The Billionaire's Regret

Spontaneous offer

"I like it a lot." He told her quietly.

They finished their breakfast and parted ways. Evelyn was going to work a shift at the café while he got his suitcase ready for tomorrow morning.

...

After lunch with Robin and his girlfriend Laura, Michael headed to the café Evelyn was working at. When he entered she spotted him immediately, greeting him with a bright smile. The café was crowded, a lot of tourists were enjoying their lunch along with some Dutch folk, he now recognized the language and Evelyn did teach him a few words. The language sounded harsh to him, but she had been patient with him. Having fun, her musical laughter still imprinted in his mind. He spotted an empty table and nodded toward it, letting her know he was taking a seat while she finished up her order. He already had a filling meal with Robin so he wasn't in the mood for anything to eat. He could sip a coffee while keeping Evelyn company. Once she finished up her order Evelyn walked toward his table and smiled down at him.

"An espresso or a cappuccino?" She asked.

"I'd like the fresh mint tea."

Her eyes danced with amusement, "I like that you mix things up. I'll get you one of my cupcakes."

"Thought you'd give me your cupcake later."

She laughed, shaking her head at him, "And you say I have a dirty sense of humor."

"I'm only humoring you."

"It's working." She glanced at the counter, "I'll get you your order."

She brought him a tall glass of mint tea and a small plate with a red velvet cupcake.

"Enjoy."

He held her gaze as he reached for the fork, "I will."

Her hazel eyes darkened, sinking her teeth in her lips. She reached for him, letting her fingers run over his arm before she walked away. She wanted him, but this wasn't the right time or place. He'd make it special tonight. It would be the last time they'd be together. He wanted it to be memorable.

...

Meeting up at his room they ordered room service so they could eat in and have some privacy. They sat at the table near the window, the lights of the city glowing up the candle lit room. It was gorgeous, only the best for Evelyn.

"This is pretty good." She told him and held out a bite for him.

He took it, his eyes never leaving hers, "I think I prefer the Japanese grill restaurant."

She smiled, "Me too, maybe next time you come around we can go there more often. Try different things on the menu."

It was painful hearing her talk about the next time he was coming over. Even if he did come over a few weeks later he wasn't sure if things would be the same. Would they still be into each other? He doubted it. Evelyn was a great girl and she wouldn't have any trouble meeting someone who could give her more than a few nights of fun. He wanted to give her more than that, but he didn't know how.

"Maybe."

She didn't react to his aloof answer, instead she smiled at him and talked about her day. He listened to her, watching her soft features. Her eyes always so bright with cheerfulness. He didn't want to say goodbye to that. It was something he didn't have in his life for a very long time. What he said next was purely a spontaneous act, something he never did either.

"Come with me to New York."

She paused for a while, her eyes searching his. Placing her fork down she reached for her napkin and wiped her mouth before she reached for her wine glass and took a large gulp. He feared he ruined things by opening his mouth, but she proved him wrong.

"I'd love to, but I have my documentary which I need to hand in. A hard and soft copy."

He could work with that.

"So you come meet me after that."

She narrowed her eyes on him, "Are you sure about that?"

"If I wasn't I wouldn't ask."

That was a lie, but she didn't need to know that. The more he thought about it, the more he liked the idea of her staying with him in his apartment for a while.

"I can't stay that long." She continued.

"That's okay, we'll figure things out."

She polished off her wine, "Okay, then I'll come visit you in two weeks?" She sounded unsure.

"Yes." He told her firmly, "I'll arrange the ticket, it's me who asked of you to come visit me."

"No!" She looked alarmed, "I can't let you pay for my ticket."

"Trust me, Evelyn, I can miss the money more than you do right now." He didn't want to offend her, but she was working a lot of shifts to pay for her classes, rent and other bills, he couldn't let her pay an expensive ticket to New York when money wasn't an issue to him, "You can use that money to wander around New York and get some cool shots."

"Michael, I don't know how to feel about that."

He reached for her hand, "Don't think too much about it. I don't want you to spend your hard earned money on a ticket. Save it for more important things."

She was still unsure, he could see it in her eyes but she nodded, "Okay then." She told him quietly, her eyes flickering to her hands, "Then I'll come visit you in two weeks."

"I'll clear my schedule so I can spend more than half an hour a day with you." He joked.

It made a smile spread across her face, "Glad to hear that."

They exchanged email addresses and planned her trip. She was against staying at his apartment, thinking it was odd, so against his wishes she booked a hotel instead. It was quite far away from his apartment building, but he could make it work. It took them a while and when they checked the time it was near midnight. He had an early flight to catch and he didn't want to stay up too late.

"How about we just go to sleep?" She suggested, "Then I'll go with you to the airport tomorrow."

"I wanted this to be memorable." He brushed her locks behind her ear, leaning in to kiss her.

She gave him a quick kiss and pulled away, "It already is. This thing between us, you've given me so much more than you can imagine."

"I want to explore things." He told her honestly.

"Me too."

Putting away the laptop, Michael set his alarm for six thirty. He took a shower first while Evelyn was hanging out in the bedroom, going through her savings and making plans for her visit in two weeks. Once he entered the bedroom she went to the bathroom to freshen up. He went through his messages, very grateful to Adam for taking care of things. Adam would meet him at the airport when his plane landed tomorrow. His assistant also let him know that Zara was on a war path. She wasn't taking the break-up very well and he was sure she'd probably wait for him at the airport as well. He wasn't looking forward to be greeted by her, but there was nothing he could do about it. For now he'd push the thought of Zara to the back of his mind and crawled into bed, waiting for Evelyn to join him. Evelyn joined him in bed a few minutes later. They were spooning, his arm wrapped around her waist while he leaned in and kissed her hair.

"Night."

"Night." He heard the smile in her voice which settled his worries.

Whatever awaited him back in New York, he'd be able to handle it. Evelyn taught him life wasn't that hard if you gave a crap about the things you were doing. He'd deal with Zara and make sure she stayed in his past. He made the decision to explore things with Evelyn, so now she was his future.