by Emma Lea
The Billionaire Replacement
The Young Billionaires Book 4
Emma Lea
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.
Copyright © 2017 Emma Lea
All rights reserved.
Created with Vellum
Contents
Other books by Emma Lea
About this Book
Author’s Note
Previously
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Chapter 25
Epilogue
Afterword
About the Author
Thanks
Other books by Emma Lea
Also by Emma Lea
Rock Star
Other books by Emma Lea
This is Emma Lea’s complete book library at time of publication, but more books are coming out all the time. Find out every time Emma releases something by clicking here and signing up for her New Release Alerts.
SWEET ROMANCES
These are romantic tales without the bedroom scenes and the swearing, but that doesn’t mean they’re boring!
The Young Royals
A Royal Engagement
A Royal Entanglement
A Royal Entrapment
A Royal Expectation
Bookish Book Club Novellas
Meeting Prince Charming
Broken Arrow Trilogy
Broken
Cursed
Eternal
SWEET & SEXY ROMANCES
In my Sweet & Sexy Romances I turn up the heat with a little bit of sexy. No swearing, or very minimal swearing, and brief, tasteful and not too graphic bedroom scenes.
Love, Money & Shoes Series
Walk of Shame
Strictly Business
Skin Deep
In The Money
All At Sea
Love, Money & Shoes Novellas
The Five Year Plan
Summer Fling
Standalone Novels
Amnesia
HOT & SEXY ROMANCES
Hot & Spicy Romances turn the heat way up. They contain swearing and sexy scenes and the characters get hot under the collar.
Recommended for 18+ readers
TGIF Series
Girl Friday
Black Friday
Good Friday
Twelve Days
Twelve Days of Christmas - Her Side of the Story
Twelve Days of Christmas - His Side of the Story
Quickies (Collins Bay Novellas)
Last Call
Standalone Novels
Learning to Breathe
TOO HOT TO HANDLE ROMANCES
These are definitely 18+ reads and contain graphic sex scenes and high level swearing – not for the faint of heart
The Young Billionaires
The Billionaire Stepbrother
The Billionaire Daddy
The Billionaire Muse
The Billionaire Replacement
Music & Lyrics
Rock Star
Songbird
Strings
About this Book
Declan was just being a nice guy. He saw a woman in need of assistance and he stepped in and pretended to be her fiancé. It was just the kind of guy he was; a knight in shining armour ready to rescue the damsel in distress. Yes, she was pretty - beautiful, gorgeous, a goddess - but he would have done it for anyone…probably. It was only fair that she return the favour when he found himself in need of a fake girlfriend. It wasn’t meant to go anywhere. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement and they both knew the rules going in. He wasn’t free to fall in love. There were…complications…that prevented him from pursuing her for anything more than just a fun time between adults. But you know what they say about best laid plans…
Brandi wanted it all - a career she loved, a happy home, the husband, the white picket fence, and the two-point-five kids. That was the dream. Unfortunately for Brandi when men looked at her they saw something other than a potential life partner, they saw an opportunity to tick something off their bucket list. Blonde, beautiful and bearing a striking resemblance to a certain famous blonde-haired, blue-eyed doll, Brandi was a Marilyn when she desperately wanted to be a Jackie. So when she met Declan and he treated her like a person instead of just a piece of arm candy, of course she was going to develop feelings for him. The only problem? Their little agreement. And then things got complicated…
*This is a ‘Too Hot to Handle’ romance on the Emma Lea rating scale - These are definitely 18+ reads and contain graphic sex scenes and high level swearing – not for the faint of heart.
Author’s Note
The Young Billionaires takes place in a very real city, Melbourne (situated in the state of Victoria).
It might also be good to note that this story is set in Australia which happens to be in the Southern Hemisphere, and as such, the seasons may be different to what you’re used to. Summer in Australia happens at Christmas (December to February), the new school year begins in February and finishes in December and the final year of high school is Grade 12. Tertiary education is usually University or TAFE (Technical And Further Education) or other vocational training.
Boxing Day is celebrated on December 26 and started as the traditional day for servants and tradesmen to receive their ‘Christmas Box’ from their bosses or employers. It is a Public (or Bank) Holiday and has become synonymous with big retail stores sales.
Other fun facts about Australia:
- We use the metric system for measurement (millimetres, centimetres, metres and kilometres)
- We use Celsius for temperature (30℃ is equal to 86℉)
- We use dollars and cents for currency
- Yes, we have some of the most dangerous creatures on earth living in our country
- No, we don’t have koalas, kangaroos and wombats as pets
- We like our beer cold (and our wine too)
This book uses UK/Aus English so you may notice some alternate spelling. And since this story is set in Australia, you may also stumble across some Aussie slang words. If you’re unsure of their meaning, a quick Google search should clear it up for you.
For Kenya
Brandi is your spirit animal
Previously
Declan smiled as he watched Mason and Abby celebrate her book launch. The function room in his hotel had been decked out with crime scene tape and the chalk outlines of dead bodies on the floor. Six foot posters of the book cover were plastered around the room and the space was filled with people milling around, eager to get a signed copy. It was the first time the reclusive A.A. Abernathy had ever attended a book signing and people were lined up out the door, eager to get a glimpse of their favourite author.
Declan had been given an early copy of the book and he had to say he agreed with the critics when they sa
id it was her best work yet. He was proud of her and so happy for her and Mason and the journey they were on. He had worried about his friend for many years, worried that he would never find the piece of his heart that was missing. Seeing the way he and Abby interacted put his fears to rest and he let go of his concern for his friend knowing that he was now in the capable hands of a woman who loved him to distraction.
He wondered what it would be like to be able to choose the person you wanted to spend the rest of your life with instead of one being thrust upon you. It wasn’t something he would ever have the good fortune to experience. His family married like marriage was a business merger and he knew his mother had someone already picked out for him. She was just waiting for him to sow his wild oats and when he was ready to settle down, she would spring the trap. He’d seen it done with his older brother.
The Mayfields were an old and distinguished family. Of the four friends he had in Alpha Pi Tau, he was the only one who had been born into money. They were all billionaires now, but money wasn’t a new thing to him. He was a billionaire in his own right, of course, building his hotel empire from one run down building to an international corporation with hotels and resorts across the world. He started with a loan from his family and now he stood on his own two feet, the loan long repaid and his debts satisfied.
But as hard as he’d tried to separate himself from the family, his mother and father still insisted on making sure he chose a suitable wife. And by choosing a suitable wife, it meant allowing them to choose for him. He had so far gotten away with avoiding his mother’s machinations, but with each of his friends finding their one true love, he was beginning to feel the stirrings of wanting to settle down himself. If only it could be with a woman of his choosing and not some daughter of one of his parents’ associates who would bring something of monetary value to the family.
Declan sighed and turned away from the happy scene in front of him. He walked out of the conference room and into the foyer, making a beeline for the front desk to check up on everything. This hotel, The Mayfield in Melbourne, had been his first and still remained his favourite, despite having hotels in nearly every major city in the world.
“Janine,” he said, addressing the woman behind the desk, “how’s the evening looking?”
She smiled at him and then looked down at her computer screen. “With the reunion happening in Conference Room 2 and the book launch in Conference Room 1, we are fully booked.”
He nodded, intending to ask another question but completely lost his train of thought when he saw a blonde walk out of Conference Room 2, a phone to her ear. She was stunning and stacked. His mouth practically salivated when his eyes dropped to her impressive rack that was barely contained in the tiny dress she wore. His eyes continued a lazy journey down the rest of her body, his breath stalling when he saw the long expanse of her tanned legs. Her dress was short and her stilettos high and in between was a mouthwatering smorgasbord of lovely, lovely legs. The old ZZ Top song started running through his head as he admired them.
“Shit, shit, shit.”
His eyes popped back up to her face and the scowl that marred her near perfect features as she held the phone to her ear.
“Where the hell are you? You were supposed to be here an hour ago!”
He was rooted on the spot, watching her. He knew it was impolite to eavesdrop on a conversation, but he couldn’t help it.
“Who’s there with you?…No, I definitely heard a voice, a female voice…Are you shitting me? You’re breaking up with me now?…I hope your dick shrivels up and falls off.”
She stabbed a finger at her phone and Declan watched as she took a deep breath and tried to compose herself. She dabbed at the corner of her eyes and smoothed her dress. Her head fell for a moment and he was about to go over and offer her…well, he didn’t know what the hell he was going to offer her, but he wanted to do something, anything, to take that defeated look off her face. But before he could move, she lifted her head, straightened her shoulders and turned on her heel, heading back into the conference room.
Declan straightened from where he had been leaning up against the reception desk and ran a hand down his tie.
“What’s going on in Conference Room 2?” he asked Janine.
“School reunion,” she replied.
“I might just head in and check that everything is running smoothly,” he said, stepping away from the desk and heading after the blonde.
1
Brandi walked back into the reunion and headed to her seat, a fake smile on her face. The other women gathered around the table looked up at her, their own fake smiles in place, as she sat down.
“He still not here?” Courtney said with a sad pout, insincerity dripping from her words like honey.
“No,” Brandi replied with a tight smile, “he’s been held up at work.”
Jennifer tut-tutted. “That was a habit I made sure Bradley got out of quickly after we got married,” she said and the others nodded agreeably like she was all-wise and knowing.
“You definitely need to have strict boundaries with them,” Lisa said, “and you need to set them early.”
The three women had been friends with Brandi at school, although ‘friends’ was a loose term. ‘Frenemies’ might be a more appropriate word. They were all married, of course, and if Brandi wasn’t mistaken, they had all had ‘work’ done.
She sighed and admonished herself for such uncharitable thoughts. Just because she was in a bad mood didn’t mean she should take it out on these women. Who knew what they had going on in their lives behind their perfect Facebook status updates and hashtag-no-filter Instagram selfies? They may have been bitches when they were teenagers, but that didn’t mean they were now.
“So when are you getting married?” Courtney asked.
Brandi may have told a little white lie. She may have inferred that her and Justin were engaged but had yet to choose a ring. She hadn’t seen the harm in it when it was unlikely that she would see these women again anytime soon. It had been ten years since they had graduated and she hadn’t laid eyes on them in that whole time. What were the chances that she would see them after this night? If Justin had asked her to marry him a month ago, she would’ve jumped at the chance, but over the last couple of weeks or so she had begun to see a difference in him. He’d obviously hooked up with whoever that other woman was. She should’ve seen the signs; it wasn’t the first time it had happened to her.
Brandi picked up her glass and took a large gulp before answering. Fake smile in place she said, “We haven’t set a date yet.”
The other women nodded but they shot knowing glances to one another. They didn’t believe her. They probably thought that she didn’t even have a boyfriend and that she had just made him up. Okay, so she had been stretching the truth a little bit, but she did have a boyfriend when she stepped into the reunion. It just so happened that he broke up with her a few minutes before, over the phone, while he had another woman wrapped around his cock.
Brandi took another large gulp of her wine, emptying the glass. Fuck men. They were all the same, the bastards. She didn’t need a man in her life anyway. She was an independent and successful businesswoman with a collection of vibrators. What the hell did she need a man for anyway?
“So what are you up to these days?” Lisa asked.
Brandi smiled genuinely for the first time as she answered. “I’m a children’s entertainer.”
“A what?”
“A children’s entertainer. I dress up as different characters and entertain kids at parties and other functions and I—” The women sniggered behind their hands. “—do volunteer work in the children’s hospital,” she finished softly.
“You dress up?” Jennifer asked. “Like, what? Barbie?”
The women sniggered again and Brandi tried to keep her smile in place. She was used to this reaction. Other women didn’t understand and men just thought it was something dirty to comment on. It didn’t help that she had more than
a passing resemblance to the well-loved doll and she did, in fact, sometimes dress up as Barbie. She even had a real life pink Corvette and a pink VW Beetle to complete the illusion.
“Sometimes,” she answered. “Although Elsa is more popular at the moment and of course with the new movie out, Belle, from Beauty and the Beast is a frequent request.”
“You do this as a job?” Lisa asked barely disguising her sneer.
“I do,” Brandi replied. She was also a computer programmer but they didn’t want to know that. Probably wouldn’t believe her either. “What do you do?”
“Bradley and I decided that it would be better if I stayed home with the children,” Jennifer said with a sniff.
Brandi smiled. “Oh, so you’re a children’s entertainer too,” she said. “Only you don’t get paid for it.”
It was a mean thing to say, but with Justin breaking up with her and the constant jabs from these women she was at the end of her patience. She had the utmost respect for women who chose to stay home and look after their kids but she just couldn’t help getting a dig in at Jennifer’s expense. If she felt it was okay to disparage Brandi’s career then it was only fair that Brandi could disparage hers.
