The TROUBLE With BILLIONAIRES: Book 1

by Kristina Blake

  “The windows are tinted. No one can see us.”

  Oh. Now that I knew, I relaxed back onto the bed, enjoying the view of the river and woodlands, even though they were but shadows in the night, silhouettes of a world that was close but unknown. “This is heaven,” I said, nuzzling against him, kissing his chest. “There are no words.”

  “There’s more,” he revealed, pointing the remote towards the ceiling. “This won’t make up for our first night together, but I hope it brings you joy every night from now on.”

  At first, I didn’t know what he was talking about, but then the ceiling began to move, the middle section retracting to the side, revealing two panels of glass that allowed the stars to shine through. Because we were on the outskirts of the city, the light pollution did not drown the stars out. They shined brightly down upon us.

  That was the difference in the room. The ceiling had been altered. I couldn’t place it earlier, because I hadn’t thought of looking up. But I looked up now, straight into the night sky.

  “This is more than a fantasy come true,” I said, full of emotion. “This is a dream come true. You’re a dream come true. Thank you.”

  “Thank you,” he said, rubbing his thumb gently across my face. “Thank you for not giving up on me.”

  With no thanks left to give, we made love under the stars. There were no kinks. Just his body on top of mine, filling me up. I had his bed. I had his heart. And I finally had him. All of him.

  And he had me.

  Chapter Fifteen

  “Girls’ day out!” Annie cried, throwing her hands up into the air as the coach pulled out of the bus station in Portland. “Aeropostale, Guess, J. Crew—get ready, lovers, because here we come!”

  On the seat beside her, I laughed, bouncing in my seat. I was just as excited as she was to be leaving the city for the day. It seemed ridiculous after all the trips I’d taken with Rawn in the past few months. Italy. Hawaii. New York. They had all been somewhere new and unforgettable. And I was thankful to Rawn for it, for his generosity and the time he took to plan such travels.

  But this day trip with Annie, a shopping expedition down to the Woodburn Premium Outlets, about an hour’s drive outside of Portland, was something I badly needed. From the forested highways to the thrill of buying designer labels at half price, from Annie’s buoyant company to the grounding I felt being on a bus that smelled of sweat as opposed to being on a plane scented with jasmine, I needed this.

  This was home.

  This was me.

  It always would be, even with the newfound freedom I had with my paycheck. I had received a call from my parents this morning. They were in tears, the happy kind. It would appear someone had paid off all of the family’s medical bills.

  Rawn had worked fast. It had only been a week since I was in the hospital—when I told him about my true reasons for graduating early. I did not love Rawn any less or any more for paying off the medical bills; my love for him was not dependent on such acts of charity, but my appreciation of him had grown. I was thankful to have him in my life.

  But there was one problem to his charity. Now my parents wanted to meet him. They insisted on it. I had to tell them the truth. They would have traced the payment back to him anyway. My mom had been wearisome, afraid I was putting myself in a bad position dating my boss, but she would come around, especially after she met Rawn.

  “I wish Mellissa could have joined us,” I chirped, mentally waving goodbye to the skyscrapers as we left the city far behind us. “She would have loved a day away with us. She’s afraid that once I leave Ms. Goldstein’s office, she won’t have anyone to talk to at the company anymore. But I promised to visit her every day. Also, I think she’s having a personal crisis of some sort, though she won’t talk about it.”

  “Poor Mellissa,” Annie said. “We’ll buy her something nice to cheer her up. Maybe one of those new beaded bracelets that all the celebrities are wearing.”

  “You mean the beaded bracelets that Logan Mitchell is wearing,” I teased. “He’s fronting the campaign for them.”

  “Hey, I have to support my man. What is he, like thirty? His pretty face won’t last forever.”

  “What about George Clooney? And Brad Pitt? And Matthew Fox?”

  Annie put her hand up. “Okay, okay. I get it. Logan Mitchell will look hot until the day the aliens take him away. That’s the benefit of being a younger woman. I don’t have to keep up with my man. He’ll always look older than me, even with the Botox we get.”

  “Did you even talk to Logan at the product launch party?” I asked. I couldn’t believe that was only a little over a week ago. With everything that was happening, it felt like it was another lifetime.

  “Not technically. But I swear at one point during the night, I saw him staring over at me. I mean like, really staring. It was dark. He probably just mistook me for someone else. Or he was wondering if I was stalking him—which I was, of course. But I don’t know…when I caught him staring at me…it just felt…momentous.”

  I was a little worried. The expression on Annie’s face told me how much she was latching on to that stare, like a lovesick teenager. Celebrity crushes were fine when we were girls, but we were women now. Young women, but still women. I worried that if she became too obsessed with Logan Mitchell, she would miss out on an opportunity to be with someone really good. Someone in Portland. Not a movie star in Los Angeles that, I hated to say, probably didn’t know her name.

  “Annie, I’m sure if Logan Mitchell knew you as well as I did, you would be the only girl on his red carpet. But his life sounds pretty messed up right now. When we spoke in the garden, he made a reference to his battle with substance abuse. The only person Logan Mitchell should be in a relationship with right now is himself. You deserve a man close by. Someone who worships the ground you walk on.”

  Annie laughed. “Madison, I’m not talking about wedding bells. I just think the guy is hot. And I love the fact that I was at a party with him. Give me this one, okay? We don’t all have men taking us away on exciting adventures like you. Mama has to work with what she was given. I’m a student. I’m more than a student. I’m a senior in college. Right now my entire life is books, lectures, exams, and papers. I need something to daydream about so that I can survive senior year.”

  She was right. I apologized. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to be a buzzkill. Dream away.”

  “Right now, all I’m dreaming about is how much money we’re going to save at the outlet mall.”

  “It’s no dream. It’s a really happy reality. Why didn’t we do this much sooner?”

  “Because neither of us had any money,” Annie said blatantly. “I still don’t have any money, but I do have a new credit card. Thank god for America, the land where banks like to throw all the money they can at you when you’re young, so that you’ll be paying loans back for the rest of your life.”

  “Amen to that, sister,” I said, thinking of how my credit cards had allowed me to purchase my books in college. Double the classes so that I could graduate early meant double the books. And double the bill. “Anyway, let’s not think of that right now. Today is meant to be a day of fun.”

  “Oh yeah,” Annie said excitedly. “We may be bitches with a budget, but we’re going to rock it!”

  The steady hum of the bus lulled us into silence. I looked out the window, watching as the trees passed by, appreciating just how beautiful the Northwest was. Take me to Italy any day. Just make sure you return me home.

  Soon enough, we pulled into the parking lot of the outlet mall. It was actually more of a center than a mall. There were lots of different buildings. They were all round and almost fairytale like, almost as if they were gingerbread houses, but not as gaudy. I guess it made sense. To buy Calvin Klein at sixty percent off was a fairytale for anyone, man or woman.

  “I say we get some food first,” I suggested. Neither of us had eaten breakfast. With an afternoon of shopping ahead, the last thing I wanted to do was end up in th
e hospital again.

  “Do you think the food is discounted as well?” Annie said, hopping off the bus. “God, I hope so. It’ll make the day even better than it already is. Imagine if they have coffee here for a dollar. I’d drink the entire coffeehouse dry.”

  “It probably is discounted,” I supposed, though I didn’t know for sure. “I mean, why else would they set up shop in a place like this? They know people are going to spend all their money on clothes. They have to compete with the retailers.”

  Annie shook her head. “You were definitely meant for business. You may have the brain of a science nerd, like me, but you have the business sense of Kim Kardashian. That girl may be famous for no reason, but that’s just proof of how clever she is in the business world. In fact, it’s ultimate proof. If this whole physics thing goes belly up for me, I’m going to get butt implants. I might even make a sex tape.”

  “Ew. Please don’t. Don’t get me wrong, you’d look hot. But…just…don’t.”

  “We’ll see,” Annie said evasively as she grabbed my arm and led me to where the food was.

  We ate at a Mexican restaurant. I wanted nachos, and Annie wanted something not made of meat, thinking she might try going vegan for a while. I doubted that would happen. Annie could not live without her salami pizza. It was her go-to food. When finals came around, which they would soon, no matter how much she picked at her bean burrito now, I knew she would be eating salami pizza every night before her exams, claiming it gave her brain energy. I knew Annie like she was my sister.

  No one could replace Allison. We’d had an unbreakable bond, one I believed survived beyond her death. But Annie, being an only child with no cousins, was adopted into our family. My mom was her mom. My dad her dad. My brother her brother. We’d met our freshman year of college, sharing a lot of the same physics classes. We hadn’t known each other long when my sister passed away, but that didn’t stop Annie from helping to pull me through it.

  “Where to next?” I asked, throwing a napkin at her so she could wipe the chipotle sauce off her face. “I swear, Annie. You are the messiest eater I know.”

  “It’s part of my appeal,” she said, wiping her cheek clean. “It doesn’t matter to me where we start. I plan on hitting every single store here. Except Zumiez. The store itself is great, but all the teenage boys in there smell like…something green. And sweet. And herby.”

  I bit my lip. “Actually, my brother’s birthday is coming up soon. I planned to go into Zumiez’s to find him a gift. How about you go to Converse and get those shoes you wanted while I buy my brother’s birthday present, and then we can meet for coffee in half.”

  Annie raised an eyebrow. “It’ll take you half an hour to buy a present? He’s a teenage boy. Just pick anything off the shelf. He’ll love it.”

  It was probably true, but this was the first time I could buy him something decent for his birthday, so I at least wanted to try to find something worthy of my hard-earned money. “Then twenty. It’ll take us that long to stand in line, anyway.”

  “Okay,” she agreed. “Shoes. Prezzies. And then mochas.”

  ***

  Walking outside, swinging my bag with the present for my brother inside, I enjoyed the fresh air. The Cepheus Scientific building was a beautiful place to work, but it was hard being in an office all day. When I was a student, I was frequently outside, be it walking across campus or studying in the park. I missed breathing in air that wasn’t recycled through a vent.

  The coffeehouse was around the corner, but I had a few minutes to spare, so I stood outside the window of the one of the brand stores, looking at a collection of satchel purses. Until working at Cepheus Scientific, I never carried a purse, not unless it was for a night out. Instead, I used the pocket of my hoodie or my backpack to carry everything around. But now that I was a professional woman, I started to see the necessity of a good handbag.

  Behind me, on the road that weaved around the outlet, a car honked. Grabbing my attention, and the attention of most the shoppers, we applauded as a white car slowly rolled by. It was a wedding car, and in the back were two elderly newlyweds. A sign that said, “Just Married” was taped to the bumper. The couple looked older than my grandparents.

  When I turned back to the satchels in the window, there was a man standing next to me. “Hey, I know you,” he claimed. “You work for that company in Portland that just launched the 3D telescope. You’re Aurora Goldstein’s new receptionist.”

  “I’m her new assistant,” I corrected, stepping back from the intensity of his presence.

  The man gave me the creeps. He was a few years older than me. Outwardly, he looked quite respectable. He wore a designer sports coat, and he had clean skin and a nice smile. But something about him really felt off. As did the fact that he somehow knew who I was. There was no reason anyone out here should know who I worked for.

  “Yeah, whatever you call yourselves these days. Receptionist. Assistant. But you do work for Aurora, and newly so, don’t you?”

  “Maybe you should call the company and ask,” I asserted. Looking past the man, hoping for help, I saw Annie turn the corner. She was only two stores away. She would save me from this—whoever he was.

  “No need to be so jumpy,” he said and laughed. It sounded forced. “I’m only asking because I just bought one of those telescopes, and I can’t get it to work. Can you show me how to focus the lens?”

  I looked blankly at his empty hands. “How am I supposed to help you if you don’t have it with you?”

  “It’s in my car.”

  Warning bells went off in my head, rapid and loud, but the world moved in slow motion. I waved at Annie, trying to draw her attention. It set the guy off. He grabbed my arm, just as a black van pulled up to the curb.

  “Hey,” I said, trying to pull away. “Let go of me!”

  “Sorry, Mellissa, it’s nothing personal.”

  Before I could correct him, he put his hand over my mouth, and I was pushed into the van. The door slammed shut behind me, and the van sped off, screeching out of the parking lot. It was dark in back. I couldn’t see anything. All I could feel was a sweaty palm over my mouth. I could taste the salt from his skin. It made me sick.

  But not as sick as the realization that I was being abducted.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Mellissa

  Today was the type of day that carried an uncomfortable grayness to it, the type that made me want to crawl back into bed, to forget I had anywhere to be.

  Especially with everything that had been happening lately.

  “Mellissa! Sweetheart!” my grandmother called from the front room. “Can you please get me a cup of tea before you go?”

  Standing on my tiptoes in front of the bathroom mirror, I set my lip gloss down. “This is Portland, Memaw!” I hollered back. “Not the Deep South! We drink coffee here! Not tea!”

  Smiling, I continued putting on my lip gloss, in no hurry to get to work, even though work was in a hurry for me.

  “Is that a yes or a no, chickpea?”

  “Of course I’ll get it for you! Just give me a second!”

  “Great. Love you!”

  “Love you too!”

  I went to my closet. A gray day called for a gray dress. But a fitted one, on top of which I wore a white cardigan. Not that I would need it. The radiators in the halls of Cepheus Scientific were on permanent tropical mode. But it complemented the outfit nicely. A nice outfit for a gray day.

  What a bummer, I thought. I’d give anything to be with Madison and Annie right now. They’ll be lining up for the coach soon. Maybe I can still call in sick.

  It was a teasing thought. I had used up all my sick days with my chest infection. It was embarrassing missing so much work after only recently being hired into the company, but that was the way the cookie rolled. At least they hadn’t fired me. I was appreciative for that fact. Though, if I was being honest, I doubted anyone even realized I was gone.

  Except Russell. But he was not what
I wanted to think about right now. It would make it almost impossible to go to work if I did.

  I knew today wasn’t going to be a good day. I could feel the bad voodoo vibes since waking up. When the zipper on my favorite boots broke, I surrendered any attempt to look good. I went to the kitchen and put the kettle on for my grandmother’s tea.

  As the water boiled, I prepared a light breakfast for myself. The way I was stalling, there was no time to hit the twenty-four hour diner before work. The bacon and pancakes I was addicted to would have to wait for a day with much more promise. Today was a croissant and a scrambled egg day.

  “Do you want any breakfast, Memaw?” I bellowed.

  “Are the croissants fresh?”

  “I bought them yesterday!”

  “Is there strawberry jam?”

  I went to the cupboard and checked. “No! Only marmalade!”

  “I hate marmalade!”

  “Then why did you buy it?”

  “It was on sale! I thought you liked it!”

  “No. I hate it too! So do you want a croissant or not!”

  “Yes! Of course, chickpea!”

  When the water finished boiling, I let the tea brew and set it on a tray with a croissant. It would keep my grandmother going until the nurse came in to make her lunch. Her arthritis was getting bad. It worried me. I almost thought it might be best if she moved back to the South with the others. The South was much warmer. She wouldn’t suffer so much there.

  But I knew she wouldn’t leave me behind.

  And as much as I loved my grandmother, I could never go back.

  I brought the tray into the front room and then I grabbed my keys. “I’m off,” I told her, kissing her cheek. “Try not to sit on the remote again. I love you, Memaw, but I simply can’t get any more calls from you at work saying the TV is possessed because it keeps switching channels. Check under your butt.”

  “I love you too, chickpea. Have a nice day.”