Billionaire: Billionaire Romance: Billionaire Tiger (A Billionaire New Adult Shifter Contemporary Romance)

by Loretta Devine

  The next window was the children’s bedroom. They were snug in their beds it adorable night clothes in a wrought iron bed. Sugar plum fairies hung from the ceiling and sprigs of holly hung from the corners.

  The next window had a white powdered rooftop with smoky chimneys, and the man himself. There was a large sled being driven by Santa Claus, as it landed on the roof. He wore the iconic dark maroon suit. He had rosy cheeks and a thick white beard. Next to him was the large velvet bag full of intricately wrapped gifts. The reindeer were so lifelike and each one wore Christmas bells. I stared at it for along time. It was pure Christmas magic.

  The next window was again, the parlor scene only this time, Santa Clause was in it and he was adding more gifts under the tree. A man dressed in a nightcap and nightclothes peeked in at him from around the corner. The store really went out of its way to make this classic Christmas story come to life, and I was grateful to them.

  I had just experienced a New York Christmas in a matter of hours. The intoxicating magic from the window displays was leaking over onto us. I wanted to thank him over and over again.

  “So, is it all you hoped for?” he asked.”

  “It’s more than that. I never dreamed it would be this way. I’ve seen pictures, but seeing and experiencing it in person doesn’t compare,” I said.

  We walked home through the length of the entire park. When we came to the north end and exited, I felt like we had entered a different world. The tree lit paths of Central Park made me feel like I was in a fairy tale.

  We finally got to the townhouse. The valet, in his elegant suit and hat held the door handle, ready for me when I was ready to go in.

  “This is it,” I said.

  “Mina, I am sorry it all happened this way. I did not mean for it too, but I do fancy you very much. I am grateful to make you my wife. I would like to take you to dinner tomorrow?”

  “Yes, I would like that.”

  “Great, I will pick you up here at 7.”He stared down at me and continued,“Mina, what is happening here? This is so unreal. I’ve never connected with anyone this instantly.”

  I tensed up again thinking he was playing with me and he would disappear. I already had one engagement that ended, why wouldn’t this one? Nothing was final until we were married. What was wrong with me? This is every girl’s dream come true. A handsome young scientist walking through the winter wonderland of New York, completely and honestly devoting himself in the moment, and I was questioning it. I blamed it on the break up and pushed those thoughts away from my present state of mind. Then he leaned in and hugged me. A soft gentle hug, because the doorman was watching.

  “I’ll pick you up tomorrow,” he said.

  Then we parted ways. He stood there watching until I went inside and then he disappeared.

  CHAPTER FIVE

  At seven o’clock sharp, the doorman rang up. Cliff was downstairs waiting for me. I breathed out a sigh of relief. I grabbed my coat and went down.

  Cliff stood in lobby and I was shocked at how I immediately felt hypnotized by him as soon as I locked eyes with him. He stood there, his tall figure towering in the brightly lit lobby. He wore an elegant black suit and his black wool pea coat. He topped it off with a red silk scarf around his neck, a perfect compliment to my dress.

  His eyes were wide as he looked at me up and down.

  “Mina, you are stunning,” he said as he hugged me hello.

  The doorman stood next to me and held his hand out to my coat offering to help me put it on.

  “Allow me,” Cliff said.

  “Yes, of course Sir,” the doorman said.

  Cliff slid my coat on and then planted a sweet light kiss on my cheek. “Shall we,” he said as he offered me his arm. I looped my arm in his and he led me outside.

  A carriage was waiting for us. I was confused as I thought we would surely be walking. What a surprise.

  He opened the door and I got in. The carriage drove away. We had light banter in the back seat, talking about what we did with our day. However, it was small talk because we mostly sat in silence staring into each other’s eyes. We weren’t in the carriage long and arrived a few minutes later at our destination, The Plaza Hotel.

  CHAPTER SIX

  The Plaza

  I stepped out of the carriage and nearly gasped out loud at the beauty of this hotel. Dinner at the Plaza is a treat for anyone, but during Christmas is was astounding. The entire entrance was decorated in holiday décor and lights. It was intricate and elegant, that feel I so longed for.

  Cliff put his arm around me and said, “You mentioned you longed for a grand Christmas feel. This beautiful grand building was built only last year in 1907.”

  I looked up at him. He was the sweetest man that ever lived. This was maybe the most perfect moment I could ever have. He looked down at me and grinned that brilliant grin. He put his hand on the small of my back and led me inside.

  The lobby was alive with Christmas cheer. There were several Christmas trees elegantly decorated. There was a table with a toy train, of the vintage kind, surrounded by vintage toys. The lobby was buzzing with people enjoying the holidays. The restaurant is this way. He said leading the way.

  I was in complete awe of the place.

  Then I stopped as we approached a large table. There my aunt sat with all our relations and Cliff’s. They all yelled, “Congratulations!”

  “You’re engaged! So happy for you!” another yelled.

  I could not believe it. It was a surprise engagement party. I was so relieved, this made it feel official. Now I could relax. It surely would happen now. Cliff would not go through all this trouble and have a party announcing our engagement only to not marry me.

  We had the most festive dinner in the Christmas tradition. We had roast and vegetables and brandy. It was quite refined and elegant. For dessert we had Christmas pudding and a cup of nutmeg.

  After dinner we stood in the lobby surrounded by all the Christmas décor and festive cheer. Even in heels he still towered over me. He looked down at me, and in one fast motion he kissed me. There in the magic of The Plaza surrounded by all things Christmas, he gave me a magical New York kiss. It was a magical moment. He pulled away suddenly.

  “I’m so sorry, I couldn’t help myself. Forgive me,” he said in all politeness.

  I didn’t want him to stop, and though I loved his politeness and how much of a gentleman he was toward me in public, I wanted to keep kissing him.

  It was absolutely perfect. I had forgotten all about my ex-fiance and my mistrust of Cliff. It had all vanished with this one magical night. Walking around New York exploring a new place was exactly the kind of thing I needed to get a different perspective of how my life could be. This man, in a matter of weeks had changed my life. I was finally allowing myself to feel with out any doubt. It felt great and it felt relieving. Now I was going to be his wife and have his child. I had to let go of that doubt that had been instilled in me because of my last engagement.

  At the end of the night we said our goodbyes at the door. It was exactly the way courting should be.

  The next day I went for daytime walk through Central Park with a new female acquaintance. I was in the best mood and I smiled and said “Hello” to every passer. When I got to the middle of the park I saw the museum. I remembered the pretzel stand and thought I would grab one. I crossed the street to the museum and immediately saw Cliff sitting on the steps, with an attractive female.

  I stopped in my tracks. Was this what he did all day? Was this his pick up spot? I was furious. Even worse, my heart broke a little. I watched as they talked to each other. They seemed comfortable with each other and smiled a lot. I debated in my head whether I should go up to him or not. Confront him, or should I just let it go and leave and never talk to him again. After a few minutes of staring and not knowing what to do I watched as they both stood up. It was unbelievable! They were going inside! I was so upset I nearly burst into tears. This was his thing. This is what he did.r />
  My sadness turned into extreme anger and I stomped off in their direction. I stood at the bottom of the stairs as I watched them walk up together. They were laughing and talking loudly. I willed him to turn around and see me. Just then he turned.

  He locked eyes with me and smiled. I could see him mouth my name. My eyes darted to the woman and back at him. He saw my discomfort and the smile disappeared from his face. My eyes narrowed and I stormed out. I ran down the steps and back into the park. I wanted to disappear as soon as I could incase he was coming after me. I didn’t want to hear his excuses.

  I ran all the way home. I was in shambles. Everything suddenly felt sad to me. The once cheery Christmas tree in the living room, felt sad.

  I headed downstairs to the lobby where the doorman stopped me.

  “Mina,” he said. “You have several messages from a Mr. Cliff.” He handed me a few small envelopes.

  “Thank you,” I said as I grabbed them as soon as I saw a trash bin, I tossed them. I didn’t open them. I didn’t need too.

  I sat down. I thought of Cliff. I wanted to cry in that moment. I was only kidding myself with all these distractions. It wasn’t working. It was then, in that moment of thinking about him that I heard a familiar voice say,

  “May I?”

  I looked up to see Cliff towering over me. He was gesturing at the empty space beside me. I didn’t say anything. He sat anyway.

  “Mina, I’ve been trying to get a hold of you all day. The doorman wouldn’t let me up no matter how much I pleaded with him. I tried for an hour at least,” he said.

  I just looked at him and my eyes watered over. He was beautiful to look at and his sincere way of talking to me was enough to make me feel overwhelming sadness. I wanted things to be as they were before. But they couldn’t, I did not trust this man. I don’t think I trusted any man at this point.

  “Why did you run out of the museum?” he asked.

  “I watched you, on the steps. Talking to that woman and then I watched you take her up the stairs,” it was a familiar scene. Is that what you do to pick up women? It works. It worked on me, I was stupid enough to fall for it, as the woman today was.”

  I could barely get the words out. My voice was shaking and I began to sob. Cliff’s eyes were wide. At first I thought they were wide at having been caught, but I later learned why.

  “Mina, that’s not what that was,” he said. “I’m sorry if that hurt you. That’s the last thing I would ever want to do, but if you would just let me explain.”

  “I don’t see the point in an explanation. I could never tell if you were lying.”

  “That is true,” he said. “Would you like to meet her then?”

  “Meet who?” I asked.

  “The woman you saw me sitting with earlier, Rebecca. That’s the only way you’ll know that she’s not a romantic interest and that I’m not lying about it. She’s at my place now,” he said. “She’s my sister,” he said.

  My heart sank. I felt like a complete idiot. I was kicking myself for acting so rash earlier.

  “I’m so sorry. I feel dumb,” I said.

  “It’s okay. Don’t be. Actually I’m kind of glad it happened,” he said.

  “You are? But why?” I asked.

  “Because I wasn’t sure if you felt anything for me. When we look at each other I can feel a deep connection, but you haven’t said anything to me about love. Do you love me because I love you?”

  “Oh Cliff! I do. I know that now, after seeing you with another woman. I know I love you.”

  “I felt the same after watching you dance with another. I was so jealous. You had to be mine forever, therefore I’m glad I got you pregnant, now you are mine.”

  A week later we were married and had many children. What started as a bout with a scoundrel ended with a happy marriage and happy family.

  ******

  END

  Blood Lust

  A Paranormal Vampire Romance

  Chapter One

  Loretta knew she was being followed. The person was sticking to the shadows and hoping that she wouldn’t notice but they moved clumsily. Probably a low level mugger who was hoping to get the drop on her. The snow kicked up around her feet as she walked. The sky was dark and heavy, threatening to drop a blizzard on top of the city. Loretta was in no mood to deal with a mugger. Her hands tightened around her keys, positioning them so she could lash out when the person made their move.

  She turned to the right quickly, leading whoever it was away from her car. The sidewalk was empty. It was the middle of the night. Loretta could hear the footsteps behind her. As they walked faster towards her, she gripped the keys tighter. Fingers grabbed her wrist as Loretta spun around on her heel, ready to slash the keys across the mugger’s face.

  But suddenly there was a blur of color. The mugger soared through the air and hit the ground with a thud. A figure dressed in all black was on top of the man.

  “Stop!” Loretta cried, going to yank the figure off the unconscious man.

  The figure went still and moved swiftly off of the mugger. Her heart beat quickly as the man stepped forward into the streetlight. His skin was pale and his eyes dark – and his fangs extended.

  “What do you want?” Loretta said, crossing her arms.

  “I heard you were putting the word out that you wanted someone to Turn you,” the vampire said, “And you pay handsomely for it.”

  “Yeah, that’s right. But are we actually going to discuss this here? I just left my friend’s party and now you knocked out this guy on the street.”

  “He was going to mug you.” The vampire said stiffly.

  “Sorry, not interested in you being the one to Turn me. Thanks anyway.”

  The vampire mumbled something under his breath as Loretta walked past him, heading back towards her car. She sighed. What a mess. Yes, she wanted vampires to speak to her about turning her into one of them but no, she didn’t want it to turn into a big fuss in the middle of the street. Loretta couldn’t wait to get home and crawl into bed and try to forget the entire night. The party had been a wash, like she knew it would be, and then the mugger on top of the vampire. She had the worst luck.

  Loretta was actively looking to be turned into a vampire. For years, she had dreamed of it. She was born into a family of Guardians. Ever since she was a kid her father had explained to her that their family were protectors of the supernatural – the guardians tasked to make sure the regular world didn’t find out about the supernatural world.

  But Loretta didn’t want to just be a Guardian. She wanted to be a vampire. Ageless and forever, she admired their world from afar. Why did she need to guard their secrets and only stare from the outside? Her parents had been proud of their bookshelves boasting all their knowledge. They were gate keepers of all things supernatural. But as Loretta grew older and found out more about this life chosen for her, she realized she wanted more than that.

  She wanted to become one of the supernatural.

  After her parents passed away, Loretta put her feelers out, trying to find a vampire who would be suitable enough to be her Maker. Sadly, all her feelers had turned up, so far, was a bunch of weirdo vampires hoping that turning her meant they would have someone to sleep with for the rest of their lives. She had a couple show up just to try to talk her out of it, to tell her that she would regret her choice.

  But Loretta knew she wouldn’t. She wanted to be part of that world and she would make sure she would get it.

  As she pulled up into her apartment complex on the outskirts of the city, exhaustion settled in. Her friend’s birthday party had been boring and endless. If Loretta had been a vampire she would have been able to take care of that mugger by herself.

  Eyes closing with exhaustion, Loretta walked up the steps to the second floor of her building. She yawned and fumbled for her keys. When she opened her eyes, she saw someone waiting outside her apartment and froze.

  He was clearly a vampire, but he had a different aura from
the others. He was tall with eyes that were a stormy blue. His features looked as if they were cut from fine marble and he was wearing a jacket, trying to blend in with the other humans, as if he truly felt the cold. Loretta found herself entranced at his eyes – she hadn’t seen a color like that on a vampire before.

  He was fit and well built. She knew he would be strong enough to take anything who may attack him. The power emanating from him made Loretta think that this was a very old, very ancient vampire. His handsome and severe features made her palms itch.

  “Uhm. Hi. Let me guess. You’re here because of my ad.”

  The man nodded, “That is right.” His voice was smooth and had a light accent to it that Loretta couldn’t pinpoint.

  “I’m exhausted,” She said walking up to him, sliding her key in the lock, “Can we meet tomorrow night?”

  “I’m busy tomorrow night.”

  “Then another night.”

  “I’m busy the rest of the nights.”

  Loretta let out a sigh and turned to look at him, feeling tired and annoyed, “Listen, I get it. You’re a super old vampire. Probably really imposing to literally everyone else you run into. But I’ve seen them all, okay? And if you’re here about the ad, you obviously are interested in what you get in return so spare me the notion that you are too busy to ever come back.”

  The corners of his mouth quirked upwards, “I suppose you got me there.”

  He looked down at her and their eyes locked. Loretta felt a shiver run through her and goose bumps pop up all over her skin. Even though his body gave off no heat, Loretta had to suppress the urge to move closer to him, as if for warmth.

  “So come back tomorrow, okay? We can talk then. And don’t try to glamor me. It won’t work.”

  “I know. You’re one of the guardians, aren’t you? Rare for one of them to want to be one of us.”