Lahat ng Kabanata ng Billionaire Alpha: Kabanata 481 - Kabanata 490

SophiaThe meeting with Luke had not gone as I expected when I agreed to speak with him. It made up for the quick exit he made at the mention of his father at the fancy restaurant. At least at the very end of it, I would have my story and, hopefully, the promotion to go along with it. He was right; we were both benefiting from this arrangement, even though getting this interview hadn’t been at all the way I imagined.Now, all I had to do was travel to a Middle Eastern country and make it appear as if I was in a relationship with the crown prince.It all seemed simple enough, but the moment he dropped me off at my hotel, a flurry of nervous jitters shot up my arms and down my legs. Could I do this? Could I fool a king? Luke seemed more worried about his mother, though. Should I be more worried?I took a calming breath.This was my job, and my promotion was all about getting this interview. I couldn’t let my nerves get the best of me. I was used to doing whatever it took to get my story

LukeWaking up on Tuesday morning, I wasn’t filled with the same sinking sensation of dread in my stomach. Sophia had agreed to pretend to be my girlfriend. I couldn’t believe that everything had fallen into place like pieces of a puzzle. If I’d never met Sophia, I would have been subjected to Mother and her attempts to set me up again.I didn’t plan on marrying Sophia, but our “relationship” would get Mother off my back for a little while. I doubted I could convince Sophia to come back to the UK or even Qatar once she returned to Dallas, so I would be living on borrowed time.That was if we could convince everyone that our relationship was real in the first place.My feelings for Sophia were strictly platonic, but she was my type. Without dating anyone for some time, I didn’t think I had a type. But the way that she always said what she wanted and made me laugh made me excited to see her again. Of course, she was beautiful. That made it easier for what I intended to do. I didn’t mind

SophiaThe next two days went by in a flash. I’d locked myself in my room at the hotel and researched everything I could about Luke’s home country. I checked out blogs and articles written by women who had visited the country as well. But after a while, all of the words started to blur into incomprehensible blobs.The articles were helpful, but they didn’t mimic the experience that I was about to embark on with Luke. I was about to visit a palace! I didn’t doubt that I would be stared at, but it wouldn’t be for my clothing. I would be the girlfriend of a prince. There would be those—his parents and family—who wouldn’t be happy with him for choosing a woman like me. And others would be curious about how I captured the eye of a prince.I thought of Kate Middleton—the only princess I knew of—and how she must have felt to be in my position. Though our situations were totally different, as I was sure she loved her husband, it was probably a strange thing for her and the royal family alike

LukeWith Sophia’s hand in mine, I felt like I could take over the world. Her small hand offered me the reassurance that I wasn’t going into this weekend alone. From the window, I saw Mother already had her passive expression on, the one that silently judged. She never thought I could make a decision when it came to my personal life. Yet none of her setups in the past had panned out.“Do I need a headscarf?” Sophia asked when we were near the door.I hesitated. It would give Mother a good impression.I opened my mouth to say something when one of the flight attendants, a woman, came forward holding two scarves in her hands. “These are mine. Pick one.”She wasn’t from my country, but she probably visited quite often if she was a frequent flier on Father’s private jet.I picked the light blue one and thanked her as I quickly wrapped it around Sophia’s head. “There.”“How do I look?” Sophia asked, raising one eyebrow.“Perfect,” I said, tracing my thumb down her cheek.Her eyes fluttered

SophiaIt took all my willpower to hold back my amazement at everything I saw at the palace. Having Abir take me around to the gardens was the best choice. My bones started to thaw from the frigid temperatures I’d been dealing with in the UK.Even though it was warm, Luke had been right about my clothes not being too heavy when it came to the heat. The sun’s warmth pressed against my cheek, and I knew if I stayed out long enough, I’d have a little bit of a burn. I tugged the scarf around my cheeks to prevent that.“If you are too hot, we can go into the greenhouse for a little shade.”“I’d love to go wherever you want to take me. This place is so beautiful.”The flowers were so colorful, and I loved watching the butterflies and bees jumping from one to another. It gave the garden life that I’d never seen before.I had a brown-thumb, though I doubted Luke’s mother, Gia, tended to the garden. Several gardeners moved throughout the paths, checking on the brilliantly colored plants.Up ah