Mr. Big

by Nana Malone

  “Thank you,” she said, attempting to pull back. He held her there, taking in a breath. “Marry me.”

  She pulled back then, her eyes wide with surprise as he got down on one knee before her, reaching into his pocket for the ring he had purchased months ago. During that visit with her parents, he had asked her father for her hand in marriage. But he’d wanted to wait until she was done with school first, not wanting to distract her during her last few months. Now, there was nothing stopping him. “Zach,” she said, clearly surprised as she looked at the diamond he had picked out. “What are you doing?”

  “Something I should have done months ago,” he said, holding up the ring. “You are my everything, Em. My life. My future. I’ve never loved anyone as much as I love you and I hope to never have to live without you. Marry me.”

  Tears sprang to her eyes as she nodded and he rose from the ground, sliding the sparkling diamond on her finger before gathering her in his arms. “I can’t … I can’t believe you did that,” she said against his chest as he kissed her forehead.

  He pulled back and framed her face with his hands, his thumbs wiping away the tears that had escaped from her eyes. “I should have done it a long time ago, Em. I love you.”

  “I love you,” she said right before he kissed her lips. “So much.”

  “Bloody hell, can we go eat now?”

  Laughing, he pulled away from her reluctantly, accepting Steven’s hearty hug of congratulations. “I wouldn’t want anyone else as my brother-in-law,” Steven said as he clapped him on the back. “Welcome to the family.”

  “Thanks,” Zach said, meaning it. More hugs from her parents before they all departed for the restaurant, he and Emma walking toward the parking lot where his car was parked.

  “I can’t believe this,” she said, holding up her hand. “This has got to be the best day ever.”

  He pulled her against him, a stupid grin on his face. He couldn’t help it. He was so fucking happy too. “I’m just glad you didn’t turn me down flat in front of your family.”

  She socked him in the shoulder with her fist, laughing. “Yeah right. Like I would want to get rid of you.”

  He laughed and spun her around in his arms, pushing the hair out of her eyes. “I am so proud of you, the future Mrs. Andrews. I can’t tell you enough.” His life wasn’t complete without her in it now.

  She slid her arms around his neck and gave him a tender smile. “I know. I love you, Zach.”

  He leaned down for a kiss, thinking that his life had changed dramatically since that day Steven had called him and asked him to watch out for his sister. No one had expected him to do such a good job.

  “Do you think they will notice if we are late to dinner?” Emma asked as he released her lips reluctantly. “I’ve got some more places to cross off the list.”

  Zach chuckled and grabbed her hand, pulling her toward the car. Bloody hell, he loved this woman.

  Emma

  Sometime Later

  Emma watched as Zach’s breathing eased off, a soft snore coming out of his mouth before she grinned and held up her hand, admiring the diamond that he had placed on it earlier. He had surprised her by proposing, but she couldn’t complain, not at all. From the day that he professed his love to her she knew she was going to marry him someday and now she could plan that wedding and their future together. After all, the first part of their time together had been magical, rarely apart aside from their work and school. Never in her life had she thought she could love the day that she came home to find him waiting for her, with that sexy grin of his waiting to hear about her day. Her heart overflowed with love for Zach.

  He muttered something in his sleep and slung his arm over her naked body, Emma’s hand going into his hair so that she could stroke his head. He loved that. It calmed him down, especially when he was studying late at night. She was so proud that he was going back to the university to earn his master’s, so proud that her soon-to-be husband was so driven to do the best that he could do in his career. Not that she wouldn’t take him without a pound to his name. Emma suspected that he was still attempting to show up his father after all of these years and there would come a day when he realized that it didn’t matter what his father thought of him. But until that day came, she would support him in whatever he wanted to do. He had done the same for her.

  “I love you,” she whispered, settling against him. Her parents were ecstatic about their engagement and Steven was excited about his mate becoming his brother-in-law, but most of all, Emma was excited about becoming his wife. There was no one else for her.

  BACK COVER - LONDON BOUND

  What would you leave behind to follow a dream?

  It wasn’t exactly like spunky, photography student, Abbie Nartey ran away from her life…except, that she left under the cover of darkness and put 3000 miles between her and her ex-boyfriend’s betrayal. She went to London searching for her dream. She never expected to find love, or herself.

  Heir to a a billion dollar tech fortune, Alexi Chase, is looking for freedom—from his family and from his past. What he’s not looking for is love. With secrets like his, he can’t afford to let anyone get too close. But a chance rescue has him wondering if the price of keeping secrets is too high.

  30

  Where the hell was it?

  Abena Nartey frantically checked the pile of mail. Bill, bill, advertisement. Nothing from University of West London. Worry knotted her stomach. All her other graduate school acceptance and rejection letters had come by now. She’d expected to hear word from them over three weeks ago.

  “Hey, Evan, was this all the mail? Was there anything with the packages?” A part of her held on to that last thread of hope.

  “Sorry, sweetheart. This is all of it.” Her boyfriend, Evan Peters, leaned against the doorjamb between the hallway and the dining room, still dripping from his run, creating little puddles of sweat on the floor. “You have some perfectly good schools to choose from. I don’t know why this one is so important to you.”

  Abbie clenched her teeth and tried not to focus on the fact that, as usual, he didn’t support her choices. She also tried not to focus on the tiny puddles. Puddles she’d be expected to clean.

  Instead, she focused on his face. Even covered in a sheen of sweat, he was still handsome–creamy café au lait skin, strong jaw, whiskey-brown eyes. His family was also wealthy enough to sway political turnouts. Her friends liked to remind her how lucky she was to have him.

  If only they knew.

  “Look, I know. I need to make a decision, especially if I want to start in January, but I really wanted this program.” She inhaled sharply the moment she caught the look of displeasure in his eyes. “But you’re right.” No he’s not. “I’ll pick one. If London comes through, I can always pull my acceptance or something.”

  He frowned, and Abbie braced herself. Stupid.

  “Abena, it’s bad form to rescind an acceptance. Especially if it’s at a school where I pulled strings for you, like Georgetown or George Washington. Some dreams aren’t meant to come true. I mean, let’s face it, your photos are okay, but you’re not exactly doing gallery openings, are you?”

  Abbie bit her tongue. As if she wouldn’t have been able to get into those schools on her own. As if his talking to a couple of professors had been the thing that made the admissions boards sit up and take notice. He’d only just graduated himself and was an associate with Walters and Logan, a big law firm in town. His family name might have pull, but he, himself, did not. She’d gotten in on her own merit.

  But with practiced ease, she kept her thoughts to herself. “I know. I’m sorry. I wouldn’t want to do that. I’ll think about it carefully.”

  He snatched up the hem of his sweat-sodden T-shirt and used the material to wipe his brow. The view of his six-pack and strong chest muscles should have had her salivating, should have had her begging to join him in the shower. Too bad she knew what was under the perfect façade. And it wasn’t pretty.
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  She wanted him to be supportive. She wanted him to believe in her. She wanted him to be who he pretended to be. But right now, mostly, she wanted him to get into the shower so he would stop dripping on her floor.

  “I’m getting in the shower. What’s for lunch?”

  Abbie swallowed. “I’m making chicken salad.”

  He sighed, clearly unenthused, but headed off toward the shower anyway.

  As much as she hated to admit it, she was pushing the dates for accepting an offer. Letters of acceptance into law programs from Georgetown, George Washington, John’s Hopkins, American University, and University of Maryland all beckoned to her in a neat stack. But she didn’t want to have to think about them. Evan had left them there purposefully, so that every time she walked through their dining room she’d have to see them. The spiteful part of her yearned to disorder the tiny pile. But she restrained herself. Petty isn’t a good look.

  Only problem was, she didn’t want to be a lawyer. Sure, it was the natural choice in a family full of them. Both her parents were. Even her oldest sister Akosua was. Her middle sister, Ama, had broken the mold to go to medical school, but still it was a profession the whole family approved of. Not like Abbie’s passion, photography.

  The University of West London had the best Masters of Photography program in the world. There, she’d have a chance to work with Xander Chase, one of the youngest, most renowned photographers in the world. He’d even exhibited at Hamilton’s in London.

  Some dreams aren’t meant to come true.

  Maybe Evan was right. Maybe London was just a pipe dream.

  Unless you went on your own.

  As quickly as the betraying, insidious thought popped into her head, she shuddered and quashed it. Going on her own wasn’t an option. She’d once tried to interview for a job in Los Angeles right out of college. The bruises he’d left on her body had made it very clear that she wasn’t going anywhere without him.

  She’d been with him since she was sixteen, and he’d come to her school to talk about the benefits of NYU as a college. Even then, everyone had pointed out how lucky she was that a college guy was interested in her. That a Peters was interested in her. Then why don’t I feel lucky?

  Nobody saw what she saw. She’d made her bed and picked the wrong guy. He had his moments when he could be sweet, and she could forget what he was really like. But his temper was always at the forefront of her mind. Although that didn’t stop her from wanting some freedom and wanting to do something other than what was expected.

  Her phone rang in the kitchen, pulling her out of her reverie, and she raced to grab it, a smile tugging at her lips when she saw who it was on the caller ID. “Hey, Dad.”

  “Abena, how are you?” Her father’s baritone voice with its accented English never failed to calm her down.

  “Oh, I’m good. Just making some lunch.” She stalled, wondering what he was calling about. Neither of them was particularly skilled at small talk. A call from him was not the norm. They always relayed messages through her mother or via text. Nevertheless, she was happy to hear from him. “What’s up, Dad?”

  He expelled a breath, as if happy to be able to cut to the chase and forego the social niceties of asking what she was making for lunch.

  “I need the valuation papers for the condo. I’m trying to up the insurance, given the renovation we just did to the bathroom.”

  “Sure, I’ll grab them.” She jogged into the study that Evan had taken over upon moving in and kept an ear out for the sound of the shower turning off. Once Evan was finished, he’d want to eat, so she needed to hurry up with lunch. “One sec, I have no idea what Evan’s filing process is.”

  Quickly, she searched the stack of folders on the desk and found what her father was looking for. As she relayed the information, her gaze landed on the corner of an envelope peeking out from the desk drawer. A Queen Elizabeth stamp affixed on the thick paper.

  “Thank you, Abena.” Her father hesitated. “Are you well? You sound off.”

  Abbie sighed. His way of asking if she still thought she’d made the right choice by moving in with Evan. Her parents had been so against it. After all, in Ghanaian culture, it just wasn’t done. You only moved in with someone after you’d done a traditional engagement ceremony.

  The mere thought of marriage made Abbie’s stomach clench. Not that Evan hadn’t hinted it was the next logical step. But every time she thought about it, it felt like someone was tying a noose around her neck.

  “I’m fine, Dad,” she said as she tried to pull the drawer open. It didn’t budge.

  “Have you selected a school yet?”

  “Uhm…” Her voice trailed as she grabbed the letter opener and tried to slide it into the drawer to pop the latch. “I need to. I was hoping to hear from University of West London.”

  Her father harrumphed. “A photography course does not qualify as school.”

  Abbie could almost see him grumbling and pacing in his office. “Dad, actually, it does. The program is prestigious, and it’s at an accredited university.”

  Her father’s accented voice pitched lower. “Abena, what do you think you’re going to do with a Masters in Photography? You’re supposed to go to law school.” Of course, to Ghanaian parents, the only appropriate professions and worthwhile educational pursuits included law, medicine, and engineering. He ignored the prick of pain his disappointment caused. She was used to it by now.

  “Dad. You already have one daughter who’s a lawyer. Besides, with the photography, there’s a lot I’m planning to do. With a recommendation from my professor, opportunities in production would open for places like National Geographic and a career in documentary films.”

  And she was sure a recommendation from Xander Chase would open those kinds of doors. But she didn’t care about those doors. What she was after was the apprentice position offered to his top student.

  “Abena, you can’t put all your eggs into one basket. You have to have a backup plan.”

  “I know. I know. I’ll be looking at all the offers tonight, and I’ll make a decision by the weekend.” She could only hope and pray that the acceptance came before then. She really only had two more days to stall.

  The drawer opened with a splintering pop, and for a second, she was worried she’d broken it, but it slid smoothly on its grooves. Her father mentioned something about her sister, but Abbie had already tuned him out. She pulled out the envelope with its maroon stamp of the Queen, and her breath caught. With her blood rushing in her ears, she carefully scanned the return address.

  University of West London.

  Twice, her brain tried to make her lips cooperate. Twice it failed. On the third attempt, she managed with a shaky breath, “Listen, Dad, I have to go. Evan’s going to want his lunch soon.”

  She bid a quick goodbye to her father. Unable to swallow and unable to breathe, she slowly reached into the already opened envelope and pulled out the papers contained inside.

  Her brain short-circuited as her eyes flitted over the cover sheet. …Great happiness that we offer you a spot…our students…we look forward to hearing….

  Numb with shock, the only coherent thought her brain managed was, Get lunch ready, otherwise it’s going to get ugly.

  In the kitchen, her body worked on automatic pilot. Chicken salad would not have been her choice of lunch, but Evan hated any Ghanaian food she cooked. She added the mayonnaise and the additional spices she knew Evan liked. She always saved the scallions for last because he liked them fresh but not too big and not too fine like the food processor would have done.

  “God, I needed that shower. That run was brutal.” Evan’s voice was jovial.

  She was too numb to answer, rage battled for dominance with disbelief and sadness. Instead, she just continued chopping. Her mind was unable to form coherent thoughts anyway.

  He continued without waiting for a response. “I went down by the library then up Independence. It was pretty. Still spring but with a touch of
summer heat in the air.”

  Abbie smoothed the scallions off the knife into the chicken salad with her finger. While she worked, the bitter scent burned her nostrils. She still didn’t speak.

  “What’s with you?” His tone was cold and held little note of concern.

  She knew the moment his eyes landed on the envelope from the school. The air around him shifted subtly, and she braced herself.

  His voice was barely above a whisper as he spoke. “Where the hell did you get that?”

  Stupid move or not, she wasn’t going to let this one go. If there was ever a time to stand up for herself, it was now. She was not the pathetic girl he thought she was. She had been strong once and she reached deep into the depths of a long forgotten girl to find a sliver of that strength. “Where the hell you hid it.”

  She’d braced for shouting, but nothing happened. Instead, when Evan spoke, his voice was pleading. “Look, I know I shouldn’t have kept it from you, but you have to realize that London isn’t going to happen. We won’t survive if we don’t go together. Law is a more stable profession than photography. I mean, what are you going to do with that anyway? I had your best interest at heart.”

  Her best interest? Her best fucking interest?

  Her fingers curled around the knife handle as her anger bubbled to the surface. She forced a deep breath, then another, and peeled her fingers off. “You lied to me. Every day I asked you, and every day you hid it from me.” She searched his handsome face. How had she become this? What had become of the real her?

  He waved a dismissive hand. “Look. I did it for you. You needed to make a decision. The right decision. And you wouldn’t have been able to make it if you’d seen that envelope. Besides, you and I both know that you wouldn’t be happy in London.”

  “Don’t!” Her body vibrated with fury. “Don’t talk to me like I’m a child. You did it for yourself because you wanted me to make the choice that you wanted. You’re dispica—”

  The stinging crack across her cheek snapped her head to the side. A pinball of pain ricocheted in her skull. The burning pain spread from her face to her neck and well into her hairline. She knew from experience now would be a good time to shut the hell up.