Expecting the Billionaire's Baby (Texas Cattleman's Club: Blackmail 4)

Judging by her words, she wanted to be more than just with him. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with him.

She loved him.

It was a damn good thing Shane had made him sit down.

“Can you believe it?” Shane asked. “When I saw her that night at the party after you left, she seemed really confused by my congratulations on her engagement. I thought maybe she was just annoyed that the news got out before they could make an official announcement, but now it looks like it was because she didn’t know what the hell I was talking about.”

Deacon almost didn’t believe what he was reading. He had been jerked around so many times where Cecelia was concerned that he was afraid to think it could really be true. He wanted it to be true, though. He’d made the mistake of letting himself fall in love with her again these past few weeks. He’d never intended on it, but after that afternoon in Provence, he couldn’t help himself. He was madly in love with Cecelia Morgan. Could she really, truly be in love with him, as well?

“What are you going to do?” Shane pressed.

“I have no earthly idea,” he answered. And that was the truth. He didn’t want to screw this up. If he and Cecelia got back together, that was it. It was for life. He was going to marry her, make it official and never let that sweet creature out of his sight again. Even if that meant living in Royal for the rest of his life. It was the sacrifice he was willing to make to have her as his wife.

“Well, are you just going to sit here? Why aren’t you rushing out the door to sweep her off her feet? She wants to marry you, Deacon. Stop hiding in this damn penthouse suite and do something about it.”

Deacon closed his laptop screen and turned to face Shane. “I want to do this right. I can’t half ass it on a whim. She deserves better than that. I don’t think the little jewelry store in town is going to have what I need. Care to join me for a trip to Florida to get the perfect engagement ring?”

Shane grinned. “Florida? Just for a ring? There’re some great places in Houston.”

Deacon shook his head. “There’s only one ring in the world for Cecelia, and it’s in Florida.”

“Okay,” Shane agreed. “Do we need to have my assistant book some first-class tickets?”

“First class?” Deacon smirked, then shook his head as he reached for his phone. “Nope. We’re taking a private jet.”

Twelve

Cecelia slipped the key card into the elevator panel, allowing her to go to the restricted top floor of The Bellamy. When her message went out into the universe and everyone but Deacon seemed to receive it, she decided it was time to take some drastic measures. Someone had known where he was. Her money had been on Shane, but she’d opted to approach his fiancé instead. It was a risk, considering how Brandee probably felt about her, but she was her only hope. Brandee would likely have had the information without that pesky sense of loyalty to a friend.

It turned out she was right. Brandee not only gave her Deacon’s location, but the access card to get her there. She had seen the posts online and, despite everything, was all too happy to help Cecelia reunite with Deacon.

The elevator chimed and the doors opened. Cecelia stepped out onto a small, elegant landing. There were doors at each end of the hallway. One was labeled the Lone Star Suite and the other the Rio Grande Suite. Brandee said that Deacon was in the former, so she took a deep breath to steel her courage and turned left toward his room and, hopefully, her future.

Facing the massive oak door, she raised her hand to knock but was surprised when the door whipped open before she could make contact.

Deacon was standing there, looking just as startled to find Cecelia on his doorstep. He was wearing an immaculately tailored dark gray suit with a sapphire-blue shirt that reminded her of the color of the ocean in Cannes. It clung to every angle and line of his body, making him look impossibly tall and more handsome than she could even remember.

Their sudden face-to-face stole the words from Cecelia’s lips.

“Cecelia? What are you doing here?” he asked.

She bit anxiously at her lip. “Brandee told me where you were. I’m sorry, but I had to talk to you about something. It looks like you’re headed out the door, though, so I guess I’ll come back.”

“No!” Deacon shouted, catching her upper arm before she could turn away to leave. “No, I was going to find you.”

Cecelia felt a bit of the pressure crushing her rib cage lift. “You were?”

“Yes, please come in.” Deacon stepped back and held out his arm for her to follow him into the suite.

She made her way into the room and over to the seating area with the modern couches she’d designed and had manufactured. It felt a little weird to be sitting on them as a guest. “You’re a hard man to find,” she admitted.

Deacon sat down on the sofa beside her, angling his shoulders and hips to face her. “I didn’t want to be found. Especially by you.”

The words were like a kick to her gut, but she had to understand where he was coming from. He didn’t know the truth. “You know that Chip is a boastful liar, right? I hadn’t seen or spoken to him since we broke up, and I certainly hadn’t agreed to marry him before you two had your run-in at the party.”

Deacon nodded. “I know. Shane showed me your post yesterday.”

“Yesterday?” He’d seen it and done nothing. Why had he waited? She’d put her heart on the line, and he’d sat back and thought about it overnight. She’d been in misery, on pins and needles, waiting to hear from him. That was the only reason she’d come after him. If he wasn’t swayed by her declaration of love and desire to marry, he at least needed to know he was going to be a father.