The Billionaire's Wife (A Steamy BWWM Marriage of Convenience Romance Novel) (19 page)

“
Try it
,” I told him with thinly veiled
anger. “The people who say that? They have
no
fucking idea
of what they’re talking about. Loss is one of the most painful
things in this world, and you made us both go through that.”

He swallowed
his mounting fury and lifted his chin.

“I don’t care
that you want to live vicariously through Cole,” I told him, pointing at my
husband. “You think he hasn’t loved? He’s loved his employees all along. What
use does he have for money now? He’s wants to disperse most of it between them
and use the rest to help people the world over! And you, what will you do with
the billions his company will eventually earn you? Hire another of your
presidents and stack money even further into the sky? What will your legacy be?”

“Kiona,” Cole
began, still hunched by the wall.

“You really
don’t get it. He’s jumping through your hoops with honorable intentions in his
heart,” I continued. “You want to see love? He wants every last person under
his care to get their cut. He wants to die knowing that they –
and their families
– have a chance
to end their struggles. Is that a good enough metric for you?”

The tears were
flowing freely now, and I could hear my voice cracking as I went on. “And me
– he was going to leave me what was left along with years of work that
will require nothing less than my life’s dedication to see accomplished. Do you
think that’s what I want? Money? Power? Recognition?
That’s not good enough. I want
him.
I don’t give a
damn
about the
money – how am I supposed to carry on without him? All this time, I’ve
been looking for something solid that I could build my life around. I’ve wanted
a foundation.
I’ve found one.
How do
I go on knowing that the most perfect man dropped into my life, and that the
world is cruel enough to kill him a few weeks later? Do you think stopping to
smell the damn roses is going to change that?”

“Kiona…” Cole
continued to moan.

“You have
punished us, and for what? Nothing.”

Alphonse
stared open-mouthed at me. “I didn’t…I only meant…you…” He turned to Cole.
“I’ve seen everything I need to. Your wife…I never thought I would see such
conviction. I was convinced you were a foolish man, and that you meant to try
and trick me on this condition. But it is clear to me now that you both have
fulfilled my requirements…and I am so sorry. Perhaps I was the fool all along.
I have your signatures, and I’ll add my own effective immediately.”

I heard a
crumpling noise, and I immediately turned.

“Cole?”

He was
sprawled against the floor.

“
Cole?!”
I threw myself to his side,
checking his pulse. “Oh my god, he’s…” I looked up to Alphonse. “Quick! We’re
losing him! Call a medevac!”

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Chapter 30

Kiona

The medical helicopter appeared
within fifteen minutes, and paramedics jumped out to move Cole onto a
stretcher. Once they were firing up the rotors to fly him back, Alphonse and I took
the elevator down to the ground level, hopped into Cole’s Audi, and raced to
the hospital side by side.

Overwhelmed, I
sobbed during the entire ride, running through the gears and putting the sports
car through its paces. I didn’t even care that Alphonse Megami was only feet
away, a grave expression on his face. This man had been the entire cornerstone
for everything that Cole had been trying to do in these last few weeks. He was
here, and everything had hinged on this one final chance to curry his favor…but
none of that mattered.

I didn’t try
to play up the tears, or my anguish; my point had been made. In his
self-righteousness, he had burdened us both, and now it was time to accept what
was coming.

But part of
me held onto hope.

This can’t be how it ends.

Alphonse
didn’t say a word about our terse argument. He simply sat and contemplated. I
hoped that I had gotten through to him. He’d changed my life for the better
with his stupid expectations, but he’d also introduced the deepest wound I’d ever
experienced.

After about
thirty minutes, we arrived at the closest hospital. I didn’t even bother to
find parking, bringing the Audi violently up and over the curb and leaving it
running on a hill of grass just outside the emergency room doors. Time mattered
more than the inevitable fine I would incur for my transgressions. I leapt from
the car and left Megami in my wake as I burst through the hospital doors.

Despite my
shouts, I was directed to a waiting room while Cole was behind closed doors,
tended to by a qualified team of emergency responders. We weren’t given any
notice of his condition – for all I knew, he was dying behind those
doors.

And it killed
me on the inside.

*
      
*
      
*

After about
an hour, the doors finally opened, and Cole was moved to a patient room. In an
unsurprising lack of coordination, we weren’t notified until he was already
settled in, so we flocked towards the nearest elevator, across the hall, and to
his temporary lodgings.

Cole turned
as soon as the door opened. Stripped of his formal attire and vigor, the sight
of his weary, aching body in patient robes was absolutely heartbreaking to see.

“You came,”
he murmured as I reached down to hug him, holding myself together. Over my
shoulder, he added: “…You
both
came.”

“Of course,
honey,” I told him. “There’s no way I wouldn’t be here with you.”

I pulled
aside so that he could straighten himself up in bed. It was now that I noticed
his breathing was laborious, and I spotted a stack of napkins at his side, with
a few already crumpled into balls – the white material stained with
patches of dried reddish-brown.

“Alphonse…I
didn’t expect you to…see me like this…”

“I have put
you through much hardship, haven’t I?” He asked contemplatively.

“You sure
as…hell did.”

“Forgive me,
Cole.”

“You have
redirected…valuable weeks of my life…my last weeks…to this wild chase…just to
secure…my employees’ very futures…” Cole grunted painfully. “Living up to
your…archaic demands and traditions…robbed me of my last days…”

Our guest
grew visibly disturbed at the words.

“But despite
this…I found something…in your misguided directive,” he continued on. “I
found…my Kiona…and although we will be parted soon…I am…happy to have met her.”
He paused, conserving his breath, and waved me away when I tried to hand him
his glass of water. “She has…greatly enhanced my…final weeks…and for that
alone…I will forgive you, you…stupid, misguided bastard.”

“Thank you,”
Alphonse bowed his head graciously. “If there is anything that I can do –
anything – just say the word. I want to make your passing as easy on you
as possible.”

“Don’t talk
like that,” I told him firmly, turning my fury. “He’s going to be fine. We
still have a few days, maybe a week. We’ll get through tonight and make the most
of it.”

“No,” Cole
responded.

“I…what?” I
turned to him, stricken with panic.

“The
doctors…say…I won’t last the night…this is it.”

*
      
*
      
*

Everything
was faint and disoriented, as if swirling under the surface of a clean, clear
lake, while the rest of the world continued on above the crisp edge of the
water.

There was
some small sensation – I believe someone was holding me by the shoulders.
I turned my head. It was Alphonse, with a face filled with concern.

Something
brushed my own face. It was a set of pale, strong fingers. My attention turned
towards them, and I could see Cole, reaching down to console me.

Down?

Right. I was
on my knees.
Did I faint?

The room
slowly came back. My head didn’t hurt, and nothing else on me did. I must not
have fainted, only…collapsed downward, perhaps. The shock had been a bit much.

The shock.

I remembered,
all of a sudden. Cole – my husband – was going to die tonight, in
all likelihood. I thought I had more time with him, but no. The world was
cruel, and my love was going to fade away from me.

Once I was
back on my feet and steady, Alphonse quickly checked me over. Apparently
satisfied, he elected to ask me a few times about my present condition, before stepping
aside to grab some coffee and give us some time alone.

I sat next to
Cole, pulling a chair up beside him. I held his hand to my face, feeling his
fingers grasp lightly at my hair or caress my cheek. To think that I was such a
different person before I met this man; I couldn’t fathom being that person
anymore.

“You look…so
very beautiful,” he whispered.

“You’re not
too bad-looking yourself,” I smiled through my tears.

Cole grinned
weakly, his eyes twinkling just a little. “Transparent flattery…was never
a…very good color on you…”

We smiled at
each other, thinking back to the lunch appointment that had set this entire
mess into motion. Before I knew about Coppersmith’s secretive agenda against
Cole…before Alphonse Megami and the buyout…before I really learned who this man
was, his tragic past…before I knew that he was dying. So much had happened
since then. We had come to trust one another, rely on one another…I’d seen this
standoffish leader of his tiny, lucrative empire open his heart up, finally
letting go of his fears and anxieties…and in return, he had given me stability,
love, and personal sacrifice.

We had
learned to love one another – our partnership of mutual business benefit
had become something else entirely.

It had become
an unbreakable bond.

“When did you
decide that you loved me?” Cole asked, as if reading my very thoughts.

“I think I
knew when I was against your body in a little soul club in New Orleans,” I
answered softly. “I still needed time before I could really admit it to
myself…but that sounds about right.”

Cole nodded
softly, lost in thought.

“What about
you?”

“I knew for
sure…with complete certainty…when I told you that I was dying…and you told me
you would…stand by my side…I had been so afraid…and in that moment…I knew I
wouldn’t be afraid again…”

I pulled
myself upwards and planted my full lips against his. It wasn’t a deep,
passionate kiss – I knew he didn’t have the lungs for that right now
– but there were just as many sparks as the moment that we had
first
kissed in that sham of a wedding.

About two
minutes after I pulled away from the kiss, an older, stern man in glasses and a
lab coat appeared in the doorway, flipping through pages on a clipboard.

Cole
immediately perked up a little at the sight of him. “Doctor Greene…” he
murmured, gazing over at the physician – who was approaching us from the
doorway. “Kiona…meet my specialist…this is the man who…has been guiding me with
the…disease…”

As the man
plucked the latex gloves from his hands, I shook his hand as warmly as I could
muster. “Greetings, doctor.”

“Forgive me
for being short, but we’re low on time,” Doctor Greene curtly informed me. As
blinding confusion and panic mixed together in my mind, he immediately turned
to Cole. “Mr. Andrews, there’s been a development. We have got to get you into
surgery
immediately.
Do you consent
to a double lung transplant?”

“I…what?” He
stammered. “Yes, of course…but…
how?
”

“We have an
organ donor who suffered a fatal accident tonight. Some of his torso was,
compromised
in the accident…but his
lungs in particular are viable. I’ll warn you, they are only a
near
match. While you would ordinarily
never be given a transplant under these conditions, the proximity of the donor
and the fact that you are one floor down from the operating room has moved you
to the front of the transplant list. Because your disease has brought you to
the brink of death, your weakened and compromised immune system may reduce the
likelihood of rejection. Although experimental in nature, it is possible that
with further immunosuppressant…”

“Done…” Cole
groaned before a quizzical look crossed his face. The doctor cut him off as he
opened his mouth to ask something that seemed pressing.

“Keep in
mind, Mr. Andrews, that this is a potentially lethal procedure. We will take
every care and measure to preserve your life, but…the risk is there.”

“Doc, after
tonight…I’d be dead either way,” Cole replied, his breathing still horribly
labored. “Do it. I’ll sign…whatever you have for me. But…I need to know
something.”

“We don’t
have much time,” he impatiently remarked.

“I understand
that,” Cole answered. “But…my God. Somebody had to die…to save me. Doctor, I
have to…know his name…do you know who it was?” A look of pity and conflict
clouded his features.

“Yes,” Doctor
Greene answered calmly, his cold eyes glimmering behind the glasses. “But we do
need to get you prepped
immediately
,
and patient confidentiality requires…”

“I don’t give
a damn about your patient confidentiality. You know who I am. You know what I
can do. I’m dying and I want to know the name of the person who just saved my
life.”

 
The Doctor paused for a moment, glancing
around the room before speaking again with a slackened look upon his face. “It
was a motorcyclist. I believe his name was Jerry Hi…no,” he said, glancing down
at the paperwork in his hands, “
Larry
Higgins.”