and me a smile before turning for the front door.

Waiting until our realtor is out of earshot, Dolly looks up at me with an almost frantic expression.

“Sutton, it’s too much, this is too mu—"

I silence her with a shake of my head. Reaching for her hand, I bring her knuckles to my lips.

Giving them a gentle kiss, I make sure to lock my gaze to hers.

I smile as I watch the worry smooth from her gorgeous face.

She trusts me implicitly, and for that I will always fall to my knees and give her whatever she wants.

“Shh, this house is perfect for us. It’s perfect for our family. Now why don’t we give the rest of our new home a look, hmm? Starting with that gourmet kitchen you keep talking about,” I say suggestively.