Second Chance with the Billionaire
It’s a steamy reunion between a single mom and the billionaire who got away, from USA TODAY bestselling author Janice Maynard.Former ski champion Conor Kavanagh enjoys a challenge. And he’s encountered no challenge more arousing than Ellie Porter. Once, she broke his heart. Now that she’s back in town? He can’t seem to stay away….But Ellie has changed. Widowed, with a baby, she has responsibilities—and secrets—weighing her down. Still, his desire for her is undeniable. Surely, he can have her without giving up his heart—or his daredevil ways? He’s willing to risk it all to find out….
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He released her and stepped back, breathing harshly. âI told you this wasnât going to happen.â
Ellie crossed her arms beneath her breasts, lifting them into mouthwatering prominence, though he was sure she didnât realize it. âYouâre not the boss of me, Conor. We arenât kids. And I donât have to take orders from you. Iâve been running my own life just fine.â
âQuit flirting with me,â he demanded, already undressing her in his head. Two things held him back. First, the memory of her dead husband. A year and a half wasnât long enough to work through that kind of grief. And second, the memory of how a younger Ellie had judged him and found him wanting.
And still, it was damned hard to resist her.
* * *
Second Chance with the Billionaire is part of the Kavanaghs of Silver Glen series: In the mountains of North Carolina, one family discovers that wealth means nothing without love
JANICE MAYNARD is a USA TODAY bestselling author who lives in beautiful east Tennessee with her husband. She holds a BA from Emory and Henry College and an MA from East Tennessee State University. In 2002 Janice left a fifteen-year career as an elementary school teacher to pursue writing full-time. Now her first love is creating sexy, character-driven, contemporary romance stories.
Janice loves to travel and enjoys using those experiences as settings for books. Hearing from readers is one of the best perks of the job! Visit her website, www.janicemaynard.com, and follow her on Facebook and Twitter.
For all of you who remember the sweet rush of young love ⦠sometimes it lasts forever.
Contents
Conor Kavanagh had been antsy ever since he heard Ellie Porter was back in town. In spite of the many celebrities and moguls who vacationed here, Silver Glen, North Carolina, wasnât all that big a place. Chances were heâd bump into her sooner or later.
The notion gave him goose bumps. But not the good kind. Ellie Porter was part of his past. A fantasy. A regret. A deep hurt heâd buried beneath layers of indifference. He didnât need the ghost of girlfriends past to tell him heâd messed up.
Hell, heâd made more mistakes in his almost-thirty years than a lot of people made in a lifetime. But he liked to think heâd learned from them. Besides, Ellie wasnât an old girlfriend. At least not in reality. Heâd kissed her once, but that was it.
In the privacy of his imagination, however, heâd done a lot more. Ellie had featured in his adolescent fantasies on a nightly basis. Heâd been head over heels, hormone driven, wildly in lust with her. Everything about her reduced him to shivering need.
The smell of her hair. The dimple in her cheek when she smiled. The way her breasts filled out a sweater. Even the tiny gap between her two front teeth had charmed him. He would have given his familyâs entire fortune for the chance to spend one night with her. To lose himself in her soft, beautiful body and show her how much he cared.
But Ellie Porter and her twin brother, Kirby, had been his two best friends in the whole wide world. So Conor had kept his daydreams to himself, and never once had he let on to Kirby that he thought of Ellie as far more than a pal, even after heâd finally kissed his buddyâs sister.
Sheâd been popular in high school. A long list of guys had panted after her. Probably even entertained the same fantasies that kept Conor awake and hard at night. Each time she went out with a new date, Conor suffered. He wanted to be the one to hold doors for her and put an arm around her in the movie theater and walk her home on warm, scented summer nights.
But though he and Ellie had shared an undefinable something that went beyond mere friendship, Ellie had disapproved of Conorâs risk-taking. Her rejection of an integral part of his personality had ended anything romantic almost before it began.
Heâd often wondered what might have happened if the Porters had stayed in Silver Glen. Would Conor ever have persuaded Ellie to give him another chance? It was a question with no answer. And now they had both moved on. Ellie was married. Conor was still the guy who pitted himself against danger to prove he was alive.
Loud laughter at the table behind him startled him out of his reverie. The Silver Dollar Saloon was a rowdy place on the weekends. His brother Dylan owned the upscale honky-tonk. It wasnât unusual to see the second-born Kavanagh behind the bar dispensing drinks and advice and jokes along with the pretzels and booze.
Dylan was an extrovert and a people person. Heâd settled down a lot since marrying Mia and adopting little Cora. You might even call him a family man. But he still loved the Silver Dollar.
Conor couldnât blame him. It was the kind of place where everybody knew your name. Locals and tourists alike were drawn to its atmosphere of camaraderie and fun. The music was good, the service above par and the burgers legendary.
