Page 22 of Unforgettable Billionaire (The Hardcore Novels: Special Editions #3)

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Aurei

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I push the bed curtains open to let the sunlight that fills the bedroom wake her. She bats her eyelids, then looks at me with that expression of undeniable love I hungered for after first seeing it on my crew chief Everett's face.

"Good morning." My voice is strained from the surge of emotion of eternal love.

"Good morning," She answers just as softly with an endearing, satisfied smile, then closes her eyes again.

"Do you know who you are?" I ask, smirking, hoping she isn't still high but not overly concerned. We will adjust our day if she is.

"Mmhmm." She smiles a big beautiful smile, but her eyes remain closed, so I uncover her gorgeous body.

"Who are you?" I draw her out of her semiconscious euphoric state.

"Moore's whore." She smiles and stretches.

I chuckle. "Close enough."

"Do you know where you are?"

"Mmhmm." She reaches for me, so I grab her by her feet and drag her to me, then lean down, put her arms around my neck, and when she sniffs deeply, she whispers, "Heaven."

I chuckle again, then peck her lips. "Not quite, but close. Do you want to come with me? I need to ride Caesar this morning. Or do you want to sleep in?"

"Yes." She purrs.

"Yes, to sleeping in?"

She shakes her head.

"Yes, to coming with me?"

She nods.

"Are you sure you don't need more sleep?"

She smiles and peeks through her eyelids at me. "Nap later?"

"Affirmative." I kiss her forehead, then pull her up to sit.

"K." She stretches her arms over her head, and I cup her breasts and stroke the soft nipples making them harden.

"Do you want a Cappuccino?" I ask as I back away.

"Mmhmm." She opens her eyes to watch me, waking up.

I chuckle again as I leave to retrieve her coffee. "You're so talkative in the morning."

Her arms plop down onto the bed with a soft thud. "Aurei?"

"Yes?"

"I love your ass."

Chuckling again, I confirm the feeling is mutual. "I love your ass too."

When I return with a standard-size mug of Cappuccino, I speak softly. "Wake up, now. Here you go." Her head hangs forward, and I'm unsure if she's fallen asleep sitting up.

She sniffs deeply, smelling the coffee, and opens one eye. "That will def help." She scoots to rest her back on the headboard, and I know she will make it. "AH, Mr. Moore, you're spoiling me!"

"Miss Wright, would you prefer a bath or a shower?"

"Shower."

Sitting on the side of the bed, I wait for her to finish. Not wanting the sight of her nakedness to distract me, I stare out the open French doors and go over the details of the changes in everyone's life that is about to go down.

"Aurei?"

I look at her.

"Pinch me again."

I chuckle. Her hair is messy, her eyes and lips are puffy, her cheeks are rosy, and she is the most beautiful creature I have ever laid eyes on. "Did you like the taste of Heaven?"

"Oh, hell to the fucking yeah!" Her eyes dance into mine.

I stand and offer my hand. "Come on."

As we walk to the bathroom, she slips her fingers between mine, and I give my girl a little squeeze.

In the dressing room, we stop so she can put her hair up.

Then in the shower, we bathe each other but keep the rubbing to cleaning only.

I step out first and hand her a towel. We dry ourselves off and then go to the dressing room.

I point to the bench, and she sits, waiting patiently without fidgeting, while I pick our clothes out.

My first selection is a bra. I choose a soft pink color that is 100% feminine but not seductive, and when I dangle it at her, smirking.

She simply rolls her eyes, snatches it, and acknowledges with a laugh, "Yes, my girls are thrilled to see this torturous tool! "

Next, I hold up the matching panties, and she gives me 'the look' that in girl-talk says, "Fine!" But clearly doesn't mean it's fine. I grin and decide the bra is enough torture today for her and put them back.

She breathes a sigh of relief for my benefit, and we both laugh.

I toss a pair of black yoga pants to her, and as she slips into them, I add a simple pink long sleeve Nike t-shirt that says "Just Do It" and her Dos Gringos boots.

I chose polo gear for myself since she showed an interest in seeing me in it earlier—a navy shirt with white riding pants and over-the-calf boots.

"Da-yum! You look delicious in that." She tells me while she pulls her hair from her shirt.

I roll my eyes and shake my head, a tad embarrassed by her overreaction but enjoying it nonetheless.

She shakes her head, puts her hands on her hips, and says, "You have no idea how truly drop-dead, head-turning, handsome you are, do you?"

I ignore her as I get dressed. Then add, deflecting her focus, "Grab our phones."

She walks out, and I inform her. "They are on the table."

When I enter the bedroom, she's hovering around the cabinet that houses my sinful escapades, so I march through the room and command, "Come on. Caesar's ornery ass awaits."

She falls in after me and waits on the porch while I bring the car around.

* * *

Siri

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I glance at his phone while I wait for the car and see he has 20 messages. Wow, the man is busy! Knowing I don't have enough time to snoop without getting caught, I resist the urge to look, and check mine instead. I have one. It's from Cat.

BABY GIRL! Just got the news! OMFG! I'm so excited for you!

So excited! James is beside himself. He goes from laughing to fretting and back to laughing.

He has been hugging random people and then busting their chops.

He acts like he is on crack! Can't wait to see the new show!

Here's me blowing kisses to you! Congratulations. You deserve this! Love ya! Laters!

There's a video of her blowing kisses.

I can't wait to get home! I grin at the phone.

James is so dramatic! I should text him to reassure him that "Happy" won't be that difficult, but he's stressing because I'm not there yet to work with him on the finer details.

He is such a perfectionist. Once he realizes I've memorized the dance and it will be believable, he'll calm down.

We'll work out the transitions between my part and decide how to utilize the other dancers to distract the audience's eye while I change and come back in to pick it back up.

I've got some cool ideas on how we will pull it off.

Quick-change-clothing that can be done right on stage is one idea.

I text Cat.

Tell James to chillax. I got this. Can't wait to see you all. Will return next week.

I leave it at that. I'm not sure exactly what day, and they will go overboard on the welcome home party if I give them too much advance notice.

When Aurei backs out of the garage, I walk down the porch steps. Climbing in, I hand him his phone. "You have 20 messages, Mr. Moore, and I had one from Cat."

He cuts his eyes at me. "What did Cat say?"

"Just that she's excited about the new show, and James is freaking out."

He cuts his eyes again, then turns to look at me. I roll mine dramatically, then give him my spot on impersonation of James fretting over the routine. He punches the pedal, the car leaps forward, and he drives entirely too fast up to the Big House.

When we arrive, we find breakfast is already waiting for us, so we sit and eat.

I look for signs of Quintus, but he isn't around.

The staff comes in and out. They are carrying tables and chairs.

They speak to Aurei, and he jokes with them.

When we finish, we walk through the tented area where the dinner will be held.

A quick count results in 25 tables. There is a roped-off area for dancing.

It looks more like a wedding reception than a family dinner.

Aurei fills me in on the agenda as we walk to the stables. "The family will begin arriving this afternoon while we are napping. We will come back up to the Big House for dinner with everyone. It will be a late evening but will wrap up before midnight."

He puts his arm around me and pulls me against him. We sync our steps, and he continues. "The men rise before sunup, have breakfast together, then spend the day getting ready for the competition. The ladies sleep late, then gather up here for lunch."

"Will Ann be here?"

"No. She's with me." He says, then quickly adds. "But she's the exception."

"Great!" I roll my eyes. "Then what?"

"The girls do girl things together. Around 4 pm, the women come to the arena to watch the show. Afterward, everyone comes back to the Big House for the Celebration Feast. It will be a long night. On Sunday morning, we will tell everyone goodbye then fly back to Alabama."

When we enter the stables, Paolini greets us from across the area with a wave and points to the far end. We walk through to find Caesar saddled and tied inside the paddock area.

He is beautiful! His thick mane and tail have been cleaned of twigs and combed.

He is alert but resting. There is a nice red gelding saddled and tied too for me, but they are separated.

We climb the fence and jump down inside.

Aurei tells me my horse's name is Rosso, which is Italian for Red.

I walk over and introduce myself to him.

Aurei follows and hands me his phone. "You better hold this."

I take it and nod at the fence behind him. Several ranch hands have stopped what they were doing and are leaning on the fence to watch. "I bet they have a wager if Caesar throws you or not."

"Probably." He laughs. "It won't be the first time he's thrown me or the last, I'm sure.

" He walks over to Caesar, and I admire his ass flexing and rolling in his polo pants.

When he stops, I turn my attention to Caesar.

His eyes and ears are alert. When Aurei reaches for the reins, he bobs his head.

As soon as Aurei unties him, he backs away.

Aurei holds his ground, and I see them squaring off.

I notice the reins are extra-long, and when Caesar rears, I know why.

I call to Aurei. "Can I make a suggestion?"