The Billionaire (11 page)

"You ready for school Ashley?" It was weird
asking my wife that, we both worried about her classmates or even some of the
teachers' reaction to her new status but she assured me that she would be fine.
She also refused to take off her rings, which I was secretly happy about. I
would've understood if she wanted to leave them off while there but she said
they were never to leave her finger ever, so that was that.

"Ready." Fuck, my wife wore every man's wet
dream uniform everyday of the week. I'm sure the dirty old man jokes will be
plentiful not that I was that old but still, it was so
cliched
as to be funny. “I’ll be there to pick you up after school did you want to go
out for dinner?” She hasn’t been out of the house since we got back, if were up
to her I don’t think we’d ever leave. “Sure you owe me a Big Mac.” I grinned at
her and led her out the door. I won’t remind her that I’d been the one to ask
her if she wanted to get her burger but she’d been too busy riding my dick to
care.

We held hands in the back of the car as I took her to
school before heading to the office. The minute she was out of the car I was
back to business as usual. I had to organize my thoughts on her father and
where I was going with the information I had. I had to reschedule all those
meetings I'd pushed to the side last week and I had to set up her accounts and
get her name on the necessary paperwork as my wife. I wasn’t expecting anything
to happen to me but I wanted her covered all the same.

The morning went rather smoothly, the realtor was set
for this weekend of course that was the first order of business. I decided to
tackle the problem of her father later in the day.

I fielded even more calls about my marriage in the
midst of making and breaking deals.

When I looked up at the clock it was almost time for
her to be leaving school. Shit, she'd have to come here or go to the apartment
by herself. I'd thought for at least this first week until she was accustomed
to it I could leave early, but because I'd put off so much in the last few
business days, I couldn't leave. I hated disappointing her
her
first day back fuck.

I picked up the phone and called the driver to let him
know to bring her to me. With that settled I went back to my paperwork. My
personal phone rang twenty minutes later and I answered it absently, my mind on
the spreadsheet in front of me.

"Thorpe."

"Sir there's been an accident."

My heart stopped, my blood ran cold and I think my
mind shut down for a second as all thought fled my head.

"Tell me." I held my breath, hoping against
hope.

"As Miss. Ashley was coming to the car someone
drove up on the sidewalk and hit her. It's bad sir I'm sorry, there was nothing
I could do, I didn't even see the guy before he was on top of her."

"Who is he?"

"We don't know yet sir he’s an unknown but we’ve
got him."

"Where is she?" I was out of my chair as
soon as my legs would work and heading for the door.

"They're air lifting her to County General sir
I'm sorry."

"We'll deal with that later I gotta go."

I called my pilot and got him in motion then I called
my dad to see
who
he knew at County General. Gage was
next I needed round the clock security put in place before she got there. My
mind had gone into robotic mode I did what I had to do but I was detached from
it all.

I called the guys that had been sitting on her
father's house they'd left the listening devices in place on my command. If he
had anything to do with this, the answer to what should be done with him was
shorter. I'd kill him plain and simple.

I knew from the description that this was no accident
but I'll have to wait until I got all the facts. I never made rash decisions.

In less than an hour I had the information I needed,
seems this one was on me. The guy driving was a kid from out of town apparently
someone had paid him to run her down. It wasn't hard to understand why he went
for it since he spent his days getting high on meth.

It was the blonde woman who had hired him that was of
the most interest to me. I had him on ice until I got back. First I had to see
to my wife then I'd deal with the refuge in both our lives.

Chapter 14

I had everything in motion before I left the city. The
plane was ready to take off, my guys met me on the tarmac with the tapes from
Sanders's house and the hopped up kid was being held in a secure location.
Lynn's whereabouts were being searched out. My only concern was getting to my
wife who was already in surgery when I called the last time.

I held my breath almost the whole way there pacing the
confines of the plane willing the pilot to get there faster. The blood in my
veins was ice I'd shut off my conscience. I couldn’t even think about her lying
on some table surrounded by strangers while they worked to patch her up. My
baby must be so scared. “I’m so sorry Blossom.” Fuck why did I keep fucking up
with her? The doctor had assured me that her injuries weren’t life threatening
but that wasn’t much consolation for me, the fact that she had survived would
not spare the ones responsible.

In the business world you have to play hardball more
often than not. I've always believed in playing fair, I also believe in
retribution, my own and others.

I'd take what ever was thrown at me but somebody was
going to die for this, there's no way I could just let it go.

When a wild animal tastes blood they put them down
quick lest they get a taste for it, I could do no less here. There was no guarantee
that this was a one-time thing.

I know Lynn was the one involved obviously but who
else was in on it? She couldn't have seen the newspapers and set things in
motion that quickly to pull this off. This had to have been planned, how did
she know about my Blossom? And why had the bitch not come after me instead of
going after her?

Maybe then I would've spared her but now hell no, that
stupid bitch was as good as dead.

I got to the hospital and was ushered to the room
where Ashley was laying in a fucking coma. She had a broken leg, fractured
wrist and scrapes and bruises. All in all, the doctor said she was lucky not to
have sustained more serious injuries. Thank goodness the kid was too high to
know what the fuck he was doing so his speed had been a little off. If he'd
been going any faster she would probably be dead.

"Uh, Mr. Thorpe, our Intel says you're her
husband?" A doctor came into the room behind me.

"I am." I watched her face as I listened to
him, she had a bruise on her temple that was already darkening, other than that
her face was untouched. Her leg was in a cast, her wrist bandaged. She looked
so fucking small and defenseless lying there. I kept my eyes on her face
willing her to wake up and smile at me. All the emotion I’d been holding at bat
threatened to bring me it my knees now that I stood face to face with what
they’d done to her.

I clocked back in to the doc when he started asking me
questions that had fuck all to do with why my wife was lying there broken.
"How long have you two been married sir, if you don't mind me
asking?"

"A little less than a week; why?" What the
fuck is it to you asshole?

"Well it's just that she's so young..." I
gave him a fuck you look and had him backtracking fast.

With his hands out in front of him he was quick to
explain. The way I felt right now I wouldn’t mind planting my fist in his face
for being stupid. Since when is it a doctor’s place, to ask questions like
that? “You got something to say to me you fuck?”

"No, no, don't get me wrong, it's just that she's
very early in her pregnancy..."

I bit my fist and fell back as his words pummeled me
like blows. Pregnant, fuck I hadn't even thought...I went to her side, tears
blinding me as I checked her over.

"Is the baby safe?"

"For now it looks that way, sometimes it happens
like this, the fetus is too small to suffer. Sometimes it's too small to
survive, since he or she is only a few days we'll monitor but it looks good.

"Are you sure she's pregnant, I mean how can you
tell you just said she's only a few days, doesn't she need to be weeks or
months at least?"

"No we've made progress there in the last few
years, we're now able to tell in less than a week after the fact in some
cases."

"Leave us." I waited until he left the room
before taking my seat in the chair next to her bed. With my hand on her flat
stomach and my lips next to her ear I made the three of us a promise.

"Nothing like this will ever happen again. I will
never allow anyone to harm us again, I stake my life on that."

Chapter 15

My blood ran cold as I listened to the latest tapes my
guys had brought me before I’d boarded the plane.

My wife was laying in a coma, bruised and battered as
I listened through the headphones, her hand clasped tightly in mine.

‘I could give a fuck about your little slut of a
daughter, I just want her out of Gideon’s life, but since you don't seem to
care one way or the other either, I think I'll just go ahead and make it
permanent.’

‘Kill the little bitch for all I care, she's damaged
goods now anyway, she has no reason to live, doesn't serve a purpose anymore,
does that answer your question Miss.
Halston
?’

To say I was pissed would be a vast understatement
there was no limit to what I would do to make them pay. My men were already on
the hunt but now I had new orders for them. I squeezed her hand in mine
reassuring myself that she was here and she was safe from them. If I had to
take her everywhere with me for the rest of her fucking life no one would touch
her unless they went through me.

I sat next to her hospital bed, her hand in mine as I
prayed. I prayed for her, our unborn child, and for forgiveness for what I was
about to do.

"Ashley baby please wake up." I kissed her
cold lips, my heart hurting. It had been hours and still nothing. The stupid
fuck doctor said it was just her body’s way of protecting itself whatever the
fuck that meant, but I didn’t like it. “Come on baby I need to see your pretty
eyes.” I felt helpless just sitting there doing nothing when I wanted to be out
there hunting the fuckers myself. Instead I had to wait for word from my men. I
couldn’t leave her, wouldn’t leave her here like this unprotected even though I
had men outside her door. I was afraid to even take my eyes off of her for a
second.

How the fuck had I let this happen? How had I not sensed
the threat from Lynn? I was so busy focusing on the danger from Sanders that I
hadn’t given thought to what I might be bringing into her life and it had
almost cost her, cost us both. A baby, I can’t even get my mind around that,
two innocents to protect. I cleared my mind and settled into the chair with my
head back. I was suddenly very tired. I needed to shut my mind off for now,
there was nothing more I could do tonight except wait for my Blossom to wake up
and tell me she was going to be okay.

I felt her fingers twitch in mine and was up and over
her in a flash.

"Blossom...come on baby, come back to your
Gideon." I kissed her face so she would feel me, so my touch would be the
first thing she felt when she came to. She came to slowly, her face scrunching
up in pain.

" Gideon? It hurts."

"I know baby, I'll get the doctor." I used
the call button instead of running out the door screaming the place down like I
wanted to.

"I love you baby, you scared the shit outta me,
you with me now?"

"My head hurts, everything hurts."

"No don't move your doctor should be here any
minute."

The medical team came in, not just the nurse because
I'd made it very clear to the doctor that she was to get the best attention and
care. Nothing against nurses, but a young girl in the extreme early stages of
pregnancy coming out of a coma needed the attention of a doctor.

The first one that even hinted at me leaving the room
while they did their thing got a look that pretty much set the precedent for
the others.

No fucking way.

I held her hand as they prodded and poked her studying
her eyes and responses. She cried for pain but they could only give her the
lightest dosage because of the fetus.

Seeing her in that much pain was one of the hardest
things I've ever done. I held my peace though and never once did I let on to
the rage that was growing hotter inside me.

When they were done and the last one had left I
climbed up on to the bed with her being extra careful not to jostle her.
Maneuvering her so that her head was on my chest I sang to her until she fell
asleep. She was in too much pain to stay awake and I guess whatever they’d
dosed her up with was putting her out. I wanted her to stay awake and talk to
me. I needed to hear her voice to hear her laugh. Now that I knew she was okay
it seems my mind and my heart let go. I felt the fear I hadn’t been aware of
engulf me, the fear of never seeing her beautiful face again. Never waking up
next to her holding her loving her.

The tear tracks on her cheeks was the last straw, as
soon as I was sure she was asleep I placed the call.

"Did you find her yet?"

"We've got her in our sights, just waiting for
the right time to move."

"I want both her legs and wrists broken then
throw her on the sidewalk outside Sanders' house."

“Breathing?”

“For now yes, I want her to suffer and I want her to
know why she’s suffering.

"Do we leave a note?"

"No, he'll get the message."

I hung up the phone without an ounce of remorse. The
only thing left was Sanders and Starks. I had to get them in a way that
wouldn't come back on my wife. I didn't want her name in anyway associated with
this, of course there was bound to be hoopla following the whole Lynn thing.
She’s from a well-to-do family, to be found on the streets bloody and broken
wouldn't go unnoticed unless the cop was clever enough to hide her before
anyone saw her lying in front of his house.

I wanted to expose her for the monster she was but
there was no way to do that without getting Blossom's name involved and that I
wouldn't do so I have to find another way. I’m going to totally destroy her
before I finish her off. She’d almost killed my wife and my fucking kid I want
to look her in the eye while I choke the fucking life out of her.

There were voices outside before the door was gently
opened and mom and dad came in. I’d forgotten to call them after asking dad for
the information earlier but I should’ve known they’d show. I figure Ashley
could use a mother's touch poor baby so it was good they were here.

"Hi son how is she?" Mom whispered from the
door her eyes glued to her new daughter in law.

“Come in mom, dad, thanks for coming...this is my
Blossom.”

Mom and dad stood next to her bed gazing down at her.

"Oh Gideon, she's beautiful." Mom brushed
Blossom's hair gently with her fingers as dad and I looked on.

 
"Thank
you." I smiled my first smile since I’d kissed her goodbye this morning.

"Your sister will be here tomorrow."

"She doesn't have to do that mom."

"Of course she does, we're family that's what
family does in times like these."

"Okay mom, thanks." I walked around the bed
so I could kiss her in gratitude.

"Mom, dad, there is something you should
know...Blossom's pregnant."

"Oh dear, is the baby okay isn't it too soon to
tell, or did you...?"

"No mom the doctor says she's just a few days. I
thought it was too soon to tell too but he assures me that she is. He says the
baby's okay so far but they'll keep monitoring just to be on the safe
side."

"Are we happy about the news son?" Dad
clapped his hand on my shoulder?

"Yes dad, very happy. I haven't told Blossom yet
though. I'm waiting until we're out of the woods then I'll tell her."

“Then congratulations what did the doctors say about
her injuries?” Dad went into doctor mode and ended up hunting down her doctor
for answers since I was of no help there. I couldn’t remember half of what the
man had said other than that she was going to be okay.