Romance: Marriage of Convenience Romance: Billionaire's Inheritance Bride ( Billionaire Bad Boy BBW Romance) (9 page)

“They must have plastered this makeup on while I was knocked-out!”

“So, you’re not a hooker?” asked Claudio.

“Well… It’s complicated!”

“Everything is.”

Once they were both dressed, Claudio opened the door into the hallway and looked. The coast was clear. Stepping quietly yet quickly, soon they made it to the fire escape and after descending a few flights of stairs they rushed through the last door and found themselves standing in an alleyway at the back of the hotel.

The rain drizzled down from above, the sun now hiding behind darkened clouds. Suzanne held her hands out. The rain pattered against them. She then tried desperately to wipe the makeup from her face. Claudio laughed loudly.

“What’s so funny?” asked Suzanne, confused.

“Your makeup is smeared all over your face. You look like a failed clown.”

“I’m not sure I find this funny… Look… Claudio, Mario, whatever you call yourself, you better get out of here before anyone sees you.”

Those words started something. Staring at Suzanne, he saw that kindness and selflessness that she had and was captivated by it. Ever the gentlemen, he tried to make amends for his joke.

“Suzanne. I’m really sorry about all of this. Please, let me give you some money, to help make up for all of this.”

“You mean so I keep my mouth shut? Don’t worry, I don’t want to tell anyone about this!”

Claudio stepped closer to Suzanne. He pulled out his wallet, and then held out a bundle of notes, at least several hundred dollars.

“Please. I don’t mean it that way, it’s just, you look like you’ve fallen on hard times,” Claudio pointed at a hole on the arm of Suzanne’s top.

She’d never have accepted the money under normal circumstances. But these were anything but normal circumstances. She hadn’t eaten in days, and again the hunger took over, stretched her arm out and held the money gently.

Click
.

They both heard the sound at the same time. Spinning around, there was a photographer, who quickly disappeared into a street nearby. Of course, Claudio could have easily caught him, but that would just have made things worse.

Claudio parted from Suzanne with a heavy heart. He knew that at the same time next day, newspapers and sports websites around the world would be filled with scandal.

He was right.

He spent the first few hours of the day in his penthouse. He couldn’t even bring himself to look at the news. His phone had been ringing for hours – it was his brother, Cristiano. His agent rang, people from the Giants too. It was a mess. Claudio knew that the people closest to him were trying to find out what had happened, where all of this scandal had come from, but the last people Claudio felt like facing were his family.

Finally, he gave in and picked up the phone.

"Brother! What have you done?" Cristiano said on the other end of the line.

"I haven’t done anything. It’s a stitch up," Claudio pleaded.

"They have pictures. Have you seen the news?"

"No. I’m not sure I want to..."

Cristiano began to grow angry. "You can’t bury your head in the sand. You need to make a statement."

"What could I say?"

"I think you’re going to need to come clean about the whole thing to try and save your reputation. At least people will see that you’re honest," Cristiano said, waiting for a response. But Claudio didn’t feel like he had one. His brother didn’t seem to believe that the incident was a stitch up.

"Claudio... are you there?" Cristiano’s anger was increasing by the second.

"Have you spoken to dad?" Claudio asked his brother.

"Yes... He’s... Maybe it’s best if you speak with him yourself..." said Cristiano, hesitatingly.

"Please, Cristiano. Tell me what he said..."

"He’s ashamed. He’ll talk to you when he’s calmed down. Maybe you should leave him for a while..."

Claudio’s heart sank. All he wanted was to make his father proud, it was all he’d ever worked towards, but now that had all been undone by whoever had set up the conspiracy to frame him.

"No, I’ll be there in an hour." Claudio hung up and got ready immediately.

By the time he drove out of the penthouse garage in his Lamborghini, the press was waiting for him. Like a swarm of bees, they surrounded his car taking pictures and trying to get an interview with him.

Claudio was shocked, but it should have been expected. He was the world’s biggest sports star and now he’d been filmed handing over cash to a prostitute. Things were bound to be chaotic.

After passing the crowds of reporting vultures, he drove for an hour, finally making it to his father’s villa. It was usually quiet, a cozy little place in the hills, but Claudio realized then that this calamity was going to follow him wherever he went.

It took all of his might just to push through them:

"Can you respond to the rumors that you’re going to be expelled from the game, Claudio, for bringing it into disrepute? Claudio?" A reporter was in his face.

Claudio had to calm himself and not physically handle the reporter. He had to get through to his father’s house and get inside as quickly as possible without losing his temper.

Closing the door behind him, Claudio could see Cristiano waiting by their father’s side. Their dad was sitting in his armchair, his head in his hands. He looked up at the sound of Claudio’s footsteps.

"Claudio..."

"Father... Please believe me, this is all a mistake. I was drugged and then set up. I never had anything to do with that prostitute or the drugs."

"I... If you tell me as a man that you had nothing to do with this, then I will believe you, son. But this does not solve the problem."

"Please, tell me how I can make this right?" Claudio asked, kneeling on the floor next to his father, who looked frailer than usual, the stress making its presence felt.

His father pondered for a moment in silence, then spoke: "I think that..."

"You have to own up to it, Claudio. Admit that the photos are real and accept responsibility," Cristiano offered.

Their father looked up and then straight into Claudio’s eyes. "Your brother is right. You must restore what little pride we have left in our family name. That is even more important than saving your career, which is probably over."

Claudio couldn’t believe what he was hearing. His career was over? But he had just got started! Then he saw it in his father’s eyes and it broke his heart. There were tears streaming down his fathers face.

"Oh, dad, please, don’t... I’ll do whatever you say to make this right!" said Claudio.

"There is only one way that I think this can be fixed, ” said Claudio’s father now getting a grip on himself.

“Please, Father, I’ll do anything.”

“You have to marry that girl. Make the outside world understand that it was not a one-night stand and you love her. People will forgive if it is an affair of the heart," his father said.

" I barely know her, dad!" Claudio shouted.

"Please, Claudio. For our father... For our family name…” said Cristiano. “If you marry this woman then you can show that you are not some high-flying sports star just using someone for kicks. This will at least restore some of our family honor," Cristiano’s expression was as grave as the situation.

"So, even if she
did
agree to this, I’d be stuck with this woman for the rest of my life?"

"She will agree, son. She is from the street and you will provide her with a lifestyle she could never even dream of; then, after two years, you may divorce each other. At least people will believe you were honorable enough”

“And what about the people who have done this to me?”

Claudio’s father sat back in his chair. “They can wait for another time. They no doubt want you out of the league because of your performances. When life picks you up, sometimes it is best not to struggle, but instead to learn to take the fall without injury, so you can fight another day. Clear your name first, Son. This is the only way.”

Claudio couldn’t believe what he was doing. He left his father’s villa, pushing through the crowds of reporters once more, and then into his car. He was heading home and thinking about calling a private detective to hunt down the prostitute who had ruined his life.

It took less than a day for the media to find Suzanne. They came with their notebooks and their cameras. They walked the streets showing photographs of the "woman with Claudio". Money changed hands between a reporter and a prostitute who knew where Suzanne would be.

She was walking along 5
th
Avenue, still in a daze about what had happened the day before. In truth, she felt sorry for Claudio. Suzanne had watched the story unfold on a TV in a hotel room she was able to pay for, thanks to Claudio’s generosity.

It just wasn’t fair. There he was, a committed famous athlete, and his career was now being destroyed.

"Suzanne!" The voices shouted from across the street.

Flashes of light flickered from their cameras, and a television crew ran in between the traffic to intercept her. Suzanne had never experienced anything like it. She was frightened. She didn’t want to be known as a hooker, but now that’s all the world had seen of her; it’s all they’d ever see. Who want to be with her now, when they knew what she was?

She was just a few yards from the front of her hotel, and with a dash, she made it just before the television crew were able to put questions to her. In her room, she cried. What was she going to do? She’d been thrown into prostitution because of bad luck, and now any dreams she had of getting off the streets seemed to be in tatters. Who would now employ her knowing that she was the drug covered prostitute with Claudio Vega?

Just as she sobbed into her hands, there was a knock at the door.

"Go away! Leave me alone!" Suzanne shouted, exhausted and distraught.

"Well, that’s not a very nice way to greet a friend, is it?" a familiar voice said from the other side of the door.

"Claudio!" Suzanne leaped up from where she was sitting and ran to the door, opening it.

She was so happy to see him. Not just because of his good looks, no, just to have a friend. In many ways, Claudio was the only person she had in the world, which was ironic since she’d only known him for two days.

Suzanne threw her arms around Claudio and hugged him. Claudio held her in a strong, affectionate brace. Finally, he pulled back and saw that she’d been crying.

"I saw the reporters outside, are you okay?" asked Claudio, his voice soft.

"You better get out of here... It’ll only make things worse for you if they see you with me..." Suzanne didn’t mean that. She really wanted him there.

"I managed to sneak in the fire-escape. I was wearing a disguise?" Claudio pulled a clip on beard and sunglasses from his pocket.

Suzanne laughed. It felt good. She hadn’t been happy in some time, and even just the shortest reprieve was welcome respite.

"I’m glad you’re here," said Suzanne, sitting down on an old sofa.

Claudio joined her. "So am I. So am I. Have you been okay?"

"It’s terrible... I feel awful for you..."

Claudio felt a stirring at her kindness. She seemed to put others first, and that was the one thing Claudio found most attractive in a woman.

"How did you find me?" asked Suzanne.

"I hired a private detective. Turns out the reporters were even better snoops than he was, a friend at a local radio station tipped me off."

They talked for a while, and as they did so both were amazed at how easily they connected. The conversation flowed like they’d known each other for years. They laughed and talked, and in that couple of hours, the bond grew between them.

But Claudio had been skirting around why he was really there, and felt it was time to approach the delicate subject. Yes, he wanted to make sure that Suzanne was okay, but he had his family honor on his mind, that was most important.

"Suzanne, how would you feel if I took you away from all of this?" Claudio said, his voice steady and serious.

"What... What do you mean?" Suzanne seemed sheepish.

"I want to make you a proposition. It’s a business proposition, but it will help both of us get out of this mess."

"What kind of proposition?" Suzanne was now getting nervous.

"Look, I’m dead in the water here. Those pictures of us, while they don’t categorically prove I took drugs and spent the night with a prostitute, they certainly imply it. I could go to the press and say we were drugged, that we were forced to do it, but that’s a hard sell. I could go to the police and get them to test me for drugs, but no matter what these things show, people will still believe I’ve brought the game into disrepute. I’ll at least be suspended from the sport for a couple of years..."

"How can I help?"

Claudio moved closer, and held Suzanne’s hand gently.

"My family’s reputation means more to me than any career, any trophy. But... If I admit that what those pictures show actually took place, and that you and I are... In love... Then perhaps it will gain enough sympathy that I can slowly win back my reputation, and perhaps even avoid a lengthy ban from the sport I love."

"I don’t understand."

"I’d like to hire you to be my wife.” He’d said it. It sounded preposterous when he heard it out loud, but if it was what his father wanted, then he had to give it a shot.

“Are you crazy?” Suzanne laughed because she didn’t know what else to do.

“No, I’m not crazy. I’m serious. You’d come and live with me for 24 months, that’s all. I’ll make sure you have everything you ever wanted. Afterwards, when we divorce quietly, I’ll ensure that you never need to worry about money again. You get off the streets, I salvage some of my family name, and the press won’t be quite as bad so perhaps any ban I’m given won’t be too long…”

“I don’t know…” She really didn’t. Suzanne was at the end of her tether, but she hated being dishonest, especially about something as important as marriage.

“Suzie… Can I call you that?” Claudio knew he had to work harder with Suzanne.

Suzanne nodded and smiled. It felt nice.

“Suzie… What other option do you have?”

Suzanne knew he was right. She didn’t have any other option. It was either get married for a couple of years and live a comfortable life, or be back on the streets, forced to have sex with men for money.

“Also, I’m pretty good company even if I do say so myself,” said Claudio.

Suzanne laughed, and in that moment she hugged him and said ‘yes’; and just like that, in the space of a couple of hours, everything seemed to be okay again.

Claudio and Suzanne met the public for the first time as a couple that evening. They walked out of the hotel, without any need for disguises, and held hands as Claudio addressed the press.

“It’s been a rough couple of days,” said Claudio loudly. “But I think it’s time that you all met Suzanne here, the love of my life. The photos you all saw yesterday were not what they seemed. I understand that the NFL will be concerned, but all will be made clear in the coming days. Thank you.”

Suzanne waved nervously at the press. They followed them as Claudio and Suzanne walked together smiling around the corner. There, Suzanne sat in Claudio’s Lamborghini, and they drove away to their next destination.

It was all happening so fast. Claudio welcomed Suzanne to his penthouse apartment. She’d never seen such a big place before - a TV that big, an apartment with a personal gym and pool. The whole place was incredible.

That night they opened a bottle of champagne and toasted their new beginning. The next day they would go clothes shopping. Buy in an entire walk in closet’s worth of clothes and shoes. After that, they would tour some of the cities most prestigious and expensive jewelry shops to buy an engagement ring. It was all for the media to believe that they were a real couple.

In those first few days it was all a blur to Suzanne. Going from an anonymous face in the city to one of the most talked about women in the country was difficult enough, but the culture shock of living the life of someone who was rich was the most exhilarating experience she’d ever had.

Sure, life had been tough on Suzanne, but finally it felt as though all that bad luck had changed, and it was all because of Claudio.

In the first few months everything seemed to be going according to plan. The press turned a scandal into a love story. A crazy, rags to riches tale of two people from opposite ends of the spectrum. This seemed to have turned public opinion. At first many were outraged that their idol Claudio Vega could be caught up in such a sordid event, but that turned to sympathy. Claudio’s people were working overtime to get the story out to the world. Claudio had scooped up this fragile beauty, he’d momentarily fallen into her world but their love for each other had pulled them both back from the precipice. This brought the public on side, and even the authorities backed out of a lengthy ban. He was to miss one season, and then he’d be back playing, doing what he loved.

The first hint of something sour came shortly after. At a small private wedding, both Suzanne and Claudio were married. Suzanne was wearing a stunning white wedding dress with intricate patterns and diamonds glistening on the material. Her hair was beautifully made up, and everyone agreed that she was one of the most incredible looking brides they’d ever seen.

But there was just one problem. Suzanne had spent a good deal of time with Claudio. She was developing feelings for him. Of course, she knew that the arrangement was to be a temporary one, but she just could not help herself. Any time she looked into those big kind eyes, or felt his embrace in front of the cameras, she fell further. `

Worse still, while she smiled as they married and read out the vows, she felt deep in her heart that the entire ceremony was a betrayal. How she wanted it to be real. It wasn’t that she thought she and Claudio should be getting married there and then, ‘till death do us part. No, it was that she always imagined that when she did get married it would be for keeps. This wasn’t it. Claudio could easily have become her one true love, but he wasn’t that there and then. He was a business arrangement.

After a meal with Claudio’s family, celebrating, Suzanne stepped outside for some air. As she looked out at the city from a balcony, she heard a voice behind her.

“It is difficult, is it not, child?”

Suzanne turned around; it was Claudio’s father, Maxwell.

“Oh, hello Maxwell,” she said, still feeling bad about the entire day.

“You smile my dear, but your eyes tell a different story. You long for something. Tell me, what is it?” Maxwell said, smiling kindly.

“I… I just… I value marriage, that’s all. It always seemed like such a special thing to me. I didn’t have much of a family, but I always thought I’d only get married once and that it would be for love.”

Maxwell stepped closer and held Suzanne’s hand. “I know all of this seems strange. But you have given yourself a chance for a better life, and you have saved my family name. Marriage is important, but living well must come first. You have done a great thing here today, and if this were to remain, I would be honored to call you my daughter in law.”

Maxwell kissed Suzanne on the cheek. They embraced, but as they did so an unseen tear rolled down Suzanne’s face.