The Billionaire's Fake Marriage (A Romance Collection Boxed Set)

by Amanda Horton

  ***

  Ronny wasn’t able to find her. He wasn’t even able to stalk her on the internet. She definitely knew how to keep herself off the grid. Ronny wondered what her job in the Special Ops was. She obviously had some sort of training and a smooth mouth. He was dying to know more about her, but nothing he did gave him any answers.

  He tried to forget the whole ordeal as he made his way to work. As he entered headquarters in his lavish suit, he looked haphazard but that was normal for him. His hair was in a state of disarray, the top buttons of his dress shirt were undone, and his tie hung over his shoulders. “Why must you always look like a slob?” A large man suddenly slapped Ronny on the back.

  He looked up to see his good friend, Jamie, walking with him as they made their way to the break room to get themselves their first cup of coffee. “You know it is my trademark.” Ronny grinned as he ran his fingers through his hair.

  “Right, right… but I heard you got burned last night at the banquet,” Jamie commented as they entered the break room. It was empty, affording them some privacy. Ronny’s cheeks turned red as he was forced to remember the previous evening. He still couldn’t believe what had happened. “Rumor is, she kicked your butt.” Jamie chuckled at his friend’s plight.

  “She did not.” Ronny huffed as he started to pour copious amounts of sugar in his coffee. At some point, he could start saying he’s having sugar with coffee, not the other way around.

  “You are going to rot your teeth like that.” Jamie chided as he took his coffee black. Taking a sip, he sat down on one of the chairs. He was about to say something when the door swung open.

  “Ah, Goldberg, I was hoping I would see you here.” The commanding officer of operations, Gerald Thompson, stuck his head into the break room, locking his eyes on Ronny. Sighing, Ronny grabbed a lid for his coffee cup and followed his boss.

  “What is this about? Do I have a new assignment already?”

  “As a matter of fact, you do,” the man informed him as he rubbed the top of his bald head, leading them toward the briefing room.

  “So, what am I doing this time? Who am I taking down?” Ronny asked. He looked disinterested as he sat down in a desk chair, spinning around, nearly spilling the coffee all over his lap.

  “Ronny. For once in your life take something seriously.” His boss said. He was annoyed at his special agent. This man was the sharpest sniper in America, but he acted like a child.

  “Pfft, has that ever helped me before? I’m a good shot and that’s all that matters.”

  “I would get that cocky tone out of your voice if you are going to be working with me.” A sweet voice spoke, making him freeze. He had heard that same voice before. He turned around slowly, still spinning on the swivel chair.

  Standing there was Savanna with her arms crossed over her chest. Her jeans hugged her curves, making them even more prominent. On her feet were impractically high stilettos that made her imposing as she stood there, dominating the air around her.

  “Have you two met before?” Gerald asked, looking at them. Ronny got up, quickly shifting his eyes between Savanna and his boss, trying to figure out his next move. Did he accept the mission or reject it? Sighing, he moved toward her.

  “What do you have against me?”

  “Absolutely nothing,” Savanna said with a smirk as she stepped forward until she was staring him straight on.

  “Don’t lie. You don’t like me.” Ronny said, a pout-like expression on his face.

  “Aww, are you going to cry?” She teased as she sat down and crossed one leg over the other, assuming a pristine posture. Ronny looked at her for a moment, trying to figure out what this woman was about and why she assumed such a confrontational attitude toward him. What had he done to deserve it?

  “Your mission is such: We have a target named Von Kozlowski. A German. He needs to be terminated. Savanna, you will go undercover and gather all the necessary information; learn his plans, his motives, and who his allies are. When she has gathered this information, it will be your job, Ronny, to take him down. A clean shot,” Gerald explained, pulling up a picture of the target onto the large screen.

  Savanna smirked as she saw her target. She could already tell by his smug smile and good looks that this would be an easy mission. She would have him curled around her pinky in no time. Ronny noticed the almost diabolic look on her face. So, he assumed the woman was a spy. What else was she hiding from him? What more could he learn about her?

  “Is everything clear?” Gerald asked as he looked at the couple. He could feel the tension between them and wondered how they knew each other. After a moment of silence, he turned off the computers and held his hands behind his back. “Well if there are no more questions, your plane to Germany will be ready in an hour or so.”

  Savanna nodded and with that, she made her way out of the room, swaying her hips as she left. “She’s some woman. One of the best spies we have,” Gerald commented, seeing Ronny’s expression.

  “She’s…” Ronny couldn’t finish his sentence. He didn’t know what to make of her, but with his new mission, he was sure to find out more about her. He was determined to crack her shell, to make her fall for him, one way or another. No girl had ever denied him and she wasn’t about to be the first.

  ***

  Savanna made her way to the jet with a dull expression on her face. “Not that impressive, huh?” Ronny suddenly chimed from behind. She ignored him as she made her way up the steps. He kept following her, his body close to hers. She bit her lip slightly as she felt his proximity. A part of her already wanted to throw him off the plane, but another held an emotion she couldn’t quite ignore. Nonetheless, she tried to push it to the background of her mind as she sat down in one of the luxurious seats.

  “I have a jet at home you know. Three times better than this one. Pretty impressive huh?” He grinned as he sat down adjacent to her. She stared at him, narrowing her eyes as she observed him, taking in every detail. He had a typical playbook look to him. His hair had a slight curl to it, which, Savanna noted, took a lot of gel to style into its current pushed-back look. Even with the amount of time she figured he put into such a hairstyle, he still had a haphazard look to him as some of his hair managed to escape the tight grasp of the styling product, sticking out here and there.

  As the silence between them increased, she had no problem looking into his light blue eyes, maintaining eye contact with him. She knew he wanted to break away from her gaze, but he couldn’t. A smirk emerged on Savanna’s face as she finally freed him of her stare. Her eyes moved to his fair skin and light facial hair. He was attractive. There was no denying that. With his tall, muscular physique and handsome face, he could grab anyone’s attention, even Savanna’s.

  “Why do you keep staring at me? Is there something stuck in my teeth?” He chuckled as he leaned back, trying to assume a nonchalant attitude. Savanna scoffed at his horrible attempt at humor.

  “Really? The old something in my teeth line?” Savanna lifted an eyebrow questioningly.

  “Well, you're not easily approachable if I have to be completely honest,” Ronny admitted as his cheeks grew red in color. Savanna crossed her arms across her chest, assuming a hostile stance.

  “Is that so?”

  “Yeah. You know, usually girls are all over me, but you’re different. You even seem to hate me, which boggles my mind because what the hell did I ever do to you?” As he said these words, he got closer to her. She grinned and got closer as well, their faces now inches apart. There was a mischievous look on her face.

  “Sorry… but I don’t fall for stuck up billionaires like yourself.” She spat out the words, before leaning back and crossing one leg over the other.

  “How do you know I’m a billionaire? I could be a millionaire.” He chuckled. She rolled her eyes in response, before grabbing a glass of champagne that was being offered to her by the flight attendant.

  “Well… let’s see. You just told me you had a jet that was… what
did you say… three times better than this one? That watch on your wrist… that probably cost a small fortune… that amount of diamonds doesn’t come cheap. Your haphazard attitude and playboy flirting techniques… all the signs of some rich hotshot,” she answered in a surprisingly calm tone.

  “You forgot about my mansion… boat… and company,” he added with a pleased look on his face as if all of this was some kind of game.

  She had done her research and knew that Ronny founded and ran Goldberg Defense Systems: one of the biggest defense contractors of the US Army. She pretended not to know though. “How could I forget? Not only are you a spoiled douche, you’re also some high and mighty CEO? Let me guess, it’s a multibillion-dollar company that contributes heavily to humanitarian efforts?” She mocked him with a naughty smirk as she looked at him through her champagne glass.

  “You hit the nail on the head… but don’t lie, I know you’re already in love with me… you’re just playing hard to get. I like that.” He leaned forward, about to make a move when the pilot suddenly came on overhead, telling them to fasten their seat belts. Ronny sighed as he sat back in his seat properly and they prepared themselves for takeoff.

  When they were finally in the air, Savanna unlatched her seat belt and reached in her bag, pulling out a book. Her dark eyes scanned the page as her face transformed into one of pure concentration. Every now and then she would bite her large bottom lip as if contemplating something. Ronny observed her, trying to figure her out. She seemed like a hothead, but at the same time wildly intelligent.

  “Whatcha reading?” He finally interjected, breaking her concentration. She sighed, placing a bookmark on the page.

  “A book.”

  “Interesting.”

  “You aren’t going to let me read, are you?”

  “Nope.”

  She sighed loudly at his response, before slipping the book back into her bag again.

  “Fine. Let me ask you this then. If you are this well-off hotshot billionaire, with fancy jets and even fancier watches, what are you doing here?”

  “What do you mean?” he asked, looking at her as he adjusted the watch on his wrist.

  “Why are you working for the government if you are so rich? You obviously don’t need the money,” she explained, looking a little annoyed by his lack of comprehension.

  “Ah… well…” He paused, placing his hands on his knees, as he seemed to enter a deep train of thought. “When I was in high school, I enlisted in the army. I got called in when I was nineteen and was put on the front lines. Eventually, I proved my worth as a sniper… but one day, my best friend was taken hostage. He was kept as a prisoner for over a year and then, just when the terrorists confirmed they would let him go… they sent a video of his execution. It was horrible… and I can never forget it. So, I do this, to put scum like the men who killed him, six feet under.”

  He spoke with a purpose so pure that Savanna was taken aback. For a moment Ronny got lost in his thoughts, losing his gaze on Savanna, which he had maintained for the last few hours.

  ***

  Savanna had not expected this kind of story. She had assumed he wanted the fame and glory that men often thought came with working in the military. Instead, he had given her a touching story with a rather heartwarming theme of friendship at its core. Maybe this Ronny person was more than just a pretty face, but Savanna didn’t let herself think of such things for very long. She had been trained to check herself and not get drifted by emotions. She needed to ignore the feelings bubbling up inside of her and focus on the mission ahead of her.

  “What about you?” Ronny finally said after a few minutes of silence. He looked up at her. Small tears adorned his face, but he refused to wipe them as he kept his eyes locked with hers, searching their depths.

  “Well, I definitely don’t have a story like yours… I just got recruited one day and decided to stay. I couldn’t afford to go to college anyway, so I didn’t have much of a choice. It was either this or a low-end job in retail or worse,” she said with a dismissive air in her voice and waved her hand as if she could sweep the whole explanation out of sight.

  “I see… well if you want to go to college now… I could—”

  “Don’t. I don’t need your charity.” With that cold statement, utter silence followed. The rest of their trip was one of awkwardness; neither one of them dared to say another word. Despite this, they stole glances of each other whenever they thought it was safe to do so.

  ***

  A few hours later, they landed in Germany. Savanna had managed to sleep through the whole thing, even as the plane shook with a horrible turbulence. Ronny looked over, smiling at her relaxed features. He wanted to reach out and caress her cheek but thought better of it. Had it been any other girl, he would have done it, but there was something about this one that was different.

  The flight attendant was about to wake the sleeping woman, but Ronny stopped her. He wanted to be the one to wake her. Unfastening his seat belt, he moved forward. His body hovered over hers as he reached forward, his hand on her shoulder as he shook her softly. “Savanna…” He whispered her name. The word tasted like sugar on his lips and he smiled to himself, waiting for her to wake up.

  When she didn’t, he leaned in closer before shaking her with a little more force. Suddenly, her eyes shot open and she moved quickly, kicking Ronny’s feet out from under him and pinning him to the floor of the plane before she could realize what she was doing. Her cheeks flushed slightly before she finally loosened her grip on him. “Sorry.”

  “Jeez… warn me next time, will you?” Ronny got up, brushing off his expensive suit before rubbing his neck, where Savanna had managed to dig in her fingernails. “Why do you constantly attack me?” He protested, getting closer to her. She shot him a glance, a fire burning behind her dark eyes.

  “I don’t like guys sneaking up on me. Remember that.” Her words sounded like a threat as she grabbed her bag and made her way out of the plane. Ronny wondered if something had happened in her past that had made her this defensive.

  Eventually, they made their way through one of the secret American posts in Germany. There, they were briefed further on their mission. By the end, it was determined that Ronny would dress up as Savanna’s chauffeur and drive her to the soiree Kozlowski was hosting. She already had a position on the guest list as a well-known fence for precious gems.

  While inside, she would get all the information they needed on the German as Ronny got in position, ready to kill the man with a clean shot once Savanna gave him the cue. It seemed like an easy enough mission, but there was plenty that could go wrong at any moment.

  After they both dressed for their roles, Ronny got behind the wheel of an expensive BMW. He rubbed the dashboard affectionately. “Great German manufacturing right here. I have a similar one at home. Red, though, I was never a fan of black cars.” Savanna rolled her eyes at his bragging. She didn’t need to know about his billionaire lifestyle, but for whatever reason, he seemed adamant about showing off.

  “Are you nervous?” he finally asked as he looked over at her. She looked stunning in her shimmering white dress. It contrasted against her skin amazingly, making her skin glow in the gentle light of the car’s interior.

  “No.”

  “Not even a little?”

  “No.”

  “That’s impressive. You’re going to be lying to a bunch of people who could kill you in a moment’s notice.”

  “It’s my job,” she said.

  He looked at her, one hand on the wheel. His fingers tightened against the leather for a moment, before he sighed.

  “Why are you so… cold?” he finally asked before setting his eyes back on the road. Before she could justify her hard exterior, Ronny pulled up to the impressive mansion. “Hmm… I think mine’s better.”

  “Why are you such a show off?” And with that, Savanna made her way out of the car, slamming the door as she moved toward the mansion. She couldn’t stand Ronny. He had a
way of getting under her skin, and yet, there was something lurking within her that kept coming up to the surface. She didn’t want to admit it, but a part of her felt like it was falling for him. In fact, she had felt an attraction toward him from the moment she laid eyes on him. But such things were foolish.

  With this thought, she made her way to the bouncer. “Asha Rosas.” The man looked at his list before making a small tick next to her fake name. He stepped to the side, allowing her into the luxurious home.

  ***

  Ronny watched her enter the home before making his way down the street. There was a nervous, prickling sensation in his back as Savanna escaped his view. He couldn’t help the knot that was forming in the pit of his stomach, like something was about to go horribly wrong. He had felt this way once before when his best friend had gone into a fox den for a simple recon mission. He had never come back. Ronny, as he made his way to the designated vantage point, felt like there was the possibility of never seeing Savanna again.

  “No… she’ll be okay… she can kick anyone’s butt…” Ronny muttered to himself as he squeezed the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white with the effort. He would see her again. He just needed to stay positive.