Marry Me For Money: A Billionaire Fake Fiance Novel

by Ali Parker

  “Bottom drawer of the nightstand.” He kissed the back of my neck. “Bend over good for me when you get it out?”

  I laughed, bumped him with my butt and moved away. I wanted the ring back where it belonged – on my finger. “On I will. Come watch the show.”

  “Don’t have to ask me twice.” His voice was filled with excitement.

  My heart fluttered. This was what love was all about.

  Chapter 57

  Terran

  I was a new man as I walked down the hall toward my office. I had Hailey, and I would keep my company. Life was good.

  “Good morning, Lena,” I said in a cheery voice.

  She looked up at me, weariness in her eyes. “Uh, good morning. Are you here to stay or are you passing through?”

  I grinned. “I’m here to stay.”

  She relaxed her shoulders. “Thank god. You have a lot of catching up to do.”

  I nodded my head. “I know, I know. I’m ready.”

  “I’ve made a list of appointments that are urgent and need to be done today. I’ll get on the phone and start calling the others that have been rescheduled.”

  “Thank you.”

  “One more thing,” she said in a voice full of dread.

  I stopped moving and looked at her. “What?”

  “That man is here.”

  “That man? Can you be more specific?”

  “The one you had trespassed from the building. He is now sitting in your office,” she whispered.

  I groaned. “Great. Thanks.”

  “I’m sorry. I called security, but they said their hands were tied.”

  “Of course, they are.”

  I walked to my office pushing the door open and glared at Lance who was sitting on my couch. “What do you want? What part of you aren’t allowed here don’t you get?”

  He gave a smug smile. “You don’t technically own the building. It was easy to confuse the security guys. You can’t forbid me from entering. And in case you’ve forgotten, we share the same last name.” He winked.

  “How could I ever forget?” I said dryly.

  He preened on the couch. “Are you ready to negotiate new terms? I’m willing to give you one last shot at saving your company and your money—a portion of it at least.”

  “Nope,” I said, taking a seat behind my desk.

  He was acting like he was a king. Actually, trying to look down his nose at me as if he had won some grand reward.

  “You’re going to lose everything,” he said gleefully.

  “I doubt it. I’m not negotiating with you. There’s nothing to negotiate.”

  “That’s too bad. The investigation is going to prove you are lying, and when it does, I’m going to sit back and laugh. You are going to cry and scream like the spoiled brat you are,” he seethed.

  I shrugged a shoulder. “You can do whatever you please. I’m not worried about the investigation.”

  “I hope you don’t think you are going to get out of the interviews. The guy my lawyer hired used to be an interrogator for the FBI. He can see a lie a mile away,” he sneered.

  “I wouldn’t think about trying to get out of the interviews. I have them on my calendar for Friday,” I said in a pleasant tone as if we were discussing a business lunch.

  His face fell for a split second before he regained that arrogant demeanor. “I’m going to ask that the interviews be recorded. I want to watch you squirm as you try to lie to a professional. There’s no way he’s going to let you get away with what you’re trying to pull.”

  “And what is that exactly? A marriage to the woman I love? Is that what you hope to prevent?”

  He shook his head. “Keep telling yourself that. Maybe you’ll believe it enough that you’ll almost be able to fool the investigator. Doubtful, but I’m going to enjoy watching you try.”

  “Whatever, Lance. My fiancée and I have already agreed to the interviews. We have nothing to hide. We’re both ready to answer any questions he might have. There’s nothing for them to find.”

  “Liar!” he shouted, spittle at the corners of his mouth.

  “Lance, you’re a sad, despicable man. I cannot believe we are related. Are you sure you’re truly my father’s brother? How could you end up turning out to be such a world-class loser while he was a successful man from the very beginning? You were always trying to one-up him. You’ve always been jealous of him. You will never be even half the man my father was,” I said in a serious tone, not letting him anger me. I wouldn’t give him the satisfaction.

  His face was turning red as he slid forward to the edge of the couch, glaring at me. “I’m going to take you down. I’m going to make sure you have nothing left. When I’m finished with you, you’ll wish you’d been far nicer to me.”

  I laughed. “I doubt that. I don’t see myself ever regretting the way I’ve treated you. The only thing I do regret is assuming you were a good guy going through a hard time. I regret telling my dad to help you out, one more time. I regret telling him he did the wrong thing by cutting you off. As it turns out, he was wiser than me. He knew you far better than I did and knew you would never stop coming to him with your hand out and then turning around and treating him like crap as soon as you got what you wanted. You disgust me, Lance. You really do.”

  The man looked apoplectic. His face was red, his teeth bared, and his hands fisted at his sides. “I’ve hated you since the day you were born. You were always a sniveling, spoiled brat, coddled by your mother. Your father hated the way she babied you. He used to tell me how he wanted to make you into a real man. Then your poor, dear mommy died and left you all alone with your big mean daddy, except he turned into a pussy as well. He didn’t have the balls to tell you no. He kowtowed to everything you asked for.”

  I shrugged a shoulder. “I don’t see it like that at all. My father did the best he could raising me as a single parent. I don’t know, Lance. Look at the two of us. Who turned out better?” I said with a smirk.

  He jumped to his feet, and for a fleeting second, I thought he would drop of a heart attack. He quickly regained his composure. “Say what you will, you’ll be sorry you ever spoke to me this way.”

  “What is it you think you are owed?”

  “Everything! I was always the second-best brother. He’s gone. I deserve to be the top dog now.”

  “It doesn’t work that way, Lance. My dad was smart and driven, and he knew how to talk to people, all qualities you lack.”

  He furiously shook his head. “I’ve changed. I’m ready to take over the helm. It’s my turn to shine.”

  “Then go start your own company. No one is stopping you.”

  “I can’t!” he said, waving his arms around.

  I shrugged. “I guess you can’t. You can’t because you don’t have the drive. You are going to get exactly what my father felt you deserved.”

  “What?” he asked, suddenly intrigued.

  I nodded my head, smiling with evil malice. “Nothing. Absolutely zip. He left you nothing because that is exactly what you deserve.”

  He looked as if I had slapped him. “How dare you.”

  “Ya, ya, ya, I dared. Now, if there’s nothing else you need to say, please see yourself out and this time, stay out. I will file a harassment report with the police. Then I will get a restraining order. Do yourself a favor and crawl back into the hole you climbed out of.”

  I felt a twinge of guilt at being so mean, but the man had always gone out of his way to make my parents’ lives hell when they were alive, and now he was trying to do it to me. I suspected he was a sociopath. I often wondered if he killed people for fun. The man wasn’t right in the head. I had no idea why he turned out the way he did, but I was tired of dealing with him.

  “You sure are brave talking to me like this, but we’ll see who’s laughing last.”

  I shook my head and turned on my computer. “I already know who’s going to be laughing, Lance, and it isn’t going to be you.”

  I looke
d at him one last time, noticed he looked a lot less cocky than he had when he walked through the door. Good. I wanted him to spend this week worrying whether what I said was true. I wanted him to be on edge. He had nothing to gain from any of this, except to see me fail.

  I focused on my computer screen, ignoring him until he got the point and stormed out of the office, slamming my door as he left. I grinned. I was very confident I would pass the interview with flying colors. Hailey and I had spent the entire weekend in bed, getting to know each other better. There was nothing about her I didn’t know and vice versa. I hated to be cheesy, but I knew she was my soulmate. She had been put on the planet for me. I knew that in my very soul.

  I heard a soft knock and looked up to see Lena at my door. “Is everything okay?”

  I smiled. “It couldn’t be any better.”

  “Should I tell security to keep him out of here, no matter what his lawyer says?”

  I shrugged a shoulder. “I don’t care. I don’t think he’s going to be coming back.”

  “I hope not. That guy is creepy. He always makes me want to try out all my training. All of those self-defense classes I have taken have always said to listen to your gut and don’t be afraid to be thought of as a bitch. That guy sets off my radar. I might just pepper spray his ass the next time he comes barging in here,” she said in a firm tone.

  I burst into laughter. “Lena, you go right ahead. I will back you up if he tries to say he didn’t deserve it.”

  She gave me a funny look. “You’re different. I guess that time off did you some good.”

  I nodded my head. “It did, and I plan on working a lot less. I’ll be delegating a lot more to Brian and taking advantage of the technology we have available to telecommunicate. My fiancée is going to be very busy the next few months, and I want to make sure my schedule allows me to spend as much time with her as I can.”

  She was smiling like an idiot. “That is the sweetest thing. You’re going to make me cry. I’ll start talking with Brian’s secretary and coordinating schedules. You just let me know which appointments are a priority and which ones I can take off your schedule.”

  “Thank you, Lena. I’ll put a list together. Speaking of, can you block out about two hours with Brian this week or early next week, so we can start talking about this transition.”

  “Absolutely!”

  She walked out, gently closing my door behind her. I knew she was thrilled about the shift in job duties. It would take a lot off her plate as well. I thought about the upcoming change to being a major shareholder in the company. I wanted to change some things. I wanted to show my employees how much I appreciated them.

  Hailey had made me see life in a different way. Everything looked clearer, and I wanted to be a man Hailey would be proud to call hers. I smiled, thinking I had become a little soft. I was a sap. A happy sap.

  Chapter 58

  Hailey

  I feel so official. I’m at my first table read with the people I will be in the movie with. I’m a little starstruck. When I met my co-star, I completely fan-girled. He was handsome, but Terran was hotter. He seemed like a good guy and wasn’t nearly as stuck up as some of the other actors that were sitting around the table. I had a feeling some of them were pissed I got the job. They saw me as a nobody who hadn’t earned my stripes and was undeserving of the chance to get the part as the star in a feature film.

  “Let’s take five everyone,” one of the producers announced.

  I felt like we had just gotten started, but clearly, the others were ready to take advantage of the catering that had been set up in the room. I made my way over to the drink station, feeling out of place. Everyone else was chatting and asking about houses, films and who’d been to Ibiza for the summer. I quietly got my drink and made my way to the back of the room to take my position as the honorary wallflower.

  “Hi,” a middle-aged man with glasses said walking up to me.

  “Hi,” I said with a friendly smile.

  I recognized him from his past films. I hadn’t seen him in the movies in quite a while.

  “I’m Donavan Pierce,” he said, shaking my hand.

  I giggled. “I know who you are. I’m Hailey Hollis.”

  He smiled and nodded his head. “I know. I’m happy to have you on board this project. I’m sure you’ve heard the difficulties we’ve had trying to get this thing off the ground. You’ll have to forgive some of the others for not being very welcoming.”

  I shrugged a shoulder. “It’s okay. I’m used to it. I used to do modeling, and no one likes the new girl.”

  He chuckled. “Some of these veteran actresses see the new pretty girl in town and get nervous. It’s the nature of the business. Always new faces coming in and pushing the old ones down the ladder.”

  “I don’t mean to do that,” I said, feeling guilty.

  “You should mean to do that. Audiences like new faces.”

  “Thank you.”

  “I’ll introduce you to Jenna. She’s a sweetheart. Hold on,” he said, turning and walking over to a woman who was only a few years older than I was.

  Donavan returned with her hand in his. “Jenna, this is Hailey. Hailey, Jenna.”

  Jenna smiled and hugged me, taking me completely off guard. “It’s nice to meet you. I know who you are!”

  “You do?”

  She nodded. “My little sister used to model with you back at the start of your career. Riley is her name.”

  My eyes went wide. “Oh my gosh! I had no idea you two were related.”

  Jenna smiled. “We use different last names.”

  “How is she? I haven’t seen her in years. We used to hang out a lot.”

  Jenna sighed and got a sad look on her face. “Fame did a number on her. She got into drugs. My family just put her back in a private rehab facility after she overdosed again.”

  My stomached flopped. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea. I knew we kind of fell out of touch. I got out of the business because of all that. I saw too many of my friends getting hurt.”

  She smiled. “I wish Riley had been as strong as you were. I pray she recovers, but this is her fourth time in rehab.”

  I shook my head in complete disbelief. “I’m so sorry.”

  “It’s okay. You keep your head up in this world. People are not always kind. You stick to your guns, and don’t let them pressure you into anything you don’t like.”

  “I will. My mom always told me there is nothing more important than your own integrity.”

  “She’s a smart woman.”

  “Let’s pick up where we left off everyone!”

  “Oh, that’s our cue,” Jenna said with a smile.

  The three of us walked back to the table. I felt much better to have made a couple friends at the table. I knew I was strong, but it was hard to be hated by people who didn’t even know me. It was jealousy, I knew that, but it didn’t make it any easier.

  When the reading was over, I headed to the orphanage, excited to tell Mandy about my first day. When I got there, she was between groups and fortunately had some free time.

  “How was it? Did you meet a ton of celebrities? Did you ask for autographs?” she asked excitedly.

  I rolled my eyes. “Ya, right. Then they’d really think I was a loser. And besides, I wouldn’t want their autographs.”

  “No one thinks you’re a loser,” she said in the motherly tone she used so often with the kids.

  I laughed. “Let’s just say there were not a lot of happy faces to see me. I think they were hoping I would quit.”

  She wrinkled up her nose. “Why?”

  “Because they don’t think I deserve the lead.”

  “Screw them.”

  I laughed again. “Thank you. Very mature. I did meet a couple of nice people. You might know Donavan Pierce. He was a child actor and then made a few movies. I don’t think I’ve seen him in anything recently. Maybe this is his comeback.”

  She nodded her head. “I do remember him. We b
oth had a crush on him back in the day.”

  I shook my head. “No, that was you.”

  “Probably, but I’m glad he was nice.”

  “He was. It made things a lot easier. I was so freaked out the first hour I felt like my tongue was stuck to the roof of my mouth. I could barely get my lines out.”

  She gave me a pat on the shoulder. “You’ll do fine. You just need to relax. What about your co-star? Is he hot?”

  I shrugged a shoulder, sitting down in one of the little chairs at the table, my knees practically folded up to my chin. “He’s attractive, kind of stuck up but not obnoxiously rude or anything. Terran is hotter.”

  “Ugh. Really. You’re going to be one of those women?”

  I smiled. “I am. He is the most handsome man on the planet, and he’s all mine. I could look at him for days.”

  “Good to hear. I guess that explains why I didn’t hear from you all weekend.”

  I winked. “I was very busy.”

  “Did you guys get everything all worked out?”

  “Yep. Things are better, and I feel I can trust him.”

  “You’re sure he wants you for you and not the money?” she asked.

  I nodded. “I am.”

  “How can you be sure?” she asked, skepticism written all over her face.

  I took a deep breath, hoping she wouldn’t think I was a complete bitch for what I had asked him to do. “When he gets his money, I asked him to give it all to charity. If he doesn’t, then I know he doesn’t really want the marriage, just the money.”

  Her mouth dropped open. “Hailey!”

  “I agreed he should keep his company, but he doesn’t need a big fat inheritance. He makes plenty of money from the company. I needed to see if it was a greed-driven proposal or true love,” I said in a soft voice.

  “And he agreed to do it?” she asked slightly out of breath.

  I nodded. “Yes, he did. He didn’t even hesitate. Well, not really. It did take him by surprise, but then he agreed to it.”

  “Were you naked at the time?” she asked in a dry voice.