One Night With The Tycoon (Billionaire's One Night #1)

by Roxy Sinclaire

  It was done. Finally. I had no idea that all this had been weighing down on me so hard for so long. Now I was liberated. Reborn. Like a totally new me. I felt free as a bird. Spreading my arms wide in the air, I felt like I could fly.

  Sean

  I woke up with the idea of taking Mia to the zoo. I didn’t know why or how that idea had come to me. It just did. With each passing moment, the idea grew on me more and more. While I was taking a shower, I started to imagine us going from animal to animal, Mia feeding them as I explained to her what it was and some of the basic facts I knew about it. Spectacular!

  I quickly dried myself. In no time at all, my cell was in my hand.

  Before going to sleep I had put a selfie of me, Kayla and Mia as my background and I had completely forgotten about it. When I unlocked the phone I was again aware of how good they made me feel. I felt as if they were close to me right now.

  Kayla was smiling the big toothy smile that she hated; however, I loved it and asked her to do it for me. She felt that her teeth weren’t even or shit like that. The situation was far from that. She had the most perfect teeth I had ever seen in my life. Mia was between us; her curly hair covering a bit of my face and her hands were open as if she wanted to pinch my cheeks through the phone’s screen. My heart warmed at the sight.

  Sighing, I clicked the nanny’s number. Luckily, I had remembered to save her number with her name. Otherwise I wouldn’t have thought of it.

  “Hello, Mr. Coleman,” a creaky feminine voice came from the other side.

  “Danielle, I want to take Mia to the zoo. Just called in to inform you.” I drummed my fingers against the table in anticipation.

  “Very nice to hear from you, sir. Miss Kayla didn’t say anything, but I guess she’ll say yes to it,” she replied. Her voice was unimaginably squeaky on the phone and it seemed to me that she was making the words last for ages. Totally unnecessary.

  “She will, yeah. I’m sure. Okay, then. I’ll come shortly to pick the both of you up.”

  “Works for me, sir. I’ll be waiting for you,” she breathed out. After each sentence she made a long pause, which drove me up the wall. Something was wrong with this woman. I had known that since she had decided to blow me a kiss at Kayla’s. I should tell Kayla.

  I threw my cell on the table and went to get dressed. I smiled and didn’t let the actions of the nanny darken my mood. I was going to see Mia. We were going to the zoo! Yay! I was a ten-year-old again. And it felt unexpectedly good.

  When I went outside, the sky was a bit overcast. I hoped that the wind would chase all the clouds away and finally the sun would come up. In no time, I found myself before Kayla’s apartment.

  However, it started to rain. I quickly took the umbrella from the trunk of my car and headed for the building. I kept stepping in small puddles. Hopefully it would pass soon.

  But it didn’t pass. With each minute that passed, it rained harder and harder. And just when I wanted to take Mia to the zoo.

  I fixed my hair and rang the doorbell. Danielle opened the door and I entered.

  Mia ran to me and gave me a big hug

  “How’s my favorite girl in the world?” I asked her, kissing her cheeks.

  “Great. I wanted to go to the zoo, but it is raining too hard,” she said a bit sadly.

  I turned to look at the windows which were covered with droplets. The sky was completely gray. Ugh!

  “Yeah. We have to make a rain check on the trip, okay?” I shifted my gaze from Mia to Danielle and back.

  “That would be for the best, sir,” Danielle said and smiled.

  I didn’t reply. Instead, Mia started to tell me a funny anecdote that had happened in school during her Science class when a boy had accidentally let out a frog and it had been hopping all around the classroom.

  “Wow, that truly is something you don’t see every day,” I said.

  “Yes. And it was hilarious, too. Now I’m going to my bedroom to watch my favorite cartoon,” she said and went off.

  I was staring after her when Danielle said, “They grow up so fast, don’t they?”

  I remained silent and went to the sofa and sat. “So, Danielle… I may call you that, right?”

  “Certainly, sir. You can call me anything you want,” she replied.

  I couldn’t help it but roll my eyes. “Tell me a little about yourself? Where do you work? What did you study? You understand, I have to know Mia’s nanny very well. After all, she spends a great deal of time with you every week.”

  “Yes, I completely understand,” she said and sat next to me on the couch. “Well, there is nothing really important around me, you know. I live in this town and am quite fit for the job as Ms. Kayla hired me. But you, sir, when you came somehow the whole apartment became lighter.”

  Silence. I didn’t know how to reply to that. As far as I was concerned she didn’t even deserve a reply at all. A strange thought came to my mind. If the old me was sitting here on the couch and this woman said that to my face… My old self would have started screwing her ten minutes ago. It was in these moments that I realized I had changed. And for the better. Mia and Kayla had changed me completely. I was sure that I wouldn’t know what to say about this new me when I returned home.

  “You know, sir… Can I ask you something?” Danielle said and hauled me back from my train of thoughts.

  “Err… Yeah, sure. Bring it on.”

  “Are you… seeing Kayla? I mean, Ms. Vaughn. Do you date?” Her hand was perched on a cushion as the tip of her forefinger came close to her lips.

  I was taken aback. Truly. I didn’t even expect that this woman would go to such lengths. What was wrong with everyone around me?

  “That… That… That shouldn’t concern you, Danielle. The relationship we have is entirely up to us. If you understand me,” I said a bit diplomatically.

  “So you date?”

  I sighed. “Anyway, what are Mia’s favorite hobbies? I’m still getting to know her. She likes reading, yes?” I desperately tried to change the subject, because it was getting unbelievably awkward. Of course I already knew all of Mia’s hobbies by heart now. I just wanted a change of topic.

  “I like to do oral things,” she said. My face was blank, not showing any emotion. What the heck was this woman talking about? “I like to tell her stories, not read them. You know, with my lips and my mouth.” She chuckled as if she had just said the best joke in the entire world. Ha-ha. Very funny. Hilarious!

  It was more like rolling on the floor dying instead of laughing. My lips curved into a polite smile that quickly vanished from my face. I thought that I had heard everything, but this… this was something I had never heard anyone say. Horrible.

  “And seriously, sir. What types of women do you prefer?” she said, playing with a curl of her hair. “Blondes or brunettes? Experienced or newbies? Or you like every beautiful woman, huh?” She came closer to me and even snuggled up to me. What the fuck?

  I stood up immediately. That seemed to satisfy her for her mouth turned into a wicked grin.

  “I’m discussing business with you, Danielle. Nothing more. Now… How do you help Mia with her studies?” I asked, so that I could shift the conversation and her mind off me. I didn’t know if I was going to last more than five minutes with this… awful creature.

  “Hmm…” Danielle stood up as well and started towards the kitchen. Then she turned abruptly and took a bottle of wine from the liquor cabinet. Kayla would never allow that. She kept those only for herself and me. What was this nanny doing anyway? How could she hire her? Danielle was a fiasco of a person.

  “Danielle, behave and put that back in the cabinet.” I increased my voice and was now shouting at her. I didn’t care if Mia could hear us. This nonsense had to be stopped.

  She clicked her tongue. “Why so serious, sir?” She opened the bottle and drank from it. Like it was hers.

  “Give that to me!” I yelled and headed towards her. In that moment she sprayed the ruby liquid o
n me, laughing hysterically.

  “We’re going to have some fun,” she said and bit her lips.

  “What did you do?” I yelled and looked down at my shirt which was soaked with huge red patches. “Go away!”

  “I don’t want to,” she replied and started to take her clothes off. My eyes popped up in surprise as I began to cover her. She was mental. She needed a doctor.

  A thud. Bang!

  Shit!

  I turned to see Kayla. She was standing in the doorway with all she had been carrying splattered on the ground. Fruits and vegetables rolled out of the paper bags and a glass bottle broke when it hit the ground.

  And Kayla started to scream. “OUT! The both of you! How dare you? You assholes! You shit!” Her tongue was working way faster than her mind. She thought that I was having an affair with Danielle. From outside, it must have looked that way.

  “Babe, please… You don’t understand… I…”

  “I don’t want to see you again! Out of my apartment and out of my life! I hate you!” Her ramblings didn’t seem to stop.

  “It’s not what it looks like. Babe, believe me.” I approached her and she just chased me away, hitting me with her fists.

  “I understand everything. The playboy Sean came out to play, huh? Your body couldn’t resist this whore! Get away from me!” Kayla yelled.

  “No, babe. Please…”

  She pushed me out of the apartment and banged the door in my face. Wow! My life had changed in only one minute. I hit the wall with my fist, anger welling up in me. I needed to kick and fight someone really bad.

  Danielle had already slipped out of the apartment and was staring at me.

  “What are you looking at, huh? You slut! How could you do that? You’re the kid’s nanny, for God’s sake.”

  “I didn’t do anything,” she replied in a soft voice.

  That was it. She was going to get all of my fury. “You did everything, you whore! Everything! You ruined everything.” I raised my hand to hit her, but stopped. She ran away, obviously not interested in me anymore. What an imbecile of a woman!

  I knew she was trouble.

  With all of the veins pronounced on my neck and red in the face, I got into my car. What had started out as an amazing day this morning, had turned into my biggest nightmare. There was no going back now.

  I started the engine and furiously pressed the gas pedal, speeding down the road. Everything I had worked so hard to achieve crumbled before my own eyes. But that wasn’t the worst thing. What infuriated me was that it wasn’t even my fault. Damn it!

  As I waited at the red light, I hit the wheel and put my head in my hands. This wasn’t happening!

  After a few minutes my anger subsided and I called my agent. I had to go home for a game in a few weeks anyway. The news that I was returning early would surely be like winning the Super Bowl for him.

  “Hey, Brent. I’m returning home early. Thought you should know,” I said coldly.

  He was quick to reply, “Great. Everything’s settled here. After you land, we have a quick photo shoot and some meet and greet with lucky fans.”

  That made me silent. Gears started turning in my head. I furrowed my eyebrows in suspicion. “Wait a bit. How did you know that I was coming?”

  “W-W-Well… It… Err… It’s on the news.”

  “What’s on the news? My coming home? Don’t be ridiculous!” There was an undertone of rage and wrath in my voice. I was done living for others.

  “You’re on the news, yeah. A report of some encounter with another woman. A nanny, to be more precise.”

  And in that moment everything fit into my brain. Like a Rubik’s cube, I understood everything. The dark games and schemes for money and power.

  “Brent, how could you?” I screamed. I was unrecognizable even to me.

  “Sean, you’re out of your mind. What did I do? I just booked you for…”

  “That’s the problem.” I exhaled. I thought that I had wasted all my energy, but I was surprised to find out that I had still that ferocity in me. “You weren’t surprised at all when I told you I was coming home early. You even booked me for events. Before I called you. You hired that bitch Danielle, right? You paid her to act like that! Admit it!”

  Silence.

  “Speak, you moron!” I yelled.

  “Fine. I did, yeah. I did some research and found that some Danielle Rowen was working as Mia’s nanny. The power of cash beats everything, Sean. I contacted her and paid her to make a scene in Kayla’s apartment. I staged it all. You happy now?”

  “Why did you do that? I… I thought that you were my friend and colleague. We’ve been through so much…” I was still in disbelief. However, the fault here was mine. I trusted him. I trusted a man driven only by money. Nothing more. Where there was money, there was Brent. I shouldn’t have trusted him.

  Brent chuckled. “Simple. Because you had to continue your lifestyle. You still have to be that playboy football player that the girls love. That’s the only way I’m doing business.”

  “You backstabbed me because of money, you bastard!” I shouted, spit flying all around me.

  “You’ll thank me. Once you realize the good I’ve done to you. The fame and glory I brought to you. You’re still unaware of that.”

  I had had enough of that. “Fuck you, Brent! Fuck you and your money and your playboy! You’re fired! Forget me and forget that you’ve ever worked for me.”

  I hung up and breathed in and out. In and out. In and out.

  This man ruined my relationship with Kayla. He distanced me from Mia. What I did to him was too merciful. He would get what he deserved. Eventually.

  I resumed driving, inhaling and exhaling to calm myself. My heart was about to burst. I could feel it.

  In and out. In and out.

  Kayla

  The rain continued for several days now without stopping. The skies were constantly gray, with occasional thunder and lightning illuminating them. The horrible weather started to worsen my already bad mood.

  I had no job. I had no boyfriend. Yeah, I was hopeless.

  How much my life had changed in just a few days. From being a single mom in love and an extremely successful lawyer, to now just being a single mom—a desperate unemployed mom. Yup. A desperate mom with thousands of job advertisements all around her.

  The TV was on for the sake of hearing someone talking while I was buried inside the latest fat edition of the newspaper’s classified pages. I was more of an old school type of woman. Google was overrated to me.

  In this situation the only thing I could be thankful for was none other than Mia. She was the loveliest daughter in the whole world. She was always quiet and played by herself in her bedroom. She gave me space when I was crying, because she knew that I would be even more upset if I knew she could see me crying. It was complicated, you see. But she understood me. Like a real grownup would. I was proud of myself for raising such a sweet creature all by myself.

  Coincidentally, I raised my gaze to look at the TV. It was a talk show where the guest was a motivational speech expert.

  “Get up, women. We’ve had enough,” she spoke. “It’s time to pull out a full stop, break the glass ceiling and take back what was taken from us. Fight! All of you at home watching us. Fight!”

  Indeed. I had to put my life back in order. In addition to looking for a job, I had to find a new nanny for Mia. The previous one had proved too…inadequate for the job, to put it mildly. Danielle Man-seducer Rowen.

  I thought of my boss’s suggestion again.

  A few days ago he had emailed me that he had realized what had happened. He apologized profusely for his behavior back in the office and wanted me to come back. He also wrote that he understood finally what kind of a man James was. Here came the best part. He was offering me a substantial compensation, as he called it, for his behavior and, as well as a higher salary as an additional incentive.

  But I couldn’t do it. No. My principles and morals wouldn�
�t allow it. It just wasn’t an option for me. I had to turn it down. I didn’t know why I thought of that email again in the first place.

  Sighing, I returned to my classified pages search. With a highlighter and a pen in hand, I quietly circled and underlined key words in the listings. Several minutes later, I found an interesting ad. They were hiring an experienced lawyer who was willing to take chances and bring something new to the firm.

  That was it! It was practically my personal description. I had to contact them. Luckily, they provided a number.

  “Hello, my name is Kayla Vaughn and I’m interested in the advertisement you placed in the classified pages.”

  “Hello, Ms. Vaughn,” a pleasant female voice replied. “I’m so sorry, but we’ve already hired a person for that position.” Oh my God, no! “However, We’re always looking for new people and ideas.” Blah, blah, blah. She was now just making me feel good.

  “Me too. Goodbye,” I replied and hung up.

  I rubbed my temples and sighed. This was going to be harder than I had ever expected it to be. I was in for a pretty long day.

  Then someone poked my upper arm lightly. I knew who it was.

  “Baby, how are you?” I asked Mia and hugged her.

  “Mommy, can I ask you something?”

  “Okay, sure” I replied, blinking. I had absolutely no idea what was going on in her mind.

  “When is Sean coming back? I miss him. He’s really good to me,” she said with her hands behind her back.

  That broke my heart. That cute little human being needed a father figure in her life. She loved Sean. And she loved him like a father although he may not be hers. I knew that. And that fact broke my heart even more. Why the heck was I making myself sad?

  I breathed in and held my breath. Should I tell her what happened? Could she handle it? “I-I don’t know, honey. Probably we’ll never see him again.” I had to at least tell her that.

  “What do you mean we’ll never see him? Did he move away?”

  “Baby, it’s very complicated. It’s an adult thing. It happens. I’m so sorry. But he’s gone.”