Beddable Billionaire

by Alexx Andria

  I wasn’t going to budge. “I admire your talent and I want to hire you.”

  “I’m flattered but...I don’t know...what if you end up hating what I write?”

  “Then I’ll fire you and hire someone else,” I said with a shrug.

  She barked a laugh. “It’s that easy, huh? Just throwing money around?”

  “Pretty much.”

  Her gaze narrowed. “Let’s just say for a nanosecond that I was considering your offer...what would working for you entail and what would the compensation be?”

  “I would offer a lump sum for your services.”

  “And those services would be...”

  “Ghostwriting my autobiography.”

  “And that’s it?”

  I gave her a stern look. “I would require your full attention. It would likely entail odd hours and numerous revisions. If I’m going to do this, I want it done a particular way.”

  “And what is the point of this autobiography?” she asked, curious.

  “So the world can know my journey.”

  “Does the world care?”

  I laughed in spite of the insult. “I’d like to think so, but either way, as long as you’re being paid, what does it matter?”

  Lauren conceded my point, but she wasn’t exactly sold. God, I loved how smart she was. “I don’t know, Nico. I mean, I’m not entirely sure it’s a good idea if we work together.”

  “Why not?”

  A small nervous laugh escaped as she glanced at Grady’s door and said, “Well, because...you know...we kissed.”

  “And?” I pretended ignorance. “I’ve kissed many people.”

  Her laughter faded and she glared, lowering her voice. “Yes, I’m sure you have, which is precisely why I don’t want to join your roster.”

  “I can separate business from pleasure.”

  “You didn’t before.”

  “That was your business, not mine,” I said quietly. “Now the shoe is on the other foot. I am hiring you for your brain, not your body.”

  Her cheeks flared with heat, and she crossed her arms across her chest, lifting her chin to say, “Good, because I’m more than just a body. I do have a brain. And I like to use it.”

  “That’s what I just said.”

  She faltered in adorable silence. I enjoyed how I kept her out of balance. Lauren never knew what to think around me because I kept her guessing. Made the game so much more fun.

  “You haven’t mentioned my flat fee,” Lauren said, ending the whispering and drawing the conversation back to finances. “I’d need to know if it’s going to be worth my time.”

  I chuckled at the absurdity of her statement. “I think fifty thousand is a fair amount,” I said, taking immense joy in the way her eyes widened and her jaw dropped. I pretended to think she was offended. “Was that a lowball offer? I’m prepared to go to seventy-five, but that’s my ceiling.”

  “Seventy-five thousand dollars? Are you insane?” She gasped, paling and sputtering. “Jesus, Nico. That’s ridiculous! I could never accept that kind of money for such a small project.”

  “Ah, that’s where you’re wrong. It won’t be small. I want you fully compensated so I’ll feel justified in monopolizing your time. By the end of our agreement, you might feel seventy-five was a bargain.”

  She swallowed, still reeling. “Are you sure? Still...seems exorbitant.”

  I glanced around with open disdain. “If it means you could move out of this dump, it would be worth it,” I returned to Lauren. “Did the magazine pay so little that this was your only option?”

  “New York is expensive,” Lauren said in her defense. “And I happen to like it here.”

  “I hate it,” a little-boy voice floated from the recesses of the bedroom. Of course, the little imp had been listening. It’s what I would’ve done, too. Grady appeared, crossing his arms across his chest in an identical gesture of his mother’s, determined to be part of this negotiation. “One time I squished a bug when I got up to pee in the middle of the night. I’m scarred for life.”

  “That was pretty gross,” Lauren admitted. “But struggle builds character.”

  “I have enough character,” Grady retorted and I laughed. Grady brightened, saying, “Are you gonna be Mama’s new boss? Can we go back to your place for more sketti? Do you know how to make lasagna?”

  A kid after my own heart. “Are you kidding? Lasagna is my specialty. I’m even better at lasagna than I am at spaghetti.”

  Grady grinned, turning to Lauren with a plaintive expression. “Please say yes, Mama. I’m hungry.”

  “It’s not fair to tag-team me,” she muttered, shooting me a murderous glance that I found sexy as hell. I was close to victory; I could nearly taste the triumph. To Grady she said, “Sweetheart, while Mr. Donato’s offer is certainly intriguing, I have to weigh the options.”

  But Grady, bless his blunt heart, seemed confused. “You said we are broke. Nico is saying he’ll give you money to work for him. I don’t understand...seems an easy decision to me.”

  “I agree, Grady.” I bent to agree with the boy. “But it’s ultimately up to your mom.”

  “M-ommmmmm,” Grady whined, even stamping his foot a little. “You’re being obstenacious.”

  “That’s not a word,” Lauren corrected him. “You’re trying to say either obstinate or ostentatious, neither of which apply. Sorry, future wordsmith. Better luck next time.”

  “Actually I have to disagree with you,” I told Lauren. “I definitely feel you’re being obstinate. What good reason do you have to turn down my offer aside from your pride? Seems kinda immature when the stakes are so high.”

  “I have to do what’s best for me and Grady,” Lauren started, but I wasn’t going to let her wiggle out of this one.

  “And providing for yourself and your son seems a solid decision, while turning your nose up at a lucrative offer out of some misplaced pride is just shortsighted, wouldn’t you agree?”

  She laughed. “I see what you’re doing. On the surface, you’re using logic to prove your point, but you and I both know that there’s more to your offer, and it’s an insult to pretend otherwise.”

  The subtle twinkle in her eye gave her away; she was enjoying the game.

  I smiled, slow and sure. “The ball is in your court. Do you want the job or not?”

  A pregnant pause stretched between us as Lauren considered my offer. “Fine,” she finally said, but before I could crow, she tacked on, “but there’s going to be nothing but professional behavior between us, got it?”

  “Of course,” I agreed with a solicitous nod that reeked of total bullshit and she knew it, but this was half the fun, this subtle undercurrent of tension that coursed between us. I couldn’t wait to put her in my bed. I rubbed my hands together, pleased with my victory and practically clicking my heels together. “Pack your bags. You and Grady are leaving this dump. Until we can find you more suitable housing, you and the boy can stay with me.”

  “Yay!” Grady jumped up and down, shaking his little butt in a makeshift boogie with such spirit, his glasses nearly bounced from his nose.

  “Whoa!” Lauren rushed to put the kibosh on Grady’s celebration. She looked to me as if I’d just suggested we go jump from an airplane without parachutes. “Are you insane? We can’t just move in with you.”

  “Okay, I get it. It’s unorthodox but I’m about to drop a significant investment in your services. I don’t trust that this place is safe. If something happens to you, I’m out a lot of money. Think of it this way...I’m ensuring the job gets done.”

  “Yeah, Mama, it’s just ecobomics,” Grady added helpfully, and I wanted to high-five him.

  Lauren bit back a grin at her son’s attempt but said, “I don’t live in the ghetto, and you’re being a snob. This place is very cute, and I like it.”

/>   I tried not to roll my eyes and instead turned to Grady. “How about lasagna tonight?” Grady nodded vigorously. “Then we better find a way to convince your mama to stop wasting time and get to packing.”

  “I’m going with Nico!” Grady shouted, burning out of the living room to his bedroom to pack.

  I smiled at Lauren. “I think working together is going to be loads of fun. Don’t you?”

  “I think you might be the devil.” But her smile said the opposite.

  “I might be,” I agreed, then gestured before checking my watch. “Go pack. The car will be here shortly, and if I’m going to start the pasta, I need to get going quickly.”

  She shook her head, snickering. I could tell she thought I was biting off more than I could chew. Maybe I was—I’d never lived with a single mom and her kid, but I was eager to give it a shot. Seriously, I hadn’t looked forward to anything this much since...hell, I couldn’t even remember.

  Lauren walked backward slowly, pinning me with her gaze, saying, “You’re going to regret this,” but I got the impression that was the part she was looking forward to, and that turned me on like you wouldn’t believe.

  I fully planned to have Lauren eating out of my hand, sucking my cock and falling in love with me before she even realized how it’d happened.

  God, I love the game!

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Lauren

  THE HUM IN my body corresponded with the ridiculous curve of my lips that I couldn’t ignore as I packed.

  Was this really happening?

  I grinned as I bypassed my everyday, functional underwear and deliberately grabbed my pretty, rarely worn and uncomfortable panties that I always avoided in favor of comfort.

  Yep, I thought as I stuffed the panties into my suitcase, this was totally happening.

  Okay, so time to get real. Nico was hot. Nico wanted to have sex with me. Forget all that bullshit he tried to feed me about this “being business.” I could see in his eyes that he wanted me.

  Felt good to be wanted.

  The thing about single motherhood, sometimes you forgot that you were sexy at one time.

  But when Nico looked at me—I remembered.

  A shiver danced down my skin.

  And I missed that feeling.

  So yeah, I was packing my suitcase to go work for Nico. I could pretend to hold the line and say I wasn’t going to sleep with him because I had more integrity than that, but let’s get real, I was only human—and I missed sex.

  And I’m not talking about good sex, I meant sex, period. At this point, I might settle for a quick grope and poke, but I knew in my gut that Nico would make a night out of whatever sexual circus he had planned in his head.

  My toes curled at the thought.

  The other part of this equation was the reality I didn’t have time to wait out this hiring freeze. Publishing was in a total state of ever-tightening budgets, and it was going to take more time than I had to find a new job.

  And fifty thousand dollars—I still couldn’t quite believe that offer was real—would allow me to find a quality job rather than a hurried one.

  But I would make it clear that Grady wasn’t part of the negotiation. I didn’t need Nico messing with his head. As far as Grady was concerned, Mama was just doing a job and that’s all he needed to know—even though Grady had been suspiciously happy to toss me into Nico’s lap. I would’ve thought Grady might be more resistant to the idea of another man coming into my life.

  Go figure.

  Finished, I went to Grady’s room to find him sitting on his overstuffed suitcase in order to zip it.

  “What did you pack?” I asked, laughing. “Let me take a look.” My eyes widened as I saw the contents of every drawer and an assortment of toys jammed in the suitcase. I looked at Grady, shaking my head. “Honey, we’re not staying forever. I don’t think you need all of this.”

  “Nico said to pack everything that mattered to me,” Grady said, lifting his chin. “He also said we’re not coming back to this dump.”

  Of course Nico said that to my impressionable son. First order of business...set Nico straight on the boundaries. However, I needed to get Grady to understand, too. “There’s nothing wrong with our little apartment. We’ve made a lot of great memories here,” I said, pulling things to prioritize spring clothing so the suitcase could close. “Think of this as a vacation. It’s nice to visit someplace fun and different, but all things—even fun things—come to an end and then we return home.”

  Nico appeared in the doorjamb and said, “Don’t worry, little man. I’ll work on your mom. In the meantime, let’s shake a leg. This place gives me hives.”

  “It would do you some good to live like a normal person,” I said to Nico, thrusting Grady’s luggage at him. “Make yourself useful and carry this, please.”

  Nico grunted at the impact but chuckled at my ire. “So sassy,” he murmured, amused. He grasped Grady’s hand and said, “The car is here. Let’s get you loaded in while your mama finishes up her own packing.”

  Protests died on my lips when I saw how Grady gripped Nico’s hand with total trust, as if they weren’t practically strangers. How did Nico have this hold on my kid? I was baffled at how easily the man had Grady twisted around his finger. It also worried me. I wasn’t going to let my son fall in love with Nico only to have Nico disappear when it no longer amused him to play house.

  Sex was one thing; messing with my kid’s head was another thing entirely.

  A few moments later Nico returned just as I was locking the apartment. He relieved me of my luggage, his smile bright and engaging, but I stopped him with a warning. “Don’t you dare break my son’s heart, do you hear me?” I said, my tone low. “He’s just a little boy. He won’t understand when you lose interest and ditch him. Whatever this arrangement means in your head, just know that Grady is off-limits.”

  “You worry too much. I’d never hurt a kid.”

  Even if he believed that, I didn’t think he understood how his actions could affect a vulnerable six-year-old. “For whatever reasons, Grady seems to like you. Don’t make me regret taking this deal. If you break my son’s heart, no amount of money will make his pain worth it.”

  “Down, Mama Bear,” he said, that dimple popping as he grinned. “C’mon, the car is waiting.”

  The Donato name on my résumé could put me in front of the right people. He had a spacious two-bedroom apartment (it was bigger than some houses in the city) and it was, admittedly, in a nicer stretch of the city than my own apartment.

  I was going to treat this unorthodox situation as a working vacation with superfancy amenities—and possibly fringe benefits.

  “This is going to be fun,” Nico said, handing the luggage to the driver. “I’ve never had roommates before.”

  I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. “Famous last words,” I retorted as I stepped inside the car to join Grady.

  Nico joined us seconds later. From the outside looking in, we appeared a family. I tried not to give the pinch that followed much thought. I’d long given up the idea that I might find someone to fill in the role of daddy and husband. I prided myself on being self-sufficient, and to this point, I had been.

  But I wasn’t going to lie...a part of me wished life had dealt me a different hand. I hadn’t realized what a douche nozzle Houston was until it’d been too late.

  I wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

  And, to date, I hadn’t.

  But then, I hadn’t actually dated either. The idea of allowing someone into my life for anything more than superficial gave me anxiety. Breakups were messy, and I couldn’t take the chance that Grady might get hurt in the crossfire.

  The easiest solution was to avoid dating.

  Which meant no sex.

  No companionship.

  No one to snuggle with
and watch corny television shows.

  At this point, I feared my vagina might have cobwebs.

  And to add a little more anxiety to the mix, I recently read an article that said without regular sex, a woman’s vaginal walls atrophied! I might have an old-lady vag by now!

  I searched but the article didn’t state how quickly this process happened. Hopefully, the process hadn’t already begun for me.

  I snuck a quick look Nico’s way, my breath catching. Damn, the man was hot. I’m talking hotter than a New York sidewalk in July. Throwing pride and whatnot aside, I couldn’t imagine a better candidate for the job of reintroducing me to orgasms without the aid of a vibrator than Nico Donato.

  The question was...should I make the first move or wait and see what Nico put into play first?

  Maybe I’d have to play it by ear.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  Nico

  I COULDN’T BELIEVE my good fortune. I truly didn’t believe that Lauren would cave so easily. I thought for sure I was going to have to add a little more spice to the pot, but Lauren was a terrible negotiator and I’d gotten off easy.

  Fifty thousand was chump change. I could spend that in a weekend with the right motivation.

  It felt good to spend it on Lauren knowing that she needed it so desperately. I’d never played the hero before, and it was almost addictive.

  Generally speaking, I steered clear of women in financial straits because, well, they became needy and clingy within a heartbeat, and that irritated the fuck out of me.

  But Lauren didn’t act like a desperate woman. She acted like a boss with her own agenda, and that fired me up. We were two predators circling each other, looking for the weak spot. Except she had a banging body and when I was around her, I sprang boners at the most inopportune moments.

  Which only made our exchanges even more entertaining.

  Ha! I know, crazy.

  “Mama made me put back some of my toys,” Grady said, looking to me.