Expelled

by Claire Adams

  Epilogue

  Vivienne

  “It's hard to believe it's been more than two years since you moved in across the street from me,” I said to Everett, watching through the window as the newest family in the neighborhood directed a delivery team delivering a red couch into their home.

  “I can’t believe you’re stalking the new neighbors,” he joked.

  “Well, technically it’s still my house. Maybe I want to know what they’re taking into it,” I jabbed back at him teasingly.

  “They’ve been living there for almost a year. You’ve been in the house several times since then. Nice try, Nosy Nancy,” he said with a laugh.

  I smacked him in the arm. “I’m just glad they seem to be fitting in well here.”

  “They are, aren't they?” he remarked. “Doesn’t hurt that they have a six-year-old for Jane to play with too.”

  “Yeah, well, I’m also glad they get along so well. It's great for her to have a friend the same age in the neighborhood.”

  “It really is,” he agreed. “Kids these days don't do enough of that. When I was growing up, there was a whole crew of neighborhood kids. We used to play football or baseball in the street every afternoon, or go climb trees, or all that other good outdoor stuff. It was great for me, too; gave me the chance to get away from the house. Wasn’t the happiest place on Earth.”

  I turned and slipped my arms around his waist. “Well, despite everything you went through as a child, you didn’t turn out so bad,” I teased.

  “You must not think I’m too bad. You did agree to marry me.”

  “You have a good point. Then again, maybe I didn’t really have too many options,” I jabbed back.

  He hugged me tightly. “It’s true. You settled. I don’t know what you were thinking.”

  I smiled sweetly up at him. “I’ll tell you what I was thinking. I was thinking that you are very likely the best man I've ever met, to be honest.”

  “See, now you’re just trying to butter me up, aren't you?” he laughed and gave me a kiss on my neck that sent a delightful shiver down my spine.

  “You know, as much as I want to take you back to our room and have my way with you, isn't it about time for us to pick Jane up from Stacy's house?” I asked.

  He glanced at his watch. “You're right; we did say we'd be there at five. Guess you’ll just have to make it up to me tonight. Come on then, let's go.”

  I grabbed my purse, and we headed out of the house and locked up.

  We drove for just five minutes to the house where Jane's friend from her first-grade class lived and parked outside then walked up to the door and knocked.

  A bubbly blonde woman opened the door and smiled. “Mr. and Mrs. James,” she said. “I'm Bianca, Stacy’s mom. I’m so glad to finally meet you! Stacy has been having such a good time with Jane.”

  “Lovely to meet you, too! I’m Vivienne, and this is Everett,” I said introducing ourselves. We had met her husband a few weeks earlier, but Bianca always seemed to be away on business. “Jane always talks about how much she likes Stacy, so I guess those two have been getting along like peas in a pod.”

  “Ah yes, they certainly have been getting along well,” she said.

  “Is Jane ready to go?” Everett jumped in.

  “She is, she is. Let me go get her. Would you two like to come in for a while?” Bianca asked.

  “I'm afraid we can't, we have a few things that we need to get back to at home,” I replied.

  “I understand. But, we would love to have you all over sometime and get to know you guys a little better. I can already see the girls are going to be great friends,” she announced.

  “Absolutely,” I agreed. “We'll make a time when we can all get together.”

  “Great. Well, I'll go get Jane now,” she said. “I'll be back in a minute.”

  We waited on the porch while she went inside to fetch Jane.

  “She seems really nice,” I said to Everett.

  He smiled. “She does. We'll have to take her up on that offer to hang out sometime.”

  Bianca returned with Stacy and Jane in tow.

  “Say goodbye to your friend now,” Everett encouraged Jane with a smile.

  Jane hugged Stacy like they’d been friends forever. “Bye, Stacy,” she said. “I enjoyed playing at your house with you. You should come to my house soon.”

  “Can I, Mom?” Stacy looked up at her mother with a shy smile.

  “I’m sure we can work that out,” Bianca assured her daughter.

  “Good,” Stacy turned her attention back to Jane. “I like you! You're my best friend.”

  “Aw, isn't that so cute,” I remarked, squeezing Everett's hand.

  I reached down and took Jane's hand.

  “Come on now, Jane; I’m afraid we have to go. You'll be able to see Stacy again tomorrow at school.” We waved goodbye to them and headed down the steps.

  “Yay!” Jane said with a big grin. “I like playing with Stacy.”

  We walked out to the SUV, and Everett chatted with Jane as we got into the car.

  “So, you had a good time there, huh sweet pea?” he said.

  “Yeah, Daddy! We played with her Barbie dolls, and she has another doll that's like a real baby! Its eyes open and close, it can even cry! You got to hold it really careful, or it'll cry, just like a real baby!”

  “That's good, that's good,” he said as he drove. “And did you just play with dolls all afternoon, sweet pea?”

  “No, we also colored. Stacy has some pretty coloring books.”

  “That sounds like fun. You didn't play video games or anything like that?” he asked.

  She shook her head. “Stacy's mom says she can't play on tablets or cellphones or play video games. But it's okay, I think; I liked playing with dolls and coloring.”

  Everett shot me a sideways glance and a wry smile. “I think we should definitely encourage this budding friendship, huh?” he remarked. “Sounds like they're good people.”

  I chuckled. “An electronics ban doesn’t make them good people,” I said. “But they do seem to be on the same wavelength as us when it comes to raising a child.”

  We pulled into the driveway and we all piled out of the SUV.

  Jane jumped out and immediately looked across the street and saw her friend playing on the porch of his family's house – my former house.

  “Hey, there's Jason!” she exclaimed. “Can I go play with him for a while?”

  “But, sweet pea, you've just spent the whole afternoon playing with Stacy,” Everett said.

  “But I'm not tired yet!” Jane declared.

  I took Everett's hand and squeezed it suggestively. “Let her go, honey, there's still an hour or two of daylight left... And I can think of something nice we could do in the house once we're all alone.”

  Everett grinned, picking up the hint immediately. “Well … okay, sweet pea, you can go and play with James for a little while.”

  “Yay!” she said and ran toward the street, stopped and looked both ways for any cars, and then sprinted across. She immediately sat down next to Jason, who was playing with toy cars and trucks on the porch. His mother looked across the lawn and saw us, offering us a friendly wave.

  “I'll keep an eye on them, don't worry!” she shouted across the street.

  “Thanks, Liv!” I shouted back.

  “Alright, my handsome husband,” I purred to Everett. “Why don't you and I head inside and see what sort of things we can get into to pass the next hour or two?”

  He sneakily squeezed my butt with one of his strong hands. “I can think of a few things that you might find especially...entertaining,” he remarked with a grin.

  “Oh, of that I have no doubt!” I shot back as I pulled him to the couch for a make-out session.

  “I love you so much, Viv,” he whispered into my ear as he pulled me into his lap. “So very, very much.”

  “And I love you, my amazing husband,” I replied, kissing him slowly and dee
ply.

  I’d been trying all day to find the perfect time to tell him the news, the news that I had only just found out that morning.

  “Everett,” I said, taking his hand and placing it gently on my belly. “I've got a little surprise for you.”

  “Oh yeah?” he said, clearly not getting the hint. “And what's that?”

  “You know how Jane is always asking for a little brother or sister to add to our family?”

  “I do,” his eyes widened, and he tilted his head slightly. “That would be amazing,” he said, his tone a little lower as if maybe he was catching on.

  “Well, right under where your hand is now... he or she is growing.”

  “You're serious?” he said, his voice full of surprise. “I'm about to become a dad – again?”

  “You are,” I confirmed.

  “That's the best news I've had all year! And I am the luckiest man alive!” he stated, kissing me then pulling back and resting his head against mine.

  “How about I show you just how lucky you can be?” I said, and then led him to our bedroom to celebrate our news.

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  BILLIONAIRE IN HIDING

  By Claire Adams

  This book is a work of fiction. The names, characters, places and incidents are products of the writer's imagination or have been used fictitiously and are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to persons, living or dead, actual events, locales or organizations is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2017 Claire Adams

  Chapter One

  Garrett

  “I don’t know what you did and I don’t care. While you are here, you are just any other drifter who’s looking for a job before moving onto the next location. I won’t treat you any different.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “What’s your name, son?” the older man asked me.

  “Malcolm — I mean, Garrett Reynolds,” I replied. Instantly, I knew the mistake I had made. Luckily, I also knew that this man in front of me was the only one who knew that I wasn’t who I pretended to be; his job was to take me in and keep me safe.

  I was scared, I readily admitted that. I was in a strange city — hell, a strange state even. I was dressed in clothes that I would never have worn in my day-to-day life and the only thing keeping me alive was a government organization that wanted to trade my testimony for the conviction of a drug smuggler.

  My life was very clearly in danger and I was grateful to be at the ranch with the silly cowboy clothes on. If working as a ranch hand and living in the middle of nowhere was what I had to do to stay safe, I was going to do it.

  “It’s hard, but you can’t make that mistake again. Whoever you were before doesn’t exist right now. You are Garrett Reynolds; don’t forget that.”

  He was stern with me and I appreciated the reminder. It was going to take practice for me to learn this new person that I was supposed to be. In my normal life, I was charismatic and social. I loved hanging out with my friends, partying, and traveling. But all of those things were gone now. Instead of traveling and having fun, I was relegated to lowly, ranch hand duties and I was going to have to like it.

  The agent had given me two choices in where I could relocate to. Either take the ranch hand position in Montana or head up to Alaska and try my hand at fishing. Because I knew myself to get violently sick on a boat, there really was no choice for me: I had to go with the ranch.

  “I know, sir; I won’t let it happen again.”

  “I’m Sid Miller; it’s nice to meet you, young man,” Sid said as he reached his hand out and shook mine. “I promise you’ll be safe here until they come back for you.”

  I trusted Sid, which was strange for someone I had just met and considering the circumstances in which I had arrived at his ranch. But Sid Miller struck me as the kind of man who always kept his word and wouldn’t do anything to let my secret out.

  He was probably in his mid to late fifties with a big, gray mustache and weathered skin. He wore cowboy boots, jeans, and a button up shirt that were probably part of his daily wardrobe from the looks of the wear and tear on the clothing. Sid also had a well-worn cowboy hat that seemed to fit him as if it were custom made. There was no doubt that he wore cowboy gear better than me.

  I struggled with the boots the most. They felt like I was wearing ladies high-heeled shoes. As I took each step, I put my heel to the ground and then felt off balance as the front of my foot hit the ground in odd timing. I would have to practice walking in them so I didn’t look like a total idiot as I started my job.

  My new identity was Garrett Reynolds and I was supposed to be familiar with horses and farming. The problem was, I wasn’t familiar with either of those things. It was going to be the best acting job of my life if I could actually convince people that I belonged on that ranch.

  “Sid, thanks for everything.”

  “Okay, that’s enough of the pleasantries. These will be your quarters; I suspect they are far below what you’re used to, but you’ll be safe. Depending on how long you stay here, and how hard you work, I’ll move you up in position just like anyone else around here.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “For now, you’re a ranch hand. You’ll work with the younger boys who are here for the summer. This bunkhouse will be where you sleep and that building across the way is where the ranch hands eat.”

  The ranch felt a little like a summer camp I had went to as a teenager. The bunkhouse was filled with several sets of bunk beds and small lockers at the foot of each bed. The lockers had padlocks on them, which I assumed was to keep personal belongings safe. Although I only had on small bag of personal items with me, and none of them were all that personal.

  When I left my home in Los Angeles, I wasn’t allowed to take any photos or items that could be used to identify me. So, I grabbed my journals and a few other small items that were important.

  Normally, if I went on a long vacation I would have my sister or one of her friends housesit my house, but it was too dangerous considering the current situation. Instead, I just paid for the highest level of security and I’d have to hope everything was still there when I got home.

  “Yes, sir,” I replied. “I truly am grateful for the safety you’re providing.”

  “Do you know when the trial will be?”

  I looked at him in surprise. I didn’t know that Sid had been told anything about the trial that I had to testify in or the dangerous men who were threatening my life. As I followed him up to the main house, we talked briefly about the realities of my situation.

  “Maybe a month, or maybe two years, I’m not sure how long the process takes.”

  “I’ve had men here as long as six months, not much longer than that. So hopefully that gives you an idea.”

  “Thank you,” I said gratefully.

  Back home, I had left a thriving business in the hands of my Corporate Vice President, Casey Zane. It was a tough job and would require him to work harder than he was used to. I had confidence in Casey though; he had only been with me a year, but he had proven his abilities. Luckily, we had a top-notch team of leaders to support him in my absence as well.

  The worst thing that could happen would be that my private jet business would go bust while I was away. And after having my life threatened and having one of my co-workers murdered, bankruptcy didn’t seem like the end of the world.

  I had fought the idea of going into witness protection, though. I really didn’t like the idea of leaving my employees exposed to the evil character who wanted me dead. But the truth was that none of them knew about Frank Gordano and his drug smuggling business like I did. The only other person who worked for me that had known him was dead. So as much as I didn’t want to go into protective custody, it was much better than being dead.

  “I’m going to introduce you to m
y wife. She’s the one that feeds you men and she’ll help with any questions you might have.”

  “Does she know?”

  “She knows that we take in witnesses, but she prefers not to know which of you are in the program and which are genuinely just here to work. It’s easier for her that way.”

  “Yes, I understand.”

  The large farmhouse looked much bigger as we approached it. There was a sweeping, wraparound deck and a white porch swing. It looked as if it was right out of a storybook, and when Sid’s wife walked up to the front door and let us in, I thought we were certainly in some sort of make-believe land.

  I had a girlfriend once that made me watch made-for-television movies with her. As I stood on the porch of Sid’s perfect home, in the middle of his perfect, Montana ranch, I felt like I was right, smackdab in the middle of a made-for-television movie.

  “This beautiful woman is Meredith Miller, but you lot usually just call her Mrs. Miller.”

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, ma’am,” I said with extended hand.

  Meredith pushed my hand aside and gave me a warm hug. She was beautiful, warm, and clearly cared about the men who came to work at their ranch. I knew instantly I was going to enjoy my time at Miller Ranch.

  Hard work had never scared me. I hadn’t become a success by being afraid of hard work. My aviation company was one of the top, private jet companies in the world. I had more than one thousand planes in the air and twice that many employees. Sure, testifying in this case had put me in a precarious position, but I couldn’t have forced my employees to do it. What kind of CEO would I have been if I hadn’t been willing to keep them safe and testify myself? Plus, any of the employees who had had contact with Frank Gordano weren’t even aware of what he was transporting on our planes. I was really the only person who know the whole story.

  Meredith was tall, thin, and had beautiful, caramel-colored skin. It was obvious that she didn’t just sit in the house all day while Sid managed the ranch. As she pulled away from our embrace, she looked into my eyes and for a moment I felt like she could see right through me. I didn’t think she needed me to tell her that I was there under protection; something told me that she knew it right away by looking at me.