The Power Billionaire: The Complete Series (BBW Erotic Romance Trilogy) (5 page)

“I can’t see the future, Merrin. However, I can tell you that I’m being honest with you. I like you, I want to see you again. You wouldn’t believe how many times I’ve been slapped for trying to finger a girlfriend in public.”

I actually gasped at that. He did that with everyone?

“So you like me because I’m docile?”

That made him grin. “I like you because I could see you enjoy these games as much as I do.”

I opened my mouth to protest but I could only manage a stammer. I didn’t want to enjoy what he did to me. It was perverse, so contrary to whom I really was. Yet, I couldn’t deny what a thrill it had been to do all these things, to obey his commands. It was all so unlike me that I’d never expected to feel this way.

“I don’t know if I can ever do that again, Grayson. It was wild, it was fun, but it’s not me.”

“It is you. Do you know how I know? Because you didn’t push me away. This
is
you and it’s only the beginning.”

Even though he was softening, he was still inside of me. I involuntarily quivered around him and he smirked knowingly. My body was betraying me!

“Come on, let’s go back to the party. I want to see their nostrils flare as they smell what we’ve done. That will get you ready for round two.”

“I… I can’t. I have to go back to my grandmother.”

“I think she’ll understand you have urges. I intend to take care of those urges. Have you ever done it on a beach in Thailand? I have business there next week. I want you with me.”

“My grandmother, she needs me.”

“I need you, Merrin.”

As he kissed me, I knew right then that I was his. I would never be complete without his subtle power. It made me stronger. It made us whole.

*****

The Power Billionaire 2: Dominated Curves and Desire

Chapter 1

“Relax,” Grandma Edna said from the kitchen. “He’s gonna call.”

“Maybe I should leave him a message. Maybe he forgot my number. Maybe he lost his phone, had to get a new one, and lost my information in the process.”

This was a frighteningly real possibility. How could he get in touch with me if he didn’t have my number anymore? I was about to call his office in New York to tell his assistant where I was and how Grayson could reach me when my grandmother gave me the evil eye.

“Don’t be acting stupid on me, Merrin. I ever told you about Mrs. Heptinstall who lives on the third floor? Small woman, big hair, very unfortunate. She looks like one of them cadavers on
CSI
, you know, when they show them after the autopsy. Same skin tone.”

“What about her, Grandma?” I asked as I joined her at the counter.

“Mrs. Heptinstall, she used to have a man. Paraded him everywhere like some award-winning schnauzer. Mostly she kept him on a leash, had all of them activities planned out. They went on dates all the time. The mixer at the VFW, strip bingo –“

“Strip bingo?”

“I hear it’s all the rage what with all them hippies being senior citizens nowadays. Marshall Stefkovich keeps bugging me to go. I’m still thinking it over.”

“Grandma, please. I don’t need to know about these things.”

I was about to retch as I pictured a room full of wrinkly old people getting naked in front of their bingo cards.

“I’m trying to lose a few pounds before committing to the idea. Might be swell to see Herb Blaskey in the buff. He used to be a fireman, you know. Forty years ago. Anyway, Mrs. Heptinstall kept calling her man all the time. She called him before breakfast, she called him
after
breakfast, at night, on weekends. After a while he stopped picking up.”

“I’m assuming you have a big shiny point, Grandma?”

“He had another woman,” she said, glancing at me like this was the most profound secret ever shared.

“So what are you saying? You think Grayson has already forgotten about me and that he has another woman in his life? Already?”

“Sometimes Merrin, it’s better to be prepared for bad news, all I’m saying.”

She put her leftovers in the fridge, turned to me with a surprisingly sweet and understanding smile, and gave me a quick hug. I kissed the top of her head and watched her disappear into the living room where she was no doubt in a hurry to catch up on her shows.

At the same time, I couldn’t shake her words. Could Grayson have another woman in his life? My heart was screaming that it was impossible, not after all we’d been through in the last few weeks. And yet, I couldn’t dismiss the idea on an intellectual level. Grayson Holmes was one of the wealthiest men in the world. He was handsome, popular, smart, and extremely powerful. How could he be satisfied with someone like me? I was nothing but a chubby secretary.

We had met on a plane and our attraction had been almost instantaneous. His commanding voice had done me in. I’d had no choice but to follow his prompts, his devious orders which had led us to masturbate each other right there in public. It had been impossible to resist him.

I was certain I’d never see him again once we landed but he invited me to a glamorous party at his family estate in Palm Beach. He bought me designer clothes and the kind of jewelry that could refinance an entire neighborhood. How could I not fall for him? How could I not let him take me on the pool table in that fancy library?

Again, I was expecting this to the end of it. Be grateful for the good moments, the small blessings, that was my motto. But no, there was more. He had business in Thailand and begged me to come with him. Grandma Edna said she would strike me from her will if I didn’t go. I was spending time with her in Boca Raton while she recuperated from her gallbladder surgery so I felt a little guilty about it. When I still wasn’t sure, she winked at me and gave me some birth control pills. I didn’t even want to contemplate what she was doing with those.

We flew to Bangkok on Grayson’s private jet. It was outfitted with a lounge and bedroom and we took advantage of it for more than sleeping. There’s something to be said about the benefits of turbulence when a fine-looking man is lying on top of you. I saw all kinds of stars that night.

We stayed at the Sukhothai Hotel, in the top floor suite. I’d never seen such luxury. It was huge, over 2,000 square feet. It was twice as big as my apartment in New York City and the view of the lavish gardens down below was breathtaking.

Before we had even settled in, he took me against the grand piano. I was bent over it with my skirt hiked up around my waist and I didn’t even flinch when he pulled my hair back as he entered me. It was fast and animalistic, utterly fulfilling. I wanted for this to last forever as I was still not getting used to his sudden needs. However, just the opportunity to please him excited me.

For the next three days, I was mostly on my own. We had passionate encounters when we were together on mornings and nights but then he would disappear for strings of meetings with various business tycoons. To make up for it, we then flew down to Phuket. When I saw the word on his tablet I revealed how unworldly I was by thinking it was pronounced Fuck-It. This amused him greatly for the whole trip. Needless to say, it took me five seconds to learn how to properly say Pooh-ket.

The heat was almost overwhelming. It was humid and sunny and the resort town was built like paradise. I promptly forgot about the heat when we got to the Banyan Tree. The hotel was essentially a collection of villas, each more luxurious than the next. Unsurprisingly, Grayson had booked the best and the largest for us.

We had our own private pool and jacuzzi and I discovered the joys of being mounted while in the water. He couldn’t be as rough and energetic as usual but he made up for it by pulling my hair again and pinching me in places I never knew would make me feel pleasure. My nipples were insanely sensitive afterwards but it was worth it.

So worth it…

We stayed in Phuket for another three fun-filled days and then it was time to head back to Florida where he dropped me off before continuing on to New York. He said he would call when he landed. That was two days ago.

“Merrin, are you still waiting next to the phone?”

“No, of course not!”

Technically, the phone was in my pocket so I wasn’t next to it, more like on top of it. I charged it every four hours to make sure it was working and I checked my messages every 30 minutes. I even went to my profile on the phone company website to see if they had canceled my service for some reason. I was disappointed that it wasn’t the case. Now I had no logical explanation as to why Grayson wasn’t calling.

That wasn’t true and I knew it. Occam’s Razor dictated that the simplest explanation tended to be the correct one and I couldn’t dismiss it. Grayson just wasn’t into me. God, I sounded like some second rate self-help book! To make the pill easier to swallow, I decided that perhaps I had dreamed the whole experience after all.

“Come join me! The doctor is about to be voted off. I never liked him, way too smug. I don’t trust men with so much hair. Have you seen his chest? I think birds are nesting in there. I wish they should dismember him instead.”

“Grandma, you’re awful and twisted. I love you so much.”

I sat on the couch with my eyes riveted to the TV. I saw a blur of images but couldn’t focus. All I was thinking about was what a fool I’d been thinking Grayson had actually liked me. Maybe a clean break like this was for the best. I decided I would send the jewelry to his Florida estate the next day. I was a lot of things but I wasn’t a gold digger.

All of a sudden, the strident shriek of my grandmother’s ancient phone resounded.

My heart started to beat a mile a minute. I’d been so stupid for doubting him. I got up to answer but my grandmother beat me to it.

“Hello?”

“Yes, she’s here. Are you the beefcake?”

I snatched the phone away from her so fast that I was one flux capacitor short of traveling through time.

“Grayson?!”

“Merrin Rexford?”

The voice was nothing like Grayson’s. It was deeper and had Southern inflections.

“Yes,” I answered suspiciously.

“My name is James Evartt. We need to meet. I’m with Homeland Security.”

Chapter 2

At first the man wanted to come over to my grandmother’s unit. As convenient as it was, the words
Homeland Security
scared me. I was afraid something creepy and inappropriate would be said and I didn’t want Grandma Edna to overhear. I loved her to death but I was certain I would become gossip fodder for months on end. So I agreed to meet him at a Denny’s nearby.

For some reason he recognized me when I walked in and called me over to his booth. I understood that he probably had pulled my file from somewhere and studied my photograph. These days, everybody was on file somewhere. The moment I sat down, the waitress came over. Since this was the middle of the afternoon, we both ordered coffee only. When the waitress walked away, he flashed his credentials and we introduced each other.

“I’m glad you could meet me, Ms. Rexford.”

“Sure. You said it was important.”

“It is, believe me.”

“And you said this is about Grayson Holmes?”

I tried to make my voice steady as I said that but I wasn’t certain I succeeded.

“Why don’t we start with the beginning? How did you come to meet him?”

“We were seated together on a plane from New York.”

As he took notes, I told him how his private jet had been unavailable and he was forced to fly commercial. I omitted the details of how he had talked me into touching the hardness between his legs, under the blanket.

“We became friends, I guess. That night, he invited me to a party at his house in Palm Beach. It was packed with rich people, politicians, not really my crowd. But he made me feel so welcome. Grayson is good at that.”

“And then the two of you went to Thailand together.”

It wasn’t a question. I even had a feeling he already knew about everything I’d told him so far. His eyes were hard, difficult to read. It was as if he was defying me and yet was amused by my responses.

The waitress came back with our coffee and I took the opportunity to watch him as he declined milk and sugar. He wasn’t as tall as Grayson but he was bulkier. Just from his neck I knew he spent a lot of time at the gym. He was probably the type to take part in amateur bodybuilding competitions. He had a chiseled face, all angles and none of them were displeasing. All in all, he was top-tier material.

“Special Agent Evartt, why am I here?”

“We’re having a chat.”

“I’m wondering why. You seem to know everything already.”

“I’m interested in Thailand.”

“You should go sometime, beautiful country.”

He grinned and sipped coffee.

“You went to Bangkok, spent three days in one of the most expensive hotels in Southeast Asia.”

“Grayson is one of the wealthiest persons in the world.”

Evartt nodded. “Is that why you like him?”

“What kind of question is that? What kind of person do you think I am?”

“You tell me.”

I stared at him, seething, and he stared right back. The hint of a smirk was growing across his lips.

“I don’t have to put up with this crap,” I muttered as I began to climb to my feet.

He put his warm hand on mine and I stopped, more shocked than anything.

“I’m sorry I implied anything that made you seem unladylike. I apologize.”

He was sincere and I sat back down. “Why don’t you get to your important questions?”

“Fair enough,” he said after a moment. “In Thailand, were you with Mr. Holmes at all times?”

“No, of course not.”

“On how many occasions were the two of you apart?”

“Well, when we went to Phuket we were pretty much always together. Before that, during those three days in Bangkok, that was for his business. Between breakfast and lunch and between lunch and dinner he was away doing billionaire stuff.”

“Such as?”

“He didn’t tell me the details and I never asked.”