The Billionaire's Bet #3: A Risky Raise (Erotic Romance with alpha male) (6 page)

BOOK: The Billionaire's Bet #3: A Risky Raise (Erotic Romance with alpha male)
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I was still woozy, unable to resist as the put me in the back of a truck. My arms and legs were tied
, and I had no way of escaping. When the trunk was closed, I screamed.

No sound penetrated the thick armor of this car. I was all alone again, in the darkness, kidnapped by people who wanted something
, and Dominic was involved. Dominic.

Shit, this is what he meant.

I should’ve listened. I shouldn’t have opened the door, should’ve stayed put and kept quiet. Why was I so stupid? I risked my own life, and now I wasn’t certain I would survive.

After a half an hour, the car came to a halt. My body rolled back and forth because of all the sudden turning and twisting a
nd brakes being pulled. When light shone into the trunk again, I was happy to see it. Happy to know I wouldn’t be in this tiny space anymore. At the same time, I was terrified of what would happen to me.

The man grabbed me and put me down.
I quickly glanced around and saw we were in a parking lot. The man untied my legs and held my arms so tight that I could feel my veins pulse underneath. My tears had slathered my entire face and my hair was stuck against it. I felt miserable and sick to my stomach.

“Well, well, what do we have here?” The woman said. I could hear her voice only faintly, as she was in the distance. She probably wasn’t talking to me.

“Come to take your sweet girl home? Are you finally man enough to honor your agreement? I’m surprised you came alone.”

I couldn’t see what was happening, because I was still kept behind the truck by the man that had abducted me, but my other senses were on sharp. I could hear something being thrown and slid
e across the floor. A zipper being opened. Someone muffling through it.

“Show her to him.”

The man squeezed me harshly and took me to the front of the car. I blinked a couple of times.

Oh my god. I can’t believe my eyes. Is this really true?

It was Dominic, standing there, on the other end of the parking lot. A bag of money lay in between the two sides.

 

Chapter 6

 

“Dominic?”

“Julie!” He yelled.

His voice brought more tears to my eyes. How I wanted to run into his arms and be free.

The man’s hold on me tightened.

“Let me go!” I screamed.

“Soon, honey,” the woman said.
“I’ll need to check if your Dominic here gave us what we asked for.”

Money? They wanted money? And they took me for it?

The woman searched through the bag and counted the stash with her thin fingers until she held a finger up in the air.

“You sure about this, boss?” the man said to her.

“Yes, yes, go ahead. A deal is a deal.”

He pushed me forward and then let me go. I ran. My lungs were burning with heat as I crossed the parking lot and threw myself into Dominic’s open arms. His warm hands enwrapped me into his coat
, and he shuffled me toward his car, which wasn’t the usual limo. He quickly opened the door and nudged me inside, then got into the driver’s seat. He hit the gas, and I could hear the squeaks of the tires as he raced off.

 

***

 

Dominic carried me up in his arms, all the way to the loft. The man in front of the door was gone. Traces of his body, the blood, the bullet shells vanished. It was as if he never existed.

I was too stunned to talk.

Dominic used his elbow to open the door and his foot to close it. With care he put me down on the sofa. He ran to the kitchen and came back with a knife, which he used to cut open the bonds around my arms. It slithered off me and I wrapped my arms around him.

“Oh
, Jesus, Julie …” he whispered. The knife dropped to the floor.

He sniffed
, and I could hear him cry. Tears ran down my face as well. I used my hand to wipe my face, and when Dominic looked at me, I could see he’d been worried to death about me.

“I’m sorry, I’m so sorry,” he said, and he clenched my face between his hands and smothered me with kisses. I could barely breathe.

He stood up and grabbed a wet towel from the kitchen, which he used to clean my face. He rubbed my painful arms between his hands and left kisses all over my skin.

“What happened? What did you do?” I said, my voice still wavering.

“I never thought they’d actually do it … I’m sorry, Julie.” He whimpered, and his head sank between his shoulders. “My dad had an arrangement with a drug gang. The casino was on the verge of shutting down, and he needed money to keep it going, so he borrowed some from the wrong people. He still owed them money when he died,” he said in between his sniffs.

“So they went after you?”

He put his arms around me and kissed my shoulder. “Yes. And the company. That’s why I hired Sharon, to figure out how to get them. I couldn’t let it get out to the public. The casino was only just recovering from the huge slump, and if that shit had gone public, it would’ve destroyed the casino.”

“So you chose to keep quiet?” I said. My body
shivered from the sheer knowledge.


I wanted to do what was best,” he said. “They sent me all kinds of threats, which got me so frightened … God, you don’t want to know the disgusting things they sent to me.”

No wonder he turned to the booze.

“I don’t even know how they found out where I live,” he said.

I closed my eyes, trying to come to terms with what just happened. I was kidnapped, because Dom owed some drugs gang money. The thought made me furious. Why hadn’t he protected me? Then again, it wasn’t his fault he was in this mess to begin with.
Plus, I didn’t listen to him, which would’ve been the smart thing to do.

“That’s why I told you not to talk to anyone
,” he said. “I was so afraid they’d take you away. I knew that if they found out I cared about you, they’d use you. That’s why I was so scared of falling in love, because I knew they could use it against me.”


You let them use you, Dom, and they used me. Why didn’t that private investigator do anything?” I said, my voice still hoarse.

“She did. She tried to help me figure things out, but I didn’t want to give in to them either.
I tried to go against them, Julie. Giving criminals what they want is not what I do, but when they took you … I couldn’t just stand by any longer.”

“You gave them what they wanted? Why?” I said, flab
bergasted. “They kidnapped me!”

“No, I didn’t. I gave them fake money. It’ll only take a few hours before they find out that it’s not real and then they’ll come for the both of us. That’s why we need to move.
We can’t stay in my house anymore. It’s not safe.”

I looked at my hands, which were covered in bruises. I didn’t want to look at him. Couldn’t, maybe. All I knew was that I just had the most horrifying experience ever and that I didn’t want to feel that ever again. Something had to change.

“Do you know what I’ve been through?” I whispered. “I saw a man get shot in front of my eyes.”

“What?” Dominic’s eyes widened.

“It was right there,” I said, pointing at the door. “The doorman. He was killed, and I don’t know what they did, but there’s nothing left of him. He was there, I swear!”

“I believe you, Julie,” he said, and he frowned, biting his lip.
“Shit, this is far worse than I imagined.”

“They grabbed me, drugged me, chained me and locked me up
,” I continued. “I’ve been through hell, Dom. I can’t … I can’t …” I was hyperventilating and crying at the same time.

He shushed me and tried to calm me down by rocking me back and forth. “You’re safe now. You’re with me.”

“I don’t feel safe,” I muttered.

He looked down upon me. “What can I do? Please, tell me what I can do to ease the pain? I cannot tell you how sorry I am, because the words don’t feel like they’re enough. I’ll
never
let them get their hands on you again.” He squeezed me tight against his chest. “They’re going to pay for this. I’m not going to let them get away.”

We sat there, on the couch, still rocking back and forth, crying against each other. His fingers were spread out across my back, his warm body encapsulating me. I blocked out everything that happened today, to cope with the pain. I pushed the memories to the far corners of my mind, trying to erase them.

Dominic left soft pecks on top of my head. “I don’t want to lose you, Julie. Never again. I’ve never loved a woman this much and I’ll do anything for you. I want to keep you safe and from now on I’m going to do everything I can to make that happen.”

“Like telling
me what the fuck is going on?”

He chuckled shortly. “
Yes, something like that. You’ve given me so much and all I’ve done is hurt you. I don’t want that anymore. I never wanted that.”

“I kno
w …” I said. “I love you too …”

He nudged me forward to look at me. “But?” He wiped away a tear from my eye. “Sa
y what you need to say, Julie.”

I sighed and looked into his blue eyes for a while. Those mesmerizing eyes kept their hold on me like a magnetic force. I didn’t want to look away, but my brain told me I should. This time I listened to my heart. “There’s no
‘but’,” I said. I didn’t know if that was the truth, but at least for now, it was enough.

He pressed his lips on top of mine and kissed them like he’d never kissed them before. It was exactly the kind of soothing love I needed to feel okay again.

Whatever would happen, I knew I could handle it. I’d been through the worse already. I had Dominic by my side, and now that the truth was finally out, I knew it only meant he’d protect me with his life. I could feel it from the way he kissed me, like he wanted to safe keep me. And I did actually feel safe with him. He was the only person in this world who could make me feel that way. And I cherished that.

 

###

 

THE END OF

THE BILLIONAIRE’S BET: A RISKY RAISE

Stay on the lookout for the sequel

THE BILLIONAIRE’S BET:
A FINAL GAME

 

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Links to Clarissa Wild’s books

The Billionaire’s Bet Series

(FREE!)
The Billionaire’s Bet #1: A Seductive Deal

The Billionaire’s Bet #2: A Hot Call

~ ~ ~

Enflamed (Boxed Set)

Which includes:

(FREE!)
Raveled By You (Enflamed, #1)

Hooked By You (Enflamed, #2)

Cling To You (Enflamed, #3)

Cherished By You (Enflamed, #4)

~ ~ ~

Doing It (Boxed Set)

Which includes:

Doing It Wild (Doing It, #1)

Doing It Risqué (Doing It, #2)

Doing It Free (Doing It, #3)

~ ~ ~

Short Stories:

First Dance With You

 

Visit Clarissa Wild on Amazon
for current titles.

 

 

About the author:

Clarissa Wild is an avid reader and writer of sexy stories about hot men and feisty women. Her other loves include her furry cat friend and learning about different cultures. In her free time she enjoys watching all sorts of movies, reading tons of books and cooking her favorite meals.

 

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BOOK: The Billionaire's Bet #3: A Risky Raise (Erotic Romance with alpha male)
11.1Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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