Bad Boy Mystery Boxed Set (6 in 1): Dark and Crazy Mystery and Billionaire Stories (BBW Cozy Mystery Bad Boy Billionaire Romantic Suspense Series)

by Oscar Watson

  Snapping into action, Kate pawed through the bag and finally found the cell phone. “Hello?” She gasped, forgetting to even check the name or number before she did so.

  “Ms. St. Clair?” The man had a deep voice, pleasing and arousing at the same time. Kate gasped when she realized which name he had called her.

  “Um… yes. And you?” Kate tried to stop stammering but she was powerless and to be honest, quite nervous. Even over the phone she could feel herself flushing.

  “My name is Colton Pidcock. Perhaps you have heard of me?”

  Heard of him? Who hadn’t? Colton Pidcock was one of the biggest names in the publishing world especially in the erotic genre. In fact, there was hardly anyone who had not heard of him, even outside the world of publishing. His boyish good looks and insane wealth as well as his taste for beautiful women made him gossip fodder in other circles as well. And here he was, on the phone with her!

  “Yes. I have heard of you. But, I wonder, how did you get this number?” Kate sounded remarkably unlike herself. Was that even a hint of sass that she had thrown in there?

  “Ms. St. Clair, let me be perfectly blunt with you. When I want something I get it by whatever means necessary. I have read every book you have ever written and I do believe that your talent is being seriously underutilized. I would like to discuss adding you to my roster- with a very handsome upfront of course. I will be in town next week. Let’s get together for dinner at Zoe’s and discuss the start of a beautiful, working relationship. My secretary will call you with details.”

  Kate tried to stop him. She lamely tried to get a word in but failed. And then the line was dead and she sat there, slack-jawed and openly stunned at what had just happened to her, here at her boring job on the most boring day of the week.

  Chapter Three: Elyse, the Loch Ness Monster and Big Foot. None are Here

  That evening, Kate was unhappily wailing to her friend, Susan, the only person who knew her every secret, good and bad. Susan, as usual was trying to be sympathetic but reasonable.

  “Honey, you know you would regret missing this opportunity. You said it yourself. If you had the money to do it you would quit that awful office job and just write full time. What if this is your shot to do that?”

  “But i…”

  “And, Kate, you know, I hate to be the one to say this but you aren’t getting any younger. You need to take the chances that come your way with both hands, girlfriend.”

  “I know but…”

  “And besides, who wouldn’t kill to get a shot to eat a meal with that luscious Colton Pidcock? I mean, just the idea makes me all tingly.”

  Kate sighed. She was not going to get a chance to say anything until Susan’s batteries ran themselves down. She settled in for a few minutes and just let her go on and on and on. Finally she stopped to take a sip of her chamomile tea and Kate saw her one and only chance to state her case.

  “Susan? May I remind you that he is expecting Sadie St. Clair and not Kate Plain? And…” she held her hand up before Susan could go on another run on series of painfully obvious statements. “…I am only Sadie to the extent that I do the writing.” She turned and picked up a book from the shelf and turned it to show Susan. “This is who he will be expecting to eat with. Not me.”

  Susan looked at the back jacket and sighed. Her friend did have a point. This one was Elyse in a dress of shimmering emerald green, cut to the navel with a side slit that nearly went to the hip. A wicked smile played at the corners of her blood red lips and her eyes were burning right through the camera lens. She loved Kate but she was certainly no Elyse.

  “Well, have you tried to call her?” Susan smiled gently.

  Kate glared back. “Of course I have.

  Susan sighed. She was well aware of the relationship between Elyse and Kate- how Elyse would breeze into the picture and leave Kate an emotional wreck and more often than not with far less money than she started with. In her opinion, one of the few that she kept to herself, Kate could have bought herself a lovely house with a little yard by now if it wasn’t for Elyse the charming sister-vampire coming in to sleep for a few days, hiding out from whatever mess she had landed in and then “borrowing” some cash to wander off to her next adventure. “Well maybe she will call back, then.”

  They tried to change the subject but neither one of them had much heart for it. Susan knew that Elyse would either never respond or would call back, bulldoze the conversation and make it about herself and Kate wouldn’t stand a chance.

  In her heart of hearts Kate knew the very same thing.

  Chapter Four: When the World Ends, it is Always a Tuesday

  When she was younger, Kate had read a book where the world as we know it ended. The story started on a Tuesday morning. A few years later she read an essay- same scenario, same day of the week. Again in college. And just the other night she had picked up a novel by an up and coming young writer and if she wasn’t just flabbergasted to find that the beginning of the book was a Tuesday and the world was all blown to hell by the end of that first chapter. Man, she thought. Tuesdays really do suck. And then there was her day.

  It started as a typical Tuesday at her boring job and then the cell phone rang again. She picked it up with the much-faded hope that it was her errant sister. It was not. A perky but professional woman identified herself as Devon Wilshire, secretary to Mr. Colton Pidcock. It was a very brief, right to the meat of it conversation although conversation would imply that Kate said a word beyond her initial hello and the perfunctory “okay” at the end. Even her goodbye went unnoticed and came after the other woman had clicked off.

  Per this phone call/attack, Kate was to be at Zoe’s at 7 pm the following night. She would be alone for this initial meeting but if she would like to retain a lawyer to deal with any potential contracts should the dinner go well, that would be perfectly acceptable.

  Kate sat at her desk in a daze. What the heck had just happened? She shook it off and texted Elyse hoping against hope that she would finally answer. Now she would only have a single day to find her wayward sister, get her here from wherever she might be and then bring her up to speed with what was going. She would then hope that Colton Pidcock could be charmed by Elyse and was not one of those rare men who were immune to the girl’s charms. It would be Kate’s luck that he would be that man.

  She tried to work for a few minutes but nothing made any sense to her. She called Susan who answered in one of the most incredulous voices ever. “Little Miss Rules and Regulations is making a personal phone call at work? What gives, doll?”

  Kate quickly relayed the new developments to her best pal and then sighed. “She hasn’t even answered my texts and you know that Elyse the text queen is usually all over that! What am I going to do, here Susan? I have until tomorrow evening.” Kate’s voice was quickly taking on a note of desperation that her friend had only heard one other time and she was instantly worried.

  “Katie? You have to calm down, girl. You are going screechy on me.” Susan tried to force a laugh so that Kate would not panic further but failed.

  “Calm? I am as calm as I could possibly be in this particular situation.” Kate started to say something else when her desk phone beeped, another of those super rare occurrences. “I’ve got to go. Work beckons.”

  Kate picked up the phone and listened. Doug, one of the underling managers and a genuine pain in her patoot was summoning her to his “office” which was literally the cubicle one row over from hers. He could have stood up, looked over his wall and motioned for her to come on over but no, he chose to buzz her on the phone and then tell her to come to his “office”. How she wished she had the guts to remind him that his was a cubicle the same as hers and the same as everyone else around him but she knew she did not.

  And so, for the next twenty minutes Kate listened to a self-important man with a meaningless title berate and belittle her in his office/cubicle for no other reason than him being a mean-spirited, petty little man who knew that she wo
uld not fight back. He ended his lecture by reminding her of the company policy about personal phone calls and then dismissed her with a wave of his hand. She smiled weakly and returned to her desk. Once there, she opened her desk drawer, put her hand inside and flipped the bird in his general direction. It was cowardly, she knew but dammit if it didn’t make her feel a wee bit better.

  Chapter Five: Susan Has the Worst Idea Ever

  This was it. This was the day when Kate Plain had only terrible choices to work with. Either she could face the facts and skip the meeting with Colton Pidcock and seal her fate once and for all. He would see that she never published another book under the name of Sadie St. Clair and probably any other for the rest of her terminally boring life. She would be forced to work in that soul sucking office for the rest of her existence, listening to inane small talk and watching pea-brains like Doug butt kiss and schmooze his way from his pseudo office all the way to the real deal where he would probably fire her out of sheer spite on his first day. Power mad little pissant.

  Her other option? Oh, she could go ahead and walk into Zoe’s and introduce the real person behind the persona and after he stopped braying laughter at her she could stammer and stutter until she mercifully choked to death on her salad. Well, that or she could stammer and stutter until she finally threw up directly at the table, passed out and then maybe if luck went her way, she would die on the spot.

  There were no options that were pleasant and she was quite sure she had thought of all of the really awful ones. She was creative, after all. However, even the most creative people in the world sometimes miss a trick and boy howdy did she miss a doozy this time. And there she stood, her mouth hanging open, her eyes wider than she would have thought possible trying to come up with a word that meant no more strongly than no.

  “You can’t be serious!” Kate finally managed to squeak out. “I mean, Susan, come on.”

  Susan calmly patted her friend on the shoulder. “I don’t see any other way. I mean, what a shocker that Elyse is not going to be there for you.”

  “Don’t start in about Elyse. You know she has always been…” Kate tried in vain to protect her sister somewhat.

  “Flighty? Flaky? A gad about? Painfully irresponsible? Insensitive to others? Selfish?” Susan was on a roll. On most occasions she tried not to bash Elyse but this was not the time for that. The gloves had to come off at least for now.

  “Susan!” Kate said her name sharply but she had to admit that none of those things was too far off from the truth. In fact, she hated to admit it but they were all true. Woefully true. “She is my sister.” She finished this quietly.

  “I know, honey. I know. But let’s face it, she has never been one to come through especially in a crisis. Here you are worried you will die on the salad and Elyse is probably chasing some hunk around a pool somewhere. “

  “They chase her.”

  Susan shrugged. “My idea is not as bad as you think, honey bear. All you have to do is stop being so stubborn and let me explain everything to you.”

  “Does this explanation cover how you became a plastic surgeon and or a magician overnight?” Kate smiled but she was still way too worked up to really feel it.

  Susan picked up a few pictures, a magazine, a bottle of wine and 2 glasses and settled her friend in for a conversation that would change her life forever.

  Chapter Six: The Charming Mr. Pidcock

  Poured into a dress that shocked her every time she caught a glimpse of herself in it, Miss Kate Plain forced a hair toss that she hoped looked perky and not at all like a muscle cramp. She had practiced a confident smile, one that hinted at a secret knowledge that everyone certainly wanted in on, but that not everyone would be worthy of. After Susan had presented this idea, for now and forever to be referred to as “the worst idea in the history of ideas, brains and what have you” there were some tension filled moments. There was wailing and crying. There was angry stomping of feet and even a pair of shoes hurled at a closet door. There was a good deal of wine consumed. Makeup was applied, laughed at and then scrubbed away. Hair styles were tried and failed. And then finally, the quasi-finished product was placed into a taxi, slightly tipsy from the wine and slightly buzzy from the hairspray.

  Kate took a final second to steel her nerves wishing she had just one more little glass of wine to wolf down to silence the butterflies in her stomach. Hell, she would take a quart of rum and drown the little buggers at this point. She lifted her shoulders up, back and then down, a yoga technique that she found actually did make her feel just a little better. Two men at the bar had taken notice and by the arch of the brow on the man on the left, Kate’s approval rating was higher than it had ever been. Now if she could only summon the courage to channel what made her sister so Elyse.

  Kate had known that it wasn’t always about looks. She knew with a little effort she could be attractive, at least in the conventional manner but that never interested her. But no matter how thickly she caked on the makeup she would never be free from the crippling awkwardness that kept her from speaking up at meetings or greeting people in social settings. Elyse on the other hand had a free and easy manner that made others flock to her if only to bask in the glow of her warmth. She was cheerful and giddy with an easy laugh and a wicked sense of humor. Elyse was fun. Kate had always been far more serious-minded. And oh how she had envied Elyse’s ability to win debates and even heated arguments with just a single, pointed comment. It was effortless for her. She would establish direct eye contact, make her point and the topic would be dropped.

  The stranger in the mirror was still working on the arched brow that marked slight displeasure from a girl that would not tolerate that in the least when a deep voice rumbled from behind her. “Elyse? What a pleasure to see you!”

  Kate took a deep breath and then turned and promptly froze in place. Magazine pictures and a few televised sound bites notwithstanding, she was in no way prepared for this man. She was not prepared by a long shot. She let out her breath slowly and then held out her hand in what she hoped looked charming and sexy rather than limp and pathetic. “Well Colton Pidcock! How lovely to meet you!” She said in a voice that was lower than her normal speaking voice and just a little husky.

  He smiled, little wrinkles appearing at the corner of his deep, dark eyes. “Sadie St. Clair. I feel as if I have known you for many, many years already. You are stunning as always, my dear.”

  He placed a firm, warm hand on the small of her back and guided her to the table. A bottle of wine was already sitting there as was a bottle of champagne sitting in a silver bucket. Kate knew that she was going to have to be on her toes here because on top of the wine she had already had, any more might be a seriously bad thing indeed.

  Colton had turned just in time to see her react to the champagne. He smiled and chuckled a little bit. “That’s there in case this evening goes as well as I hope that it will. We shall toast the start of a very rewarding and satisfying relationship.”

  Kate sighed. Everything this man said had just a hint of sexual innuendo to it and she was feeling a blush coming on. Elsye would not be so worked up over a little bit of suggestive talk! Pull it together girl, she hissed at herself.

  They made small talk over appetizers. They made business talk over their main course and by the time the desserts had arrived and the champagne had been uncorked Kate was just a little besotted and a whole lot overwhelmed. She was also a whole lot drunk. But, for all of his jet-setting, and girl in every city lifestyle rumors, Mr. Colton Pidcock was nothing more than the utmost charming gentleman. And so, he called for his driver to take Kate home, still clutching her newly signed contract to her chest.

  She later received a text message telling her that if she were to wake in the morning and disagree with the contract in any way, she was free to back out.

  Chapter Seven: A Crush + A Hangover +a Large Check= Kate Smashes her Shell

  Kate Plain’s alarm clock went off at its usual time and in the usual manner.
But something different happened on this day. She did not stretch and sigh and slide out of bed. She didn’t grumble and roll over, slipping out of bed backwards either. In fact, Kate did not get out of bed at all. She slammed her hand down on the snooze button and let her bleary, bloodshot eyes slam shut so that she could replay the best parts of the previous evening over and over.

  An hour after the time that Kate would have been at her desk doing meaningless tasks for a company that usually paid little attention to her, her phone started ringing. An hour after that she received several text messages including one from Susan asking where she was and was she alright. She ignored them all. Finally a text from the charming Mr. Pidcock came in and Kate finally sat up and responded.

  Thank you for a truly lovely evening, Ms. St. Clair. I know that we have signed a contract and I hope that you have had a chance to read it over in the cold, harsh light of day. I also hope that it is still to your liking. It is unprofessional of me but would you perchance be free for dinner this Friday? We can go over contract details if you would like, or not. You pick the place. This is your city after all.

  A delicious and wicked smile spread across Kate’s face. Maybe she could keep up this charade a little longer. And then maybe after a while she really would be like Sadie and not her usual, plain and boring self. Then and she couldn’t believe she was even having this thought at all, maybe then she would have a shot at Colton Pidcock. She deserved better than this life, after all. Working a job that bored her to tears to pay the rent on this tiny apartment! Living out her every fantasy on a computer screen and hiding behind a made up name to do it! Elyse would never stand for any of this and so why should she? Why should she indeed?