The Millionaire's Proposal Read Online Free PDF Page B

befriend him when the rest of the town scorned him.
    Never would she have guessed she’d fall in love with him.
    Exhaling a deep breath, she thought about all the different things that had remained the same in his absence, and the other things that had changed. Like the place where he grew up.
    “Ford, I don’t know if you realize this yet or not, but . . . have you been out to Cutter Creek?”
    “Yeah, I’ve been there.” His expression remained unreadable as he commented on the land where he’d lived the first twenty years of his life. “Quite an impressive house someone built there.”
    Impressive was an understatement for the huge, sprawling ranch style home, complete with barn, corral, and all the amenities to accommodate livestock. “The house is certainly the gossip of Whitaker Falls.”
    Amusement glimmered in his eyes. “Really?”
    “Rumor has it that FZM, Inc. bought the land. Whoever that corporation is tore down the original house and barn to build what’s there now.” She waited for him to confirm or deny the speculation, if he in fact knew anything at all. The property had gone into foreclosure shortly after his mother had passed away, which had been only a few months before Ford had left town.
    “Amazing what money can buy, hmmm?” he drawled, a sarcastic bite to his tone. “Has anybody met the new owner yet?”
    “No, and the construction crew who built the place didn’t seem to know who the landowner was, either. Everything went through FZM. The house is completed, so I suppose it’s just a matter of time before we meet the new resident.”
    Since Ford made no reply, Grace assumed he knew nothing about the person who’d purchased the land that had belonged to his grandfather. The property had been passed down to his mother, Candace, only to be mortgaged to the hilt to support her drinking and carousing habits, leaving Ford with nothing.
    The orchestra in the dining room struck up a tune, and the music floated out the French doors and carried on the breeze, curling around the two of them. A faint, wistful look touched Ford’s expression as he gazed out at the darkened golf course, though for the life of Grace she couldn’t imagine what had captured his attention. The man was shrouded in secrets, an enigmatic puzzle she couldn’t quite piece together. For as much as they’d shared in the past few hours, she felt as though he was holding back twice as much, and she couldn’t help but wonder about all that he wasn’t revealing.
    “It’s so strange to stand here and look out over the golf course.” His voice was quiet, and strangely humbled.
    Grace took in the strong lines of Ford’s profile, his sensual mouth and firm, still-stubborn jaw. “Why is that?”
    “Because I’m used to being on the other side,” he said simply.
    Her chest expanded, hurting for him and the outsider he’d been as a child. She’d never thought of how the town appeared to his perspective, but she wanted to know now. “Tell me.”
    “When I was a kid, I’d sit out on the golf course after dark, right over there on that hill by the thirteenth hole,” he said, pointing in that direction and leading her gaze toward that dark, secluded spot. “I’d stay there for hours, looking through those open French doors leading into the dining room of the country club, watching everyone eat their meals, and wonder what steak and lobster might taste like. And if I was really lucky, I’d see you and your family having dinner together.” Slowly, he turned toward her, reached out and brushed back the blonde strand of hair fluttering against her cheek. His thumb caressed her jaw, lingering there, and his eyes all but consumed her. “I’d watch the couples dance, would sometimes see you in some gangly kid’s arms, and would imagine what it would be like to dance with you, to hold you in my arms and sweep you off your feet. Pretty ridiculous, huh?”
    She never knew, but could only imagine how detached he’d