Free His to Keep: A Billionaire Romance (His to Have Book 3) by Piper Hayes Page B

too early in our relationship for a proposal, isn’t it? Maybe it isn’t, I think. I decide this would be a distinctly unromantic proposal and that Blake would find some way to be way grander and more intimate. I still can’t shake the jitters as I walk over to him.
    “What is it?” I ask. I can’t even look at him. I’m halfway convinced again that it’s a ring, and I’m changing my mind about ten times a second. No, I finally tell myself. It’s not a ring, but I can’t help but think how much I wish it were a ring.
    “I was thinking about the argument,” he says.
    “Which argument?” I ask. I feel like so much has happened in the past few days.
    Blake laughs. “In my car, we argued about you taking your father’s offer. I wanted to apologize.”  
    I look down at the box. “And this is your way of apologizing?”
    “I’m sorry I didn’t react well,” he says. “I will support you in everything you do. This is just a way to show you.” He grabs the present and slides it across the table.
    “Now I have to know.” I walk up to the table and pick the present up. It’s heavier than I expected, and it feels solid. I pull the bow and then slip a finger under the wrapping paper. A smile breaks across my face as I realize what it is. “Business cards?” I ask.  
    “Your business cards,” he says. “I figure you’ll need them.”
    Catherine Carlisle. Capitalist. Crisp black text on a white background. I look one of the cards over. It feels good in my hand. “Capitalist?” I ask. I can’t hide my smile. “For a second there, I think you were going to propose to me.”
    “I have another set that says Director since you have a seat on the board,” Blake says. “I can have ones made up that say Wife, if you’d like.”
    “Director will do for now,” I tell him.  
    “In that case, would you like some lunch, Ms. Director?”
    “I’d love that,” I tell him.”  
    Blake has lunch brought in, and we eat there, just him and me at the enormous conference table. “I want you to get used to this place,” he says. “The board can be daunting. It’s like a dozen Richard Carlisles haranguing you at once.”
    “Well, I’ve been dealing with my father my entire life, how much worse could another eleven of him be?” I ask. I want to tell Blake about the plan, but I know it would ruin the mood. “As long as you’re there, I’ll be fine,” I tell him.
    “I love you,” he says. “I’ve been thinking about that other thing too, by the way.”  
    “Which thing was that? It’s getting hard to keep track,” I tell him.  
    “Italy. You’re right, we should go. I could take a few weeks off once this all Jacob stuff blows over. It will probably be a few months from now, but it would be good to get away, just the two of us. Maybe we could go somewhere a little further south, somewhere warm and sunny. What do you say?”  
    “It sounds great,” I tell him. He gets up and walks up behind me. He places his hands on my shoulders and starts to rub. It feels wonderful. I close my eyes and try to imagine myself relaxing by the pool in some Italian villa. “I can’t wait.” I can picture it so clearly, the blue sky above, the water beyond my feet, Blake lying next to me. It all seems so real. I just can’t picture what it will take to get to that point.  

CHAPTER 17

    CATHERINE

    By the time Friday morning arrives, I’m a nervous wreck. All I can think about is the hundred ways this could go wrong. I ask Blake if I can borrow the Porsche when he’s on the way out the door, and he agrees without hesitation. I feel like I’m betraying his confidence, and he just seems thrilled that I like the car. I tell him I’m planning a surprise for him. It isn’t a complete lie, but I feel awful not telling him the whole truth.
    Ben and I get to my father’s house early. I’ve gone over the plan with him ten times. He tries to tell me that everything is going to work out, but all I can think about