ROMANCE: Billion Dollar Question (BWWM Billionaire Bad Boy Romance) (African American Alpha Mail Order Bride New Adult)

by Aisha Brooks

  “Sofie, I'm going to make us some food, okay?” John told me and then touched my cheek quietly for a moment, making me feel like maybe what I'd felt between us real. “There are two bedrooms, pick the one you want and put your stuff in it. I have a special phone I'll use to contact your father, I'll let him know we arrived safely, and then we can talk. Just me and you, okay?”

  I nodded and then went to grab my bags and pick a room realizing that nothing was as it seemed. I wanted answers but I wasn't sure exactly what they were. And I guess the better question was did I really want the answers. Was the truth always better? Was being in the dark sometimes easier? Shaking my head, I realized that I would just have to trust my gut and try not to overthink it, but it was hard.

  Setting my bags on the first bedroom I found, I smelled cooked meat. It didn't smell horrible, and my stomach was grumbling. Heading back out to the tiny kitchen, I found John flipping hamburgers over in a pan.

  “We had food here?” I tried to figure it out since we didn't stop by a store on our way here.

  “This is a safe house that I've used in the past. I keep it well stocked in case of emergencies,” John told me as he scooped the food out onto two glass plates and set them on the small wooden table in the kitchen.

  I wasn't dumb, and so when I sat down and ate my food, I picked at it. I wanted to know why he had safe houses set up. Watching him eat his food fast, as soon as he was done I pounced.

  “So, why would you need a safe house?” I asked him, and then took a bite of my food, watching him as I chewed.

  “Work, sometimes when protecting assets, they require safekeeping,” he told me, his tone was funny and I almost smiled when I realized that I was starting to pick up on his subtle cues.

  “Asset?” I asked him and started to laugh until I realized he wasn't kidding. “What do you mean asset?”

  “How about we talk over a glass of wine later, let's just finish dinner and let me do the dishes, you can unpack, I need to make a couple more phone calls first, then we'll get settled in and have a conversation about everything,” John told me, his gaze was shuttered and I couldn't read him.

  I admit I was disturbed by him keeping secrets and while my gut told me I could trust him, I still felt like he had something he needed to tell me or was hiding from me that I should know.

  “Fine, I have something else we need to discuss too,” I told him and put the last few bites of meat into my mouth.

  “What would that be, princess?” he asked me grinning at me when I glared at him. He's lucky I didn't kick him under the table, he seriously was taunting me with his princess comments and one of these days... Refocusing my attention, I tried to ignore his comments.

  “I want you to help me disappear. I cannot go back to my father. I need a fresh start; I cannot be involved in this. Hiding in a cabin in the woods is not good enough for me, I want to really live my life and as long as I'm associated with my father, or people know who I am, I can't.” I sighed and put my fork down. I wasn't sure what it would take to convince him to listen to me, but I'd do whatever it took.

  “That's part of the conversation we can have after my phone calls, just be patient with me Sofie.” John took my plate and did the dishes, shooing me away when I tried to help. I wasn't sure if I was amused at his not wanting my help, or irritated that he was implying I was useless. I wasn't useless; I just needed to learn how to take care of myself.

  I went and took a quick shower to distract myself and put a towel around my hair, grabbing a bathrobe out of my bags, I put it on, not bothering to get dressed right now. I found the fuzzy pink bunny slippers I'd slipped in my travel bag and put those on my feet. The cabin had hardwood floors and it was freezing my little toes off.

  Going back to the living room, I saw John outside on the small porch of the cabin and I went to go outside and hesitated when I heard him on the phone. I didn't mean to intrude or listen into his conversation, but he didn't exactly try to hide it from me either.

  I heard snippets of the conversation, and now I was more confused than ever. He was talking about having the asset contained, and safe, and he mentioned my father's name and that he almost had enough details to take him everyone down.

  Feeling protective of my father, I grabbed a statue sitting on the end table next to the lamp for self protection and waited for him to come back inside. If he lied to me, I planned on whacking him with it and taking his car and going home. Assuming I could find my way home. His didn't have a built in GPS and since he made me ditch my phone, I was in trouble without GPS.

  Chapter 4: The Truth

  John walked in and I ambushed him. I wanted some answers, and he was going to give them to me. Or else.

  “What the hell is going on, who are you, really?” I asked him, raising my voice, realizing I sounded borderline hysterical and tried to take a deep breath. “Are you going to hurt me? Sell me for ransom? What?”

  “No, my job is to keep you safe,” John told me quietly, and I glared at him. He didn't seem to be too distressed by my outburst and that had me almost more worried than an angry or defensive response would have elicited.

  “Then tell me the truth, now, or I swear to god I will knock you out and go back to my father, risk or no risk,” I blustered, hoping he'd take my threat seriously and when he laughed at me, I did it. I didn't mean too but I just reacted. I kicked him in the shins with my bunny slippers. Fuck, that hurt me more than it did him. My poor toes.

  “Bunny slippers? Seriously?” John started to howl in laughter as I held my injured toes and glared at him. Realizing I still had the small metal statue in my head I swung it at him and he grabbed my wrist almost painfully hard and made me let go of it. It clattered to the wooden floor with a clang.

  We grappled for a few minutes and the next thing I knew he had my back against his chest with my arms across my chest. I tried to stomp on his toes, but my bunny slippers were ineffective against his thick leather military style boots.

  “Sofie, if you stop fighting, I'll talk to you about everything, but you need to calm down so I know you can hear me,” John told me, but I wasn't ready to listen. I continued to struggle against him, wanting to be free, fighting against him until I had nothing left. No energy, no anger, I was empty.

  Finally he let me go and I turned to look at him. I didn't know if I wanted to laugh or cry. I was breathing hard and finally flopped over on the couch and just sat there, placing my hands over my face for a moment. I shook my head back and forth and then looked up at him. I was a little disbelieving at my own behavior, so I could only imagine what he was thinking.

  “Are you ready to talk?” John asked me and then settled next to me on the couch, he placed a hand on my knee and I hissed a breath out. I could feel the warmth of his hand on my knee. I was surprised he'd even talk to me after that little display. I guess I wasn't very scary.

  “I guess I'm listening. Talk,” I crossed my arms and leaned back, not bothering to fix my bathrobe when it fell open showing off some of my cleavage. I noticed where his eyes dropped and I smirked. I might not be stronger than him when we wrestled, but I still could get the upper hand just by showing a couple inches of flesh. Ha!

  “Are you serious about wanting to start over, away from your family?” He asked me gently. “I can make it happen for you, but I need to know how seriously you want that. What you would sacrifice to get out.”

  “Deadly, I want out. Anything, I'll walk away and never look back. I just want a chance to live a normal life, be a normal person,” I told him and leaned forward, knowing that my entire breasts would almost be visible to his eyes. Watching him gulp I decided I liked this game and encouraged him to keep talking, though his eyes were now glued to my chest.

  “I'm not a hit man. I'm not part of a mob, and I don't work for a gun for hire company,” John told me, watching me carefully.

  “So what exactly are you?” I asked him curiously, he had my attention now. If he wasn't a hit man, or a hired goon, I couldn't
understand who he really was, I was very confused, and my father didn't work with anyone who wasn't.

  “I'm FBI; I'm here on a secret ops mission to get enough data to take down your father and any gang activity in the area. Your father knew when there was a hit on your life the only chance there was to save you was to get us involved, believe it or not, he asked us and we agreed because it's the first time he's ever cooperated or let us have access to his life. Your father agreed to turn himself in, in return for your safety. I couldn't tell you because I wasn't sure whose side you were on, and I had to figure out where your loyalties lie,” John told me and then reached out to grab my hand.

  “You're telling me that you work for the government, as a good guy, but you're here babysitting me to put my father in jail? And my father asked you too?” I gasped and jumped off the couch and started to pace. I wasn't sure if I was proud of my father for doing the right thing, or angry at him for not telling me the truth.

  “Why didn't you tell me the truth from the get go?” I asked him accusingly. I was angry and he was the only person standing close enough for me to lash out at.

  “Would you have believed me? And do you think it would have made you more or less cooperative than you've been with every other person assigned to help you?” John asked me, raising a brow at me with a look on his face that was a mix between sarcasm and disbelief that I was even asking the question.

  “Okay, probably not, but why the secrets? I mean, I get that in this lifestyle everyone's an enemy. But I'm his daughter, didn't he trust me?” I asked and felt sad. He apparently was trying to give me my life and my freedom but didn't trust me enough to tell me. That hurt.

  “The less you knew, the more likely our plan would succeed to draw them out,” John told me quietly.

  “Wait, are you telling me I was the bait?” I asked, feeling completely horrified at the idea that the two of them would use me to nail the other bad guys.

  John shrugged, “Originally that was sort of our plan, but then when the car was rigged, I realized that there was no way I would have time to check everything constantly at every moment to keep you safe. So here we are. I was on the phone with my bosses, making arrangements to get your money out of your accounts, and into a private account under your new identity. Your father is also putting enough money into it too, to ensure you're provided for. He wanted to make sure you'd have enough to have a good start if I got you away.”

  “So the entire plan was for me to start over once you took down all the bad guys, including my father? When did you two plan to tell me the truth?” Quietly, I stopped pacing and stood in front of him and realized that again, I was manipulated by my father. I didn't know whether to be grateful that he at least heard my desires to be free, or angry that no one thought I needed to know the truth when my life was in danger.

  “Sofie, you can go anywhere, be anything, but I have to keep you safe until we get all the information we need. An undercover officer who looks like you will be taking your place until we can nail them, once it happens, we'll make the arrests, and you'll be free,” John told me, and reached out to grab my hand. “That's what you wanted, isn't it?”

  “Yes, I did, but the reality and way you are trying to explain it makes me feel like a traitor to my father,” I whispered, looking at his fingers, his eyes were still on my chest and I decided to sit back down on the couch beside him.

  “You're not a traitor, you deserve better. He loves you and you finally got through to him, he doesn't want to see you dead like your mother. Have a little faith in your father and try to honor his desire to do the right thing.” John's mouth moved, and I heard the words come out, and I even understood them, but I'd already moved on.

  The situation sucked and I didn't want to talk about it anymore, instead I wanted him to kiss me. It had such promise earlier and I still desired him. If this was the only time I was going to get a chance to be intimate with him, I didn't want to go to a new life without experiencing certain things.

  That included being with John, sexually. The chemistry that had been brewing between us since the moment we met was only growing. The more time we spent together, the more I realized I couldn't walk away from him without getting what I wanted from him.

  “I cannot believe you work for the government, you stand for everything my father has always hated,” I said shock sinking in at everything he'd just shared with me. The better question was what I was going to do with this knowledge, if anything.

  “Your father is giving up everything for you, he knows he's most likely going to jail for past crimes, he may get a reduced sentence for helping me, but he's really trading his freedom in exchange for the promise of your safety and the start of a new life for you,” John told me and leaned forward to place his hand on my cheek. “Don't throw away his sacrifice on a whim. Think about what he's offering; let us take care of you. Let me take care of you. We can figure this out together. They've even told me I can go with you to make sure you adapt and get settled in your new life for a while before leaving you on your own.”

  “What if I ended up wanting you to stay?” I realized that there was a good chance the longer I spent around John; the more my heart would get involved. Right now, I was just in lust with him. The kind where you wanted it bad, but if it was gone, you'd just eat chocolate and be okay.

  But if I spent a lot of time with him, day in and day out, I'd grow to want to him, to wish he was around, to desire him. To love him. He's the kind of man you love. He's the kind that you could picture a white picket fence with, babies. The works. Even if he was going to walk away in the end, I wanted to seduce him. I want to be with him, and I've made up my mind.

  I wondered where would we end up once we got there? Would he just walk away from me and never look back? Or would he give us a real chance. I wasn't sure. He was a hard man to read and he was sending me mixed signals constantly.

  I knew he wanted me, the way he stared at my half-naked breasts showed me that if I pushed him, I could probably seduce him right here on this couch. But was one night of passion enough for me? Or did I want more?

  Looking into his eyes, I debated and then leaned forward and kissed him. I'm sure I surprised him, he didn't look like he was expecting that reaction out of me, but I didn't stop. I kissed him passionately, leading until he took over and groaned into my mouth, his hands coming up to hold my head and take charge of the kiss.

  Normally, I would have been irritated with a man not letting me lead, after everyone else telling me what to do my whole life; I wanted to be in control. But with John, it felt right. I was okay following his lead, at least when it came to sex.

  Chapter 5: Falling For The Agent

  I was getting really frustrated with things interrupting us. Whether it was John putting a stop to our kisses, or the phone ringing. This time, I had just gone to reach for his shirt to take it off him when the phone rang. He had to take it, it was his boss and he stepped outside to answer it.

  I sat there poking at my bunny slippers and realizing that in some ways, I had some child-like interests. I was shaped like a woman, but being isolated and not allowed to really live my life left me in a position where I was emotionally stunted in some ways. I could see why John might feel like he was taking advantage of me, and I respected that about him.

  That doesn't mean I agreed with it and it didn't change the fact I was going to seduce him whether he liked it or not. Finding out he was a good guy, and had the ability to get me free of this life didn't hurt. I was still mad at my father for lying to me, but hearing that he was trying to do the right thing by me went a long ways for having me forgive him for the deception.

  “They made another hit on the target,” John told me as he walked inside. “The agent is alive, and they have suspects. They'll be getting information from them and once we get enough to make arrests, your father will give all the details on his business, and every person associated with him and any of the other families he knows about. It will be over soon and I ca
n help you be free.”

  “I guess,” I told him, a little surprised that it happened so quickly.

  “Do you know where you want to go?” He seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say and I thought about it for a minute.

  “Ireland.” I told him and grinned.

  “Why Ireland?” He asked me looking surprised at my answer.

  I stood up and walked over to him, placing my hand on his chest and fingering one of his buttons before answering him.

  “Because making love surrounded by all the green hills and sheep sounds romantic. I know it is cold and rains a lot, but my accent won't stand out as much there, and I can live a normal life. Have a couple dogs, maybe a cat, a couple of kids down the road, and a white picket fence,” I told him and then frowned. What would I do for work?

  He must have seen my panicked expression and put his hand to my face, leaning down he kissed me this time, initiating, distracting me. Moaning I pressed myself against him, glad that he wasn't pushing me away anymore.