Very Bad Billionaires (5 page)

“I don’t think. I’m not—”

Pulling gently, he stretched her legs farther and farther apart until she laid spread-eagle on the mattress. “Perfect, Bryce. Just perfect.”

Alston leaned over the bed, draping his chest across Bryce’s waiting body as he snagged a cuff from the bedpost. He unbuckled the soft leather and wrapped it around her ankle, cinching it tight and shortening the chain until her leg stayed open when he released her. Then he repeated the process on her other leg before stepping back to take in the sight.

Her ass laid right on the edge of the bed and with her legs spread so far, her entire pussy laid open and on display.
Mmm
. “Are you all right?”

She answered in a breathy whisper. “Yes.”

“Well, you’re about to be a million times better.” He stepped up to the bed and her open legs. “I think that’s enough bondage for tonight, don’t you? Of course, I could always tie your hands if you’d like.”

“No! I mean…I think you’re right.”

Alston smiled and reached out to stroke her nipple once more. She arched into him, head falling back, eyes fluttering as he rubbed. “Good girl. Now relax and enjoy yourself.”

Leaning over her, he took her nipple in his mouth, flicking back and forth across the hardened bud with his tongue. He worked both breasts—sucking one while kneading the other, over and over. She bucked against him, tugging against the restraints and reaching up to run her fingers through his hair.

“Oh, Alston!” Her desire and pleasure came out in whimpers and groans and he sunk lower. Kissing a trail from her breasts to her belly button, he worked his way down to the top of her slit.

As he dipped his tongue inside her slick folds, she cried out, thrashing on the bed before he could even caress her clit. With gentle pressure, he lapped at her plump, little nub, sliding her slick folds across it, teasing her desire higher with every stroke.

She grabbed at his head with her free hands, tugging on his hair as he latched on and refused to let go. He hadn’t let a woman touch him like that in ages—ordinarily it turned him off and shut him down—but with Bryce it only made him bolder. Hungrier.

Pulling off her clit, he thrust his tongue inside her tight channel. He pumped in and out until she rolled her hips into him—matching his rhythm, fucking his face like she’d eventually fuck his cock. He wanted to take her right then—raise up and slam himself balls deep without warning. But she deserved more.

To be pampered and cared for, brought to the brink of ecstasy and back again. He wanted her desperate for his thick shaft, not scared or unsure. Sliding back up, he teased her clit again and she broke, crying out in shock and wonder as an orgasm ripped through her.

He looked up, past her wet mound, over her gorgeous tits, to her face. Contorted in joy, mouth wide open in an O, flushed and hot—she was fucking beautiful. To think, he’d been ready to send her away only the day before. He couldn’t conceive of it now.

Standing up, he wiped his face with the back of his hand and tended to her restraints, unbuckling the leather and rubbing her ankles. For a novice in sex and bondage, Bryce’d surprised him. He climbed onto the bed and scooped her up in his arms.

She snuggled against him, wiped out and satisfied, and he smiled. He pulled her close with a kiss on her shoulder and wrapped her up in his embrace. Alston never thought he’d feel anything for a woman again—nothing more than sexual gratification or appreciation at the most.

But Bryce forced her way into his mind and body before he’d known what had happened. Had she been there all along and he’d never known? He wasn’t sure. And in the moment, he didn’t care. She was his and he was going to show her the world. As if she’d heard his private thoughts, she sighed and turned her head, pressing her cheek into his chest and smiling.

Yes
. It felt right to be with her, to be her lover instead of her guardian. To see her as a woman and not an obligation. In the morning, he’d ask her out on a date like a real man, not some coward hiding behind a mask. Fuck the paparazzi. With her wrapped up in his arms, he wanted to destroy his carefully constructed life and live. For her, he wanted more.

Chapter Five

Sunlight filtered through the plantation shutters and fell across Alston’s face. He’d been awake for a while, watching Bryce sleep and thinking of the future.
Solitary
. That’s the one word that defined him for over a decade. All business. Building up Hayes Industries until it owned a little bit of everything. Brick by brick. One real estate investment at a time. Until he owned not just apartments and condos and hotels. But Hayes Security, one of the biggest providers of corporate security guards in the country.

The notion of finding a woman to share more than a few hours tied to a bed? Ludicrous. Until Bryce. A horrible accident had brought her to his door. A girl who’s mother died because of his employee. His failing as a business owner. Had he been a better person back then, would he have given her more? Let her into his world and been a father figure? Alston snorted. He was glad he hadn’t. It meant loneliness for both of them for far too long, but he had her now as an equal. A lover. She was worth the wait.

He slid the sheet higher up her luscious curves and smiled. On any other day, he’d have been up checking his investments and tending to the business. But none of it mattered right then. Not when a gorgeous woman sprawled across his bed with acres of tan skin begging to be kissed. She’d probably wake up starved. And Malcolm hadn’t delivered breakfast as usual. He’d probably put two and two together and left them alone. He needed to give that man a raise.

Alston bent to kiss Bryce on the shoulder. If Malcolm weren’t willing to intrude, he’d rustle up breakfast for them both as soon as he fetched her something to wear. Slipping out of bed, he pulled on a pair of lounge pants and padded out of the room.

He felt lighter, freer than he had in years as he strode out of his wing and down the hall. Easing into Bryce’s quarters, he scanned the furniture and paused. The whole place had been packed up and a collection of luggage sat by the far wall.
Right. She was leaving
.

He hated to root through her things just to find some clothes to wear. But she’d want something. Kneeling at the nearest suitcase, he unzipped it and flipped the lid. A folder sat on top and he set it aside, shoving past sweaters, jeans, a robe.
Perfect!

He scooped up the robe, shoved all the clothes back into place, and zipped the suitcase closed.
Shit. The folder.
He grabbed it in a rush and the papers inside spilled onto the floor.
Damn it!
Setting the robe down, he reached for the mess, stacking it into neat piles until one caught his eye.
What the…?
He swore it had his name on it. With a frown, he set the rest of the stack down and began to read.

Dear Ms. Meadows,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted into the social psychology Ph.D. Program at New York University. Your thesis proposal—an examination of the effects of tragedy on both private and public figures—is unique and a perfect complement to our current faculty. The insight you will provide on a persona like Alston Hayes is incomparable will only assist you in completing your thesis in record time.

Congratulations on your acceptance, we look forward to working with you. Sincerely,

The Faculty

Alston reeled. She’d said she wanted to research tragedy. Its effect on people’s lives. Did that mean his? It couldn’t be. She wouldn’t go behind his back like that. No one knew about his past except his family, the MacMillans, and Malcolm.

He set the paper on the floor and took a measured breath.
Think it through
. The letter mentioned him by name. Implied she was going to write about and discuss him. That she’d provide “insight” to the faculty about his persona. A wave of bile crept up his throat. Had she really sold him out? Used his name and notoriety to snag a graduate school acceptance? He dragged his hand down his face and picked up the paper again, scanning for any other explanation. But he came up empty.

If she’d promised the school a chance to slip behind the image he’d painstakingly built and air his secrets…then she was what? Using him?
No
. He stood up and looked around the room, unable to focus as he pinched the bridge of his nose.
But the letter.
Closing his eyes, he thought about the day before. How she’d come from the brush of his riding crop against her clit. How she’d run her fingers through his hair as he pleasured her. How he’d fallen for her in a matter of hours.

And none of it was real. Flashbacks to a night so long ago flooded his mind. A girl, naked and tied to a bench, ass up in the air as a teenage Alston fucked her. Her moans and cries of pleasure echoing through the room right before his world crashed down.

He shook his head and forced the memories back into the dark. S
he’s just like Bianca. She fucking used me to get into graduate school
.
God, how could I be so blind?
The fear and rage and confusion of his past were everywhere. It was all coming back. He couldn’t separate Bryce from Bianca. The past from the present. The pain from the future. All he could see was betrayal and lies.

There was only one thing to do. Pulling himself together, he pushed his hair off his face and stalked down the hall, anger building with every step. He passed Malcolm with a tray full of coffee and pastries and never broke his stride.

“Your breakfast, sir,” Malcolm called out.

“I won’t be eating. Call the chauffeur, Malcolm. Miss Meadows is leaving. Now.” He kept walking, striking the floor with purpose as Malcolm struggled to catch up with him.

“But it’s Sunday, sir. The chauffeur is off today.”

“Then ready a car, I don’t care which one. She can keep it. But I want her out of here. Immediately.”

“Yes, sir.”

Slamming his palm out, the door to his wing flew back and crashed into the wall, shaking the entire hallway. He tossed open his bedroom door the same way as Bryce sat up on the bed. She blinked the sleep from her eyes and smiled as he forced himself to still.
I was such a fool
.

“Get out. Now.” His voice warbled but didn’t betray the full extent of his rage.

“What?” She squinted at him like he’d said she had two heads. “Alston, what’s happened? What’s going on?” As he smirked at her confusion, she scooted back, tugging at the covers. She pulled the sheet up over her naked body, and he laughed. He never knew he could sound so cold.

“You don’t deserve to hide from me.” In an instant, he’d ripped the sheet away. He wanted her naked and exposed. Her body. Her lies. Everything.

“Alston!” Bryce clawed at the bed, her breasts bouncing in the cool air as she tugged at the sheets. “You’re scaring me!”

“And you’re using me. Did you think I wouldn’t find out? That you’d weasel your way into my bed, uncover all my secrets, and then what? Use them to write your thesis? Make yourself famous?”

“What are you talking about? I don’t understand!” She scrambled off the bed, backing away from him until her ass hit the wardrobe. As she tried to cover herself with her hands, her eyes widened in confused panic.

“You used me. Just like Bianca. Did Malcolm tell you about her?”

“No! I don’t know what you’re talking about!”

“I don’t believe you.”

“It’s the truth. I—I admit, I asked about your past, but he wouldn’t say anything.”

“Oh, so you tried to get it out of him? How charming. And to think, I almost thought I loved you.”

Bryce paled and her eyes filled with tears. “Tell me what’s going on. Please. There has to be a misunderstanding.”

“I read the acceptance letter from NYU. The one where they lay it all out—how you’ll give them insight into
the
Alston Hayes and get yourself a shiny Ph.D., too.”

She shook her head and a tear slipped down her cheek. “It’s not like that. I’d never sell you out. Alston, please, just let me explain.”

“Save it. I don’t want your excuses.”

Bryce wavered for a moment and he thought she would run away. But she didn’t. Instead, she dropped her arms and stepped toward him. Naked and bold. Gorgeous. A pang of arousal rushed through him and he cursed his body’s reaction. He’d never touch her again.

“Alston, I applied to the program almost a year ago, back when you never gave me the time of day.” She shook her head. “Hell, I don’t think we’d talked in months. What I told you before was the truth. I want to study tragic events—how terrible things shape people, transform them. I sure as hell know my life changed. It has nothing to do with you.”

“They mentioned me by name, Bryce.”

She threw up her hands. “Of course they did. Everyone knows I’m the orphan you rescued. The one you vaulted from the depths of despair to luxury and riches. I’m a fucking Cinderella story, remember?”

She stepped closer and he could see the shimmer of tears swimming in her eyes. “I was on every newspaper front page for weeks. Photo after photo of the two of us at my mom’s funeral. Your arm wrapped around me as I stared at the coffin. But that’s all it was, right? A photo op?

“You and I both know I’m not Cinderella and up until yesterday, you weren’t fucking close to a prince charming. It didn’t matter how much I crushed on you. Or how sexy I thought you were. I was just a box you checked. Charity, done. Not a person, not a part of your life. Not a woman standing in front of you telling you she loves you.”

Alston closed his eyes and backed up. She wasn’t going to worm her way back into his heart. Not with her empty proclamations of love. It couldn’t be real. She was just like Bianca. He opened his eyes and ground his teeth together as he looked at her. “Good. Because I wouldn’t want you to embarrass yourself.”

The hurt he’d inflicted blossomed across her like a gunshot wound. Held-back tears spilled onto her cheeks and ran past him, not caring about her naked body, him or anything. He’d finally broken her—but instead of her body, bound and blissed out beneath him, he’d shattered her heart.

* * * * *

Bryce ran, blinded by tears and anger into her room. She knew he could be cold. But she never knew he could be so cruel.

If he’d only listened, he’d have understood. She would never use him—not in the way he was thinking. Sure, she explained about him and her past in the application. But if she hadn’t, what would they have thought?

Everyone knew who she was. The whole city watched when he took her in, expecting a little orphan Annie in the flesh. If she’d ignored him in her application, she’d have looked like an idiot. Going on and on about her mom, how her death at the hands of a Hayes security guard changed her life, but never once mentioning him? The benefactor who paid for her boarding school, her degree from Yale. The billionaire who swooped in and saved the day? Impossible.

But instead, he’d lashed out. Shown his true colors. He might be sexy and powerful, but he wasn’t controlled. Not anymore. Now he was just an asshole in an overpriced suit. And she’d fallen in love with him.
Damn it!

She fell in front of a suitcase and tugged it open. For the second time in her life, he’d turned her world upside down in an instant. But this time she’d fallen. Hard. She wiped the tears and snot from her face and pulled out some clothes. If he wanted her to leave, she’d leave. And she’d never come back. The hell with him and his problems.

Tugging on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, she looked around the room. The room she’d come home to every summer for the past eight years. The room she’d never see again.
Goodbye, fantasy land. Hello, reality
. Grabbing her purse, she dug for her phone when her hand brushed black velvet.
The diamond
.

Pulling the box out of her purse, she opened it up and shook her head. It still glittered and sparkled like the expensive bauble it was, but all she saw was empty glass. He thought she was a liar? Someone hell-bent on ruining his life? Fine. She’d ruin something all right.

Slinging her purse over her shoulder, she walked out of her room and down the hall to the front entry—a grand marble affair with curving staircases and an oversized mirror on the wall. Walking up to the mirror, she took stock. Hair a mess, eyes bloodshot and puffy, hips too big, breasts stretching the t-shirt. A disaster. Only fair that he had a mess to clean up, too.

Without a second thought, she pulled her arm back and hurled the diamond as hard as she could. It hit with a sickening crunch and the mirror shattered—shards of glass spraying in all directions. He’d probably be stepping on bits and pieces for days.
Serves him right. The bastard
.

She headed for the front door, ready to call a cab, when a voice called out. “Miss Bryce? Please wait.”

Bryce spun on her heel and Malcolm rushed up to her. “I’m so sorry, Bryce. I’ll talk to him. He’ll come around.”

She shook her head and fought back a fresh wave of tears. “No, he won’t, Malcolm.”

“Give him some time.”

“I can’t. I—it hurts too much.”

Malcolm frowned. “I’ll arrange for your things to be shipped to your apartment. They’ll be there in the morning.”