Billionaire Romance--Plus Size Romance

by J. L. Ryan

  If she missed one day it would only set her back even more. She met a nice guy at work but she had no time to date. His name was Blake and he would often come sit at the bar with her and walk her to her car. They made small talk and he was nice enough.

  She knew he wanted more but was concerned about things progressing in a direction that was ultimately going to go badly. Tonight was no exception. He was sitting across the bar laughing with some guy about how the Cowboys were going to beat the Redskins on Monday night. He caught her eye and gave her a wink. He never missed a beat of the conversation and defended his

  “Cowboy” honor to a fault. He really was nice. That night after the bar closed, he walked her out and this time he seemed different. He hugged her goodbye and when she turned to go, he pulled her in close for a kiss. She let it go on for a moment, it had been a long time since anyone kissed her. Before she knew it, one thing led to another and she found herself waking up the next day with him in her bed. She stood there now, towel wrapped around her watching him sleeping. It was a fun night, but the connection she was looking for wasn’t there. She actually felt bad for letting things get out of hand. She tiptoed into the shower to get ready for the day, not wanting to wake him up and face where things stood now. She ate a quick breakfast, left a note for Blake and headed downtown to Kirby and Bates where she was working. They were prepping for a huge case and it was all hands on deck for sure. She sat in the conference room combing through files and let her mind drift for a second. She felt different somehow, yes she had a fun night but it was something else. Perhaps she just felt old. She smiled.

  Alex would tell her she wasn’t old, she just lived like it. Alex, he was so different from anyone else. Blake was not Alex….why she even thought it was bothersome enough. She spun around and got back to work. This stack of paperwork would not sort itself, that much was sure. She worked through her day excited about the fact that tomorrow was Saturday. The law firm was closed and she had no classes so she had the day free until work tomorrow night.

  This was her day to run all of her errands and get all of her work done. She could also sleep in past 6:30 am. Her only indulgence was ice cream. Every Saturday afternoon she would get comfortable and eat ice cream and watch an old movie. Only one, she had to study and time was precious.

  The day dragged on and after her classes she headed home for a quick bite and to get ready for work. At some point Blake left, and even the bed was made. She changed into her other clothes and headed out. Fridays were always crazy, there were people drinking and laughing, and most of the time there was a fight or two over some woman.

  Blake wasn’t there, which was odd, but he probably had things to do. Finally, as time went on, Brienne found herself looking at the clock more and more. One more hour, and she had almost a free day to herself. She wrapped things up and headed home. She was exhausted.

  She was lucky only one year to go and she could take the bar exam and be done. She was 26 and still young enough where she could build a career and eventually be able to relax. She didn’t want to be poor and struggle like she had done all of her childhood.

  Her father did his best, but it was easier and cheaper to let her just dress and behave like a boy. She was fine with it, as it gave her friends. Besides, she had no idea what she was “supposed” to act like. Her father was her only role model. He worked long hours and she had to fend for herself a lot of the time.

  They scraped by enough to keep the house, but food was rare, She went to bed hungry on more than one occasion and she decided she would never do that again. Her career was her foundation and it would make it so that she never went hungry again. She pulled into her lot and made her way to her apartment. It was a small efficiency on the campus. She did tutoring part time three times a week to allow herself the luxury of living alone.

  She considered calling Blake but let the idea go. It was fun, but she didn’t have time for all of the drama that comes with having a man in her life. Saturday came bright and sunny. She rolled over at it was 8:10. Even that simple thing…sleeping in made her happy. She started her day doing some shopping and settled in at noon for movie time. She frowned because nothing good was on television.

  She sighed and turned it off all together and pulled her laptop into her lap. Maybe she could respond to some emails and some articles for her class. Not fun, but it was better than watching TV.

  She opened her new emails. She really needed a system. She spent the next two hours replying and writing to professors and classmates, and her father until she finally cleaned the entire thing out. The next email in the list was the one from Alex now 6 months old. Should she? She shrugged.

  A,

  Life is busy, I hear business is doing well, I saw your article in the Times. She is pretty. I hope you’re happy.

  Yours,

  B

  She sat back and ate her ice cream, then gave her father a call to listen to all that was happening back home.

  Life went on and on. Alex was now in charge of a corporation ranking number three on the stock exchange. He was secure and enjoying life as much as he could. Tomorrow his parents would have been gone three years. Three years ago he sat in the very chair he was in now.

  He ran his hand over the cool leather. He not only carried on the business, he also become everything his father wanted him to be and he did it by working hard. Alice moved on and found a position with a firm in Washington. He was alone again. He let his mind drift to thoughts of Brie. She wrote him back and told him Alice was pretty. Why would she say that? Why did he focus on that? He shook his head. Nothing made sense as far as Brienne Warhol was concerned. She found a new life, one that didn’t include him. He hadn’t seen her in years and only heard from her from time to time.

  He sorted through the stack of mail on his desk. He wasn’t as overwhelmed now. Experience taught him to know the size of the correspondence and what was probably inside. He found a green postcard and pulled it from the stack. It was an invitation to a graduation. Probably some staff member or associate.

  He turned it over and felt his heart race a little faster. It was for Brienne. She did it. She was graduating from Columbia and with honors, no less. He leaned back in his chair and smiled. She hadn’t completely forgotten him, he thought to himself. May 15th. He had a little less than two weeks. He called Linda the secretary.

  “Yes, Mr. Jacobs?”

  “Linda clear my schedule for the weekend of May 14th. I’ll be out of town for a few days.”

  “Yes, Mr. Jacobs. I’ll take care of it.”

  “Thanks Linda, and plan the weekend off for you too, paid of course, you deserve it.”

  “Thank You, Mr. Jacobs!”

  He hung up, thinking about the weekend he would be gone. He hadn’t been this excited about something in a long time. He decided to stroll down to Mr. Warhol’s and see what his plan was for graduation. He remembered the way he felt when he came down here to check on him.

  He always felt like he was helping Brie somehow. She was far enough away to make it hard to see her father and she never had time to come home anymore. Now he was doing well and he felt like he wasn’t needed anymore. He knocked on the door lightly and was greeted by a plump older woman who wore a huge smile.

  “Alex, come on in…it’s been so long. How have you been?” She enveloped him in a warm hug and shut the door behind him.

  He blushed slightly. There was something overwhelmingly motherly about her. She was nothing like his mother in looks or stature but she carried the same warm love about her. Mr. Warhol walked into the room and smiled at Alex.

  “Alex, we were just talking about you. Brienne called me a couple of weeks ago and asked about graduation and asked about you.” He gave Alex a knowing look.

  He swallowed hard. She asked about him? “How is she? I never hear from her, but I just assumed she had a lot of classes this final year.”

  “She is better than good, she is happy to quit one of her jobs and be able to focus on the
bar exam for a while. After graduation I think I have her talked into coming home for a few months until she takes the exam. She needs the break because she works so hard.” He sighed.

  “What has she been doing exactly? I know she had a full course load and was tutoring, but that’s all she really told me.” He smiled up as Mrs. Warhol handed him a glass of iced tea.

  “She never told you about…work?” Mr. Warhol cleared his throat. “I think maybe she was embarrassed about it or just too busy. I wish I was able to help her more. She deserved more from me.” He turned somber.

  “Mr. Warhol, do you remember when all the neighborhood kids would be playing softball in the field and how we broke Old Mr. Sampson’s window?” He smiled remembering.

  “Oh yes he was fit to be tied, ole Sampson.” Mr. Warhol smiled.

  “Do you remember when prom came and the car broke down and we were all stuck over the state line trying to buy beer?” Mr. Warhol busted into a fit of laughter at that one.

  “You boys would have been in so much trouble.” He grinned at Alex.

  “Who saved us? Who paid for ole Sampson’s window, who came and got us all and helped fix that car and get it home?” He looked at Mr. Warhol. “That is two of many examples I can give you, but you saved us all. We never even thought to go to any other parent because you were the “cool” parent. We are all thankful for you so don’t ever think you didn’t give us all something.” He smiled over at Mr. Warhol who looked about to cry.

  “Thanks for that son, I loved every one of you. You protected Brie, kept her from getting into too much trouble. I’m proud of all of you. Your father would be proud of who you’ve become. With Brie, I just worry. She's still a girl, she works three jobs, and always keeps a good face on, but I'm not sure how hard it’s really been on her.” He sighed.

  “Well you can see when you go to graduation, and at least get an idea of what has been going on. Why is she working three jobs? I ask her every time I talk to her or hear from her if she needs anything. Of course I never hear from her.” He raked his hand in his hair.

  “Well she is stubborn our Brie.” Mr. Warhol smiled at him. “You probably know that better than anyone else. As for graduation, I'm not sure about all of that just yet.” He glances at his wife. “We will have to see.”

  “You are going aren’t you?” Alex sat up. “She needs you there, it’s important to her.”

  “We are going to try that’s for certain.” Mr. Warhol patted his hand and stood up to refill his drink.

  Alex sat back lost in thought. He smiled at Mrs. Warhol who handed him some chocolate cake. He loved the way it felt here. The house that hugs you. He smiled and they went on talking about Brandon’s new baby.

  The next week and a half, Alex made all of the necessary preparations for the trip. Some of those preparations included securing seats to fly to New York for not only him, but Mr. Warhol and his wife. Money was the issue, though Mr. Warhol didn’t want to discuss it. Alex didn't want to give him any reason to refuse his help. He had the tickets delivered to the house and when Mr. Warhol called to complain, he said they were free with his frequent flyer miles and they were also nonrefundable. He wouldn’t want to waste them would he? He didn’t think Mr. Warhol bought it, but he relented and was grateful.

  They were all leaving in the morning and Alex had some work to complete before he could just leave town. He worked into the night with a sense of excitement. What was wrong with him. It was a graduation not a wedding? He smiled to himself. She was going to be surprised when she saw the three of them show up. They decided to surprise her. He knew she hated surprises, but it serves her right for never writing him back, he thought. He smiled and fell asleep.

  The flight was on time and Alex could only grin as he heard Mr. Warhol fuss about first class and how it just “wasn't right.” Mrs. Warhol, on the other hand was in awe, and was happily sampling all the food on the flight, much to Alex’s’ amusement. They settled in for the flight and he drifted off.

  Nothing was going right! Brienne was furious. She was pacing for more than an hour waiting to get her final grade in one of her classes. This grade would determine her GPA and ultimately be a huge factor on her resume. Not only that, she had graduation today and she wasn’t even sure if her father was coming at all. She called him all morning and nothing. Nothing! She glanced at the clock and hit refresh on the computer. There it was...A.

  She did it. She completed law school at the top of her class. She was Valedictorian. She swallowed and sat down. She felt the stress of the last three years melt away. It was worth it. She stood and started to dance. No one could see her. She was in her own place, so why not. She bounced around some mix of the hula and the running man. She stopped in a huff and plopped into the chair. Today was the day. The day she could start to relax.

  Her father asked her to come home for a while….Alex was there. She pushed him out of her mind. He was probably married to Alice by now. She stood and gathered her things to head to the graduation. She arrived at the stadium and was greeted by Professor Abrams who handed her the tassels to wear for the ceremony.

  “Thank You.” It’s all she could get out. She hoped and prayed for this moment. She prepared a speech just in case. She knew the running was between her and one other person. The ceremony began. The usual lengthy pomp and circumstance, and she made a point of keeping her speech short and sweet. She focused on the importance of family and friends, and shared a story from her childhood. She felt the sweet relief of months of work as she walked across the stage and was handed her diploma.

  That’s when she saw him. As she walked down the aisle back to her seat, she saw his blue eyes and black hair. He was clapping for her as she walked by. He made eye contact and she felt her knees go weak. What was he doing here? She could think of nothing else as she waited for the ceremony to end. As people began to filter out, she was able to find him easily enough. He towered over most people. He had to be 6 ft. tall. His hair was still dark and slightly wavy on top now. He looked older and wiser somehow. She wasn’t the only one to be taken back.

  Alex stood rooted to the spot. She literally took his breath away. Gorgeous, her red flaming hair was artfully arranged around her shoulders, framing her face. She was wearing heels and a short black dress. She was older, more mature and …perfect. He swallowed hard as she made her way over to him. She looked to his right and saw her father and his new wife.

  “Daddy?” She ran to him and he engulfed her in a hug. It was obvious he was crying.

  “I am so proud of you baby girl, you did it!!” He smiled widely and introduced her to his wife. They made small talk for a moment longer when Mr. Warhol cleared his throat and took his wife by the elbow.

  “Dear let’s make our way to the car, I believe we are going to dinner, Alex, we will meet you at the car.” He gave Alex a wink and headed out.

  “Hello brat.” He smiled at her.

  “You know I hate that Alex.” She smiled at him anyway. “What are you doing here and how in the world did you find them?”

  “I made them come with me on the plane, I don’t like being alone. Your father doesn’t take help lightly.”

  “No he doesn’t. I tried to make some extra money to send, but he wouldn’t hear of it. You can tell me how much Alex, and I’ll get it back to you.”

  “Don’t be ridiculous Brie, think of it as a graduation gift. I brought them here and I’ll take them home. Almost like a role reversal from our younger years. I owe him that much. He got me out of so much trouble.”

  “Like Ole Sampson’s window?” she glanced over at him and giggled.

  “Exactly.” He held the door for her leading outside to the car. He rented a car and driver and she was surprised by the limo that waited for them.

  “Alex really?” she looked over at him.

  “Happy graduation brat, even if you don’t ever call me.” He ushered her into the waiting car and they headed to dinner.

  It was a happy occasion, everyone
was chattering away about everything from graduation to life in Dale City. Brie told them about work and all of the cases she worked on. Eventually, Mr. Warhol announced that he was old and wanted to go back to the hotel. Not one to be disrespectful, Alex asked for the check, which he paid for, despite the protests of the dinner party. They made their way back to the hotel where Mr. and Mrs. Warhol said their goodbyes and made their way upstairs. Brienne looked at Alex. She was a little tipsy from the champagne at dinner but not so much that she wasn’t aware of her surroundings.

  “Want to go watch a movie in my room or something?” He asked it casually as though they were still in school, bored on a Friday night.

  “Sure I don’t have to go to work tonight.” She giggled and Alex looked at her for a long moment. She was working in a bar of all places. She could have been hurt.

  They made their way up to his room which had its own living room and she draped herself on the couch unceremoniously. He moved to make some coffee, watching her frustration with her dress being too tight to sit comfortably.

  “Hey brat if you want, I have pajamas with me, you could wear them if you want to lose that dress.” He froze the moment he said the words. “You know what I mean…they are on the sink in the bathroom.”

  Brienne made her way into the bathroom and changed. When she returned. She found him artfully arranging cups on a tray. She loved him her whole life and he never even knew she was there. She graduated today and wanted to do something crazy. She walked over to him. He was still in his suit but had lost the tie. She stood as close to him as she could and he braced himself and looked down at her.

  She was too close. Something about her made all of the air in the room disappear. She had that mischievous look in her eye he knew so well. What was she up to? He turned to face her and try to figure it out but before he could ask, she threw her arms around him and pulled him down to her. She tasted like honey and champagne. He kissed her back, deeper longer. He pulled her closer to him and put his hands in her hair pulling her closer still.