Page 29 of Saved By the Billionaire

“It’s a commonsense precaution for a man in my situation.”

“Perhaps,” she said. “But maybe it’s also that you can’t bear the thought of a relationship you don’t control. You need to have levers in place to know that you’re in a commercial arrangement, not part of a couple. There’s no risk, then.”

“I can’t see a problem with that.”

“Nor can I. I’m just making an observation.”

“You like boundaries too,” he said, simply. “You like knowing that we have a time limit in place.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

“I can’t answer yet,” she teased, nodding towards the contract. Roman took the pen and scrawled his name on the bottom of the page, without looking away from her.

“Your turn.”

She lifted the pen, hovered it over the page, then dropped it again. “On second thoughts, I’m going to sleep on it.”

It was obvious she’d surprised him. “Kate.” Her name was a sharp warning. A plea and a need.

“Take me to bed, Roman. I’m tired.”

Another ice-cold shower, scotch on the ice-cold deck, and it did nothing to ease his pained awareness of her. Nothing to blot Kate from his mind. He couldn’t sleep, but that wasn’t unusual. Roman had been dealing with insomnia for a long time. But knowing Kate was under his roof made everything that much harder—literally and figuratively.

He just happened to be walking close to her room when he heard her.

The soft, panicked cry of someone in the throes of a nightmare, just as she’d said. The cries of a woman being tormented in her sleep.

He didn’t hesitate before throwing open the door and storming to her bedside, staring down at her as she thrashed in the covers, beautiful face scrunched up, tears falling down her cheeks. “Kate,” he said, sitting at her side, putting his hands on her shoulders. “Kate, it’s okay. You’re safe. Everything’s okay.”

“No, no, no,” she cried, still deep in a dream state, so rather than keep trying to wake her up, he came around to the other side of the bed and climbed in, wrapping both his arms around her and pulling her close, holding her so tightly she could no longer thrash and writhe, holding her tightly so she would know, even in her sleep, that she was far from harm. Her cries subsided and a few moments later, she was asleep once more.

Roman held her close all night, and while he didn’t sleep, a strange peacefulness settled over him that meant he felt rested anyway, when morning came. Rested in a way he wasn’t sure he’d ever known.

Chapter Seven

KATE DIDN’T REMEMBER THE last time she’d been held overnight. Maybe when she was a little girl? She had a vague memory of someone—her mother?—wrapping her close and singing softly to her.

But that was a long time ago.

And yet, it didn’t feel strange to wake up with Roman’s arm around her. It hadn’t felt strange when she’d shifted at some point in the night and become aware of him, at her back, holding her close. Protecting her, just as he had from the first moment they’d met.

It was his nature; his whole vibe.

She lay with his arm around her for a long time, not wanting to move, in case he shifted and put an end to this. But her breathing must have changed, something to indicate she wasn’t sleeping anymore, because he said, “You had a nightmare. I heard it.”

She rolled over then, grimacing a little as her weight touched her ankle. But she could already tell it was feeling much better today. Soon, she’d be able to walk easily enough. No more reasons for Roman to carry her.

“You can’t let them ruin your life, Kate.”

She was surprised he didn’t move away. Surprised that he kept his body close to hers, his eyes sweeping her face, studying her thoughtfully. She liked being close to him. Seeing the fine lines around his eyes, the flecks of colour near his irises.

“I won’t.”

“I’m sorry they hurt you.” He lifted a hand to her cheek and touched it gently. Her eyes fell to the space between them, a pervasive sense of misplaced shame throbbing inside of her. “I’m sorry I didn’t get there sooner.”

She was tempted not to say anything—after all, wasn’t that their deal? At least, until the contract was signed? Perhaps it was a spirit of defiance that led her to say, “It’s not the first time I’ve been hit, you know.”