The Billionaire (3 page)

Her father answered the door on the second knock. He
looked about the same as his picture, which I'd had my security snap while they
were doing a background check in him. I liked knowing who I'm dealing with and
since he was not only the law in this town, but the father of the young woman I
meant to claim I needed to know as much as I possibly could. It’s a good thing
I had, but a picture was one thing, seeing the man in the flesh quite another.
I called on all the etiquette-training mom had tried to drill into me as a
youth not to do what I so badly wanted. I had to think of my little Blossom.

"Yes, can I help you?" Clifton Sanders was a
forty five year old fit, attractive male who took good care of
himself
. All of that was obvious in my first cursory glance.
He didn't look like the friendliest of people though if the look on his face
was any indication. Before the day was over I was sure to put a frown on his
already scowling face I was afraid.

"Mr. Sanders, the name's Gideon Thorpe, I'm here
about a personal matter, would you mind if we took this inside?" He
studied me from head to toe, taking in the expensive cut of my suit, the limo
behind me and the two men standing guard at my side.

I'd chosen the limo today for just this purpose. I
wanted to make a statement, that of power and utter control. It wasn't everyday
I flexed my muscles but in this case there wasn't anything I wouldn't do to get
my way. “I suppose come on in.”

He led us to his living room and took a seat on the
couch while pointing me to one of the two armchairs across from him. I ignored
him and remained standing, first tenet of the top dog. Always hold the position
of power. There was a huge portrait of who I assumed was Ashley's deceased
mother over the fireplace mantle.

That more than anything in my reports told me about
the man. It also helped me to understand a little better why he was raising his
daughter the way he was. I felt the first niggling of anger hit my gut but held
it at bay. It was never a good thing to jump the gun. Things could appear one
way on paper and be entirely different in reality. This was a delicate
situation so I thought it best to proceed with caution, feel him out so to
speak. One wrong move on his part though and I'll show him just who the fuck he
was dealing with. I came here with the words of the report fresh in my mind,
but yet willing to give him the benefit of the doubt. So far I wasn’t too
impressed with what I’d seen.

"Before we begin let me just say that I have with
me any documents you might need to verify anything I might say to you." I
saw the confusion cross his face.

"You said this was personal?"

"Yes, I'll get to that. I think you should know
I've had you investigated before coming here today. Both your personal and
professional life, and though you may not know me, I am an honest, upstanding
man of my word."

"I've heard of you, who in these parts
haven't?" He leaned forward with a look of what the hell is this about on
his face but I wasn’t ready to give him anything quite yet.

"Good, I have a reputation in the business world
that's quite separate from who I am as a man. I like to keep my personal life
just that, personal."

"Well what is it that you think I can do for you
Mr. Thorpe?"

"Gideon please, and it's quite simple. I want
your daughter. No let me reiterate, I mean to have your daughter." Never
beat around the bush, it's just a waste of fucking time.

His anger was instantaneous, and expected.

"Get the hell out of my house." He got to
his feet in anger but that little show of aggression didn't
phase
me, I stood my ground and stared him down. "No."

"What?" He stumbled back as if I’d hit him.
I could imagine a man in his position accustomed to giving orders and having
them followed without question would have a hard time with the word. I wonder
how often he’d let her say the word? The fuck.

"I came here in good faith when I really didn't
need to, as a courtesy, out of...respect I guess you can say. But we both know
that there was no need. Ashley is of age after all..."

"But she's still under my care."

"For now, yes, and if you handle this the right
way, she just might remain there for a little while longer. But if you force my
hand I'm afraid I will take her away from you completely."

"What he hell are you talking about?"

"It's quite simple, I want your daughter, I want
to take care of her, and who knows, maybe this thing could last forever, as it
stands I don't see my future without her in it. I can make her very happy in
life. Or you can leave her to the wiles of some young buck who might use and
discard her..."

"My daughter does not date." He was turning
red with anger and it gave me pause. There was something more going on here
than just a man concerned with the welfare of his young daughter and more than
the initial report had intimated though what we’d found was fucked up enough.
What that something was I'll have to wait until the more in depth report I'd
ordered was in front of me. All I cared about right now was paving the way to
her and my relationship.

"How long do you think that will last, hmm? Do
you think to keep her under lock and key for the rest of her life? Is that what
your dear wife would've wanted for her only daughter?"

"You know nothing of my wife."

"Bit of a free spirit our Dana wasn't she? Tell me,
does your daughter know that you blame her for her mother's death?"

He turned white as a sheet and looked around the room
as if seeking an escape.

"You can't, you don't..."

"What, I can't know that? But I do, like I said,
I had you investigated, not just what you show the world, but what you do in
secret. And yes I know about your secret rendezvous and what's said and done
there." I smirked at him.

"You know what I see, I see a beautiful, vibrant
Blossom that's being smothered to death by you because you can't get over the
death of the woman you loved. But how much could you have really loved her if
you seek to destroy her daughter's spirit? A daughter that by all accounts she
loved dearly."

"I don't want to talk about this anymore."
He paced away like a cornered rat.

"You don't have to, just listen. For the next
three months I will court Ashley, I promise you that I will be a complete
gentleman during that time. Nothing about her life needs change, except now I
will be a big part of it. She will go to school as usual. On school nights I
will have her home by ten, on the weekends, maybe midnight. She will no longer
be taking the bus to and from school I will pick her up in the mornings and
have her driven home in the afternoons if I’m too busy at work. Sometimes I
will have her sit with me in my office after school, she can do her homework
there." I let that settle in for a bit and when all he did was stared I
carried on.

"That's about it for now."

"And if I don't agree?"

"Oh Cliff, you do not want to play hardball with
me. There're so many things to choose from, where should I start? Should I
start with the alienation of your daughter by letting her in on some of your
more hostile feelings towards her? You really should be careful what you say
when out drinking with the boys. Should I tell her of your plans for her when
she finishes school? Looks like I came along just in time. On second thoughts,
I don't think I can leave her here alone with you after all."

"Listen here you, if you..."

"I'm not interested in your threats Cliff, just
know this. If you do anything to harm her, I will
fucking
bury you. I have some compassion for the lost of your wife, but your treatment
of your daughter in the years following border on criminal. Your neighbors
might see it as over protectiveness while I see it as fucking abuse, and of one
who is so undeserving of such. You've stifled every impulse..."

"Why should she live and be happy when my Dana is
gone because of her? Dana was sunshine and light and that fucking brat and her fucking
whining robbed me of my life."

In that moment he came dangerously close to bleeding.
I clenched my fists and prayed for patience. It wouldn't do to strangle my
Blossom's one remaining parent in their living room the first time we met. The
man had raised an amazing creature, how could he be such a dick?

"You really are pathetic, I came here hoping the
reports were wrong for her sake, that there was some redeeming quality to be
found, but you have none. Just remember what I said, mess with her, I'll mess
with you. One more thing, when she asks you about this later you will give her
your support one hundred percent or there will be hell to pay."

I turned for the door, I'd said all I came to say
after-all and if I spent one more second in his presence I might knock his
teeth down his neck. How could he look at that beautiful girl and see anything
less than a gift? Whatever, his reign of terror was over. Whatever hell he'd
put her through because of his misguided misplacement of guilt ends now. Come
tomorrow one little girls' life was going to change drastically and all for the
better. I couldn't wait to introduce her to my world, to watch her grow up and
Blossom into the beautiful being I know she is.

Of course I'm going to keep an eye on her father, any
man who could hold a grudge against an innocent child for so long couldn't be
all there. I knew though that she loved him, it would be hard to get her to see
what he really was without breaking her heart, which I am not going to do. Even
if I have to protect her from the truth of what he is I will. As
long
as he doesn’t fuck with me and mine.

Where I've learned that the first part of her
existence was...less than pleasant, I planned to make sure she enjoyed all the
good that my money could buy. Everything else I'd have to see to, and after
meeting that man face to face I was sure it wouldn't be long before I found a
way to get her out from under him. Stupid fuck, how could he not love my girl?
His fucking loss I will make up for everything he denied her in life.

Outside on the sidewalk I inhaled some much needed
fresh air. The man left a bad taste in my mouth. I couldn't imagine my girl
dealing with that shit day in and day out.

I think maybe I'll pick her up from school, give her
the good news. Maybe I'll start taking her to my office after school starting
today. Why wait? I looked back at the little house she shared with that ogre
and was suddenly struck by a thought. Since meeting my Blossom I've been acting
totally out of the ordinary, what was one more thing?

I picked up my car phone as soon as I was seated.
"Agnes please, it's Gideon Thorpe."

"Gideon so nice to hear from you, what can I do
for you?"

"I need to look at mansions sometime today."

Chapter 5

Gideon

I spent the better part of the morning looking at
homes with Ashley in mind. That meeting with her father had done more than left
a bad taste in my mouth, it had left me feeling unsettled like there was
something I was missing. It was one thing to get reports and guess at what they
meant behind the scenes and quite another to see the reality first hand. I
didn’t know exactly what the fuck I had walked into here but my gut was telling
me to get my shit together. I’m a very possessive beast by nature and in all my
dealings, all my acquisitions to date, none had ever come close to her. In one
moment I had seen her and been ensnared now she consumes my every fucking
thought. She’s little more than a baby and she had that kind of power over one
of the most powerful men in the city. Life truly is stranger than fiction.

This was a delicate situation no doubt. I will have to
tread carefully but some way some how I was getting her away from him. It was
by the third house viewing that I had the idea that maybe I should bring my
Blossom along with me on this house hunt. It was for her after all and she
should have some say, in fact she should have all the say. I’d gotten the
feeling from her cold fish of a dad that she didn’t have much of a say in
anything in her life so far. All of that was about to change.

“Listen Agnes I think I might’ve jumped the gun on
this one.” Ever the professional she didn’t bat a lash at the thought of losing
a sale. Though I’m sure as a businessman who understands that time is money the
prospect of losing such a lucrative deal after spending hours going from place
to place couldn’t be too palatable. “There’s someone else who needs to be here,
I’ve seen some places that I really like but I think we’ll reschedule for a
time when she can be here to make the final choice.”

“Of course Mr. Thorpe I understand; and will you be
needing me to reschedule or will you choose a time and place?” We headed back
to our cars while I looked back over my shoulder at this last place, not bad,
not bad at all. I could see her in a place like this. “Why don’t I give you a
call when it’s convenient?” She nodded her assent and I split off and headed
for the limo to head back to the office. I had a lot of work on my desk to take
care of, some of it I’d left unattended because I’d been too preoccupied. Now
that I’d start the ball rolling I could relax and breathe a little easier. Soon
I will start my courtship, fuck I’ve never courted anyone in my life. Too
fucking jaded even at a young age. I’m sure I’d figure it out. With her it
seems all I have to do is go with the gut. And my gut was telling me to spoil
the fuck out of her.