Taming The CEO: An enemies-to-lovers romance (The Whitley Brothers)

Chapter Thirty-Two

Cami

One month later

”I love crisp winter mornings so much,” I exclaimed, taking in a deep breath and closing my eyes. Maddox and I were sipping coffee on my front porch. I heard a chuckle and opened my eyes. He was holding his phone in front of me. ”What are you doing?”

”Snapping a picture of you. I want to immortalize this moment. You look so damn happy.”

”I am.”

A deafening sound pierced the air, and we both burst out laughing.

”Well, there goes our Zen morning.”

Leo showed us every available house in Essex, but there simply weren’t enough on the market. So when he found a gorgeous property not far from here, Maddox and I decided to build our own house instead.

We couldn”t wait for it to be ready. Not just so we could move in, but also because the noise from the construction of the hotel and distillery was considerable.

”What do you want to do today?” I asked him.

He flashed me a knowing smile. ”How about taking a walk through the park?”

My eyes lit up. ”Is it safe?”

He nodded. ”Yeah. I double-checked with the construction crew. The snow’s melted, and there’s no ice.”

Since they”d started paving pathways and arranging it for the hotel, it had been off-limits. I hadn”t been inside the park since before Christmas, and I dearly missed it.

”You should have led with that. I wouldn”t even have needed coffee. Come on, let”s go,” I said, jumping to my feet.

”Babe.” He chuckled. ”How about changing first?”

I looked down at myself. Yeah, he had a good point. Clearly, I wasn”t as awake as I”d thought, because I”d forgotten I was wearing slippers and my workout clothes. He’d already dressed in jeans and a sweater.

”You look so dapper,” I said.

He grinned. ”Dapper, huh?”

”That”s just what came to mind.”

”Come on, beautiful. Go change.”

”You don”t have to say it again,” I replied and darted inside.

I dressed at top speed, putting on a thick sweater. We didn”t have too much time, as I was opening up my shop at ten o”clock, and Saturdays were busy.

I was so happy with how my new business was going. I”d managed to open two weeks ago. Half the town showed up on my opening day, and all the local businesses promised to send me customers. I thought they were just trying to be polite, but I had a constant stream of tourists and locals alike. It probably helped that most locals were low-key happy that Bill had moved away, thanks in part to me, but mostly to Maddox. The man had skills.

Bill was so deeply rooted in Essex history that I never thought he”d actually move, but he did. Once Maddox started the litigation, several other lies of Bill’s came to light. It was like a house of cards that kept crumbling. His reputation wasn”t built on anything real.

When the mayor fired him, he threatened to sell all of his assets in Essex at the same time, which would bring down real estate prices. The mayor fired him anyway, and Maddox snapped up everything Bill was selling. He decided to move elsewhere after that, and no one was sorry about it. I’d asked Maddox what he was going to do with all the acquisitions. He replied that for the ones that currently housed people or businesses, nothing would change. He and Gabe were already making plans for the vacant buildings.

And in my man’s words, ”It was a small price to pay to get rid of that moron.”

I headed outside, looking a bit like a snowman. The cold had seeped into my bones from earlier. I should have listened to Maddox and gotten dressed before drinking coffee. He was on the phone when I stepped out.

”No, she doesn”t suspect anything. Oh, for God”s sake.”

I frowned. ”What am I not suspecting?”

He looked over his shoulder and groaned. ”All right. I”ll talk to you later, busybody.” He hung up the phone.

”What am I not suspecting?” I pressed, moving closer to him.

”You don”t know if I was talking about you.”

”That”s true, but I suspect you were.”

Maddox kissed my temple. ”You don”t have to know everything, love.”

I shimmied a bit, wrapping my arms around his torso. I loved when he called me that. I looked up at him, kissing his chin, then down the column of his neck. When I reached his Adam”s apple, he groaned.

”Cami... I know what you”re doing.”

I gasped. ”How come?”

”Really, babe? You”re obvious. And it”s a low blow, I must say.”

”Hey, there’s no rule saying I can”t seduce my boyfriend to get what I want.”

He laughed. ”No. But we should make a rule regarding timing.” He grabbed my hand. ”Come on, let”s go for a walk. We don”t want to halt construction for too long. Besides, you have to be at the store later on.”

”That”s true,” I said as we got in the car.

I didn”t exactly understand his comment about halting the construction, but whatever. I was going to take a walk in the park. I hadn”t counted on that happening for another few months, and I wasn”t going to look a gift horse in the mouth.

I kept my nose pressed to the window as Maddox drove, smiling when we reached the gate. The main building was still there. They hadn”t taken it down yet. I practically jumped out of the car when he stopped.

”Easy,” Maddox said as he got out of the car too. ”Look where you”re going. They”ve been paving but didn”t finish it all yet.”

”If you want, you can totally give me your arm,” I said, wiggling my eyebrows. ”You know, just to help me keep my balance.”

He came up next to me. ”I was going to do exactly that anyway.”

He offered me an arm. Crap, this isn”t exactly helping my plan. I wanted to fondle him as we walked.

I awkwardly tried to do that with my other hand, and he cocked his head at me as we started along the snaking path.

”Cami, I know what your goal is, and you”re going about it the wrong way.”

Yeah, I was still on my mission to seduce him, but he was right, and I knew when to admit defeat.

But then I forgot all about my plan as we walked on the trail. They”d put cobblestones on part of it, but most was covered with what were clearly temporary wooden slabs. Once we reached the place where the first zip line used to be, I let out a huge sigh. They”d disassembled all of the stations. That was one of the first things they”d done.

”I can”t believe it. It looks like it was never here in the first place.”

Maddox stood behind me, putting an arm around my waist and kissing the crook of my neck. ”How do you feel about it?”

”A bit nostalgic.”

He unzipped my coat and slipped his hand inside, then moved it in a circular motion over my belly. I shimmied against him, and he moved his fingers under my sweater, brushing my bare skin. I gasped as an unexpected wave of heat shot though me.

”Maddox!” I chastised.

He put his lips to my ear and nibbled the outer shell.

”Is this payback for earlier?” I asked.

”No, I just like touching you. I couldn”t help myself.” Then he took his hand out, zipping up my coat again.

I pouted, turning sideways and looking at him. ”I liked that.”

”Come on, let’s walk the rest of the trail.”

I was surprised that they let us inside. There were several machines on either side of the trail; however, we were careful every step of the way until we reached my tree.

”It”s even prettier than I remember.”

”You”re cute.”

I looked up at the majestic crown, sighing.

Maddox whispered in my ear, ”I love you, Cami. So damn much.” His voice was different than it had been just minutes before, now rough and full of emotion.

I turned around slowly and smiled, brushing away a few rebel strands of hair from my face. Then he took my hands in his and started tugging me downward.

No, wait, he wasn”t tugging. He was just going down on one knee.

I opened my mouth to ask if he was losing his balance, but then I realized this was something else altogether.

”Cami,” he murmured, and I detected even more emotion than before, even in just those two syllables. He kissed both my hands, taking a deep breath before resting his cheek against them. Then he straightened up, looking at me.

”You”re so damn perfect,” he said. He grabbed both of my hands in one of his. The other was in the pocket of his coat.

I couldn”t believe this was happening. I felt like I was in a movie, watching all of this happen to someone else.

He took his hand from his pocket, opening a velvet box. My heart nearly jumped out of my chest. I was looking at the most beautiful ring in the entire world. I also knew exactly who”d made it.

So Miriam knew about this. I didn”t think I could love this man even more, but I did. I knew how much this meant to my best friend.

”Cami,” Maddox began, ”I love you, babe, and my life has been incredible since I”ve met you.”

”Even though I made your life a bit difficult when we first met?” I challenged.

”Maybe because of that. You”re exactly what I needed—I just wasn”t aware of it. You and I are meant to be, Cami. I want to ask you to be my wife here, surrounded by this place that means so much to you. I promise to preserve it for you, for us, and for the next generation.”

I squeezed his hand as tears prickled at my eyes.

”I want us to build a home together. You and I are forever. Will you marry me?” he asked, his own eyes glassy.

”Of course I will! I can marry you right now if you want.”

”Babe, don”t tempt me,” he said as he put on my ring. ”Your dad wouldn’t forgive us if he doesn’t walk you to the altar.”

I whispered, ”You told Dad?”

”Yes. He also gave me something for you,” he said.

He reached into his other pocket and took out a small box. Then he rose to his feet, opening it. I looked at a gorgeous butterfly-shaped pendant. It was quite obviously silver with tiny red stones.

Maddox cleared his throat. ”He said he”d bought this to give your mom on their twenty-fifth anniversary.” Now my tears were falling in earnest. ”And he would like you to have it as a gift from both of us.”

I looked up at him and he cupped my face, leaning in and kissing the corner of my mouth.

”Thank you,” I murmured, ”for loving me just the way I am.” He”d accepted me with all my quirks. ”We”re strong together.”

”So fucking strong,” he replied. ”Want me to put the pendant on you?”

I nodded and turned around, holding up my hair. It had grown quite a bit, and I needed to cut it again. I quite liked it styled in a bob.

Maddox kissed the back of my neck, making me shudder, and then clasped the silver chain attached to the pendant. I felt so close to my mom right now even though she”d never even seen it. I’d always known that she”d been watching over me, but I”d never been more certain than now. How else would I have had the luck to meet this amazing man?

He turned me around and sealed his mouth over mine, kissing me hungrily. I laughed when he lifted me off my feet, arching his back so I was slightly towering over him. He kept kissing me when he set me back down on the ground. I moaned through the kiss, and he growled.

”Hmm,” I murmured, taking him in. Then a sound broke the air. ”What was that?”

Maddox pulled back, groaning. ”That”s the crew. Damn it. What time is it?”

”It”s 9:50 a.m. Oh, you told them to start later today. That”s what you meant.”

He nodded.

”Well,” I said, taking his hand and leading him back down the trail, ”we can always go back to the main office and continue what we started in front of the tree. You can seduce me, or I can seduce you. I don”t have a preference. I mean, we can do both.”

Maddox laughed, then abruptly halted, putting an arm around my shoulders. ”You”re forgetting a detail.”

I groaned. ”The store.”

”I have a solution for that,” he said. ”Miriam said she could open up today and stay for as long as you need her.”

I blushed because Miriam would know exactly what we were doing while she was there.

”You were talking to her this morning?”

”Yeah. She”s been my accomplice.”

I smiled. ”You”ve planned every detail.”

Maddox frowned, looking into the distance. ”I should have told them to come even later. Then we could start on that seduction plan right here, right now,” he growled in my ear.

I nudged him, shuddering at his words. ”Hold that thought until we”re back at the building. Otherwise, I might completely forget myself and do something outrageous.”

I looked at the start of the trail, but everyone was far enough away. I reached behind me, cupping him over his jeans.

”Cami!” he growled.

Yeah, that was not my best idea. ”Hold all those sexy sounds for another few minutes, and then you can unleash them when we get there.”