The Billionaire From Los Angeles: A BWWM Billionaire Romance (United States Of Billionaires Book 9)

by Simply BWWM

  She woke up to find herself in Shane’s arms, and he was watching her as she had been sleeping.

  “Are you rested?” he asked quietly, running his fingertip over the line of her cheek.

  She nodded. “Yes. How long have you been awake?” She was surprised that he hadn’t woken her.

  “A little while. I was letting you get the rest that you must have needed.” He smiled at her then, and she saw a twinkle in his sea green eyes, eyes that were the same color as the water in the bay just outside. “But now that you’re awake, I’m going to have to give in to all my temptations,” he said in a low, husky voice.

  Before she could say a word, his mouth was on hers, moving slowly and deliberately, and his hand moved to her thigh, sliding her sundress up off her body until there was no part of her covered by it, and the dress lay on the floor beside the bed.

  Tamika wasn’t going to make love with him. She had told herself that doing so would only create more problems between herself and Maurice, but as she laid there in the bed with Shane, on some forgotten white sandy beach on an island somewhere in the Pacific, a million miles from reality, she couldn’t even remember who Maurice was or why he mattered to her at all to begin with.

  All that she knew was that there was a beautiful man with a fiery touch, hungry kisses, and an insatiable desire for her, making her feel as she had never felt in her whole life, and giving her such intense pleasure as he parted her legs and pushed himself inside of her that she cried out with an orgasm just from that one simple act.

  They took their time, moving together, turning, twisting, clinging to one another as they shared their bodies, tasting and touching each other, holding fast and calling out with their unbridled pleasure. They made their shared bliss last for a long while before they gave in to the full power of it and trembled in each other’s arms with their releases.

  Shane and Tamika rested a while afterward, and he held her and gazed at her lovingly. “I want to keep seeing you. I want you to be mine,” he told her seriously. She knew that he meant it.

  A strain of sadness pierced her heart. With a sorrowful look in her dark eyes, she frowned and shook her head. “I can’t, Shane. I shouldn’t have even-” she began, but he cut her off with a swift kiss, and she kissed him in return, long and slow until he lifted his mouth from hers and held her hand.

  “Don’t say that. I don’t want to hear you say that. Whether or not you should, you’re here, and I don’t ever want you to regret being here with me. This has been incredible, one of the best times I’ve ever had in my life. I want it to be that special for you too, no matter what’s going on in the world outside.”

  She nodded. “It’s been the best time I’ve ever had, all of my time with you so far. I just… I can’t give you more than this. I have commitments elsewhere.” For the first time ever, she hated the reality of her life, or at least one particular part of it.

  “Listen to me,” he said it quietly as he looked into her eyes while she lay there in his arms. “I want to see you again. I want you to be mine, and I know that you think you can’t, but you can, and you will. I will wait until you decide that I am what you really want, that this is what you really want, this kind of a life with me. Just remember, you said it yourself. I always get what I want.” He held her face in his hands and peered into her eyes as he spoke. “And I’ve never wanted anyone as much as I want you.”

  He kissed her, and she swooned and lost herself in his embrace, in his eyes and lips and especially in his words, and she felt as if she never wanted to leave any of those places.

  When the sun grew low in the sky and the golden hour was upon them, he took her back to the boat, and they pulled the anchor and loosed the tie from the pier. She watched with some sadness mingled with gratitude, love, and joy, as the beautiful island slipped slowly away from them, growing smaller in the distance, until it was gone, and the sun sank low, setting the sky on fire and drawing itself into the horizon of the sea.

  When the boat reached its berth at the marina, she walked with him back to the car, and neither of them said a word, though they held fast to each other’s hands. They held hands in the car on the way back to her apartment, and when they arrived there, with night darkened around them like a cloak, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her.

  “It feels like waking from the most beautiful dream ever.” He held her face in his hands and gazed into her eyes again. “I don’t want to let you go. I don’t want it to be over.”

  “I don’t want that either. I wish we could keep going on like this.”

  He gave his head a shake. “We can… you just have to make the decision,” he whispered quietly.

  She furrowed her brow and shook her head. “I can’t.”

  “Then I’ll wait. No matter how long it takes. I’m not giving up on you, and I will wait until you choose to come to me.” He gave her a sad smile and kissed her long and slow again before reluctantly letting her go.

  She turned and went into her apartment as he watched her go, and she made herself close the door behind her, feeling tears sting at her eyes as she told herself that it had been the last time. She made herself promise that she would honor her commitment to Maurice, because she was as good as her word, and they were in fact a couple, and they had plans to move in together and settle down, even though the road to get there had suddenly grown very bumpy.

  With those thoughts in her mind, she went to her bed and cried herself to sleep, wishing with all of her heart that there was some way that it could be different. Though tears of sadness may have dried on her cheeks as she slept, her dreams were the sweetest they had ever been, filled with white sand, blue-green water, waving palms, and the embrace and love of a man who could not let her go.

  Chapter9

  When Tamika woke up the next morning, all she could think of was Shane, and the guilt that weighed her down about him was tremendous. She did the only thing that she could think of to do. She called her sister.

  “Hey! There you are. I’ve been wondering what’s going on with you. You’re much too quiet lately. What’s going on? Where were you yesterday?” Janet started out with a barrage of thoughts and questions.

  Tamika smiled slightly and cleared her throat. “Oh Janet, you wouldn’t believe where I was yesterday. I still can’t believe where I was yesterday.”

  “Well tell me then!” her sister demanded.

  Tamika bit at her lower lip and drew in a deep breath as a smile spread over her face. “I was on a private island somewhere west of Los Angeles in the Pacific Ocean.”

  There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line. “You were what?” her sister asked in disbelief.

  “Wait.” Tamika held her hand up to stop herself and her sister, though Janet couldn’t see it. “I have to back up. I have to explain how that happened before I explain why I was there.”

  “Okay. I’m waiting,” Janet replied with a doubtful tone.

  “Okay. So, I tried to get a hold of Maurice, and he’s been really hard to get a hold of since we got the money. He almost never responds to calls, and he isn’t answering texts at all. I’m pretty mad at him, actually, but I’m getting ahead of myself.

  Anyway, I couldn’t get in touch with him, so when I got off work two days ago, I went to his place to see if he was there and talk to him. We have a lot of things to go over, and we haven’t really talked about any of it, and we need to. There’s so much to work out about the money and moving in together, and all of that. I went over to talk with him and when I walked in, I got the shock of my life!” She was furious just thinking back to it, and the fury was only rivaled by her utter disgust.

  “What? What was so bad?” Her sister asked with interest.

  “He was in bed, in a brand-new bed that he’d bought, with two women! They were having a threesome!” Tamika knit her brow and scowled bitterly.

  “Oh my god. You have got to be kidding me.” Her sister sounded as shocked as she had been.

  “No
t kidding! Lisa Latimer! She’s such a slut! And one of his neighbors, Carla something, I think. She’s a little redhead that lives down the hall. Anyway, they were all in his bed getting it on, and I got so mad at him, but he told me to get out. He actually kicked me out of his place so he could keep it up with those two women. I’m still so mad about it!” Tamika grumbled angrily.

  “So, you broke up with him, right? Please tell me you broke up with him,” her sister intoned as if it was the most common-sense thing in the world for her to do.

  “No, I didn’t break up with him,” Tamika admitted woefully.

  “Tami! Damn it! Use your head! What are you doing?” her sister shot at her in supreme irritation.

  “No, listen. I would have, but he threw back some reality in my face, and I couldn’t argue about it.”

  “And what was that? What could possibly justify him screwing a couple of bitches at his place and throwing you, his girlfriend, out so he could keep doing it? I’d have dumped his ass right there and told him to go to hell.” Janet was angrier than Tamika had been, but Tamika chalked it up to the guilt she was feeling.

  She sighed, and her shoulders slumped. “I told him too much about my night with Shane. I mean, he was the one who told me to go be with Shane in the first place, so that was on him because I told Shane no to begin with, but Maurice wanted that money so bad that he was willing to sacrifice me to get it, so he did. He told me to go sleep with Shane so we could have the money, so we could afford to move in together.

  So, I slept with Shane. Then, when he asked me about later, I told Maurice too much. He wanted to know how it went and what happened, and I told him that it was fine, that it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was, and that Shane and I had sex four times while I was with him. He was really angry about that. He said that I liked being with Shane, that I enjoyed having sex with him, and while I wish he hadn’t looked at it that way, he did, and he was right.

  I did enjoy it. Hell, I loved it. I couldn’t argue about that, and I could understand that he was furious about it. If the tables were turned, I’d have been hurt too if he enjoyed sex with someone else more than sex with me. Also, I think that’s mostly a man-pride thing, but whatever. He was mad. I guess he wanted to get back at me. He wanted to even the score.”

  “Even the score?” her sister snapped sarcastically. “He got a million dollars in cash for selling you to a billionaire. I think the score is as even as it needs to be.”

  Tamika nodded in agreement, realizing just how right her sister was. “Yeah, there’s that. Anyway, when I caught him with Carla and Lisa, he told me that he was just making things even, that I had sex with Shane four times, so he was going to have sex four times with other women, and then things would be even. I couldn’t argue with him. I was with someone else four times, and he was right, I did love it. I can understand that he’s hurt about that and that he wants some retribution.” She sighed again in frustration.

  “Retribution? What is he, twelve? You have to be kidding! He got a million fricking dollars for this deal! He sold you to another man! What the hell else does he want?” she roared at the other end of the line.

  There was a silence for a moment, and then Janet continued, “So, how does that put you on some island in the Pacific?” Her voice quieted, though she was still very angry.

  Tamika smiled a little and lifted her chin. “Well, I was really mad when I caught him with them. He didn’t even tell me that he was going to do it; he just went behind my back and did it to get back at me. Shallow. At least with Shane, he and I talked about it first, and it was his idea.

  Then, because Maurice was jealous and mad about it, he went out and sneaked around with them to get me back. I don’t even know if he ever would have told me if I hadn’t caught him in the act, and I mean during the act. He might never have told me. Guess I’ll never know that one. So, when I got home, I was really mad. I saw Shane’s business card and I thought to myself that I could go out with Shane, just as friends, and have some fun, and it would be totally justified since Maurice was out screwing the neighborhood.”

  “You two need to break up. Seriously. This is worse than high school.” Her sister groaned.

  “So, I took the day off of work yesterday, and Shane picked me up, and we went out on his sailboat. He took me out pretty far in the sea, and I guess he has a private island out there. It’s beautiful. The whole place look like the prettiest postcard ever. Anyway, we spent the whole day there, swimming around in a little cove and looking at fish and coral, and there were dolphins playing nearby. It was amazing. He has a big house there that I didn’t get to see, and a beach cabana house that is literally right on the beach, and we stayed there and had a picnic in the sand and we…” she trailed off and giggled softly.

  “You didn’t,” her sister sighed.

  “Oh yeah, we did. Janet, he is really, truly the best lover I’ve ever had. I just can’t get over him. I can’t believe how amazing he is. I know it wasn’t right to do, and I know I shouldn’t have done it because I’m with Maurice, but we were there, and it was magical, and it just… happened. It was even better than the last time we were together. It was really hard to say goodbye last night when he brought me back.”

  She paused and took a big breath. “He said he wants to see me again. He wants to be with me. I wish I could be with him too, but I’m with Maurice. It’s such a mess. Part of me wishes that I’d never met Shane, just so things wouldn’t be so messed up right now, and the other part of me is so glad that I met him, because I never knew that it could be so amazing with a man, and he just blows my mind.” She smiled again, though it was with some sadness.

  “What is this ridiculous fixation that you have on Maurice? Seriously! He’s the worst. Dump his ass and go out with Shane. This is not that hard. Just do it.” Her sister’s patience had reached its end.

  “I can’t do that! We are in a committed relationship! The only reason that he was with those two women was because he was getting back at me for being with Shane and loving it so much, and the only reason that I went back out with Shane a second time was because he was with those two women and I was hurt and angry! We need to let the other people go and just be with each other. We’re supposed to get a home together and move in and settle down. That’s the plan, and if we don’t stick to it, we’re going to screw it all up!” Tamika lowered her brows in consternation.

  “Please screw it all up. You have no business being with that jackass Maurice,” her sister stated flatly.

  “That’s what my friends say.” She was thinking of Danny, Carol, and Jane at work, who told her the same thing.

  “They’re right! I’m right! Listen to us; dump him, and go for Shane! Especially since he said he wants to be with you. He sounds like an incredible man. You should give him a chance! Dump Maurice and try it with Shane.” Janet was pleading with her.

  “Jan, I can’t do that. I’ve known Shane for what… a week? I mean, we have this amazing connection, but I’ve been with Maurice for more than a year and a half! We have plans! We’re going to move in together and settle down! I can’t just throw all of that away and throw caution to the wind and go for a man I’ve only just met. How crazy would that be?” Tamika felt like she was making sense, even though in her heart she felt exactly the opposite of what she was saying.

  “Listen, you know how I feel. I’m telling you to be with Shane. That’s that. You’re a grown woman, and you’re going to have to make your own decisions, but I’ll say this too. If you’re going to be with Maurice again, you better make him wear a condom until you can get him tested. He’s a man whore. Two women. What in the hell is the matter with that man?” Her sister was completely disgusted.

  Tamika could only sigh. “I can’t be with Shane, as much as I think I would really like to be. I’m in a committed relationship. I have to put that first. I can’t just walk away from it.”

  “I would. I wouldn’t have gotten into it with Maurice to begin with, though,” her sister ref
lected.

  “Well, I wanted to tell you about everything and see what you thought. Now I know what you think.” Tamika twisted her mouth a little in regret. “I don’t really feel bad about what happened yesterday with Shane. I’m kind of glad that it happened. It was the best time I’ve ever had with any man, and I could have missed it, but I didn’t, and now I will get to keep the memory of that forever. So that at least was worth it.”

  “I still think that you should be with Shane. I’m going to leave it up to you, though. Let me know how things go, and let’s have lunch or dinner next week, okay? I miss you.” Her sister was smiling at least a little through the phone.

  “We will. Love you sis.” Tamika smiled in return.

  “Love you, too.” Janet ended the call, and Tamika looked at their photo on her phone for a moment before putting her phone down and getting ready for work.

  Her trio of friends practically pounced on her when she got into work, all of them wanting to know how her day off went and what she had done.