Protecting The Billionaire

by Christina Tetreault

  Rock took her arm as they passed through the glass doors and into the lobby. “There’s a hotel in Providence like that.”

  “Do you mean the Bellevue?”

  “Yeah, my high school senior prom was held there.”

  “I’ve been there a few times. This hotel is similar. I think they were built around the same time, although I like this one a little more.” The elevator doors opened and together they stepped inside. “Most people don’t know this, but the entire third floor is a private apartment. It has its own elevator and everything. Emerson Mulligan, the original owner who built the hotel, set it up for his mistress and their son. He ran his entire hotel chain from the offices on the second floor but lived in Alexandria with his wife and daughters. Supposedly, Mulligan’s wife never found about his mistress or son.”

  “Someone found out or ya wouldn’t know,” he said, once again pronouncing the you in the sentence so it sounded like it ended an in an ‘a’ instead. She’d noticed he often did the same thing two nights ago too.

  “Mulligan died several years after his wife and left most of his money and multiple homes to his daughters, but he left the company to his son. People who knew Emerson Mulligan say he didn’t believe women belong in business. His son didn’t want anything to do with the company and sold it to my grandfather.”

  The elevator doors opened, revealing a sight she’d seen numerous times. Women, many of whom she knew, chatted with each other, their jewelry glittering under the lights. Men dressed in tuxedos stood around, probably discussing politics or the latest stock market numbers. At any other time, she’d jump in the foray, complimenting the woman on their designer dresses and smiling at the men as they asked about her father or one of her uncles. Tonight she glanced at her date instead and again kicked herself for lying to Charles in the first place. Even her brothers didn’t love these things and they knew most of the people in attendance. Rock was going to be bored to death tonight.

  Although many people mingled in the lobby area, most had already made their way into the ballroom, and Allison scanned the room for any of her brothers or cousins. Of all the guests there, she assumed Rock would be most comfortable around them. Right away she spotted Trent and Addie at one of the large round tables. “Trent and Addie are sitting over by the window. Let’s join them.”

  Several other acquaintances greeted her as they crossed the room, but thankfully none seemed interested in long conversations at the moment, at least not until they passed by Tasha Marshall, a woman a few years younger than her whom she’d known for as long as she could remember.

  “Allison,” Tasha called out as she and Rock passed near her table.

  For a second, she considered whether or not she could pretend she hadn’t heard Tasha and keep on walking. Over the years, they’d seen each other at countless events. She’d even attended Trent’s wedding with the rest of her family. However, Allison never sought her out for conversations. It wasn’t that she hated Tasha, but rather just found her rather annoying and a bit empty-headed.

  Unfortunately, both her mom and dad had drilled too many manners into her and Allison stopped alongside Tasha’s table. “Hi, Tasha. Thank you for coming tonight.”

  “Mother and Father asked me to join them,” Tasha answered. “I didn’t know you would be here.”

  “I work for the foundation.”

  “Really? So you live down here now? When did you move?” Tasha’s eyes kept darting in Rock’s direction, confirming her earlier belief that he was going to catch the eye of many women.

  Before Allison provided an answer, Tasha gave Rock her full attention. “You look familiar. Have we met before?”

  She’d seen the same glint in Tasha’s eye before when she’d looked at her brothers and cousins. “Rock was at Trent’s wedding.”

  Tasha’s smile grew a little wider. “That’s right. You were in the wedding party. You’re Addie’s brother.” She looked at Allison again. “I thought you had gotten back together with Charles. He talks about you all the time.”

  “No, Charles and I are just friends.” Reaching for Rock’s hand, she leaned closer to him and continued, “If you’ll excuse us, my brother is waiting.”

  Tasha glanced over her shoulder and Trent waved in their direction. “Sure. Rock, it was nice meeting you.”

  “You too,” he replied, his deep, sexy, late-night DJ voice kicking her pulse up for a moment.

  “Let’s chat again tonight, Allison. I know my parents would like to say hi to you and they should be here soon.”

  She’d rather avoid any further conversation with Tasha, but realized the probability of that was low, especially if Tasha’s parents were in attendance. She genuinely liked Richard Marshall and his wife, who were close friends of both her dad and Uncle Warren. “I’ll stop back after dinner.” She wouldn’t drag poor Rock over again. As it was, she suspected Tasha would be seeking him out later.

  ***

  He watched Allison walk toward the First Lady’s table. His date for the evening was the President and First Lady’s niece. Talk about a friggin’ head scratcher for you.

  “You should ask her out for dinner or something,” his sister whispered, interrupting his thorough visual inspection of Allison’s ass. “You haven’t stopped staring at her all night.”

  If his sister had caught him staring, he wouldn’t deny it. “Not happening.”

  Stopping near her aunt, Allison pulled out a chair between the First Lady and another man he didn’t recognize. After giving her aunt a kiss and hug, she did the same thing to the man on her right. Lucky SOB.

  “That’s only AJ. He’s Elizabeth’s nephew from England,” Addison said, her voice still low as she patted his hand.

  His sister referred to the First Lady of The United States as if she were talking about a neighbor down the street. “Thanks for the family tree lesson.”

  “I’m serious. You should ask Allison out sometime. I think you’d have fun together.”

  The man his sister called AJ said something and Allison’s head fell back as she laughed, and he pictured himself kissing all the pale skin exposed by her low-cut dress. He’d touched her arm earlier tonight, so he already knew how soft her skin was. Now he’d give almost anything to know how it tasted against his lips.

  “Already told ya. Not happening.”

  “When was the last time you went on a date?”

  Addie could switch tactics all she wanted, it wouldn’t change his mind. A woman like Allison Sherbrooke didn’t date men like him. “Last month.”

  “I didn’t ask when you last slept with a woman. How long has it been since you went out with someone you’d consider being in a real relationship with. You know, the kind you take to meet Mom and Dad.”

  His sister knew him too well. Someday, he wanted what sister had; he just hadn’t had much luck finding it. Instead he found women who wanted to change him into some nine-to-five, suit-wearing chump who got manicures. Or worse. He got involved with Corey, the first and only woman he’d thought might be the one, at least until he returned from one of his deployments. Evidently, no sooner had his boots touched down in Afghanistan and she’d started sleeping around. Of course she’d had an excuse. She’d claimed she’d been bored and missed him. She’d argued that none of those men had meant anything. He said arrivederci, as well as a few other curses, and never looked back. That had been almost two years ago. Since then, he’d taken finding the one off the table and focused on other things.

  “Just because I find her sexy doesn’t mean what your talking about could ever exist between us. Did you forget she calls POTUS, Uncle Warren?”

  “So does Trent.”

  He hated when his sister was right.

  Addie poked him in the arm. “Don’t even think about saying that’s different.”

  His baby sister was getting quick. “It is.”

  Across the room, Allison gave the First Lady another hug before she stood. After saying something to the other people seated, she turn
ed and walked in his direction, the movement of her hips and ass a red flag drawing the attention of every male present.

  “Think about it. I’ve seen her looking at you tonight. She’d say yes if you asked her.”

  It panged him to do it, but Rock looked away from Allison and at his sister instead. “Let. It. Go.”

  Like a good annoyed little sister, Addie rolled her eyes and sighed. “Poor Trent. He looks miserable over there. I should go and save him.”

  His brother-in-law looked as though he was about to face a firing squad as he spoke with an older gentleman. “Looks like he just got reinforcements.” He watched a couple join Trent.

  “That’s Trent’s cousin Sara and her finance Christopher. They were at the wedding.”

  He’d recognized the woman. After all, she was the President’s youngest daughter. Not to mention, there was no mistaking her for a Sherbrooke, yet he couldn’t honestly say whether or not he’d spoken with her back in January. Other than Allison, all the Sherbrookes he’d met that night had blended into one fuzzy memory.

  Rock stored the information and went back to a more enjoyable activity, watching Allison walk back, envious of the damn dress she wore and the fact it got to cling to her body the way he’d dreamed about doing.

  “Sorry I was gone so long.” Allison slipped back into her seat and a subtle floral fragrance teased him. “I haven’t seen AJ in a long time. He doesn’t visit the U.S. much. He’s not a big fan of the long flight.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I kept my brother company for you,” Addie said.

  “Looks like Senator Clark cornered Trent and Sara,” Allison said.

  He should have known the guy with his brother-in-law was a senator or congressman. This was DC.

  “Nah, he trapped Trent. Sara and Christopher went over to rescue him,” Addie joked as Trent shook hands with the senator and walked away, leaving his cousin and her fiancé behind.

  “The older Senator Clark gets, the more he talks.” Trent joined them again and immediately kissed his wife.

  Rock couldn’t deny that Trent constantly showered Addie with affection no matter the time or place.

  “Allison, I saw Charles sitting with the Marshalls when I passed by them. I didn’t realize they knew each other,” Trent said.

  He’d expected Mr. Teeth—he couldn’t stop thinking of him that way—to seek them out tonight, yet they’d made it through dinner without a visit from him.

  “Mrs. Marshall is good friends with his mom. On our first date, he took me to a 4th of July party at the Marshalls’ home in the Hamptons.”

  The woman attended parties in the Hamptons, and Addie wanted him to ask her out. Yeah, that wouldn’t end well.

  “In case you didn’t notice, he’s headed this way,” Trent said.

  He assumed everyone at the table heard Allison’s groan.

  “Do you want to dance?” Rock dropped the question and two pairs of eyes looked at him. Unless left with no other option, he stayed away from dance floors.

  “Fantastic idea.” Allison half led, half dragged him past Charles and onto the dance floor.

  They’d danced once at the wedding. That night she’d kept both her hands on his shoulders and maintained a polite distance away from him. Tonight she pressed her body into him, her breasts crushed against his chest, and put her arms around his neck. While his head knew it was all an act, his body didn’t. Unable to do anything about his growing arousal, he put his arms around her and went with it.

  “Is he looking this way?” she said near his ear, her breath a sensual whisper against his skin.

  More like sending death threats with his eyes. “Yep.”

  She wiggled closer, something he’d thought impossible. “Put your hands on my butt.”

  “What?” He didn’t do high society, but groping a woman like Allison at this kind of event seemed like a no-no.

  “Put your hands lower like a real boyfriend would.”

  He’d wanted to touch her ass all night and now she’d given him the green light. Ooh-rah. Rock dropped his hands and almost groaned. He’d expected her ass to be firm. He hadn’t expected it to fit perfectly in his hands. Behind his fly, his erection grew, pressing against the front of his pants. Under no circumstances could she miss it.

  He moved them in time to the music, eventually turning them, making it impossible for him to see Charles any longer.

  “He said something to Trent and now he’s walking back toward the exit,” Allison whispered near his ear.

  Rock waited, expecting Allison to put a little breathing room between them now. If Mr. Teeth had left, then they no longer needed to pretend. Instead, she leaned her head against his shoulder.

  I should move my hands. Deep down he recognized it was the right thing to do. They’d done their little acting stint. Her ex was gone, at least for the moment. His hands should move up to her waist. Knowing and doing were two completely different things. You don’t get your hands on a perfect ass like this everyday, his erection reminded him as the song continued and her body moved against his. Hell, it was likely he’d never had his hands on a woman as sexy as Allison before and wouldn’t again. Since she’d given him permission and she wasn’t complaining, why should he deny himself a few moments of pleasure?

  When the final chorus of the song ended, Rock led her back to their table where Trent sat alone.

  “Very convincing out there.” Trent’s arched eyebrow and expression suggested he knew how much Rock enjoyed having Allison pressed up against him. “I doubt Charles will be calling you again,” Trent said, turning his attention back to his sister.

  At least their little dance had done something besides give him a boner that he didn’t see going away any time soon.

  “I can hope,” Allison answered, sitting back down again. “Where did Addie go?”

  “She and Sara went to talk to Aunt Elizabeth.”

  Two hours later, Rock pulled into Allison’s driveway, still aroused from the single dance they’d shared. If his body didn’t cool off by the time he got back to his apartment, he’d be hitting the shower.

  “Thank you for coming tonight.” She touched his arm as they walked toward her front door. “I hope it wasn’t too boring for you.”

  He’d certainly found himself in worse places; however, if tonight’s fundraiser remained the last high-society event he ever attended, he’d be okay with that. “Not a problem. I hope your ex bought it.”

  “It’s not too late. Would you like to stay and have some coffee?” Allison asked as she opened the door and stopped. “The alarm’s not on,” she said before he could answer, “and I thought I turned off all the lights upstairs.”

  Bright light streamed out of a room on the second floor. When he’d picked her up, he hadn’t looked at anything but her, so he was the wrong guy to ask. “Maybe you forgot it.” His mom periodically forgot to set the alarm system his dad had installed.

  She glanced around again before she looked at him, her eyes filled with uncertainty. “Maybe.”

  “Do ya want me to look around?”

  “You’re probably right, but would you mind?”

  Allison stuck by his side as he went from room to room downstairs. “Anything look wrong?” The place appeared pristine to him.

  “Everything’s fine.”

  He caught the nervous quiver still in her voice and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze as they continued their search on the second floor.

  “I guess I just forgot to set it. I’ve never done that before.”

  They entered the last room upstairs. A decorative ceiling fixture bathed the raised bed in soft light. Like all the other rooms, this one looked untouched except for the slightly wrinkled comforter. In any other bedroom, he wouldn’t have even noticed. However, after seeing how perfect everything else in the townhouse appeared, the minor wrinkles seemed out of place.

  “This room is okay too.”

  Was there uncertainty in her voice? “Ya sure?” He couldn’t expl
ain it, but his gut told him something was off.

  “It looks fine. Let’s go back downstairs.”

  Rock eyed the entire room again, his eyes drawn to the large bed. For a heartbeat, he pictured Allison stretched out on it wearing nothing but a smile.

  “Do you like flavored coffee? Or I can make you some espresso instead?” she asked from behind him.

  Switching off the light and the image in his head, he followed Allison downstairs. “Whatever you’re having is fine.”

  Taking a seat at the table, he watched Allison glide around the kitchen. To say she walked just didn’t do justice to her graceful movements.

  “How long have you lived here?”

  “Since February.” She glanced over her shoulder at him as she poked around in the refrigerator. “Do you like milk and sugar in your coffee?”

  “Black’s good.” Unlike most New Englanders, he preferred his coffee black and the stronger the better.

  “That’s good because I’m out of milk.” She carried over two mugs of coffee. “If it’s too strong, let me know and I’ll make a new pot. I like it that way and sometimes go a little overboard.”

  “No such thing as too strong.”

  His statement earned him a smile that left him a bit speechless.

  “Not according to my brother Derek. He insists on making his own when he visits me. Then he loads it up with milk and sugar. By the time he’s done, it’s more like he’s drinking a cup of hot coffee flavored milk.”

  Lifting the mug to her lips, she blew on the liquid before she closed her eyes and took a sip, somehow making the simple act of drinking coffee erotic. Once again growing uncomfortable, Rock reached for his own coffee. “Do you like it down here?” If he kept a conversation going, his brain would have something other than her lips to concentrate on.

  “It’s a little different than Rhode Island and I miss my family and friends, but I like it.” She leaned forward, folding her arms on the table and giving him an excellent view of her breasts. “What about you? How does Virginia compare to other places you’ve lived.”