BILLIONAIRE: Protected (A Dark Billionaire Romance) (7 page)

We had devoured a large pizza and a copious amount of beer throughout the course of the evening. Avoiding conversation regarding my earlier accusations seemed like the best way for us to move forward with our relationship. Liam clearly did not handle emotionally trying situations very well, but I learned that Fred was not necessarily right about everything. Liam was just like me. He was heavily guarded and he expressed his emotions through his actions rather than discussions. I was beginning to accept that.

              I lay my head on his chest and he played with my long, blonde hair as we watched some poorly-filmed science fiction movie. I realized that I had tried to complicate a very simple situation. Despite having to pursue each other in secrecy, it was all worth it.

              “I'm starting to fall for you,” he murmured, drunkenly.

              I furrowed my brow and gave him a startled glance. He was clearly less sober than I was, but I had not expected him to admit something so personal so early in our relationship. I wondered if my ears had deceived me.

              “What did you say?”

              “I'm starting to fall for you,” he murmured, pressing his lips to the top of my head. He took his hand out of my hair and started playing with my fingers instead.

              “I feel the same way,” I admitted, blushing. “I think you need to go to bed, dear. You're drunk.”

              He shook his head and insisted, “I'm not drunk. I'm trying to be open like you wanted.”

              I still had a suspicion that he was drunk, but he was doing as I had asked and that was enough for me.

There was no reason to press the matter, so I nodded and propped myself up on my elbows to kiss his lips. I pulled away, but he pulled me back towards him and ran a hand down my spine. I shivered at his touch and opened my mouth, slightly.

His tongue tangled itself with mine and I moaned against the corner of his mouth.

              “Let's go to bed,” I suggested.             

He frowned and shook his head, murmuring, “I'm
not
drunk! You can't leave me hanging like that.” He gestured the bulge in his boxers. I smirked and shook my head, kissing him once more.

              “Did I
say
we were sleeping?” I inquired, coyly.

              He beamed at me and picked me up, unexpectedly. I squeaked as he gripped my buttocks and carried me towards his bedroom. The spontaneous romantic gesture made my heart skip a beat as he kicked open his bedroom door. I wrapped my arms around his neck and pressed my lips to his again as he lay me down upon the bed.

              He crawled on top of me and kissed my neck, tugging on my dress. I moaned and raised my arms over my head, allowing him to peel off the garment. He looked at me for a moment and I wondered what he was thinking. It was dark, but the moonlight from the window allowed me to see his face in the semidarkness. He smiled down at me and pressed his lips against my shoulder, kissing down my pale frame. My breathing hitched as he pulled off my blue, silk panties and kissed my inner thighs.

              “Oh Liam,” I moaned, quietly.

              He continued kissing up my inner thighs until he finally kissed my hood. I began to breathe heavier as I felt his lips approach my clitoris. Once his lips wrapped around it, a gasp fell from my lips. He ran his tongue across it, sensuously, as he sucked on it lightly. I moaned and his tongue began to travel further downward. Suddenly, I felt it enter my warmth and I let out a loud scream, putting my hand on his head to encourage him.

              “I love the way you taste,” he murmured before he pushed his tongue inside of me once more. He buried his face deep between my legs and I wrapped them around his head. He moaned against my womanhood and I pulled his hair as I approached my climax. The warmth of his tongue was more than I could handle for very long, and I tapped on his shoulder.

              “I'm close,” I choked.

              He did not answer me, but moved his tongue inside of me even faster. My breaths became closer and closer together until finally, my lower muscles pulsed around his mouth. I screamed and yanked on his hair, squeezing his head with my legs on accident.

I lay, motionless, as he kissed his way back up my body and pressed his lips against mine. I grimaced at the taste of myself, but I did could not bring myself to reject his touch. He wiggled his hand behind me and began to unhook my brassiere.

I felt his massive erection against my leg and I bit my lip. I was ready to feel him inside of me.

He pulled off my bra and threw it across the room. He massaged my voluptuous breasts and I felt his manhood stiffen even more against me. I groaned and ran a hand down his body, gripping onto his throbbing member. A moan fell from his lips and I smirked, tugging at his boxers. He shifted so I could pull them off of him. I tossed them to the floor and touched his face with my fingertips, looking into his cerulean eyes.

              “Make love to me,” I murmured.

              Liam nodded and pressed his lips to mine before rolling over and opening his nightstand drawer. He pulled out a bottle of lubrication and squirted it into his hand before coating his member. He set the bottle back on the table and crawled on top of me.

              “You ready?” he asked, his member in his hand.

              I nodded and whispered, “I want you.”

              “I want you too,” he breathed, pushing himself inside of me. A groan fell from both of our lips and my body contorted in ecstasy. He entered me only slightly at first. I whimpered and pushed my hips towards his, silently asking for more of him. He smiled and penetrated me with more of his throbbing manhood. I screamed and seized a pillow to bite onto so I did not bother his neighbors.

              “Oh God!” I choked. “Liam, you feel so good inside of me.”

              “It feels so good being inside of you,” he murmured, pressing his lips to my breast. He wrapped his mouth around my nipple and I groaned. He sucked on my nipple and I bit into the pillow that I had pulled close to me.

              He moved inside of me faster and I began to approach my climax for the second time. I felt my lower muscles become tense around his thick, hard member. He sucked on my nipple even harder and moved his hips against mine even faster.

              “I'm going to come again,” I warned.

              “So come,” he murmured against my breast. A shiver ran down my spine and I bit the pillow to stifle a scream as I had my second orgasm. My body became numb as he pulled himself out from inside of me. I caught my breath and the feeling returned to my body as he flipped me over onto my stomach. It was clear that he was intent to make me climax again.

              I bent my knees and propped myself up on my elbows, shakily. He sunk his teeth into my shoulder and breathed against my neck, giving me goose-bumps.

              “You ready?” he breathed.

              I nodded and felt him enter me. He gripped onto my hips and pushed himself inside of me as deep as he could. I bit my lip in to stifle a scream and rotated my hips to feel him against all of my inner walls. He grunted and began moving faster, his testicles clapping against my buttocks. A moan fell from my lips as my breasts clapped together from the motion.

              “Good God, you feel incredible,” he murmured with a groan.

              “S-so do you,” I breathed.

              I felt his manhood stiffen inside of me and I knew that he was approaching his climax. With a moan, I moved hips towards his even faster. My womanhood succumbed to every inch of him and I let out a scream. He groaned and sunk his teeth into my shoulder once more.

              “I'm going to come,” he gasped into my ear.

              “Me too,” I whispered.

              My muscles became tense around his erection and the depths of my warmth squeezed him. He grunted and I felt him release inside of me. We both collapsed next to one another on the bed, our chests rising and falling as we tried to catch our breath again.

              “That was amazing,” I breathed.

              He nodded and replied, “You're amazing.” He wrapped an arm around me and pressed his lips against my temple before burying his face in my shoulder. I blushed.

              “You're the one that just made me have three orgasms,” I murmured with a chuckle. Sometimes it was easier for me to make light of a compliment rather than to accept it.

              He laughed and closed his eyes, pulling me closer to him. I lay my head on his chest and pushed my hair out of my face.

              “Goodnight, beautiful,” he muttered.

              I smiled as he tightened his grip on me. I had never felt more safe.

*****

Liam and I struggled to hide our giddiness in the office, but we were beginning to get used to it. Acting professional when we were so hungry for each other was difficult. Nevertheless, we knew that it would all be worth it in the end. Nobody had asked us any strange questions in a week, confirming that our actions towards one another in public suggested nothing other than a business relationship.

              “We just hit our five hundredth account!” Liam said, excitedly, hanging up my office phone. “I knew this was a good investment!”

              “That's wonderful!” I exclaimed. “You've been such a help to me!”

              He chewed on his lip and gave me a suggestive look.

              “No,” I hissed. “We can do that later.”

              “Come on,” he persisted. “Just lock the door and we'll have a little celebration—”

              Suddenly, the door opened and I interjected, “We never would have gotten all these accounts if it wasn't for your help and dedication to the company. Thank you for all of your hard work.” I prayed that my acting was convincing enough for whomever was walking in the door. I looked behind me and saw that it was Patrick. My heart pounded in my chest, but he did not seem fazed by anything that we had said.

              “So, I just got some good news from someone on the board,” Patrick said, tossing a manila folder onto my desk. He had not even bothered to close the door behind him, which was fairly typical of him. “They're so impressed with the progress we've made in the past few weeks that they're going to give us a bigger budget.”

              I beamed at him and seized the manila folder.

              “Really?” I asked, opening the folder and flipping through Patrick's notes. “Patrick, this says Hoffman is investing another half a mil. Are you sure this is right?”

              “Of course it's right,” he said with a scoff. “If you would have answered your phone, you would have known.”

              “That's great news,” Liam said. “You've been a great asset to this project, Patrick. Keep up the great work. Aaliyah, perhaps you need to be a little better with your phone.”

              I gave him a dark look, but I quickly realized that he was just trying to keep up our appearance in the office. Suddenly, I heard someone knock on the door-frame. My stomach felt like it was being twisted into a dozen knots as soon as I saw who it was standing by the open door.

              “Miss Barr?” Nate the janitor asked, peering through the open door. “I'm not interrupting anything, am I?”

              Panicking, I quickly answered, “Yes, actually! I can speak with you in a—”

              “Oh, don't be silly,” Patrick said, giving me a knowing look. It was a little ironic, considering he was absolutely clueless. “Mr. Manning, maybe we should give these two a little space.”

              “Huh?” Nate asked, furrowing his brow. He looked back at me and closed the door behind him. “I just wanted to know if I was still going to get that pay raise that you mentioned last month.”

              “Pay raise?” I asked, a lump in my throat. “Oh, yes! Of course. I'll make sure you get that pay raise right away.”

              “Thanks Miss Barr,” he said, scratching his balding head. “My wife's been on me for weeks about it. I can't go home to her screaming at me
again
. That was all that I needed. I'll—er--I'll get out of your hair.”

              “Oh, stop it!” Patrick demanded, leaning towards the door and pulling it shut. “You don't have to play games anymore. We all know what's going on.”

              Nate frowned and said, “Pardon me?”

              “Nothing is going on!” I blurted. “Nothing at all. Go ahead and get back to work, Nate. Thank you.”

              Nate began turning the knob, but Patrick was not finished. Liam and I exchanged anxious glances.

              “We know you two are having an affair,” Patrick accused, crossing his arms. “Come on, everyone will be better off if you would just come out with it.”

              “Is this some kinda joke?” Nate asked. “I'm a married man.”

              Patrick rolled his eyes. I gulped, nervously. I saw Liam chewing on his lip out of the corner of my eye. We were both dreading the outcome of the situation.

              “Come on, everyone knows you're separated,” he said, tapping his foot impatiently.

              “Separated?” he repeated with a snort. “I wish!”

              Patrick frowned and tilted his head.

              “So you mean, you two aren't...” Patrick started. He turned on his heel and looked at me. “But you said—”

              “No Patrick,” I confessed, shaking my head. “I lied to cover my tracks.”

              “What are you doing?” Liam asked, incredulously.

              “Nate, I'm sorry. I owe you an apology,” I said. There was no going back at that point. I had to be honest. “I said I was having an affair with you to cover my tracks about something else.”

              A small smile crept onto the janitor's lips.

              “
You
said you were having an affair with
me?
Well hell, don't apologize!” he said, enthusiastically. “My wife ain't even half as good-lookin' as you are.”

              I gave him a weak smile and added, “Well, thank you. I'm glad you understand. I'll even give you a bonus for your trouble. You may leave now.”

              “People think I slept with you and I get a bonus? Man, this day keeps getting better!” Nate exclaimed, opening the door. “Thanks, Miss Barr!” He walked out and slammed it behind him. I looked from Patrick to Liam, nervously. I had to tell the truth.

              “You have some explaining to do,” Patrick said, angrily. “I'm your best friend, Ally. Why did you lie?”

              I looked at Liam and let out a sigh. He shook his head at me, but I had already fibbed too much. I had to put my trust in my best friend.

              “Listen, Patrick,” I whispered, touching his shoulder, “I had to lie to protect my reputation and.and Liam's reputation.”

              “Liam? What does he have to do with th—oh. Oh! Oh my God! You're sleeping with—” he exclaimed. I put a hand over his mouth and gave him a look of warning.

              “You can tell
no one
,” I demanded. “If
anyone
hears about this, I could lose my job. If
I
lose
my
job,
you
lose
your
job. Got it?” He nodded and I removed my hand from his mouth. “Good. I am telling you all of this just because I didn't feel right lying to you. But you aren't very good at keeping secrets and I need you to keep this one. No slip-ups, no telling anyone in confidence, none of that. Absolute silence. Okay?”

              Patrick nodded and cleared his throat. I looked at Liam. He did not look very impressed that I had just outed us.

              “I didn't want her to tell you,” Liam admitted. “Don't be mad at her for all of this. She wanted to tell you.”

              I smiled at him. I was appreciative that he cared about my friendship enough to help me try to make amends. He wrapped his arm around my waist and I looked back at Patrick. Surprisingly, he looked rather content.

              “I mean, I wish you told me,” he confessed. “I get it, though. I just want you to be happy, Ally. If he makes you happy and me opening my mouth will ruin that for you, I'll keep my lips sealed. You can trust me.”               I nodded and said, “I know I can.”

              He cleared his throat and added, “
But
I am going to require Chinese food as payment for my silence.”

              “I told you!” I exclaimed to Liam, gesturing Patrick. “I told you he'd just want Chinese food!” Liam chuckled and shook his head.

              “I guess you were right,” he admitted. “Well, thanks for being quiet, my man. We appreciate it.” Patrick frowned and scoffed, “I'm not doing this for
you
. I'd sell you down the river in a heartbeat.” Liam opened his mouth to argue, but Patrick did not allow him to speak. “But, you make
her
happy. So you're safe. But if you hurt her, you better believe I'll destroy your reputation faster than you even thought possible.” Liam tried to object, but just stumbled on his words. I cleared my throat and clasped my hands together to try to ease the tension.              “Well, we need to get back to work, Patrick. Great work and thanks for letting me know about the increase in funding,” I babbled in an attempt to put an end to the conversation. “You may get a hold of me later if you need anything else.”

              “Alright, alright,” Patrick replied. “Don't forget! Chinese food tomorrow!”

              I nodded and waved him away as I retorted, “Yes, yes.” He gave us each one last suspicious look and left the room. As per usual, he left the door open behind him. I pulled away from Liam to shut it and let out a heavy, exasperated sigh.

              “You're telling me,” he murmured. “I still don't trust the guy to keep his mouth closed.” I looked at the door where Patrick had just left and replied, “I do.”

The next day, I plopped Patrick's massive lunch on his desk and smiled at him. He had ordered an incredible sixty-five dollars worth of Chinese food. Nevertheless, my secret was worth much more than sixty-five dollars. He gave me a knowing glance and tore open one of the paper bags. The aroma of Chinese food filled the air as he seized a fortune cookie. I heard him crack it open as I began to walk away.               “Wait, Ally!” he yelled. Others in the office gave him a glare, annoyed at his constant excessive decibel level. “What?” I asked, turning back around and leaning over his desk. “I want to read this one to you,” he said, looking up at me with devious eyes. “It says: You should take pride in your ability to be a loyal friend.”

              “That's nice,” I murmured, looking around the room. Several pairs of eyes were fixed upon us, clearly due to Patrick's loudness. “Aren't you glad you can trust me with secrets?” he asked, coolly. “I'm glad I can trust you with mine. You know, I tell you
everything
.”              It was more than obvious what he was trying to do. I had felt guilty enough that I was dishonest with him without him pressing the issue. People in their cubicles tried to pretend that they were not eavesdropping, but judging by the looks they were giving us from the corners of their eyes, they were listening to every word. “I get it,” I hissed. “Patrick, you can't make a scene like this all the time. You're going to make people talk.”

              “Oh come on! I was the only one that thought you and Liam might be having an affair,” he retorted, loudly.               My eyes grew wide as all of the eavesdropping employees began whispering among themselves, glancing at me when they thought that I was not looking. I began fuming with anger and clenched my fist. “Well, it's a good thing we're not,” I lied.              “Right,” he agreed, averting his eyes away from mine. “You two just shut yourself into that office so much together that I was making silly assumptions.” I gave him another dirty look, frustrated with the fact that I had put my trust in him and he was only making me look worse and worse in front of company employees.               “Well, business partners usually need to speak in private,” I said. I sucked on my teeth and added, “Have a nice lunch, Patrick.” He bit his lip and looked around the quiet office space, realizing that he had slipped up merely a day after I had asked him to keep a secret. People were not even trying to pretend that they were not staring anymore. My heart raced as I wondered what they were thinking. I never should have trusted Patrick to be quiet. Whether he was my best friend or not, he could not be trusted with secrets. He was making that quite clear to me.              “What are you looking at?” I snapped. “Get back to work! All of you!”

              I retreated to my office and slammed the door behind me. Liam furrowed his brow, unsure what had angered me. His feet were on my desk and a newspaper was open in his hands. I gave him a dark look and shook my head. He had been right the entire time about Patrick, and although I did not want to admit it, he had to know. He folded the newspaper and set it down on the desk as he got to his feet. He walked towards me and wrapped an arm around me, worry etched into his expression.

              “What's wrong?”

              “We have a problem.”

*****