Free Melody Anne's Billionaire Universe: Her Billionaire's Bargain (Kindle Worlds Novella) by Yvette Hines

“I’ll see. Be back.”
    “Okie dokie.” Her daughter was barely paying attention to her as Zendaya was busy shoving handfuls of over cheesed popcorn into her mouth.
    Shaking her head and laughing at her daughter antics, she went to the door and pulled it open.
    “Good evening, Ms. Deen.”
    Oh, God, please let the floor open up and swallow me.
    Her heart stopped. She was sure her heart stopped beating for seconds, maybe even a full minute as she stared into the face of the man she expected never to see again.
    Heat infused her body from the inside out as Zachary’s gaze made a slow caress of her form like molasses running down a tree. She now knew how a cherry felt under the fire of a flambé . She regretted her casual at home attire.
    This man was invading her personal space, her life in more ways than one. Her heart was pounding and all she thought about was that she needed to get rid of him. “What are you doing here?”
    His clear gray eyes met hers, the warmth still present. “I’m glad you made it home safe.”
    “Yes, it took me a week to get here.” She wished she could retract the bite in her tone. He would think that she cared that he didn’t call after their night together. Don’t you?
    “When a woman creeps out in the middle of the night it doesn’t give me a sign they are interested in my continued attention.”
    Zing . He got her. There was a shadow in his eyes and a tightness to his brow. Regardless of her reasons for leaving his arms, it had been wrong of her not to at least leave a note of some kind. Refusing to relent, she folded her arms and gave him a hard look.
    His gaze dropped to her breasts and she realized her mistake. The crossing of her arms lifted her unrestrained breasts high beneath her tank top.
    “I ask you again, what are you doing here?”
    There was a twinkle in his eyes now and a tilt to his sexy firm lips. “The contract.” He held up a legal size envelope. “I need you to sign it.”
    “I told you I wasn’t doing it. Cupcakes of Joy is mine. I’m not selling it. I’m not moving it. I’m not negotiating with your company in any way…end of story.”
    “Kourtney, I’m not taking no for an answer.” The corners of his mouth were tight and the texture of his words were practically a growl.
    “No.” She swung the door.
    His smacked the palm of his hand against it, stopping it. “I’m not leaving until you hear me out. My company would pay for moving it. Literally lifting the whole establishment and relocating it where ever you want. Like Arboretum District, it would double your revenue out there.”
    “Hel—” She bit off the word thinking of her daughter in hearing shot. “No. Mr. Powers, it’s not going to happen. My customers know me in this community. I’m a staple, a fixture.” She shoved at the door.
    He remained a solid opposition. “What community? Have you bothered to open your eyes outside your store? Things are changing on the east side.”
    “Yeah, it’s called gentrification .” That was a hot spot button from her. “Big business comes in and decides the people that live there have to go.”
    Zac stood there for a moment just staring at her. “Those homes were dilapidated. Not to mention when we bought out the strip mall there was only four stores in a fifteen space mall.” He stepped into her space, bringing his warm spice smell with him. “Overlin will bring jobs and revenue to the area. How many people are you hiring with your glorified bake sale?”
    Both pissed off and hurt by his words she stepped into his space. “Go to hell.”
    “Mommy.” There was a patting on her thigh. “Are you angry?”
    She gasped. Her heart was pounding now. Shocked that she’d allowed this man to get under her skin so much that she forgot about Zendaya. She had disregarded the one thing she wanted to keep private.
    Frozen in the spot, she wasn’t sure what to do. What she wanted to do was shove Zachary out the door and slam it shut, locking all