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Chapter 11
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2022-11-26 02:51:25
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THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Chapter 12
As it turns out, I got that ride in the limo after all.โWhere are we going?โ I ask Grant as the limo cruises through the warm LA sunshine.โNew York.โI stare at him. โWhat?!โโMy base of operations is there. All my people are there. Itโs a lot more secure than where Iโm staying in LA.โโWhy didnโt you tell me we were going to New York?!โHe looks mystified. โI told you we were going to be moving around.โโYeah, but โ I thought you meant between Santa Monica and Hollywood!โHe laughs. โI want to keep you guessing.โโYouโre certainly doing that,โ I mutter, then get down to business. โOkay, what are we going to do now? Go over your plan? Try to formulateโฆ aโฆโHeโs smiling and giving me bedroom eyes.โOh no,โ I say, and shake my head. โNO.โHe leans in for a kiss.I have a moment of almost-weakness, but I back away at the last instant. โNo means no. En Oh. NO.โโWhy not?โ he asks, amused.โWell, for one, because I donโt want your chauffeur knowing what weโre doing.โโThereโs a partition
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Chapter 13
Weโre lying in the bed now, side by side, drinking more champagne and eating a selection of fruits and cheeses. I was so embarrassed when the stewardess brought it that I hid in the bathroom โ but now that weโre alone, Iโm enjoying every bite.โWe need to talk about how weโre going to find this guy,โ I say.โSo tell me,โ Grant says. Heโs lying on his stomach but heโs still quite distracting, with his golden skin and rippling muscles of his back. And his ass is out of this world. I meanโฆ daaamn. Itโs this curve of powerful muscle. Not quite a bubble butt, but just about there. Very distracting. Yet I manage to pull my eyes away and concentrate. โWhat did your people say about the texts?โโWhat, besides the fact that theyโre unsettling?โโNo โ about the technical information attached to the phone texts.โโThey said thereโs nothing they can use. They said he covered his tracks incredibly well.โโWhat else?โโThere is nothing else, so far as I know.โ He kisses my ear, and a thrill of p
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Chapter 14
Dinner is absolutely amazing. We dine at a small table on the patio under the rising moon. We drink the most delicious wine Iโve ever tasted and sample several entrees โ filet mignon, duck, sea bass.โDo you have a cook who fixed this?โ I marvel.โWell, I do have a chef, but heโs got the week off. I ordered this from Le Meilleur.โI drop my fork. โLe Meilleurโ is the best new restaurant in New York.Iโm kind of a foodie, too, FYI.โYou got this from Le Meilleur?โโYeah.โโWhat โ somebody ordered it and picked it up?โโNaaah, they ran it over.โโThey โran it over,โโ I repeat in shock. โA five-star restaurant โran it over.โโGrant shrugs. โIโm good friends with the owner.โOf course.By the end of the meal, Iโm tipsy and weโre playing footsy under the table.โWant to go for a swim?โ Grant suggests.โI didnโt pack a swimsuit.โโYou donโt need a swimsuit.โHeat flushes across my chest. โYou want to skinny dip?โHe grins, amused by my surprise. โWhy not?โโWhat about all those guards?โโTh
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Chapter 15
I wake up the next morning from a deep sleep. I remember last night and all the hot sex, and get a little smile on my face. I reach over for Grant โ Heโs not there.I immediately get a flashback from when he left me on the balcony. A little bit of anger, a little bit of fear.Asshole!I prop myself up blearily on one elbow โ There he is, across the cavernous bedroom, putting on a tie in front of a mirror.God, heโs gorgeous. The suit pants heโs wearing hug his ass perfectly. Heโs also got on a beautiful midnight blue shirt and a vest. The sight of his massive arms and chest in all that tailored finery โ yum.He sees me in the mirror and grins. โGood morning, Sleeping Beauty.โโIf I were Sleeping Beauty, you shouldโve woken me up with a kiss,โ I say sleepily.He laughs and walks over to the bed, tucking his tie into his vest. โLetโs do the post-wake-up version.โAs he leans over me, I bat him away. โNo โ I look awful โ โโYou look hot.โโIโve probably got morning breath โ โโI donโt
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย 15.1
Hodge drives up just as I exit the building.โHi Hodge.โโMiss Saunders,โ he replies in his upper-crust British accent.โDo you know where weโre going? I only know itโs an art gallery in Chelsea.โโYes, Mr. Carlson texted me the address.โI get in the backseat of the Rolls and watch the New York City streets creep by as we wind our way through traffic.About 20 minutes later, we stop in front of an industrial loft-looking building. Hodge gets out and holds the door open for me.I call Grantโs number but it goes straight to voicemail.Immediately a text comes in. FBI guy doesnโt want me answering the phone. Security concerns with recording or whatever. Go right in, the front doorโs open. I paid the owner to clear the building; weโre on the third floor.I walk in the front door and let it shut behind me.The gallery is amazing. Itโs a huge four-story space, with an open atrium and levels that circle around it. The lights are off except for a few single white emergency lights on the four
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Chapter 16
Oh God NO!I turn and run through the maze of corridors, back the way I came.โThat wonโt do you any good, Ms. Saunders,โ the voice says, full of mock sympathy. โIโve already shut down the elevator.โIn confirmation, when I hit the DOWN button, it doesnโt light up. I try UP โ same thing.My mind is ticking through the options.Got to find a stairwell โ got to get out of here โ But the text was from Grant! It came from his phone number! How did โ And then I realize: if this guy could find Grantโs phone number, he could temporarily clone it, reroute it, whatever he wanted to do.Long enough to send me a couple of text messages, anyway.The text messages make me think of my cell. I fumble it out of my purse to call 911 โ But the screen says โNo Service.โI want to scream.Actually, thatโs a good idea.โHELLLLLP!โ I shriek.โNo one can hear you from the outside,โ the voice informs me. โAnd if you were planning to call the authorities, let me save you the trouble: Iโm blocking all frequ
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Chapter 17
Grant roars up five minutes later in a metallic red Bugatti. I would normally go gaga over it if I werenโt so scared. The twenty people walking by certainly do a double take, though.Grant jumps out of the car, runs over to me, grabs me by the shoulders, and looks into my eyes. โAre you alright?โI nod, then burst into tears again as he hugs me tight against his chest.โYou shouldnโt have come,โ I sob. โHe might be here, waiting for youโฆโโHeโs not here,โ Grant says darkly. โHe wonโt take me out on the street, not with so many people around. He wants to have his fun.โI was getting it together until I hear โHe wants to have his fun.โ Then I break down into sobs again.โHereโฆ get in the car,โ Grant says, opening the passenger side door for me. โWeโre going back to the penthouse.โโWe should call the police.โโNo police.โโBut he might be following us.โโWhich is why weโre going back to the penthouse, and then weโre getting the fuck out of Dodge.โWe drive down the streets of New York,
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Chapter 18
We walk down a wood-paneled hall in the penthouse. Grant stops halfway down the corridor and presses three spots on the wall.Just like the passageway in the hotel, a door swings open where there hadnโt been anything before. The separations in the wood paneling form the outline of the door, which swings inward.โYou really like these secret passage things, donโt you?โ I ask.โYou have no idea.โWe walk through, into a dimly lit corridor. There donโt seem to be any other doors โ but by now I know better. Ten steps in, he stops and presses another three spots.A panel slides open, revealing a keypad. He types in a 10-digit number, and a final door opens up in front of him, magically appearing in the wall.โWhat the hell?โ I say.โSome people have panic rooms. Meโฆ I have secret rooms.โโWhy?โโTake a look.โHe gestures, and I walk into one of the strangest rooms I have ever seen in my life.Itโs an art gallery, sort of. A dozen or so pictures hang on the white walls of the 30x30 room.Th
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๋ฐ์ดํธ : 2022-11-26
์ต์ ์ฑํฐ
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Lily
The only part that was slightly sad was that Connorโs mother and brother didnโt attend. His mother was still under heavy psychiatric care. She wouldnโt have even known what was going on, according to Connor. As much as I disliked Lenora Templeton, that news saddened me. I only wanted her out of my life. I didnโt want her to end up like this.His brother had checked himself into rehab. Though he sent his congratulations, Vincent told Connor that he didnโt think he could attend, knowing what Miranda had done and how she had met her end. He felt he was still in too precarious a situation emotionally to leave the safety of the rehab center.I know that Connor still bore a lot of anger and hurt towards his mother and brother, but he would have liked to have had them there โ as long as they behaved themselves.Things were improving, though. His mother was gradually getting better, and Connor had worked out a deal to take over as interim CEO of the Templeton Group while his brother was in r
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Lily
But as far as wedding days go, it wasnโt the only one.Come on, Iโd gotten married in sopping wet clothes, on a deserted island in the Caribbean, with only four people total in attendance.Did you really think I wasnโt going to have a billionaire-style shindig, with all my family and friends?Connor and I decided on it spontaneously, as soon as we got back home. But rather than hold it in New York City, with all its bad memories from the last couple of weeks, we held it two weeks later in Lake Cuomo, Italy. Have you ever seen pictures of Lake Cuomo? Itโs like an Italian Renaissance fairytale. George Clooney bought a residence there, with good reason โ itโs one of the most beautiful places on earth. And thatโs where we had our wedding.There was only one shadow hanging over the entire day.After we were escorted back to St. Vincent by the policemen, Connor immediately hired a team of divers to go down to inspect the yachtโs wreckage. There was one body in particular he wanted found.B
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Lily
It turns out Johnny was right: we didnโt see a single shark the entire way.That doesnโt mean it was a piece of cake. What with Johnny and Connorโs wounds, and my needing to rely on their help when I was tired, it took us almost an hour. By the time we got to the island, we were exhausted. But Sebastian was there to greet us. As we approached where the waves started to break, he saw us and started yelling and waving ecstatically from the beach.โA little help!โ Johnny shouted at him. Sebastian immediately raced out into the waves and dragged me to shore. โThank God, thank God,โ he kept sobbing as he helped me lie down on the sand. Then he went back out and helped Johnny and Connor limp their way onto the beach.We all collapsed next to each other. Connor and I held hands as we stared up into the blue sky, too weary to speak.โI thought Iโd never see you again,โ Sebastian said, wiping tears from his face.I was touched; it was the most vulnerable Iโd ever seen him.โNo such luck,โ Co
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Lily
The happiest moment of my life was when Connor proposed to me.The second was when he burst through that door.And the third was seeing the look of surprise on Mirandaโs face when she realized what I had done to her.While Connor kept her talking, I picked the lock and undid the handcuffs from my right wrist. (Bobby pins to the rescue!) Then I grabbed Mirandaโs arm and slapped the cuffs on her.Anytime Iโm ever depressed about anything from now on for the rest of my life, Iโm just going to remember the look of surprise on that murderous bitchโs face, and everything will be better. Instant anti-depressant.Miranda yanked her arm up with a clank! of the chain, but she was locked to the metal armrest of the chair โ which was bolted to the floor.She screamed in fury, and pulled the gunโs trigger.BLAM!But Iโd purposefully bumped her aim away from Connor โ so all that happened was one of the creepy glass spider cases shattered into tiny shards.The gunshot hurt my ears, but Iโd been expe
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Connor
I couldnโt take the shot. I wasnโt Johnny; my aim was good, but not stellar, and the floor was already at a 20 degree tilt. Miranda had her gun at point blank range to Lilyโs head. If she pulled the trigger before I got her โ I slowly held my .45 away from my body and let it fall to the floor.All the ugliness I knew was inside Miranda revealed itself on her face. It was the evil leer of a serial killer, the grin of a Great White Shark.โI win,โ she gloated.My heart sank.It was over. I had failed.I looked at Lily, both sorrow and love welling up at once. She was seated in some sort of chair bolted to the floor, and was handcuffed to the metal armrest.Lilyโs eyes were frantic, but her lips were moving. She was mouthing somethingโฆKeep her talking.I couldnโt tell for the life of me what she had in store, but I complied. I looked up at Miranda. โYou win. You can do with me whatever you want, but please โ let Lily go.โโDonโt waste your breath,โ Miranda snarled. โWalk towards me w
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Lily
The door suddenly burst open, and there stood Connor with a gun in his hand, just like the star of an action movie.My heart soared with love โ and fear. Because Miranda was standing behind my chair, just like the villain in an action movie.I was between them โ Mirandaโs human shield.I felt the barrel of Mirandaโs pistol jam against the back of my head.โDrop it,โ she commanded, โor I kill her.โConnor looked at me helplessly.โDonโt worry about me โ shoot her!โ I begged him.But he wouldnโt take the chance. He held the gun slowly away from him and let it fall to the floor. CLUNK.I felt Mirandaโs pistol stop pressing against my scalp, then saw it appear next to me as it pointed at Connor.โI win,โ she said, and I could hear the sneering triumph in her voice.
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Connor
I rushed over to Leoโs body, staggering in the tilting hallway as I ran.He was lying face-up on the ground, a pool of blood spreading out beneath him on the floor.He saw me coming. Tried weakly to lift his AR-15 โ I put two more rounds in him with my .45.BLAM BLAM.He lay still after that.Adrenaline coursed through me like a drug, sharpening my senses while making everything unreal.I felt sick. I had just killed a man. I had just taken a life. He was a traitor, yes, and someone who was planning to hand me over to be killed โ but still, I felt queasy.Lily.She was all that mattered. I pulled myself together.โNice shooting,โ Eve said in my ear. โOh ye of little faith.โโWhat?โ At first I thought she meant something about me doubting my abilities to shoot someone, which didnโt make any sense.โYou thought I was a turncoat? AGAIN?โโOh,โ I said sheepishly. โSorry about that.โโHmph. Weโll talk later. Go down the hallway the way you were originally heading โ thereโs a half-dozen g
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Lily
BOOM.There was a massive explosion somewhere on the ship. Every glass pane in the spider terrariums rattled, and a couple cracked.โWhat the hell?โ Miranda said, and stumbled to her feet as the yacht began to tilt to one side.After my initial shock from the blast, I watched Mirandaโs face. She was reacting with more fear โ in fact, with more emotion โ than Iโd ever seen her display before.She looked back at me, her eyes wide with surprise.After all the indignities the bitch had put me through, I couldnโt resist. โGuess my fiancรฉโs here,โ I said, and gave her a little smile.
THE BILLIONAIRE'S AFFAIR ย ย ย Connor
I was halfway down the deck when Eve spoke in my ear. โConnor, thereโs a problem.โโWhat?โ I whispered.โJuan and Leo are on the other side of the yacht, but Iโm not getting any video feeds of them.โThere was a dull WHUP in the distance, then another one a few seconds later.Not like gunshots, exactly. But they did sound like a heavy book being dropped on a wood floor.I ducked into an alcove with a door in it, and hunkered down into a squatting position. โJuan? Leo?โโWe separated, and Juan ran into a guard,โ Leoโs voice said. โJuanโs dead, but I got the other guy before he could sound the alarm.โSHIT. Already things were going to hell, and weโd barely engaged the enemy yet.Butโฆ something didnโt make senseโฆI frowned. โI heard two silenced shots. How come I didnโt hear any regular gunfire?โโTheyโve got suppressors, too. The first one was the guy shooting Juan, the second was me shooting the guard.โI couldnโt put my finger on it, but something seemed off. I just chalked it up to
