A Water Nymph for The Billionaire

Six

Mat had a grin on his face as he walked away; he knew she had hated the way he had said goodbye before walking away and he could not explain why he took so much more pleasure out of teasing her than he usually did.

Perhaps it was because she seemed to anger so easily and he did like the way her eyes flashed when she was angry, though the blush was quite comely when it graced her face. But the golden shards in her green eyes seemed to flash like lightning if she was annoyed and he could not resist seeing the sparks whenever he met her.

After he had met her at the party and had realized who she was, he was more than intrigued as he had realized that his interest was closer to home than he could have ever guessed. And he had started to formulate a plan to draw her in, even with her obvious decision to avoid him.

He was sure his plan was fool proof since he really did want to get to know her a little more after what she had unintentionally shown him down at the river. And the fact that she had blushed and seemed greatly embarrassed by what he had seen, proved that she was not free with her gifts, which intrigued him even more.

Mat was rather impatient for her to show up at his place as he drove home. He had been bored before he’d met her, up until she had shown him a great deal more than he had expected to find at the river. Clearly she was more than impulsive and that would make life interesting around her.

He could not focus on much when he came home, he paced the floor impatiently. Then he started to worry that she would not show up. He had just started to think she would not do what he asked when he heard a car approaching his house and he glanced out the window. He noticed her just getting out of her truck and he smiled with pleasure at the expression on her face. And he added curious to the list of words describing her.

***

Kara was annoyed when she found herself turning up the road to his ranch. Well, she had to find out what gave him such pleasure to show her since he could not be trusted; she justified it to herself as she drove up the road. Of course curiosity was her other downfall, if she had to admit it. Despite her anger at the man, she had to admit that he seemed to do a good job of running his ranch. It was a spectacular place and something to be proud of.

Grudgingly, she also noticed that even on the outside of the house he had paid much attention to detail. This really was a spectacular place and the meticulously laid out fields, garden and outbuildings spoke of endless attention and love bestowed on the earth. It was what she ultimately wanted for her own ranch now; she wanted her granddad to be proud of what she had done to the ranch.

The road seemed too short and Kara sighed while she switched off the jeep and sat in the seat for a few moments to be sure she had her emotions under control. He would not get the pleasure of seeing her angry again! She had to keep her emotions under control this time. Finally she took a deep breath and pulled the key out of the ignition before she got out and shoved it into her jeans’ back pocket.

Steeling herself, she walked onto the porch and knocked on his front door. It was not long before he opened the door with a welcoming smile. “I was worried you wouldn’t come.” He admitted with a crooked smile and stepped back to allow her to enter. “Coffee?” He asked as if she was a guest who came there often.

Kara gave him a searching look and then declined courteously as she hesitantly stepped inside his house. She did not want to spend more time in his presence than she needed to and she found his confession suspicious. The sooner she could get away the better. The effect he had on her was unnerving her, to say the least. He had never been rude aside from staring at her when she had been naked, yet she could feel the irritation rising in her when she looked into his handsome face.

“Have a seat. I have something to ask you, please.” He invited with a friendly smile as he indicated the brown, manly chair that formed one of three in the living room, together with a reddish three-seater couch.

Obediently, Kara took a seat and stared at him with a bored expression stuck on her face, waiting for him to continue. He sat down calmly in his seat and took his time to gracefully roll a cigarette and light it before he met her gaze and looked at her thoughtfully. He took another drag from the perfectly made cigarette and blew it out calmly as if deep in thought.

Vaguely, Kara thought that this was the first time she saw him smoke; the odor was also rather pleasant though she could not place the flavor at this point. Must be that he smokes for pleasure on the odd occasion; she dismissed the thought again. She was getting uncomfortable under his close scrutiny and she could feel a blush rise to her cheeks. What was he staring at?

As if he had made a decision he grinned, once again revealing even white teeth. “I bet you’re wondering why I invited you here.” He said conversationally.

“Look, Mr. Connor. Say what you have to say and get it over with, I have things that need my attention at the ranch.” She stated coolly.

Calmly, he raised an eyebrow and stared at her for a moment longer. “Ok. Well, I was hoping you would do me a favor. But I’m starting to wonder if I’m barking up the wrong tree…”

It was Kara’s turn to look at him with a raised eyebrow. As much as she wanted to be out of his company as soon as possible, she really was curious about him. What favor could he possibly think to ask of her? They sat there staring squarely at each other for a few minutes and then he smiled as if he had seen something in her eyes that he found entertaining or an answer to his unasked question and then spoke. “I have a social engagement that I have to attend and I find myself without a date. I was wondering if you’d be interested.”

Kara stared at him in shock. Was he at all ignorant of her distaste of him? Had she not made it completely obvious for all to see? Or did he find her anger amusing, like she had started to think? “Well, Mr. Connor - “

“Matthew.” He interrupted.

“Ok, Matthew, then.” She snapped impatiently. “What makes you think that I would willingly spend any amount of time in your company?”

A crooked smile played at the corner of his mouth as he watched her reaction, then he calmly turned his attention to the empty wall above the fireplace and c****d his head to one side. “I have to admit that that wall needs something to catch the eye. It’s bare and uninteresting when you walk in the front door. Let me show you what I’ve been thinking of hanging there.” He stated calmly before he stood, leaving the half-smoked cigarette abandoned and all but forgotten in an ashtray that stood conveniently close, which made her think it could be his usual chair since she saw no other ashtrays in the room after a quick scan of her surroundings.

Confused, she followed his lead. Did this man have a short attention span or did he normally jump around in conversation like that? But she followed him as he led the way into a part of the house she had not seen before. With a flourish he opened the door and allowed her to go first.

With interest she glanced around the room and realized it was some kind of workroom. Then she started to notice paintings standing and hanging against the walls and she saw an easel and table with paintbrushes and tubes lying around in mad disarray. On the easel was a painting that seemed all but finished and she curiously walked closer and then stopped in open surprise.