The Billionaire’s Unexpected Wife Read online

  She was off picking up Jolene, and, as I tidied the apartment, I idly wondered if I should think about getting a car that had room for her sister and her wheelchair in it. It would mean we wouldn’t have to wait around at the beck and call of the facility as to when Amaya could actually see her sister, and we could pick her up whenever we wanted and take her wherever we needed to go. And she had seemed so happy when I suggested we invite Jolene up to the apartment. If she was going to be around for this whole year, which she seemed to have finally internally committed to, then I was going to do everything I could to keep her as happy as possible. Happy wife, happy life, right? I would get one of my people to look into getting a car that could handle Jolene the next day, once I was back at work and everything was back to normal.

  Before I knew it, I heard a car pull into the garage downstairs and realized that Amaya must be back already. I glanced at my watch. Had it been that long? I put a pot of coffee on, realizing Jolene was too young for me to offer her a beer or a wine, and went to the door to help Amaya in with her wheelchair.

  “Hey,” I greeted them with a grin as Amaya walked out of the elevator with her sister and moved toward the door. I went over to give them a hand, but she waved me away.

  “I can manage, don’t worry,” she assured me, a slight grimace on her face as she pushed her sister the last few inches toward me. Jolene grinned at me, rolling her eyes as she jerked her head in the direction of her older sister.

  “Sorry about her,” she announced playfully. “I didn’t realize she’d be trying to play the hero all day.”

  “I’m not,” Amaya protested weakly. “I just want to do it myself, that’s all.”

  “And what exactly do you have a big, strong husband for if not to help you with stuff like this?” Jolene demanded, and I cocked my head at Amaya playfully.

  “I’m on her side, you know,” I told her, and I helped hitch Jolene over the threshold and into the apartment. “There. All done.”

  “Oh my god, this place is incredible,” Jolene gasped as she looked around, Amaya closing the door behind her. I grinned.

  “Glad you like it,” I replied.

  “Amaya told me about it, but I had no idea it would be this …” Jolene trailed off as she cast her eye around. “This …”

  “Yeah, that’s exactly how I felt when I saw it too,” Amaya agreed, stretching and heading to grab a cup of coffee. “Kristo, how long till your grandmother gets here?”

  “A couple of hours,” I replied, and I wheeled Jolene over to the living room so we could all sit together. “We’ve got plenty of time.”

  The afternoon with the three of us seemed to fly by, and before I knew it, my nonna was due any second. She was always meticulously on time, and when it came to a quarter-hour before she arrived, I got to my feet and started pacing back and forth.

  “Kristo, it’s going to be fine,” Amaya called to me as she returned from giving her sister the full tour of the apartment. “You need to get some rest. Come on. You don’t want to be all wound up by the time she gets here.”

  “I think I’m going to be no matter when she arrives,” I replied, pulling a face. “I’ve never been … She’s not exactly the easiest to get along with, you know?”

  “Speak for yourself.” Jolene playfully tossed her hair over her shoulder, exuding confidence. “I’ve never met a person I can’t charm.”

  “If you can pull it off with her, then I’ll believe you,” I replied with a grin. I was worried about how she was going to take seeing Jolene in her chair. My grandmother was, for the most part, a giving and accepting person, but she could react weirdly to things once in a while, and I didn’t want this to be one of those times. Last thing I needed was to have to deflect questions about Jolene’s illness and her treatment and my involvement in both of those things when I just wanted a nice family dinner in.

  “That’s her car,” I announced as I saw it pull around the corner. “I’m going to go downstairs and meet her. See you in a second.”

  I headed down to meet her and led her back up to the apartment, letting her bend my ear about the drive over and how she didn’t know why I hadn’t just come down to her place once and for all and that she could have cooked a better dinner for us and-

  She stopped dead when she came through the door and saw Amaya and Jolene over by the couch. Amaya got up and helped wheel Jolene over to greet us.

  “Nonna, this is Jolene, Amaya’s sister,” I told her nervously, and she stood there for a moment, looking down at the chair and the girl in it, clearly trying to keep her reactions in check. If there was one thing she valued above all else, it was keeping up appearances, and in this case, keeping up the appearance of being pulled-together and polite even in the most unlikely circumstances. She extended her hand toward Jolene, and Jolene took it with a wide smile.

  “Great to meet you,” the girl told my grandmother. “I’ve heard so much about you.”

  “Don’t believe any of it,” Nonna responded, and Jolene burst out laughing. Any tension seemed to lift from the room, and Amaya and I exchanged a relieved glance.

  “I’m going to get lunch on.” I turned to the kitchen. “Amaya, why don’t you show Nonna the art around the apartment that we put up together?”

  And to my great relief, the rest of the day went well. Better than well, actually. Things went so smoothly, I wasn’t sure I wasn’t still in bed and dreaming all this up. Nonna loved Jolene and got along well with Amaya again, and by the time we’d finished up our food, she was remarking about getting a wheelchair ramp put into the guest house to make it easier for visits for the three of us. The four of us got on so well that by the time I put Nonna back in her car to head home, there was a smile on my face half a mile wide that seemed to be reflected by everyone else in the house as well.

  “You must have me around again sometime soon,” my grandmother told me as she pulled the door shut behind her.

  “You’ve changed your tune,” I teased. I was amazed to see the impact Jolene had had on her. I never in a million years thought she would take it so well, so utterly in stride. She shrugged.

  “It’s good to have some new blood in the family,” she replied. “Especially when they’re as lovely as those two girls.”

  “I’ll see you soon, Nonna.” I leaned in to plant a kiss on her cheek and watched as she drove away. Amaya had already taken Jolene home, and I had given them the privacy to get some one-on-one time while I cleaned the apartment. I was exhausted, sure, but today had also been about as near to perfect as I could have imagined it.

  I showered and climbed into bed to read a little, to unwind now that the day was done, and soon enough, Amaya arrived back and made her way into the bedroom, practically crashing face-first into the sheets and letting out a long sigh.

  “Well, thank goodness that’s over with.” She yawned loudly.

  “It wasn’t that bad, was it?” I asked as she lifted her head and grinned.

  “No, it was perfect,” she replied. “But I’m so tired now. I think I’m just going to sleep forever.”

  She snuggled up the bed toward me and leaned her head into my lap. Without thinking, I reached down to stroke her hair and watched as her breathing steadied and she dozed off right there and then. I couldn’t help but smile. Today had been new for me, but it had also been a heck of a lot of fun. I got the feeling I was going to be having a lot of days like this one, the kind that surprised me in ways I never imagined they would. As long as Amaya was here, nothing was certain, and I kind of liked that.

  35

  “So, you’re happy to go for us again?” Indina, my manager, looked over her glasses at me. I nodded.

  “More than happy,” I assured her. “I really enjoyed the gala. I’m sure that this will be fun too.”

  “Good.” She nodded and then leaned in close as though sharing a secret with me. “I hate these kinds of things. Reason I got into library work was so I didn’t have to worry about fancy parties all the time, but it seem
s like it comes as part of the territory.

  I laughed and leaned back, touching the necklace around my throat. Kristo had given it to me a couple of days ago, a thank-you for Sunday. It was pale, delicate silver with a single pearl pressed into a small claw at the center, and I thought it was about the most beautiful thing I had ever seen.

  “Well, I’ve got you covered,” I promised her. “Don’t you worry. I’ll be there.”

  “Wonderful.” She nodded. “That’s all I needed you for. Thanks.”

  I headed back to work and bit my lip as I imagined going to another one of those big, fancy parties all over again. A few months ago, I would have been on her side. I didn’t get into a business as unglamorous as this one because I wanted to be traveling around the country schmoozing people up. But that gala had been what had brought me to Kristo in the first place, so maybe I was better at this kind of thing than I thought I was.

  I headed back to my desk to pick up where I’d left off with the filing. It was monotonous work, but it allowed my mind to wander, and I let it stray to the night we’d met again. All those people I’d chatted up—and apparently made an impression on if some of them were coming to the fundraiser to see me again—and only one of them had really stuck with me. The man I was married to. My husband.

  I grabbed my phone out of my pocket and sent him a text suggesting we meet for dinner that evening and telling him about the fundraiser that was happening soon. Knowing him, he’d likely throw a big pile of his own money at the library just to make a point as well as buying me a dress so expensive, it could have funded a whole library all by itself.

  He agreed at once, replying to my text barely a minute later and making me grin with a kiss at the end of the message. Fuck, I was looking forward to seeing him. It was weird because I was already married to and living with this man, yet I still got those early-relationship flutters whenever I heard from him, whenever he showed this kind of interest in me. The paradox sometimes made my head spin, but like so many other things to do with our romance, I didn’t think about it too hard and tried to go with the flow as best I could.

  The rest of the day seemed to inch by painfully slow as I waited for work to finish up so I could go out to dinner with Kristo. He texted me the name of the place he had booked for us, and I looked it up and practically swooned when I saw the tiny, intricate little plates they served and the menu of the day they had up on the website. I finished up at five on the dot and swept out the door, hopping into my newly-refurbished car and heading across to meet him at the restaurant.

  He was already there, waiting outside for me, eyes narrowed against the bright late afternoon sunshine. He offered me his arm, and I took it as we headed inside, and I planted a swift kiss against his cheek. Fuck, it was fun to play at this stuff, even if I knew it was just a game.

  “Our table’s ready,” he told me, and we headed to grab our seats, getting some sparkling water and our menus.

  “So, that fundraiser, huh?” he remarked casually, glancing over the menu. “Should I be worried that you’re going to meet another husband and run off with him?”

  “I don’t make a habit of marrying men I barely know.” I rolled my eyes at him. He grinned.

  “Sure about that?” he teased, and he paused for a moment, taking a sip of his water and just looking at me over the top of it.

  “You should come with me,” I blurted out before I could stop myself. “It could be fun.”

  “Sure thing,” he replied casually. “I’m your husband. It would be odd if I wasn’t there.”

  “Thanks,” I beamed at him. “I appreciate it.”

  “And I’ll get you a new dress,” he went on. I waved my hand.

  “You don’t have to—”

  “But I want to,” he cut me off firmly, and I couldn’t help but laugh at him.

  “You know, you’ll make a really great real husband one day,” I remarked, and he cocked his eyebrow at me.

  “And what does that make me now?” he asked, and I felt something kindle to life inside me. Didn’t he know how hard it was when he played these kinds of games with me? I decided it was for the best if I just ignored him for the time being and focused on this evening instead.

  “Hmm, I don’t know,” I lifted the menu up to hide from him for a moment. Whenever we were out for dates like this, I found my mind wandering, found myself drawn to this idea of us truly being together. I just had to keep reminding myself what he’d said to me, the truth he’d told me about the kind of person he was and the love he wanted or didn’t.

  He seemed to sense my quietness and changed the subject.

  “So, this gala,” he went on casually. “Who’s going to be there?”

  “No one who’s going to be much use to your business,” I admitted. “It’s probably just going to be people who want to think they’re fancy and cultured schmoozing near a library. Not much.”

  “I’m looking forward to it.” He grinned, cocking his head at me. “And seeing you in a new dress.”

  “My wardrobe’s going to be twice the size by the end of this year,” I remarked breezily, but some part of me wanted to remind both him and me that this had an expiration date, no matter how endless it seemed right now.

  “That’s the plan,” he replied with a glance at me. I relaxed and found myself enjoying our date. We didn’t talk about anything in particular and certainly nothing regarding the future of our relationship or what would happen at the end of the year. I was just a woman, out with a man who seemed determined to charm the panties off her every chance he got. He let his knees nudge up against mine beneath the table, and I bit my lip and wondered if he knew the kind of effect he was having on me.

  “Mmm, that was so good.” I pushed myself back from the table and let out a long sigh, downing the last of my water and fighting the urge to wipe my finger around the edge of the plate to get up the last of the sauce from my salmon.

  “It really was,” he agreed. “Let me get the bill, and I’ll drive us home.”

  “I have my car.”

  “Yeah, and I’ll get my driver to come and pick it up later.” He waved his hand. “I want to take you home myself.”

  I bit my lip and eyed him across the table. I had promised myself that I wasn’t going to hook up with him again so soon, just to make sure the physical didn’t tip over into the emotional, that the lines didn’t blur any more than they already had. But when he treated me with such charm, such sweetness and kindness, it was hard to keep that in mind. I just wanted to go home, pour a glass of wine, and spend the rest of the evening in bed with him.

  “We should do this more often,” I remarked as I grabbed my coat after he’d paid up. God, I was going to miss evenings like this, having someone to spend the night with, someone who would treat me like a lady in all the best ways.

  “What do you mean?” he asked, as I slipped my arm through his and we headed for the door.

  “Oh, nothing.” I waved my hand, but he suddenly seemed prickly as though I’d said something that had bothered him.

  “No, do you think we don’t come out enough?” he asked as I reached his car. He pulled the door open for me and waved me inside, and I glanced up at him and felt as though I had walked into an open bear trap that I hadn’t seen till the last minute.

  “No, it’s not that,” I promised him. “I just meant I like going out with you. We’re both so busy, we don’t get to do it as much as I’d like.”

  “We’ll do it more often,” he replied at once. He had gone a little darker, a color of red I had never seen from him before.

  “I really wasn’t trying to drop hints,” I told him.

  “Yeah, but you’re right,” he shot back, cutting me off. “I should take you out more. You’re my wife, after all.”

  And with that, he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the street, and I glanced over my shoulder at my car and wondered if I should have taken that instead. I wouldn’t have blundered straight into this conversation if I had don
e that, and I felt as though I had managed to fuck up what had been a perfectly lovely evening so far. I leaned and looked out of the window, deciding that the best course of action for me was to keep my damn mouth shut for the foreseeable future and hope I didn’t blunder into another silly statement that I knew I wouldn’t be able to take back. Kristo wasn’t the kind of guy to let things go easily. I had known that as soon as he had turned up on my doorstep when I’d left the first time. I had a feeling that any little comment I made, no matter how innocuous it might have sounded to me, could read as something that would indicate my dissatisfaction to him. And he would do everything he could to keep me around, even if he would never have admitted it to himself or to me.

  36

  I crossed my arms and drummed my finger against my elbows, waiting for her to come out of the library. I was ready for tonight. Everything was in place, and I was going to show her a seriously good time.

  I knew she hadn’t meant anything by it when she’d made that offhand comment about us not going out enough, but it had been playing at the back of my mind ever since. She had tried to convince me it was nothing more than a remark, that she hadn’t meant anything by it, but she was right. We didn’t go out enough. There had been that trip with the helicopter a few weeks ago now, and since then, the only times we’d done anything were when we headed up to see her family or mine. She deserved better than that, no doubt. She deserved to be swept off her feet every chance I got, and that was precisely what I was planning to do this evening. Every time she expressed even the remotest dissatisfaction about anything, I found myself leaping to fix things up, not wanting her to leave again.