The Billionaire's Wife (A Steamy BWWM Marriage of Convenience Romance Novel) (4 page)

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Chapter 5

Cole

Kiona stared at me in complete
disbelief, trying to determine what sort of trick I was playing as I picked the
fish from my hair and brushed it from my shirt. I took a small level of
satisfaction from the moment, before finally sitting forward and clarifying.

“You are an
astute, beautiful young woman, always chasing the next opportunity. I’m told that
you are charismatic, talented, and remarkably easy to get along with…and none
of your superiors have the slightest notion that you’ve completely fooled them
all. I know you don’t have even the slightest background in marketing, yet I’ve
seen your work and it’s of the highest caliber… Tell me, how exactly do you
manage to pull off the work that you do?”

Kiona tilted
her head slightly and collected her thoughts, an indescribable look on her
face. Her mouth was frozen, as if in mid-sentence. I could almost see the cogs
spinning rapidly in her head. Finally, composing herself, her hesitant voice
drifted across the table. “Marriage?”

“The work,
Kiona. How did you do it?” I replied in the same tone I used in contract
negotiation. She drew back away from the table, her eyes locked into mine.

“I studied
your website for a day, cross-referencing it with a few other competitors of
yours, then with some of your clients,” she began carefully. “I pinned a few
common denominators and spent two weeks brushing up on my Photoshop skills
while recreating last year’s award winning designs using logos and imagery from
your client’s websites.”

 
“You’re telling me you taught yourself masters-level
design skills in two weeks?” I asked.

“I’m telling
you I learned enough to get me hired. I passed the first interview, revised my
knowledge based on what I’d fumbled in the questions, took the second interview
in stride, and then the third. Once I was in, all I had to do is apply myself.”

“That is a
lot of work for a company with stellar background checks,” I prodded. “What
made you think you could pull it off?”

“The fact
that we’re having this conversation tells me your company isn’t the one who
figured this out, Mr. Andrews,” she replied coldly.

“Compelling
story,” I replied, studying her. “From what I’ve gathered, probably all true.”
I took another sip of water. “Tell me, Kiona… Who sent you
?
”

Kiona smiled
for the first time since the bombshell, brushing a few bangs absentmindedly
from in front of her eyes. “What makes you think I’m working for anyone else? You’re
Cole Andrews. The amount that you’ve accomplished in such a short time
frame…not to stroke your ego, but if there was someone in the world I wanted to
learn from, it would be you.”

There’s something else I wouldn’t mind you
stroking.
I thought to myself before working quickly to brush the idea aside.

“Transparent
flattery’s not a particularly good color on you… Laying it on a little thick
there, Kiona.”

“
Am I?
I wondered if that was perhaps a
bit much.”

We shared a
brief laugh, making eye contact as we settled back down to business. I steeled
my face, and she instantly switched back into complete, stoic professionalism.
I understood his game. We were moving past pleasantries. Now, there was nothing
left but the negotiation.

Good.

“If I was the
kind of girl who betrayed a client for money, what use would I be to you, Mr.
Andrews?”

“No good at
all, I suppose. Kiona, I have an offer for you,” I said with a dead-level
voice.

“I already
told you everything you’re ever going to know.”

“I’m not
talking about your prior business,” I replied, glancing away.

“Oh? The
wife
thing, was it?” She asked coyly,
sipping from her glass. She was stunned a moment ago, but now merely toying
with the seemingly ridiculous thought. I admired how quickly she was adapting
to this. It reinforced what I had seen in the boardroom, confronted with a
table full of executives that could have had her head at any moment.

“I have to
make some appearances,” I explained sternly. “Business negotiations, of a sort.
I’m selling the company. I’m punching my ticket and retiring. For these
negotiations, I have to present a particular type of image…and I require a wife.”

“So why not
hire another twenty year old like that girl you took to Cancun last month?” she
asked, shooting me a sideways glance. “I saw the pictures in the supermarket
aisle. What’s wrong with the blue eyed blond haired bimbo?”

“This has to
look real.”

“Are you
telling me your wild weekend with Malibu Barbi wasn’t real?” Kiona said,
feigning shock. “If you don’t mind me saying it, a fake marriage seems a little
beneath
you Mr. Andrews…a little
cliché, too. You’re the wealthiest bachelor in the country. You’ve probably got
women falling all over themselves to kiss your feet. Why fake it? Get a tinder
account and go nuts.”

What the hell
was I going to tell her? That I’m broken? That I can’t allow myself someone to
let me into their heart?

“I chose you
because you’re
good
at what you do,
and this way, we both know this is a business transaction. Nobody gets hurt.
Nobody falls in love. That’s what I’m good at Kiona. If I was good at personal
relationships we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”

I let out a
little sigh, angry that I’d allowed a hint of frustration into my voice.

“How
important are these
negotiations
of
yours?” Kiona asked.

I hesitated.
“It will affect every employee I have.”

She pushed
the issue. “Positively?”

“Oh yes,” I
nodded, watching her. “
Very
positively.
I’ll be disbursing half a billion dollars among staff members as a bonus to
hedge against any potential layoffs in the transition period.”

“Half a
billion?” she asked incredulously.

“The better
part of a million dollars for each and every employee from the janitor to the
vice president of the board.”

“That’s
crazy…”

“I didn’t
build one of the world’s largest marketing firms by acting completely sane,” I
replied, smirking. “Besides, they deserve it. They are just as responsible for
this company’s growth as I am. When this buyout is complete I will have more
liquid assets than I could possibly spend in several lifetimes. Why not give
back?

“I have your
word on all of this?”

I had to
admit, her emphasis on the matter surprised me. Kiona’s background told me that
she lunged from opportunity to opportunity, reinventing herself to fit each new
role. She was clever, quick on her feet, and remarkably intelligent…and nothing
my investigations into her background had pulled up had ever given me the
slightest
impression that employee
welfare would matter to her.

“Why do you
ask?”

“Because I’m
considering becoming one of
your
employees.”

She’s a clever one… I have to be insane for even
considering this.

“You have my
word.”

“Why are you
trusting me?” Kiona asked, studying my face.

“Oh, I’m
never going to trust you,” I answered honestly with an apathetic shrug. “You’re
clearly a liability, possibly even dangerous. But you’re a
reliable and intelligent
kind of
dangerous; you will fit the part admirably, and that’s what I need for
now.”

Kiona’s eyes
locked onto mine, and for a brief moment I saw something fierce in them –
something indomitable. It was like looking into the eyes of a wild animal, and
I found myself suddenly rather intrigued.

“In that
case…how much?” She smiled, giving a satisfied little laugh. Just like that,
the animal inside was gone, replaced by a spark of mischief.

“Ten
million.”

“Do I look
like a publishers clearing house kind of girl?” she asked, cocking her head to
the side.

“Name your
price,” I replied.

“Fifteen
Million. Half up front, half when we’re finished.”

Her lips
curled into a sexy little smile as I nodded. Who the hell was this girl? She
threw around big numbers like they were old hat. How much was she being paid to
infiltrate my company? Where in the hell did she come from?

“Deal,” I
finally replied.

“You know,
you had me worried sick this
entire
last
hour…I thought I was about to be
destroyed
at this lunch. But instead, I’m marrying you? And while I’m thinking about
it,” she paused suddenly, looking at me quizzically, “isn’t it against company
rules to date or
marry
one of your fellow
employees?”

“I planned to
fire you at some point anyway. Just for the sake of convenience.”

“Alright
then. I suppose I’m ready to get started.”

“As easy as
that, is it? No other questions?”

“No,” she
remarked, flipping her hair and flashing a confident smile. “I could ask you
all the questions in the world, but I’m a professional. I’m ready to get to
work.”

“Remarkable,”
I observed, standing up from my seat. “But there are
still
some things we need to go over…perhaps at my place tonight.
This is going to be a bit of a formal arrangement, you see.”

“Sure, I
guess I’m not really doing anything tonight anyway.” Kiona shrugged, pulling
her plate back and taking another bite of her salmon. For a moment, the clouds
shifted above, and the resulting sunlight bathed her mocha skin in radiance.
She swallowed, scooping up her glass for another sip of water, and the light
twinkled against the glass.

This woman
looked absolutely beautiful…I would have to play this very carefully. For the
sake of indulgence, I allowed myself to admire her for a moment before taking a
deep, soothing breath. She had been endearingly perceptive during our
conversation, and what made her ideal for this task could be my undoing if I
didn’t keep myself restrained.

While she
drank from her glass, I took the opportunity to concentrate briefly, taking a
deep and soothing breath. This was a ritual of mine – closing everything
out. It was how I kept myself safe from everything external, focusing myself
down into a compact, diamond-hard core that was unbreakable, unshakeable, and
unreachable. While my mind concentrated on finding that place again, I could
feel the safe, familiar walls pushing back up and fortifying themselves,
blocking her and everyone else out. With my next exhalation, it was done; the
spell was broken, and I was untouchable again.

“The
helicopter will pick you up at six o’clock sharp. I trust that you will be
there in time?”

“Of course,”
she responded, patting her lips again and standing up across from me. “And by
the way…”

She extended
her hand, and I clasped it in mine. Her fingers were soft, velvety, and sent a
surprising jolt of warmth where it didn’t presently belong. As she withdrew, I
closed my fist around something hard and plastic that she had pressed into my
hand.

“Call me
Key.
”

I didn’t get
a chance to respond. Key turned heel and walked out with a surprising level of
confidence. Sitting there in silence, I opened my fingers and saw a tiny black
plastic USB stick. It was a simplistic thing, the kind of device you would
never notice sticking out of a work machine. Unmarked. Unremarkable. I knew
instantly that whatever Key had come here for, it was on that USB.

This wasn’t
just a peace offering. It was proof that she was walking away from whatever
organization had hired her. For a brief moment, I wondered if I could use it to
figure out who exactly that was, but I pushed the thought out of my mind. It
didn’t matter. None of this mattered. Soon enough I’d be married, and this
whole company would be a distant memory. Where would my newfound freedom take
me first? Paris? Rio?