After several minutes of convincing I forced myself out of bed and got dressed in a simple sun dress before deciding to face Tracy.
She was sitting on the couch reading a book. She looked up at me with a warm smile.
“How are you?” she asked. It should have been criminal to be this happy in the morning.
“Not so good,” I said.
“You were pretty upset last night,” she said, putting her book down. “I just decided to leave you alone after you yelled at me.”
“I’m sorry about that,” I said. “I just made an ass of myself.”
“That’s pretty normal for me,” she said laughing.
I giggled a little at her joke. I guess I had party with this girl someday.“I hope Ace isn’t mad at me.”
“Why would he be mad at you?”
“Well let’s see. First I spilled my heart to him and then I made out with him.”
“Oh damn!” she shouted, interrupting me. “I’m sure he liked that though. You could tell he liked what he saw at the bar the other night.”
“That may be true, but Cookie showed up.”
“While you were kissing Ace?” She was on the edge of her seat.
“Yes, while I was kissing Ace. Then guess what?”
“What?”
I began to feel like I was in high school again telling this story. “Cookie kissed me!”
“Like with tongue?”
“Yes!”
“That slut!”
“I know! But, I started to kiss her back and get into it.”
“You didn’t!”
“Yeah and then I saw Ace watching us. He had commented how much he liked my innocence and I realized that I didn’t look so innocent swapping spit with a Hollywood skank. I freaked out and shoved Cookie into the water.”
“I bet she loved that.”
“Not really. I was so embarrassed, and drunk, that I just ran back to the cabin.”
“Well they came by and told me that Ace was waiting to have breakfast with you two. So maybe you should go meet him.” She stood up and began to push me towards the door.
“I don’t know if I can face him,” I protested.
“Too bad!” Tracy said, shoving me completely out the door. Was she on steroids? That little girl was strong.
I stumbled out of the cabin, the bright sunlight assaulting me now that it wasn’t filtered through my window. There was another table set up in the courtyard, this one close to the hot tub. Ace was seated at the table, reading an issue of the Wall Street Journal while eating breakfast. He looked up and smiled, motioning for me to join him.
Sheepishly I sat down at the table, afraid to make eye contact.
“Are you doing ok?” he asked.
“Yeah I guess,” I said, not wanting to broach the subject of last night at all.
“I was pretty worried about you after you left,” he said, folding up his newspaper and setting it aside.
“You were?” I hadn’t expected that. Sure he had seemed concerned with my story, but something in the back of my mind said it was to get into my pants and nothing more.
“Yes,” he said. “I was touched you decided to open your heart to me. Then Cookie ruined it all.”
“Where is Cookie?” I asked.
“She’s probably passed out, sleeping her bender off.” His look was kind of smug and satisfied, like he was enjoying Cookie’s pain.
“Did you two….”
“Did we what? Have sex? Heaven’s no. She was so drunk she fell into the water again, then I had to help her to her room.”
I was relieved, completely. I was telling myself he only wanted to get into my pants to shield myself from falling for him. I had to admit it was hard, he was so charming and seemed so concerned about me.
“That’s a relief,” I blurted out before quickly covering my mouth with my hand. It seemed I was doing that a lot in his presence.
“I’m sure it is,” he said. “So you haven’t dated anyone at all since prom?”
I felt incredibly embarrassed talking about this now that I wasn’t drunk, but I answered him anyway. “Not a soul.”
“Have you even kissed another man?”
“No.”
“You’re a virgin at heart, just not in the body.” It was an odd thing to say, but the way he smiled put me at ease.
“That’s one way to look at it.”
“You said something last night, about having your innocence stolen away.”
“It was.” I was looking at the table now, afraid to meet his gaze which was locked on me.
“I think he tried, but I don’t think he succeeded. You’re the most innocent spirit I’ve ever met. Much more so than me.”
“I don’t know about that.”
“It’s true Amy, I’m no saint. I’ve had a voracious appetite for women my entire life.” His voice was trailing off now, he appeared to be getting nervous. I looked up and locked eyes with him, he looked almost hurt.
I hated it, but I was all his. Every word coming out of his mouth I was locked on. I hated falling so quickly for someone, someone I barely knew. All I knew was the persona I saw in the magazines. Was it really love or just a lusty fantasy coming to fruition?
“I have been with so many women in my life,” he continued. His hand reached across the table and gripped mine. I almost passed out where I sat, feeling the butterflies dancing in my stomach. “I want to become a one woman guy. I need one woman in my life.”
Was he asking me out? Was he proposing? This was all happening way too fast. “What are you suggesting Ace?”
“Amy do you believe in love at first sight?” He almost had a puppy dog look on his face. His eyes were big and sad while his mouth remained serious.
“I don’t know,” I said. I knew I had a crush on Ace the first time I saw him, but that wasn’t love. There was no chemistry between a magazine photo and myself, just incredible lust.
“I do,” he said. My stomach really began to churn now. Was Ace Pearson really about to confess his love to me right here in front of America?
“Again Ace,” I said, trying to put the best serious look on my face I could. I was afraid I actually looked like a scared little girl, but I forced myself on. “What are you suggesting?”
“I’m suggesting I would like to start seeing you.”
“But the show….” I said.
“What show?”
“The show that we’re on right now. Sharing the Billionaire.”
He began to laugh and then looked at me, a hint of mischief on his face. “Have you seen any cameras?”
“I thought they were all hidden.” What was going on here? My nerves were a complete wreck now. I just wanted to crawl under the table and hide. Was I being played for a fool now?
“There is no show Amy.” I studied his eyes, but there was no lie behind them.
I stood up and backed away from the table. I was starting to get freaked out. “No show? What the hell are you talking about?”
“Please Amy, sit down. It’s ok, really.”
“I’ll sit down when I feel comfortable enough to sit down.” I could feel my fragile trust shattering like a broken mirror. My big break was a lie? For what purpose?
“Very well, if that’s how you want to play it then stand. This show was all a façade.”
I could feel the tears starting to well up inside of me. “For what?”
“For me to meet you of course.” He said it so nonchalantly, like he was telling me today’s temperature.
“What?” I still couldn’t believe this.
“I saw you in the Chino’s Diner commercial. There was something about you, something about your smile and the innocence behind every word, even the fake orgasm, that gripped me. I was infatuated and I had to know more about you. I did a background check and learned all about you. Amy, it was love at first sight. I knew I had to have you after that commercial.”
This was too much for me to bear. My stomach was starting to turn and I
was getting sick. I lowered myself back into my chair and gripped the table hard. Was he some kind of psycho?
“I know it sounds extreme,” he droned on. “But, Ace Pearson does everything as hard and as big as he can. If I’m going to open my life to someone I have to be absolutely sure about them. I’ve been looking for someone for a long time Amy. Someone with innocence and self-respect. You’re that girl more than anyone else. I could tell reading your body during the interview. I could tell on the jet and I could tell in the hot tub. The hot tub was what sealed it. When you told me your story and confirmed your innocence, I knew right then I wanted you to be mine.”
He was talking about me like I was some kind of business deal that he could close. I felt dirty and betrayed. “So the audition wasn’t real?”
“It was all designed for you. How did you find out about the audition?”
“I got several flyers in the mail and saw an advertisement right outside my building.”
“Who do you think set that up?”
I wanted to run away now. Was he going to kill me when I rejected him? “So you faked my big break and lured me out here all so you could trick me into falling in love with you?”
“Not trick you dear,” he said, reaching out to touch me again. I slid away from his touch, not wanting to feel his hands anymore. “I had to be sure about you. As we get closer the reason will become apparent. For now I just want us to get to know each other better. I want to be that man you can love.”
I was ready to explode. “Do you realize how creepy all of this is?”
“What do you mean?” he asked, looking confused.
I jumped up from my seat, knocking it over. “You have been watching me and doing a background check on me because you saw me in a commercial that happened to turn you on. You know what that’s called? Stalking! But, because you’re an eccentric billionaire you think it’s all ok. Then you trick me into thinking I’ve made my big break so you can vet me like an employee you’re hiring? You come up with this elaborate fake show so that you can get me alone and have me expose my deepest secret to you. I was drunk out of my mind and you were charming and I fell for it.”
“Amy I…”
“I’m not done! Stop talking! You don’t get to talk until I say you can! After one night, where we share a moment, together you think I’m the one? Do you know how insane all of this sounds?”
“Amy I’ve known you were the one for a long time.”
“Because you saw me fake an orgasm on a commercial?”
“You’re simplifying it.”
“I’m not! You’re a stalker! You’re a psycho and I need to get out of here. I need to get out of here now!”
“Please sit down Amy.”
“No! I’m leaving now. Where’s Tracy? We have to go.”
“Tracy won’t be going anywhere with you.” He was sitting back and looking smug again.
“Why?”
“Tracy works for me.” He held his hands out to his side like a Bond villain that had just revealed his master plan. I froze and turned to look at him. Nothing was real. “Everyone here works for me. This was all set up for you.”
“I feel so dirty,” I said, visibly shaking now.
“Some women might find this romantic,” he said, trying to smile his way out of it.
“I feel betrayed.”
“There’s more to this than just me giving you my hand. I can give you the world, but I can’t do it without your hand.”
“You can give me the world? What are you Aladdin?”
“That’s showing you the world,” he said, laughing. “I can actually give it to you. But, I can’t do it without knowing you are mine.”
“First thing buddy I don’t belong to anyone. Secondly I don’t play this cryptic game.”
“I understand, but I can’t show you without some assurance.”
“You’re not getting it. I want to go home.”
“Please dear, reconsider.”
I felt stupid for almost falling for him. “No.”
“But, I love you.”
“How can you even say that? You don’t know me.”
“I know what my heart wants.”
“So do I,” I said. “I want to go home.”
“Very well,” he said, standing up. He rested his hands on the table, letting his head hang. “I will let you go.” He looked up, fire burning in his eyes. “But this is not over.”
I didn’t respond, I turned and stomped back to my cabin to collect my things. I grabbed the bag I had brought and left all of their crap behind. It wasn’t long before the car pulled up and drove me back to the airstrip. Ace stood by the table and watched me the entire time I walked to the car. I looked back as we drove off. He was still staring; his eyes never left the car.
A smaller jet was waiting for me, already running. I climbed onboard and sat in the tiny cabin by myself. The tears began to stream down my cheeks. For the second time in two days I was sobbing uncontrollably.
“How could I be so stupid?” I asked myself. “How? Nobody would ever want me for a TV show. Nobody.”
Maybe I needed to give up my dream and move back to Oklahoma. That was the only sane thing to do right now; I wasn’t going to make it in Hollywood. I also had an insane billionaire that wanted me. Out of all the women in the world he wanted me.
Now there’s something to think about, I thought. He had betrayed me, but in the end he hadn’t forced himself on me. He had let me go home when I asked. Maybe it was romantic; he had seen me on TV and instantly fallen in love with me. Isn’t that how it works? Love at first sight? I had always had a crush on him and last night in the hot tub there was a connection. The kiss we had was nothing short of magical.
But if any other man had seen you on TV and come after you it would have been grounds for a restraining order. Luckily my brain was still function and wouldn’t betray me to my confused heart. Was I going to give him a free pass because he was rich and the object of my fantasies? No I wouldn’t. I couldn’t.
Chapter 8
I thought it was all over when I got home, but I realized things had just begun. When I walked through the door of my apartment I nearly fell over. My place had been completely redone. Someone had cleaned it and refurnished it with all new furniture. I collapsed onto the floor, taking it all in.
“He did this?” I said out loud. I couldn’t believe it. Now he was buying me? I couldn’t tell if I was still creeped out or flattered.
I noticed my cell phone sitting on the table, realizing I didn’t have it the entire time I had been gone. There were several missed calls from my mother and Selina and a few from numbers I didn’t recognize.
“You have eight new messages,” the voicemail bot said to me. I quickly skipped the ones from my mom and Selina, wanting to find out what the other messages were.
“Amy Davis? This is Rich Peters with Sony. I have a huge opportunity for you; give me a call to discuss the details. “
I was stunned, someone from Sony wanted me? I clicked to the next message. It was from a director who wanted to personally audition me for his summer blockbuster. What the hell? The next call was from a TV producer who wanted me to be the star of his new sitcom. Who were these guys and how did they know about me?
“Ace,” I said as it washed over me. This was all his doing. Then the last voicemail played.
“Amy it’s Ace. I did some thinking and I realize how you must feel. I understand that I went overboard, but if you understood the position I’m in then you would know why I went to such extremes. I have to be completely sure you are the one Amy. You don’t know how many women want me for my money and nothing else. I admit I became infatuated with you after that commercial, but I also fell in love with you. You just seemed like the perfect all-American girl. Then I set all of this up to meet you. I didn’t want us to meet on normal terms, I was afraid you would just see me as the billionaire. So I set up the fake competition, thinking you would just be yourself to try to win. I even hire
d Cookie to act like the extreme opposite, hoping you would be yourself instead of trying to top that. In the hot tub everything I suspected about you was prov…..”
The voicemail ended, probably cut off due to the length. There were no more messages, maybe he hadn’t known it was finished.
I sunk down into my new chair and stared at the ceiling. He was a billionaire playboy, he wasn’t used to dealing with real people. Every woman he met was after his money, he had to be sure. But why put me on a game show where the object was to win his affection and money? It still didn’t add up, but I was starting to come around. It was still incredibly creepy and wrong, but I was beginning to see why he had done it.
Apparently I had some auditions to go on though.
Thanks to Ace, I thought. It was thanks to Ace, but he owed me now. He owed me big time after kidnapping me and lying to my face. He had to realize that just because you’re rich you can’t manipulate people and get what you want. I was starting to get angry again at the thought of him thinking he could manipulate me into loving him. What a terrible thing to do.
I picked up the phone to call these people back when something he said ran through my head.
“This is not over,” was the last thing he said to me on the island. There was fire in his eyes when he said it, a bold determination that I’m sure he got every time he closed an important business deal.
I wasn’t done with Ace Pearson, our relationship was just beginning.
TO BE CONTINUED IN SECRETS OF THE BILLIONAIRE
A Note from Jessica
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Sharing the Billionaire (Billionaire Ace #1) Page 5
