My Bad Boy's Secret: A Bad Boy Billionaire Romance (196 page)

I felt relief that her answer was yes. "Anything that you want to do Ava, anywhere you want to live. Anywhere you want to go… I will be at your side. At your side just as you have been at mine, Mrs. Ava Flynn.”

"I like the way that sounds, it would look great on our mailbox in Hawaii," she said as she kissed me.

AVA

When Zak asked me the question I never thought I would hear I thought I would faint. I never thought about being a woman constantly on the run would ever find a man that would understand what I had to go through. I thought being on the run meant a life of loneliness, but now I would have a husband. Not just any husband, a trained Navy Seal who would give his life for me. It was almost too much to ask. I was on cloud nine. We made love that night, knowing that we would be man and wife and it was the best sex of my life.

Two days later it was time. Everything that I had suffered in my life was because of this. I appeared in court with my father and saw the man that I had been running from for so long. I was surprised that I was not scared of him. He was not as I remembered. Now he was frail and thin and had gray hair… he was an old man. I gladly gave my testimony, and everything that I had been through including what the agent had said. And of course the fact that agents confession was on tape from the security cameras at the agency didn’t help them, so in a Way Donica putting the ten million reward out on the street only created more evidence against him. Solid evidence in the form of video and audio. It was like he had shot himself in the foot.

He was sentenced to life in prison and all his finances were taken away, he was stripped of all of it. This meant that he had no more funds to use to finance anything against me or my father. I was now a free woman. It was the best feeling I have ever felt. After the trial Zak and I were on a plane back to Hawaii.

"How do you feel, Ava? This must be very surreal for you?” He asked me.

"Yes, it is surreal I never thought I would feel free ever again. I always thought there would be a villain hunting me, and now it is finally over. It's been 10 years, and I honestly don't know how to get used to not being chased," I said as a snuggled against him.

"We'll get through this new territory together. It will take time before you can feel like you were not being hunted, but it will go away. I promise you that. I am here for you to protect you always,” Zak said as he kissed me on the forehead.

A week later we had moved into a new place. My old apartment just had too many memories of bad guys chasing me, and of having to escape out the window. We wanted to start fresh. So we found a cute, oceanfront beach bungalow. It was perfect. This was our new home, and it would be the scene of our new start. We could do anything, I now had freedom and I would continue my education in biology. Zak on the other hand found new ways to use his training as a Navy Seal. He opened up a dive shop, teaching people how to dive, and more than that how to react in survival situations. It was very popular and everyone wanted to learn from a Navy Seal, especially one that looked as good as he did.

We had our wedding on the beach, it was simple and small and we were married a few days after we returned to Hawaii. We did not want to wait. We of all people knew that life should not be taken for granted, and if you want something to go after it immediately, because you never know what could happen. Time was too short, and the fact that we both knew that, led us to lead an epic and adventurous life and we never squandered our time. I was happy and protected with my gorgeous Navy Seal.

BLAKE

Parts 1 -3

A Bad Boy Billionaire Romance

By: Nicole Price

Chapter 1 – Rose

The clock in the car reads 8:30, but I know it’s actually later than that. The clock being 15 minutes slow is just one among the list of terrible things about this old piece of junk; the only car I can afford right now. I pressed down harder on the gas pedal, because showing up late on my first day of work is absolutely not something I want to do. Even though I managed to wake myself up at 6:30 to prepare myself and my kids, I still wasted so much valuable time sitting through traffic and getting lost finding the new school.

Moving across the country wasn’t something I ever wanted to do. I imagined that I would spend my whole life living in Seattle, where I was born and raised, but life had other plans for me. Atlanta is a totally different place, and I’m still getting used to everything here. But I figure that not having to ever see my ex-husband and his deadbeat family would be worth anything I’d ever have to endure way out here.

My kids don’t have a father and I don’t have a husband, but considering who that used to be, it’s a very good thing. I met Ricky back in college and fell head over heels for him. He was a dream to look at, a smooth talker, and had big plans for himself. It just goes to show that the guys with the best appearances, are usually the ones to watch out for.

We got married the same day we graduated, and everything went to hell the next day. It turned out that his “millionaire family” was on welfare, and the corporate finance job and fleet of sports cars he had didn’t exist either. I had put off all of my post-graduation plans for nothing.

Ricky wasn’t just a liar, though. He was also a pig and a thug. He’d been having other women in our bed even when we were dating, something I learned about from his dad, who thought that telling me about that would convince me to have sex with him. When I confronted Ricky about this, he looked like he had just crapped his pants. Then he laughed and dared me to stop him.

My parents gave us some money to live on, but after six months, they were sick of me and Ricky. They weren’t happy about us getting married from the start, and even stopped talking to me. They told me to come back when I got my life back on track, by which they meant get rid of my husband. A small part of me though, still remembered the boy who romanced me in the university, and I held out hope that I could change him. I hate my past self for being so naïve.

Ricky kept sleeping with half of the city, never even bothering to find a job and support the two of us. I did all sorts of odd jobs and worked numerous minimum-wage positions just to make ends meet, while he felt free to take my money anytime to buy things for himself. He usually liked spending my money on drugs, which made him either run away on benders for days, or made him tear up our apartment and beat me.

We got evicted just a few days before I went into labor. We knew I was pregnant before we married, and I had been excited at first about becoming a mother. I’d be lying if I said I never once considered getting an abortion at least a few times after seeing Ricky’s true colors. I gave birth to twin girls, which made Ricky even angrier. He wanted a boy.

After he was arrested for DUI a second time, I got one of my old friends, a newly minted lawyer, to serve Ricky divorce papers. It was a piece of cake to convince the judge to approve it, and I even got a restraining order to keep myself, Jessica, and Amber safe. I only wish I had left sooner.

I was single again, in debt, with two daughters and no idea what to do with myself. I moved back in with my parents, but unlike most young people, I had just escaped a nightmare of a marriage with the traumas to show for it. Having trouble sleeping and terrified of thinking about the future, I handled life one day at a time. I finally decided to apply for law school. It was my goal when I had started college to become a lawyer, but I’d abandoned that when I met Ricky. Now I planned to revive this dream, not only for myself, but for the sake of my daughters.

Working through four years of grueling studying, debating, and interning wasn’t easy, but my parents helped care for my kids, which took a considerable load off of me. It was invigorating to be back in school, to accomplish things for myself, and to work towards a goal.

I finally graduated last year, and I’ve had fewer panic attacks and flashbacks lately. I was originally, dead set on working in corporate law, but in this terrible economy, none of the white-shoe firms are hiring. So, I got a glowing recommendation from my friend and headed east to work in the Atlanta district attorney’s office. It pays well and it’s a big step for a rookie lawyer like myself.

Holy crap
, I thought as I narrowly dodged a truck. I’d been so occupied with my thoughts that I wasn’t even looking where I was going. I saw my exit flash up on a sign, so I got ready to turn left and get off the highway.

My cell rang, and I pulled it from my handbag and answered it. I smiled as I noticed the name and number.

“Planning on showing up to work today, or should I tell everyone that the new assistant DA already quit?” That sly voice always cheered me up.

“I’ll be there in five minutes, Luciana,” I replied playfully. “Then again, maybe I won’t. You know I never even wanted to go into criminal law in the first place. Everyone knows the real money in being a lawyer is being in business for yourself.”

“Don’t screw with me, Whitney,” retorted Luciana with amusement “after everything I’ve done for you, I’m ready to see you help me out. You’ve got a bright future here in Atlanta, if you work hard.”

Luciana and I have known each other ever since high school. She moved around a lot and we haven’t seen each other as much as we would like, but the two of us are like sisters. She’s the one who was my divorce attorney, gave me all the advice I needed to survive law school, and helped me land this job. If there’s one thing I definitely prefer about Atlanta over Seattle, it’s living in the same city as my best friend.

“I can’t wait to start,
Lucy
,” I said, knowing that she wouldn’t be happy to hear that. She’s a proud Italian, and gets frustrated that so few people can pronounce Luciana correctly, and just call her
Lucy
instead.

“You are this close to getting assigned to paralegal work,” Luciana hissed. “Don’t forget, in a couple weeks we’re having an office party for Halloween. Make sure to come so I can introduce you to some of the bigwigs in the local city government. Plus, there ought to be plenty of hot guys for you to pick apart.”

That last part made me stiffen. Call me cautious, but after everything I’d suffered, I was in no position to start dating again. I was too busy working, being a parent, and trying to get accustomed to a new city where I knew no one. Deep down, I did miss dating, and I didn’t want to be single forever, but I had too many good reasons to not get mixed up with man just yet.

“That would be nice,” I said, pretending to sound excited. As I talked, I saw City Hall loom in front of me. Time to start a new chapter of my life.

Chapter 2 - Blake

Ding.
That sound tells me that the bike needs gas, but there’s no way I’m pulling over right now. I’ll have to put more distance between me and them before I even think about stopping. I’m a dead man if I can’t get out of the state by today.

I didn’t do my job, and now my bosses are out to punish me.

Most people, if they don’t get their job done right, they get scolded, or demoted, or fired. They lose their job and have to look for a new one. But the end result is usually that they get left alone. They try to find a new job and find new people to work for, and stop being alone.

For me, being alone is the only way I will be able to stay alive.

I just got to lay low and not make any noise. It shouldn’t be too hard. I’ve been on my own for most of my entire life. I never really got to know my parents; they were also too strung out on drugs or locked away to pay any attention to me. And my siblings split up and left me to fend for myself as well. So as early as I can remember, I got mixed up with a bad crowd. I never joined a gang, but I did plenty of illegal stuff to survive. Selling drugs, burglary, armed robbery, smuggling, fraud. You name it, I did it.

I never got much schooling. I learned by watching what everyone else in my neighborhood did in order to get ahead, or at least not get crushed. The whole of Detroit has been in bad shape for as long as anyone can remember. In the part of the city I lived in, being a criminal was the normal thing guys my age did.