Her Lion Billionaire (Supernatural Billionaire Mates 3)

“What? Don’t be ridiculous.”

“Why not?”

“Why not? Just look at us. You’re somebody and I’m a nobody. This ain’t a Cinderella story. The two of us can never be together. It is so not gonna happen.”

“That’s a poor excuse to be afraid of something you do not yet understand. I see you past one’s social strata. We are not living in the nineteenth century anymore. Save the class warfare for a history lecture. I feel strongly that we must explore—”

“No,” she cut him off. “I don’t want to.”

Daniel grabbed her hand, stopping her from leaving. “I’m afraid I must insist, Ms. Winters.”

Charlotte panicked for a moment. She didn’t want to see that embarrassing image again, reliving the premonition of two strangers who’d never laid eyes on each other wrestling in bed doing all kinds of X-rated stuff.

But then wasn’t that kind of thing pretty common these days? How was it any different to picking up a stranger in a bar and having all-night, casual, mind-blowing sex?

No, no. It’s too embarrassing.

From the corner of her eye, she caught Abby walking toward the subway with the girls from admin, so she resorted to the oldest trick in the world. She yanked her hand from his grip and pointed in the opposite direction. “Look, what’s that?”

He fell for it.

Charlotte couldn’t believe how easy it was to distract him. She used the opportunity to sprint toward her friends. “Hey, you guys!”

Abby and the girls stopped. “What are you doing?” Abby asked in an incredulous tone. “I thought you were having dinner with you-know-who?”

“Daniel has to leave. Urgent matters. Dinner has been cancelled. Let’s go, go, go!” Charlotte tapped Abby’s shoulder twice, urging her to move. With her gloved hand, Charlotte could touch a person without having to invade their privacy. Still, she avoided touchy-feely interaction on a daily basis if she could help it.

Abby craned her neck, looking in Daniel’s direction. “What are you talking about? I think he’s waiting for you.”

“You’re mistaken. He’s busy as hell.”

“No, I think he’s really waiting for you,” Abby insisted. “Look.”

The admin girls voiced their agreement.

Charlotte’s cheeks cramped from smiling too wide. “Ah, sorry, I forgot I have to catch an earlier train today. Gotta go. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” She brushed past Abby and walked fast. God. She must look stupid. Just when her coworkers seemed to accept the way she was, it all got ruined by this stunt. She shouldn’t be surprised if people talked behind her back the next morning.

Geez! She just wanted her peaceful and quiet life back. Peace and quiet. Was that too much for a girl to ask? Since she hit twenty-four last month, she’d worried about her expanding girth—too many goodies and too little exercise. She wanted to be able to fit into her Hot Topic clothes without looking like an exploding muffin. She had an extensive collection of Doctor Who shirts, and it would be a massive waste if she couldn’t wear them. She thought biking was a healthy alternative to going to the gym, since there was a free bike that she got from a neighbor who’d moved overseas. She liked riding a bike when she was small. It stopped when her mom finally went off the deep end and had to be institutionalized. Charlotte had to move in with her grandmother at the age of ten. The one time she’d decided to get fit again, she’d been driven off the road by a wannabe racer.

The one time! Jesus Christ. Maybe some divine, cosmic power had conspired against her, not letting her start a healthy lifestyle.

Charlotte hastened her steps, ignoring the funny looks she got from people. Don’t care, don’t care, don’t care. I’m running away from the lion man. Technically she was power-walking, but whatever.

Suddenly, someone grabbed her waist from behind and swept her off her feet.

Charlotte was too dazed to realize that someone was carrying her in his arms princess-style. One second she was thinking about running away from Daniel Addington, and a second later, the ground had moved and she was in his arms.

Huh? How did that happen?

She came to her senses when Daniel’s face was an inch away from hers. Panic settled in, and she protested. “What are you doing? Put me down!” She wasn’t a pixie, but he seemed to have no trouble carrying her as if she weighed nothing. She struggled to get down.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you, unless you want people to see your panties,” he said in a nonchalant manner. “You might be wearing a long skirt, but if I slide my arm behind your knee, your whole derrière will be exposed to the world.”

Charlotte stopped thrashing instantly. She covered her face with her hands as they walked passed Abby and the admin girls. There goes my peaceful, quiet life. She’d become the talk of the office tomorrow without a doubt. It would be a circus, and she was the star of the freak show. The majority of the girls in the office loved to gossip. Charlotte liked it better when people treated her as if she blended in with the wall. She disliked drawing attention to herself.

She unconsciously gritted her teeth. “I can’t believe you’d do this to me!”

“I can’t believe you’d bolt in the middle of an important conversation. Rather rude, don’t you think?” A ghostly smirk lingered at the corner of his lips. The glint in his eyes told her that he was amused by this whole situation.