Big Bad Billionaires

by Naughty Aphrodite

  “No need. You obviously like it a little rough.”

  Her heartbeat picks up.

  CHAPTER SIX

  Connor leads them in a loop around the property, and they talk the whole time. Her childhood alone with her mom, what it was like to watch her mom struggle to keep a roof over their heads, how hard she’d worked to go to college, the heartbreak of losing her mother two years ago. Many of these details are things they have in common, and it feels so easy understanding each other like this.

  Connor feels his heart wanting to tug closer and closer to Samantha. Her drive, her ambition yet humility, her easy sense of humor are all things he had looked for in a woman before he’d casually gotten involved with Marla. Marla had somehow gotten pregnant within the first few weeks of their relationship, and he’d decided to make it work because, as always, he wanted to do the right thing. He’d almost forgotten about what he’d been looking for before having to manage so much unpredictable behavior. At moments in their conversation, Connor is so absorbed in what she is saying that he almost forgets how lovely she looks astride her horse. Her thick hair glowing red and gold in the sun, and her bare thighs looking smooth as silk. He longs to run his fingers over all of her.

  He chose this route for one reason: the hills. The last part of the journey before returning to the stable takes them up and down several small hills. As they approach the first one, they both lean forward to stay more comfortable on the horses. Within a minute, Samantha has a small smirk growing on her face. He feels a growing excitement. Connor wants to watch every little detail of her face now.

  “How’s the ride?” he asks playfully.

  Samantha bites her lip a little and turns to look at him directly. “This is why you brought us this way, isn’t it? This is why--” her breath catches in her chest for a moment and she then exhales through her open mouth with a little laugh.

  “This is why I told you to wear a skirt? Yes, yes it is,” he says slowly as if teasing her. “You have to lean forward to ride up hills, which means the saddle rubs in just the right place. Every step the horse takes is just a little bit more—“

  “Torture,” she completes his sentence, then draws in another deep breath.

  He smiles and holds her gaze for a long moment before answering, “Indeed.”

  On the second hill, Samantha’s breathing starts to speed up a little. He imagines her in his bed, holding her head in his hands, looking down into her eyes, never wanting to look away. He loves the sounds of her arousal. His body feels on fire, the throbbing in his own groin is only encouraged by the motions of riding.

  “I only discovered this little trick last month, you know.”

  “Oh yeah?”

  “It was the day after the SpaceMark party,” he says with a satisfied look. “I ride out here pretty often, but this time my mind had wandered to a beautiful little thing I’d helped with a stained dress the night before.”

  Samantha smiles playfully at him but lets out a little moan when the horse stumbles slightly. Connor sees her thighs tighten with the moan, and it takes his heartbeat from a brisk jog to a run.

  “Shall I continue?”

  Samantha takes a deep breath and says, “Yes...please.”

  That please, small and eager, makes him a mix of naughty desire and daddy wanting to protect his little girl. He remembers his thoughts on the plane home from Hong Kong, how he’d resolved himself to keep things professional with Samantha, who is his daughter’s nanny after all. But, the moment he’d laid eyes on her, swinging Arabella around on the back lawn, golden grass stuck in her hair, the sun behind her, revealing the shape of her body through her thin dress, he’d lost the battle with himself.

  He wants her, desperately, but it is more than that. She isn’t just beautiful or intriguing. Being in her presence makes him feel at peace with the world; like nothing could truly go wrong as long as he is with her. Something about her, from that first moment at the party when he ran off that asshole who mocked the mess he’d made of her dress--he’s never felt this way before. Samantha has made it through so much hardship, and it’s made her strong, but somehow all this just makes him, even more, want to be her protector, her shining knight.

  As the horses see the stable over the final hill, they pick up their pace. Connor’s focus comes back to Samantha, to the fact that they’re almost home, to the reality that she is spending the night three doors down from his bedroom. He can hear her trying to control her breathing. She is teetering on the edge of bliss but then the landscape levels out. The hills are gone, and she is sitting up straight again. Beautifully frustrated and slowing her breath back to normal.

  At the stable, he dismounts and then takes her by the waist to help her down. She is so small between his hands. Back on solid ground, they stand face to face for a minute, breathing in the sunset air in unison. He never wants to let her go. He thinks he sees in her face that for her, too, everything has changed.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  After dinner, they sip brandy in the library, and Samantha’s cheeks glow rosy with the alcohol. She relaxes enough to talk for a long time about all sorts of things, eventually ending up on the topic of career and how she came to be Arabella’s nanny.

  “I’ve had the same goals for four years. I went to university knowing what I wanted: to lead the advertising department of a major brand. Everything I did in the school built towards that. I worked so hard, and I’m good. It may not seem that way since I’m here, being a nanny, but I really am good!”

  “Oh, I’m sure you are,” Connor says with full sincerity.

  “But, when I got out of school and moved out here to finally make it happen, well...” she takes a sip of her drink, “well, nothing happened. If it hadn’t been for Cheri, I’d be back in my tiny town, probably following in my mother’s footsteps.”

  “That could never happen,” Connor says with total confidence.

  “You never know.”

  “I do know. There are few things I know like the back of my hand: swimming, Arabella, how to make an excellent breakfast, and business.”

  “Breakfast, huh?” Samantha arches an eyebrow.

  “That’s right. You haven’t lived until you’ve had my Swiss soufflé,” he says with a grin. “But business, that’s the one I know the best. I’ve always had a sense for it. And you have the sense too. I can see it in you. You’re driven and focused in a way most MBAs would kill to be. You have the instinct.”

  “You’ve seen me play with a four-year-old and ride a horse. How could you possibly know this?” Samantha uncrosses her legs and stretches them out on the ottoman in front of her, challenging him to prove himself to her.

  “You are a fighter. You don’t just give up and anybody who ever meets you must be aware of that fact. You’ve got something in you, Samantha. Something that makes you stand up from the rest.”

  “Nah, you just say that,” she waves her hand trying to brush off the compliment.

  “Well, let me ask you this: when I unzipped your dress if I’d pulled it to the ground instead of treating the stain, would you have given in to the moment?” His eyes are probing her now.

  Any good negotiator knows not to ask a question he doesn’t already know the answer to, and Samantha knows this.

  She blushes brightly like the sun has burnt a stripe across her nose and cheeks. She looks away shyly.

  “Mmhm. Exactly,” Connor seems very satisfied with himself. “I count that as a meeting, even without the names.”

  “Fair enough,” she answers and looks like she has just been beaten in a game and loves it.

  “And, I’ve seen you negotiate when you had zero bargaining chips on the table.”

  “When?”

  “Have you forgotten the details of our first date already,” he jests, enjoying their banter more and more.

  “Ah, the interview,” she replies.

  “Yes. I couldn’t believe I offered you such a generous compensation package, and you tried to negotiate me up!
Your boldness, your confidence…” his voice trails off, and he takes another sip of brandy like he’s trying to hold his words in.

  “Tried? I feel like I was pretty successful,” she says with a self-satisfied expression.

  “Damn straight you were. Because you have the instinct. And it’s so fucking sexy,” he says, holding her eyes with his and not letting them go.

  With this directness, Samantha loses her position of power in the conversation and feels Connor step back into that role. She likes it. The way he commands a room, the way he seems to always know exactly what he wants and goes for it single-mindedly...the way he looks at her like it’s only his incredible self-control that keeps him from taking her right there.

  There’s a knock at the door, and Margaret enters. She sees them relaxing together in the library, brandy snifters in hand, and quickly hides her quiet surprise. An important call from Hong Kong has come through. Connor apologizes, bids Samantha goodnight, and quickly exits the room.

  Samantha takes the last of her brandy in one shot and then rests her head back on the chair. In a month, her life has gone from struggling on the edge of ruin, to late-night brandy with the founder and CEO of a multi-billion dollar company. Replaying the way he looks at her, the way he seems to truly see her for who she is, sends her whole body into a flutter.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  After an hour putting out fires in the Hong Kong office, Connor retires to his room, but finds himself full of electricity.

  Tiger-like, he paces the sizeable sitting room that adjoins his bedroom. His body is tight, muscles ready to pounce, and all he can think about is Samantha. He feels the magnetic pull of her being only a few yards away. It’s as if a switch inside him has flipped, and now when he is away from her part of him is missing. This makes him uneasy. He tells himself he just needs to get laid. That’s all it is. Between work and Marla, and taking every extra minute to be there for Arabella, it’s been a while since his body has known the intimate touch of another. But deep inside, he knows the truth. He is falling in love with this young woman. When he lets this truth float up to the surface, where he can no longer deny it, it stops him in his tracks, and he stands in place, stunned.

  Should he try to keep his distance? Should he tell her they can’t encourage their connection? Just the thought of this feels like an impossibility, like he’s trying to rewrite the laws of physics.

  How did this happen so fast, he asks himself and falls into a chair. He runs his hands through his hair. Rubs his hands over his face. And finally, begins to accept his fate.

  A moment later there’s a knock at his door. He told Margaret he’s not to be disturbed for the rest of the night. He marches to the door, and swings it open with annoyance, but it’s not Margaret standing there. It is Samantha, in a simple white cotton chemise. They don’t say anything, just stand looking at each other in the doorway for a moment. The heat between them pulses. Connor feels a primal hunger for her run through his body. Unable to restrain himself a moment longer, he pulls Samantha in by the waist. The door slams behind her, and he suddenly has her against the wall, his open mouth locked with hers, and the taste of strawberries and brandy drawing him further in. His hands search her body, hungry to touch every part of her. She moans softly as his tongue dances in her mouth. And then, he pulls away. They are breathless.

  He holds her face in his hands, taking in every inch of her face, and they break into joyful laughter at the relief of touching. She pulls away, walks over to his desk and leans against it, trying to catch her breath.

  “Maybe we should talk about this,” she starts, chest still heaving.

  “OK. What shall we say?” He plays with her from across the room.

  “I don’t know. You’re my boss. I love Arabella so much.”

  Her love for his daughter almost makes him want to propose right in this moment.

  “Look, I’m not the kind of guy who sleeps with his employees. I’ve actually never done it. As a policy.”

  “So…”

  “So, I don’t know what is happening other than when I’m away from you I feel caged in this body,” he says and scratches at the tight t-shirt on his chest. “I want to kick the ass of anyone who would even think of hurting you. And yes, I am your boss.”

  Connor slowly walks toward Samantha, cups her cheek in his hand, and she melts into him. When she looks up at him again, her expression has changed. The doubt and hesitation are gone and has been replaced by something innocent yet wanting. Like she’s submitting to him and daring him at the same time.

  Coyly, she says, “I just don’t know how I'm supposed to say no to such a sexy daddy.”

  He grips her grabs her and says, “You’re not. You’re to say, ‘Yes please, Daddy,’ and show me what a good little girl you are.”

  Her smile deepens and she plays with the hem of her chemise like a schoolgirl. “And what do good little girls do, Daddy?”

  Connor turns her around and bends her over the desk, runs his hand down her back and over the soft roundness of her ass. He pulls the fabric up to her waist revealing nothing underneath. Samantha moans with his touch. Her body throbs with want. He presses his erection against her, leans down and whispers, “Is this what you came for tonight, baby girl?”

  Samantha arches her body into his and turns to give him an innocent-looking nod and bites her lip. He sweeps her up into his arms and carries her to his bed. He strips and then pulls the chemise from her body. Laid out before him, she is glowing with a flush. He yanks her down to the edge of the bed and begins to kiss her again, hard. He pins her hands above her head, runs his mouth over her neck, her collarbones, down until it finds her nipples. Their firmness in his mouth sends his erection into overdrive. Samantha is vocally enjoying the tease of his tongue and teeth.

  Under her breath, she whispers, “Daddy, please, please!”

  His mouth lunges up to silence her delicious begging. After a moment, her head cradled between his enormous hands, he looks into her big eyes with a sudden stillness. They’re both beaming, chests rhythmically pressing into each other with each breath.

  “You are the most gorgeous thing I think I’ve ever seen,” he says earnestly and runs his thumb over her parted lips. “I want you to be mine. All mine.”

  Before she can even think about it, Samantha responds, “But, I am yours. Why do you think I had to knock on your door?”

  He smiles, and she cups his face in her hands and pulls her knees upward. As he enters her, she lets out a little gasp and pulls him tighter to her. Her face melts into pleasure.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Before she is fully awake in the morning, Samantha hears something lightly clinking near her. She works her eyes open and blearily sees a tray laid out with an elegant breakfast. She looks around. Connor is opening the curtains. In the light of day, she sees how sleek his bedroom is.

  “Good morning, Sunshine,” he greets her.

  Samantha sits up. She feels the subtle ache of where he took up so much space in her body last night, and the memory of it fully awakens her.

  “Hungry?” Connor kisses the back of her shoulder.

  “Starving,” she answers with a giggle.

  “Well, now you get to learn about something else I’m good at,” he says proudly, and takes a spoonful of golden soufflé and feeds it to her.

  She moans with delight. “Oh my God, that’s amazing,” she says with a half-full mouth.

  “I aim to please.” He winks at her.

  “You certainly do,” she laughs.

  They eat in partial silence, rarely taking their eyes off each other, smiling in the haze of their bodies’ many hungers. When they’re almost done, Connor begins, “So, I have a question for you.”

  “OK,” Samantha replies while sitting up straighter and pretending to be official in some way.

  “I know you were planning to go home this morning, but how about you stay here for the rest of the weekend?”

  “At the house?”

&nb
sp; “Sure, at the house, too. But, really I mean right here,” he says and pats the bed.

  Samantha’s face transforms into a shining smile.

  “Yes please, Daddy,” she says in a flirty voice and leans in for a kiss.

  ***

  The next few months feels like a series of stolen glances, sizzling encounters, and weekend trips all divided up by bouts of work and responsibilities. Though she surely knows what’s happening, Margaret never betrays she has any knowledge of them, let alone any judgments. Samantha is thankful for this. Dating her boss is definitely on her life list of things not to do. What surprises Samantha the most is how lovely it is when she, Arabella, and Connor are just hanging out together. The only tarnish on the situation is occasionally Connor receives calls that noticeably stress him. He always leaves the room when he receives these calls, even when Arabella isn’t around making noise. Something about this slightly unsettles Samantha, but she tries not to pay attention. But, these calls increase in frequency. Eventually, Connor seems worried most of the time.