The Unexpected Gift: A Billionaire Brother’s Best Friend Christmas Romance Read online

  I wanted the element of surprise on my side and judging by the expression on his face, I had it.

  “Eve! What are you doing here!” he demanded, his face flushed with confusion. “Are you all right?”

  I nodded quickly, my green eyes automatically darting back toward the glass office.

  Nick, I thought, my attention split between my concerned brother and the curious eyes of his best friend.

  It had been a long while since I had laid eyes on Nick, my mind barely reconciling that the broad-shouldered, blue-eyed god was the same boy who I had met while visiting Matt in college when I was in high school.

  Our eyes seemed to lock despite the space between us and I barely heard Matt as he fired off a succession of questions.

  “Eva! Are you listening to me?” my brother finally yelled, my reverie shaken. Reluctantly, I turned back to him.

  “Hmm?” I asked, a slightly hazy feeling overcoming me as if I was in a trance.

  “I asked you what you’re doing here! When did you get back from your missionary work?”

  “I just got in from the airport,” I told him. “I came directly here. I can’t believe this is all yours, Matty. Wow, you’ve done well for yourself!”

  “Business is good but not as good as it could be,” he muttered, and I eyed him, hearing something in his tone I couldn’t quite identify.

  “Well I think your hard work has shone through, Matty,” I said encouragingly. “Look at this place!”

  Suddenly Matt looked at me strangely.

  “What are you really doing here, Eva? I haven’t seen you in almost a decade and suddenly you appear unannounced…”

  “A sister can’t surprise her brother?” I asked weakly, but I hated that he could see right through me so easily. I shouldn’t have been surprised; even though we were not close, he knew my expressions and mannerisms as brothers tended to do.

  “Well whatever it is can wait until tomorrow. We’re on a deadline here and I don’t have time to slow down. George!”

  Matt yelled out to the young man standing with Nick.

  Immediately, the man jumped to attention but to my relief, Nick sauntered out after him.

  “Hello, Eve,” Nick said warmly. “I hardly recognized you.”

  I smiled and lowered my eyes, blushing slightly.

  How long had it been since any man had paid such close attention to me? The ones I encountered day to day saw me as a woman of God, not one to be studied with blazing blue eyes and a half-smile on his lips.

  I felt a warmth creep up my neck and into my cheeks.

  “George, take my sister to my condo,” Matthew interrupted. “Make sure she has everything she needs.”

  The intern began to nod but to my surprise, Nick interjected.

  “I’ll take her,” he volunteered. I saw Matthew’s eyes narrow instantly.

  “Uh no,” he said. “We have work to do. George is perfectly capable of doing it.”

  “No,” Nick shot back, his grin not faltering. “I told George he could go home. I can easily take Eva home and be back.”

  I watched with an unsettling fascination as my brother and his business partner seemed to fall into a silent battle of the wills, neither willing to look away.

  “Go on, George,” Nick continued. “See you in the morning.”

  Matthew’s face turned dark and he spun on his heel.

  “You better be back fast,” my brother grumbled. “I am not working alone tonight.”

  Nick glanced at me, his smile widening, and I couldn’t help but grin back at him as if his happiness was infectious.

  “That depends on Eve,” Nick called out. “If she ends up being high maintenance…”

  I swallowed a giggle, knowing that it would only annoy Matthew if he thought we were mocking him together.

  My brother returned, tossing his condo keys at Nick.

  “I mean it, Nick. Don’t leave me here alone holding the bag.”

  “Have I ever?” Nick replied. “Come on, Eva. Your chariot awaits.”

  I cast Matthew a final look, noting the expression of wariness on his face but he said nothing as his mouth pursed together. He watched us disappear toward the elevators.

  You’ve got nothing to worry about, Matt, I told him silently. I’m practically a nun, remember?

  Yet as the elevator doors closed, leaving Nick and I in the lift alone together, I suddenly realized that the thoughts going through my mind were anything but holy.

  3

  Nick

  I had never been good at avoiding temptation. I suppose it was what enabled me to do so well in business; I had no problems taking risks.

  Yet even I knew that some things are sacred, like my best friend’s nun sister.

  In all fairness, Eva was not yet a nun having not taken her vows before God but that didn’t make my feelings for her any less taboo.

  I couldn’t imagine what God or Matthew would have to say about the thoughts coursing through my mind as I caught glimpses of her porcelain skin and wide, innocent eyes.

  Bringing her to Matthew’s condo that night, I could sense something between us, but I wondered if those long hours at the office were messing with my common sense.

  Or maybe I was just looking for a distraction.

  Judging by the way Eva looked at me, I could see I was not alone in my attraction.

  “What brings you back to Seattle?” I asked as we pulled up to the visitor parking at Matthew’s luxurious apartment complex. “I heard you were working with the poor in Moscow.”

  Eva cast me a shy, sidelong look.

  “I am surprised you remembered that,” she replied as we exited the car. “It isn’t exactly memorable work.”

  “I would imagine it’s thankless work,” I replied.

  She paused, cocking her head to look at me almost strangely.

  “It’s devastating,” she said quietly. “Children are starving in an almost forgotten part of the world and there is no money to sustain the supplies they need.”

  I felt an odd catch in my heart, maybe because of the way a light rain was falling, landing like diamond droplets in her stunning blonde crown or perhaps it was the naked plaintiveness of her voice.

  “Come on,” I told her, offering my arm as we made our way toward the entrance. “You’re going to get soaked.”

  It wasn’t true, but I felt the need to break the steady gaze between us as my pulse escalated.

  Eva didn’t argue, and she accepted my forearm and we made our way inside the lobby, toward the gleaming elevator banks.

  I nodded at the concierge who barely glanced up from his tablet long enough to realize we didn’t belong in the building.

  It didn’t matter as I had Matthew’s fob, but it was nice to see that security was top-notch in the ridiculously priced complex.

  I used the key to allow us up to the penthouse level before turning back to Eva again.

  “Are you home for good?” I asked, cringing inwardly at the clear hopefulness in my tone.

  Eva sighed softly.

  “No,” she answered slowly. “I have come here on another kind of mission.”

  I waited for her to finish her thought, a stab of disappointment piercing me, but she did not continue.

  “Anything I can help with?” I asked casually as the lift stopped. The doors opened, and we stood in the entranceway of Matthew’s five thousand square foot unit.

  A pained expression crossed over Eva’s face and I was confused.

  “What’s the matter?” I asked as she tentatively stepped onto the calamander wood floors. “Not really your taste?”

  She glanced back at me and I could see her emerald eyes darkening.

  “It’s such a waste of money,” she whispered. “He could live with a fraction of this and donate to good causes.”

  I laughed aloud without thinking, trying to envision Matthew trying to survive on anything less than extravagant.

  Eva did not seem to share my amusement.

&nb
sp; “Do you know that the child poverty rate in Russia is 63%?” she asked with more harshness than I had heard from her mouth.

  I was taken aback by the number.

  “What?” I gasped. “That high?”

  Her face softened slightly as she dropped her simple burlap bag onto the floor and looked around.

  “Can you imagine what the money my brother spent on this condo would do for some starving children?”

  I swallowed, studying the passion in her face.

  “Eva, is that why you’ve come here?” I asked quietly, my eyes widening with understanding. “You’ve come to ask Matthew for money?”

  She nodded slowly, turning her luminous eyes on me imploringly.

  “He’s my best hope right now,” she murmured. “It has become dire in Moscow and we can’t walk away from the work we’re doing, Nick.”

  She sighed heavily as if reading something she did not like in my expression, lowering her gaze.

  “You don’t think he’ll help.”

  Before I could consider what I was doing, my thumb was on the delicate line of her chin, propping her face upward so our irises were locked again.

  “You won’t know unless you ask,” I replied tactfully but I didn’t have high hopes for her finding a way out of her plight with Matthew’s help.

  Eva opened her mouth to answer, a look of desolation crossing her lovely face.

  “I shouldn’t have come here,” she murmured. “I think I knew in my heart that he would not agree to donate.”

  I drew my face closer to hers, our eyes causing a wave of electricity and I lowered my lips, unable to resist the overpowering urge which had been growing from the second I had laid eyes upon her outside my office door.

  Half expecting her to resist, I placed my palms on the curve of her shoulders, my lower lip embracing her top one.

  To my relief, she eagerly returned the kiss, her hands cupping my face to bring me closer.

  When my tongue dared to touch hers, she gasped suddenly, pulling away.

  Her green eyes were wide with surprise.

  “I’m sorry,” we muttered in unison but neither of us truly felt contrition.

  We had opened a door that night in the foyer of Matthew’s condo, one which could not be closed, despite the inevitable consequences.

  Eva ducked her head downward, her cheeks turning pink in the dim light of the condo.

  “You should go,” she whispered but even then I knew I was going nowhere; not without her.

  4

  Eva

  I didn’t get a chance to speak with my brother alone and as Christmas fast approached, I realized that he was purposely avoiding me.

  Whether he could guess why I had come home or was genuinely too busy, I was alone in the condo most of the next two weeks.

  I emailed the sisters in Moscow who were eager to know about my progress, but I had nothing to report.

  Nothing but the fact that I was falling in love with Nick and I was sure they didn’t want to hear about that.

  While Matthew avoided me, Nick went out of his way to visit me. He set me up with a cell phone and gave me a company credit card to buy whatever I needed while I was in Seattle.

  I was reluctant to spend, of course. How long had it been since I had money at my disposal after all? I wouldn’t know where to start.

  I did manage to purchase a few new outfits and a small bottle or perfume for those moments when Nick was close enough to make my skin explode in goosebumps.

  We dared to steal kisses when he picked me up for dinner and hold hands as we walked through the damp Seattle streets.

  Two days before Christmas, Nick texted me from the lobby.

  the message read.

  I felt the familiar flutter in my heart and ran down to meet with him after double checking myself in the mirror.

  My complexion seemed rosier somehow, my skin not as pale as if life had sprung into my cheeks.

  There was an unmistakable sparkle in my eyes and I knew that it had to do with Nick. I had never had so much attention lavished upon me in my life and I admit, it felt incredible, especially since I knew it wouldn’t last.

  How could it? Whether Matthew helped me or not, I would be returning to Moscow soon.

  The idea made my stomach hurt but the thought of those hungry and cold children made my soul ache more.

  I will try to return often, I reasoned with myself, but I knew it wouldn’t happen. It had been seven years since my last visit.

  I would be an old lady before my next one.

  And Nick would have moved on to someone else, someone worldly and refined.

  I pushed the thought of Nick with another woman from my mind. It was beyond my scope of control, no matter how badly I wanted to keep the idea of Nick to myself.

  “Hi!” I said brightly as I joined him in the lobby. It seemed that every time I saw him, my heart beat just a little bit faster.

  I was sure that one day I would simply have a heart attack if I stuck around much longer.

  I must go back to Europe for my own health, I thought wryly.

  He smiled appreciatively at me, his blue eyes brightening and as always, I found myself staring at his lips, yearning for a kiss.

  I would be lying if I didn’t admit to the blasphemous thoughts I had night after night, my hand slipping beneath my nightgown as I closed my eyes to imagine his mouth travelling across my stomach and toward my –

  “Are you okay?” he asked, shattering my sensuous thoughts. “You look a little warm.”

  Embarrassed, I shook my head.

  “No,” I said quickly. “I’m fine.”

  He grinned, offering me his arm as always and led me toward the circle drive where he had parked his Mercedes.

  “I have a surprise for you,” he told me, and I peered at him speculatively.

  “What kind of surprise?” I asked.

  He chuckled.

  “It wouldn’t be a surprise if I told you, now would it?” he replied, opening the passenger door for me.

  I didn’t care about any surprises; I was happy relishing in the delight of his company.

  “Doesn’t Matthew wonder where you keep disappearing to?” I asked. Instantly, I regretted the question as Nick’s brow furrowed.

  “Matthew has other things on his mind,” he replied gruffly as he steered the car onto University Street.

  My eyes widened as I realized we were approaching a hotel.

  Nick seemed to detect my uneasiness and he leaned over to pat my hand.

  “I have lunch reservations at The Georgian,” he told me. “The restaurant at the Fairmont Olympic.”

  I exhaled quietly but I was surprised to find I was disappointed.

  What would I do if he had gotten us a room? I wondered. My thoughts immediately went back to the nights I had spent alone, caressing myself.

  I licked my lips nervously, feeling a slight dampness between my legs. I wondered if Nick could read my thoughts.

  A part of me hoped so.

  As we parked, Nick turned to me, smiling softly.

  “I have never met a woman like you, Eva,” he said. “You are beautiful inside and out.”

  I blushed, unsure of how to respond but he didn’t let me turn away this time.

  His mouth met mine and he sighed as we parted.

  We had never done more than kiss despite my inherent yearning to press myself against him, feeling every hard curve of his form against me.

  “I would never ask you to stay here for me,” he continued, his face alight with emotion. “I know what you’re doing is a much greater calling than anything I have ever felt, despite the overwhelming desire I have for you.”

  “Nick…”

  “Shh, let me finish,” he interjected. “You are incredible, Eva and I think you have come to me now for a reason.”

  I waited expectantly, watching as he pulled an envelope from his breast pocket.

  “I know you haven’t ask
ed Matthew for money yet but now you don’t need to,” he continued. “I am donating my own.”

  I stared at him, my mouth parting in shock.

  “No!” I cried. “I haven’t been spending time with you in hopes that – “

  “Stop!” he laughed. “I never thought that for a second. Go ahead, open it.”

  Reluctantly, I pulled my eyes away from him, tearing open the Kinetic Design packaging with trembling fingers.

  I gaped.

  It was a check for one million dollars.

  “Oh, Nick, this is too much!” I gasped. “I can’t accept this!”

  But all I could think of was how many children it would help, how many mouths would be fed.

  Tears sprang into my eyes.

  “Don’t cry!” he insisted but I realized that I wasn’t crying from gratitude. I was in pain.

  The money was what I had come for and with it, I no longer had a reason to stay.

  Sobs escaped my mouth and I tried to smother them, but they would not cease.

  “It is going to be all right,” Nick murmured, pulling him toward me and stroking my hair. “This is why you have come.”

  I drew back and stared at him, my cheeks stained in anguish.

  “Is it?” I whispered. “Is this why I’ve come?”

  “Not entirely,” he agreed. “You have come for me too.”

  5

  Nick

  I don’t remember the drive back to Matthew’s place or why we went there in the first place when we were parked outside one of the best hotels in the city.

  All I recall was the neediness in Eva’s face as the elevator door closed behind us and we stared at one another.

  Our breaths were an identical rhythm, our hearts ready to explode from our chests but there was no shyness, no hesitation as we found ourselves entangled in a tight embrace.

  When my tongue touched the silken softness of her mouth, she pulled me closer, pressing her slender frame against me.

  The longing in my bones reached an almost insurmountable level as my hand entwined in her hair, pulling her neck back to expose the creamy skin of her throat.