The Billionaire Cowboy's Carolina Girl

"Welcome to Million Dollar Matchmaking. My name is Anita, and this is Danielle and Eleni. The three of you are very special. Tonight, we have our second billionaire in MDM history, and he specifically requested professional women who are interested in marriage and children. And in Texas." Two of the women laughed, and the third grinned. If someone had told me they were sisters, I would have believed it in a heartbeat. I stifled a groan and continued with my welcome speech. "We have our men and our women follow the same rules — no kissing on the first date, no sex before engagement, and no moving in together before marriage."

The women nodded. They were smarter than some of the other girls we got in here. I usually heard a chorus of, "But what if I really like him?" complete with a Valley Girl accent.

"Quick question," said Arabella, a professional artist with bright blond hair. "So this guy is a billionaire... but I couldn't even find his picture online. What gives?"

"We don't know much about him either," I said. I'd expected this question. I'd spent part of the night trying to find out more about him, but I hadn't been successful. "But that's what makes this event very special. And it's what makes the three of you very special as well. We know you are all the type of women who can easily gain a man's attention — and maybe even his heart. We might not find the right fit for Joseph right away, but with your help, we can all learn more about him." I saw a stretch limousine pull up outside, as shiny and tacky as any of the limos I'd seen pull up at Million Dollar Matchmaking. This guy was trying to make an appearance. I stifled a grin and hurried the women back to the event space.

"Is that him?" Another one of the women stayed behind me to look out at the limo. It just sat there, the doors remaining closed.

"I'm guessing it is," I said, putting my hand on the women's back and leading her through the doors to the bar. It was a tradition for the client to come in and see his or her dates standing in the event space. "But we'll be back here for now. He'll come when he's ready." Eleni stepped into the room, hand on her growing belly. She didn't care that she'd broken all the rules with Josh — MDM still had its set of rules, and she was intent on getting the women to follow them. I smiled as I watched her, but I was unable to shake that strange feeling I'd had all day. Even thinking about Billy had made me feel sad and lonesome once again. Eleni began reviewing the rules with the women, and she arranged each of them by hand, making sure they stood where our billionaire could see them best. Quietly, I slipped up the stairs to the lounge space above the event space. Tears stung my eyes — I knew that this event shouldn't be making me feel like this, but so much had reminded me of Billy recently. I sat down heavily in one of the overstuffed chairs, wiping away my tears so that my mascara wouldn't run.

"How did you come to this?" My voice rang out in the empty room. But of course there was no answer. There never was. I stared at the wall, listening to the people chatting below. From the sound of it, our Texas oil billionaire had arrived. His loud voice rang almost through the ceiling. Something about it reminded me of Billy. The cadence of it. His accent. But that was silly... wasn't it? I got up and went to the bathroom, adjusting my makeup. I'd have to go back downstairs eventually, but maybe Danielle and Eleni wouldn't notice me for now. I combed out my lashes with the Covergirl mascara that I favored, and I brushed out my hair, letting it fall over my shoulders. I looked pretty good for a washed-up ex-dancer. "And anyway, it doesn't matter what you look like. This man isn't here to meet you." Whenever I was upset, some of the Carolina twang came back to my voice. I couldn't help but smile. Billy had teased me so mercilessly about my accent... it was hard for us to even talk sometimes without laughing so hard we couldn't breathe. Even though we were from different worlds, we had our strong Southern accents in common. I took a deep breath and smoothed my hands over my dress, willing myself to step back out into the apartment. Just then, I heard steps coming up the back stairs.

"Anita! Anita, are you up here? This man is crazy." I heard Danielle's voice calling out to me.

"Great," I sighed. "Another diva. I swear, these men are all crazy," I said. "Alright, Danielle, I'm coming." I opened the door, and Danielle's tired face appeared before me. " What brand of crazy are we dealing with?"

"Well, I don't know, Nita. He came to me and told me that he didn't want anything to do with any of these women. Right away. Said they weren’t what he’d been looking for. He was very polite and nice, but... I'm thinking he's going to be a problem for us. He might even... go to the other agency."

"Can't Eleni talk to him? I'm not really in the mood..."

"You know Eleni would just tell him off, even though she's found her own romance these days." I laughed. She probably would.

"Okay, fine," I said, putting a hand on Danielle's shoulder. "We'll go sort this billionaire out. And we'll make him sure that he needs to stay with Million Dollar Matchmaking." I patted Danielle on the shoulder and followed her down the stairs, sighing deeply and wondering just how we would convince this man to stay. We'd already gotten some of our loveliest women out here, and we were the best in the business. As I descended the stairs, I caught a glimpse of the man in question. He had his back turned away, and to my surprise, he was chatting nicely with one of the women and drinking a glass of wine. I glanced over his broad body, nearly laughing out loud when I saw that he was wearing jeans and a plaid button-down shirt. Something about him was eerily familiar. Lost in thought, I stepped down on my bad foot, twisting my ankle again.

"Jimminy Cricket," I yelped, nearly falling forward on Danielle. The pain shot through me, and I had a brief, distant thought. Wasn't Billy's middle name Joseph?

Slowly, Joseph Wootton turned around, his blue eyes sparkling.

"You okay ma'am?" The drawl poured from his mouth like warm honey, and instantly, I was transported back in time to that swimming hole in Asheville.

"Billy?" I asked, my voice coming out in a tiny sigh. My brain tried to take in the image I saw before me. "My mind must be playing tricks on me," I mumbled, shaking my head back and forth.

"As I live and breathe. Anita Lee Taylor," said Joseph Wootton. "I never thought I'd see you again. It's been... it's been so long." He stepped towards me, his face sparking every sweet memory I'd held onto for the past eight years. It was the last thing I saw before I toppled backwards, the sparkling lights of the room going black before me.

CHAPTER THREE

I slowly opened my eyes, my head spinning. My sister's beautiful face was right before mine, and strangely — surreally — Billy's face appeared beside hers.

"Anita, Anita. Are you okay?" His accent was as thick and rich as I remembered, and I smiled broadly, trying to pull myself to my feet. My ankle throbbed and didn't seem to want to hold me up. Billy Joe — or was he Joseph Wootton? — turned to my sister. "She is Anita, isn't she?" Eleni nodded, opening her mouth to say something and then thinking better of it. The vision of Billy's three dates shifted and swayed before my eyes. I tried to stand again, my ankle twisting out before I could fully stand.

"Dammit."

"Your ankle, Anita! You can't hurt your ankle... that's not going to be good for dancing." The deep concern in Billy's eyes nearly made me swoon again. Hot tears stung my eyes. There was so much he didn't know... so much of each other's lives that we'd missed. It would probably be better if I disappeared right then and there, sinking into the exquisite hardwood floor and disappearing as he took on a new romance... one that he could take home to mom and dad. Eleni looked at Joseph again, her eyes growing wide.

"Who are you? And how do you know Anita? She broke her foot seven years ago, just after she joined the Los Angeles Ballet..." Tears rolled down my cheeks as Billy looked at me, the shock showing on his face.

"Oh Anita," he sighed. He knelt down beside me and took my ankle in his hand, cradling it. The tears poured down my face, the warmth of his touch reverberating through my body. Eleni brushed off her dress and smoothed her hair down, just like she did whenever she was nervous. This billionaire's date

hadn't exactly gone as planned. Eleni got up and turned her attention to the three female guests, glancing back to see Billy gently turning my ankle to see if it was moving properly.

"Alright ladies, it looks like this date is a wrap for now. My sister..." Eleni glanced back at me again. "Has injured herself. Let's get you all home, and we'll call you up if Mr. Wootton decides to return to the agency."

"Looks like he found his date," one of the women muttered. The three of them tottered on their heels, headed for the door. Danielle met them at the door, adding a little finesse to the situation. That's what Eleni kept us around for anyway — a little bit of the finesse she couldn't give.

"Billy Joe," I said, woozily raising my hand to his cheek and tracing my fingers over his stubble.

"It's Joseph nowadays, or Joe,“ he said, smiling. "And it looks like you're still Anita." He gently turned my ankle, and I gasped again. "Do you think you can put any weight on it?" I shook my head, looking to my ankle to see it starting to swell.

"I'll get you to the hospital," said Danielle, stepping towards me and looking at Billy Joe with suspicious eyes.

"Don't you even think about it, Miss Danielle," said Billy. "I'll get her there." Danielle put her hand on her hip and raised an eyebrow at Billy.

"And who might you be? All we know is that you have a bunch of money and live in Texas. So excuse me if I'm a little bit confused about all this..." She waved her hand, gesturing at me and Billy, whose hands still held up my ankle.

"Joseph Wootton. I thought we'd met." He flashed a one-hundred watt smile, and I laughed, trying to pull myself up again.

"Anita, you stop. Joseph, please explain yourself."

"It's fine, Dani. This is Billy Joe Wootton... and we knew each other back in college."

"A long time ago," he said. "But you look exactly the same."

"And how am I supposed to know you won't drive my sister to some house of ill repute? Or some such... I have no idea what you mysterious oil billionaires do." Eleni stepped over and tried to slip her body between me and Billy.

"Lenny, it's fine," I mumbled, bringing my hand to my head. The pain in my ankle had taken over my body, and I could barely focus.

"Hey, Eleni," said Danielle, taking my sister's arm. "This is the Cowboy, I think, isn't he, Nita?" Danielle's eyes registered recognition of Billy Joe's name. After all, she had heard a thousand stories about my summer romance. Eleni looked to me again, and weakly, I nodded.

"'The Cowboy,' huh? You still talk about me?" Billy Joe laughed, pulling me up in one swift motion. He had me leaning against his strong, broad body within a second. My leg had joined in the symphony of pain, but I foolishly tried to put my foot down. The throbbing ache turned to a lightning shock of agony. I bit my lip and nodded, the years seeming to vanish between us. "Well, I'll be. I thought you'd forgotten." His smile seemed to light the room around us.

"Stop flirting with my sister and get her to the hospital," Eleni said. She turned to me. "And call us if you need anything. I'm not sure about you running off with our star guest, but I guess if he wants to take you... and if that's fine with you..." She threw her hands up.

"I'm not even sure I need to go to the hospital," I said.

“Your ankle ain't turnin' right,” said Billy, bending down to lift me in his arms. “You gotta go and and least get some pain relief. And I’ll be my best horse that you’ll need x-rays too.

"This is not... this is not completely necessary," I said. He carefully hoisted me so that my foot was lifted and not pinched in any way. I breathed a sigh of relief. Even the little bit of weight I had put on it had made me want to scream in pain. "I don't need the hospital," I said, wincing.

"It might be broken," said Billy. "And I promise you, your sister and your friend couldn't carry you to the hospital or take you in a limo with a driver who don't care about California driving laws." I smiled, trying to ignore the throbbing coming back to my ankle. Billy's accent became more Southern whenever he was under stress. He walked forward to the door.

"I'll come with you," said Eleni, stepping forward.

“No, Lenny. It's fine.” I may not have seen this man in almost a decade, but I think he can carry me a sight better than you all could. I'll text you and let you know what's going on." Billy was nearly out the door, and I looked back, watching Danielle and Eleni. I knew they'd probably pop up at the hospital, but they needed to be at the event space for clean up and prep for the next day. After all, the millionaires didn't stop coming just because one of the MDM employees had messed up her ankle.

Billy Joe Wootton, man of my many dreams, carried me out to his limo and carefully placed me in the back seat, sitting so that my head rested on his lap.

"Donny, get us to the nearest hospital, whatever the hell it is." I laughed.

"St. Vincent, probably." Donny programmed it into his GPS and sped up. And just like Billy had said, he wasn't paying much attention to driving laws. I sucked air in through my teeth, trying to avoid the pain that was building in my bad foot again. That damn thing had caused me nothing but trouble for years, and it had landed me in the hospital on the night my ex had finally come back to me. Well, it was debatable what exactly might happen, but here I was, finally with the man I'd dreamed of for so long. The limo bumped over the Los Angeles streets, the orange sun setting over the horizon. I groaned as my foot jumped in the car.

"That foot's no good, huh?" Billy brushed a stray lock of hair away from my face. I shook my head. He looked in my eyes, and I saw the hurt and concern in his eyes. He remembered exactly what I'd wanted for my life, and he understood what my injury had changed. "That's why you're at Million Dollar Matchmaking with Eleni — she's your sister, right?"

"Yeah."

"And you were really accepted to the ballet?"

"I was. But I came down wrong during a performance of Swan Lake, and the bones didn't heal back properly. My ankle twists out all the time now. I withdrew the season after I started. You cant exactly dance point with a foot that gets injured every other day."

"I swear, Anita. I wish you'd told me. I wish I'd heard anything from you." He looked away, his face filled with emotion.

"It never would have worked," I said, closing my eyes and trying to remember all that we'd said to each other... and all of the emails he'd sent in those first few months, wanting to reconnect. All contact had fallen off at a certain point, and I'd never heard anything again. "We're too different. From different worlds. And now you're some kind of oil billionaire, raking in all sorts of cash." I laughed. "That's not me. I wasn't ever able to follow my own dream, and I'm making ends meet... but only with the help of my sister."

"Anita," he said softly, "I never got to live my dreams out either. I'm thirty, and I got no family, no farm... and no wife."

"I find it hard to believe that you couldn't find someone who wanted to marry you. You're the full package... rich, handsome, funny. I mean, your fashion sense hasn't improved with age... but I think you pull off Levi's and a shirt from the army depot pretty well."

"Hey, girl. I'll have you know that this shirt was custom made for me. By L.L. Bean. I graduated from the army depot." We pulled into the hospital, and Billy held me up again, taking me into his arms and lifting me from the car smoothly and surely. His voice turned serious as he carried me into the emergency room doors. "I never found you," he said softly. "I think that's why I'm still looking. It's what brought me here. And I swear if I'd known that you were at this silly little matchmaking agency..."

"It's not silly," I said as he walked through the door. He nodded to one of the nurses, and she helped sign us in, taking us over to a room where they x-rayed my twisted foot.

"Well, regardless, I would have been here a lot sooner. I would have been here with bells on, with a damn ring to give to you."

"You can't be serious," I breathed. My voice was barely a whisper. A nurse whisked us back to another room, moving equipment around, and starting a drip for a mild painkiller. The pinprick of t

he needle seemed distant and far away compared to Billy Joe's face, so close to mine. The relief and heat of the narcotic washed over me. Billy's face seemed to be backed by a light, glowing with a beauty separate from the harsh fluorescent lights of the hospital. "We dated for three months."