The Billionaire's Setup

by Marie Higgins

  Of course, it was probably a ghost, whether it was Victoria or not. But strangely enough, if it was a ghost, why didn’t Nicole feel a cool draft like she usually did when Victoria was around? As much as she wanted to stay and help the ghost figure out who killed her, part of Nicole just wanted to leave this place. Most definitely if she stayed any longer she would start to believe that she really was crazy. Nolan was the only one who calmed her fears and believed in her. He was the only reason she wanted to stay.

  When she reached the elevator and pressed the button, she waited several minutes without even hearing the gears from the elevator grind. It was easier to just take the stairs, anyway.

  As she descended, she couldn’t stop thinking about Victoria and how this had been the way she’d died. Gripping harder to the railing, Nicole walked slower, concentrating on stepping evenly on each step. She held her breath, not wanting anything to disrupt her concentration. Once the bottom drew nearer, she started breathing easier again... but when she placed her foot on the third stair from the bottom, someone behind Nicole shoved her. She stumbled, but thankfully, didn’t fall.

  When she found her balance, she swung around and glared toward the person who’d pushed her. Nobody was there.

  Her heart sank. What was going on? It was a push. She had felt the person’s hands on her back, so why couldn’t she see anyone?

  “Victoria?” she whispered. Deep down inside Nicole, she knew it wasn’t her ancestor. Why would Victoria want to harm her own relative?

  Straightening, she moved into the dining area, but some housekeepers were busy wiping down the tables and chairs. Some were vacuuming. The food from the buffet table had been long since taken away. Not even the food’s aroma lingered.

  She pulled her phone from her pants pocket and quickly sent Nolan a text.

  Where are you? Something has happened. We really need to talk.

  As she stared at the phone screen, she held her breath, waiting for him to reply, but after several seconds of no answer, her chest tightened in panic. Tears stung her eyes. There was only one explanation.

  He knew.

  TWENTY-FIVE

  Nicole rushed out the front door and stopped on the wrap-around porch. Fall’s crisp air stung her heated cheeks and nipped at her nose. This morning’s frost was still on some vehicle’s windows as the sun hadn’t reached its full peak in the clear sky.

  She searched through the crowded parking lot. Somewhere she heard music playing... like big-band music that was played back in the 1920’s. Suddenly, her vision narrowed and everything around her changed. She wasn’t standing outside any longer, but she was in a crowded ballroom while all around her, couples danced to the upbeat music.

  Nicole knew one thing for sure... She wasn’t in Hanover House any longer, and she definitely wasn’t in her time.

  Her heartbeat quickened as she slowly walked forward. Maybe Victoria would be here and Nicole would get a glimpse of the ghost’s past. Yet, this was the first time Nicole had been awake while dreaming... and she was frightened beyond belief.

  “There you are, my lovely.”

  The man’s voice wasn’t Nolan’s, but it still calmed her nerves. He took her hand and kissed her knuckles. She didn’t know if she should yank her hand away or not, but because she was still in shock, she stood and allowed his kiss.

  He straightened and smiled. Just then, the music changed to a slower tune. He led her onto the dance floor and took her in a dance hold. She thought it was very presumptuous of him to think she wanted to dance. Unless he thought she was someone else.

  “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?” he asked.

  The more she studied his face, she realized this was Victoria’s fiancé, William. “Um,” she paused, not really knowing how to answer him and if he could really hear her, anyway. “If you said it, I don’t mind hearin’ it again.”

  His expression relaxed. “Victoria, you are the most beautiful woman in the world.”

  She nodded and smiled. Strange, but he looked at Nicole and saw Victoria. Yet, this was a dream, wasn’t it? But now she knew that she should say the words Victoria would have said to him.

  “You have made me so happy,” she told him. “Soon we will never have to be apart ever again.”

  “I cannot live without you, my love.” William’s arm around Nicole’s waist tightened slightly, moving her closer to him. “We will have many children and grow old together. I promise I will never leave you.”

  She nodded. “That is exactly what I want, too.”

  William’s face moved closer as if he was going to kiss her. Nicole’s heartbeat quickened in panic. She couldn’t let him kiss her on the mouth. She wasn’t Victoria – although that’s who he saw when he looked at her.

  Up this close, she couldn’t believe how green his eyes were – just like Nolan’s. The resemblance was uncanny, and for a moment, she wanted to believe this was Nolan and he wanted to kiss her.

  Suddenly, the horns from the trumpets in the band grew louder. Nicole pulled back and looked toward the band on the stage. Within seconds, their music changed to a rock and roll rhythm. The deep beat of the drums shook through her and echoed in the room.

  Another sound came from the band, but it was so very different... almost like a car’s horn blasting. She cringed and wanted to cover her ears. A man moved in front of her, and his angry expression frightened her.

  “Get out of the way!” he yelled.

  Hitching a breath, she moved away from him, but then another car’s honk blasted in her ears, almost as if she was standing in front of a vehicle.

  “Nicole, what’s wrong?”

  Nolan’s voice was what brought her out of her strange daydream. In a flash, she was back to the real world... and standing in the middle of the road as cars swerved around her. Nolan held her as he helped her back to the sidewalk.

  Her head pounded and tears threatened her eyes. What was going on?

  “Nicole,” Nolan said as he shook her slightly. “Answer me.”

  Nicole blinked rapidly, trying to gain her bearings. He had pulled her to a park bench and encouraged her to sit. She glanced past him toward the park behind them. The last thing she remembered doing was walking out of the bed and breakfast. So, how did she end up in a park?

  “I... I don’t know,” Nicole said, meeting his gaze. “I honestly don’t know how I got here. I’d gone to the lobby and the dinin’ area to see if you were still there, and when I couldn’t see you, I walked outside to look for your jeep.” She shrugged. “And then suddenly, I was in a dream with Victoria, except I was her and I was dancin’ with her fiancé.”

  Nolan touched her cold cheek. She had forgotten to bring her jacket, and now her shivering body reminded her how cold it was out here.

  “You were sleep-walking?” He shrugged out of his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders.

  “Yes... and no. I didn’t really fall asleep. I was just dreamin’ of being at a dance with William.”

  “Why? Did you learn anything from that dream?”

  She shook her head. “Only that William loved Victoria... and his eyes are green, like yours.”

  “That’s really freaky,” Nolan said, wrapping both arms around her and rubbing up and down her back.

  Warmth slowly started circulating, but it was his body heat that helped more than his jacket. “Nolan? What was I doing in the middle of the road?”

  “I don’t know. I was returning from putting gas in my tank, when I saw you walking through traffic as if in a daze.”

  Her forehead started pounding again. “I don’t know why I would do that.”

  “Come on, let me take you back to Hanover House.”

  She waited until she was sitting in the passenger seat and he was in the driver’s seat, before saying any more. The heater from his vehicle felt good on her cold body. “How far is the bed and breakfast?”

  “Just around the corner. Thankfully, you didn’t walk too far.”

  �
�Gads, Nolan... I never want to do that again.” She pushed the hair out of her face.

  “When I realized the person walking through traffic was you, my heart sank. I couldn’t figure out why you would want to die.”

  “Die?” She swung her head and looked at him. “Why would you think that?”

  He glanced at her before returning his attention to the road as he drove into the parking lot of the B&B. “Because you were trying to kill yourself by walking into traffic.”

  He parked the jeep but didn’t turn off the engine. She was glad, because her body was just starting to unthaw. After unbuckling her seatbelt, she leaned her head against his shoulder. His stiffness reminded her of the reason she’d gone looking for him in the first place.

  Silence filled the vehicle, and she wished he would say something, but she was sure he was waiting for her to speak first. After all, she had sent him a text message.

  “What do you think your dream meant?” he asked.

  “I don’t know. They both wanted to be with each other. William told Victoria he promised to never leave her.”

  “Then maybe, your dream means that when she finally passes over, he’ll be there waiting for her.”

  Nicole pulled back and looked into his saddened face. Her heart twisted, knowing she was the reason he looked this way. “I hope that’s what it means, because I’m plain tuckered out with tryin’ to fix someone else’s life, because right now, I’m more worried about repairin’ my life.”

  “What do you need to repair?”

  She didn’t like the nonchalant way he spoke to her as if he didn’t have feelings. One way or another, she needed to help him remember that he did love her... or at least he really liked her.

  Turning her body toward him, she grasped his hands... his unresponsive hands. Her heart broke a little more. She must believe she could fix this.

  “Nolan, my cousin admitted to what she’d done last night.”

  “And what exactly had Bailey done?”

  She gritted her teeth. Why was he acting this way? “She told me she was upset at me and wanted to hurt me, so she contacted Aaron Powers’ office and tried to... blackmail them.”

  Slowly, he nodded. “And why would she call my friend, Aaron Powers?”

  Inwardly, she groaned. This admitting the truth thing was rather embarrassing. “When Bailey and I first checked in to the bed and breakfast, we noticed that someone from Powers Enterprises was here. Bailey knows more about celebrities and she had thought that Aaron Powers was getting’ married. But when we saw you there – and after we got to know you a little better – we both suspected that you were Aaron and that you were just hidin’ behind a different name.”

  The pain of rejection on his face, tugged at her heartstrings.

  “But now you know that I’m just a normal man with a normal job, right?” His voice was heart-wrenchingly low.

  Nicole caressed the top of his hands with her thumbs. “Nolan, you’re not normal. I’ve been with many men in my life, and none of them can compare to you.”

  He stared into her eyes for a few moments more before withdrawing his hands from her grasp and turning off the vehicle. He pulled his keys out of the ignition and reached for the door handle, but paused.

  “When were you going to tell me the truth about who you really are, Nicole?” He didn’t meet her gaze, but stared out the window. “Because you led me to believe you are just as normal as I am.” He glanced over his shoulder at her. “But that’s not true, is it?”

  Unshed tears stung her eyes, but she must hold them back. “I wanted to be a normal woman. I wanted people to look at me as though I was normal. For once, I wanted someone to get to know me instead of my bank account.” She sighed. “You’ll never know how difficult it is when people look at you with their waxed-on smiles and fake greetin’s. It’s hard to know who is tellin’ the truth and who is playin’ the suck-up game.”

  “You’re right, Nicole.” His expression hardened. “I will never know how that feels, which is why it’s killing me inside to tell you that I want to end our relationship. You can’t mix oil and water, which you should know since you’re in the oil business.”

  He opened the door and climbed out. “Nolan, wait!” She reached across the seat for his arm, but he’d whipped it away before she could grab it. This was the first time since they’d met when he hadn’t opened the passenger side door and helped her out. And this was the first time she could remember agony flowing so heavily through her that her chest ached and made it hard to breathe.

  Covering her eyes, she fell to the seat and cried. She couldn’t let him just walk away. This wasn’t over because her heart wouldn’t let it. Yet, could she convince him to give their relationship a second chance?

  TWENTY-SIX

  Nolan stood still in his room, staring at the suitcase near the closet. Packing and leaving this place and all the wonderful memories had been on his mind these past few hours, but he hadn’t said anything to anyone. So, then who had pulled his suitcase out of the closet for him to see as soon as he walked into his room? Nobody had a key to his room except the people who worked at Hanover House. However, that still didn’t explain why the suitcase was out.

  After tossing the jeep’s keys and his room key on the shelf by the door, he slowly moved to the luggage piece and picked it up. He really should pack and leave. Staying here knowing that loving Nicole was only a dream – one that would never come true. It would be too painful to stay here any longer and see her pretty face and the emotion in her eyes.

  He lifted the suitcase to the bed and opened it up. As he turned to move to collect his clothes, a cool breeze brushed over him, and seconds later, the lid to his suitcase snapped closed. He glanced around the room, knowing there was a ghost here.

  His heartbeat quickened. He was going to have his first paranormal experience. The excitement was almost too much to contain. After all, he’d wanted something like this to happen to him for years now. “Victoria? Is that you?”

  He listened closely but heard nothing. Not even a whisper disturbed the air.

  “If you’re there, Victoria, I just want you to know that I can’t stay here any longer. I’m sorry.” He opened the lid to the suitcase again before turning back toward the closet. Cool air surrounded him mere seconds before the suitcase’s lid slammed closed again.

  He grumbled and folded his arms. “Victoria, you can’t make me stay. You’re not a wealthy heiress any longer and you can’t make people do what they don’t want to do.”

  Suddenly, the lip swung open again. He sighed and nodded. “Thank you for seeing it my way, Victoria.”

  But within seconds, it closed again. He gritted his teeth and rubbed the pounding headache. This was ridiculous. He stepped toward the suitcase, but it opened on its own once more. He frowned, not knowing what game Victoria was trying to play with him.

  “Seriously?” he asked into thin air. “You’re really going to be childish about this? Might I remind you what happened to you when your servants didn’t like you pushing them around?”

  As he reached for the luggage piece again, it snapped closed. Gritting his teeth, he folded his arms and waited to see what the ghost would do next. For the next few minutes, nothing happened. In fact, the air around him had become warmer. She must be gone.

  He moved back to the suitcase to open it, but this time it wouldn’t lift. It was almost as if someone was inside, keeping it closed. Growling, he shoved the luggage piece off the bed. He didn’t have the patience for this.

  “Fine,” he snapped. “I’ll stay until the end of the tour, which is only two days away, and then I’m out of here.”

  He grabbed the keys to the jeep and his room key and stormed out of the room. He’d come to Colorado for a ghostly experience, but now he was ready to strangle a certain annoying ghost.

  “I DON’T THINK SULKING around the bed and breakfast will win Nolan back,” Bailey whined as she took a bite of her club sandwich. She grimaced and tossed the
food on the small table. “And why can’t we go out to eat? Delivered food is disgusting.”

  Nicole glared at her cousin. After hearing Bailey complain most of the day, Nicole tried to weigh the options of which was better – leaving the B&B and possibly missing Nolan when he returned, or... listening to her ungrateful cousin all night. Although, she had hinted to Bailey that she was more than welcome to take the car and go wherever she wanted for dinner, Nicole’s irritating cousin refused to leave without Nicole.

  “Bailey, I swear...” Nicole dug her fingers into the bedspread as she fisted her hands. “If you don’t shut up, I’m seriously goin’ to find some duct-tape and wrap it around your face to keep you quiet.”

  “You are so mean when you are hungry.” Bailey rolled her eyes and grabbed for her sandwich again. Slowly, she took another bite, twisting her face the whole time.

  Nicole glanced at the alarm clock on the bed-stand. She had decided not to go on today’s tour, only because she thought Nolan would stay back, too. Obviously, she was wrong. But since he hadn’t checked out of the B&B yet, she was going to stay right here in her room and wait to hear his footsteps moving up the hallway. She was determined to get this squared away tonight. There was no way she could eat or sleep otherwise.

  “Nicole?” Bailey asked in a nasal tone. “Can you get me the water pitcher and a cup?”

  Nicole glanced at her cousin and then across the room to the two items Bailey had just inquired about. It would literally only take her cousin six or seven steps to get it. She was so lazy!

  “No.” Nicole folded her arms and leaned back against the pillows stuffed behind her.

  “What?”

  “You heard me. I said no.”

  “Why?”

  “Because you have two legs. You can get the water and cup yourself.”

  Snarling, Bailey jumped out of her chair and stomped heavy steps toward the plastic water pitcher. Not even halfway across the room, Bailey stumbled and fell against the bed. She threw Nicole a glare.