Maid To The Billionaire
Forever His
By Holly Rayner
Copyright 2015 by Holly Rayner
All rights reserved. Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part by any means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the explicit written permission of the author.
All characters depicted in this fictional work are consenting adults, of at least eighteen years of age. Any resemblance to persons living or deceased, particular businesses, events, or exact locations are entirely coincidental.
Also by the author:
The Billionaire’s First Christmas - http://amzn.com/B00QSO9J36
The Billionaire’s Obsession – An Heir At Any Price Book One - http://amzn.com/B00NR3JW2E
Table Of Contents:
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
CHAPTER TWELVE
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
CHAPTER ONE
ALEXANDER
It was about one a.m. in Kentucky. I had been asleep for a few hours when I heard my phone beep. It was the sound of a voicemail. I was hesitant to get up and look at it. The day had been horrendous and all I wanted was to sleep for a few hours and forget about it all but I couldn’t ignore it, what if it was Vicki? I got out of bed and went over to the dresser where I left it. I picked it up and saw that I had two missed calls from her. I suddenly felt panic grasping at my throat. What if something happened to Michael? I listened to the first voicemail. It was a sweet message, telling me good night. My heartrate began to settle down and my breathing was just about to return to normal when I listened to the second one.
“Hi Alex, it’s me again. I’m really sorry to bother you… I had an issue tonight and I’m not exactly sure what to do about it. What I would like to do is change the locks on the doors and the alarm code. I think it needs to be done in order to keep our son safe but I’m not sure it’s a decision I should make without consulting you first. Cassandra was in the house tonight. She was in our son’s room. She seems unstable to me, Alex and I’m afraid to go to sleep now. I have the nursery door blocked with the dresser and I’m sleeping with Michael. But something needs to be done. Again, I’m sorry to disturb you when you have so much on your plate. All I need is your blessing and I will take care of the details. I hope you’re having a good night. I will talk to you in the morning.”
I felt the sting of rage as it hissed through my body like a deadly poison. I was glad that Cassandra was thousands of miles away. If she wasn’t, the fury that was sweeping over me like a tsunami would be too easily unleashed and I wasn’t sure where my wrath may have taken me once it was released. How dare she let herself into my home? How dare she let herself into my son’s nursery? Knowing Cassie the way I did, I was sure that there was a lot more to the encounter that Vicki hadn’t shared with me on the phone. She was going to be very sorry. I was willing to settle with her… I’d already told Noel to give her most of what she wanted just to get her out of our lives. She’d blown that completely now. She was going to be very sorry that she went there.
I called Vicki back, hoping that I didn’t wake her or the baby. I could tell when she answered that she was still awake. The poor thing was probably scared silly all alone in that damned big mausoleum of a house.
“Alex?”
“Hi baby, are you okay?”
“I’m okay and Michael is okay. I was just furious.”
“As you should be. So am I. I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry, it’s not your fault. But I do think that she’s not right in the head I’m sorry to say.”
“No, don’t be sorry about that. You’re right, baby. No one in their right mind would sneak into a baby’s room in the middle of the night. It’s unconscionable. I’m going to call a security company and they will come and patrol the grounds tonight. If she’s spotted I’m going to tell them to have her arrested for trespassing. In the morning I’ll send out the locksmith and the alarm company.”
“I don’t mind doing it if you just tell me who to call. I know that you’re busy… overwhelmingly so.”
“My family will always come first. I don’t get the feeling you understand that, Vicki. You’re my family, you and Michael. I feel horrible for what happened to my employees and the loss their families have suffered, but even that doesn’t trump the safety and well-being of my own family.”
“Thank you.”
I laughed. “You’re welcome. I hope someday soon you will really believe how much I care about you.” I wanted to say “love” but I was so afraid that she wasn’t ready to hear that. I so badly don’t want to scare her away. “What did Cassandra have to say for herself when you caught her?”
“She said the same old things. She said you wouldn’t end up going through with the divorce. She said that you are too attached to your business and your money and that she would end up with half of everything and you would end up taking Michael away from me.”
I was so angry that I couldn’t speak. I think Victoria took my silence as me thinking about any of that nonsense my soon to be ex was spewing. I finally swallowed the rage that was blocking my throat and I said, “You’re right, she’s unstable. If she comes anywhere near you or Michael again, I want you to call the police.”
“I thought about it tonight, but I worried about the bad press…”
“Don’t worry about anything baby. Next time, call the police. In the meantime we’ll make sure it never happens again. I wish I could fly home right now…”
“No. You have important business to do there. Thank you, Alex. I feel better already.”
“Good. Don’t worry about a thing, okay? I’ll take care of it all, I promise.”
“Okay. Thank you again. Good night, Alex.”
“Good night baby, sweet dreams.”
I was still fuming after we hung up. I took a few deep breaths and then I called the private security company I used for my business. I got it set up for them to go and patrol the grounds. I gave them a description of Cassie and told them to have her arrested if she showed up. After I hung up with them, I called Cassandra. She picked up on the first ring.
“Alex darling, I’m so glad you called.”
“This is not a social call, Cassandra.”
She laughed. She’s crazy. “Your maid must have called you then, am I right?”
“She’s not my maid, Cassandra. She’s my girlfriend and the mother of my child. That house you were in tonight is hers, not yours. If you set foot on my property again you will be arrested.”
“You wouldn’t dare. I have more right to be there than that mealy mouthed little tramp.”
“You should be careful how you talk about the woman I love. I can leave you penniless, Cassandra, and I will if you come anywhere near my family again. Don’t push your luck.”
“You’re the one pushing your luck, Alex. After that article came out in Vanity, I got a call from People magazine, asking me for an interview. I know all of your dirty little secrets and I can ruin you.”
“Give it your best shot, Cassandra but if you value your health and your freedom you will stay away from Vicki and my son.” I hung up then before I said something she co
uld use against me. I was so angry, I was shaking. I looked at the clock again. It was one-thirty here. It would be eleven-thirty on the west coast. I didn’t care if I woke him up, I called Noel.
“Alex? What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry Noel, did I wake you?”
“Um…no…it’s okay. What’s wrong?”
“Victoria found Cassandra in my house tonight. She found her in my son’s nursery.”
“Doing what?”
“Looking at him, threatening Vicki…”
“With harm?”
“No. She was telling her that I’d never go through with the divorce and some other B.S. But Noel, she was in the house. She has no right to be there and she’s acting very unstable. I want a restraining order against her that includes Vicki and my son and then I want you to change the offer.”
“Change it to what?”
“Offer her fifty million, her car and the apartment in Orange County. That’s it.”
“She’ll turn it down.”
“That’s fine. We’ll keep her in court until she’s either broke or old and gray. She’ll take it eventually. My main order of business is protecting Vicki and Michael.”
“Okay, restraining orders are easy. I’ll get them drawn up in the morning.”
“First thing.”
“Yes, first thing.”
“Thank you, Noel.”
“Mm hmm… Alex?”
“Yes.”
“Is Vicki worth all of the trouble Cassandra is going to give you over her?”
“That and a hundred times more.”
“Okay then, I’ll have the papers drawn up.”
“Thank you, Noel.”
CHAPTER TWO
VICTORIA
When I went down for breakfast the morning after I’d found Cassandra in my son’s room, Cook’s first words were, “What happened last night?”
“Good morning, Gregory.”
He raised an eyebrow and said, “Good morning Miss Victoria. What happened last night?”
“What makes you think something happened?”
“Um… the new security all over the grounds… the locksmith at the front door.”
“The locksmith is here already? Wow that was fast.”
“Victoria!”
“I’m sorry. I was about to go to sleep last night when I heard a noise. When I got up to investigate, I found Cassandra in my son’s room.”
“Oh no! What happened? Is the baby okay?”
“He’s fine. She was just acting really strangely at first… then she got angry which was at least easier for me to recognize. She was just rattling on about how Alex was going to take her back and take the baby from me. I threw her out and then I called Alex. He got busy on sending over security and getting the locks changed right away. He’s amazing.”
He smiled at that and then he furrowed his brows and said, “I always thought that something wasn’t right with that woman. That’s just… frightening.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. Can I eat now?”
“Oh jeez! I’m sorry. I was so caught up in your story.” He had put the lid back on my breakfast when he was trying to get me to tell him what happened last night. He pulled it off now and I saw that it was a ham and cheese quiche, it was my favorite thing for breakfast.
“Mm! Thank you so much!”
He laughed, “You’re welcome. Here you go.”
“Are you going to join me?”
“I thought you’d never ask,” he said, pulling out a chair. He sat down with a piece of the quiche and poured himself a cup of coffee from the carafe.
“Hey Cook, can I ask you a personal question?”
“Shoot!”
“Why aren’t you married?”
He chuckled and said, “I’ve been there, when I was young. I married a beautiful girl who was also smart and talented… she was a painter. I was in awe of her. It lasted two years and we both had to admit that we were more in love with the idea of each other than the reality. I haven’t felt much like going down that path again… yet. I never say never though.”
“So you date?”
“What’s this all about? You’re not trying to set me up with Cassandra to get rid of her are you? Because there aren’t many women I’ve ever felt like throttling… but that one…”
I laughed. “You’ll have to beat me to it,” I said. “No… it’s just that I have this friend….”
He pulled his brows together and I could really tell that he was trying not to make a face as he said, “Is it your mother? She’s a very attractive lady but…”
“Oh no, definitely not. I like you. I’d never do that to you!”
He laughed at that. “Okay… so now I’m listening. Who is this friend?”
“Her name is Liz and she’s just an amazing person. She’s pretty and she’s funny and smart and she works hard… she attracts idiots like flies though.”
“What makes you think I’m any better than those idiots she attracts?”
“I’ve known you for a while now. I think if you were an idiot, I would have sensed it by now.”
Smiling he said, “Well, thank you for that. I might be willing to meet this friend of yours. Maybe we could start small and we could all have coffee one day.”
“That would be great! Thanks!”
“Sure. How does your friend feel about the homeless?”
“I’m not sure if she has an opinion about them or not. She hasn’t really shared that part of herself with me.”
“Okay… I’ll ask her when I meet her. You know, my homeless shelter is important to me. I’ve dated a few women who had a problem with it. It seems women don’t approve of me putting my own money into the place.”
“Oh well, Liz isn’t like that. She doesn’t care about money. She’s very self-sufficient and she’s definitely no gold digger.”
“Good then, we’ll set up a coffee date.”
CHAPTER THREE
VICTORIA
The next few days passed uneventfully. I began looking online at classes and thinking about returning to school in the fall. I hope things work out for Alex; I pray for it as a matter of fact. I love him with my whole heart. But I had to look at the future differently now that I was a mother. First, if things didn’t work out, I didn’t intend to live off of my son’s child support because his father happens to be rich, and second, if we did work out, I didn’t intend to be another Cassie who completely depended on my husband for support. I had dreams before I met Alex and before I had Michael… I still have dreams and I still intended to pursue them.
I found a program for Physician’s Assistants in Santa Barbara. That wasn’t too far away; it was a drivable distance for two days a week, which would be the only times I’d have to go. I printed out the application for it and I was filling it out when Alex surprised me and walked into the room. I had no idea he was coming back today.
“Alex!” I jumped up from the desk and threw my arms around him. He caught me around the waist and hugged me into him. “I didn’t know you’d be home today.”
He pulled back and grinned at me. “I wanted to surprise you. I’m so happy to be home. I missed you.”
I hugged him again. “I missed you like crazy!”
He brought his lips to mine and kissed me. I felt that tickle deep in my core that was reserved just for him. When he pulled back he said, “I missed the little man like crazy too.”
“He missed you too,” I said.
He laughed. “How do you know? Did he tell you?”
“Of course he did. He talks to me with his eyes.”
He laughed again. “Where is he, in his crib?”
“No, you will actually be proud of me, I hope. I asked Karen to take him out for a walk. She’s taking him for a walk in his stroller through the gardens while I do some research on the Physician’s Assistant programs around here.”
“Good for you, you’re taking time for yourself. You’re thinking of going back to school?” Alex and I sat down
on the couch and I poured him a cup of tea from the pot the housekeeper had just brought in.
“I am,” I said. “It was always my plan. I just had to take care of the more important things first.” Meaning Michael of course.
“So did you find a program that you’d like to apply to?”
“I did, UC Santa Barbara has a great one.”
Maid To The Billionaire: Forever His (Part Three) (Billionaire Romance) Page 1
