My Billionaire Stranger

by Shae Black

  We approach the house; Mom isn’t home, thank God. She’s the polar opposite of my father, where he let’s me come around on my own terms she’d badger me to death until I give her an explanation, they both love me, but in very different ways. Inside I hear the familiar barks and rustling of animals from the extension on the back of the house. Dad added space for his animal patients that he can’t or won’t leave at the office at night and on the weekends. He’s the most caring veterinarian, loving every animal he comes into contact with as if it were his own. Our own family pet, Red, is an Irish setter he rescued years ago. He lopes toward me and I drop to my knees wrapping my arms around my old friend. He sits patiently, resting his head on my shoulder while I stifle more tears. How do dogs know when you need comfort? If Red had arms I know he would be hugging me, and if he could talk I suspect he would have wise words to say, but as it is he’s just the thing I need right now, silent support. He licks the tears from my cheeks when I pull away and I almost want to smile…but smiling is on a long list of things I won’t be doing ever again as far as I’m concerned. I stand and turn to my dad, who raises his eyebrows in question, but I’m not ready to talk and he knows.

  “Your mom won’t be home until later this afternoon, she’s got some project going on in your old room, but the guest room is available, if you need some time.” he says, nodding in the direction of the stairs. I hug him tight but briefly and drag myself up the stairs to the guest room with Red on my heels. Together we climb into bed; I lay staring at the wall while Red curls up at my feet. I welcome the catatonic state of mind; in fact, I’d be fine with staring at this beige wall until I take my last breath. What have I done? How did I allow fear to lead me away from the very thing that was keeping me alive? The very person who makes my heart beat and my soul peaceful. Now that I know he’s gone forever, instead of relief I am numb.

  Chapter 34

  Sleep, for most it’s the greatest escape but not for me. Only once did I come close to believing sleep could be the still, quiet, peaceful place it should be without sleeping pills and tranquilizers. Marcus brought a calm to my lifeblood, now that he’s gone my mind is torturing me in my sleep a thousand fold. I couldn’t have been out long when I open my eyes and realize I’ve jumped off the bed while having a nightmare in the middle of the afternoon. Red stands on the bed alert, front paws spread ready to defend me. Fuck, now I can’t even take a nap!

  “Hey boy…it’s ok…sorry if I scared you buddy, I just had a bad dream,” I speak soothingly to Red and he calms, returning to his curled up position at the end of the bed. He continues to eye me suspiciously as I sit cross-legged next to him. I heave a big sigh and scratch him between his ears. Suddenly I hear music coming from my pocket; my phone. I can’t even think about talking to anyone right now, but the ring tone has me confused, I don’t recognize it at all. I lean forward and slide my phone from the back pocket of my jeans to check the screen. The name that flashes there makes my heart race and an immediate lump forms in my throat. I sit still as stone as hot tears burn two paths down my cheeks. The ring tone ‘Come Home’ by One Republic plays hauntingly…. he programed it in before I even left…he knew all along I’d run.

  Unable to stand listening any longer and blinded by tears, I somehow press ignore and flop back onto the pillow. Before I can think another thought the phone starts again, a different ring tone though this time, unknown caller, Maroon 5 plays ‘Won’t Go Home Without You.’ He’s calling from another phone, God he could have a million different phones with a million different sad songs to torture me with, why can’t he just leave me be?

  If I press ignore will he call again? Probably. I’m not ready to talk though, one word from him right now and I’d be back in my car headed to his house. I hold the power button and watch as the glowing screen disappears. He’s hurting, I’m hurting, and this is insanity. The battle between my love for him and my intense need for safety is going to be the death of both of us. He’s really doing a number on me with these ring tones; I’ll never be able to turn on my phone again. What if that’s not the end of it, will he try to find me? Of course he will. I have to go to work eventually, and he knows my schedule, he helped make it after all. Shit, I didn’t think this through, spur of the moment decisions have never gone well for me. I hear the garage door lifting, mom’s home. Great. I feel like shit and I would like nothing more than to be alone and hide under the covers for at least a week, but my mother will never let that happen. She’s a big part of the reason I made such a full recovery after my attack. A relentless mother with a positive attitude and eternal optimism was no match for any problem. I get up and mope to the en suite to wash my pathetic, swollen eyes and brace myself for my mothers attack. But she doesn’t come; could it have been someone else coming home? No, no one else would come in through the garage. Waiting for the onslaught is too much, I’d rather just go down stairs and face the music. It was her, she’s bustling around the kitchen putting groceries away. My Dad leans against the counter-watching mom with adoration. Divorce was a problem many of my friends had had to deal with but not me; I was blessed with parents who loved each other madly.

  “Ah there’s my girl, have a good nap?”

  “Yea.”

  “Hi baby, it’s been way to long.” Mom puts down a can of green beans to hug me then she holds me away from her at arms’ length to get a good look at me. “You look terrible.” Brutal honesty, yep that’s my mom.

  “Thanks, I’ve been better.” Pursed lips and furrowed brow, my mom continues to hold me by the shoulders, she’s thinking, oh God what is she thinking? She releases me from her gaze momentarily to glance at dad and then back at me, what’s going on here? She’s hiding something.

  “Honey…um...we have to confess something.”

  “Confess? What?” Now I’m really lost. She drops her arms and dad coughs nervously, I’m officially freaking out, nothing makes my dad nervous.

  “Sweetie we um…we know about Marcus… and your situation.” What the fuck? Did I say that out loud? No. Good...I never swear around my parents and I’d hate to start with “fuck”.

  Dad jumps in to rescue mom. “Don’t be upset princess, I thought you needed some time to process everything, your mom wanted to attack you this morning but I sent her on errands to occupy her for a while after you text me.”

  My mom shoves his shoulder, “I wasn’t going to attack her!”

  “Yea right, you wanted to go get her last night when Marcus called.”

  “What? When Marcus called…. you…you talked to him?”

  They exchange a glance again; mom nods her head up and down.

  “Why?” Dad takes my arm gently and leads me to the kitchen table sitting me in a chair, which is a good thing because I think I’m in shock.

  “He anticipated that you may leave and he thought you would come here.” My dad explains.

  “He…did?” Here come the waterworks again, I can’t believe this. How did he know I was going to run when I hadn’t even decided myself? Because he was part of me literally my other half.

  “Oh honey, he really loves you, he was so worried, I’ve never even met him but it was easy to see how deep his feelings are for you.” I have no idea what to say and it really doesn’t matter anyway because I’m currently a blubbering mess, sobbing into my hands and covering my face. My Mom’s arms circle me and I breath in her familiar scent of coffee and fabric softener, so comforting and familiar. Squeezing the tears from my eyes, I peal myself from my mother’s arms, sit up straight and look her directly in the eyes.

  “Do you love him?” she asks, she knows the answer but she’s making me say it out loud so I will know it too. “

  “Yes.” I whisper.. “So much it scares me.”

  “I know baby, you’re strong though. I don’t have to tell you that, you’re a survivor. A survivor of the worst kind of experience.” She holds my cheek in the palm of her hand as she speaks to me. These two people sitting at this table know all too well the he
ll I’ve been through. They were with me for every miserable step of my recovery they were my pillars psychologically, physically and emotionally. All the years of therapy, hiding away from the world, my hang-ups, the side effects and obsessive behavior, they pushed, encouraged and loved me through it all.

  “We know you’re scared honey, not just of the love you have for him, but Marcus told us about the intruder that was in his house. I can’t imagine how you felt watching that video, to have that vulnerable feeling return to your life.” I pop to my feet and begin to pace the kitchen.

  “Mom. I don’t think whoever she was intended to hurt me, but if not me then she had to be there for Marcus. He has enemies, he was a totally different man before his car accident, and I have no idea who could be after him. I just couldn’t…I couldn’t stay there and wait…for something to happen to him, or me. Whatever is going on there, I just couldn’t be a part of it, it’s just too much!” I flail my arms while I explain myself and continue to pace back and forth across the kitchen floor.

  “Ok, ok, now, let’s just settle down here a little, you’re scaring Red for heaven’s sake.” Dad was famous for using any nearby animal as an excuse to make a point. Rolling my bloodshot eyes, I return to my chair at the table. “So what am I supposed to do?”

  “Would you like to know what Marcus thinks is best for you?” my mom answers, raising her eyebrows emphasizing the question.

  “He told you what’s best for me? Of course he did…. that just figures.” I love him but what kind of man calls the parents of his girlfriend, whom he has never met, and tells them what’s best for their daughter? And what kinds of parents listen to that crap? Only Marcus would have the audacity to do that, and do it with charm and charisma effective enough to affect my parents. They’re on his side, how could they betray me like this? “We aren’t saying we agree with him honey, it’s just…he was very convincing, I’ve never heard a man speak about a women with more love and reverence then he did about you.” This is my dad talking? He has always been on my side, my team, my advocate. “Ok, if he’s so smart and wise what did he have to say?” I snap. Red trots to the table to put his head on my knee. He looks up at me with eyes that beg for calm. I am upsetting the poor dog, dad’s right. I ruffle his fur and kiss him on the head. “Sorry Red,” I murmur.

  “He actually recommended you stay here for a few days, he thinks that your mother and I are the only people that could understand what you need right now.” Wow…I wasn’t expecting that. I figured he would have said “Shove her in a cab, lock her in and send her back to me!”.

  “He has a guard watching the house already, he thought you might feel better knowing the house was being monitored. Not that he believes anyone is after you, the guard is more for your peace of mind than anything really,” Mom rushes on, trying to convince me before I object. “He told us about you moving in with him and that the party this weekend was an announcement of sorts. He would like to go on with the get together, maybe making it more of a simple dinner party. He asked us to re-invite you, as a guest…. but he would prefer you as a hostess of course.” Of course. If my own parents, who watched the aftermath of my torture unfold in front of their eyes couldn’t understand that I was too scared to live in that house after what happened how could Marcus?

  “I can’t. I can’t go back. I can’t see him. I can’t be in that house. I can’t lose him. I can’t risk being attacked!” Scrambling for control, my mind claws at the cliff of sanity. I’m going to lose control and end up in a loony bin if I can’t get a grip! Deep breathes, in and out, in and out. Maybe I should stuff my head between my legs like I do when I’m going to faint?

  “Imani!” Dad startles me by yelling my name; he never raises his voice. “It’s going to be ok, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do. Stay here as long as you need, go to the party, don’t go to the party, go back to work, whatever, you know we’ll always support you.” Finally, information I can process, stay here, work, and be supported. Breathe in breathe out. Hey it’s a start, my heartbeat slows and I feel myself regaining control. Thank God for my dad.

  “Ok, I’ll stay here, no party, no Marcus and I’ll go back to work next week as planned.”

  “Oh honey…” Mom sighs with obvious disappointment. Marcus must have made some impression on her.

  “Mom, that’s what I need, if you can’t understand I’ll just go home.”

  “No, no…stay here, I won’t say another word about it, promise,” She says.

  “Thank you.”

  “But I insist on the security guard, at least until that woman is caught.”

  “Jade!”

  “No Nero, I won’t have her running around unprotected, she needs security!”

  “It’s ok Dad, the guard can stay, if I send him away it’ll only encourage Marcus to pursue me harder, just let him have his way on this one.” So my new life plan is set into motion at my parent’s kitchen table on this late October afternoon. Great. The next few weeks my life fall into a routine of work and secluding myself in the guest room at my parent’s house. I can be pleasant enough to get along at work, with my patients, co-workers and even my parents, but only for a short time. Then I retreat back into the dark, numb place that is my life without Marcus. I wonder if the emptiness will go away with time? Maybe I’ll return to my old self after purging Marcus from my heart. The longer I go without him though, the less I feel anything. It begins with a horrible period of immeasurable pain and heartache, and then anger about the way things have turned out. And now…nothing…that is better than the pain and anger but how can I build a new life, a future with absolutely nothing left to give? I’m floating from one day to the next; making no progress and my parents began to worry more and more until they suggest I return to my old therapist. I consider it for a second but really, it’s too much effort; I just don’t care anymore, about anything or anyone. The only future I can see is me trudging through all the days between now and the day I die. That’s it, I just have to make it into my grave and pray it will be better in another place, another existence, God please don’t let this curse follow me into the next world…. please.

  Chapter 35 (Part 1)

  Evan

  I sit and stare at the most beautiful creature, so delicate, and for the moment so peaceful. I know it isn’t going to last, I can feel it in my gut she is leaving. I don’t even think she knows it herself yet, but we share tormented pasts and after today’s break-in she no longer feels safe with me here. My home, where I wanted her to feel comfortable and secure, where she could let down her guard and never worry has now become her hell. She has been doing so well, our formal dinner/table seduction the other night was all the proof I needed. She was relaxed and secure in the idea that my house was now her home. Fucking hell, that damn intruder fucked it all up! Who the hell is she? I am astonished that Nick is involved. He was one of the very few employees that I could trust the most important person on earth with…my Imani. I have Mr. Black looking into theories; I have to believe Nick wouldn’t do this unless he was being blackmailed. I let my eyes roam her body from head to toe, memorizing every curve, every smooth, sensitive part of her, knowing I won’t be able to touch her for an unknown length of time. God I miss her already and she is still lying in my bed. She is beginning to stir; it won’t be long before she wakes from a nightmare. She went to sleep with no medication and a mind full of torturous memories from her past to keep her company, all brought to the forefront today by an intruder. An intruder I allowed to enter my home, armed with a hunting knife and touching my lifeline, my love. Watching that video was just like seeing my own life threatened. If Imani were to be hurt or taken from me, I would have no reason to continue on in this life. We are connected in a way that neither one could survive without the other. The moment we collided into each other’s lives was the moment our souls became united, the magnet started its pull and there is no separating us now. She is going to leave me, but I will never allow her to be out of my reach
. I will give her some time and space, but not too much before I prove to her she is safe with me again. I will catch that crazy fucking intruder myself. I have killed before, my mind may have lost the details, the names and the reasons, but I know I have done it. That knowledge must be a permanent part of a person, no matter what happens to their mind it is still there somewhere. In fact I have learned a lot about myself these past few weeks, things I would rather not know, shocking, horrible things. It’s no wonder someone is trying to get at me, any number of people and organizations surly want me dead. I am part of a mafia family in Italy, a very well known evil family. Not only am I part of it I am the leader. Every Dominus location uses its attached club as a cover for private sex clubs but I have mixed up memories of the part I play in that operation. Elijah fed me information about the family and the clubs slowly to see if I can drudge anything up, but so far no luck just flashes of faces and places. It’s like a puzzle with eighty percent of the pieces missing. Elijah knows of my involvements, he has educated me on my past life more than I wanted to know; I was a beast, a horrible man. I used people for what I wanted and threw them away without so much as a backward glance. I was a shrewd businessman, frequently unfair, an asshole and above all a murderer. I don’t know that man, I don’t feel him inside me but I could be held responsible for his actions and that is where the problem of keeping Imani safe begins. I have to tie up all loose ends from my prior life to ensure a safe future with Imani. And at the same time, I have to take care of this ticking time bomb growing in my brain. I am paralyzed with fear of what could happen to me if it is removed, if it explodes, if it grows.