Disillusioned Billionaire

by Jill Snow

  “What babe? Oh, how sweet, you’re jealous. Don’t be. These guys are purely business contacts. No romance. You’re the only one for me, Adam.”

  Adam let her kiss him but turned to get a drink before it got serious. His skin itched every time she touched him. Her perfume was so intense, his nose was burning. He wandered outside and sat by the pool looking at the mountains in the background. Where was Ashley now? Did she know about her dad’s place? The least he could do for her was to secure her family home. He’d gotten his lawyer to come up with some story of a guy needing to buy part of his family history. Ashley telling him about the gold strikes had given him the idea. He hoped he had reduced the burden on her a little. Sometimes having plenty of money was a good thing. Only instead of handing over a check, he wished he could have been there in person. To tell her what he’d done. Maybe then she would see he wasn’t the monster she thought he was. On second thought, she’d probably have torn up the check and preferred to starve rather than accept his help.

  “Adam, let’s get out of here. Cain told me there’s a better party over at his friend's place. Come on. They’re giving us a lift.”

  Adam discretely switched on the location app on his cell. Maybe his luck was holding and this was the lead Anderson had been looking for. He certainly hoped so. The thought of having to go home with Camilla made him want to jump into the pool and not because he had to cool off.

  Chapter 48

  The new party was altogether a much bigger event. He recognized plenty of faces and had to deal with teasing, some of it good-natured, over his recent stay at the ranch. A couple of people seemed a bit over interested in the place, asking him if he knew Bill. The girls wanted to know if all the cowboys on the ranch looked like him. He grinned saying yes, they should book a trip soon on one of the dude ranches. He doubted they would last more than a couple of hours as their nails broke or their fake tans ran off due to the sweaty work involved. Every woman he met made him think of Ashley. She was the total opposite of these women and he loved her for it.

  He loved her. As the words hit his head, he realized what his subconscious had been trying to tell him. He didn’t want to be part of this world anymore. It was meaningless to him. He wanted to work on the ranch side by side with Ashley. He wanted people like Mack and Charity in his life. Loretta too. And Gracie, he could give her a decent home. He checked his cell, still no messages from anyone, least of all Anderson. How much longer would this operation take?

  “You okay babe? You keep checking your phone.” Camilla eyed him suspiciously.

  “I’m fine.”

  “But what’s with the cell watching?”

  “You’re going to ruin the surprise,” he said, managing a smile.

  “What type of surprise?” Her eyes glittered, reminding him of diamonds: cold and rock hard.

  “Look, love, I wanted it to be romantic. I arranged for a box to be delivered to you. I was just checking where it was.”

  “A box?” The cold look had slightly warmed up now.

  “Yes, a small box with the name of your favorite jeweler on the cover. I can’t believe you ruined the surprise.”

  “Adam, you are so good to me. Is it earrings? Or that diamond necklace I was admiring on our last trip? Go on tell me.” She pouted in what she must have thought was an attractive way. “It’s not a ring, is it? Cause it’s a bit early for that don’t you think?”

  He could have laughed at the less than enthusiastic reaction to getting an engagement ring. She looked terrified.

  “You still have your ring from before, don’t you?” He’d wondered where that had gone. Not that he would use it again, but it had cost over a hundred grand. Money that could be used to help David and Gracie’s school.

  “Yeah, it’s at home. Didn’t like to wear it as it reminded me too much of you. It broke my heart when you left me.”

  Left her? Could she hear herself? He was tempted to strangle her for a second, but the ultimate revenge would be when the cops arrived and he’d see her escorted out in handcuffs.

  “It’s a bracelet. You’ll love it.”

  “Oh honey, how good you are. Will it be here soon?”

  Chapter 49

  “Yes. I hope so.” How much longer would it take for the cops to come and bust up the party?

  Andersen had told him he would be needed for less than twenty-four hours but it felt like months. The cops had to prove Camilla was at the center of the ring. Then they could lean on her. She was sure to give up the others. Adam had believed himself in love with Camilla but, even at his most loved up state, he would never have listed loyalty as one of her assets.

  Relieved he finally heard police sirens. The building was surrounded. They were ordered to come out with their hands on top of their heads. He glanced out the window, surprised to find what appeared to be swat teams all over the place. He couldn’t see Andersen, he must be outside.

  He did exactly what they said. Glancing up he caught Camilla’s eye. Suspicion was written all over her face. He stared back at her, not giving a hint of what he was feeling. Who said Declan was the only actor in their family?

  It didn’t take long to cuff everyone and one by one they were loaded into the waiting police cars. The station would be busy processing everyone. It looked like it was going to be a long night. He saw Camilla try to fight back with the officer cuffing her, she only succeeded in landing on the ground with a female officer holding a gun to her head. They weren’t in the mood to play nice. He turned his head away, he would be a saint if the picture of his ex-girlfriend at the mercy of the police didn’t make him smile.

  Chapter 50

  After eighteen or so exhausting hours, Adam was finally back in his own pad. He opened the door to find Steven waiting inside. He wasn’t unduly surprised. Steven wouldn’t just abandon him. He didn’t ask how he had gotten in. Some skills the Green Berets learned were valuable in civilian life but best not advertised.

  “You okay?” Steven asked. “Andersen called, suggested I wait for you here. I came as soon as I could.”

  “Thanks. I’m good. Apart from being tired and needing a cup of Joe. That stuff they serve down at the station would strip paint from the walls.”

  Steven made the coffee while Adam took a quick shower and changed.

  “So when did you get back with the ice queen?”

  “We haven’t. It was part of the cover. That was a worse nightmare than the drugs.”

  “Thank goodness for that. I didn’t want to tell Carrie, Camilla was back on the invitation list.”

  “Invitation list? But you guys got married ages ago.”

  “Yep.”

  Adam stared at his friend who stared back, waiting for the penny to drop.

  “You’re having a kid?”

  “Well, technically Carrie is, but yeah. She was planning the baby shower and you’re on the list. Camilla wasn’t. For obvious reasons.”

  “Congrats man, that’s great. I’d love to be a dad.”

  “You need to find a decent woman first. Sorry Adam, but your taste in girls sucks. Camilla was the worst in a long string of awful.”

  “I know. Can’t believe I was going to marry her. Ma went nuts.”

  “Speaking of your ma, does she know yet you are innocent?”

  Shaking his head, Adam filled Steven in on what Anderson had set up.

  “Cool. So when does she go down?”

  “Don’t know. She wasn’t quite the head of the ring, but she soon squealed on the guys ahead of her. One owns the Double R—that ranch I was sent to. The other I never heard of, but Anderson knows of him. Anderson reckons the catch will be enough to get him some sort of medal or recognition. I think he should retire, but he wasn’t keen on that idea.”

  “Anderson retire? I think he’ll still be fighting bad guys when they carry him out of a church in a box.” Steven scratched his stubble. “So when can you tell everyone you’re innocent?”

  “I don’t know. After the trial, I guess.
I’m not in a hurry. Far too many people were keen to believe I was dirt. Without even asking for my side of the story.”

  “Well man, what do you expect? It kind of goes with your line of work. You wouldn’t be the first rock star to be involved with drugs.”

  “But I wasn’t. My brothers all had me down as guilty. Even though they knew I only took pain killers for my back. The only one who believed me was Declan.”

  “Declan is cool. Your brothers made a mistake, don’t be too hard on them. And your parents, well, they live in a different era in another country. Give them some space too.”

  “How come you’re so wise?” Adam asked.

  “Comes with being a father to be, I guess.” Steven laughed. “You wanna grab some food? I’m starving.”

  “Can you get some take out? I want to make a few calls.”

  Once Steven had left, Adam pulled out his cell. Mack had given him Ashley’s number. He rang her hoping she would pick up, but she didn’t. He left a message.

  “Hey, it’s me. I really need to see you. Will you meet me up at the river at the Double R on Sunday? I’ll be there waiting.”

  He hung up, staring at his phone for a while wondering if she would call back. But it never rang.

  Chapter 51

  Ashley stared at her cell as if it were about to talk to her. She hadn’t called him back but had listened to his message over and over again. Would she meet him? She didn’t know what he wanted. It had been nearly a week since he called. She had googled him since he left and found recent pictures of him with Camilla. For an ex-girlfriend, they looked surprisingly close. Ashley had turned off all access to the mobile sites after seeing those first photos. They were too painful.

  Lost in her thoughts, she didn’t see Gracie until the child was standing beside her.

  “You look sad Ashley, are you okay?”

  “I’m fine Gracie. Just tired.”

  “Want my blanky? It helps me sleep.”

  She had to choke back the lump in her throat as the young girl offered to lend Ashley her most precious possession. She bent down and hugged Gracie close.

  “No, but thank you, Gracie, for being so kind and nice to me.”

  “Everyone should be nice. Especially to you. When is Adam coming to visit? I like him. He was kind.”

  “I don’t know sweetheart. Now, why don’t we get you down to the dining hall? It’s Saturday night. That means take-out pizza.”

  “I love pizza. Can I have pineapple and mushrooms with olives?”

  “You can have whatever you want. And ice-cream for dessert. My treat.”

  “Thanks, Ashley. I’m so glad we all moved here. I love it.” Gracie’s eyes turned sideways.

  “What Gracie? Is there something wrong?”

  “I do like it, but when I prayed and asked God for a new home, I didn’t mean like this one. I meant like a real one. With a real mom and dad. You know?”

  “I do Gracie, and someday that might happen. Let’s go get some pizza now okay?”

  “What are you going to have? Want to share mine?”

  “Love you Gracie, but pineapple and olives are not meant to be combined on a pizza. There should be a rule against fruit on a pizza.”

  “You don’t know what you’re missing. Sometimes rules are silly.”

  Ashley held the girl's hand as they wandered out to find the others. What a lovely child she was. Despite being lonely, she always went out of her way to brighten up someone else’s day. If only the rest of the world followed the example set by a five-year-old.

  Chapter 52

  Sunday morning found Adam sitting by the river staring at the fool’s gold. Every so often he put his hand in and took out some pieces. He looked at them for a few seconds before putting them back. He did everything he could to distract himself from the fact she was late. Was she even going to show? She hadn’t called him back. He’d checked his cell numerous times. By now the news had broken of Camilla’s arrest. Anderson had called to the Double R to tell Mack, Loretta and the rest of the workers about their boss being implicated.

  He’d called in to see Mack and Charity on his way up here. Mack was hiding it well, but it was obvious the strain of worrying about his future was getting to him. Charity was visibly upset, her lovely brown eyes red from crying. He’d handed her the letter and check not wanting to give Mack the chance to refuse.

  “Take it, please. Don’t open it till I’m gone. I wanted to tell you in person that the Double R has a new owner. Actually, two of them. My brother Declan has agreed to invest in the project. But neither of us know anything about the cattle industry. So we need someone knowledgeable to manage the operation and I can’t think of anyone better. I’ll leave you two to discuss that letter and what it involves.”

  He’d left before she opened it but heard her shrieks and cries from the door. He sprinted to his car to get away before Mack had a chance to say anything. He knew, or at least he hoped, with time Charity would persuade her husband to accept his gift. He wanted them to own their own piece of the Double R so they were invested from the start. That way they could continue to reap the profits from Mack’s hard work. He also wanted to find a way to get Charity back on a horse. From the little investigating he had done, it may be possible with money and a positive attitude. He could provide the money and Charity would provide the rest.

  The Double R had a role to play, not least in helping those kids Mack wanted to help most. The ones who had fallen by the wayside and needed some hard work, exercise and someone to care about them to show them back to the right side of living.

  He drove as close to the river as possible before parking and making the rest of the way on foot.

  Chapter 53

  Adam picked up a few pebbles and threw them into the river, creating ripples as he went. He smelled the coconut shampoo before he turned. She was standing watching him, a smile on her face but her eyes full of wariness.

  “Is that the best you can do?” she asked.

  “Hi. Thanks for coming. Want to sit?” He laid his jacket on the ground so she could sit down without getting wet.

  “You called.”

  “Yeah, I did. I wasn’t sure if you would come. I wanted to talk. To explain.”

  “What? The fact you got back with your girlfriend hours after leaving here without saying goodbye?”

  Adam screwed his eyes shut, trying to keep calm. He had one chance to explain things. If he screwed it up, she would walk out of his life forever.

  “Yeah about that. I know it looks bad but…”

  “You don’t have to explain to me. It’s not like we had an understanding or anything.”

  “Look, can you please sit down and be quiet? I need to tell you this and I need you to listen. Forget what you think you know and just hear me out, okay?”

  She sat.

  “I got back with Camilla and she posted those shots of us online as a couple. That is true but it’s not how it looked. I was asked to do it by the police. They suspected, actually they had quite damming proof, that she was involved in a big smuggling ring. I didn’t want to do it, but they needed my help.”

  “Looked that way.”

  Part of him was thrilled at the jealous tone in her voice but the other part of him was pissed. Why did people keep writing him off?

  “I thought you were going to listen. The cops asked I play the role of a happy boyfriend, so I did. We went to a party and then onto another one. There we met the main players in her little ring. The ones that were dealing drugs like candy to school kids. The cops had their evidence. They were able to come in and arrest not only Camilla but a lot of the major players. Once they had them behind bars, the smugglers started singing like canaries. They have enough evidence now to put them away for years, including the owner of the Double R.”

  Ashley turned white in front of him. He thought she might pass out.

  “Are you okay?” he asked.

  “What about Mack, Charity, and Loretta? They need the Double
R. It’s their home.”

  “I think they’ll be fine but you can talk to them later. What about us, Ashley?”

  Chapter 54

  “Us? There is no us, there never was.” She didn’t look up from the ground. He leaned forward and gently pushed her chin up so she had to look at him.

  “I don’t believe that. I think you care about me, and I know I love you.”

  “Love me? You don’t know me.”

  “Yes, I do. I know enough to know I was chasing after fool’s gold when you’re the real deal. I love you Ashley Baker, and I want to spend the rest of my life showing you just how much.”

  “But…well…I…”

  “Can’t put a sentence together?”

  She laughed. Then she looked into his eyes and stopped. Her eyes filled up with tears. Oh, this wasn’t going well, not at all.

  “Adam, I like you. A lot. But I can’t get past your drug issues. I can’t do that. Not after Kayleigh.”

  “Drug issues? I don’t have any. That was a cover for the whole case. The cops had to prosecute me to show they were doing something. But they knew all along I was innocent.”

  “But you said you were guilty. At the table that morning.”

  “Oh, the coke.”

  “Yes, Adam the coke. The small amount of coke.”

  “That was Camilla’s. I told a friend, Steven, he’s an ex-Green Beret, that I suspected my girlfriend was using my jet to smuggle drugs. He called in a favor with a cop he knows on the drug squad. His name is Anderson. Anyway, they arrested me at the airport and found a small amount of coke in my luggage, courtesy of Camilla. She’d planted it there. I guess she got suspicious of me asking her about her luggage and stuff.”

  “So you planned this all along?”

  “Well, not exactly. At one time I did believe Camilla was the one. Ashley, I wanted to settle down and have a real life. A family. I was sick of the whole gigging around the world trip. I believed Camilla loved me and together we could be happy.”