Pawn of the Billionaire (4 page)

I
went
into work the next morning with my head up and a steely determination in my heart. This was not going to be my life. I didn’t know how things were going to change, but I was just damn sure that somehow they were going to. I was going to change my life.

Marco was as good a boss as I supposed I was going to get, but being yelled at in front of a room full of customers had made me realize that I was on my own. Nobody was going to come and get me out of there. I had to do this for myself.

When the evening shift girl had taken over, I’d gone traitorously to the next street diner. The coffee was more expensive there, but the free Wi-Fi made up for it.

It was hard to browse on my old phone, but I did the best research I could. I just knew my idea was a good one, but I’d never afford an app developer. So I had to learn to code my own stuff.

I’d gone home buzzing. I could learn on free programs. I wouldn’t have to pay for the proper software, but it would take me longer. I didn’t mind that so much, just so long as I felt I was moving forward.

As I strode along, I put my head up. I didn’t mind the driving rain. I was going to be someone. I could work at home in the evenings, sketching out what the app should do and look like, then I’d go to the library on my days off, and watch the youtube videos on the bigger screens.

As I went into the diner, it felt different. I knew what I was going to do, and this job wasn’t my life. It was a stepping stone, a way to keep a roof over my head until I could get a better job or make money from my app. I smiled as I took off my coat and went through to the back.

“Hi, Pete.” The day started the same way as all the others.

“Hi, Toni. Bacon sandwich coming up.” He looked over at me. “Has something happened? You look different.”

I grinned. “Nah, not really. I’ve just decided I’m going to do something with my life, that’s all. And I think I’ve worked out how to do it.” I brewed the tea for us and began my routine.

I
t was mid-morning
, and I was clearing tables with my back to the door, when I heard it swing open, and got the same jolt of arousal as I had from the hot visitor yesterday. My core turned liquid, and my belly clenched. God! I hadn’t even seen him, but I knew who it was. I finished stacking the plates onto the tray, but I didn’t pick it up. I turned and he was standing, watching me, waiting to be shown to a table. My customers never did that. It wasn’t that sort of diner.

I went towards him, feeling the heat of my face, wishing I wasn’t blushing. “Would you like to sit here today?” I indicated a table by the window, where Sam wouldn’t brush past him and there was no chance of his coat getting soiled. He had a different one on today, I noticed. I wished I could afford more than one coat.

He moved towards the table. “Thank you.” Then he looked around. “No Sam today?”

“No.” I was worried about him. He did miss the occasional day, but after what had happened yesterday I was worried. But I wasn’t going to get into conversation about it. “Coffee?”

His eyebrow went up a fraction. “Yes, please.”

I nodded and went to take the tray back to the kitchen and collect a coffee for him. My mind pictured him. His hair was dark, but there were just a few strands of gray at his temples. He looked very distinguished and I found his faint English accent really sexy. I plonked the tray down by the sink, scowling. Why the hell was he having this sort of effect on me? I didn’t have time to go out with men. I was too tired in the evenings, too grungy from my hellhole of a room. I never felt particularly attractive, and although I found a lot of men hot, I’d never felt this way before. I wondered why he’d come back. Even I knew that the coffee was foul and the setting awful. It was only okay if it was all you could afford. He didn’t fit into that category.

I took his coffee over with a plate of cookies. “You paid too much yesterday. Cookies on the house.” I smiled uncertainly at him.

He looked up at me, a slight smile on his face. “Thank you. Did I hear the owner calling you Toni yesterday?”

“Yes.” I waited a moment.

“I was hoping during your break you’d be able to come and sit here.” He paused. “I want to talk to you.”

I stared at him. “Talk to me?” Then my mind caught on what he’d said. “I don’t get a break here. Thought you’d notice there’s no one else to wait tables.”

His lips tightened slightly. “I see.” He looked around. Marco was watching us from the hatch in the kitchen. The man nodded. “Then bring me another coffee in five minutes please.” He looked away and pulled out his phone.

I shrugged and carried on with my job. When I took his next coffee over, he put his hand out and covered mine. He glanced back. Marco wasn’t looking. He looked up at my face. “I do need to talk to you. If you can’t talk here, then will you come out to dinner with me? I need to apologize to you for not intervening when the owner was having a go at you yesterday. And there’s something else I want to discuss with you. I can’t do that here.”

I stood and gaped at him. “Out to dinner?” My mind rejected that, but my heart screamed yes. I hadn’t had a date in ages, and this guy? Well, he was freaking gorgeous. Was that an English saying? My lips twitched, and his eyebrows shot up.

“Yes. Out to dinner. Please. What I want to talk to you about, it’s important.” He reached in his pocket, took out a small silver box. He took out a business card and wrote rapidly on the back. “Here, I’ve booked a table for two at eight.” He looked up again. “Please come.”

Mechanically, I took the card and read what he’d written. I felt my eyes widen. I’d never been inside that restaurant. “I … I don’t finish here until seven-thirty. I guess I might be bit late.” I bit my lip. “The bus takes a while.”

“I’ll send the car for you.” His voice was incisive. “Can you be ready at eight? Or eight-fifteen?”

I looked up, startled. “Well. I suppose so.”

I turned the card over and my insides did a somersault. App developer. He was an app developer. How in hell did he know about my plan? I slipped the card into my pocket, and turned to go.

He looked surprised, maybe my shock had showed. “Toni.” He waited until I turned back. “The car will be outside your apartment from eight. It’ll wait until you’re ready.” He smiled, a slightly crooked smile, devastatingly sexy. “Don’t worry if you’re a bit late, I don’t bite.”

I found myself smiling back at him, and went to face Marco, whose suspicious face was glaring at me.

A
ll that afternoon
, I hugged the knowledge of my evening date to myself. Customers came and went, while I panicked inside about what I would wear, what he would say to me, and whether I would know how to use all the cutlery and which wine glass I’d use.

At one point, I realized I hadn’t looked at his name and nipped to the restroom. I stared at the card. The Hon. James Sandiford. What was an Honorable? Did it mean he was some sort of Lord? I shook my head over it. James suited him, though. It was an old-fashioned name, and he seemed to have a sort of old-fashioned courtesy about him. He was hot, though. At the mere thought of a date with him, I could feel my core heating. My panties dampened, and my pulse began to race.

I tucked the card back in my pocket, and gave myself a firm talking-to.
It’s not a date, Toni. He said he wants to talk to me. It’s not a date
.

But my heart continued to do flip-flops of desire through the afternoon, and my mind wondered how an app developer could have found out I’d designed a new app in my mind when I’d not told a single person.

So, when I did get home, I was a mess of conjecture and still didn’t know what I was going to wear. Well, I did, of course. There was only one possible choice. I had one dress that a school friend had bought me to wear when I was her bridesmaid a couple of years ago. It wasn’t a proper bridesmaid dress, and was swirly enough to look like a party dress too.

I’d hardly ever worn it, and once I slipped it over my head, I felt really uncomfortable in it, not at all myself. But I stared at myself in the tiny mirror, having done the best that I could. I dug out the matching clutch purse, and dropped in a tiny notebook and pen. If this was a business talk, I was ready. Then I caught sight of myself in the mirror again. My shining eyes and reddened lips were outward evidence of my inner excitement. I was off to see the Hon. Mr. James.

I decided to enjoy myself.

When I got to the front door, and I saw the large, low limo waiting, I felt like Cinderella ready for the ball, and the driver leapt out and opened the rear door for me. “Miss Chapman,” he murmured, and I seated myself on the expanse of dark leather, smiling nervously.

When he opened the door for me at the restaurant, I was shaking with nerves. I looked at the huge ornate entrance, the uniformed doormen, and the waiter with the napkin over his arm.

I clutched my purse very tightly. I wondered if they’d look at me like I’d crawled out from under a rock, and say I wasn’t wanted.

B
ut I was
. The doorman approached and said, “Ms. Chapman, please come this way.” His polite, grave manner and respectful glance was a world away from my usual life, and I felt taller, more confident.

The waiter led me through to a quiet, candle-lit balcony. James was standing beside the table, waiting for me. He smiled and came forwards.

“Thank you for coming, Toni. I know you must be tired after work.” He nodded the waiter away, and held the chair for me. My heart was pounding. This whole place was so surreal compared to what I was used to.

“Thank you.” I didn’t know what to call him, and looked down. The place setting glittered, there was more silverware than I could ever have imagined, and I could feel my breathing tighten.

He leaned forward from his seat opposite me. “Don’t worry. Nobody will be bothered if you do something differently to the way I do it. I just want you to relax and enjoy the evening.”

I glanced up. His face was open and his eyes on mine were understanding.

I took a breath. “How did you know where I lived? Have you been following me?”

He sat back, looking at me cautiously. “I’m sorry, it must look strange to you.” He smiled slightly. “I hope once I’ve told you what I need to, then you’ll understand how this all came about.”

He nodded to the waiter, who approached with the menus and wine list. Then he turned to me. “But let’s order first, or it’ll get very late.” He didn’t open the wine list.

“We’ll have a bottle of the special champagne please, Ralph. Then —” He looked over at me. “Would you like a soft drink too?”

I nodded. “I’d like a Coke, please.”

I watched as the slight expression of distaste crossed his face. I was sure he thought he was totally expressionless, and I tried not to let my lips twitch.

“And a cola for the lady. We’ll choose the wine when we know what we’re eating.”

“Sir.” The wine waiter bowed away.

“Well?” James was looking over at me thoughtfully.

“Well, what?” I was a bit suspicious.

“What did you think was so funny when I was placing the order?” he said.

I smiled properly. “It was you thinking you didn’t look disapproving when I asked for Coke.”

His chuckle was low and sexy and went straight to my core. I dropped my head, hoping he wouldn’t see my instant arousal. For God’s sake, I told myself. You don’t know him. You can’t get involved.

When I looked up, the drinks had arrived. The maitre d’ was opening the champagne, and he’d obviously had a lot of practice. The cork went on a side plate next to James, and I watched as what was obviously a practiced ritual resulted in a crystal glass of clear champagne each. I also had a cut glass tumbler with ice and virtually a fruit salad floating in the Coke.

Then it was time to order. I followed James’ lead, still unsure why I was there, and anxious to get to the conversation.

Once the head waiter had left our side, James leaned forward.

“Let’s get started, Toni. I can see you’re impatient to know why you’re here. The first thing I wanted to do was to apologize properly for not intervening when your boss was giving you such a hard time yesterday. I thought it was completely out of order, both the reason for the reprimand, and the way in which he did it.” He moved a knife a fraction. “I wanted to jump up and stop it right there, but — well...” He looked a bit embarrassed. “I didn’t really trust myself.” He looked up and grinned. “Then I saw you were very capable of dealing with him yourself. You obviously know exactly how to appease him without giving an inch that matters.”

I tried to stay serious, but I knew my lips were curving in a reluctant smile. “I’ve worked there a long time, Mr. — Er, sir.” I still didn’t know what to call him.

“Call me James, please. I’m sorry again. Giving you my card wasn’t really a proper way to introduce myself.” His little crooked smile was on display again. “Please forgive me.”

I could feel myself getting dragged under here. I could feel my thighs slippery with dampness and my swollen, throbbing neediness wasn’t going to help me think clearly. But, oh God! he was so hot. The silence drew out, and I took an unwisely large gulp of the champagne.

James was looking at me oddly. “Toni, do you know anything of your family history?”

I jerked my head up in surprise. I was tightly wound up, just knowing he was going to try and get my app idea. I hadn’t decided whether to go into business with him or accuse him of trying to steal it. Now here he was, asking about my family.

“Family history?” I shook my head. “No, never thought about it, really.”

He reached out, and his hand covered mine. It was warm and comforting. I bit back my gasp as my belly clenched with excitement.

“Toni.” His voice was quiet. “I’ve been looking for you.”

I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”

He leaned back in his chair. “I know you don’t. Toni, you lost your mother a few years ago, didn’t you? That must’ve been very hard for you.” His eyes searched my face. “Tell me, do you remember your grandmother much?”

I smiled properly then. “Nana Elizabeth.” I thought back. “I loved her so much. She was more fun than Mom was. She used to take me to the zoo and places before she got sick. But she always seemed sad underneath, somehow.” I felt tears well up, and blinked them back furiously. “She died, you know, when I was twelve. Then Mom got sick the next year, and everything went wrong.” I’d pushed Nana Elizabeth to the back of my mind in the efforts to care for Mom, to try and help find stuff that would make her better, stuff we could afford. But nothing had worked.

I noticed James was looking at me curiously. “Has anyone ever said you look like her?”

“Like who? Oh, you mean Nana Elizabeth?” I shook my head. “I only remember what she looked like when she was very sick, and Mom never talked about her.”

James slipped his hand into his jacket and drew out an envelope. He took an old photo out of it.

“There’s your grandmother.” He slid the photo over to me, and my throat closed up. She was like a beautiful version of me. She looked about sixteen, sitting stiffly in an upright chair in a gloomy parlor. Her hair and makeup was old-fashioned, but she had a lovely face, with a slight smile. I looked closely. Her expression was serene, more mature than I would have expected for her age.

I looked up. I was going to ask him how he got hold of the photo, why was he showing it to me. Instead, I found myself talking. “She looks very content. I don’t remember ever seeing her without a sadness behind her eyes. Even when she was laughing in the park with me, she always had that shadow there.”

James was serious, thoughtful. “Did she ever talk about her family, her parents or brothers?”

I looked back at the photo. “Never. I should have asked, maybe. But as a child, she was just there. It was just us, you know.” I stared at him. “I never found out who my Dad was. Mom would never say. And now she’s dead, I’ll never know.”

He bowed his head in acknowledgement. “I know that. I’m sorry, Toni. I wouldn’t have wanted you to upset yourself.” He stirred, took the photo back, and glanced at it.

“But it’s your grandmother I want to talk about.” He touched her face in the picture with his finger. “You probably never knew that she was the granddaughter of an Earl — an English Lord.”

I gaped at him. “What?”

“An Earl. The Earl of Amherst.” He thought for a moment. “I know the British peerage can be hard to understand. I can help you with that. But for tonight, you just need to know that titles are passed down the generations from father to son. That’s changing nowadays for some titles — the Crown, for instance, but for some titles, and certainly last century, only sons could inherit.”

He smiled at the waiter as our first course was served, but he stopped speaking. I waited impatiently.

He thanked the waiter, then smiled over at me. “Enjoy your meal, Toni.”

I took a mouthful, thinking hard. It was delicious, a delicate flavor, but I was too busy thinking to concentrate.

“So, are you going to tell me any more?”

He put down his knife and fork and patted his lips with his napkin. “It’ll be a bit disjointed if we continue while we’re eating, but if you want to, we can carry on.”

I nodded impatiently. “So why was Nana Elizabeth living here?”

He looked at his plate and sighed. “The seventh Earl had a son who was killed in a hunting accident. His three daughters couldn’t inherit.” His clipped, brief words held their own drama somehow. “His eldest daughter, the Lady Antonia, had married an American and they moved to the States.” His eyes flickered over me. “Her eldest daughter was Elizabeth, your grandmother. She vanished from the family records when she became pregnant at the age of seventeen.”

He stopped speaking and concentrated on finishing his food. I copied him, my mind whirling. I didn’t question that he’d got the facts right, but surely things wouldn’t have happened that way. There would’ve been money. Even if the family had kept it quiet, there would have been money.

I waited, shifting on my seat for him to carry on. His faint smile showed he knew I was impatient.

“Lady Antonia and her husband weren’t good with money.” It was as if he knew what I was thinking. “There’s nothing now. The title has become extinct, as there was no male line to inherit. There’s no money, and the Estate and lands were broken up.” He looked at me steadily. “So you might be wondering why I’ve looked for you just to tell you that.”

I nodded. “Yes, why?”

He leaned back, and shook his head slightly as the waiters unobtrusively cleared the first course dishes. I watched them. It was a million miles away from the sort of waitressing I did. When we were alone again, James leaned forward. His face, lean and angular in the soft lighting, held an intense expression and his eyes burned into me. Did he know the effect he was having on my body? I thought so, and decided not to drink any more champagne. I reached for my Coke.

“I know the peerage, Toni — Antonia — because my father is also an Earl. The Earl of Sandiford. My mother was a beautiful woman,” he said and he smiled a little sadly. “The wife of an Earl is a Countess. She was the Countess of Sandiford.”

I realized he’d obviously lost her too, and I tried to make a little sympathetic noise. He shrugged.

“She died a long time ago.” He lifted his champagne flute, studied the bubbles intently. “They had a very happy marriage, my father loved her very much.” His glance was sharp. “But it was an arranged marriage, really. His mother looked for a suitable girl and then encouraged their courtship. Of course, they weren’t forced to marry. But both of them knew they were going into it as an arrangement as much as for the usual reasons. The love built on that.” He sighed and stopped talking again as the maitre d’ arrived to pour the red wine to go with our main course. Then the food arrived.

“Let’s enjoy our meal,” James suggested. “We’ll talk more afterwards.”

I wondered how much I would enjoy it. I had a lot to think about. “Okay.” I sipped the wine and looked at my plate.

His father was an Earl. His father had had an arranged marriage with a suitable girl. He’d told me all about my background. Was he trying to convince me I was a suitable girl? His card had said he was an Honorable, so maybe he really was an Earl’s son.

I toyed with my food, thinking hard. And all along I’d been thinking he’d found out about my app. What would he be suggesting?

I felt a lump in my throat and moved the food around my plate a bit. I wouldn’t be able to eat it. He was so sexy, so gorgeous. But if I was getting the idea right, he wanted me to become his wife just because my grandmother was descended from an Earl. It wasn’t because I was attractive or anything like that. It wasn’t even because I was clever and had an idea that would make me rich. It was just because of my genes.

But maybe I was wrong. Maybe he’d been looking at lots of possible girls and maybe he’d chosen me because he did feel the attraction between us. Even if he didn’t, maybe he’d learn to love me, once we were — and I swallowed — married.

I wondered what life would be like. Would I still be able to have my own dreams, decide things for myself? Probably not. Maybe it wouldn’t work. I sighed, and cut off a tiny mouthful of the steak. To my amazement, tender and delicious, it hardly needed chewing.

James sat back and looked speculatively across the table at me. “Perhaps I should’ve waited until you’d enjoyed your meal before telling you what this is about.” He didn’t look sorry, though.

“As a family, we need a future Countess who can run the Estate staff. A Countess who can deal with all types of people. A Countess who looks good, and aristocratic, and is able to be in control of any type of situation.” He let me think about that during the next interruption.

Our coffee steamed the aroma around me, making the bitter taste of the diner coffee not worthy of the name.

“Will you think about it, Toni?” James’ voice drew my mind back from the diner. “Your birthright has been snatched from you. You have the right to live as a member of an old, titled family. The right to be secure in your life and your future.”

“I … yes, I’ll need to think.” My mind was spinning and it wasn’t the champagne or the wine. “Excuse me a moment.” I got up and went to find the restroom.

I stood, looking around. He’d brought me here and he knew the staff here, so he came here often. It wasn’t showing off to me. But this room — just the restroom — was palatial. The gleaming, polished tiles and the glittering faucets. The rolled hand towels, the hand wash and lotion bottles in silver dispensers. Just this room was bigger than my whole room and shared facilities all together. Much bigger.

If I understood him right, I might not have to live the way I did for very much longer. But I was sure there was a price. Maybe it would be worth it, but was it the right way? Would I ever be able to move on if I wanted to? And what about my app, my dream of making it in my own right, by my own efforts?

I turned and looked at myself in the vast, spot-free mirror. I was tall, but gangly and looked really out of place here. The best clothes I possessed, and the best effort I’d made to look nice, they didn’t really work. I stood up straighter, put my chin up and put a snooty expression on my face. Better. I imagined myself in a ballgown, descending a sweeping staircase on James’ arm, and my insides clenched. My mind took over, and I was in a huge bedroom, my gown dropping, pooling around my ankles. James was pulling me towards him, his mouth descending onto mine,
Toni, my love
he whispered and his hands roamed my body.