Billionaire Romance Boxed Set (9 Book Bundle) (59 page)

Will
stroked my back softly as I laid on top of him in the moonlight. Glad Will
didn’t have any neighbors, I pulled up the straps of my babydoll.

“You’re
a gorgeous woman, Deborah. I know you think of yourself as a big girl, but you
know what? That means there’s just more of you to kiss, more of you to touch
and feel under my hands and mouth.”

Blood
rushed to my cheeks, making them burn as I imagined what he could do to me.
Being with Will was different than any other man I had been with. He looked at
me like I was a small bunny and he was a wolf. I wanted him to devour me. Will
had the ability to make me feel so sexy, I thought I could do anything in the
world.

As
our lips met once again, Will stood up holding onto me with my legs now wrapped
around him. I felt his manhood underneath me begin to harden and I giggled like
a school girl.

He
carried me up to my bedroom and laid us both down on the bed. His lips moved to
my neck and I shivered waiting for where he would go next. I doubted I’d get
much sleep that night, but I could care less. Mr. Sexy definitely lived up to
his name.

***

I
was alone when I woke as the sun came through the windows. As I rubbed my eyes,
glad Will wouldn’t see what I looked like first thing in the morning, I noticed
a small purple plaid luggage set sitting in the middle of the room.
That
wasn’t there last night,
I thought. As I got closer to the set, I noticed a
small piece of paper on top of the largest piece—a roller bag.

Deborah,

I’m
sorry to leave you alone, but I had some last minute business to take care of.
I hope you’ll enjoy using these on your trip to Paris. I had them custom
ordered after our first date. I knew you’d win.

I
don’t know when I’ll be able to see you again in the next couple of days, but I
will definitely see you before the flight.

I’ll
be thinking about you.

With
Love,

Will

I
couldn’t stop smiling as I read the note. I loved that he had such faith in me
that he ordered the set knowing I’d win. Just thinking about him again, made my
body tingle with excitement.
With Love.
I wondered what it meant, and if
it meant anything, but I’d have to obsess about it another time. I had too much
to do in the next two days before the trip to Paris Fashion Week.

Chapter Eleven

Deborah

After
spending the night with Will, the next two days flew by. I dropped Trap off at
Ashley and Xander’s the day before and she texted me earlier that he was doing
fine. Happy to hear he adjusted without having me around, I knew I’d be able to
enjoy my two weeks away.

The
only thing on my mind was my Mr. Sexy. I wished he could come with me to Paris.
After all, it was the City of Love. I didn’t even ask him to join me though. At
least he said he’d see me before the flight.

That
was a good and bad thing. Normally for a flight I’d just wear something really
comfortable, especially with how long the flight to Paris was. But with meeting
Mr. Hargrove and seeing Will, I needed to look good. I chose a dark red silk
wraparound skirt with an embroidered vine that wrapped up one side and paired
it with a black cami with lace accents. On top of that I wore a short black
jacket I thought looked cute with the outfit.

Looking
around my apartment I thought about how much I’d miss the tiny dump. It was my
first apartment on my own and I knew I’d always look back on it with a smile.

With
everything packed in boxes, it looked even smaller. Stewart told me he’d
arrange for all my things to be brought over to the mansion. Glad to not have
to worry about that or pay for storage, I considered those to be the icing on
the cake.
The cake being living with my very own Mr. Sexy!

It
was all very surreal to me how quickly things went from my graduating, to
taking the job at Hargrove’s and meeting Will, to winning the competition and
now moving in with him. The reasonable part of me thought things were moving
too fast and I was going to get hurt. The other part of me knew I’d regret not
doing it.

I
felt so comfortable with Will, I knew he was my forever. Just being with him,
even when he shut down and wouldn’t speak, I was more myself than I ever was
with anyone else. Even though I hadn’t said the words yet, I knew I wasn’t
falling in love with him, I had already fallen.

I
read over the note he left me one more time. I kept it folded in my pocket the
past two days and must have read it hundreds of times by now. Obsessing over it
like I was, I knew I was reading into it too much, but I couldn’t help it. He
signed it “with love”.

Did
he mean it? Was that his way of saying he loved me? Or did he always sign
everything “with love”?

While
I drove myself crazy with the questions, the honking of a car horn sounded from
outside. Rushing to the window I hoped to see Will there, even though I knew it
was the cab ready to take me to the airport.

Where
is he? He said he’d see me before my flight.

Patience
wasn’t one of my strong points. The cab blew its horn again, this time more
insistently, proving I wasn’t the only impatient person there at the moment.

Lifting
the strap of the shoulder bag Will bought me onto my shoulder, I then grabbed
the handle of the matching roller-bag with the toiletries bag attached to it,
and pulled it towards the door. Lastly I grabbed the wardrobe bag that had all
my samples for the collection with extra fabrics in case I needed them.
Hargrove’s said I could ship it, but there was no way I was letting all that
hard work out of my sight.

Looking
around the apartment one last time, my eyes got misty.
Come on Deborah! No
time to be emotional!
I silently said goodbye to the place before locking
the door and beginning the first step of my new life.

***

Having
been at the airport for two hours, I officially lost what was left of my
patience. Will wasn’t answering his phone or his texts. I was sure he regretted
giving his cell to the crazy woman he asked to move in.

“Where
are you?” I asked the phone. “You said you’d be here.”

Frustrated,
I texted him again.
Where are you?
I stood at the gate looking at the
Hargrove’s large private jet. Noticing an attractive woman with brown hair
pulled back in a pony tail wearing a red uniform the same color as the
Hargrove’s logo approaching me, I knew my time was up.

“Miss
Hansen, you really should board now,” the flight attendant said to me.

“Alright,
alright,” I said looking at my cell phone and willing it to ring or beep
or do anything to indicate a message from Will.

She
grabbed the handle of the roller bag and I followed her through the doors and
outside. As we walked on the tarmac to the plane, I kept looking around hoping
Will would magically appear. I hated leaving without saying goodbye.

Climbing
the steps to board, I had to hold onto my skirt as it blew around me. Once I
got to the top of the steps, I turned and looked around one more time, silently
praying for even a few moments with him. Nothing.

My
heart ached. I wondered if he just wanted to sleep with me and that was it.
Maybe it wasn’t as good for him as it was for me. I really thought we had
something though.
And what about “with love”?

Sighing
deeply, I entered the plane and it immediately reminded me of Will’s limousine
except with caramel leather seats. It even had a row of seats connected
together like a long couch.

As
the flight attendant rolled my bag to the back, I saw Mr. Hargrove was already
on board and probably pissed for having to wait for me. His back was towards me
but he immediately reminded me of Will.
That’s it, I’ve lost it! Now I’m
seeing things!

He
wore a navy suit that looked like the Tom Ford suit my Mr. Sexy tried on before
I knew him as Will. He had his hands in his pants pockets in a way that showed
he wore suits so often, he was comfortable in them. It wasn’t something I
noticed in a lot of men. Lastly, he had on a fedora that matched the suit
perfectly. The hat was rakishly tilted a bit to one side as if it had a
personality all its own.

I
couldn’t tear my eyes away. Standing in an aisle, I set my bag down and stared.
Positive I was certifiably insane and going to spend my time in Paris seeing
Will in every man wearing a suit, I texted him one last time.
I really hoped
to see you before I left.

Within
seconds Mr. Hargrove pulled his cell phone out and I dropped mine.
It
couldn’t be. He would’ve told me. He should have told me.

“Will?”
I choked out. He turned around, his lips in that crooked smile I suddenly
wanted to hate. “Are you…?” I couldn’t even say it. I didn’t want
to even think it.

He
walked down the aisle and stood in front of me. As he gently touched my cheek,
I felt all my anger slip away.
No! I should be angry!

“Deborah
Hansen,” he said as he looked into my eyes and I tried very hard not to
melt, “allow me to introduce myself. I am William Hargrove King, the
third.”

“How
could you do this to me?!” I pushed him away as another flight attendant
closed the door.

“What
are you talking about?” He asked.

“You
lied to me! We’ve been dating for months and you never thought to tell me? You
knew all along that I was a contestant in the Hargrove’s Designer Challenge and
you never once told me who you really were! I should’ve known I didn’t win on
my own. I only won so you could fuck me!”

“No!
Its not like that at all. I’m not even involved in the contest. I’m only here
because I wanted to go away with you.”

“Don’t
talk to me! I have to get off this plane.”

“I’m
sorry Miss,” the flight attendant said. “We’re cleared for takeoff.
You need to sit down and buckle up. Now!”

“How
could you, Will? I can’t show my collection now. I’m a fraud! I can’t get off
this plane and have everyone know I’m the owner’s fucking girlfriend. Am I even
that?”

“Calm
down. You’re making a bigger deal out of this than needs to be,” he said
as he sat next to me.

No!
Go sit somewhere else. I don’t even want to see you right now. You have no idea
what you did! Everything I worked for. I thought I did all of this on my own
and all I did was flirt with the right guy. Please, just leave me alone.”

He
walked to the front of the plane and sat down without looking back at me. I
knew I hurt him, but at that moment I didn’t care. Anger fueled me. I didn’t
know what to do. I’d have to cancel the show and my dream of showing a
collection at Fashion Week. All that hard work was wasted. No one would ever
take me seriously now.

Chapter Twelve

Will

Getting
up, I walked towards the front of the plane and sat down, leaving Deborah hurt
and seething with rage in her seat. This was why I didn’t have relationships.
They were too complicated. My one night stands were much easier.

Thinking
about the faceless women who had shared my bed, I felt a bit sad. Not that I
regretted any of them, of course. I just didn’t want Deborah to become one of
them. She meant more to me than I cared to admit and that worried me. I
purposefully secluded myself not out of fear of danger, but out of fear of
loss.

Twenty-Five Years Ago

The
Canyon Cove Christmas Extravaganza ended with heavy red velvet curtains closing
at the foot of the stage. The annual show billed itself as
“spectacular” and never disappointed. Ending the show was a live
nativity scene with live animals and the most brilliant star shining upon them
that any eight-year-old had ever seen. Even me, and by then my parents had
taken me into the city to see the show the past four years in a row.

“What
did you think of the show, Will?” My dad asked as he did every year.

William
Hargrove King, Jr., my father and namesake, wore a permanent smile. It wasn’t
fake, he was always happy and did what he could to make others around him happy
too. It was his idea to begin the annual trip into the city to see the
Christmas Extravaganza, and he enjoyed it as much as I did.

“It
was awesome Dad! Even better than last year!” I replied.

“I’m
glad you had fun,” he said as he mussed my hair as the three of us walked
up the aisle towards the lobby doors to exit.

I
walked between my parents, both of them holding my hands. We were dressed up
like most of the other people who watched the show. Dad was handsome with his
brown and silver hair combed back, dressed in a black pin striped suit with red
tie. Mom turned heads in a simple dress the same shade of red as the tie, her
dark hair pinned back over her ear with a small barrette she always wore to
keep her wavy brown hair out of her eyes.

Even
then I felt comfortable wearing a suit. Dressed in a child’s version of my
father’s suit, I looked like a miniature version of him. I wouldn’t have had it
any other way. I looked up to my father and wanted to be just like him.

As
we bundled ourselves in our coats before stepping out into the cold, I looked
at our reflection in the gold mirrored walls lining the entry. We were happy.
We were a family. We were also the wealthiest people in town.

Exiting
the warmth of the building, the cold air stung my lungs. Stewart, our driver
left the limo running at the curb and cut a path through the crowd for us. He
was lanky in his navy driver’s uniform and while I always thought he was old, I
later learned what was old to a child differs greatly from reality.

Stewart’s
dark blond hair fell into his eyes before he pushed it back and under his
driver’s cap. Only in his late twenties, Stewart already lived many lives and
had a history I would never fully know.

“Sir,
I still think you need to hire security,” he said to my father as he
guided us through the thick throng of people waiting outside the theater.
“A man in your position—”

“In
my position?” My father asked.

“Yes,
your wealth—”

“Wealth
means nothing. I wasn’t always rich. I grew up not far from here as you know.
Before Hargrove’s became a household name, I knew what it was like to wonder
where our next meal was coming from.” He looked around at the crowd.
“Why would anyone hurt me?”

Stewart
sighed. “The economy does strange things to people. You know I trust no
one. And you hired me for protection.”

“For
my wife and child, not myself. You know better than to bring this up in front
of them,” my father said through clenched teeth.

Silenced,
Stewart opened the car door for us. Dad looked around at the crowd again, then
to us, his small family.

“I
want to show you something. I haven’t mentioned this to you before because I
didn’t want you to worry, but I know this is the right decision for our
company,” my dad said as he looked into my mother’s light blue eyes.
“Let’s go for a walk.”

“But
sir—”

“No.
This is between my family and I. We’re going alone. This is about the future.
Like I said before, we’re safe. This is my old hang out. Do not follow
us. I expect the car to be right where it is now.”

Stewart
nodded and stepped out of the way, letting my dad lead us down the block.

“Where
are we going, Bill?” My mother asked, her voice filled with worry.
“It’s late. Couldn’t you show us another time? Maybe when it’s not so
dark?”

We
were only a block away from the theater but its bright lights didn’t make it
down the street that far. The moon was covered by thick clouds and the only
light came from the dim street lamps that graced the corners.

“I
grew up not far from here,” my father said. “Across the street was
the ice cream shop I’d stop by after school.”

While
we walked, my father continued reminiscing. The street grew quieter as we
passed less people and suddenly it felt like we were alone in this old part of
the big city. Surrounding us were old tenements, run down and uncared for. The
buildings had a strange mixture of sadness and despair as they looked down upon
us.

“The
neighborhood changed after I left. These old buildings once had their own
personality, but after decades of neglect they’ve begun to crumble.”

“Dad,
I’m cold. I want to go home,” I whined.

“Soon.
You need to see this. It’s your future,” he said before pointing up to the
top of the building across the street where a large banner with ‘Hargrove’s
Fine Department Store Coming Soon’ emblazoned across it. “None of these
buildings can be saved. They’re too destroyed by time, but I wanted to give
back to the community where I grew up.”

I
turned around, thinking I heard movement in the darkness, but couldn’t see
anything. My mother was shivering and pulled me closer to tighten the wool
scarf around my neck. Suddenly a deep, slurred voice came from within the
shadow of a doorway.

“Pretty
people like you shouldn’t be here.”

My
mother pulled me closer to her. She still shivered but I knew her chill had
been replaced with fear.

“We
were just leaving. Weren’t we, Bill?” She said as she gently nudged my
father while holding me as if I was attached.

Because
my mother held me so close, I couldn’t really see the man who stepped out of
the shadows. I definitely could smell him though—a rank mixture of alcohol and
sweat. Every time he spoke my blood turned cold.

“N-n-now
wait a minute here,” he said, stumbling over his words. “I know you.
Your face. I’ve seen you on TV. You’re the reason me and hundreds of others
were run outta here. You bought our homes so you could build a ridiculous
department store.”

“I
tried to save the homes here,” my father said, “but they’re not safe.
No one should live in these conditions. That’s why I had new housing built in
the suburbs, just outside the city. It’s beautiful there and you’ll have a
better quality of life.”

“I’m
homeless!” The stranger yelled.

He
pulled out a gun and my mother gasped in horror before pushing me further away
with her.

“I
gave you better homes. And transportation. And when the store is built it’ll provide
hundreds of jobs. I did what I could to give back to my old community.”

“You
destroyed the community! You ruined everything!” He waved the gun as he
yelled. “M-my entire life was here. And everyone left! They left me for
grass and trees. But I’ll never leave! You can’t make me!”

I
heard a loud pop. “Charlotte!” My father yelled as my mother screamed
and covered me, holding me tightly against her as she whispered
“everything will be ok” over and over.

“N-n-no!
Wh-what did I? I-I didn’t mean—” The drunk wailed.

“It’s
ok,” my dad said and I felt relieved hearing his voice. “Just go and
leave us be. I promise nothing will happen. I won’t say a word.”

I
couldn’t see anything with my mother holding me so tight. I heard someone
stumble and the soft leather of a shoe slide against the sidewalk. I knew my
father collapsed. My mother sobbed.

“I—I
have to finish this. It has to end here,” the man murmured.

Suddenly
there was another pop. Then one even closer before my mother slumped on top of
me. I heard sirens and someone running. The stench of sweat and cheap alcohol
still hung in the air.

“Bill!”
Stewart’s voice came from out of no where then were followed by a succession of
pops that sounded different than the first drunk’s gun.

Stewart
lifted my mother from me and gently laid her on her back on the cold cement. An
intense iron smell filled the air. I couldn’t grasp what happened.

“Will!
Are you ok?” Stewart asked.

“Mom?”
I choked as I nodded.

“She’s
alive.”

“Dad?”

Stewart
turned and I followed his eyes. My father laid in a black puddle I knew was his
blood. Just beyond him was the body of the man with the gun. His head lay in a
similar pool as my father’s. I knew Stewart killed him.

Hearing
my father groan, I ran over. His hand clutched at his chest. His face was
covered in sweat.

“Dad,
are you ok?”

“I’m
fine,” he whispered and grasped my hand. “Take care of your mother.
I’m sorry—” He coughed and spit up some blood. “I should’ve been
more careful. I know better. But I wanted to show you the future.” His
breath grew ragged. “You and your mom are the best thing that ever
happened to me.”

I
didn’t hear the police and ambulances arrive. Several EMT’s rushed over to my
father and began working as my father’s hand slowly let go of mine. I looked
over at my mother who was now on a stretcher but not moving, her eyes still
closed.

One
of the EMT’s working on my father put his hand on my shoulder and said
“I’m sorry” in a strange accent.

Rushing
over to my mother, Stewart stood beside her listening to that technician.

“It
doesn’t look good. We have to get her to the hospital and operate. I’m not sure
if she’ll survive the ride though.”

Hot
tears streamed down my face. I felt lost. This had to be a bad dream. My
mother’s eyes fluttered and I reached for her hand. She quickly squeezed it but
there was no other sign she knew I was there.

As
I climbed into the ambulance with her the steady beep of the machine changed to
a high constant hum. No one needed to say anything. I lost them both.

***

Clearing
my throat I composed myself again. Thinking about their deaths made me
experience it all over again. Switching my focus to Deborah made me smile. I
only wished she knew how special and talented she really was.

Yes,
I should have told her I owned Hargrove’s, but I had nothing to do with the
Annual Designer Challenge other than creating it in honor of my mother years
ago. Had I known Deborah would get so upset, I would’ve done things
differently.

Still,
she overreacted. Once we got to France and she saw the surprises I had for her,
I was sure all of this ridiculousness would be forgotten.