Alpha Billionaire Series

JACE

As I leave the Head Over Heels office, stepping outside and into the light, rainy drizzle, I pull the collar of my coat up and smirk to myself.

Bailey Briggs is a dreamer with hearts in her eyes. Her very pretty, ocean-colored eyes. I immediately conjure up an image of her face and my dick twitches. There's no denying she’s absolutely gorgeous or the unmistakable chemistry that took me by complete surprise.

She definitely caught my attention.

I can't really explain it and I definitely don’t want to think too hard about it. Falling for a woman is completely out of the question. It's damn hard to ignore the feelings she’s stirring up, though. It's also cute that she thinks she can find my soulmate.

I have no soulmate.

The moment Selene fucked me over, I eliminated that possibility by closing my heart. Getting dumped by Selene right before I was supposed to walk down the aisle and make her my wife affected me in a way that nothing ever has before. It closed m¢ off, hardened me, and I don't care how attractive a woman is. I will never go down that same road again.

The thought of ever getting down on one knee and proposing again is ludicrous. Not in a million, billion, trillion years. I may be a lot of things, but a fool isn’t one of them.

I think what makes the situation worse is Selene didn’t even talk to me. Didn't even fucking try. She seemed a little cooler as our wedding day got closer, maybe more standoffish than usual, but she never expressed any doubts or fears. Whenever a choice came up about flowers or her dress or the cake and food, she smiled and made a decision.

There were no major red flags. That's part of the reason this whole thing has scarred me so badly. Selene Cantrell was a consummate actress. All the while she was preparing for our wedding, she was fucking her new neighbor who had moved in across the hall from her three months earlier.

Three months. She'd been screwing me and him for months and I'd had no idea.

Christ.The thought still makes me sick to my stomach. She destroyed my ability to trust or have any kind of normal, serious relationship. Because after that, I don't believe what any woman tells me anymore. It's better that way, though. Protecting m heart is my priority now.

I've become immune to women's charms. Or so I'd thought until today. The moment I saw Bailey Briggs that theory sort of went out the window. Because it's clear that she charmed the hell out of me.

The question is- how?

I've met women who are more beautiful, more stylish, more wealthy, more successful. But when we shook hands earlier, it's like the moment froze and everything around us fell away. A zing like I've never experienced before shot up my arm and she snagged me good.

And I don't like it. Not at all

Later that evening, I'm sitting on my leather couch, sipping a glass of whiskey, and going through the email Bailey sent me. There are ten different bios and not one of them impresses me. Granted, this is only a temporary gig and I shouldn't be pick My biggest concern should be to find a good enough actress who also happens to be a non-clinger. I need two weeks of her time. Tops.

But I decide I don't want any of these women. There's nothing wrong with them. Well, that's not exactly true. There's one major thing wrong with every single one of them: they aren't Bailey.

Fuck. I swipe a hand through my hair, and it hits me that I won't be satisfied unless I take Bailey up to Buffalo with me over the holidays.

She fascinates me.

Ever since my engagement fiasco/ humiliation, I've kept things light and easy with women, but that doesn't mean I'm some kind of asexual dud. Despite not wanting to get serious, I do like to have fun in and out of the bedroom. And something tells me that I could have a lot of fun with Bailey. Something about her caught my attention and I can't stop thinking about her. Its a little annoying. But what the hell can I do?

Once again, I skim through the potential dates Bailey sent me. Just to make sure I'm not being unreasonable. They're all beautiful and have impressive bios. One woman is even a physicist. I know that I should just choose one and forget about Bailey.

But my stubborn side doesn't want to do that. Curiosity takes over.

Oh, shit. wonder if she has a boyfriend.

“Of course, she does, dumbass,” I tell myself and take a long sip of whiskey. Thoughts of stealing her away tempt me and I need some answers. I grab my phone and call Ben.

“Jace, what's up, my man?” Ben says.

“Not much. Listen, what do you know about Bailey Briggs who owns Head Over Heels?"

“Not much,” he says slowly. “She and Rae have become pretty good friends since she started working there, but I never met her”

“Do me a favor. Call Rae and get the scoop, would you?”

For a moment, stunned silence fills my ear. Then, “Holy shit! Are you telling me that you're interested in someone?”

“No,” I growl. “I'm curious, that's all”

“Curious about how to make her your girlfriend?” he mocks.All text © NôvelD(r)a'ma.Org.

“Don’t be a dickhead, Ben. Just get me some personal info on her so I better know who I'm dealing with."

“Isn't she supposed to be finding you someone? I'm confused.”

“Are you purposely trying to piss me off?” I ask between gritted teeth.

“Okay, okay. What're some things you want to know?”

“Relationship status and history.’

“Okay, getting right to the point. I love it

“Ben-" I say in a warning voice. “I need you to keep this confidential. Understand?”

“Sure thing, buddy. Let me call Rae and I'll get back to you with all the gory details.”

“You do that” I snap and hang up.

FuckerHe loves messing with me like this and it makes me want to beat his ass. Even though he can be a pain in the ass, I love him like a brother and know he’s as loyal as the day is long.

As I wait for him to call me back, I find myself closing out of my email and pulling up a search engine. I type in “Bailey Briggs Head Over Heels” and a website pops up. When I click on it, it takes me to a very pink page with floating hearts all over it. There's a mission statement and a list of services the company provides, testimonials, and a few other things. There are alse a lot of cheesy quotes like “Nothing compares with the finding of true love; because once you do your heart is complete,” and “It is never too late to fall in love.”

Its a little nauseating.

My eyes skim over to the section that says “Team” and I click on it.

Bailey's picture and a paragraph appears. My greedy gaze soaks her in, then I read about how she's from upstate New York originally- interesting- and came down to the city to pursue her dream of helping other people find love.

It doesn't mention college, so maybe she didn't go. The fact that she was smart enough to start her own business without having a diploma from some fancy university impresses the hell out of me. That tells me she’s worked extremely hard. Trust me, I know. Back in the day, I couldn't afford to put myself through college either. My dad offered to help me, and I took him up on the offer, but on the condition that I would eventually pay him back. Since then, I've probably paid him back a million times over. At least, I hope I have. Because without him working a second job to help me pay tuition, I never would've starte! the Montgomery Agency and achieved the insane heights of success that I've reached.

At the end of Bailey's bio, I read a quote from her: “Real love exists, and I will help you find it. Don't ever give up your search for it. Your soulmate is somewhere out there waiting for you."

50 naive, I think. Those are the words of someone who either has never been in a relationship because they definitely aren’ all hearts and flowers, or someone who is in her first serious relationship and still thinks the man she’s with is perfect.

Give “em time.In the end, everyone's true colors come out and it's disappointing as f**k.

The moment my phone rings, I see it's Ben and answer. “What've you got for me, Webber?” I ask, impatient to find out more about the first woman to capture my interest since Selene.

“Do I detect a note of eagerness?” he asks, fucking around with me.

I'squeeze my eyes shut. “Lay it on me!" 'm expecting to hear a few different reasons why Bailey Briggs is bad news. That she a whiner, a clinger, a gold digger, a stalker. That her breath smells like rotten eggs and she’s oozing with STD's. Something that will make her less appealing.

“She sounds like a big sweetheart, man."

I grit my teeth. “Why?”

“So, Rae said her parents died when she was little. Drunk driver hit them.”

“Oh, shit I sit up straighter, phone glued to my ear, staring at her picture still up on my computer screen.

“Her grandparents took her in and raised her. She loved them dearly, but they've passed away. Rae said she doesn't have an other family. Also said she’s kind, generous and believes that true love will conquer all”

I'snort. Yeah, right.

“Rae also mentioned that business is bad, and she’s scared they're going to have to close up shop soon. The rent and bills are too high, and they haven't had any new clients lately. Until you walked in, of course’

Interesting. didn't expect that. I'm instantly wondering if can split my payment up to help make her life easier. Maybe even pay in full ahead of time. Yes, that's what I'l do. Give her money for her services upfront.

All of a sudden, a plan comes together, and I grin. “Thanks a lot for the intel, Ben."

“What're you going to do about it? Ask her out?”

“I'm going to do more than that,” I say. “I'm going to ask her to come up to Buffalo with me and pretend to be my fiancée.” “And why would she want to do that?” he asks carefully.

“Because if she does then I'll help save her business by investing in it"

“You're a sneaky bastard, my friend.”

“The sneakiest. You think she'll go for it?” I ask. She might tell me to go screw.

“Actually, I think she will. From what Rae says, Bailey loves her business and if she loses it then she has nothing left.” “Good,” I mumble.

“Good?” he echoes.

“You know what I mean. She sent me pictures and bios of other women, but the truth is I'd rather have her on my arm for this little charade. Let's just say, we'd both be doing each other a solid. That's all. Strictly professional.”

“strictly professional, my ass" Ben says dryly. “You're interested in her. I can hear it in your voice."

“I mean, I'm not going to deny myself a little fun if she’s game. It's only a couple of weeks and once we're back then everything goes back to normal. I'l have to eventually let my family down easy and tell them we broke it off and she'll have money to save her company. It's a win-win situation.”

“Jace, she's a nice girl. Don't hurt her”

“I have no intentions of hurting her”

“If you break her heart-"

“Iwon't,” I say adamantly. “If she wants to fool around, we both need to be on the same page.”

“Hmm.”

“Don’t worry, I've got it handled,” I tell him confidently. “We'll keep things light, carefree, and fun. There aren't going to be an broken hearts because that means things will have gotten serious. And you know better than anyone that I don't do serious in any way, shape or form."

“Yeah, I know. But does she?"

“She will because I'll be completely transparent”

“If you say so."

“I do. Don't worry. I've got it handled.’

Famous last words.