Susan Mallery - The Unexpected Millionaire

Willow watched him go, admiring the way his slacks tightened around his butt as he moved. She’d never been one of those women who admired men’s rears before, but then she’d never seen one this good.

“Willow,” Marina said impatiently.

“What? Oh, sorry. So I came over here to yell at Todd. He nearly broke up Julie and Ryan and I couldn’t stand thinking about that. I mean who does he think he is? Plus there’s the whole million dollar thing just hanging out there and he’s so self-centered and egotistical you just know he’s thinking we’re dying to meet him now that Julie’s engaged. I just want to beat him with a stick.”

“For someone who’s a vegetarian and so into being one with nature, you’re surprisingly violent,” Kane called from the kitchen.

“I’m not violent,” she yelled back. “I wasn’t the one flashing a gun around. Where is it, by the way?”

“Somewhere you can’t get it.”

Marina’s eyes widened. “He had a gun?”

“Yes, but don’t worry about it. So I came here and Kane answered the door and I guess he thought I was a serious threat because he tried to grab me.”

“What?”

“It’s his job. He’s in charge of security for all of Todd and Ryan’s companies. You have to be clear on that. He’s a little touchy about people thinking he’s only in charge of the house or something.”

“I’m not touchy.”

The words were a little garbled, as if he were speaking through clenched teeth.

She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “He really is. Who knew? Okay, so he tried to grab me, I ran and got through the house, but he caught up with me on the grounds. Then I tripped, and as I went down, I not only ripped off my ankle, I saw the cat there giving birth. So here we are.”

Marina covered her mouth, then dropped her hand to her lap. “I swear, I don’t know if I should laugh or shriek. Only you, Willow, only you.”

Kane walked out of the kitchen, holding a litter box in his hand. “Is this what I think it is?”

“Only if you think it’s a cat box,” Marina said, then turned back to her sister. “It’s completely disposable and biodegradable. Cool, huh?”

“Very. Thanks for that. Where do you think we should put it?”

Marina glanced around the living room. “Somewhere a little more private.”

Kane stared from the women to the litter box and back. What the hell had happened? When had he lost control of the situation, not to mention his life?

“I’ll go find a place,” Marina said. She stood and took the box from him, then smiled. “It’s kind of a lot to take in. You probably need a minute to recover.”

He watched her walk out of the living room and down the hallway. Great, Willow thought he needed rescuing and her sister was convinced he was an idiot.

“Is there a scooper?” Willow asked him. “You’ll want that by the box, along with some paper towels.

He started to ask for what, then stopped himself. Right—it was basically a cat’s bathroom. There would be deposits.

“She’ll know how to use it, right?” he asked as he jerked his head toward the cat.

“Oh, sure. We’ll just show her where it is.”

Marina returned without the litter box. “The bathroom off the second bedroom seems like a good bet. I put it there.” She walked to her sister, bent over and said in a low voice, “It doesn’t look like he has women here on a regular basis, so that’s something.”

He was equally outraged and admiring. “I’m standing right here.”

Willow smiled at him. “We know.”

“He seems okay,” Marina continued. “But given your history with guys…”

“It’s true,” Willow said sadly. “Maybe he’s different.”

“Still standing here,” he announced.

“You could feed the cat,” Willow said. “You’ll probably be more comfortable in the kitchen while we’re talking about you behind your back.”

In a scary, twisted way, her words made sense. He retreated to the kitchen, all the while wondering what had happened. This morning everything about his life had been normal and pleasantly solitary. Somewhere along the way, he’d been invaded. There were people here—he didn’t do people.

He went through the bags. There was canned cat food, a bag of dry and three bowls. He filled one with water and the other with dry food. The mother cat rushed into the kitchen and fell on the food. When he dished up some canned, she abandoned the dry to feast on that.

While she ate, he checked out the rest of the bags. Marina had brought over bread, honey, several packages of frozen soup, bags of cookies, apples, pears, some girly soap and the latest issue of a celebrity gossip magazine. Did she think her sister was moving in?

He felt something brush against his leg. When he glanced down he saw the mother cat rubbing her leg against him. She looked up, purring.

Feeling awkward and stupid and like he was being taken, he bent over and patted the top of her head. She turned and rubbed her jaw against his fingers. He could feel the vibration of her purring.

He’d never been one for pets. As a kid, it was all he could do to feed himself. Plus caring about anything only made you a victim. In the army, there had always been guys who kept dogs around, but he wasn’t one of them.

He straightened. He could hear Willow and Marina talking in the living room, although he couldn’t hear the words, thank God. So now what? Where did he go? This was supposed to be his house, but he suddenly felt like he didn’t belong.

There was another knock on the door. Before he could say anything, Marina yelled that she was getting it. He walked into his living room in time to see an older version of Willow stepping into his house, along with a fiftysomething guy in a suit.

“Mom, you didn’t have to come,” Willow said. “I’m fine.”

Willow’s mother handed Marina a casserole, then rushed to Willow’s side. “You’re not fine. You hurt yourself. What was I supposed to do? Just let you lie here in pain?”

“Oh, Mom.”

The man approached Kane. “I’m Dr. David Greenberg, a friend of the family.”

“Kane Dennison.” They shook hands.

Dr. Greenberg moved over to the ottoman. “All right, Willow, let’s see what you’ve done.”

Willow’s mother moved back. Marina touched her arm. “This is Kane, Mom.”

The older woman smiled at him. “Hi. Naomi Nelson. She said you carried her here and saved her life.”

Willow had managed to make a number of phone calls and pass on a lot of information in the short time he’d been gone, he thought, not sure if he should punish her or be impressed.

“I don’t think she was all that near death,” he said.

“Mom, there are kittens,” Willow said. She pointed at the box.

“Oh, they’re just born.”

While Naomi went to coo over the kittens, Marina murmured something about putting the casserole in the refrigerator. Kane watched as the doctor examined Willow’s ankle.

“Does this hurt?” he asked as he manipulated her foot. “Does this?”

She answered his questions, then looked at Kane. He felt the impact of her gaze all the way down to his groin. Funny how Marina was similar in appearance, but nothing about her turned him on. Yet with Willow, all it took was a look.

Dr. Greenberg continued his exam for a couple more minutes, then patted her knee. “You’ll live. It’s a minor sprain. You have some swelling, which should go away in the next couple of days. Keep doing what you’re doing. Elevation and ice. You’ll be better in the morning.”

“It hurts,” Willow said with a soft whimper.

The doctor smiled. “I remember how badly you handle pain. You’re the one who cried before I ever gave you a shot when you were little.” He dug around in his case and handed her a sample pack of pills. “These will help. Take them now and then don’t even think about driving until tomorrow. You’re going to be out of it.”