Saved by the Billionaire

by Michelle Pennington

  Right. The last thing Celine would want would be to stay outside and be upstaged by another actress.

  “Sorry,” he said, leading her inside and feeling not an ounce of remorse. What he did feel, oddly enough, was an emptiness in his chest. He refused to call it loneliness or envy. It was bad enough that he was even acknowledging its existence. He’d come to grips a long time ago with the fact that he was never going to have what Chris and Veronica had. He didn’t begrudge them such happiness, but if he allowed himself to open up that part of his heart too far, memories and desires he’d locked away years ago might escape to haunt him.

  Spirits were high as the cast and director gathered at the front of the theater by the screen for a few words. When at last it was time for the screening to begin and the lights in the theater darkened, Warren leaned back in his seat, feeling just a little guilty that Celine looked so uncomfortable next to him as she sat ramrod straight.

  “We’re actually watching the film?”

  Warren nodded. “This is the best part. But if you want to leave, I’ll call my driver to come and get you. If you leave now, though, it might be hard for you to get back for the afterparty later.”

  “I’ll be fine.” She tugged at her dress again.

  The movie was as good as he had hoped it would be. The cinematography was incredible, the score and sound editing were flawless, and the CGI was seamless and natural. But what really made the movie were the performances by the actors. Still, watching the romantic moments between Chris and Veronica’s characters unsettled him again. They were so emotive and the space between them was so intimate and compelling that it made him think of the time he’d discovered too late that he loved a woman. Getting an invitation to her wedding had been a blow that shook him to his core.

  He still didn’t know at what point he’d fallen in love with his sister’s best friend. Perhaps those feelings had always been there, waiting to be recognized.

  It was just like him to decide that he wanted the one person he couldn’t have. Maybe that was precisely why he wanted her. But though that quirk of his personality had helped him flourish in business, it had broken him in his personal life.

  The worst part was, when he’d gathered the shreds of his pride and honor and gone to her wedding, he’d taken an immediate dislike to the man she was marrying. It was surely jealousy, the flaming, biting kind. But there was something about that man that brought out all of his protective instincts.

  That had been over a year ago, and he hadn’t seen or heard anything about her since—not even from his sister. Why was she haunting him tonight in this dark theater?

  “Mr. Drake?”

  A feminine hand shaking his arm brought him out of his thoughts. “Yes?”

  All around him people were standing to clap at the conclusion of the film. Angry at himself for zoning out, he stood and applauded.

  The theater began emptying quickly. Celine smiled. “Finally. I need a drink.”

  Without another word, Warren offered his arm and helped her and her massive dress down the steps and through the crowded aisle that led to the exit. The party was being held at a venue a few blocks away, and there was a solid stream moving along the fenced-off route.

  When they arrived at the party, it only took a few minutes before Celine had a drink in her hand. It was at this point in the evening that Warren knew things would get tricky.

  This was a usual arrangement in Hollywood. Premiere dates were about being seen with the right people, not about anything romantic. But of course, people didn’t always require feelings to be involved before things went further, and he suspected Celine was one of those people. Warren didn’t play that game for anybody, and certainly not for Celine.

  Her long fingers gripped his hand. “There’s Chris and Veronica. I’ve never met them. Will you introduce me?”

  Warren clenched his teeth, but nodded. He led her over and waited nearby for a chance to get closer. Everyone wanted to talk to the star couple tonight. But after only a moment, Chris stepped forward.

  “Warren, there you are.” They shook hands, and then Chris pulled him in for a bro hug. “This wouldn’t have been possible without you. Thanks again.”

  “That incredible movie was thanks enough.”

  Celine giggled next to him. “Mr. Drake zoned out at the end.”

  Warren glared at her and turned back to his friend. “She’s exaggerating. This is Celine Ayers. She’s staring in one of our upcoming movies.”

  The last bit was to cue Chris into why he had brought her. Chris nodded slowly and shook her hand with a distinct lack of enthusiasm. “Nice to meet you,” he said. Then he turned back to Warren. “Come say hello to Roni. She’ll hate it if she misses you.”

  Celine hung on him like a limpet as he followed Chris back to Veronica’s side. He broke free of her grasp long enough to greet Veronica, who reached out to hug him. “Congratulations,” he said. “I’m so happy for you two.”

  Veronica smiled. “Thank you. I think the movie is going to do well. I was so relieved to see how well they handled it in post-production.”

  Warren smiled and leaned closer, lowering his voice. “Yes, but that wasn’t what I meant.”

  “Oh.” Veronica grinned as her left hand shifted to her waist. “Thank you.”

  “We’ll talk later,” Warren said, firmly leading Celine away. She was already looking around with an eager expression, probably choosing the next celebrity she wanted to make cozy with. Warren was already trying to figure out how he could escape early. There would be plenty of men willing to step in and keep her company.

  He reached into his pocket to text his driver to come pick him up. As he went to put in his security code, the phone buzzed with an incoming notification.

  Call me. I need you.

  It was from his sister, Emmeline. After their mom and dad had both passed away within two years of each other while Em was still in college, they had grown very close, but she rarely asked for help. His stomach clenched with worry. “I’m sorry, Celine, but I have to go. I’ll arrange a car for you.”

  “Wait, you’re ditching me?” Celine’s calm, happy expression shifted.

  “I’m afraid so. My sister needs help.” He sent Em a text, telling her he was on his way. “Sorry, Celine. Have a nice night. There are lots of other rich men here for you to hang on, I promise.”

  Chapter Three

  Kara looked at the clock for the hundredth time, anxiously waiting for Emmeline to arrive. It wasn’t like Em could do much for her, but just having her there would ease some of her anxiety.

  Her friend was so sweet to just drop everything in her life and fly from L.A. to Vegas for someone who hadn’t called her for a year. But Kara had known she would come. That was the kind of person Em was.

  At last, at almost two A.M., she heard a knock on the door. She dropped her phone on the couch cushion next to her and ran across the living room to open it. Double-checking through the security peephole to make sure of who it was, she opened the three locks and flung the door open. Before she could even blink, she was being squeezed in a hug that felt more like a vise.

  “Kara. Oh my gosh. How are you doing?”

  Pulling back to look outside, she tried to see if anyone was watching them from the darkness beyond the security lights. It was impossible to see. “Come inside.”

  Em looked back over her shoulder anxiously and hurried inside. Kara closed the door and locked it up tightly while Em dropped the big shoulder bag she was carrying to the floor. “Okay, I’m seriously getting freaked out. What is going on?”

  “My ex is trying to take my baby.”

  Gripping her shoulders, Emmeline stared down at her. “I’m missing a ton of info here. I knew you had divorced that jerk’s butt, but you didn’t tell me you had a baby.”

  Kara nodded, feeling terribly ashamed. “I didn’t tell anyone because I didn’t want word to get out. I’m so sorry.”

  “Don’t be. I’m not upset about it, just s
hocked. You must have been through a nightmare. And look, here I am getting in at this crazy hour when I hoped to arrive sooner. I just took the first flight I could get.”

  “And I’m so glad you did. It’s not like I can sleep anyway, and it’s such a relief to have you here.”

  “Good. We’re going to take care of you, so just stop worrying. Trust Warren to figure things out. Now, don’t worry about explanations and details right now. You’re exhausted, and I don’t want you to have to go through everything twice.” Em paused to smile. “Why don’t you just show me that baby instead?”

  Kara needed that one spark of something positive so badly. She smiled and grabbed Em’s hand. “Come on.”

  Aiden’s crib was in her bedroom. She paused at the three-way lamp she kept near the crib and turned it on to its lowest setting. Em bent over the rail and pressed her hand over her mouth, muffling a squeal. In a careful whisper, she said, “Kara, he’s gorgeous! He is a boy, right?”

  Kara kept her voice soft as well. “Yes. Isn’t he beautiful? I never knew it was possible to love someone this much.” She knew Em would know what she meant, since she had two young children of her own.

  “What’s his name?”

  “Aiden.”

  “Love that. Oooh, I want to pick him up and kiss his chubby cheeks. We’d better get out of here before I give in to temptation.”

  Kara chuckled and shooed her friend away from the crib. “Let’s go then. The last thing I need right now is a cranky baby.”

  Back in the living room, they sat facing each other on the couch. “Warren will be here soon,” Em said, glancing at her phone. “He was at some movie premiere when I texted him, so it took him time to get home and arrange a flight.”

  “Oh, wow. I feel terrible! I just called without thinking.”

  Em grabbed her hand. “And I’m so glad you did. Don’t worry about him. He doesn’t like that stuff too much, even with a gorgeous actress on his arm. Trust me, he wouldn’t be coming if he didn’t want to. He cares about you, Kara. You’re like family to us both.”

  This made her feel even worse. “I feel the same way about you guys.”

  “Why didn’t you ask for help sooner?”

  Kara shrugged, regretting her lack of foresight. “I didn’t want to bother anyone if I didn’t have to. There was no reason why Derrick would have cared about me or known about the baby. I didn’t even take a pregnancy test until after our divorce was final so it wouldn’t complicate the process. I suspected but decided not to find out for sure until it was safe to.”

  “So how did he find out?”

  “His mom. She found out about the birth somehow. I had my name changed back to my maiden name in the divorce, so I didn’t have anything connected to Derrick any longer. I thought they’d forget all about me, but I guess not. Maybe my private medical records weren’t as secure as I thought they were. But who knows?”

  “Okay, you’re looking stressed, and I said I wouldn’t press you for details. Why don’t you tell me—”

  A knock on the door interrupted her. Kara felt a flash of panic, but Em just looked relieved. “I’ll get it.”

  She got up and went to the door. After checking to see who it was, Em undid the locks. It must be Warren.

  Kara picked up a throw pillow and cradled it against her stomach, trying to smother the butterflies that were freaking out inside. She was nervous to see him on so many levels.

  She felt ashamed to be in this situation and stupid for having married such a terrible guy. Then there was the toll that having a baby had taken on her body. She was rounder now than she’d been the last time she’d seen Warren—and not just in her waist. Everywhere. Obviously in the chest since she was nursing, but in her butt and hips and thighs. Even her feet were bigger. She knew she had to look scary with bags under her eyes and no makeup, her red hair in a knotted bun on top of her head. And here he was coming from a movie premiere.

  When he came in, however, he wasn’t wearing a tux. She’d been stupid to think he would have been. Instead he was dressed in jeans and a black T-shirt. Her eyes swept over him, taking in every detail. He looked harder now…it was something about his taut jaw and the way the lines of his face were more pronounced. It was the Warren she knew, but the passage of time had changed him just enough that he also felt a bit like a stranger.

  He saw Emmeline first and gave her a quick hug. “Where’s Kara?” he asked.

  “Shhh,” Em said, trying to shush him as she stepped to the side. “She’s right there.”

  When he saw her, his eyes widened. She must look as terrible as she’d thought. In the space of three seconds, she was sure he’d seen every change in her, inside and out. Feeling exposed and insecure, she didn’t know what to say, but she couldn’t handle this curled up on the couch, hiding behind a pillow. As she stood, he took a step toward her. Did he want to hug her the same way he usually did when they hadn’t seen each other for a while? He thought of her as another little sister, she knew.

  A cry from her bedroom stopped him in his tracks.

  “Is that a baby?”

  Obviously, Em hadn’t had a chance to catch him up on that fact. She nodded, trying to figure out what to say and determine his reaction. But Aiden’s cry was growing louder and more insistent. She grabbed onto the excuse to escape like a lifeline. “I’d better go get him settled down again before he gets too riled up.”

  She hurried to her room and went to the crib, glad she’d left the light on before. Aiden had turned over and pulled himself up into a sitting position. He sat looking through the rails of his crib with red cheeks and a very wet face.

  “Come here, sweetie,” she said, picking him up and wiping away his tears with a burp rag.

  She carried him over to the bed and laid down with him to nurse him back to sleep. Lying in the dim room with him settled down, content and safe, she felt a shift in the tension and fear that had gripped her for the last twelve hours. It didn’t go away, but it eased slightly with the knowledge that Em and Warren were in the next room, ready to help her. She and Aiden weren’t alone anymore, and that was a powerful relief.

  Her eyes grew heavy. She was so tired. Maybe she’d sleep for just a few minutes before she had to go tell Warren how badly she’d screwed up her life.

  Chapter Four

  “What’s taking her so long?” Warren asked as he paced around the living room.

  “She’s probably nursing the baby back to sleep,” Em said, her voice calm. How was she so chill at a time like this?

  His thoughts went immediately to what nursing meant. When he ran up against a mental image of it, he shut the gate on his thoughts fast. He was already fighting dark battles he thought he’d long laid to rest when she had gotten married. The night of their wedding and the week following had been torturous for him. He’d thrown himself into long working days that exhausted him to the point of breaking, but still sleep had eluded him. Over time, he’d found the mental strength to lock all of his jealousies away, but now they were all loose again, threatening to distract him from what mattered here: keeping Kara safe.

  “What has she told you?” he asked, trying to focus on information. He knew almost nothing.

  “Not much. I didn’t get here long before you did. Just enough to know that she has been hiding out, keeping the baby a secret from Derrick. Now he’s found out and is threatening her.”

  There was only one reason Warren could think of for why Kara would keep the baby from its father—to protect it. She was clearly terrified right now. “Do you know how he’s threatening her?”

  “No, but from the way she’s been acting, she must think he’s out there watching her, waiting.”

  “Okay. Then we’re going to get her out of here.”

  “Good. That’s what I think we should do. When?”

  “Right now.”

  Tense with urgency now, he went to her room. He knocked lightly, but when she didn’t answer, he cracked the door open and looked inside. She
was sound asleep on her bed with her back to him. He hated to wake her up, especially since he suspected she hadn’t had any sleep yet that night. But she could sleep once he had her somewhere more secure with his security staff around her.

  Pushing open the door, he walked across the room to stand beside her bed. She was lying on her side, curled around her baby, who was also sleeping peacefully as if all was right with the world. Kara’s T-shirt was raised, exposing the curve of her waist and perhaps more. Without looking, he grasped the hem of her shirt between his thumb and forefinger and gently pulled it down so she wouldn’t be embarrassed when he woke her up. She stirred slightly but didn’t wake up.

  Before he touched her, however, he couldn’t help thinking about how much she’d changed since he’d last seen her. She’d always been a thin, vibrant, fashionable girl—her image perfectly crafted for the frequent attention and close scrutiny she got as the daughter of one of Hollywood’s biggest stars. But now she was so pale that the scattering of freckles across her cheeks and nose stood out in strong contrast to her skin. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her figure had become soft and rounded, her face more filled out.

  He was both worried by these signs of exhaustion and drawn by her mature femininity.

  Taking a deep breath, he shook her shoulder gently. “Kara. Kara, wake up.”

  Her lashes fluttered, and her head turned towards him on the pillow. She looked up at him with confusion for a moment, no doubt groggy from sleep. He knew the second she became lucid again. Her eyes widened, and her hand flew down to yank at her t-shirt. The relief on her face when she discovered that she wasn’t baring everything was obvious. Thank goodness he’d taken the risk he had.