Billionaire's Fake Fiancee

by Eva Luxe

  “We’re moving?” she asks me.

  She was listening, I realize.

  “Yes,” I tell her. No use sugar coating things.

  “And when were you going to tell me?”

  “I was coming to see you now.”

  I can’t read the look on her face. She’s a teenager, and she can be moody, and I’m expecting the worst. But when she opens her mouth to speak, I can’t believe what comes out.

  “Thank God,” she exclaims.

  “What!?” I stutter, completely taken aback.

  “This school sucks,” she groans. “The girls are all drama queens, and I cannot wait to get out of there. Where are we going?”

  “Well … I’m not really sure yet,” I admit. “We’re going with Ty. Are you okay with that?”

  Ella just shrugs. “As long as it’s not here. How could it be worse?”

  “But Ty,” I press her. “You’re okay with Ty?”

  “He seems cool,” Ella replies, and I feel like a weight has been lifted from my chest. “It’s about time you saw someone, mom. I mean, how many years has it been?”

  I’m shocked. Here I’ve been spending all this effort keeping men away from me and from my family, worried about the impact I would have on my kids, all the while my own daughter has been worried about my love life!

  “It has been a while,” I admit, laughing softly.

  “So you want me to pack up too?” she asks.

  “Yes. Anything you can’t live without.”

  “I mean, this is pretty weird, mom,” she remarks. “What are we like going into witness protection or something?”

  “I know, honey. I’m sorry. It will all work out though. I promise.”

  I pat her on the back and head back into my room to get my things together.

  This is all going to work out, I tell myself. I do believe that.

  I look down at the bed where Ty and I slept, still unmade from this morning. This will be a familiar sight if all goes well. I’ll go to sleep with him, and I’ll wake up to him.

  If everything goes well …

  I don’t even know what is going to happen. All I can do is put my faith in Ty, and hope he comes through.

  He will.

  He has to.

  Chapter 24 – Tyler

  Bruce’s fist glances off my cheek, but I’m already twisting to the right and I barely feel it. You’d think a big guy like him would hit harder but no one’s taught him to put his weight into it or how to twist his hips, and he swings wildly like we’re back in high school.

  My guess is he’s gotten by so far on his weight and size alone. They’ve been matching him up with little guys and so far he’s managed to come out on top. Nicky has to know I’d pummel him, and that’s why he’s having me take the dive. People are expecting me to clean his clock, and Nicky’s probably got a fortune put down on me. He’ll clean up nice when I hit the mat.

  I dodge his flailing uppercut, and move aside as he stumbles.

  No control.

  He’s breathing heavily and it’s only round two. I could outlast this guy if I just danced around for two more rounds, and he’d be a sitting duck for whatever I threw at him.

  Go down in the third, I think. That’s what I’m supposed to do.

  I belt Bruce in the ribs, but it’s a softy. He’s probably thinking I’m not that tough and that he just needs to try a little harder, focus and hit me hard and I’ll go down. This dunce couldn’t knock me out if I stood still.

  I can feel Nicky’s eyes on me, and I get a glimpse of him peering out of the crowd as I spin around to face Bruce who has just stumbled past me. My eyes narrow and I flash him a grin. He must be shitting his pants right now. I’ve already disappointed him once, and then pissed him off a second time. I know how he must be feeling now.

  Vinnie and Don look like today is their birthday. They don’t hate me like Nicky, and they both probably have bets on me too that they’re ready to cash in and head to Atlantic City. I’d like to hop out of the ring and belt them both in their smug faces.

  Before the war I wasn’t a big guy. In fact, in middle school I was one of the smallest. I was picked on by the older kids because I could beat them in sports even though I was half their size. I played on the teen soccer team when I was only ten, and I was on varsity basketball as a freshman before I quit just to spite them.

  It was the war that toughened me up. The things I went through those kids could only imagine. They wouldn’t even recognize me if they saw me now. I’ve put on fifty pounds, all of it muscle, and didn’t have any of my tattoos back then. Nicky and his goons remind me of the worst of those kids back in school. Brad, Taylor and Randy.

  They used to corner me in the locker room or the hallway by the gymnasium and harass me. Their parents were big shots around town so the school never did anything about it. The principal would pretend to punish them, but nothing really ever happened, and it didn’t seem to matter how many times I showed up to class with a black eye or a bruise, no one ever did shit.

  When I look at the thugs in the crowd who are eyeing me like their prized horse ready to make them rich, those feelings of being the little guy come flooding back, and I want to wipe that grin off their faces.

  They won’t be smiling soon, I think, ducking another one of Bruce’s haymakers.

  The end of round two is coming up.

  Go down in the third, I think. That’s my job.

  Bruce leans in with a right hook, and I make my move.

  I duck, letting the blow sweep harmlessly over me, and bring my fist straight into his nose. It shatters, and I feel the splash of warm blood hit my neck and shoulder as Bruce’s head snaps backwards. He staggers and looks back at me with complete shock.

  That’s when I hit him in the jaw with a left.

  The blow knocks him out, and he drops to the mat like a wet sack of chicken thighs. I can hear the crowd erupt behind me, but my eyes find Nicky in the crowd.

  If looks could kill, I’d be dead a hundred times over. I shrug and blow him a kiss.

  That’s when Nicky draws his gun.

  The few people surrounding him shout and run for cover. Vinnie and Don pull their pistols too.

  Time to do this.

  I spin and vault over the ropes, pushing my way through the hot sweaty bodies towards the back hall. Nicky and his goons will be hot on my heels, but I’ve got a head start and the crowd is thick.

  “Attaboy, Ty!” someone shouts in my ear. I feel pats on the back as I shoulder my way past.

  “You son of a bitch!” someone else screams. I feel a claw like hand pulling at my arm. Someone lost a bet on me. I yank my arm free and look back behind me. I can’t see Nicky, but I can see three hands, each holding guns, shuffling through the people towards me.

  I’m almost at the door to the back hall when I hear the first gunshot. Everyone screams and I turn to see the crowd scattering, people rushing for every door. I guess Nicky got tired of waiting. He spots me as people break out of his way and levels his gun at me.

  I yank the door open and dive through, just as a bullet clangs off the air conditioner above my head.

  The floor is still wet, but I’m half way down the hall when I hear the door open behind me.

  “Oh, you dirty bastard!” Nicky cries out behind me, his angry voice echoing across the walls as my feet slap the wet floor beneath me. I hear the hammer cock back on his gun, followed by a deafening blast.

  Almost there, almost there!

  A tile right by my ear shatters, sending splinters of tile into the side of my neck and face. The door at the end of the hall is racing towards me as I pick up the pace. Adrenaline is pumping through my body. I hear another shot behind me as I shoulder the door and burst into the parking lot.

  I can hear the panicked crowd rushing out the front, but out on this side of the building it’s a different story. There’s nobody here. Well, that’s not entirely true.

  “He’s coming!” I shout, racing to my position.


  The side door crashes open, the metal clanging off the wall of the building. Nicky, Vinnie and Don pour out and stop in their tracks. The look of surprise on their faces is something I’ll never forget.

  “Fuck me,” Nicky announces as he sees what’s in store.

  Standing beside me, is Barry and two of my Marine buddies, each of them holding a shotgun.

  Before he can raise his gun, my squad fires. It’s like everything goes into slow motion as the barrels roar and spit hot lead at my enemies. I can see the briefest moment of horror and realization cross Nicky’s face just before he and his three gangsters go down in a hail of bullets. They never saw this coming.

  I’d fallen out of touch with these guys after the war, but with the things we went through, we’d always be loyal to each other. Barry had gotten in touch with them and told them of my situation. They said of course they’d help out, and had gotten in their cars. I’d left the logistics up to Barry though. I didn’t have the time to manage it. I wasn’t sure whether he would come through or not.

  Then I had to make it out of the fight alive, and lure them out here to the side lot without being gunned down myself in the process. It was a bit of a hairy plan, but it worked.

  “Sons of bitches,” Barry spits, his hatred for Nicky equal or greater to mine at this point.

  “That all of them?” A former marine named Craig says as he turns to me. I haven’t seen Craig in years. He’s filled out a bit, and is still sporting that grizzly bear beard of his.

  “Those are the main guys,” I say, breathing heavily. “He’s got more goons about, but the news will take some time to reach them. By then I’ll be long gone.”

  “Where you headed?” Drew asks, an olive tan Italian fellow with slicked back hair. He’s always been a ladies man and it looks like not much has changed.

  “Upstate New York,” I reply.

  “You sure that’s far enough?” Barry asks.

  “Yeah. With Nicky gone his troops will fizzle off,” I say, hearing sirens in the distance. “We got to split. Thanks, guys. I’ll get in touch when things cool down.”

  I shake Drew and Craig’s hands, feeling a twinge of nostalgia at seeing them again. I wish we had more time to catch up. The bond we formed will always be there, no matter how much time we spend apart. The sirens are growing closer. The whole town must have heard the shots. It probably sounded like the fourth of July.

  “All right, Ty,” Craig says, giving me a friendly slap on the back. “Watch your ass, you hear?”

  “No doubt.”

  “Stay safe,” Drew adds.

  My heart is starting to slow as I get into my truck. The engine roars to life and I gun it out of the parking lot, watching my friends disappear in my rear view as they scatter, headed for their vehicles, ready to get out of dodge.

  My friends, my life, my past. I’m leaving it all behind. All of it—in my rear view.

  It’s time to move on.

  I think of Jenny and smile.

  Chapter 25 – Jenny

  Where is he!?

  I’m on the verge of a freak out. Ty said a few hours and it hasn’t even been that, but my worrisome tendencies have kicked in and that’s all I’m doing. The kids and I finished packing and now there’s nothing to do but wait. Josh is reading and Ella is playing on her phone.

  What if something went wrong? I think.

  I don’t even know what could go wrong. I don’t even know what’s going on. That’s what’s making this hard—not knowing. If I had any idea where he was right now or what the danger was, then I could be rationalizing. At least my mind would have something to hold on to. But for all I know he’s robbing a bank—or what’s worse, he already tried to rob the bank, got caught, and is now sitting in a jail cell somewhere and I’ll never see him again.

  I have no way to reach him, and he has no way to reach me. My eyes settle on the front door to my apartment. Until that door opens, and he walks through, I have no way of knowing.

  Can you picture a life with me? That’s what Ty had said.

  Of course I could. I’d been picturing it since I started to have feelings for him. As much as I try to keep that side of me locked away, Ty had burst in like a master thief and sent my mind spinning. Picturing a life with him was one of the first things I did, and was why I was so upset when I thought he’d used me. When I woke up alone that first time, my whole world came crashing down when I thought I’d fallen into the same trap of caring for someone who could never care for me.

  But then when he’d said those words …

  It was like a thick set of double doors I’d kept closed and locked for years just swung open and revealed a whole new world to me. And now my heart is on the line. If Ty doesn’t come back …

  Don’t think like that! I scold myself.

  He will be coming back. He is strong, capable and promised. He won’t let me down. He can’t. Things are going to be better. Things are going to be perfect. I’m doing my best to stay calm, but I feel my body temperature rising and my chest is tight. It’s getting hard to breath. It feels like I’m on the verge of a panic attack when I hear a knock at the door.

  I leap off the couch without even having to think about it. It’s like a reflex. My heart is ready to jump out of my throat as I race towards the door. I grab the handle and pull the door open.

  “Oh!” The word escapes my mouth and I slap a hand across my lips to muffle the gasp that comes after. It isn’t Ty.

  Two men, who are clearly trouble, are standing at my door. One has a thick scar running across his cheek and up to his forehead, and the other is so muscled he looks like a body builder. He’s in stained jeans and a tank top. I try to slam the door, but he easily shoves it open, knocking me to the floor in the process.

  “Hello, darling,” he growls in a thick British accent. I kick hard off the floor and try to run, but his hand tightens around my ankle in a vice like grip. I spin and try to wriggle free, but the second man leans down and casually takes my neck in his hand and squeezes, instantly cutting off my air.

  “Now, don’t fight too hard,” he says, smiling down at me. “We don’t want to have to sully that pretty face of yours. We’re not here for you, we’re here for your boyfriend.”

  Ty? These men are here for Ty?

  I stop flailing and feel the man’s hands start to loosen around my throat and I suck in a deep breath of air. I should be afraid for my life, but my thoughts are on Josh and Ella—on Ty.

  “My children,” I manage to say. “Please—”

  “We’re not here for them either,” the British one says. “But if you don’t cooperate, we may have to pay them a visit. Now you gonna do what we say?”

  I can only nod. I’m paralyzed with fear. My throat is dry and it feels like a boulder has been placed on my chest. Even though I’m no longer being choked, I’m finding it hard to breath.

  “On your feet, lass,” the British man says, grasping my arm and lifting me to my feet like I was a ten pound dumbbell. “Get a chair, Jimmy.”

  Jimmy, the scar-faced man, heads to the kitchen and returns with one of my chairs. He sets it in the center of the room and motions for me to sit.

  “Plant your ass, girl.”

  I try to move, but I can’t. I want to scream at myself. This isn’t how I should be reacting. I should be ready for things like this. Things have happened at the club, and I never lose myself like this. But this is different. I wasn’t expecting this at all, and my kids are in the apartment. This isn’t about me—this is about them.

  The British thug must see what’s happening, grabs me by the waist, and sets me into the chair. I hear the thick sound of duct tape and feel the sticky bite as my arms are taped to the armrests. I want to struggle. I want to fight. But I can’t. Even if I resisted, there’s nothing I can do against these men. If they wanted me dead, I would already be dead.

  Now I understand what Ty meant. He must be in some serious trouble, and he’s trying to get out of it. But if thi
ngs went like he wanted, why are these men here? Something must have gone wrong. Is Ty okay?

  I have to get control of myself. There are too many ifs to contemplate right now. I close my eyes and focus on my breathing—three seconds in, three seconds out. I’m helpless, and I accept the fact that my life is no longer in my hands. But what I can’t accept, is that the lives of my children are out of my control.

  Ty will be here, I think. He will. He has to.

  “Now, when’s your boyfriend getting back?” Jimmy says, squatting down in front of me. The scar on his face is enormous, and I can’t imagine what could have done such damage. It’s raised and still slightly pink, which means it didn’t happen that long ago.

  “I—I don’t know,” I stammer, trying to swallow and find my voice.

  “Now, now, girlie. Don’t play with us, you hear?” The British one chimes in. “We ain’t in the mood.”

  “R-really,” I squeal. “I don’t know! I don’t even kn-know where he is!”

  The men stand up and cross their arms, looking down at me like they’re examining a dead body.

  “I dunno, Jimmy. You believe her?”

  I feel like I’m going to throw up. I can almost see their internal debate being played out on their faces. What if they don’t believe me? What happens then? Is this going to be the end for me? What will happen to Josh and Ella?

  ‘Yeah,” Jimmy cackles.

  Thank God.

  “She don’t look like that great a liar,” he adds.

  “Hey, assholes.”

  Ty’s voice from the door.

  My heart leaps, and I look up to see Ty standing just inside the apartment. Before it can even register, Ty moves in, and with a single blow sends Jimmy sprawling to the floor. Jimmy tries to get up, but Ty follows up his punch with a kick to the face, knocking him out.

  “You fuck!” The British man declares, raising a fist at Ty.

  Ty belts him in the nose with a blow that would level any other man. But he only staggers back and wipes the blood with the back of his hand. Ty swings again, but the man blocks it and fires back. Ty almost ducks the blow, but it half connects with his cheek and snaps his head backwards.