“Come on,” he said, releasing her long enough to bend for her bag. He offered her his free hand. “Let’s go.”
Gabby watched him, stupefied. “Billionaire? Seriously?” No wonder a hundred dollars had seemed like pocket change to him.
A shrug.
Smirking with flurries of disbelief, she took his offered hand. Whether he was serious or not, she supposed she had some time to figure it out.
Chapter Twenty-Five
THE CABIN NESTLED IN THE trees was exactly as she’d remembered it. Beams of light sprayed between branches, adding a glow around the place, making it that much more picturesque. Adrian got Gabby’s car door, and they strode hand in hand down the path. She waited for him to unlock the door, and together, they entered the place where they’d first met.
It was perfectly staged and secluded in a way that invited them to settle in, to get cozy and stay that way for a while.
“Well?” Gabby said, circling. “We’re here. Are you going to tell me why now?”
Adrian set his bag on the floor. “Remember the day I found you here?”
“Like I could forget it,” she said with a grin.
He lifted the flap on his leather bag and removed a square lockbox. “This is what I was looking for that day. It’s what my father left me in the family trust.”
“Ah, so you did lie to me.”
He froze, his eyes widening.
“You said it was lottery tickets.” She folded her arms, swimming in the delight of making him squirm.
He released a relieved chuckle. “Ha ha,” he said, tapping her nose.
“Where did you find it?” she asked, stepping closer to inspect his lockbox.
“Danica had it.”
Gabby touched her throat. “Do I want to know?”
“Probably not.”
He padded to the sitting area, set it on the coffee table, and then glanced at her expectantly.
Adrian offered her a hand. “I wanted to share this moment with you. I think that’s why I could never open it before now.”
Gabby joined his side. Her body temperature ticked up a few notches, the way it always did when this close to him. He placed a hand on her low back as though comforted by her place at his side.
“Are you sure about this?”
“What do you mean?”
“Are you sure you want me here?”
His eye registered the question. He tilted closer. “I wouldn’t be doing this now if I wasn’t.”
She found herself seeking his hand and weaving her own with it. “Okay.”
Clearing his throat, Adrian retrieved the small key from his pocket, inserted it into the lock, and turned. It responded with a click. He exhaled and lifted the lid.
Inside were several wads of paper, along with what looked like a letter. Adrian rifled through, confused.
“May I?”
Adrian nodded.
Gabby opened the topmost folded paper to reveal a stained, red border surrounding large calligraphy below an eagle with open wings. A name dubbed it Deer Lodge Railroad Company. Another similarly designed certificate was labeled, Montana Land Trust.
“Are these—?”
“Old stock certificates,” Adrian said, perusing another.
“Are they worth anything?”
“Most stock is tracked online these days,” he said. “The least I can do is see if any of these companies exist anymore, but the chance is unlikely. Look at some of these dates.” He pointed to several corners where dates ranging from the late 1800s to early 1900s, even 1950.
Gabby watched his expression for several moments. His forehead was furrowed, his lips downturned.
“This isn’t what you were expecting, is it?” she asked softly, resting a comforting hand on his arm.
His breathing was escalating. He spoke without looking at her. “I don’t know what I was expecting. He left my brothers useable things like places in the company, like the ownership of horses and land. And he gave me a bunch of expired stock.”
“Maybe he thought they still had value,” she suggested, trying to comfort him.
Adrian sniffed and glanced upward to the ceiling. “I feel like he’s still mocking my career choice. Showing me how quickly something valuable can expire.” He pushed the lockbox to the center of the coffee table, disturbing the certificates scattered across the white fabric, and ran his hands through his hair.
“I was never good enough for him. I was only ever focused on money, and this is his way of shoving that in my face, to show me it doesn’t last.”
Gabby couldn’t see how this was any different than the inheritance his brothers had received. Each of their gifts had monetary value as well. Though she hadn’t even known the man, she suspected their father had the best intentions when he’d given these to his oldest son.
She placed herself in front of him and took his face in her hands. His body was trembling, his face pained. She waited to speak until his eyes rested on hers.
“I don’t care what your father thought of you,” she said. “Because the Adrian I know is kind and good. He’s driven and ambitious and dead sexy. All traits any father should be proud of, and all things money can’t buy.”
A glint of amusement softened his pain. He stroked her cheek. “Especially the sexy one.”
“I know. I mean, it’s first on my list of Most Important Attributes.”
“Then why didn’t you say it before?”
A shrug. “I was going for suspense here. I like to keep you guessing.”
Adrian stroked her jaw with his thumb and leaned in, searing her with his closeness. “Always keep me guessing.” He smoldered at her beneath long lashes before sinking in and pressing a promise kind of kiss to her lips.
Though his lips met hers, the kiss itself was more widespread, reaching down her spine and into her low belly. It stoked a fire in her chest, urging her to grip his shoulders that much tighter, to pull him that much closer.
His breath was racing when he pulled away and rested his forehead against hers. “Man, my memories of this place just keep getting better and better.”
“Adrian?”
“Hmm?”
“I know your father hurt you. I don’t understand all of it
