Hot Daddy: A Billionaire Single Dad Romance

by R. R. Banks

  As I hold on to Amanda's hand, I smile wide. Life is good. Life is very, very good. And to think – it all started with a sham wedding and a fake bride.

  Like I said, life is funny and strange sometimes.

  THE END

  Billionaire Boss Series

  Boss Me Hard

  Chapter 1

  “Are we there yet?” asked Hannah anxiously, looking out the window over the Persian Gulf as they flew toward their destination. She leaned back in her chair, looking up at the ceiling as her best friend and coworker, Alexis, leaned over, patting her on the knee before shaking her head and looking out the window. “Sorry, I’m just ready to get this project moving,” continued Hannah as Alexis comforted her, chuckling lightly as she sipped from her bottle of water.

  Alexis looked over to the other seat to find the man sitting beside her asleep, as he had been for most of the trip. “Maybe you should have had what he was having,” referencing the four bottles of liquor he drank prior to take off in Rome. “He seems to be handling his nerves quite well.”

  Hannah leaned forward and looked at the man draped over his seat, hanging out into the aisle. His mouth was hanging open and he was snoring lightly as the two girls looked on in amazement. “That is one way to handle nerves,” quipped Hannah, shrugging her shoulders as she leaned back in her chair and pointed at the window. “But if you do that, you miss this amazing view.”

  “I’m pretty sure he booked the aisle seat because he would rather look at the back of his eye lids than at any other view,” replied Alexis sarcastically, but in a jovial manner. “Besides, we don’t know all of the information. He could be so afraid of heights that the window seat makes him incredibly nervous. It could cause him to vomit profusely anytime he looks out the window and the aisle seat, combined with a lot of nature’s cure for bad dancing and awkward conversation, can ease him just enough that he can make it through the flight without causing a scene.”

  Hannah nodded. “Or he could just be passed out from getting drunk,” she stated plainly.

  “Or that,” admitted Alexis before turning to look at the man again before facing Hannah. “Probably that.” Both girls leaned back in their chairs and continued to wait patiently for the plane to approach their destination: Dubai.

  Dubai. A city built for billionaires, that encompassed manmade islands created out of sand to provide extra space for living, and a night life that thrived with some of the best restaurants and nightclubs in the world. A booming metropolis, the professional world centered on trade, stemming from importing goods into the area for the large shops and bazaars, to exporting oil and other resources. Having built their entire city on the fortune of oil, and with the Port of Jebel Ali being nestled within its borders, Dubai is an essential connection to have for anyone in the oil business.

  One of these companies is the American Oil Trade and Refiners, based out of New York City. Their business model is simple: use an immense buying power to get the cheapest product available and distribute it at slightly below market price. And Alexis Matthews and Hannah Burchfield, two of the best and brightest employees at the American Oil Trade and Refiners, made sure this happened. Both were credited with increasing profits and efficiency, building relations, and enhancing the company’s reputation. Though having never visited Dubai, both girls were trained and prepared to handle the tasks at hand.

  ***

  Alexis Matthews at twenty-eight, was already carving out a niche for herself in the professional world. Having joined the company straight out of graduate school at age twenty-three, Alexis immediately leapt into the limelight as a master administrator, being able to handle a burdensome workload while producing incredible results. With her expertise at tariffs and customs, and her fluency in seven languages allowing her to communicate with the port authorities and local magistrates for the various regions they dealt with, she quickly proved herself to be indispensable at moving cargo from one end of the world to another. She was definitely a force to be reckoned with. While she was not very tall, her thin, toned body suited her and with stunning brunette hair hanging down to her shoulder blades accentuating her tanned skin, she drew many a man’s eye.

  Hannah Burchfield though only twenty-seven and a few years behind Alexis in terms of her career, was cunning, curious, and a master negotiator. The girls grew up together in New York City, attending the same schools and becoming inseparable over time but chose different routes after high school. While Alexis went to business and graduate school, Hannah decided to try law school after college. After three years of law school she realized that a career on the bench did not suit her. As she had since childhood, she turned to her best friend Alexis for advice. A few hours of persuasion later, Alexis convinced Hannah to apply for a clerk position with the American Oil Trade and Refiners, filing all the documents that came in. It was a lesser job than Hannah wanted to do with her life, but she accepted that it was a start.

  After the interview, she was offered a job, during which she showed off her talent at negotiating, convincing the human resources representative to give her nearly double what was offered with a much more lucrative benefits package. Before she could even sign the contract, however, one of the board members informed her that she would be given an audition: a working interview with a live negotiation. Though having very little knowledge of the industry, Hannah initiated the call with a supplier from Tunisia. While she could not get him to accept the lowest offer, she was able to make a substantial profit for the company she wasn’t even working for yet. Everyone looked on in disbelief at how she was able to convince someone, who never negotiated, to come down on his price. Hannah had already begun creating her reputation. The board offered her a position as a lead negotiator on the spot, with a very lucrative pay and benefits package, which she accepted under one condition: she could work with her best friend, Alexis.

  Hannah was just slightly taller than Alexis, with an athletic physique and a soft, pale complexion. Her silky blonde hair, usually kept up in a ponytail, flowed down to the middle of her back. Always filled with energy, she never stopped too long to enjoy the scenery.

  ***

  The plane started its descent into Dubai with Hannah starting to become more anxious. As she listened to the pilot over the loud speaker, her nerves stood on end as she looked out the window, seeing the scenery of Dubai in the distance. As they moved closer, the Burj al Arab came into view. With its glass façade and awkward construction, it appeared as a large wind sail from far away.

  Hannah sat back in her seat as Alexis peered out the window, looking at the Burj al Arab with a slight bit of glee. The trip was long, having left from New York City the day before and arriving in Italy after a fourteen-hour flight before going through customs, only to get on another plane to Dubai. She was tired, but focused on the job they were sent there to do. As the plane moved closer, the Burj al Khalifa appeared in the distance. The tallest skyscraper in the world the Burj al Khalifa was hailed one of the greatest creations of mankind. “Hannah, look at that,” mentioned Alexis as she pointed out the skyscraper. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like that.”

  The girls looked out the window in awe at the giant skyscraper, admiring its beauty as the sun reflected off of its glass façade. The plane continued to travel towards Dubai, allowing the girls to get a closer view at each detail in the building’s structure. Though still a few miles away, the shear mass of the structure made it visible to anyone traveling around the large city.

  Around the Burj al Khalifa was one of the largest choreographed fountains, the Dubai fountain. Built on a thirty acre, manmade lake, the Dubai fountain put on a regular display of dancing water for tourists and residents alike. “Isn’t that lake around that building like the fountains in Vegas?” asked Hannah, looking back at Alexis for confirmation.

  “Yes, it’s like the fountains at the Bellagio,” answered Alexis, not breaking her gaze with the beauty in front of her. The lake was sparkling with the sun reflectin
g off it the clear blue of the water.

  The plane edged closer to land, showing two of the most amazing feats accomplished by the architects and designers in Dubai. Both a series of islands created by dredging sand, the first, World Dubai, showing off the beauty and splendor of the world while the second, Palm Jumeriah, one of the three Palm Islands, was an even greater and a more beautiful accomplishment. They offered miles of beaches, wild life and nature preserves, water parks, and more, all for the people of Dubai to live in a luxurious paradise.

  Alexis and Hannah sat in their chairs as the plane descended further, hovering over the tops of the tall buildings while plunging through the air toward the runway. “Remember, why we are here?” asked Alexis as the plane’s wheels touched the ground, squealing as the rubber abruptly hit the pavement. The plane shook as it stabilized with the fins lifting up slightly to drag the wind against the plane, slowing it down so it could taxi to the gate.

  “We’re here to work,” answered Hannah. “We’re here for a couple of weeks to further our careers and make our bosses even richer.”

  “Correct,” replied Alexis.

  “Though I’m sure there’ll be some time for some harmless fun, right?” asked Hannah coyly, smirking as she unbuckled her seatbelt with the plane reaching the gate.

  “Oh, I’m sure of it.”

  Chapter 2

  The office was massive, consisting of several hundred feet of desks and cubicles, nestled on the thirty-fourth floor of one of the larger skyscrapers in the city. Men and women, all from different corners of the world worked diligently in the main headquarters of the Consortium of Oil Traders. COT embraced the global oil trade, preferring for hundreds of people from all of its members to descent upon Dubai and learn from one another, making each individual corporation stronger so that the consortium would benefit.

  Alexis sat in her cubicle with a computer screen in front of her, finally nestled in after a day of unpacking her belongings. Small trinkets and pictures lined her desk as she finished unpacking a small box. The pictures were of her friends and family back home, reminding her of the life that she was temporarily leaving behind while the trinkets were all gifts and tokens of appreciation throughout her career. One picture displayed prominently in the corner was her graduation day from Dartmouth, posing on the steps of the School of Business with her best friend, Hannah. Though her trip was only for two short weeks, she knew that her overall comfort in her working environment would be the ultimate key to her success.

  A year prior to being sent to Dubai, Alexis and Hannah were dispatched to Azerbaijan, a small country located south of Russia off the Caspian Sea. Once in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan, both women set to work from their hotel rooms, arranging meetings with various foreman and rig owners, making progress and building relationships. Ultimately, Alexis learned that her unfamiliarity with her surroundings made her nervous, making it difficult for her to perform her job optimally. She vowed to never let that happen again.

  She looked over her desk and nodded in approval, leaning back in her chair and looking out into the office. Without being able to see over her cubicle, she listened to the conversations around her, eavesdropping slightly before turning to face the files on her desk. She knew her first day would be an administrative nightmare, having to go through and confirm the filings of the work done in the past, checking behind the people before her and catching them up to her system. Organization was what made Alexis Matthews successful, and she knew that she would have to get organized quickly because time was not her ally.

  Her knowledge of the restrictions regarding the Port of Jebel Ali was also not where it needed to be either, with the documents on her desk all being related to the laws, customs, and limitations she faced when bringing goods into the port for transfer. The port ran efficiently, which pleased Alexis tremendously. With solid organization and a dedicated plan, she knew that she would be able to export the product Hannah acquired with a relative ease.

  As she stared at the documents further, gaining a better familiarity with the procedures of the port, Hannah stepped into her cubicle and sat down in the chair across from her desk. Huffing slightly, placing her hands on her knees while glaring at Alexis. “Wanna talk about it?” asked Alexis without removing her eyes from the documents, scanning them over intently before marking them with a highlighter.

  Hannah huffed again. “I don’t see how you’re able to work like you do,” she quipped rudely. “I don’t understand how you are able to function in this place full of people that are not our coworkers.”

  “On a certain level, they are our coworkers, though,” replied Alexis, still looking intently at the documents. After a few short moments and a realization that her best friend wasn’t leaving, she removed her gaze from the documents and set the papers down, looking across the desk at Hannah. “What’s wrong?” she asked.

  “Everything,” Hannah replied, venting her frustrations while sitting in the cramped cubicle. “Nothing is going right for me today. Everything in this building is disorganized. Every contact that I thought I could call hates women. Nothing is working for me today.”

  Alexis nodded, trying to look concerned. “Hannah, you’re in the United Arab Emirates, and more importantly, the Middle East. No one here likes women,” she mentioned sarcastically. “And as for the disorganization, unfortunately, I have to agree with you. It has been rather ludicrous how disheveled this place is.”

  “Great!” exclaimed Hannah. “At least I’m not the only one who sees this place as a professional train wreck.” Hannah paused, forcing herself to slow down and breathe while nodding quickly. “Do you want some coffee? I think I need to walk a bit.”

  Alexis grinned, looking down at her papers and over to her computer monitor. “Sure,” she said, realizing that she was at a stopping point and could use a break. She stood up from her desk and pushed her chair under, before walking out of the cubicle. They made their way down the row of cubicles, to a small room with a few tables, a refrigerator, a vending machine, and a coffee pot. “Well, at least the break room reminds me of our office in New York,” she said, leading the way with Hannah following. The room was empty of anyone, though not undisturbed as the chairs were still out and some napkins were left on one of the tables.

  Hannah walked up to the coffee pot, noticing it was empty before looking back at Alexis with a pathetic look. “You know I can’t,” she said, holding up the pot with an apologetic look on her face. “The office revolts whenever I decide to make coffee.”

  “That’s because you don’t make coffee,” replied Alexis as she walked up and grabbed the pot from Hannah. “You make hot, brown water with a smidge of coffee flavoring.”

  Alexis reached for a filter and the grounds to start making the coffee as Hannah stood at her side, slightly bemused to how this was going. “Well at least I don’t have to worry about angering people from different nationalities today,” stated Hannah joyfully, trying to find a positive in her awful day.

  “Alright, spill it. What’s really going on?” asked Alexis as she turned her back to the coffee pot, leaning against the counter with Hannah sitting down at a table in front of her. “Hannah, I love you, but you and I both know how high strung you are and how you don’t react well to change or hardships. So please, tell me, what’s going on?”

  Hannah smirked, nodding in agreement before looking at Alexis intently. “Four different fields are having issues,” she began, stating with a harsh degree of intent. “Each one possesses a very different challenge. Two of these fields, we’ve never had a deal with before, but they’re already COT certified, so I’m confident I can make it happen. However, the fact that there’s a vagina between my legs is making them not want to negotiate with me.”

  Alexis giggled. “Wow, normally it takes men at least a week to not like your vagina. These guys have never met you and they already can’t stand it.”

  Hannah paused, stopping her story as she squinted her eyes. “Men lo
ve my vagina,” she said calmly, prompting a hearty laugh from Alexis as the coffee continued to brew behind her. “Anyways, before you derailed my train of thought, one of the other distributors is not certified or affiliated with COT yet, so I was going to try and take the initiative to get them to come to the table with us, but they denied my request for a meeting on the grounds that my spiritual beliefs do not align with theirs and that discussing any trade with me could be viewed as heresy.”

  “Sounds like another vagina problem,” joked Alexis. “Clearly something is going on down there if men across this country are telling you no.”

  Hannah rolled her eyes and flared her nostrils, taking Alexis’s insults in stride. “Look princess, just because I don’t have to dust out any cobwebs before my encounters between the sheets does not mean that something is wrong.”

  “Hey, I can’t help it I’m pickier than you are.”

  “Yeah, well I can’t help it men like me more than you,” playfully insulted Hannah. “Anyways, this fourth field is a client of ours already and our deal is expiring. They’re not a particularly good client, but they’re a client none the less. My goal was to expand our business with them and get more from them, but unfortunately…”

  “Let me guess, they won’t talk to you because of your vagina,” interrupted Alexis.

  Hannah shook her head before standing up and walking over to the coffee pot. “No, they won’t talk to me over the phone, preferring that I negotiate with them face to face. The foreman at this supplier sounded Italian, so I don’t think I have any worries about my anatomy upsetting him on a spiritual level.”