Masquerading with the Billionaire (Guide to Love)

by Alexia Adams

  “I was late because I wanted a better dress to show off your jewels. The real issue here is that you still don’t trust me, even after all we’ve shared.”

  “I’ve been betrayed before. Hell, someone is sabotaging my company as we speak.”

  “And I’m trying to help with that. I’m on your side.”

  “If you’d have come clean and told me everything, I wouldn’t have been blindsided going into the most important meeting of my life.”

  And there it was, her past impacting his ambition. The real reason he was upset. Not because of anything she’d done, or how it altered their relationship, but how it affected his future, his need to be the greatest.

  She crossed her arms over her chest. “You’re scared to admit that you feel something for me and it’s screwing with your ambition.”

  “This is about the truth, who you really are.”

  She’d given him an opening to admit he felt something but he hadn’t taken it. Her years of experience holding in her pain came in handy now. She could pretend to be as cold and unfeeling as he was. “Tell me, Mr. Wolfe, why would I spill my heart and soul to you when all I am is a delightful interlude? I’ve survived by reinventing myself and staying hidden in the shadows. I’m not about to tell every guy I sleep with my deep, dark secrets.”

  A flicker of pain showed in his eyes. He cleared his throat before he replied. “We had more than that.”

  “No, we didn’t, because if we did, you would have believed in me and not some bastard you only met for a couple of minutes.”

  “Katya—”

  “Katya stayed in Russia, with people who love her. I’m back to being Kat Smith. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have work to do.” She opened her laptop and stared at a blank screen, willing herself not to cry, for the remainder of the seemingly endless flight.

  …

  Wolfe stole a glance at Kat. She pretended to work but her hands hadn’t once touched the keyboard in twenty minutes. Instead, she stared at her computer screen, her eyes glassy, unseeing.

  He knew the look.

  Hell, he’d perfected it. That Kat needed to wall him off stung, but what choice did she have? She’d been a pawn all her life. First to her mother’s ruthless ambition for a star, then her ex-boyfriend’s machinations. And now Wolfe had treated her as nothing more than a passing fancy. A pleasant way to spend time while he accomplished his true goal—world jewelry domination. It was ridiculous even to his own mind. Kat deserved to be treated like a queen, the most powerful piece on the chessboard.

  For the first time in his life, he had no idea what to do. Beg Kat to forgive him and give their relationship another chance? Or bow to the prince’s demands, say good-bye to Kat, and fulfill his life’s desires. Except at the word “desire,” his gaze automatically swung back to the woman who sat opposite him.

  It was a hellish flight when the turbulence was inside him and not buffeting the plane.

  When they eventually landed, Margaret-Mary had a car waiting, and within minutes they were on their way to the Shard. Tonight he’d open himself up to Kat, tell her about the condition to him taking up the royal commission and see what she said. See if there was any hope for them.

  Before he could ask her to dinner, her phone began to buzz insistently. She glanced at the screen. “You won’t believe this, but someone’s accessed one of your data servers. How soon can we be at your office?”

  His pulse quickened. “Ten minutes. Can you stall them?”

  “I can try. It’s difficult without a hardline connection. I don’t want to use cellular service, as it’s not secure. Hold on a sec.” She pressed a few keys on her phone. “I instructed the server to run a backup, that should slow things down. They won’t be able to confirm any new code is installed until that’s done.”

  Wolfe’s hands fisted on the seat beside her. Tension pulsed out of his pores with each beat of his heart. “Do you know who it is?” he asked through clenched teeth.

  “No, I can’t access the video feed from here. We’ll find out soon enough.”

  He nodded. The car had barely come to a complete stop before he flung open the door and exited. But rather than rush into the building, he held his hand out to assist her. He wouldn’t forget her, ignore her as his parents had him. With just her laptop and phone, she followed him into the building.

  In the lift on the way to his floor, he asked, “What department?”

  “Human Resources. Margaret-Mary sends me the list of who’s away each day so I flag their terminals for activity. The HR director called in sick this morning, but someone is using her computer with her password.”

  “Right.”

  “Do you want to call the police?”

  “I’ll wait to see who it is before I get the cops involved.” His hands flexed at his sides. A good punch-up would do wonders for the anger, anguish, and anxiety that surged through his veins.

  He pulled out his security card and went straight to the HR department. The door to the director’s office was closed, and Wolfe put his finger to his lips when the other two women in the room looked about to ask if they could help. With a nod at Kat, Wolfe flung open the door.

  Harry sat behind the desk, drumming his fingers on the blotter. His face drained of all color when he saw them standing there.

  “What the hell, Harry?” Wolfe’s shocked voice reverberated throughout the room.

  “I…I…noticed something strange was going on, so I came to investigate,” Harry said. But a piece of paper with detailed instructions on how to enter the system and bypass security, plus an incriminating thumb drive on top, sealed his fate.

  “I’ll take that,” Kat said, picking up the flash drive. She motioned for Harry to stand and then sat and started typing. Her gaze intent on the screen, she bit her bottom lip.

  “We’re good here,” she said, eventually raising her eyes from the monitor. Kat pointed at the open door. The two staff members didn’t even pretend to be working. “Maybe we should move this discussion some place where we can’t be overheard?”

  Wolfe’s gaze reluctantly left Kat and returned to Harry, who cowered in the corner. Betrayal welled up inside Wolfe until bitterness thickened his tongue, choking him. Is this how Kat had felt when he’d assumed the worst of her? His heart ripped open, flooding his chest with pain. Only by concentrating on the pinched face of his former friend did he stop himself from falling to his knees and begging Kat’s forgiveness.

  “I can explain…” Harry began.

  “My office,” Wolfe said. He took Harry’s elbow and dragged him from the HR department and then down the corridor.

  Margaret-Mary stood as they neared. “No, not him,” she said, her eyes wide, her mouth open, a hint of anger in the set of her lips. “Want me to call the police?”

  Rage returned. It wasn’t only Wolfe who had been deceived. “I need to hear what he has to say before I call the authorities. Margaret-Mary, you will act as witness and make a recording of this meeting.” His voice was tinged with cold fury, his grip on Harry’s arm strong enough to make the other man wince.

  “Do you want me to wait here?” Kat asked. She leaned on Margaret-Mary’s desk, appearing to be completely indifferent to the turmoil swirling through him. He searched her eyes, but she’d screened off her emotions too well for him to be able to read them. Did she even care anymore? She’d done her job. Would she leave before he had time to talk to her?

  “Come in. You deserve to listen as well.”

  “What has your girlfriend got to do with this?” Harry said.

  “Kat is a cyber security expert who has been tracking your every move,” Wolfe replied.

  “What?” Harry’s gaze ran up and down Kat’s body as though he were being pranked. “Her?”

  Wolfe fisted his hands, ready to punch Harry’s lights out if he looked at Kat a second longer.

  “Yup. Me.” She set her laptop on Wolfe’s desk and sat on his chair.

  Harry sank onto the couch and Margaret-Mary
perched on the visitor’s seat, her phone in record mode. Wolfe paced in front of the door.

  “Why, Harry?” The anger that had overwhelmed him at seeing Harry hacking his systems fizzled, replaced by a yawning chasm lined with shattered illusions ready to rip him to shreds should he fall further.

  Kat inserted the thumb drive into her laptop and scanned the information on her screen.

  Harry’s pathetic voice pulled Wolfe’s attention away from his girlfriend. Former girlfriend. “I had several financial reversals so I borrowed some money from the firm. I was going to pay it back, but then it was taking longer than I expected, and you were talking about an audit, so I disrupted the accounting systems hoping to divert your attention so you didn’t discover the money was missing until I had time to get the funds together.”

  Wolfe shook his head. All this for money? “Why didn’t you ask me for a loan?”

  “Because you’re so high and mighty in your ivory tower. You never make a mistake.”

  Wolfe’s gaze shot briefly to Kat, trying to convey to her how sorry he was for not believing in her earlier. She glanced up briefly, and her eyes clouded before she returned her attention to her screen.

  “You know that’s not true. For God’s sake, I hired you to help me because you had the business degree and I didn’t.”

  “Yes, but then you got your MBA and began to question my decisions. You were going to fire me eventually, and I wanted a nest egg for when that happened. You would never sell me shares or make me a partner. I had to have something. If you’d have married my sister, then we would’ve been family and none of this would have happened.”

  “Jennifer? There was never anything between us. We only went out once.” And the whole time she’d come on to him like a desperate woman, stroking his thigh, leaning over so he could see down her top.

  “Once was all it took. Or didn’t you know? You’re the father of her son.”

  Kat’s fingers stilled, and her gaze met Wolfe’s. Was she holding her breath, waiting for his response? Did she still feel something for him?

  He hurried to reassure her, not Harry. “I never had sex with your sister.”

  “That’s not what she said.”

  “I’m not lying. I’ll take a paternity test if you want, but whoever your nephew’s father is, it’s not me.”

  Harry crumbled into the sofa, his chin meeting his chest.

  “How much did you take, Harry?”

  “A million. I’ve paid back a quarter, but it’ll take a little more time to get the rest.”

  Wolfe turned to Margaret-Mary. “You got all that?”

  “Yes.”

  “Type it up, except the last bit about Jennifer claiming I’m her son’s father. Harry, you’re going to sign at the bottom verifying it’s a true statement.”

  Margaret-Mary hurried from the room. Wolfe tried to analyze his options, but all he could see was the pain in Kat’s eyes as he’d accused her of being the leader of her gang and still a criminal.

  Harry ran a shaking hand through his hair. “So, what happens now?”

  “I haven’t decided. If I call the police, this will go public and damage my company’s reputation, but I’m sure you realize I can’t have you work for me. I’ll never be able to trust you again.”

  “I swear, Wolfe. I thought you were Ned’s father.”

  “So, it’s okay to steal from pseudo-family?”

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  A blaze of anger cauterized his sympathy. “No, what you meant was that you were going to try and blackmail me if I found out about the embezzlement before you could pay it back.”

  Harry hung his head.

  “All your systems are clear, Wolfe. And I know who wrote the code.” Kat’s soft voice drew his eyes back to her.

  “I did,” Harry said. He leaped to his feet and made an attempt to take the thumb drive, but Wolfe grabbed his arm and flung him back on the sofa.

  “Stay. Away. From. Kat.”

  Harry ran a shaking hand through his hair. “I wrote it. I did some classes. Who are you going to believe, Wolfe? Me? Or the woman who’s been leading you around by your cock for the past week?”

  Wolfe took a step toward Harry. God, he wanted so badly to beat the crap out of his former friend for insulting Kat and what they’d shared. “I hired Kat to do a job—find the saboteur. She’s done that. Why would she lie? Besides, I trust her implicitly.” His gaze shot to her but she continued to stare at her laptop. He turned back to his former friend. “You, on the other hand, have just admitted to stealing one million pounds of my money and then infecting my computer systems to hide your tracks. Who wrote the code, Harry?”

  He slumped back onto the sofa. “My nephew, but he’s got issues. He can’t go to jail, he’d never survive. Whatever you do, Wolfe, don’t have him arrested.”

  Wolfe glanced at Kat and she nodded.

  “I’ll let Kat and her team deal with him.”

  Harry turned pleading eyes on her but made no move to get near her again. “What are you going to do?”

  “Keep an eye on him. For now.” Kat’s features showed only professional detachment. “I’m done, Wolfe. I’ve locked Harry out of all your systems and deleted his security card. I’ll wait for you in your apartment?”

  “Yeah.” He couldn’t look at her as she left his office or he’d never be able to let her go. Now that she’d done the job he’d hired her for, she’d leave. Unless he gave up all his hopes and dreams and asked her to stay.

  …

  Wolfe scrubbed his hands over his face. Security had just escorted Harry out of the building after he’d signed the “confession.” Whether it would hold up in court, at the moment, Wolfe didn’t care. He never wanted to see his former COO’s face again. It wasn’t even the money that bothered him. It was the abject betrayal. Sooner or later, everyone stabbed you in the back.

  His office door opened again and he looked up. His microsecond silent prayer that it was Kat wearing one of her super-sexy dresses went unanswered. Margaret-Mary stood at the door holding a bottle of whiskey and two glasses.

  He glanced at his watch as she set the drinks on his desk. It was almost six o’clock. That had to be wrong. By his reckoning, it was nearer midnight. Then again, he’d never had a day of such highs and lows before. Margaret-Mary poured a generous amount of Jameson in a glass and pushed it toward him before helping herself to an equal measure.

  “To new beginnings,” she said.

  “That’s an optimistic toast.”

  “What’s done is done. Now we start again. What are you going to do about the prince’s condition to awarding you the commission?”

  He’d spoken to Margaret-Mary on the phone while Kat showered. Keeping his focus on work was the only thing that had stopped him from taking Kat in his arms and sinking into her glorious heat. If he did that, he’d never be able to let her go.

  “I don’t know. This is the opportunity of the century. How can I throw that away on a woman I’ve only known two weeks?”

  “Have you thought that Kat may be the love of your life? How can you let her go for a job that will take you six months?”

  “Maybe she’ll wait.” As he said it, he knew it was wrong. Excuse me, darling, do you mind taking second place to my career for a while? Even he knew that wasn’t a question any wise man would ask, especially of a woman who’d been treated as second-best all her life.

  Margaret-Mary snorted. “Unlikely. What about Harry?”

  “He can wait.”

  “And the COO position? If you’re going to be in Dubai most of the time, we need someone to run the place. Want me to contact the headhunters in the morning?”

  “I was thinking you could take the job. I mean if I’m going to be away, you’ll be bored with nothing to do.”

  Margaret-Mary put her glass down on the desk. “Don’t you be messing with me, Wolfe.”

  “I’m serious. You know this business as well as I do. You practically run the plac
e now. Talk to your husband, and let me know by the end of the week.”

  “So, you’ve decided to take the royal commission?” If she was no longer his assistant, he’d probably better get used to that look of “you’re an eejet” from her.

  Had he decided? It’d been his dream for so long it seemed impossible not to take it. “Even if I don’t, I’ll still need someone to look after things while I travel.”

  “I’ll talk to Rory. Now, there’s an amazing woman waiting for you upstairs. I’ll lock up here.”

  He slung back the last of his whiskey and headed up to his apartment. As the numbers increased on the floor number display, his heart rate quickened. He’d been such a fool, believing for even a minute the lies Nikita had told. Yes, Kat had the brilliant mind to lead a team of thieves but she had a heart of pure gold as evidenced by her care of Valentina and her search for her sister, even at the risk of her own freedom. Her past was just that, past. The woman she’d become was loyal, trustworthy, and true. And everything he could ever want or need. The warmth in his chest he’d felt every day for the past week returned as he put his key in the lock.

  Except when he opened the door there was no music playing or Kat singing badly. No steaks grilling or exotic spices filling the air. It was silent. Cold. Empty. Their suitcases sat by the door where the concierge must have left them. At least Kat’s was still there. She hadn’t left. He found her in the sitting room, staring out the window as the first drops of rain hit the glass.

  She’d changed out of the trousers and shirt she’d worn on the plane and was back in a fitted business dress and heels. He could see her gloved hands at her waist as she hugged herself.

  She must have seen his reflection because she turned before he got within five feet of her. The chill in her eyes sent a shiver down his spine. The warm, sensual woman he’d gotten to know was gone.

  “Kat—”

  “It’s me or the royal commission, isn’t it?”

  “Yes.”

  “Well, don’t worry. I’ll save you the trouble of asking me to leave. I’ll double-check your systems from the States and send you my bill.” She went to move past him, but he grabbed her arm. His chest burned so intensely he wouldn’t be surprised to see scorch marks on his shirt any second.