Billionaire Untamed ~ Tate Read online

  Billionaire Untamed

  Copyright © 2015 by J.S. Scott

  All rights reserved. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without prior written permission.

  Editing by Faith Williams – The Atwater Group

  Proofread by Alicia Carmical – AVC Proofreading

  Cover by Cali MacKay – Covers by Cali

  ISBN: 978-1-939962-56-0 (Print)

  ISBN: 978-1-939962-53-9 (E-Book)

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Epilogue

  Find and seduce Marcus Colter.

  Lara Bailey’s single-minded goal thrummed through her head as she swirled a straw in her untouched glass of iced tea. Her eyes roamed around the luxurious bar of the Rocky Springs Resort. Her first day here in the Colorado winter vacationer’s paradise had been an epic fail. She hadn’t once spotted Marcus, the eldest of the iconic, billionaire Colter siblings, and she hadn’t even been able to find out his whereabouts.

  All she’d gotten out of today was a lightheaded, unpleasant episode when she headed down to the resort’s gym to do her usual, stringent workout this morning, obviously brought on by lack of adjustment to the altitude here in the high country of Colorado.

  Brilliant. She had slowed down her workout for the day and started to drink as much water as possible. It was critical that she didn’t have any weaknesses right now, and she needed to adjust to the altitude as quickly as possible. She had started to feel better already, so she guessed her flatlander body was making the adjustments to being somewhere in the middle of the front range of the Rocky Mountains.

  Looking around, all she could see was a sea of people who looked as if they’d just come off the ski slopes. Their faces were red from the cold, and they were dressed mostly in ski gear: ski jackets, ski pants, sweaters and scarves. Some of them even had their skis propped against the wall as they chatted with a warm drink in hand.

  What would it be like to be one of those vacationers? At the age of thirty, I can’t even remember taking a vacation, or when I last did anything just for the fun of it.

  Lara felt out of place in a black cocktail dress, especially considering it was barely four o’clock in the afternoon. But she had a mission, and she was dressed for the goal she wanted to complete. She crossed her long, slender legs, casually flipped her dark blonde hair over her shoulder, and surveyed the people as her mind worked frantically on another plan.

  If I can’t find Marcus Colter, I’m going to have to make him come to me somehow.

  Honestly, Lara would rather be almost anywhere else other than where she was right now—what looked to be a big, fabulous playground for the wealthy. She hated the flirty dress and power heels she wore: footwear that had nearly made her fall on her ass as she exited the elevator and caught the thin heel of her shoe in the small metal opening that accommodated the sliding door. Luckily, she’d been alone in the elevator and no one had seen her not-so-graceful entrance into the lobby.

  Thank God nobody saw me. I need to act like I’m perfectly comfortable here—even though I’m not. I need to find Marcus Colter. But I’d really rather be home in my tiny apartment with several containers of Chinese food, a good book, and something chocolate right now.

  She was starving, but she’d taken one look at the menu prices outside the swanky resort restaurant and nearly choked. Dinner would have to wait until she could drive into town.

  The price of a basic room here in the resort was bad enough: one night cost more than her entire rent for a month. It wasn’t that she couldn’t pay for dinner here; she didn’t want to do it. More than likely, she’d still be hungry when she left the eatery. The fancy place looked like one of those restaurants with expensive, tiny portions that wasn’t about to satiate her hunger. Lara didn’t give a shit about the presentation of her dinner; she cared about whether the food was plentiful and good…or not. It irritated her when she left a restaurant with her purse a whole lot lighter and her stomach was still growling. What good was a pretty plate and a yummy aroma if she only got a few bites for an astronomical price?

  There isn’t much reason to hang out here much longer. Time to change my clothes and head into town for dinner.

  Obviously, the eldest Colter sibling didn’t hang out much here at the resort. Apparently none of the Colters did. At the very least, she’d hoped to bump into Marcus’s mother, Aileen Colter, a woman who was said to spend a lot of time managing the resort. Unfortunately, she hadn’t got a glimpse of one single Colter all day. And she’d recognize every one of them by sight, even if she wasn’t personally acquainted with a single one of them. She’d studied plenty of pictures of this particular wealthy family.

  “I’d buy you a drink, but it doesn’t look like you’ve done much with the one you already have.” A low, sexy baritone reverberated behind Lara, surprising her enough that she had nearly knocked over her glass.

  Startled because the man had approached her from behind, Lara turned as she finally spotted a guy she wouldn’t mind speaking with: Tate Colter.

  The stats that she’d memorized about him snapped quickly into her brain: Thirty-one-year-old male, blond hair, gray eyes, six foot one inches, exemplary military record in the Special Forces until some kind of accident had required him to leave the military with an honorable discharge. Maddeningly, she hadn’t been able to get too much more information on Tate. He was a billionaire—like every other damn Colter in the family—and was the driving force that had made Colter Fire Equipment the biggest producer of firefighting and fire safety gear in the world. The company was under the Colter conglomerate, but Tate had made it his personal mission to manufacture more sophisticated equipment than any other corporation, had been the man to drive the company into the stratosphere of success. She hadn’t found anything negative in his information. Hell, he was even a volunteer firefighter.

  Lara eyed him warily as he moved to the other side of the small table. He looked harmless enough. In fact, he looked amazing in real life—better than his pictures. His blond locks were still as short as they’d been in the photos she’d viewed, but he had a serious case of bedhead today, and some of his hair spiked in various directions. Lara was willing to bet the messy look had come from a hat considering it was the dead of winter in Colorado, and she grudgingly admitted that she kind of liked the fact that he wasn’t vain enough to fix it. The just-rolled-out-of-bed look of his hair, and the dimple she could see as he shot her an unassuming grin, made him dangerously attractive.

  I’ve seen better-looking men. The defensive thought popped into her head, probably because of the shiver of awareness that slithered down her spine as she looked at Tate Colter. She had seen men more conventionally attractive, but none quite as compelling as the man she currently surveyed cautiously. Dressed casually in jeans, boots, and a green sweatshirt, he should have looked ordinary and drab in his surroundings, but he didn’t. Lara knew she needed to proceed with caution no matter how unassuming or nice he appeared to be. Tate Colter had a genius IQ, just like the rest of his siblings. His unassuming smile and boyish grin hid a mind that was assessing her, just as surely as she was checking him out and evaluating his motives.

  “I don’t accept drinks from strange men anyway,” she told him standoffishly. She didn’t real
ly want him to go away right now. He might be able to provide her with some information, but she didn’t want to encourage him either. Marcus Colter was her main interest, but his brother might be able to help her find him.

  Tate took the wooden chair, turned it around, and straddled it as he made his enormously fit, muscular body comfortable across from her. “Then I guess we need to get to know each other,” he answered in a self-confident tone, as though she was obviously going to comply and fall at his feet in gratitude.

  Arrogant lug!

  Lara made her expression stay neutral. “Maybe I don’t want to know you. Maybe I’m married or have a boyfriend,” she hedged.

  Tate shrugged. “I didn’t say I wanted to fuck you. I just said I wanted to get to know you.” He rested his forearms on the back of the chair, still grinning at her mischievously. “Tate Colter.” He held his hand out to her over the table. “You looked lonely over here all by yourself.”

  “Lara.” She reluctantly shook his hand quickly and drew her arm back to her side, intentionally giving him as little information as possible. His hands were rough and callused; he didn’t have the soft, manicured fingers she’d expect from a billionaire. In fact, he wasn’t anything like she’d expected an ultra-wealthy guy to be. He seemed so…earthy, more of an outdoor, active guy than a man who would be perfectly comfortable in a custom suit in a boardroom.

  In all likelihood, he’s comfortable just about anywhere.

  Unfortunately, there were only certain social situations where she felt at home, and just that brief, casual contact with Tate had set off a spark of electricity that raced down her spine.

  “I wasn’t and am not the least bit lonely. I came here to…think,” she said hastily. “Alone.”

  Tate looked around doubtfully. “This isn’t exactly a peaceful thinking place, or a good spot to be alone with your thoughts.”

  Damn. No, it wasn’t. The bar was crowded, noisy, and anything but a place to think. It was a venue to socialize.

  “Maybe I just wanted to sit here by myself for a while,” she said impatiently, wanting to get any information that would be useful to her and get away from his smoky, probing gray eyes that hadn’t seemed to leave her face since he sat down. He made her uncomfortable in a way that she’d never been with a guy before. She’d been with plenty of not-so-nice, attractive men, but it wasn’t an evil vibe she got from Tate Colter. It was more like…sinful.

  “So are you here on vacation?” Tate asked conversationally, completely ignoring her aloof demeanor.

  “Yes.” Lara looked back down at her drink and watched the pieces of ice get smaller as she stirred the drink yet again. She didn’t want to blow Tate off completely, but she didn’t want to say anything to embolden him either. Lord knew the guy was already bold enough.

  Be friendlier, but not too friendly. Lara wanted information from Tate Colter, but for some reason he put her on the defensive. Her instincts screamed at her to run away from him as quickly as possible. The problem was, she couldn’t really figure out why.

  “I haven’t seen you around. When did you get into town?”

  “Late last night.” God, she wished he’d quit staring at her like a specimen under a microscope. “So you’re a Colter?” Lara tried to give him her not-so-smart blonde expression. “One of the famous Colter family?” Flattery worked almost every time.

  “I’m not the most famous, but I’m the smartest of the bunch,” he told her deadpan, almost as if he was giving her some kind of warning. “My mom is out of town visiting my aunt and uncle, so I promised her I’d stop in every afternoon to make sure everything was okay here. I was just getting ready to leave when I saw you sitting here all by yourself. I definitely feel like it’s my job to make sure all of the guests are having a good time since Mom’s not around.”

  As Lara eyed him suspiciously, she wasn’t so certain that his arrogant statement wasn’t accurate. The cocky self-assurance he exuded in abundance made him incredibly appealing, and she had no doubt he was intelligent. Just short of obnoxious, he was definitely brash.

  “Don’t you have brothers?” she asked, trying to still look ignorant and only mildly interested.

  Why do I have this feeling that he’s on to me?

  The conversation was general, but she felt as though they were playing a hidden game of cat and mouse, and unfortunately she felt very much like the rodent right now.

  “And a sister,” he answered nonchalantly. “My sister, Chloe, is the baby, a local vet here in Rocky Springs now, and I have three older brothers.”

  “I remember hearing about twins.” She plastered a falsely puzzled expression on her face.

  “My two oldest brothers, Marcus and Blake, are identical twins. Blake is a US Senator. Zane is a year older than I am. He’s a research doctor in biotechnology.”

  “And what does Marcus do?” she asked in what she hoped was a casual voice.

  Tate shrugged his muscular shoulders. “He travels. He heads most of the business for the whole Colter Corporation.”

  “That must be difficult to have him away all the time.” Damn, I hope Marcus is here now. “You don’t get to see him very often.”

  “We’re all used to it. Most of us are usually gone for long periods of time, except for Chloe. She’s home to stay now. Marcus is coming back to stay for a while tomorrow. He’s been gone on business for a while. Zane is in Denver, playing the mad scientist, and Blake should be around soon enough after Congress closes their session for a break.” Tate’s voice was conversational, but he wasn’t smiling anymore, and he watched her face.

  He knows I’m digging for information. Damn. Damn. Damn. Why couldn’t he be a little less observant?

  Lara smiled at him weakly. “That’s nice,” she answered, putting only casual interest in her tone.

  Bingo!

  Marcus Colter would arrive in Rocky Springs tomorrow.

  “So what are your plans while you’re staying with us?” Tate asked, as if he had every right to know her schedule. “Where are you from? What are you running away from?”

  “Why do you think I’m running away from anything?” she asked carefully, keeping her answers evasive.

  “Isn’t that why people take vacations?”

  “I’m visiting from the East Coast. I thought Colorado would be a nice change. I work in mortgage banking. It’s a stressful job.” She shot him a pleasant smile.

  “Have you been in the hot springs yet? They’re guaranteed to take away stress.”

  “No.”

  “Went skiing today?”

  “I don’t ski,” she admitted reluctantly.

  “We have lessons. I’d actually be more than happy to teach you myself,” he told her in a low, fuck-me voice that spoke of more than showing her a few skiing moves.

  Lara shuddered as their gazes met and locked. Tate made it perfectly clear that he’d like to teach her more than basic skiing. A lot more.

  I got what I wanted. Time to run. Literally.

  “Thanks,” she said gratefully. “But I’m here to spend some time alone. I actually just broke up with a guy—a man who cheated on me. I’m kind of licking my wounds. I appreciate the offer, but I really do need some time to myself.” She hastily got to her feet and smoothed down her skirt. “Thanks for the chat.” She rifled through her small clutch purse to find her room key, and nodded at him politely and dismissively as she pulled it out and closed her bag. “Maybe I’ll see you around.” Or not…if I can help it.

  Tate rose to his feet and swung the chair back into place. “Lara?”

  She had started to walk away, but turned back. “Yes?”

  He strolled up to her, took a lock of her hair between his fingers and stroked it for a moment before he leaned down slowly.

  Lara’s breath caught as she inhaled the masculine scent of him. He smelled like fresh air, pine, and musky male, and he was intoxicating. He towered over her. Even though she was dressed in three-inch heels, she still felt defenseless with him th
is close to her, and she felt suddenly vulnerable in a way she never had before. Not afraid, but definitely exposed.

  For a moment, she thought he was going to kiss her, but he didn’t. His lips came to rest next to her ear, and he told her in a husky voice, “Any man who would stray from your side doesn’t deserve a second thought.” He straightened and lightly grasped her chin and turned it upward so her eyes met his. “Don’t let any guy fuck with your head. He isn’t worth it.”

  Lara fell into the smoky gray depths of his eyes for a moment, mesmerized. His statement had been emphatic, sincere, and had stirred her soul. It had actually been awhile since she’d had the cheating boyfriend, but he really had existed. She hadn’t trusted another guy since.

  “I-I’ll try to remember that,” she stammered awkwardly, momentarily drowning in his heated gaze.

  Get a grip, Bailey! Remember what you’re here for. Keep your eyes on the prize.

  “You do that,” Tate answered in a raspy voice.

  Lara pulled her eyes from his and backed away from Tate before she turned and hurried toward the elevator. Tate didn’t follow, but she could feel his stare track her movements as she got into the elevator—thankfully without tripping on her heels this time—and punched in her floor on the panel with more force than necessary. It took everything she had not to look up at him again as the elevator door whooshed closed.

  Alone in the plush compartment, she leaned back against the wall and let out a shaky sigh of relief.

  What in the hell just happened?

  She had an objective, a purpose, and Tate Colter wasn’t part of that design. Having gotten what she wanted, Tate was of no further use to her. He was a man to now be avoided.

  Marcus was her target, and she needed to make certain that all of her attention was focused on the eldest Colter sibling. She needed to wheedle her way into Marcus Colter’s affections.

  The elevator pinged when it reached her floor, and she hurried to her room, escaping inside with her composure intact and her goal firmly back in focus again.

  She actually just blew me off.