ROMANCE: Bear Naked Seduction (Billionaire Bear Trio Book 1) (24 page)

Chapter 4

After carefully picking out what she would wear to work on Monday morning, Kylie grabbed her purse and walked out of her apartment. She loved how comfortable she felt in her maxi floral print dress and sandals. She had her hair pulled up in a high loose bun leaving a few strands of her brunette hair to frame her face. She had called in late that morning and as she drove her Prius to Café Mundial, she found herself thinking of all the reasons she should have given not to show up.

“I’m feeling sick.”

“Something came up at work.”

She sighed. Those were too obvious and cliché. She needed something big if she was to call off the coffee date without seeming suspicious.

“I sprained my ankle…”
she shook her head. That was dumb. How would she explain the absence of swelling or pain? Plus, he was a doctor. If anything, he would have rushed to her side just to nurse her to health.

“Just go…just go and be strong about it,”
she thought to herself as she maneuvered the last corner before getting to the coffee shop. She had not even mentioned the date to her sisters. Basically, no one knew where she was. Her work diary shoed that’s he had to make a dentist appointment but that was that.

“Here goes nothing,”
she thought as she pulled up in front of the café. She unbuckled her belt and pulled her key out of the ignition before she climbed out of the car. As she slowly walked into the café, she looked around and spotted Sean seated at a corner table. She was taken aback by how good he looked in a blue pinstripe shirt and black jeans. She had never really seen him in anything else apart from the official doctor’s coat he wore when he met her but she had always pictured him looking great in anything he wore.

He smiled and waved her over to where he was. She walked to his table and he stood up when she got there.

“Here, let me get this for you,” he said as he pulled her seat for her.

“Thanks,” she said in a soft voice.

“Just making sure I am treating you like the lady you are,” he said and she rolled her eyes. Thankfully, he didn’t see her. “I was beginning to think you were not going to show up.”

She smiled and shrugged.

“To be honest, I was having second thoughts about coming,” she said and he shrugged.

“What? You wanted to stand me up?” he asked with a smile and she laughed.

“I know it might have been a first for you,” she said but he shook his head.

“You would be surprised at some of my stories from junior high,” he said as the waitress came over to their table and handed them their menus.

“Thank you,” she said as the waitress walked away. “So, what are these stories that I should probably know about you?”

“Well, let’s just say that I didn’t always have an easy time. Socially speaking of course,” he said and she shook her head.

“Please, you? With the Captain America shoulders and perfect hair?” she asked. “You are an everyday Derek Shepherd and Mark Sloane rolled into one.”

“You are a Grey’s Anatomy fan?” he asked smiling.

“Okay, it is weird that you even know that those two are…were characters from Grey’s Anatomy,” she said.

“It is one of the few medically accurate medical drama shows on television. So, yeah, I like it,” he said. “Hashtag TGIT, right?”

“Wait, you are not only a Grey’s Anatomy fan. You are a Shondie!” Kylie said excitedly and Sean raised an eyebrow over the other.

“A
what
?” he asked.

“A Shonda Rhimes fan. Well, the word Shondie hasn’t really caught on but a few Shondies are trying to get the blogs talking about it so that it can be official.”

“So, why would you think I’m a Shondie?” he asked and she shrugged.

“The only way you would know about TGIT is if you actually tuned into all The Shonda Rhimes which coincidentally all air on Thursday. Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, How To Get Away With Murder…all on Thursday. Hence, Thank God It’s Thursday. TGIT,” Kylie explained and he smiled. “But you knew all that, didn’t you?”

He nodded.

“Then why did you make me explain it?” she asked.

“Because I like the sound of your voice,” he said. “And you have a small dimple on your left cheek that shows when you smile.”

Kylie rubbed the back of her neck as the waitress came back.

“Oh…I didn’t…” she started before she sighed. “I’ll just have a breakfast burrito and a coffee.”

“Which coffee?” the waitress asked and she looked up at him.

“What?” she asked.

“We are at Café Mundial, coffee from around the world. They have it all…Columbian, Ethiopian, Mexican...you name it,” Sean said.

“I guess I’ll try Columbian, then,” Kylie said.

“And I’ll have scrambled eggs, spicy. Blueberry scone and a cup of Ethiopian,” he said before the waitress took the menus from them.

“Ethiopian? Adventurous much?” Kylie asked smiling.

“I like it. It’s the equivalent of having a double espresso,” Sean said. “Just what I need to kick start the day.”

“So, Kylie Moran,” he started. “Apart from what is on your medical file, what else do I need to know about you?”

She shrugged and exhaled deeply.

“There isn’t much to tell, really,” she started as she looked at him. “I used to be the junior vice president for a finance company and then shit happened so I moved on to public relations. Turns out that was the only community that could give me a fresh start without raising too many eyebrows.”

“Curiosity is begging me to ask what went wrong there but I really want to save up some stories for next time,” he said and Kylie smiled.

“Next time?”

He nodded.

“Yes, next time. Or are you having such a bad time right now while I get busy planning for the future?” she smiled and shook her head.

“Well I don’t want to jump the gun or anything. It’s still early,” she said. “I mean, your world class coffee isn’t even here yet.”

He smiled and then laughed.

“You are not one to mince your words, are you?” he asked and she shook her head.

“No, I like to say what I mean and mean what I say,” she said. “It has got me into a little trouble in the past but hey, that’s all life.”

“Yeah it is,” he said. “So, in my files I saw something that I thought was too cool to be a coincidence. There is Kylie Moran, that’s you obviously and then there is Kenzie Moran and Kristie Moran.”

She nodded.

“Is that all coincidence or do you know these women?” he asked and she shrugged.

“My sisters,” she said in a soft voice.

“Okay, I have to ask, are you related to Kris Jenner by any chance?” he asked and she frowned.

“Why?” she asked.

“Well, three sisters with names all starting with K?”

“I don’t know what my parents were thinking but according to my dad after Kenzie was born it was either that or Tabitha after his great grandmother and my mother was not having it. Apparently she and my dad’s side of the family had never really been on good terms.” She took a minute when the waitress came back with their order. “So, she went ahead and decided on Kenzie and then I came along and she had always wanted a ‘Kylie’ so it was settled.”

He took a bite of his eggs and smiled at her.

“What?” she asked as she raised the burrito to her mouth.

“You look beautiful…you are beautiful,” he said and she felt herself blush.

“I guess I am not the only one who doesn’t mince her words,” she said.

“Well, I also say what I mean and mean what I say.” 

She took a bite of her burrito and then out it down.

“What about you?” she asked. “I have literally told you almost everything there is to know about me.”

“There isn’t really much to say about me,” he said. “I’m your good old Dr. Simms.” Kylie rolled her eyes.

“Come on, dish a little more than the obvious.”

Sean laughed and took another bite of his eggs.

“Okay, let’s see,” he started when he swallowed. “I became an OBGYN because it is obvious, I love women.”

“I’m not very sure you should have led with that but okay.”

“Like I said, say what I mean, mean what I say. Anyway, I worked in New York for seven years, did my residency there and everything but when it came time for my dad to retire, I moved to California to make sure his dream doesn’t just go down the drain.” He took another bite. “It’s a lot calmer than I was used to but hey, I get to have a social life again so, who’s complaining?”

She smiled and shrugged.

“What about your family? All I know about the Simms family is that there is a Sean Simms senior and Sean Simms the second.”

“Well, I am kind of an only child,” he said and she frowned.

“You cannot be kind of an only child. That’s like being kind of a virgin or kind of pregnant.” He laughed and took a sip of his coffee.

“Well, I used to have a sister but she died when I was thirteen,” he said.

“Oh shit,”
she thought.
“I am an idiot.”

“I’m so sorry…I shouldn’t have…” she started before he shook his head.

“No, don’t be. I am the one supposed to keep her memory alive,” he said. “Don’t be sorry.”

“So, in a desperate attempt to change the subject, how come your dad retired? I always thought he was in great shape,” she said and he shrugged.

“He just wanted to chill out and relax and it was about time anyway,” he said.

“And you were there to see it through,” she said and he nodded.

“I was.”

“So, I have to ask,” she started as she looked at him. “Why is a tall glass of perfection doing with me?”

He shook his head.

“I don’t understand,” he said.

“Well, how come you are not here with your girlfriend or fiancé or something like that?” she asked and he shook his head.

“Tried going down that road but it didn’t work out too well for me,” he said. “It’s a long story really. A long unpleasant one.”

She nodded.

“We’ve all been there,” she said.

“What about you? Family and everything?” he asked.

“Well, you know about my sisters, so there’s that. My parents live in Seattle and we are kind of weird,” she said.

“Wait, what?” he asked. “You just called your own family weird.”

“Well, yeah. We have family dinners every week,” she said.

“You do a four hour round trip to have dinner every week?” he asked and she laughed as she shook her head.

“Actually, we get together at one of our houses – Kristie, Kenzie and I – and we make dinner then we video call my parents.” She took a sip of her coffee. “Dinner usually takes longer than usual but it’s worth it.”

Sean smiled at her.

“Wow, you guys sound like some mob family or something. They are usually the ones who have weekly family dinners,” he said and she frowned at him jokingly.

“Should I be offended because I’m part Italian?” she asked and he shrugged.

“Think about it, all the people who have weekly family dinners even on TV….either Irish, Italian or…mostly mafia but I’m just saying,” he said and she laughed. She circled her finger around the rim of her cup.

“Yeah I guess,” she said. “What about you? Your family ever does anything like that?”

He nodded.

“Not weekly though,” he said in a soft voice. “We try to make it as frequent as possible but with the retirement touring around the world thing, we have the whole thing reduced to three or four times a year.”

“Whoa,” she said and he nodded.

“I know but my aunts, uncles and cousins make sure that when it happens it is usually a week long affair,” he added laughing and she smiled.

“See, everyone has their own definition of weird,” she said and he nodded again.

“Yeah, I guess.”

As she sat there, talking to Sean about his life, his family and career, she could not help but give herself a pat on the back. She was actually happy that she had come out. It was perfect.

They had been at the café for almost two hours before they finally decided to leave. When they walked out into the parking lot, Sean looked at her for a long time and sighed.

“I feel like I should ask you out again but I don’t want to jinx anything just yet,” he said as he walked her to her Prius.

“Yeah, maybe I should give you some time to miss you,” she said, smiling.

“Honestly, I already do,” he said.

She smiled and shrugged.

“Well, this is me,” she said when they got to her car.

Sean opened his mouth to answer but before he could, a dark haired girl walked over to where they were.

“Oh my word, Sean Simms, as I live and breathe,” she said making him turn around to look at her.

“Danielle?” he said and she nodded.

“You’re here!” she said as she threw herself into his arms.