Reluctant Billionaires ~ Derek & Lauren: BBW Contemporary Romance Read online

  Reluctant Billionaires

  DEREK & LAUREN

  BY KARINA ASHE

  Copyright © 2015 KARINA ASHE

  Reluctant Billionaires: Derek & Lauren was previously published as Secret Billionaires: You Show Me Yours under a different author name.

  All rights reserved. No part of this story may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without express written permission of the copyright holder. This book contains sexually explicit content which is suitable only for mature adults.

  Cover design by ResplendentMedia.com

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  Sexy Sneak Peek

  Derek walked around the side of the house and unlatched the gate in the wooden fence to get a view of the rear. A few long steps and he turned the corner to land on the back patio where he got a sizable rear view that he wasn’t expecting.

  Bent over and completely unaware of his presence was a robust woman clad only in a two-piece bathing suit with a hose in one hand and a scrub brush in the other. Derek watched while she alternated bending over to scrub the patio surface with brush and standing to rinse the washed area with the hose.

  He shook his head. The woman was barely making a dent in the job. She did mention that she had just bought the place, and he guessed it might be her first home. Although he couldn’t see her face, she seemed young. He noticed her full bottom had a nice round curve, as did her hips. Her pale skin was smooth and firm, and if he had to guess from his current view, he’d estimate her age at somewhere in her late twenties.

  He cleared his throat and started to say something to indicate his presence, but she jumped sky high before he got any words out. She spun around, hose going full blast, and showered him with a spray of water.

  “Whoa!” Derek jumped back, out of her range, but not fast enough. The front of his shirt took a direct hit.

  “Oh! Oh!” The woman dropped the hose in surprise. The nozzle hit the ground with the spout turned upward, and the stream shot back her way, soaking her.

  “Aaach!” Flustered, she attempted to grab the head and turn off the flow. But instead of moving out of the steady stream and picking up the nozzle, she leaned in to reach for it. The water hit her in the face, but she persevered and finally was able to grab the hose bib and turn it off.

  She stood, soaked from head to toe, and glared at Derek. “Who the hell are you, and what are you doing here?”

  Derek was mesmerized. It wasn’t often that a woman left him speechless, but he couldn’t focus on what she was saying. He noticed the outline of her massive breasts and her nipples popping out through the thin fabric of her bathing suit top, like she was a contestant in a wet tee shirt contest.

  Derek almost responded to the voice of his little head, which was begging him to untie the bathing suit top for an unobscured look at her heaving chest. He felt the little head poking up for a better view, urging him to bury his face between those beauties.

  “Answer me!” she demanded, drawing his attention back to the situation.

  Derek forced the big head to take control. “Derek Holmes, Ma’am. I’m here for our appointment about your landscaping work.”

  # # #

  Please continue reading for the entire text of

  RELUCTANT BILLIONAIRES

  Derek & Lauren

  Chapter 1

  Derek Holmes eased his Ford 350 pickup along the embankment of the narrow street in front of the home of his next appointment. His cell phone rang, and he distractedly picked it up from where it was stashed in the beverage holder between the two front seats.

  Carly’s name and photo flashed on the screen. Derek looked at the image of the pretty blonde and impatiently hit “Ignore,” while he continued to try to park his massive vehicle in a way that wouldn’t obstruct traffic or destroy the grass of his potential new client’s lawn.

  He didn’t like driving his wide-body truck with oversize wheels to consulting appointments for his landscaping business for this reason. He preferred to arrive in a passenger car and dressed in business clothes to meet new clients.

  But this prospect had insisted that today was the only day she could meet. Since he agreed to fit her in between jobs, he had to show up in work clothes and the monster truck.

  Derek grabbed a notebook off the dash and pushed it with a pen and his phone into the pocket of his cargo shorts. He strode up the short driveway to the almost non-existent front walk that led to the home’s entrance. He rang the bell and waited. And waited.

  He rang again, but still no answer.

  More than a little annoyed, Derek pulled out his phone to check the time. He clicked on his appointment app to verify the time and address. He was in the right place at the right time, so where the hell was Miss I Have to See You Today?

  Derek let out a frustrated groan. He already had screwed up his schedule and couldn’t afford to lose any more time. He decided to walk around the grounds to get an idea of what was needed so he’d be able to quote an estimate when he called the scatterbrain later to discuss what she wanted.

  A quick glance around the front yard revealed little landscaping or care other than the minimal palm tree and bleak row of bushes the builder supplied and the homeowner association probably maintained. The small home had absolutely no curb appeal, and it appeared neglected with some dead plants in pots along the walk and two scrawny hibiscus bushes under the front window.

  He walked around the side of the house and unlatched the gate in the wooden fence to get a view of the rear. A few long steps and he turned the corner to land on the back patio where he got a sizable rear view that he wasn’t expecting.

  Bent over and completely unaware of his presence was a robust woman clad only in a two-piece bathing suit with a hose in one hand and a scrub brush in the other. Derek watched while she alternated bending over to scrub the patio surface with brush and standing to rinse the washed area with the hose.

  He shook his head. The woman was barely making a dent in the job. She did mention that she had just bought the place, and he guessed it might be her first home. Although he couldn’t see her face, she seemed young. He noticed her full bottom had a nice round curve, as did her hips. Her pale skin was smooth and firm, and if he had to guess from his current view, he’d estimate her age at somewhere in her late twenties.

  He cleared his throat and started to say something to indicate his presence, but she jumped sky high before he got any words out. She spun around, hose going full blast, and showered him with a spray of water.

  “Whoa!” Derek jumped back, out of her range, but not fast enough. The front of his shirt took a direct hit.

  “Oh! Oh!” The woman dropped the hose in surprise. The nozzle hit the ground with the spout turned upward, and the stream shot back her way, soaking her.

  “Aaach!” Flustered, she attempted to grab the head and turn off the flow. But instead of moving out of the steady stream and picking up the nozzle, she leaned in to reach for it. The water hit her in the face, but she persevered and finally was able to grab the hose bib and turn it off.

  She stood, soaked from head to toe, and glared at Derek. “Who the hell are you, and what are you doing here?”

  Rivulets of water dripped down the tip of her slightly upturned nose. Most of her long dark hair was pulled back in a rubber band, but the water had flattened her long bangs against her forehead. When she angrily swiped at them to push them from her eyes,
she left a smear of dirt above her eyebrows. She put her hands on her hips.

  Derek was mesmerized. It wasn’t often that a woman left him speechless, but he couldn’t focus on what she was saying. He noticed the outline of her massive breasts and her nipples popping out through the thin fabric of her bathing suit top, like she was a contestant in a wet tee shirt contest.

  When he forced his gaze up to her face, he saw sea blue eyes flashing. Her cheeks were flushed, and wet ringlets of hair were forming along her neck where the short ends had escaped her ponytail.

  Derek almost responded to the voice of his little head, which was begging him to untie the bathing suit top for an unobscured look at her heaving chest. He felt the little head poking up for a better view, urging him to bury his face between those beauties.

  “Answer me!” she demanded, drawing his attention back to the situation.

  Derek forced the big head to take control. “Derek Holmes, Ma’am. I’m here for our appointment about your landscaping work.” He held his hand out, but didn’t step forward to shake her hand.

  A look of uncertainty remained on her face.

  “I rang twice and when there was no answer, I thought I’d have a look around the grounds, rather than come out here again. I figured I could give you an estimate once we talked over the phone.”

  Clarity burst forth on her face, quickly followed by a horrified expression of someone who knows she’s screwed up.

  “Of course! I’m so sorry. I’m Lauren Daniels.”

  She leaned in and shook his hand, but then stepped back, looking horrified all over again. Her hand that left the muddy streak on her forehead had now dirtied his palm as well.

  Derek wiped his hand on his wet shirt, thinking it was a good thing he came in his work clothes after all.

  “Don’t worry, it’s just another smear of dirt in a day’s work.” He smiled to reassure her.

  Lauren stood before him looking like she wasn’t sure what to do next. She wrung her wet hands and cast her eyes about the terrace.

  “Give me a minute to go inside and get you a towel. I’ll be right back.” She turned and disappeared into the house without waiting for his reply.

  Derek glanced around the backyard, noting the one scrawny tree and weeds growing along the fence. He’d seen enough to be able to create a proposal and an estimate. When she came out, he’d tell he’d call her tomorrow with the information. He had to get to his next job.

  Lauren returned moments later. She had pulled a large tee shirt over her bathing suit, but even as loose as it was, it clung to the wet suit around her breasts, hips, and belly.

  Derek couldn’t help notice the big, wet circles accentuating the areas, but forced his eyes to meet hers.

  She held out the towel to Derek. “I’m so sorry about not being ready for our appointment. I came out here earlier to drink a cup of coffee and read for a while. I had plenty of time before you were supposed to come. But when I got out here, the dirt and mold on the stones distracted me, and I started to clean. I had no idea so much time had passed.”

  She stopped, waiting for him to take the towel. “Here, this is for you. I hope your shirt is the drip-dry kind that dries quickly without wrinkles.”

  He waved it off. “Forget about it. I’ve got more in the truck. Listen, I’ve seen enough to—”

  She was looking up at him. He noticed she still had the dirt smear on her forehead, but what really caught his attention were her big eyes framed in thick, dark lashes. Talk about baby blues!

  Derek tried to clear his head.

  “You’ve seen enough to ... what?” she prompted.

  “Why don’t we take a quick walk around the grounds? I’ll give you some suggestions on what you can do to add some pizzazz to this place.”

  Derek couldn’t believe those words came out of his mouth. Little head was taking over this time. Now he was committed to at least another ten or fifteen minutes. He’d definitely be late, and the crew would be waiting for him, wasting time that he had to pay them for.

  Lauren nodded. “That would be great. I’m overwhelmed with things to do since I’ve moved in. When I bought it, I thought it was move-in ready, but now that I live here, it’s one thing after another. I’ve never owned a home before, but my vision of what my first house would look like included lots of pretty flowers, so I’d love to hear what you have to say.”

  His cell phone rang, and he pulled it out of his pocket. There was Carly’s face and phone number again. He quickly shoved it back in his pants, but it rang a few more times.

  “Don’t you want to take the call?”

  “No.”

  Derek motioned to the terrace. “If you think you’ll be spending a lot of time out here, you’ll want to be able to enjoy your backyard.” He explained how he’d prune back the existing tree to coax it to fuller growth, add another tree to balance the area, and plant some shrubbery to replace the weeds along the fence.

  Lauren was nodding her head to everything he said.

  “It would be a lot more efficient to power wash your terrace with a pressure cleaner, which is something we’ll do as part of the job. I’d border the area with a narrow bed of perennials mixed with a few annuals to keep the color going for you year-round.”

  “I don’t know about the annuals. Those are flowers that bloom once and have to be replaced every year, right?”

  He nodded. “Yes, but only a few. That’s the best way to have variety while keeping the maintenance cost down.”

  “So, you’d have to keep coming back?”

  Derek thought there was nothing he’d like better, but maybe she thought he was trying to drive up the cost.

  “If that’s a problem, you can certainly maintain it yourself, or we can skip the annuals all together.”

  “Let me think about that.”

  He decided to shift gears. “Do you want to smile every time you pull up to your home?”

  “Sure.”

  “Well, then you need to dress up your entrance and add some points of interest around the yard.”

  “What do you have in mind?”

  “Let’s go around front.” Derek suppressed his urge to put his hand on the small of her back and guide her. What was it about this woman that had his hormones firing up? Focus, man. You’re on a job interview, not a Singles’ Night at Bubba’s Bar & Grill.

  As they walked around the side of her house, he noticed she almost matched his height in her flip-flops. She might even be taller with heels on.

  Once they got on the level ground of her driveway, he saw he had several inches on her and would be taller, even if she wore heels. Damn, focus on the work, asshole.

  “Does your homeowner association maintain your front yard?”

  “They cut the grass in the front and the back, but don’t maintain the trees or any flower beds.”

  “I’d suggest putting some easy-care bedding plants around the palm, trimming the hedge, and adding baskets of blooming plants seasonally on your front porch and maybe add a few planter boxes along the walkway.”

  Lauren had put her hand over her eyes to block the sunlight while she followed where his finger pointed as he spoke and nodded all the while. When he was done, she seemed to become self-conscious, pulling her shirt away from where it hugged her wet suit and twisting the edge of the hem with her finger.

  “Will you call me later or send an estimate for what this will all cost?” She looked into his face expectantly.

  Derek found himself lost in the blue sea of her eyes as he nodded his head.

  “How ’bout I stop by tomorrow and drop it off?”

  “I’ll be back at work during the day, but you can leave it in the mailbox, I guess.”

  “What time do you get home? I can come over in the evening. I’d like to be able to answer all your questions, if you have any.”

  Derek felt unusually awkward. He never got flustered with women, and certainly never in business. What the hell was going on?

  Lauren
shook her head. “I don’t think so. I might have to work late. I’ve been taking a lot of time off with the move and all. Just leave it, and I’ll call you if I have questions.”

  He was disappointed, but she left him no choice. “I’ll put it in your mailbox. Can I call you if I don’t hear from you in the next few days?”

  “Sure.” Lauren looked at her hand and then held it out to him. “It’s clean this time. Thanks so much for fitting me in today. And sorry about the bath I gave you.”

  Derek noticed she gave a firm handshake and that her skin was smooth and soft. He released his grip slowly.

  “Maybe we’ll install some type of bell on the fence so you can be forewarned when someone comes in your gate.”

  She laughed. “Definitely. Add that to the estimate.”

  She had a radiant smile. Her lips were full and her mouth stretched wide, showing straight white teeth the color of pearls.

  Derek smiled back. “Thank you for the opportunity. I know I can give you a yard you can be proud of that will be a pleasure to look at, too.”

  He walked to his car and pulled out an extra tee shirt he had stashed on the rear seat, quickly changing out of his wet one. He saw Lauren watching him through the cab. He started the engine and waved to her as he drove away.

  A gray BMW coupe pulled into the space the truck exited. A tall, thin woman emerged wearing a long layered skirt, topped with a sheer gauze blouse, and belted with a colorful scarf. Her large hoop earrings and layers of long chains swayed as she briskly walked to where Lauren was standing.

  Lauren forced a smile as the woman kissed her cheek. This day, her last day of time off from work, was quickly going from bad to worse.

  “Hello, Mother.”

  “Lauren, darling, is that what you wear when having company?”

  “I wasn’t expecting you, Mother,” Lauren said, wishing she had the nerve to say it through clenched teeth.

  “Not me, darling. The hunky gentlemen who just sped off in the manly truck.”

  Lauren sighed. “He wasn’t company, either. I’m having some landscaping done, and he came by to give me an estimate.”