The Billionaire’s Lighthouse Series: A Billionaire, Bad Boy, Romance

by Michelle Love

  “Oh no!” I scream and slow my running to turn to Zane. “Looks like we have to team up or they’ll take us down, partner.”

  He nods and we turn to face the ten or so kids who are coming at us with their water guns blazing. “On my mark, Elizabeth. Three, two, one. Fire!” We let loose and blast the front line and three of the little kids fall back with screams of laughter.

  “Serpentine!” I scream as they converge on us. Zane and I break into a run, crisscrossing each other to avoid their shots while shooting back at them as we run backward.

  A loud buzzer rings out and Eugene uses a bullhorn to make an announcement, “Cake is now being served by the swimming pool.”

  And just like that, the war is over and every kid runs for the cake, leaving Zane and I to catch our breath. Standing there, holding our guns, breathing like rabid dogs, I find him more attractive than I ever have.

  “That was fun,” he says then turns to look at me. “Thanks.”

  His smile is lopsided. One piece of his hair has been pushed up haphazardly. His white, button-down with the sleeves rolled up a quarter is wet and clinging to his mountainous pectorals and my mouth is watering for him.

  So I do what any woman would do when she feels so hot and bothered by a gorgeous man. I spray him in the face with my water gun and run away screaming as he chases me!

  Chapter 8

  ZANE

  “You’ve got cake right there,” I tell Elizabeth who uses her tongue to lick around her mouth to clean away the imaginary cake I told her about.

  “You didn’t get it,” I say then run my finger through the chocolate icing on top of my piece of cake. “Here, let me.” I run my chocolate tipped finger across her bottom lip then lean in and lick it away.

  She giggles as I end the lick with a little kiss. “Silly boy!”

  Running my arms around her, I hold her close. “You make me feel like one.” I kiss her again then hear the sound of someone clearing their throat.

  We’d been alone in the kitchen as we snuck in to get a piece of the birthday cake we missed while we were shooting each other with water guns outside when it was served. So the sound of anyone else in here has me letting her go.

  Meagan Saunders is standing there with a gift wrapped present under her arm. Her eyes go to my left hand as she says, “So the rings came in, I see.”

  “What are you doing here?” I ask her as I take Elizabeth’s hand in mine.

  “I’m always on the list to these things, Eugene throws. You aren’t the only rich person he invites to these things. But this is the first time I’ve ever seen you at one. I always drop off a gift,” she says as she places the gift she brought on the table.

  “We were just going to go back outside,” I say as I tug Elizabeth along with me and walk out past Meagan who looks down her nose at us.

  “You look like something the cat dragged in, Zane. What’s that about?” Meagan asks as she falls in behind us much to my disappointment.

  “None of your business,” Elizabeth says. “Just so you know, Meagan, I really don’t like you.”

  Giving her hand a squeeze, I have to stifle a laugh. “Not the place, hun.”

  “No, it’s not,” Meagan says. “I suppose there are no rules of society in Chesapeake City, Rhode Island. In New York, we have rules to keep us a step above the animals. You need to teach her, Zane. Or she’ll never fit in.”

  “Fit into what?” Eugene says as we approach him.

  Meagan takes over as she gives him an over the top greeting. “Eugene, darling, how have you been?” She gives him an air kiss next to his cheek and stands back. Somehow she’s managed to get on the other side of me and she’s standing too close.

  Stepping over a bit, I nudge Elizabeth to take a step over too and she does as Eugene watches our odd behavior. “I’ve been well, Judge. I can’t recall the last time I actually saw you at one of these things. I always find a gift from you but haven’t seen you here before.”

  Meagan’s eyes cut to me and she leans in to whisper. “I’m here for a specific reason. Can I take a moment of your time to speak to you in private?”

  “Of course,” he says as he gets up and the two walk away and I see her cutting her eyes back at me.

  “I’m a little worried,” I tell Elizabeth. “She knows I’ve wanted his company.”

  “I don’t know what she could say to stop him thinking about you,” she says.

  “Me neither.”

  I watch them go into the house. A shudder runs through me. I see no good coming out of this.

  “I think we should leave,” Elizabeth says. “When he comes back out, we’ll say our goodbyes and we should get out of here. I hate being around her. She kind of has this evil as shit vibe going on.”

  “Yeah.” I run my arm around her and kiss the side of her head. “We’ll do that.”

  I can’t stop watching the door Eugene and Meagan went into and when he comes back out, alone, I’m relieved to see she’s no longer with him but his frown has me worried.

  When he points at me and wiggles his finger, I know this isn’t good. Taking Elizabeth with me, I make my way to him and follow him back into the house. Just as we get inside the door, he spins around and I see his face is red. “Is this a real marriage or a thing you’re doing to get my company?”

  “What?” I say with a very high voice.

  Elizabeth takes over. “Did that woman tell you something?”

  “She told me you two have to be pulling some kind of a scam. She told me Zane and she had a relationship up until just a few days before your supposed marriage in Vegas. She’s concerned that you’ve made this whole thing up merely to get your claws into my company. She said you’ve talked to her on many occasions about wanting it. She also told me that you planned on selling it once I’m dead and gone. Is this true?”

  “No,” I say and fight the urge to run out to grab that bitch by her apparent balls and knock her into next week. “She’s jealous and vengeful is her problem. And we never had a relationship.”

  “So you two didn’t have sexual relations only days before you said you married this woman here?” he asks.

  “They did, but that I was partly to blame for that,” Elizabeth says. “I was afraid he hadn’t sown all of his wild oats and I told him he needed to get that all out of his system. He didn’t want to and he apologized to her for using her that way.”

  “I don’t like this kinky lifestyle you seem to have! You two looked like a normal couple. But once she told me all she did, well, I can’t see you that way any longer. There will be no deal. Not with you. I don’t even want to be your friend any longer, White. You can leave my home now.”

  I feel as if the wind’s been knocked out of me. “Eugene, this isn’t what she said it was.”

  Elizabeth tugs at my hand. “Come on, babe. Hopefully, time will show him the truth. It was nice to meet you, Mr. Brasco. I do hope you change your mind about us and don’t let that woman ruin things. She’s not a good person, sir. I hope you come to see that sooner rather than later.”

  Allowing Elizabeth to lead me out, I can’t stop the anger from flowing through me. “I want to kill that woman,” I say between clenched teeth.

  Once we get to the car and get inside, Elizabeth looks at me with sad eyes. “Lying is a dangerous thing, Zane. Maybe you should rethink this whole thing. Maybe you should come clean.”

  Her hair is damp and clinging to her forehead. Her shirt is still damp and hanging off her shoulder. She looks a mess but she’s a beautiful mess and the thought of coming clean and ending this is not a thing I want to do.

  “Give me a year, Elizabeth.” Taking her hand, I lift it and leave a kiss on top of it. “If you left me now, I honestly don’t know what I’d do. With time, she’ll stop, I think. Then, if you want to end this or I do, then we can. We can say we got a divorce. But I need you. I need you to help me now, more than ever. If she’s going to come after me like this, there’s no telling how else she’ll try to punis
h me.”

  “Why can’t you stand up to her, Zane?” she asks me with a frown. “Just stand up to her. Tell her you don’t like her. Tell her you did lie about our marriage because you had no idea how else to let her know you want nothing to do with her like that. Just tell her the truth.”

  I could do that. I know I could. But then there would be nothing holding Elizabeth here with me. And I don’t want her to go. And I don’t quite understand why I feel this way. But I do.

  To be continued……

  The Billionaire’s Lighthouse Series

  A Billionaire, Bad Boy, Romance

  Book 4

  Her Control

  By Michelle Love

  Description

  Domination. Yearning. Surrender

  Elizabeth has a family reunion back in Chesapeake City, Rhode Island. Even though she’s only twenty-five, she’s the last remaining single woman in her family, a thing they give her grief about.

  The plan was to tell her family the truth about their relationship and leave the lie about the marriage out. Until Meagan calls with the news that she knows where they are and is determined to find out the truth. She’s not about to give up on Zane without a fight.

  They decide the lie has to be told to Elizabeth’s family too and after an initial encounter with an old boyfriend, the couple finds themselves in a new position.

  Zane is happy to work with her, taking more of a submissive role. Only when she treats him like her submissive in front of her family, they find they both hate it.

  Can things continue with their lie getting bigger all the time?

  Chapter 1

  ELIZABETH

  “Did you make the call today?” Zane asks me as he finally comes home from his office.

  “Yes, I quit my job and my friend is super pissed at me.”

  Lois is busily dusting the end tables and all their little trinkets that cover them as she pretends not to listen to us. Zane comes to me and plops down on the sofa next to me.

  Tugging me to sit on his lap, his hand runs around the back of my neck and pulls me in for a kiss. “I love you, baby,” he says as he rests his forehead against mine. “And tell her we’ll be sending them a very nice wedding gift. We should get them something nice. Pick out something and put it on that card I gave you.”

  Zane hands out, I love you’s, like M&M’s when anyone is around us. I really do need to figure out how to handle this acting thing because I’m finding myself believing him. And myself believing it when I say it back to him.

  “Okay. I’ll ask her what kinds of things they need. Well, they need everything since the guy hasn’t ever had a job. Maybe, I’ll send them a gift card.” I play with the top button of his shirt as I look at it.

  His fingers touch my chin, pulling it up. “That’s not going to cut it. This gift is from us. I’m not a gift card giving kind of man. Make it from the heart. And I’ve yet to hear you tell me something I’ve been waiting to hear you say all day long.”

  “I love you,” I say then kiss him again. “Sorry, for making you wait.”

  Lois turns to look at us and her smile tells me she’s buying this little marriage thing. “It’s time for me to leave. I’ll be bringing in groceries in the morning. So I’ll be in a little later than my usual nine, Mrs. White. Can I bring you anything special?”

  “No, I’m good with what you’ve been bringing, Lois. Thank you.”

  She nods and leaves and I go to move off Zane’s lap with her gone. He holds me tight. “And where is it you think you’re going?”

  “She’s gone. We don’t have to pretend anymore.” I wiggle to get him to let me go.

  “It’s not all pretending,” he says then his lips touch mine. His kiss is soft and sweet and I can feel more in it than when we first kissed but he still doesn’t love me and this love talk we do is very confusing to me.

  My phone rings and I’m thankful for the interruption as my insides were getting all wiggly with his kiss and how his hands were roaming all over my back. I take in a deep breath to slow how fast I was breathing and he smiles at how I’ve reacted to him.

  He reaches over to get my phone and hands it to me. “You’re staying right where you’re at.”

  I see my aunt Audrey’s name on the screen and moan, “It’s family reunion time. Hello, Aunt Audrey.”

  “Well, well, well,” she says. “And how have you been?”

  “Just fine. I suppose this is about the reunion.”

  “It is. But first things first. What’s this I heard about you quitting your job at the diner?”

  “You heard about that? I just did it,” I say as Zane plays with my hair then his mouth touches my neck. I nearly melt into him but manage to hold myself back from that.

  “I know. Martha called me right away. She wanted to know if any of us knew why you’d moved to New York. You can imagine my surprise when she said that. I told her you hadn’t moved anywhere. Am I wrong?”

  “I kind of live here. I have a job here. I got it when I came up to see the man who bought the lighthouse. You know mine and Gramps’ lighthouse. He gave me a job so I’m going to be doing that for like a year I guess.”

  His lips touch my ear. “Or forever.”

  I shudder with his words. He’s always toying with me!

  “Well, I hope you know we all expect you to scrounge up a date this year. We’ve all talked about it and we’re going to get interactive in your love life since you don’t seem to be doing anything about it. I, for one, want a few nieces and nephews out of you. And I want them soon!”

  “Oh no, you guys don’t! I’m not coming if it’s going to be that thing again. Last year four of my cousins brought eligible men to set me up with. Not this year! No way!” I say as Zane begins nibbling my neck.

  “Take me, use me for once, Elizabeth,” he mumbles as he makes me insane with his mouth.

  My wheels begin to turn. Do I dare use him the way he’s using me? Should I use him to get my, over the top, procreating family off my back once and for all?

  “I will be bringing someone and boy are you guys in for a shock,” I tell her.

  Zane’s growl sends shivers down my spine as his fingers press into my shoulders and he goes to town on my neck. I feel his dick springing to life underneath me and know I have to get off the phone.

  “Great!” Aunt Audrey says. “And bring a bag of chips and a dip too. See you on Saturday. Bye.”

  With the call ended, I put the phone down and begin to wrestle my body out of Zane’s clutches. “Aw, come on, baby. Just a little taste,” he moans as I wiggle.

  “No tasting! Come on, Zane. This is confusing enough.”

  Stopping his neck nibbling he looks at me. “What’s so confusing?”

  “This is. We’ve known each other less than a week and using the word, love, a hell of a lot and kissing and holding each other when we’re around other people. And it’s just confusing.”

  “Stop making it that way. Come to the dark side, Elizabeth, we all float over here,” he says with a laugh.

  “You’re mixing up characters, genius. And I still have a set of morals. I need to know what my true feelings are and what yours are too before I go giving such an important part of myself away.”

  “How do you know it’s not true when I say it?” His lips touch mine for only a moment then he’s looking at me again.

  “We both know it’s not,” I say and push against his chest. “You’re making me all hot and bothered. Let me go.”

  “You keep me hot and bothered,” he says as he holds me right where I am. “Now, when’s this family thing and what are you going to tell them?”

  “It’s this Saturday. I totally forgot about it. Thank goodness I quit my job or I’d have been in a real pickle. One cannot miss a family reunion. Heaven forbid my bag of chips and dip don’t get there!”

  “So what did I hear about you needing to have a date or they’d be forced to help you out?”

  “I’m the lone cousin who has yet
to marry. I’m the only single in my extensive family over the age of nineteen. My family is old fashioned. Get married, have kids, do your part in keeping this world populated. You know the type.” I run my hand through his silky hair and wish I hadn’t as his eyes light up and my heart skips a beat.

  I’m really, really falling for him and I know he’s just playing with me. This is getting too hard, I think. My head’s telling me to bail on this thing and let the lighthouse go for my own sanity but my heart’s all, stay with him, stupid girl.

  I feel the heartbreak coming. And with a whole year of hanging out with him, I foresee a real tear-fest when he ends it. If I let him show me how great he is in bed, I’ll probably die when he ends it.

  And he will end it. I know he will. I’m not a thing like anyone he knows. I may as well be a hick for all my class.

  “I like it. Count me in,” he says with a laugh. “Use me, baby. Use me up!”

  Oh, Lord, what am I about to do?

  “Zane, I don’t know about doing this. I mean, we both know this isn’t real.”

  Chapter 2

  ZANE

  Never have I met a woman with no clue about when a man likes her!

  “Look, I don’t know what you’re thinking, Elizabeth. I’m not faking things with you. I mean it when I touch you and I love it when you touch me. I like your personality. I like your cute little ways of doing things. I like you and I think you like me too.”

  “You know we have hardly anything in common,” she says as she continues to struggle.

  “We have tons in common. I like pizza, you like pizza. I like watching the news, you like watching cartoons.”

  “That’s not the same thing,” she says with a little giggle.

  “Isn’t it?” I ask then tickle her ribs a bit, making her screech with laughter.

  The truth is, she’s growing on me more and more with each passing day. I did want to hear her sweet voice tell me she loved me all day long. I did crave the way her lips would feel when I kissed her once I got home. I think that must mean something!