Free Mr. Black's Proposal (Part Two: A Billionaire Erotic Romance) by Aubrey Dark

Chapter One
    Steph
    I was back home in New York City, and the stand mixer still wasn’t working. I bent over to see if my tried-and-true repair method of jiggling wires had fixed anything. A cloud of flour came puffing out of the bowl and into my face.
    “Fuck ,” I swore. I ran my hand back through my hair, the flour coming out like baby powder onto the floor.
    “Hey, big sister!”
    I jumped up in surprise and knocked my head against a shelf. I winced.
    “Ow!”
    Andy sat on the counter, his legs swinging.
    “How was Paris?”
    “Jesus, Andy, you scared me,” I said. My heart was still pounding.
    “Sorry. I brought you a latte.” He held out the coffee apologetically.
    “Just put it there, okay?” I said, rubbing the top of my head. I hoped there wouldn’t be too bad of a bump there. “I have to fix this.”
    “You can’t fix it. It’s way broken. That’s what Mike said.”
    “Who’s Mike?”
    “He’s an appliance guy. I asked him to come repair the mixer, and he looked at it and said it needed a new rod. He’s coming back to fix it tomorrow.”
    “Hey, wait! I didn’t okay that. How much is he charging?”
    “Nothing.”
    “Nothing?” I stared at Andy in confusion.
    “I met him at a gay bar,” Andy explained. “He was looking for a new rod, too, if you know what I mean.”
    “Eww! Eww! Stop!”
    I put my hands over my ears. I did not need to know the details of my little brother’s sex life.
    “So, tell me… how was Paris?” Andy said.
    “It was… fine.”
    I didn’t tell him about Lucas sliding between my thighs, his tongue as hot as the sun. I didn’t tell him about being tied up to a hotel bed, screaming over and over again as my orgasm ripped through me. One night, he’d said. Well, the night was over, and I was going to try to forget about all of what had happened between us.
    I only hoped that Lucas would be willing to forget, too..
    Andy raised one disbelieving eyebrow at me. I couldn’t meet his eyes.
    “Fine?” he asked.
    “Fine.”
    “Did you have fun ?” he asked, drawing out the last word.
    “Yes. Lacey’s engaged.”
    “No way! To that billionaire guy?”
    “Yep.” I had almost forgotten that the proposal was the real reason I’d gone over to Paris. Not for Lucas. Definitely not for Lucas.
    “That was fast. Do you think she really likes him?”
    “Of course. She said yes, didn’t she?”
    “Well, sure. But wouldn’t you?”
    I arched an eyebrow at Andy.
    “You think she said yes because of the money?” I asked.
    “I didn’t say that.”
    “Yeah, but that’s what you meant.”
    “It was awfully quick, is all,” he said, spreading his hands.
    “Lacey wouldn’t do that. She’s not the gold digger type.”
    “Yeah.”
    I gulped, thinking about Lucas. Was I a gold digger? Belle had warned me to stay away from him. What would she think if she knew?
    No. She wouldn’t know anything. Lucas wouldn’t tell anyone. As long as I kept it a secret—
    “What is it?”
    I looked up to see Andy staring at me.
    “What?” I said.
    “I have sibling worry radar. What’s wrong?”
    I licked my lips nervously and started washing a bowl in the sink.
    “Nothing.”
    “You can’t lie to me, Steph.”
    “I’m not lying to you.”
    “Yeah? Then why are you washing a bowl that’s already clean?”
    I put the bowl back down on the counter and marched out to the front of the shop to wipe down the display case glass. It was already clean, too. I wondered if Andy had convinced his new boytoy to clean up the bakery while he was at it.
    Andy followed me out to the front of the store. The sunlight was starting to come in, and the early work crowd was trickling by outside of the window.
    “Steph…” he said, in a singsong tone.
    “It’s nothing,” I said.
    “Nothing?”
    “Jet lag.”
    “Is it that Lucas guy?”
    I wanted to hide, but I couldn’t lie to my brother’s face.
    “Yes,” I said. “No. Maybe.”
    “Is it serious?”
    “No!” I said