Ruthless Billionaire

by Cheryl Phipps

  He followed her down a narrow alley to an untainted door, and she unlocked it. Jenna paused as if she wanted to say something. His protectiveness was undoubtedly unwanted, and odd for both of them. Jenna probably wanted to tell him to shove off. In the end, she went inside and they climbed a very narrow stairwell.

  It opened into an open-plan room that wasn’t very big. A tiny kitchenette was just inside the door. A small table with two chairs sat under a window that looked out into the street. Apart from a double bed in the corner, a small couch was the only other piece of furniture, and he could only imagine that the bathroom was through a door in the corner of the room.

  It was clean and tidy, but the reek of smoke had permeated everything. Even the curtains looked gray.

  “You can’t stay here. Maybe you’ve gotten used to it, but the dress will stink by tomorrow.”

  She tapped her foot. “Did I smell today?”

  “I didn’t get close enough.”

  “You practically fell on top of me, remember?” She crossed the small room. “Smell me,” she demanded.

  It would have been funny, but with that look on her face, he didn’t dare give in to his amusement. He dutifully leaned down and sniffed. There was a lovely hint of strawberries and roses, overshadowed by eau de smoke.

  “It’s in your hair.”

  “I washed it this morning,” she said, quickly moving away.

  “I rest my case.”

  “Okay, take the clothes with you. I’ll get dressed at your place, after having my hair done.”

  “I want you to come home with me now.”

  “I said no.”

  Ben wanted to throw her over his shoulder and carry her out of this tidy, but reeking room. However, his mother wouldn’t have approved if he’d been stuck in jail tomorrow.

  “How do I know you won’t stand me up?”

  “There’s the small matter of money.”

  “Ahh. Yes. I’d forgotten.”

  “I hadn’t.”

  “No. I don’t suppose you would.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “What does that mean?’

  “Nothing. The wedding’s at 3 p.m. Please be there by noon.”

  Why so early? Don’t you trust me?”

  “I haven’t decided on that yet. What about you?”

  “I guess we’ll find out tomorrow.”

  Jenna handed him back the bags of clothes and shoes. He wasn’t happy, but she was right—tomorrow they’d know. Trusting her not to get him into trouble with his mother and sister was as necessary as it was pathetic.

  At least he knew why she needed the money, and his protectiveness was to be expected, since he had a sister.

  Except these feelings Jenna evoked went beyond protection.

  Chapter Five

  Jenna hadn’t been able to get an appointment until 10:30 a.m. As luck would have it, the hairdresser had been running late. Sandra was apologetic, which made it hard to be annoyed, especially when she’d fitted Jenna in around her other regulars.

  By the time Jenna arrived at Ben’s place, she was beyond stressed. The heat of the car made her feel sticky and out of sorts. She wasn’t sure what to expect from today and she didn’t want to be thinking about Benjamin Knight in any other way than as an employer. Which sounded easy and practical, but was far harder to do in reality.

  He looked and smelled good. He was all man, and he knew it. He could buy and sell anything. She didn’t have to like any of it, just to pretend she did. How long could it possibly take?

  When she was stopped at the gate and grilled through the window of her shabby green mini, it was too much.

  “I’m Jenna Molloy. Check your list.”

  The security employee looked her up and down suspiciously, before studying his clipboard for the third time. When she’d all but given up hope, his eyebrow lifted as if in surprise, and he pressed the button to allow her entry.

  She gave him a cheeky wave, making sure her fingers behaved themselves, as she drove up a long driveway shaded by enormous oak trees. It swept around a massive fountain in the middle of the courtyard. Cherubs frolicked in the tumbling water, as a knight complete with sword stood guard above their heads.

  A knight? That wasn’t pretentious at all.

  She pulled on the emergency brake, amazed at the difference between this and the way she and Renee had arrived yesterday. The entrance they’d used was a simple gravel driveway on a back road that had taken them to the grounds beyond the huge mansion. Renee might have been inside once or twice when she was negotiating the contract, but to Jenna it had simply been an edifice in the distance.

  So deep in contemplation was she that when her door was yanked open, she almost screamed.

  “What the hell are you playing at? You were supposed to be here an hour ago!”

  Ben leaned into the small interior causing her to rear back. The fright was more than enough to make her blood boil.

  “Hey! Don’t yell at me, buddy.”

  Ben moved back, and growled. “I’m not your buddy.”

  “No, you’re not.” She grabbed her bag from the back seat and climbed out to face a still very angry man.

  “We had a deal. I need to know right now if this is a sample of how the rest of the day’s going to go?”

  “How do you mean?”

  “With you not listening, and doing whatever, whenever you want?”

  Jenna knew she had a wayward tongue and now was no exception. “Stop being dramatic.”

  Ben stepped back in shock. “I. Am. Never. Dramatic.”

  “Oh really?” It was tough to hold back the bubbling laugh that she caught in her throat, just in time.

  Ben scratched his head in frustration, and Jenna had a moment to wonder at the prickle of pity she felt for the big, snobbishly spoiled lug.

  “Look, the hairdresser could only squeeze me in, then she ran late. It couldn’t be helped. Instead of wasting time, haranguing me, how about you show me where my clothes are?”

  Ben took a deep breath, clearly fighting for control. “Follow me.”

  It wasn’t a hard thing to do. He had a great body, and his butt was looking very fine in his suit pants. The white shirt had shown off his tan nicely, and the blue tie had been a perfect match for his eyes. Jenna shook herself as they wandered along a hall, then took a back stairway to a garage.

  Up an outside stairwell, there was another apartment.

  Ben opened the unlocked door, allowing her to enter first. The room was very modern. Pale walls and aged furniture that had probably been surplus to the main house faced a large window, from which she could see the tents on the back lawns. Through an open door, she had a glimpse of a ginormous bed nestled in an alcove. Her whole apartment could fit in that room, and the bed looked like it was perfect for a good night’s sleep. Or anything else that might crop up.

  Jenna blushed as her mind raced. It was an effort to focus on why she was here. She gave Ben a quick glance, but he was checking his watch. Just beside the door was a coat stand, from which her dress hung.

  “Give me ten minutes to get ready.”

  Ben looked her way and snorted. “Ten minutes?”

  “Sure, that’s all it’ll take. I do have a couple of sisters, you know. I’m not like any woman you’ve ever met.”

  “I don’t doubt it.”

  She blushed, aware that this had become a habit around Ben. “The sooner you leave, the sooner I can be ready.”

  He shrugged and left her to it, shutting the door behind him. Jenna would prove to him that when she said something she meant it.

  Pulling off her jeans and sweater, she reached for the dress. Slipping the silky fabric over her head, mindful of her upswept hair, she pulled it into place. That’s when she saw a problem. When she’d tried on the dress in the store, she’d been wearing a different bra. This morning when she’d got dressed, she’d put on her nicest underwear. Not for any reason, other than she wanted to look her best. To do the dress justice, she told herself.r />
  The bra straps were totally visible. She slipped her arms out of the straps and tried to tuck them under her arms. Nope. That wasn’t going to work. The dress was too low-cut there too. There was only one thing for it: she’d have to go braless.

  After removing the offending article, she put the dress back on. Only to find the next issue—she couldn’t pull the zip up with her new nails.

  She checked her makeup, adding fresh lip gloss, and slipped on the shoes that had been left at the end of the bed. Adding a fresh spritz of her favorite perfume, her one indulgence, she opened the door a crack.

  Ben turned from watching the preparations below. In amazement, he looked at his watch. “I don’t believe it. Ten minutes exactly.”

  “Ummm. Not quite. Can you give me a hand with something?”

  His amazement turned to suspicion. “What’s happened?” he asked, his voice heavy with suspicion.

  “My zipper. I can’t pull it up with these.” She flashed him the gleaming talons that she’d never experienced before. It seemed like a good idea last night, when she’d been doing her other prep, by shaving and plucking things that she hadn’t bothered with in several months. As you do, when you don’t want to stand out. She’d been bored, and was too tired to clean anymore soot. It was just something to do.

  Feeling better with her justification, when Ben pushed the door open, she happily spun around to give him access. Nothing happened. Jenna looked over her shoulder.

  “What’s up?”

  Chapter Six

  Ben gulped. He shouldn’t be having this reaction to a bare back. After all, he’d seen a few. But it wasn’t just any back. This one belonged to the feisty handful in front of him. Jenna was obviously not wearing a bra, so it must be that making his palms sweaty. Although her gloriously pale skin was an aphrodisiac all by itself.

  “It’s all good. I couldn’t see the zipper,” he growled.

  Jenna frowned at his ineptness, something he’d never been accused of before, and he was glad when she faced the other away.

  He picked up the end of the zipper, and pulled gently. His knuckles touched her skin and she shivered, which in turn caused his libido to go into overdrive. Slowly he maneuvered the zip up to the top, every second a tantalizing tease.

  “Done?”

  “Pardon? Oh yes. There you go.”

  She squirmed a little as she adjusted the bodice. Ben wouldn’t have minded helping that process.

  “Will I do?” She did a twirl.

  “Perfectly,” he said, unable to take his eyes from the slight jiggle of her very perky breasts.

  “Shall we go?”

  Ben let his gaze travel the length of her, stopping at her face and those magnificent eyes. It took more time than it should have to register her displeasure.

  “Stop that.”

  He could hardly refute that he’d been checking her out. “I was just making sure that you were presentable.”

  “I’m not some piece of merchandise,” she said, heatedly.

  “Of course not. Still, this is my sister’s wedding.”

  Jenna cruised past him, not bothering to answer. The way he was carrying on like a hormonal teenager, he didn’t blame her for being annoyed. Just what was it that made him want her the way he did, and made him feel like an awkward teenager on his first date?

  Damn it, this wasn’t a date.

  He walked behind her, watching the skirt swish around that delicious butt, and he had to drag his eyes away. As soon as they went back into the house they’d likely be confronted by dozens of people, his mother among them, and there was no way he wanted her to know that he fancied Jenna. She’d been trying to marry him off for a few years, and she needed no encouragement from him.

  The first person they met was his sister Sarah. She was waiting at the end of the hall, hair done, but no wedding gown in sight. She looked miserable.

  “Hey, what’s up? The arch was definitely moved yesterday. I checked.”

  “It’s not the damn arch. Marcus went to Vegas for the bachelor party.”

  “I know that.”

  “Did you know that his flight was delayed?”

  “No, I hadn’t heard.”

  She glared at him. “If you’d gone with him, this wouldn’t have happened.”

  Ben felt a twinge of guilt, but he couldn’t show his sister any weakness, otherwise he’d never hear the end of it. He still might not. “You can’t know that for sure.”

  She waved her hand at him. “Regardless, he’s still en route, which means he’ll be late. I can’t believe he’s done this. I told him not to go so close to the wedding, but he promised he’d be back two days ago. He got sick, and rebooked his flights for this morning. Now there’s this delay.”

  Sarah’s voice had risen several octaves, and, rarely for her, she began to cry.

  “How far away is he?’

  “I don’t know,” she wailed. “His phone cut out when I finally reached him a little while ago. There’s no answer from the best man or the others I know in his group of idiots. Caris’s on redial as we speak.”

  Seeing his sister like this, and on her wedding day, Ben could have quite happily throttled his brother-in-law to be. Not that he’d ever thought Marcus was good enough for Sarah. He was mainly interested in having a good time, working when he felt like it, thanks to a rich hedge-fund family who indulged him.

  A bit like the twins, but they had to do their share. His mother, Sarah, and himself made sure of it. As the baby, Caris was also spoiled, but she was watched after by all of them, which didn’t always go down too well. And they were a good deal younger than Marcus.

  Sarah was trying to compose herself, and Ben resisted the urge to hug her, knowing how she felt about weakness, especially her own. The two of them were a lot alike. Being the eldest they had also had to step up after their father’s death, and they’d done so willingly.

  “What do you need me to do?”

  Through gritted teeth, she forced out a command. Which was more to his liking, just now.

  “Find him. Get him here. The wedding is due to start in an hour. Make sure it’s as close to that as you can get it.” With that, she turned tail and hurried to the stairs, past some early arrivals, and their mother, who excused herself from greeting them and gave him a nod toward her private sitting room.

  “Hello. We haven’t met. I’m Eloise Knight,” she said, over Ben’s shoulder.

  “Hello, Mrs. Knight. I’m Jenna Molloy. Ben’s date for the wedding.”

  She gave a small smile. “Welcome. Ben did tell me about you, and thanks for helping him out. I’m afraid you’ve caught us at a bad moment, and I’m sorry you have to witness it. Would you mind if Ben and I had a private chat?”

  “Not at all. I’ll wait in the garden.”

  “Thank you, dear.”

  Ben had forgotten about Jenna, with the concern for his mother and sister, and was relieved that she’d gone quietly. His mother was not one to be crossed, as he well knew. He followed her into the room, and she waited for him to shut the door. She looked lovely apart from her expression. He wouldn’t want to be in Marcus’s shoes.

  “Obviously, you know the situation. Sarah, wants me to find Marcus.” It was often advisable to get in first.

  “I’m sure you can do it. If he wants to be found.”

  “What are you implying.”

  “I’ll bet he’s got cold feet.”

  “Mom! How can you say that?”

  “I can, because it’s true. You haven’t been around much, and Sarah has done everything in her power to sabotage their relationship. It was a matter of time before he took the coward’s way out.”

  “I don’t understand. Why would Sarah do that?”

  “She’d afraid. She’s not sure if he’s the one.”

  “Assuming there is such a thing.”

  His mother slumped into the chair she favored: a wingback floral concoction that he abhorred, but it suited her straight back way of sitting, a
s if every minute was important and not to be missed.

  “I can’t understand how I managed to raise children who don’t believe in love. Your father and I were deeply in love, didn’t you see that? Where did I fail you?”

  Ben was astounded at seeing his mother falling apart. First Sarah and now her. This was scary stuff. He knelt by her chair.

  “You could never fail us. We’re spoiled, that’s the problem. We saw how good you and Dad were and it made us yearn for perfection. We struggle with anything less.”

  “My darling boy. There’s no such thing as perfection. Did you honestly think I didn’t want to throttle your father on more than one occasion? Did you not know that he called me ‘the boss,’ and not always in a flattering way? As long as you have a lot of love, you can weather all of that. That’s what a marriage is.”

  “Now you tell me,” he grinned.

  She pulled his ear affectionately. “What do you plan to do?”

  “First, I’ll find him. Whether I can get Sarah married is not really my call. If he’s not in 100 percent, then perhaps we shouldn’t force the issue. Although I don’t want to be the one to tell Sarah that, if Marcus really has had a change of heart.”

  His mother shook her head with the smallest of smiles. “Me either.”

  Ben stood and pulled out his phone. He called his best friend, Andy, who would be on the grounds somewhere, and asked him to meet him in the room over the garage.

  He kissed his mother on the cheek. “Let the games begin.”

  “Good luck, although knowing how competitive you are, I have total faith that you will fix this. I want Sarah to be the winner—however that looks. I might check in with Sarah.”

  “Tell her I’m on to it.”

  “I hope that’s enough to calm her down. By the way, good choice. Jenna looks like a lovely girl.”

  Ben thought so too, but he wasn’t about to share that information. Or the circumstances. His mother could believe that Jenna was a previous girlfriend or one from a list she imagined he carried around for this purpose. It didn’t matter to him.

  He wondered where she was. In that dress. Looking the way she did.