An Accidental Date with a Billionaire

“Go left,” she uttered.

He got in the proper lane. “I really am sorry for whatever I did to make you dislike me so much.”

“You…” She relaxed her hands in her lap. “You never did anything to me.”

Relief hit him in the chest as he waited for the light to turn green. The idea of him personally causing her harm didn’t sit well in the pit of his stomach. “I’m glad. Believe it or not, I try to do good in the world, not bad. I never take my lifestyle and the things I’ve earned for granted. I go out of my way to help charities and donate to good causes, to do good with what I’ve been given.”

She swallowed hard, meeting his stare.

For the first time, she didn’t sneer at him with disinterest or anger. She almost had a light of understanding in her eyes. Almost. “I try to do the same.”

“I can’t imagine you have much to make up for in this world,” he said honestly.

She turned away. “Well, you’d be wrong again.”

His grip on the wheel shifted. Who was Sam, and what had she done in the past that haunted her? He wanted—no, needed—to know. “Seems like a common theme today.”

“Probably common for you,” she teased.

Holy shit, was she screwing with him?

He laughed, trying to match her lighter tone. “Yeah, you’re probably right.”

“I usually am,” she added playfully.

The light finally turned green, and he pulled into the intersection, chuckling.

“Go straight.”

He eyed the area they were in.

It was dilapidated, with broken windows and boarded-up doors. People huddled on stoops, watching his car as it passed, and he tightened his grip on the wheel.

“You okay?” she asked, a smile playing at her lips.

He forced himself to relax. “Yeah, of course. Why?”

“Are you nervous?”

Shaking his head, he stared straight ahead. “There’s a difference between being nervous and alert. I’m alert.”

She snort-laughed. How the hell did she make that sound so adorable? “Okay.” She smoothed her hair again. “Turn left at the next street.”

Up ahead was a lot of activity. A house was framed out, and people hustled around the woodwork, dressed in similar clothing to his. A few of them had Habitat for Humanity shirts on, and her choice of attire and the toolbox in his back seat made a hell of a lot of sense. “Is this where we’re going?”

“Yes.” She cocked her head and studied him, her nose crinkling up adorably as she did so. “Is that a problem?”

He had the distinct impression she’d really like it to be one. Unfortunately for her, if that was what she wanted, she would be disappointed. “No, not at all.”

Pulling into the closest spot, he eyed the progress, mentally deciding where to best lend a hand. Out of all the places he could have expected his “date” to take him, this was pretty much the last scenario in his head. Most women wanted lavish dinners and expensive plays.

But not this one.

“I’ll show you what to do and how to hold a hammer,” she said, patting his shoulder as if trying to comfort him. “Whatever you need, I’m here for you.”

Laughing, he slid his key out of the ignition. “No need.”

“There’s no shame in admitting you need help,” she said, pushing her hair behind her ear.