Alpha Billionaire Taboo Prison Break: A Contemporary Romance (8 page)

13.

Eli held me tightly as I told him about Mama’s
death. Our naked bodies were entwined on the cabin floor of his jet, thousands
of feet above the earth.

“That’s a sad story,” Eli said, “but it doesn’t
explain the house fire. It doesn’t explain your mama’s blood found in the
kitchen, either.”

“Let me finish, Eli,” I said. “You haven’t heard
all of it.”

“Then go on,” he said.

“A week went by, and then two more. I was afraid
to go back to Mama’s, afraid of what I’d find in her bed. When Maurice asked if
I had heard from her anytime recently, I panicked and spilled everything.”

“You felt you could tell Maurice but not me?”
Eli asked.

“Maurice warned me not to mention a word to you.
He said that if you knew what I had done, you’d hate me for it, that you’d kick
me out and never want to see me again. Maurice said he would handle the
‘indiscretion,’ as he called it, and he told me to pretend like nothing had
ever happened.”

Eli was beginning to understand. “So Maurice
disposed of the body, and he burned the house down for good measure,” Eli said,
piecing together the obvious. “That crafty son of a bitch.”

“I’m sorry, Eli,” I cried. “I’m so sorry. I
thought I could trust Maurice. I never knew he was planning to steal the entire
family fortune.”

I felt Eli’s body tense. He lifted his arm from
my shoulder and let it fall to his side.

“Avery,” he said. “You could have come forward
at any time.
The arrest, the trial.
You let me go to
prison, for Christ’s sake.”

“It’s all my fault, I know that. I am so
ashamed,” I said. “I couldn’t bear the thought of losing your love. That’s the
only reason I didn’t tell you.”

By now I was crying. Tears were running down my
cheeks and dampening the floor.

“If you never want to see me again,” I said
between sobs, “I couldn’t bear it. But I would understand.”

Eli pulled me into his chest and I wailed,
unable to control my emotions. He caressed my back as he held me close.

“
There
, there,” he
said. “You know I’m not going anywhere. I love you, Avery. There is nothing you
could do to make me love you any less.”

Eli lifted my chin to his, and his lips nuzzled
mine. His kiss was soft and sweet and just what I needed.

“Even if I had known the truth all along,” Eli
said, “I would have gone to prison all over again. Just to spare you a moment
of grief. We’ve all made mistakes, and with time I will start to trust you again.
But there’s one thing you need to know.”

Eli locked eyes with mine, staring intensely.

“Avery, you did not kill your mother,” he said.

“But I didn’t help her. I let her die.”

“Stop it,” Eli said, his grip tightening on my upper
arm. “Listen to me. You did not kill your mother. You did not feed her those
pills. She killed herself, and you have to accept that. If you keep blaming
yourself for your mother’s actions, you’re going to carry that guilt for the
rest of your life. And I won’t stand for it.

“Anyway,” Eli threw in for good measure, “I’m
glad the bitch is gone. I would have watched her die, too.”

Eli’s words were modest comfort. Maybe in time I
would learn to forgive myself. Eli still hadn’t told me his confession, which
had been our agreement, but at the moment I was in no mood for additional
secrets. Eli repositioned the blanket over my shoulders, and he wrapped his
arms around me. I was rocked to sleep by the beat of his heart.

Soon we would reach our new home, and Eli and I
would begin the rest of our lives together.

14.

When I wakened from my nap I opened my eyes and
saw that Eli had been watching me sleep. I smiled and so did he. He kissed my
cheek and then my lips.

“I love to watch you sleep,” he said. “It’s nice
to lie beside you for a while and not have to listen to a single word of sass.”

“Don’t get used to it,” I said. “I talk in my
sleep, you know.”

“Time to put you in your place,” he growled.

Eli grabbed me playfully and drew me into his
embrace. We kissed, gently at first, then with more passion. His hand slid down
my back and took in a handful of my ass. He squeezed. I gasped, thrilled by his
touch, realizing I was instantly wet.

He rolled me on my back and suckled my breast,
and a gentle moan escaped my lips as he massaged my delicate mound, his fingers
parting my folds and pushing inside, feeling and probing my most private
places. My body trembled at his touch and I bit my lip to stifle another moan.

Eli spread my legs and stroked himself, then
slapped my tummy with his manhood. I could feel his balls brushing against my
slit, and I could see the tip of his cock at my belly button. My eyes widened
with amazement. I couldn’t believe Eli was able to fit such an enormous cock
all the way inside of me. But he did, and it was the most beautiful sensation I
had ever experienced. My pussy was made for Eli’s cock, I realized with a
smile.

Eli pinned me to the floor, and I gave myself
willingly to him. He fucked me till we both came, and he kissed me again and then
Henry’s voice came over the intercom, asking for Eli’s attention.

“Here, put this on,” Eli said, handing me his
T-shirt.

“It’s like eight sizes too big,” I complained.

“Wear it like a dress,” he said. “You’ll look
cute, I promise.”

Eli slid into his blue jeans, then kissed me
loudly on the top of my head and marched to the cockpit to confer with Henry. I
put on Eli’s tee, which fit me like a tent. I found my panties where he had
dropped them and took the belt he had used to bind me up, and I tied it around
my waist, hoping to keep my shirt from riding up and revealing my panties.

When Eli came back I was on the sofa, snacking
on stale peanuts. Eli sat down and put his arm around me.

“Okay, kid,” he said. “You told me your secret.
Now it’s my turn. I’m not ashamed of it or anything, but I am showing you a
tremendous amount of trust by admitting this to you. You’ve heard of Cuban
cigars, right?”

“Sure,” I said, no clue where has going with
this.

“And you know the
Rutherfords
built our fortune in tobacco,” he said.

I nodded.

“Well, did you know there was a time when the
Rutherfords
were the largest private landowners on the
island of Cuba? Right up until the revolution. Fidel Castro took control and
booted us out, along with all the other rich white
Yanquis
.
Power to the people, and all that.”

“Okay,” I said.

“This is the bad part.
The
part that your mother found out about, and threatened to reveal to the world.
It probably would have spelled the end of the Rutherford fortune. Well, to get
back at Fidel, the United States government imposed a trade embargo that
blocked anyone in America from importing Cuban goods. It was meant to cripple
the island’s economy and lead to another revolution, this time giving Fidel the
boot.”

“Eli, I have no idea where you’re going with
this,” I said. “Who cares what happened that long ago?”

“The U.S. government would care very much if it
knew the truth. You see, the government just thinks we lost all our land in
Cuba. The truth is we got it all back.

“My grandpa worked out a little deal with the
Castro regime. In exchange for returning all of our lands and other holdings to
us, we would secretly import substantial quantities of Cuban tobacco, allowing
Cuba to prop up its supposedly socialist economy. Meanwhile, the
Rutherfords
secured a steady stream of high-quality and
tax-free longleaf tobacco.
The good stuff.
We grew it
in Cuba, rolled it in Cuba, shipped it to the Dominican Republic, slapped a new
label on the packaging and freighted it back to the United States.

“The arrangement was highly lucrative and highly
illegal,” Eli said. “When I took control of the Rutherford
empire
and supposedly divested the family from the tobacco industry, I put the Cuba operation
under a shell company incorporated in Trinidad. But I secretly retained full
ownership. As far as Cuba’s concerned, the
Rutherfords
have never left, and business is booming.”

“And now we’re going back? To Cuba?” I asked.

“Where else?”

“But what was Henry so worried about? Not enough
fuel and all that?”

“Oh, right,”
Eli
said.
“Normally, to play it safe with passport issues, I fly to Mexico City before
secretly continuing on to Havana. We don’t have enough fuel to reach Mexico
City, but we have plenty to get us to Cuba. Since we’re not going back the
United States any time soon, there’s no need to factor in the layover. It’s a
straight shot to Havana.”

Eli glanced at my attire. “I like that T-shirt
on you, by the way,” he said. “I like the belt, too. Nice job accessorizing.”

I swatted him playfully and then we kissed, and
Eli stripped the belt from around my waist. He turned me around and bound my
hands behind my back, and he bent me over and fucked me from behind. The thrill
was indescribable, knowing that Eli was in total control of my body. I had the
most intense orgasm of my life.

We reached Cuba several hours later. To my
surprise there were no delays or any other issues during the flight. I should
have known to trust Eli. When we landed, however, I refused to leave the
airplane until someone fetched me some proper clothes. Eli rolled his eyes,
then jogged off the plane and returned a few minutes later with a pretty white
peasant dress. It was old but clean and felt very soft on my bare skin.

Eli whisked me into an ancient
taxi cab
decorated with a black-and-white checker pattern.
Except for a couple of breaks at gas stations, we didn’t stop until long after
we had left the city. At one point Eli leaned over and said, “This is our
property line. Everything you see from here till home belongs to me. Only now,
it belongs to you as well.”

I looked all around with wonder at the beautiful
landscape. Our property was a mix of jungle and mountains and clear, swift
streams in the valleys, and rolling hills as far as I could see. But nothing
could prepare me for my new home.

Nearly an hour after we had crossed onto our
property, we began a steep ascent, the road winding around a mountain taller
than all of the rest. When we reached the top, our car finally stopped. We had
reached our new home built on the highest peak of the Rutherford property. I
looked out the taxi window, and the view took my breath away. I had never seen
anything like it. I felt like I could touch the clouds. And then I noticed the
house.

15.

Eli held the taxi door open for me and helped me
out. I felt as though I was being guided through a dream. The Don Rutherford
Hacienda, as
it was known to the locals
, was a
beautiful four-story mansion perched on top of the highest mountain on the
island.

Eli guided me to a patio made of elaborate
hand-painted tile, and he pointed off to the distance. I shielded my eyes with
my hands and saw miles and miles of green rolling hills. My eyes kept going and
I saw the ocean.

“The Caribbean,” Eli said.

I said something clever like “ooh” or “
ahh
.”

Beyond the hills, I saw a turquoise sea that
sparkled in the sunlight. The ocean lapped against white beaches, a sandy
buffer between sea and jungle. The view was mesmerizing. I could have stared at
it for hours, but I felt Eli’s hand at my elbow.

“Come on,” he said. “Let me show you inside.”

We passed a front door and entered a
modestly-sized
courtyard with a stone fountain that gurgled
in the center. The walls were covered with ancient vines sprouting waxy green
leaves and red and yellow flowers, which were shaped like trumpets. Our
presence startled a pair of brightly colored parrots. They flew away.

Strutting at the edge of the fountain was a
large peacock. It fanned its long tail feathers, displaying a pattern of
intricate markings.

“He’s flirting with you,” Eli said.

Everything was so beautiful it left me
speechless. This tropical paradise was my new home. Eli tapped my elbow again,
and I followed him inside. The home kept getting better. The rooms were bright
and airy, a delectable mountain breeze drifting through open windows.

“What do you think of your new home?” Eli asked.

“Oh, Eli. I love it,” I said. “It’s the most
beautiful place I’ve ever been.”

“You know what I like best about this place?” he
asked.

“What?”

“That you’re here.”

“Oh, Eli,” I said, my heart fluttering with love
and gratitude. “That’s the sappiest thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

Eli smirked. “You’re still a goddamn brat,” he
said.

Eli grabbed me and threw me over his shoulder,
smacking my ass as he carried me up the stairs to our new bedroom.

That night we released the passion that had been
building between us since we got off the plane. The next day, and during
subsequent days, Eli took me on little trips throughout the Rutherford property
in an old jeep that had been abandoned by the U.S. military after the Cuban
revolution. We rumbled through the jungles and fields, inevitably down to our
private beach that we liked the best. There, we swam and picnicked and lay in
the sand and made love until sunburn drove us back into the shade.

Late one afternoon Eli and I were walking along
the water’s edge when he stopped. He turned to face me and took both my hands
in his. He said beautiful words that made me cry, and he dropped to one knee as
I began to cry even harder, and he placed a ring on my finger. I could hear the
waves crashing all around us. I said yes, and he laughed and leaped to his
feet, throwing me into the air and twirling me in his arms.

It was here at our beach, only a few weeks later,
when it was my turn to stop Eli during our stroll along the surf. Water lapped
at our toes, and I couldn’t suppress a smile as I took Eli’s hands in mine.

“Thank you for being such a wonderful father,
Eli.”

He grinned and shrugged. “Oh, that was nothing,”
he replied. “You practically raised yourself.”

“I’m not talking about me, silly,” I said.

“No?”

I watched as a range of emotions washed over
Eli’s face. His expression changed from puzzlement to realization to
astonishment. He gently placed his hand on my tummy and looked at me with
searching eyes.

I nodded and smiled.

“Congratulations, Eli,” I said.

Elation flickered in my husband’s eyes. Unable
to contain his joy and excitement, he began to laugh, the same way he laughed
when I had accepted his marriage proposal. Eli took me in his arms and kissed
me with such ardor I thought we might topple into the ocean.

Then he scooped me in his arms, and he took me
home.