The billionaires fortuna.., p.1
The Billionaire's Fortunate Blizzard, page 1
THE BILLIONAIRE’S FORTUNATE BLIZZARD
PREQUEL TO THE BILLIONAIRE’S SECRET MARRIAGE
LIMITLESS SWEET BILLIONAIRE ROMANCE
BOOK SEVEN
TAMIE DEAREN
Copyright © 2022 by Tamie Dearen
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.
CONTENTS
Limitless Sweet Billionaire Romance Series
Introduction
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Epilogue
Limitless Sweet Billionaire Romance Series
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Books by Tamie Dearen
Limitless Sweet Billionaire Romance Series
Chronological Listing
Book 7 - The Billionaire's Fortunate Blizzard (Liam and Carly)
Book 1 - The Billionaire's Secret Marriage (Bran and Steph)
Book 2 - The Billionaire's Reckless Marriage (Finn and Laurie)
Book 3 - The Billionaire's Temporary Marriage (Cole and Brooke)
Book 5 - The Billionaire's Bodyguard (Mack and Mariah)
Book 4 - The Billionaire's Alternate Marriage (Jarrett and Rylie)
Book 6 - The Billionaire's Practice Kiss (Logan and Ellery)
To my daughters, who are so amazing that I sometimes wonder where they came from
A blizzard strands them together, but her secrets drive them apart.
When Carly gets on the plane, she doesn’t expect her seatmate to be a sizzling hottie.
They lock eyes, and she recognizes him. Liam Bennett... the guy she’s had a crush on for the last 16 years! Thankfully, he doesn't recognize her. Because he would despise her if he knew who she was.
A freak blizzard leaves Carly at the airpot without a hotel room. She has nowhere to turn but Liam. Stranded together at his friend’s house, Carly struggles to keep her identity a secret.
Liam is drawn to Carly like no other woman. She doesn't treat him like he has a disability. With her, Liam feels whole again. But she's hiding something.
He knows he and Carly could be great together, if only she would open up to him. He can't help hoping, especially after she lets him kiss her. The passion she shows him couldn't be fake. Could it?
Every minute they spend together, Carly falls even harder for Liam. But she's partially to blame for ruining his life. She refuses to cause him even more pain.
Dear Reader:
If you are already a fan of the Limitless Billionaires, I know you’ll love this novella that takes place two years before Bran and Stephanie’s story in The Billionaire’s Secret Marriage.
If you’ve never read any of the Limitless Sweet Billionaire Romance series, you’re in for a treat! Meet swoon-worthy heroes like none you’ve ever seen before. Laugh, cry, and fall in love with these inspiring men who refuse to accept limits in life or in love!
Enjoy Liam and Carly’s story!
Blessings!
Tamie
CHAPTER 1
CARLY
Carly tried not to stare as she slid into her assigned seat. After all, her mom had taught her manners before she passed away. But a quick glance told her the man sitting beside her in seat 2A was hot. She could only see his profile because he was typing madly on his computer, but she’d definitely had way worse seatmates on previous flights. Maybe this was an extra benefit of sitting in first class.
If so, it was worth the extra cost.
Her last flight she’d been wedged between a teenage boy whose arms and legs intruded into her space, and a woman who gave her a five-hour sales talk on subscribing to her perfume-of-the-month club, a hard sell since the sickeningly sweet aroma permeating from her almost drove Carly to use her barf bag.
“Ma’am?” The flight attendant, a willowy blonde, bent toward Carly. “Can I get you a pre-flight drink?”
She wasn’t thirsty, but she didn’t want to waste one of her first-class perks. “I’ll have a ginger ale, please.”
“Sir, would you like a drink?” The blonde added a sultry growl to her voice, obviously experiencing the same allure Carly did.
“No, thanks,” he murmured, his fingers moving rapidly across the keys.
Pursing her lips, the flight attendant moved on, but Carly suspected she hadn’t given up on her pursuit.
While 2A was occupied with his computer, Carly took a moment to appreciate his broad shoulders, which were situated a good six inches above hers. The guy was built. Definitely not like any of the engineering nerds she’d ever interacted with. And he looked vaguely familiar. He could be a professional athlete or even a movie star, and she would never know. She seldom came out of her lab at the medical center.
His jawline would’ve been perfect for one of those razor-blade commercials, with the uber-masculine guys who make women swoon when they rub their freshly shaven faces. The advertisers must figure wives will buy those blades, hoping a shave will transform their husbands into sexy hunks.
She hadn’t seen his eyes yet, but she had a feeling they would be smoldering. This guy was so hot, just looking at him heated her blood. On the other hand, she would probably think that about any red-blooded male right now, since her only relationship in the past four years had been with Max.
And the fact that I just thought of my electron microscope as a guy proves I need this break!
Carly ran her fingers from her forehead down to her temple then gave a quick tug on her hair. That’s how she thought of it—as her hair—even though it was actually a wig. And sitting beside the world’s hottest guy—single, from the looks of his empty ring finger—she wanted to be certain everything was in place. He would never suspect that she’d lost all her real hair during her twenties as a result of having alopecia.
Carly now wore wigs in a variety of styles and colors, making no effort to conceal the fact of her hair loss from the people she interacted with every day. Hand tied, with a lace front that made the edge disappear, the wigs were undetectable, even closeup, and so secure she could put her hair in a ponytail if she wanted. But wigs like that didn’t come cheap. The five she owned averaged about $2500 each. She couldn’t wait until she was out of grad school and making enough money to add to her collection.
As the plane taxied toward the runway, the flight attendant called for attention. “If everyone will watch me, I’ll show you exactly how to operate a seatbelt, on the off chance that none of you have ever ridden in a car.”
Everyone chuckled, except her seatmate, who furrowed his brows and typed even faster. Had he missed it or was he a grouch?
My luck, he’ll turn out to be Mr. Grumpy Pants.
Carly was glad she’d chosen her red bob, the one that made her the spitting image of pop star Faye Fortune. It couldn’t hurt to look like the famous singer when she was attempting to catch the attention of Mr. I’m-Hot-But-Busy-Typing. Of course, she’d brought her tame brunette wig for when she was speaking. She preferred that any attention from her presentation would be directed at her research, rather than her looks. But she would have three whole days to herself before the conference even started. She always preferred to be by herself this time of year. And the chance to see fall colors for the first time in her life was an added bonus.
Though currently, the scenery is better from where I’m sitting.
“Here you are, ma’am.” The flight attendant, whose name tag identified her as Layla, delivered a can of ginger ale, along with ice, in a real glass. “Has anyone ever told you that you look like—”
“Faye Fortune?” Carly smiled. “Sure. I’ve even posed for selfies before.”
“Oh! If you don’t mind posing, that would be fun.” Layla pointed to another attendant. “Simon would love it, too.”
“No problem.”
Layla turned her attention to Hot Guy, and her cheeks flushed. Her hands smoothed the front of her uniform. “I hate to bother you, sir, but you’ll need to put away your laptop until we’re in the air.”
“I will.” He nodded and typed even faster. “Almost finished.”
The attendant didn’t move, probably gawking at the masculine scruff along his broad jaw the same way Carly was. “I’m sorry, sir, but...”
“Just twenty more seconds?” He graced her with the briefest of glances, but it was enough to heighten her blush.
“Okay.” She leaned over me and lowered her voice. “But you’ll have to make it up to me.”
Was she outright flirting now? Didn’t she realize this guy wasn’t the type to respond to such brazen tactics?
“You can count on it.” He must’ve glanced at her name tag. “Layla.”
Shameless flirtation worked! Maybe I should try it.
Fanning herself, the flight attendant left. Carly felt the same heat and reached to open her overhead vent.
She couldn
Then he ripped off his tight pullover, leaving behind an even tighter short-sleeved T-shirt stretched over the bulging muscles in his arms. This resulted in another spike in her internal temperature. Since he still wasn’t looking, she pulled the neck of her shirt out to let some air in. She might’ve cooled off more if she’d simply quit ogling him, but that wasn’t likely to happen.
He must’ve felt her gaze, because he spoke to her. “Hard to believe it’ll be in the twenties when we land in Chicago, considering how hot it is here in Houston.”
He stretched his arm above him to adjust his air vent, providing a delightful view of his well-formed biceps. Carly found herself grateful for the crazy heatwave that gave him the incentive to strip off his outer layer.
“I’ve never seen it get this hot here in mid-October.” Considering the current state of her brain, she was pleased to have put together a relatively intelligent sentence.
The engines roared and surged forward, pressing her against the seat back as the plane accelerated then lifted into the air.
He folded the pullover in his lap. “Are you going to Chicago for business or pleasure?”
For the first time, he turned his face to look directly at her, and her heart stopped beating.
It’s Liam Bennett! No, it can’t be!
She forced her mouth closed and attempted to swallow, impossible with her mouth full of cotton balls.
“Both.” Her word came out like a wheeze.
Averting her face, her mind raced. It couldn’t really be Liam, could it? He’d been sixteen the last time she’d seen him, a junior at Highland Park High School in Dallas. She wouldn’t recognize him after all this time, would she? But what if it was him? She couldn’t let him figure out who she was.
“Are you nervous about flying?” He nodded to her hands, the knuckles white where she gripped the armrests.
She loosened her fingers, her eyes darting to his and back. “No... I mean, yes... I mean, just the takeoff.”
Drat! I should’ve said I was nervous about the entire flight. It would’ve given me an excuse to sit here with my hands over my face.
She ducked her chin but stole a quick peek when he didn’t appear to be watching. On second glance, the man didn’t look that much like the Liam she remembered.
She grabbed the airline magazine from the seat pocket in front of her and flipped through it, keeping her face turned away. But then she felt the heat of his gaze.
“You remind me of someone,” he said. “You look so familiar.”
“It must be Faye Fortune. Everyone tells me I look like her.”
His eyes narrowed as he focused on her face. She was sweating, and it had nothing to do with the temperature.
“I’m not really a fan of hers, but you do look a lot alike. That must be who I’m thinking of.”
“I’ve never been to Chicago,” she babbled, her nerves making a weird catch in her voice. “I’m planning to tour the countryside a bit and see the fall foliage for a few days. After that, I have a conference.”
Then she made a mistake. She was aiming for a brief glimpse, but their gazes locked.
His eyes are green! Like Liam’s!
Her stomach roiled like the time she’d eaten three bags of Cheetos while studying for a final.
Please, don’t let it be him.
She jerked her eyes away, leafing through the magazine again.
“Your magazine is... uh...” His finger pointed to her lap. “It’s upside down.”
“I know that.” She jutted her chin out and flipped another page, wondering if there was a limit to how much blood your body could pump into your face. “I’ve been practicing reading upside down.”
“Why?”
She could hear the smirk in his voice, but she refused to back down.
“I might apply to work for the CIA. I want to include upside-down reading as one of my skills.”
“I see.” He made a coughing sound that was suspiciously similar to a laugh.
If she didn’t redirect the conversation soon, the heat radiating off her body would fry him to a crisp.
“What are you doing in Chicago?” she asked.
“I’m going to a conference, too. Maybe the same one as you.”
“The Biomedical Engineering Convention?” Her gaze strayed to his face again, and this time his dimples came out. They were Liam’s dimples. No doubt. They hadn’t changed since she’d memorized them sixteen years ago by staring at his high school yearbook picture for hours on end.
He looks exactly like Liam, but how can that be? Liam is paralyzed below the waist. But the guy sitting beside me now looks like an athlete. Could his spine have regenerated?
“Yes, the Biomed Convention.”
“You’re in the biomedical field?” She tried to catch a surreptitious look at his legs, but there wasn’t much to see. He had on jeans, and his pullover was still covering his lap. She had no way of detecting whether his legs functioned. But she was increasingly certain this man was Liam Bennett, the guy she’d had a crush on since her freshman year of high school.
The man who hates my guts.
“I own a company that makes advanced prosthetics.”
She was shocked to think of Liam owning a business, a successful one that afforded him the luxury of flying first class. Her own seat was thanks to her doctoral advisor, who’d surprised her with the upgrade. Her professor had been quite pleased when her research had garnered national attention and snagged them an invitation to speak at the conference.
“What’s your company’s name?” She stuck her elbow on the seat rest between them and propped her chin, still using her hand to shield her face. She had to keep her identity a secret for the next four hours.
“It’s called Advanced Engineering Prosthetics; AEP for short. We have a partnership with Limitless.”
“Limitless? They funded the research for my doctoral program!”
She was so excited she forgot to keep her face hidden. His head angled to one side. “Are you sure we haven’t met before?”
“I’m sure we haven’t. I’d never forget meeting a guy like you...” She let her words die, wishing she could do the same.
“A guy like me? What do you mean, exactly?” A suspicious furrow formed between his brows.
Her pulse fluttered like a bird. No, like a bird with a gun to its head. And a cat sitting in front of it, licking its lips.
“I mean, you’re very memorable.” She couldn’t think with her pulse pounding inside her head. “Because you have very impressive... uhm...”
She’d blabbered herself into a dead end. Anything she said to complete the sentence would get her into trouble. She certainly couldn’t mention how huge his muscles were. And she didn’t dare mention him having paraplegia, since she only knew that fact through personal knowledge of the accident.
A brilliant response came to her in the nick of time. “Very impressive fingers.”
“My fingers are impressive?”
Okay, maybe it wasn’t so brilliant.
“Absolutely. I’ve never seen anyone whose fingers move as fast as yours do. And so precisely! When you were typing that email with the flight attendant breathing down your neck, that was amazing.” She motioned with her hands. “Zippidy, zippidy, zippidy. Wish I could do that. I might get my thesis finished early.”
