Love Unwritten (Lakefront Billionaires, #2)

by Lauren Asher

Objectively speaking, my boss is handsome. With a face that belongs on a magazine cover, a deep voice that drips with quiet authority, and enough height and muscle mass to make me—the town’s resident tall girl—feel small and dainty, he checks every box.

Hot single dad with more emotional baggage than London Heathrow Airport during Christmas? Check.

Brilliant tech billionaire who teamed up with his cousin to create Dwelling, the most popular real estate app on the market? Painfully cliché yet...

Whatever silly spark of attraction I felt toward him since we were teenagers no longer mattered

I can deal with an ungodly amount of flannel shirts and picking up after Rafael’s dusty cowboy boots, but I draw the line at his constant scowls and insistence on making me feel like an outsider despite working for him for nearly a year.

An image of me wrapping my hands around his throat flashes before my eyes. I’m not a violent person, but something about Rafael always brings out the worst in me. His eyes narrow. “Are you picturing my murder again?” “In graphic detail.” “Poison?” “Asphyxiation.” His eyes have a rare glimmer to them. “Switching it up?” “Nico suggested it.” “My son is giving murder advice now?” “Are you seriously surprised? His favorite comic book is about a villain.”

I was only a freshman when he was a senior, but everyone knew who Rafael Lopez was. The Wisteria High student body was obsessed with him, including me, although I’d deny it until my dying breath. To be fair, it was impossible not to be, with his devastating good looks, otherworldly athleticism, and charming yet nerdy personality.

The photo is evidence that even the brightest stars can fade away, becoming a fraction of what they once were.

Between Nico keeping his father at arms’ length and Rafael going out of his way to avoid uncomfortable situations with his son, they both could use a little humor in their lives.

“Remind me why I put up with you?” “Because you love your son more than you dislike me.” A long crease appears on his forehead. “I don’t dislike you.” “But do you like me?” His palm brushes over his short beard. “I’m still deciding.”

The base of my neck tingles, and I peek over my shoulder to find Rafael’s gaze focused on my ass. Oh my God. Why is he checking me out?

Rumor has it that Rafael hasn’t been with anyone since he divorced his ex-wife, Hillary, over two years ago.

After working here for eight months, I can confirm that, despite Rafael being one of the most eligible bachelors in town, he is completely disinterested in any kind of connection, including a platonic one.

People like Rafael don’t mix well with people like me. I feel way too much, and he barely feels at all.

Despite Rafael having enough money to make his great-great-great-grandkids billionaires one day, he purchased land near the outskirts of Lake Wisteria, far away from the coveted lake and its million-dollar views. At first, I thought he chose this property because he needed space for a barn and the animals that live there, but I’ve since learned the truth. Rafael is hiding from the world.

Nico wants to be autonomous, especially given the retinitis pigmentosa condition he was diagnosed with about eighteen months ago. According to my late-night Google searches, promoting independence is important, especially as his vision progressively worsens and he gets more frustrated by having to rely on others.

A deep, inky shade that matches the somber music she plays late at night when she thinks everyone is asleep. She doesn’t know that I listen from the shadows sometimes, but I find it hard to resist the pull I have toward her. Her music speaks to me in a way words never can, and I can’t help being drawn to her in that sense.

“I feel bad for people like you,” she says, stunning me into silence. “You work double-time to keep everyone at a distance because one person gave you a reason to.” More like three people—two of whom brought me into this world. I don’t say that, though. I don’t say anything.

to think is to feel, and I’m not entirely sure I’ll be able to control myself once I start. My toxic trait isn’t the fact that I don’t have feelings; it’s that I feel too much, all at once, so I suppress it instead of learning how to cope.

Ellie hasn’t noticed me yet, but then again, she never does whenever she is in the zone.

Ellie has no idea, but I like listening to her play. Her music has a way of sneaking past my defenses and making me feel,

I turn to face her and instantly regret it as her eyes cast some kind of spell on me. The limited lighting brings out the darker shades of green and brown in her eyes tonight, and I can’t tear myself away. I’ve never seen eyes quite like hers before, and maybe it was for the best, because a single stolen glance has my skin tingling.

Willow recently took Lorenzo Vittori, the town’s newest billionaire resident, on as a PR client.

Lorenzo was the biggest one yet, with his goal to replace Lake Wisteria’s Mayor Ludlow, whose family has been here since the town was founded in the 1800s.

“You’re not allowed to leave again. You got it?” “Never? What if you get sick of me?” “No. Never. Right, Papi?” Nico hesitantly looks over at his dad. I’m paralyzed when Rafael locks eyes with me. “No te preocupes, mijo.1 If she runs, I’ll bring her back for you.”

“I promise to stay.” “You pinkie swear?” He holds it up for me. I lock my tattoo-free pinkie finger around his. “On my life.” “Okay. But I’m going to come find you every thirty minutes just to be sure that you didn’t run away with the cake.” “Deal.”

“We could call a truce,” I say. He lifts his hand until I’m staring into the barrel of a toy gun. “So that’s how it’s going to be?” He doesn’t smile, but his eyes soften at the edges. “It’s nothing personal.” His finger hovers over the trigger. “I’ll save you, Ellie!” Nico shouts from the other side of the field. “Thank God I can count on one Lopez at least.”

To think I have spent all this time being jealous of the relationship she had with my son when I could have been trying to be a part of it instead. No one said we couldn’t share experiences with Nico together, but I made it impossible with the way I behaved. From here on out, I will work on it.

I knew Nico’s mom wouldn’t show up today, but he had hoped she would. He always hopes.

Unlike my sweet, sentimental son, I’ve learned the hard way not to trust anything that comes out of my ex-wife’s mouth. She might be the mother of my child, and for that, I will always give her more grace than she deserves, but I will never let her get close enough to hurt me again. Her or any other woman for that matter, so I keep them at a distance and prevent any opportunities for intimacy.

“You did it.” Rafael’s praise makes my heart want to burst. Seriously? We’re swooning over a simple “you did it”?

“Don’t worry, Ellie. We don’t have to do a helicopter or plane ride. We can stay here in Oahu instead.” Nico covers my hand with his. If this little guy didn’t already own a big part of my heart, I would have gladly given it up for him in this moment because this trip is supposed to be about him and everything he wants. I’m not going to let my fear of planes get in the way of that and him creating special visual memories while he can still enjoy it.

I can like Rafael as a person, but it can never go further than that because of the little guy who clings to my legs like another appendage. For him, I’m willing to do just about anything, including pushing his father away for the sake of keeping my job as his nanny. Because I have a feeling that if I let someone like Rafael get close, I wouldn’t be able to stop myself from wanting the same in return. From wanting more. And that will never happen, so I need to get my confusing feelings under control and remember who is important here. Nicolas Lopez.

I become a man fighting against the clock, trying to take in as many details as possible before she notices me staring at her like she is mine.

There it is. That deep feeling of want that I’ve spent the last eight months denying. Ignoring my attraction toward her wasn’t difficult, especially when jealousy was the dominant emotion I felt, but now, with that stripped away, I’m left with something far worse. Desire.

For a fleeting second, he made me wish I had thought of the idea first.

I wanted it to be true. I wanted her to choose me too.

I thought it would be a good idea to finally use the hot tub after Nico fell asleep, only to find out it was already occupied by his nanny.

Ellie feels good in my arms. She feels right. Like she was made to perfectly fit there, which makes it impossible to let her go.

Watching the two of them finally getting along warms my heart, and I refuse to be the reason they cut today’s special activity short, regardless of feeling shitty.

although she spares me a few glances out of the corner of her eye when she thinks I’m not paying attention. Despite being focused on the road, my skin always tingles with awareness whenever she does that.

but the power she has over my body and mind is concerning.

“To be honest, I don’t know how to talk about everything.”

“If I met the right person, I might end up changing my mind.” The problem is that Ellie may be the right person, but that won’t change the fact that I’m all wrong for her. Even though I’m wishing that wasn’t the case.

While I’m not winning any Father of the Year awards, Nico makes me feel like I’m in the running again.

You don’t need ATVs or a beach to make Nico happy. You just need to be you.

The swift stroke reveals skin that has been hidden for two years.

Every swipe of the blade leads me closer to letting go of the old me. The broken me. The me that spent the last two years in a haze, hardly living at all. I couldn’t be happier about the change. I want to look better because I care. Because I want to look past the person I was and accept the man that I can be. Correction: the man I want to be.

“It’s…nice,” I manage to say with an even voice. He rubs at his cheek. “Just nice?” “Are you fishing for compliments again?” “Only because you’re starting to give me a complex.” “Would you rather I say you’re hot?” “See? Was that so hard to admit?” I roll my eyes with a smile. “Anyone in town could tell you that.” His eyes lock on to mine. “I don’t care about anyone else’s opinion.”

“He was worried about you. I…uh…was too. I texted you to check in, but you didn’t answer.”