Billionaire Unwed

by Scott, J. S.

  I drummed my fingers on the steering wheel as we inched forward on an extremely busy street. “I have to tell you something, Lia, and it might piss you off.”

  “Just tell me,” she said encouragingly.

  “When I saw you in the hallway at the church, I had every intention of stopping the whole damn wedding. I don’t know why it took me so long, but I had a gut instinct I couldn’t ignore. I knew you weren’t going to be happy with Stuart, and just hauling you out of that church, whether you wanted to go or not, wasn’t an option that was completely off the table, either. I can’t explain what really happened at the church earlier, but I was terrified you were making a huge mistake. Hell, somehow I actually knew you were.”

  A minute ticked by, and then two.

  I was getting nervous when she finally answered. “I’m not pissed off. You were right. Marrying Stuart would have been the biggest mistake of my life. I have a confession of my own.”

  “What?”

  She sighed. “I was looking for Stuart when I ran into his brother. I was going to call off the wedding myself. Stuart just saved me the trouble by being a cheating bastard who couldn’t keep his dick in his pants. The ceremony wasn’t going to happen, Zeke. I was a wreck this morning, but by the time I had this stupid dress on, I was completely freaked out because I knew I couldn’t go through with it. Your intuition was right. Maybe you were picking up on my panic. I don’t know why it took a whole year for all those warning bells to go off for me, but I’m not heartbroken that this wedding never happened.”

  I was momentarily stunned. She never planned to walk down that aisle today? “So you aren’t in love with Stuart anymore?” I questioned cautiously.

  “No,” she confirmed in a sad tone. “I don’t know if I was ever in love with him. I think I’m still trying to figure all that out. I just spent over a year turning myself inside out to try to be the woman he wanted to marry, and I don’t even understand why.”

  She sounded so lost and confused that I reached out and took her hand in mine. “We’ll figure it out together, Lia. Maybe your heart isn’t broken, but the bastard did mess with your head. You were still reeling from Esther’s death when you met Stuart. You were vulnerable. Don’t blame yourself.”

  Hell, she could blame me instead. I should have been there for her, but I wasn’t. I’d been too busy feeling sorry for myself because she’d seemed happy with another guy.

  She nodded and squeezed my hand. “I need to find myself again, Zeke. I’m not even sure I know who I am anymore.”

  Fuck! I hated the exposed defenselessness in her tone.

  I’d walked away from this woman once when I should have stuck to her like glue because she’d been unguarded and grieving.

  That was never going to happen again.

  “You’re still the same Lia Harper,” I informed her. “Gorgeous, fearless, blonde bombshell with the shapeliest ass on the planet. A connoisseur of coffee, and a lover of jelly beans. You’re the kindest, bravest person I’ve ever known. You talk about my accomplishments? You’re not even twenty-eight years old yet, Lia, and you already own a very successful business that you’re working on expanding for an even greater success. None of those things ever changed. All you need is some time to make yourself a priority again, and I’m going to be right here to make sure that you do.”

  I heard her head flop back against the headrest as she said, “God, I missed you so much, Zeke. I know we talk, and we see each other at the shop, but we were never the same after Stuart came into the picture. What happened to us?”

  I wasn’t even going to pretend that I didn’t know what she was talking about. I knew what it was like to miss Lia with every fiber of my being. “It wasn’t your fault,” I said huskily. “I hated Stuart’s guts, so I was the one who stepped back when I should have been there for you. I never thought the bastard was good enough for you, but I wanted you to be happy. I thought you were, even though I felt like the two of you never quite…fit. It always seemed like you were the only one who compromised, but I’m starting to think you did a hell of a lot more than just cater to his needs. I should have been paying more attention. I’m sorry I wasn’t there when you needed someone to be looking out for your best interests, Jellybean.”

  “You’re my best friend, Zeke, not my father,” she said drily. “It wasn’t your responsibility to recognize my dysfunctional relationship. And I stepped back, too. I knew you didn’t like Stuart, but I think I was so caught up in that relationship that I’m not sure I would have listened to any of your objections when I wasn’t being rational myself. I’m a big girl, Zeke. I made some bad choices, and that’s on me.” She took a deep breath before she added, “But I’m so damn grateful that you’re here to help me figure everything out.”

  “I’m not going anywhere, Lia. We have all the time in the world to figure it out.”

  Maybe she didn’t know it yet, but if things went my way, when all of this was over, she’d be mine, and I’d make damn sure that nobody ever hurt her again.

  Lia

  Zeke had made a few detours on the way back to his penthouse, and one of those errands had been to pick up food from our favorite Chinese place. We were both foodies, but we hadn’t shared a meal from our favorite spots in a long time.

  I’d changed out of my dress and into a pair of jeans and a loose, tie-dyed shirt, clothing that I’d left over at Zeke’s place a long time ago. My jeans fit a lot looser since I’d dropped some weight, but I didn’t care because I was comfortable, and I felt a little more like myself again.

  He’d changed into a pair of jeans, too, and a button-down baby-blue shirt that made his eyes look even bluer than normal.

  The TV was on low in the background as we ate, but I was pretty sure neither one of us was paying attention to the news as we relaxed in Zeke’s living room.

  I finally dropped my fork on my plate and reached for the glass of white wine he’d poured me before he’d seated himself on the couch. I took a long sip and swallowed before I said, “I don’t know what I’m going to do about my grandma’s will. If I’m not married by my birthday, I’m screwed.”

  I’d loved the grandparent who had raised me like her own after my parents had died, but I still didn’t get why she’d put the condition in her will that I couldn’t inherit unless I was married before my twenty-eighth birthday. If I didn’t meet that condition, everything went to distant relatives we’d never even met, and charities she supported.

  Not that Grandma Esther owed me anything. She’d raised me when nobody else would have taken me in. But it stung more than a little that, in some ways, she’d been trying to change me, too.

  Nevertheless, since I’d planned on being married by my birthday, the condition had never really made all that much difference. It had just halted my ability to inherit until Stuart and I were married.

  “I reviewed all the documents like you asked me to do after Esther passed away,” Zeke answered. “The estate attorney is right. If challenged, you could very well lose. It was written so well that it could be upheld by a judge. I have no idea what she was thinking when she wrote it, Lia, but you know damn well that she loved you like a daughter, and she’d want everything she had to go to you.”

  Zeke’s expression was grim, but I didn’t doubt his opinion since my best friend was a high-powered defense attorney. Even though he didn’t specialize in wills and trusts, Zeke was a Harvard Law graduate, and he had a good grasp on what could be challenged according to the law.

  “Unfortunately, I don’t exactly have time to find another groom,” I said wistfully. I was turning twenty-eight in exactly one week from today. “I can deal with losing the monetary assets, but it’s going to kill me to see all of the things that have so much sentimental value go, too, since she included everything in her estate. I’ll have to up my installment payments to you.”

  I felt like a failure because I cou
ldn’t pay off the money I owed to him. I’d planned on buying Zeke out of my shop completely once my grandma’s estate had gotten settled, and then putting the rest of the money into starting a second store. I knew damn well that our agreement had been more of a favor from him, even though he’d claimed he was making a good investment. “I don’t know how else to get you bought out. And the second Indulgent Brews will have to wait.”

  “I don’t want the damn money, and I would have never agreed to take a penny from you in installments if you hadn’t threatened to cut my balls off if I didn’t take it,” Zeke answered grumpily. “We agreed that I’d be your silent partner when you refused to just take the money as a gift from a friend, and that you could buy me out at any time. There was no time limit, and I’ve told you about a million times that I’d much rather you reinvest the money you insist on paying me every month back into growing the business. You’d have a second shop by now if you weren’t so damn bullheaded.”

  The argument was a familiar one. Zeke had wanted to just give me all the funds I’d needed for my startup as a gift, and I’d adamantly refused. What kind of friend would take advantage of another friend that way? I wasn’t about to agree to something like that when there was no ownership in it for him to guarantee that money. So our silent partnership had gotten drafted and signed. “You didn’t want to be a partner,” I reminded him. “You did it strictly to help me.”

  The fact that he’d shared that he was a billionaire before he’d even hit the age of thirty-two didn’t make one iota of difference to me.

  “Knowing you don’t need that money doesn’t make me feel any better about the fact that I can’t pay you back in full in a few weeks. I want to know I’ve earned that store, and you’re my best friend, Zeke,” I said remorsefully.

  “If you feel that bad, you could just marry me,” he suggested matter-of-factly. “You’d inherit because you’d be married before your birthday, and you wouldn’t feel like you had to hold off on a second store. Problem solved.”

  I started to laugh, but then halted abruptly as I looked at him on the couch from my seat in a comfy recliner.

  He was staring at me with a familiar look. An expression that had none of his usual humor or teasing.

  Holy shit! He’s…serious.

  I set my empty wine glass on the side table and folded my arms in front of me. “I’m pretty sure Angelique wouldn’t be happy,” I said in an easy tone. “God, Zeke, I appreciate how willing you are to help me out, but you obviously haven’t thought this whole idea through yet.”

  He shrugged his massive shoulders. “We broke up, not that we were ever really a couple in the first place. We just dated for a while. I haven’t seen her in months. Where have you been?”

  Where have I been?

  I’d been so busy with my business, and preparing for my wedding, that I’d obviously failed to notice that Zeke didn’t have the gorgeous brunette on his arm anymore.

  “I’m sorry,” I answered, feeling like a shit because I hadn’t known that Zeke was flying solo. Had she broken it off, or had he done it? Had she hurt him? Was he bummed out because he wasn’t seeing her anymore?

  “Don’t be sorry. It was never serious.”

  I sighed as I leaned back into the comfortable chair. “Who broke it off?” I asked curiously.

  “Mutual agreement,” he replied. “I think she was interested in dating, and eventually marrying, a guy with money more than she was into me, personally. Neither one of us were heartbroken over it. We just weren’t looking for the same thing.”

  God, I hated the fact that no woman had ever really looked past Zeke’s eligibility, or the fact that he was a high-powered attorney who owned one of the best defense firms in the country.

  Why hadn’t some lucky woman snapped him up just because he was an incredible guy, and one of the kindest, most generous people on Earth?

  Sure, women found him physically attractive. I mean, who wouldn’t?

  It had certainly never escaped my notice that Zeke was smoking hot. It still didn’t. I’d just tried to ignore it for the good of our friendship after he’d set me straight on my twenty-first birthday.

  Strangely, I felt more than one twinge of uneasiness at the thought of Zeke pledging his life to a woman. I’d never really thought about what our relationship would look like if he wasn’t single, maybe because he never seemed to get serious with any woman for any length of time. Not that I blamed Zeke, since he’d never found a woman who really saw…him.

  He looked up and pinned my gaze with his. “I think I just offered to marry you. Does that mean you’re refusing?”

  The timbre of his voice sent an electric zing down my spine. I wasn’t immune to the dangerous, wickedly low tone of his voice. I just wanted to pretend that it didn’t make every female hormone in my body stand up and take notice. “You weren’t serious.”

  “I was completely serious, Lia. You need to get married. I’m available. No offense, but I think I’m a better option than Stuart. I wouldn’t change a hair on your head, much less try to make you into someone you’re not. I happen to think you’re absolutely incredible the way you’ve always been.”

  Oh, sweet Jesus, I knew that intense, determined, stubborn expression on his face right now. I just hadn’t seen it in a very long time. “You can’t just marry me,” I protested. “I adore you for offering, but the whole idea is…just crazy.”

  Problem was, I knew Ezekiel Conner was far from insane.

  He was funny.

  He was sweet when he wanted to be.

  He oozed a masculine sex appeal that most women couldn’t ignore.

  He was wealthy.

  He was highly educated, ridiculously intelligent, and extremely successful.

  But…he was just my friend.

  Women like me did not marry men like Zeke Conner.

  He was way too…perfect.

  “Think about it, Lia,” Zeke said calmly. “You deserve to open another store, and to get out from under the expenses you acquired from the first one. You don’t want to accept the money I gave you as a gift, so that means you feel like you have to pay it back before you can keep moving forward. If you marry me, you don’t have to commit to forever. There’s nothing in the will that requires you to stay married. You meet the terms, collect your inheritance, and then we can get a divorce if that’s what you really want.”

  I gaped at him. “Isn’t that what you’d want, too? I don’t get it. What do you get from this? I know you’d do anything for me as a friend, but don’t you think you’re going a little too far?”

  I chewed on a fingernail nervously as my eyes stayed still fixed on his.

  “Do you really want to know?” he asked huskily.

  I nodded slowly.

  “I get the chance to talk you into my bed for as long as it takes to get your inheritance,” he answered with what sounded like a bluntly honest tone.

  “Why would you want that?” I squeaked.

  I’d offered myself up to him once, and I’d regretted it ever since.

  Zeke had been my friend for fourteen years, and there had never been a single mention of anything more than friendship between the two of us except for my drunken confession on my twenty-first birthday.

  “Do you really think that I haven’t noticed that you grew into a beautiful woman? You’ve had the power to get my dick hard for years now, Lia. In fact, it’s hard to believe you never noticed,” he drawled.

  “You’ve never wanted to screw me,” I challenged.

  “Sure I did,” he said with a smirk. “What red-blooded man wouldn’t?”

  “Tons of them,” I said nervously.

  All of my ex-boyfriends, at least.

  “I did, and still do, want to fuck you,” he said as he folded his muscular arms across his chest. “I’ve just never talked about it. I wasn’t sensing the interest
on your side, my timing has always sucked, and I didn’t want my dick to ruin a good friendship. But had you so much as crooked your finger at me, I would have had you in my bed before you could have changed your mind. Marry me, Lia. I’m never going to force you to do anything you don’t want, but at least give me a fucking chance to show you that we’d be just as good at being lovers as we have been at being friends. If you decide that’s not what you want, we’ll get a divorce.”

  His expression was stoic, and his beautiful blue eyes were shuttered. For the first time in our very long friendship, I had absolutely no idea what he was thinking.

  This man wasn’t the Zeke I knew, but he was still familiar. I felt like I was in some kind of weird dream, and seeing a side of my best friend that I’d never noticed before.

  But he’s still my Zeke.

  I did start thinking about his offer. Maybe it hadn’t been the most romantic proposal in the world, but just the fact that he’d be willing to sacrifice his freedom, even temporarily, to help me achieve my own goals, made me start to cry.

  Not that I was really buying the crap about him lusting after my body. It was obviously his way of pretending he’d get something out of the deal if I said yes.

  However, I desperately wanted to pay him back for everything he’d done since I’d opened my successful coffee shop. And the only way I was going to be able to do that was to get my inheritance.

  He’d trusted me completely when he’d readily forked over that huge sum of money.

  Not only had Zeke given me the money to start Indulgent Brews generously, but he’d been there for me every step of the way while it was growing as well. He called himself a silent partner, but he’d been around when shit had hit the fan, too. I’d shared my knowledge of coffee with him, and he’d taught me everything I knew about being a good businesswoman.

  “Okay,” I said softly, my decision made.