The Billion Dollar Baby_A Billionaire Romance

by Stella Andrews

  Tyler laughs softly as he strokes my hair, my head lying on his chest and my fingers tracing patterns over it. “Well, that was one night I’ll never forget.”

  I giggle happily. “You could say that. Yesterday was the best day of my life. Thank you, Tyler. You are one special man.”

  He is silent and I look up and see him looking at me with a look that takes my breath away. He traces my lip with his fingers and says seriously, “It was the same for me, Sydney. Despite the reasons that brought me here to you, I never expected that. I want you to know how important you are to me. Not because of why I came but because of how I feel now. I never expected us to fall into bed together. It was never part of the plan. The wedding was a necessity, but the honeymoon was a desire that’s shocked me. Nothing else mattered but showing you how much I want you—us.”

  His words touch my soul and I nod shyly. “I know, Tyler. In fact, I knew in the coffee house when you sat brooding for two days. I felt a familiarity with you that I have never felt before. That’s why I’ve jumped headfirst into all this. I trust you are here for me and won’t let me down. I feel safe with you and know you have my best interests at heart—unlike the men back at Little Ridge.”

  The look on his face rocks my world. Just for one moment, his guard slips. I see the emotion swirling deep in his eyes as he fights something inside him. The need in him is calling to me and for one second, he looks vulnerable. Then it’s replaced by a power that scares and excites me in equal measures. He is a warrior and I know he’s fighting on my side. He reaches for me and pulls me to him with a force that takes my breath away. This feels different. He feels different.

  His body is hard beneath my touch and he lights a fire inside my soul. He kicks my legs apart and reaches for yet another condom and tears it from the packet with his teeth. His eyes glitter dangerously as he sheaths himself in protection and then holds my wrists above my head and growls, “You are mine, Sydney. I don’t care how this happened, but it has. I will fight for you where nobody else ever has. I’ll protect you from a madness that promises to destroy us. I will give you my heart when I have never given it before and I’ll show you what it means to be loved by me every hour of the day.”

  I gasp at the intensity in his expression. He looks cold, hard and dangerous and so damn sexy I think I’m going to pass out. I gasp, “Stop talking.”

  He smirks as he growls, “As you wish.”

  Then he drives into me like a runaway freight train. This is fucking - not love. He slams inside me and my body can’t get enough. It’s primal and commanding and I love every inch of him powering inside me, stripping me of anything but him. He marks me inside forever and tattoos my heart with his image. My legs wrap around his waist and take him in deep. His balls slap against my thighs and his grunts of pleasure sear my mind. Then he pulls out and my body screams at the loss.

  He pulls me from the bed and guides me over to the window where the night has turned to day and the sun’s rays caress my body through the glass. He presses my face against the glass and my hands press against the window, my whole body on full display. He moves behind me and growls. “Look at Vegas, Sydney. Look at the world outside and know it’s yours to take. With me by your side, we will conquer it all. This is where it begins and never forget this moment.”

  He moves between my legs and my body pulsates with a desire so strong nothing else matters. He enters me fast and hard and pins me to the window. He fucks me hard against the smooth glass and I feel something building inside me that threatens to destroy me forever. He takes me to a place I have never been before and as I reach it, I scream out his name as my body pulsates around him and joins with his. Then I love it when he roars my name like the conqueror he is.

  As the sun rises over Vegas, the future looks bright and promising and I have never been so happy in my life.

  21

  Tyler

  Fuck, what just happened? Sydney is sleeping beside me and I’m thankful because I need time to get my head back in the game. That wasn’t supposed to happen. I wasn’t meant to fall in love with her and now I have I’m seriously screwed. Everything I’ve worked for these past few hellish years hangs in the balance because I couldn’t go through with it.

  My hands grip the steering wheel so hard my knuckles turn white. I watch as Vegas disappears in my rear-view mirror—we’re heading home.

  The trouble is, I haven’t thought it as my home for many years now. It’s my prison and my hell all rolled into one with two men at its center that are the focus of my revenge.

  Sydney shifts and my heart starts thumping as I catch sight of the woman who has changed everything and doesn’t even know it. I had two jobs to do - that was all and I couldn’t go through with the second one.

  As soon as I tasted her, loved her and consumed her my heart was lost. When she looked into my eyes with so much trust and adoration nothing else mattered.

  I almost want to howl with frustration. Way to go, Tyler. The cold, hard, unfeeling bastard that you have so carefully molded over the years was swept aside by one flutter of her pretty little eyelashes and the soft touch of her body.

  My head struggles to make sense of it all and I try to salvage some sort of plan from this mess.

  My mission was clear at the start. Find Sydney Emmerson and marry her. Tick.

  Fuck her senseless on our wedding night and plant my baby in her belly. X

  I was so close. So close to sealing my future and hers. Now I have what I want but one vital part of the plan. The trouble is, I couldn’t do it. There’s still time but I can’t go through with it. When she finds out why I married her, she will feel hurt and betrayed. The fact I couldn’t go through with the second part of it is my insurance policy. If she walks away from me I don’t know what I’ll do. I’m just hoping that when she realizes what I did - what I gave up for her, she will forgive me for the first part. If she doesn’t, I’ve lost everything.

  She stirs and smiles at me sleepily. “Hey, sorry, I must have drifted off back there. I can’t think why I’m so tired.”

  She giggles adorably and I feel my cock swelling and throbbing with a sudden need.

  She reaches over and lays her hand on my leg and my heart starts thumping. She says softly, “Let me drive for a bit. You could grab some sleep in the back, you must be exhausted.”

  I shake my head and smile. “I’m fine, baby. We’ll stop at the next stop and grab something to eat. It won’t take long now. We should reach Texas in around six hours.”

  She removes her hand and starts playing with her fingers which I’ve come to realize she does when she’s nervous. It brings to mind my sister, Ashton. She’s always done this as a kid. A nervous reaction to a situation playing on her mind. My heart tightens as I think of my sister. I’ve let her down. My heart thumps inside me, beating me for being so weak. It wasn’t just about me, it was about her. How have I let her down so badly?

  Sydney looks out of the window and I can tell she’s anxious. Pushing my own feelings aside, I smile softly and reach for those anxious fingers.

  “It’s fine, baby. I’m taking you to an apartment I’ve rented and nobody will know we’re back. We have a couple of days to settle in before I introduce you to your lost brother. Plenty of time to settle in and gather your strength.”

  She shakes her head slowly and looks worried. “I’m still not sure of the plan. Will you just introduce me as his long-lost sister and stand back and watch what happens? I’m pretty sure from what you’ve told me he isn’t going to be happy about it. Why do you think he will give me anything?”

  I laugh softly as I picture the scene when Sydney and Marshall meet. Despite my failure that will be one meeting to savor and enjoy.

  I smile softly. “Leave all of that to me. When you meet your brother, he won’t know what’s hit him. Not long now, Sydney and everything will change in your life. There’s no going back now because you’re about to discover how good life can be.”

  She settles back
in her seat and falls silent as she digests my words. My heart rate increases as I think of the gamble I’m taking. This could backfire on me spectacularly. I just hope I’ve done enough.

  Sydney

  This has been a hard journey. My body is sore inside and out and yet I’ve never felt happier. Tyler has left his mark inside me and it reminds me of how far I’ve come. I think I fell in love with him the moment he looked at me with those devastating eyes. He was so dark, so dangerous and intoxicating.

  Now he’s my husband, and that feels good. Whatever happens next, we will face together and know that if things go badly wrong at least we have each other.

  We stop for some lunch at a diner just outside Texas. We chat about anything but why we made the journey. Every minute of the time I spend with him makes me fall a little harder. A lingering look, a smile from those enigmatic lips and the briefest of touches cements me by his side forever. We are unbreakable. With him by my side my future’s bright.

  It must be close to dusk when we finally reach our destination.

  We pull up outside an apartment block in the city. Tyler looks at me and smiles sadly. “Not quite home yet but this will have to do for now.”

  I look at him, the curiosity burning me from inside. “Why can’t you go home?”

  He shrugs and reaches for the door. “I’ll tell you over a coffee. I need lots of it to get through the next few days and so will you.”

  I follow him inside and look around with interest.

  It’s a nice smart apartment building but nothing like I thought he’d live in. I suppose I’m used to him living life with the best on offer. This is no different to my apartment with Lucy.

  We see nobody as we take the elevator up several floors. It doesn’t take long before Tyler leads me to a door in the center of the building and grins wryly. “Home sweet home—for now, anyway.”

  He opens the door and I follow him inside a pretty standard condo. Nothing special and as impersonal as a show apartment.

  He drops the bags to the floor and heads over to a small kitchen at the other end of the room. Smiling softly, he beckons me to join him. “What you see is what you get here, Sydney. There’s this one room, one bedroom through there and a bathroom off that. It’s rather cozy and I hope you don’t mind sharing for a while.”

  He grins wickedly and I feel the heat tearing through me at the thought of what will come next. I know it will. The promise shines from his eyes and his smirk tells me he knows I won’t have any form of objection. He flicks the switch to a coffee maker and removes some mugs from the cupboard. “I hope you like it black because I’ve been a little preoccupied to remember to get the groceries in.”

  I nod and look around me with anticipation, trepidation and a desire to know how this is set to end. I’m not stupid and I know Tyler brought me here for more than the reason of reuniting me with my long-lost brother. There’s something in it for him and maybe now is the perfect time to discover what that is.

  I move across to the couch and sit down heavily, relishing the comfort it gives me. Being locked in a car for close on two days was both exhausting and exhilarating because of the company I kept. Now I’m in his territory and wonder what I’ll find.

  He hands me the coffee and sits beside me with a thump, stretching his legs out and kicking off his shoes. “Man, that feels good. Remind me to fly next time I leave the State.”

  I take a sip and feel the burning liquid scorch my throat. “Why didn’t you?”

  For a moment there is silence and then he sets the mug down and turns to look at me. My heart flutters at the look in his eyes. It’s all there - what I saw before Vegas. The cold, hard, promise of a vengeful man who is about to pounce.

  He says bitterly. “Because I didn’t want them to know where I was heading. Their reach is far and Marshall would have known instantly. I had to get to you before they knew what I was up to.”

  I look at him fearful of the look in his eyes. “This is about your own revenge, isn’t it? It’s not just about getting me what’s rightfully mine.”

  He laughs bitterly. "Like I said before, those men destroyed my family. In doing that they destroyed mine and my sister's lives. For some sick reason, Marshall wanted Ashton as his wife when she was just fucking two years old.”

  I gasp as I see the disgust in his eyes mirroring my own. “He made a deal with my father that in return for her virginity he would be set up for life. We would want for nothing and my father would get to play the big oil baron. You know all this and why they destroyed my mother. What you don’t know is how I am going to bring them down. I need you to carry out my master plan. When Emmerson senior had his sudden change of heart, he split the company shares equally between his two children. You would get 30% and so would Marshall.”

  I shake my head in confusion. “But what about the other 40%. Who owns them?”

  Tyler shrugs. “It was put out on the stock exchange. Emmerson needed to raise some capital and floated 40% to get him some much-needed money. It was a long time ago, and he spent the remainder of his years trying to buy it back. He always kept the controlling interest and to my knowledge managed to claw back another 20%. So, when he died he owned 80% of his company with 20% still in the public domain. When he died Marshall buried his new will with him and took the controlling interest for himself. He owns 80% but as we both know when you rock up at the next board meeting with my solicitor in tow, he will be reduced to 40%. Hardly a controlling interest so what happens next will be interesting.”

  I sit back heavily and think about what he’s said. This is serious. I knew Tyler said he was going to get me what was rightfully mine but an oil company! I don’t want that. How could I possibly even begin to understand how an oil company operates?

  He must notice the look on my face because he takes my hand and smiles gently. “That’s why I married you, Sydney.”

  I look at him in shock. “What, for my money?”

  He laughs softly. “No, because you need someone beside you who knows how this works. An advisor and someone on the inside. With me as your husband, they won’t be able to get away with anything. Like I said before, I came for you, Sydney because with me by your side we can both bring them down. I get to control the company my father placed above his own family’s needs and you get what’s rightfully yours.”

  As I look into his eyes, I see the excitement in his. They burn with a ruthless intensity that makes me gasp for air. I’m not sure why but there’s something he’s not telling me. It sits between us like an untold secret. Something devastating that threatens to destroy. There is more to this and I feel unsettled as I look into his eyes. A storm is approaching and I’m at the center of it.

  22

  Tyler

  I know Sydney has many questions and I’m a sick bastard for not coming clean. The trouble is, she would hate me and I’m not ready for that yet—if ever. I need these few short days to cement her heart to mine so when she discovers the truth she won’t leave me. She’ll be angry - I know that but hopefully, she’ll understand that I never meant to fall in love with her and now I have, it means more to me than anything else. The fact I couldn’t go through with the second part of the plan will tell her that. I just hope she sticks around long enough to hear me out.

  I watch as everything I’ve told her registers in her expression. She isn’t stupid and I know she can sense I’m holding something back. The trouble is, I can’t risk telling her before the board meeting. If she hates me, I won’t only have lost her but everything I’ve set in place to free my sister. Suddenly, she smiles and my heart aches at the trust in her eyes. “I’m sure you’ve got everything covered, Tyler. Whatever you need me to do I’ll do it.”

  She tears my heart out with just that one look. It chokes me and leaves me gasping for air. I can’t bear it if that look changes to one of hatred.

  I reach for her like a dying man desperate for one last shot at life. She folds towards me willingly and I crush her lips to mine.


  I kiss Sydney deeply and feel the heat scorch my soul. I feel like a coward in making the deal with the devil and am using her to drive the pain away.

  She arches toward me and I lose my mind. I rip her clothes from her body with an urgency that surprises me. She pushes mine from me with an equal desire and my heart races as the blood rushes like a crazy river bursting its banks. I hear her moan and gasp as I take her hardened nipple between my teeth and bite hard. I’m like an animal out of control and I want her so badly it hurts.

  She grips my hair and holds my mouth to her breast, trembling under my touch and moaning sexily. I push her down on the couch and she wraps her legs around my waist as she tries to draw me inside. Grinning, I hold her wrists in one hand and pull her arms above her head, exposing her body to me. I feel myself roar inside like the dominant male I am around her. Then I punish her mouth with mine, biting, probing and tasting the little piece of heaven in my mouth.

  She groans with a longing that matches my own and I position my body above hers ready to conquer and claim it as mine. Sydney is my wife, my woman, and my only love. I want to leave my mark on her heart and a thousand reasons why I should pull away crowd my mind, shouting at me to stop. I am so close to giving in to what I want to do, what I need to do and yet what I cannot do. Not if I want her to stay—willingly, anyway.

  So, with a groan of frustration, I pull away and reach for my jeans. In one angry move, I rip the protection from its packet and sheath my throbbing dick. Then I plunge into the depths of happiness and feel her clench around me. She holds me in place, claiming, owning and possessing every part of me. Her eyes open and she looks at me with the eyes of a woman who has got me by the balls. She groans, “Fuck me, Tyler, make it so hard I see stars. Make your mark so I always feel you’ve been there. I want all of you.”