Longing For The Beach Billionaire Daddy
Chapter 41

*Michael*

Seeing her again, so gorgeous in every way, brought back painful memories that, just hours before, I had said goodbye to. Yet here I was, staring her down with likely an incredibly pleading expression.

A pit formed in my stomach as I wondered if this was disrespecting her wishes about space. I did not walk any closer to her, even though I very much wanted to take her into my arms and hold her close. I swallowed and let out a soft sigh, opening my mouth to start.

“Shelby, I–”

“Michael, what are you doing here? You–”

“I know, it–”

“Seeing you here again, I–”

“I wanted to talk about–”

We stopped, getting nowhere given our words were being tangled by talking over one another. I had the delight of seeing an amused glint to her eyes. She brought her hand up to her lips, covering her mouth for a moment in amusement before clearing her throat and letting out a sigh.

Her expression hardened as, no doubt, she decided to stand her ground. Rolling her shoulders back, Shelby lifted her chin, regarding me with a small degree of wariness.

“Go ahead, Michael. I’ll hear you out,” she said, nearly causing me to collapse with relief. I had one last chance to make things right, and I needed to make it count. This was not about me; this was about her.

She deserved the life she’d strived for. She was an intelligent, beautiful woman, and it was not my place to get in the way of that. Steeling my resolve, I did as she asked, nodding and refocusing my mind on the issue at hand.

“I was wrong,” I started, watching as she raised a brow. “I should have never asked you to put your dreams on hold for me. It was selfish. I was blinded by my feelings for you, which in the end, would have harmed you. You will still have the position at the law firm I helped you obtain, though your merits were more than enough.

“I understand none of this is about the money. It is about you being you, going out there and helping people like you have always wanted to. Making a name for yourself. I apologize for being too dense to realize this.”

Tears brewed in Shelby’s eyes that she reached up to quickly wipe away. I watched her shoulders sag and listened to the little sniffle she gave as she processed everything I was telling her.

Several emotions flashed across her face right then. The first was surprise, followed by acceptance, and finally cautious happiness. She wore a soft smile, moments later not bothering to wipe away the tears.

I had a feeling they turned from panicked and sad to tears of a more positive nature right then. I couldn’t help but feel hopeful at this and a smile slowly crept across my face.

“Thank you,” she breathed, taking a few steps forward and hesitating. “Can I give you a hug?” My heart skipped a beat, and I nodded, delighted for this chance. It would likely be among the last ones we exchanged, as I was not going to get in the way of her dreams though I had deep feelings for her.

Shelby continued, “I’m really happy you came to see me. I tried letting go of everything, but it was so hard, Michael.”

I wrapped my arms around her as she buried her face into my chest. The smell of sweet perfume wafted into my face, causing my entire body to relax. Everything about her was angelic, beautiful, and perfect.

I wanted to sweep her off her feet and take her away, to treat her like the princess she was, but I knew those thoughts were unreasonable. Rather, I held her there for several moments before finally breaking the silence after a thought of seeing her for longer came to me.

“Would… you like to have one last bit of extravagance with me before you start your new life in Cambridge? No strings attached. Just a night of fun for you, to rest your mind after all the stress you have been dealing with,” I said.

Even if the stress was due to me, in some part at least, perhaps this all would help. She would know she was going to a better place following the night, if she accepted, anyway.

I knew she didn’t want us to ruin her chances at law school, but I really did not want to let her go. The thought of never seeing her again after tonight made my heart ache. I looked at her trying to hide my desperation to be with her from my expression.

After a long pause, Shelby pulled away and looked into my eyes. My heart dropped, considering the high possibility she would decline. She had every right to, after all, given all that had happened.

I opened my mouth to assure her that I would understand entirely if she said no, but she raised a hand to stop me, her smile widening. “Yes. I think that would be good for me, Michael. Thank you. Plus… I miss you. I am sorry for storming out the way I did,” she muttered.

“Oh, I deserved it,” I laughed, rubbing the back of my neck. “I was not putting you first or thinking of how hard you worked to achieve your goals. But I am delighted you decided to come with me.”

Right then, rounding the corner were two women, her roommates. Seeing me, their jaws dropped for a moment. One walked up to Shelby, quickly, putting herself between me and her. Shelby said, “Lin! What are you doing?”

Lin replied, “Making sure you’re alright! You came home a wreck, and now this guy is here? He’s the one you left, isn’t he? Looks like how you described him.”

“Yes, but we talked it out. I… want to spend one last evening with him. It’s something he offered to do,” Shelby said.

Lin stepped aside, crossing her arms and furrowing her brow. She looked over to the other girl and gestured to us.

“What do you think, Aubrey?” Lin asked.

The other girl, Aubrey, shook her head, looking toward Shelby. “Is this healthy? Are you sure you are not in danger? He clearly seems to care, but what about the stalker?” she said, side-eying me. “We just want to make sure you’re okay.”

I couldn’t blame them, and this was not my place to intervene. I stepped aside, waiting for Shelby to explain the situation. Trying to interject and defend myself would not be wise at this point.

Shelby gave her friends a very sad smile. “Hey, I appreciate how much you two care. I know. I was a mess. I still am. But Michael apologized, he understands my dreams come first. It’s goodbye after one last night. I’m not changing course or anything. I’m not dropping my plans. I just can’t deny my emotions for him anymore. Really, I need this,” she told them.

I blinked in surprise, honored she would defend me in front of her friends the way she did.

Lin appeared skeptical as she exchanged a glance with Aubrey. The sun shined down on all four of us, just a few clouds in the sky right now. The temperature was mild, so the atmosphere itself at least wasn’t making things worse.

A car rumbled by, its mechanical growls breaking the silence that had settled on our group. We were out of the way and on the sidewalk, so we were not disrupting anyone, at least.

Finally, Aubrey spoke up. “If you think this is what’s best for you, Shelby, then we support you,” she said. “I know you won’t walk away from your dreams for anyone, no matter how dreamy he may be. But be careful, okay?”

Her eyes fell upon me, and there was a dangerous glint to them I rarely saw in any expression from another toward me that didn’t relate to my wealth. “As for you, don’t play with her emotions or steer her away from what she truly wants. Understand?”

I nodded, aware she was dead serious and wondering if that was a threat. Not that I was opposed.

This was a caring gesture for Shelby, and I was relieved she had friends like this that cared deeply. “I do,” I replied. “I know I was wrong, I was just scared for her and tried to protect her the only way I know. It wasn’t the right way, though. And it will never happen again.”

I hoped they believed me because it was all true. I would never ask Shelby to sacrifice her dreams for me; it wasn’t fair to her.

“I will arrange for someone to drive her belongings to Cambridge and set up her apartment while we spend one last night together. Lin if you’d like, they can set your stuff up there as well.”

Lin and Aubrey exchanged another glance and nodded. Lin said, “Thank you, I’ll take you up on that! Remind me to replace a guy like you when I have to move again.”

This lightened the mood, causing all of us to laugh. Thank goodness, the situation could have turned fairly complicated very fast. True to my word, I made a call to my assistant, arranging for Shelby’s things to be taken care of. One last thing to worry about.

When the other two women left, Shelby and I were left there together, silent and just staring into each other’s eyes. I found myself lost in hers, tilting my head and cupping her cheek.

She blushed very deeply, running her tongue slowly over her lips. God, she was beautiful. My breath caught just looking at her.

I could not believe just how lucky I was to have found her, and that she found it in her to forgive me even if I was drowning in guilt over not putting her wishes first.

“K**s me?” she asked in a hush tone, and I could not help but to oblige. I leaned down and pressed my lips against hers, stars practically rushing through my entire body.

I was lost in all of her during that k**s, emotions swirling and skin crackling with chemistry. We eventually had to pull away for air, sadly, and Shelby let out a soft sigh.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

I smiled at her, taking her into another hug. “No. Thank you, Shelby.”

I would make it count and see her smile light up the area again. Nothing was too much for her, and I was going to pull out all the stops. I looked at her and smiled. “One last night together,” she sighed and smiled up at me.

One last night together.