Page 8 of The Morally Grey Billionaires Boxset

Isla

"Why did I agree to this?" I moan. I glance sideways at the asshole who hasn’t spoken a word to me since I slid into the passenger seat of his car. He picked me up late this afternoon so he could drive me to my mom’s home in Lymington.

He hasn’t spoken a word to me since. Instead, he tuned the radio station to a news channel.

Probably wants to keep track of his investments, I guess.

I decided not to speak a word to him either.

I focused on answering the many emails and text messages I’d received from the various vendors. I still have a wedding to organize.

Luckily, the press hasn’t picked up on the change of brides, but that could change at any time.

We need to be prepared, and we haven’t yet discussed the strategy of how we're going to break the news to the press. To be honest, I’ve been putting it off.

As long as we don’t tell the press, it’s not real, right?

But we’re going to tell my mother first and. ..

Oh, god, I’m so not looking forward to that. I’ve tried not to say a word either since we left, but that was nearly two hours ago. As we turn off the highway toward the city, my pulse begins to race. Sweat beads my palms.

"Did you hear me?" I huff.

Liam keeps his gaze trained forward as he flips on the indicator.

The muscles of his forearms flex, and a pulse throbs to life between my legs.

The sluttiest thing a man can do is have the sleeves of his shirt rolled up to show off those veined forearms—the way Liam has his right now.

I squeeze my thighs together. Why do I find everything about this man so sexy?

His fingers are thick and end in blunt fingernails, and the tendons under his skin flex as he steers the car.

My mouth dries. How annoying. I don’t find him hot. Not at all.

"Liam, I don’t think this is a good idea," I repeat.

He shoots me a glance from the corner of his eye. "So you’ve said for the hundredth time," he murmurs.

"Well, now I’m saying for the one-hundred and first time that this is all going to go pear-shaped."

"You heard what my mother said. She thinks it’s a good idea to have both her and your mom speak to the press."

I blow out a breath. "And you do whatever your mother tells you, is that it?"

He purses his lips. "I don’t like to say no to her if I can help it, and you have to admit, it’s a great idea to have both your mum and my mum issue a joint statement."

It’s not a bad idea at all. Nothing like getting mothers involved to make the situation seem authentic. But I don’t say that.

Instead, I say, "I still haven’t managed to speak to Lila. I’ve left her messages, but she’s not returning my calls. Maybe she’s upset with me?"

"Or maybe she wants some time to figure out what she wants to do with her life?"

I scowl. "Is that you actually being reasonable?"

He raises a shoulder. "I am always reasonable."

"That’s why you want me to take you to meet my mother, with your mother following us in her car?" I cover my face with my fingers. "Oh, I don’t have a good feeling about this at all."

"Stop being so dramatic. Everything’s going to be fine."

He turns into the lane where my parents live. "Ohgodohgodohgod." I draw in a breath and my lungs burn. Try to breathe and my throat closes. Black flickers at the corners of my vision.

He brings the car to a stop and turns to me. "You okay?"

I shake my head.

He reaches over, places his hand between my shoulders and applies pressure. "Put your head between your legs."

I allow him to push me forward, then lower my head. I close my eyes and allow the oxygen to flood my lungs. Some of the darkness recedes.

"Better?" he asks in a low voice.

When I nod, he rubs his hand over my back in slow circles.

The warmth from his fingertips sinks into my blood.

The band around my chest loosens. He continues to run his fingers down my spine gently.

At some point, the tempo of his movements changes.

His strokes grow more languorous. He drags his fingertips down my neck and my nipples tighten.

A moan slips from my lips. I lengthen my spine, inviting him to stroke me down my back again, and he complies.

From my neck to my lower back and again. A shiver grips me. My core tightens.

I sit up at once, and he pulls his hand away.

The atmosphere in the car is electric. My limbs tremble.

I know he’s staring at me, but no way, am I going to meet his gaze.

"Thanks." I clear my throat, then push open the door and step outside.

A second later I hear his door slam shut.

Then he rounds the front of the car and draws abreast.

"Should we wait for your mother or—"

"Why don’t we go in?" He takes my elbow. "I’m sure she’s not far behind."

Another car draws up and stops at enough of a distance that they give us our privacy. At the same time, it’s clear they’re keeping us in their sights.

"Friends of yours?" I nod in their direction.

"Security. They won’t intrude."

"Do we need security?"

"I do, and now that you’re marrying me, you do, too."

"Oh." I blink. Not sure how I feel about having someone on my heels twenty-four-seven, but I’ll have to think through that one later. Right now, I need to get this meeting with my family over with.

I square my shoulders and step onto the sidewalk with Liam in tow. I walk up the short garden path I traversed so many times when I was younger. Before I can rap on the door, it’s pulled open. My mother stands there, clad in a flowing kaftan with a big smile on her face.

"You’re here!" She throws her arms around my shoulders and hugs me. "I’m so happy to see you, Isla."

"Me too," I mumble, then disentangle myself from my mother’s embrace and step back.

"Mom, this is my-uh, fiancé, Liam Kincaid. Liam, this is—"

"Nadine." My ma eschews his proffered hand and throws her arms around him. "Welcome; Isla has told me so much about you."

"She has?" Liam turns to me with a question in his eyes. I shake my head.

"She said she had a surprise and was bringing someone home to meet me. Of course, I knew who it was right away."

"You did?" I clear my throat.

"Of course, I did." She keeps a hold on Liam, then grabs my arm and pulls me along. "Come in, come in. I can’t wait for the entire family to meet you."

"Ma," I half yell, "I told you not to invite anyone else. This meeting was supposed to be private—just for the immediate family."

"And they are my immediate family. Since you chose to leave me and go off to London, first to study, and then to work. And, I probably won’t see you for another year."

"That’s where you’re wrong." I lower my chin to my chest. This is it, my worst nightmare. The reason I prefer to stay far away from them. My extended family means well, but by god, having them all up in my business has driven me to madness so many times in the past.

There’s a loud barking, then the skitter of claws on the wooden floor, and a Great Dane leaps down from the landing and jumps toward us.

"Liam, watch out—"

The dog reaches Liam in one bound, then butts his thigh.

Liam doesn’t blink. The tendons of his neck bunch, but he stays calm.

"Tiny, come back here, boy. I’m so sorry; he escaped me." My brother Dorian pants as he races down the stairs toward us. “As soon as he heard your voices, he knew someone new had arrived, and he got excited."

"He’s harmless," I whisper.

"Your Great Dane is called Tiny?" Liam asks without taking his gaze off of the dog.

“What else would you call him?” I retort.

He doesn’t flinch as Tiny looks up at him and rests his weight against his leg.

The two seem engaged in some kind of stand-off.

Tiny is, easily, three-and-a-half feet tall when he’s standing on all fours.

On his hind legs, he stretches to well over six-feet high.

Not to mention, he weighs 115 pounds. For someone not used to his dimensions, he can come across as daunting, but you wouldn’t know it the way Liam narrows his gaze on the dog.

Of course, it helps that Liam is six feet four inches tall—and yes, I know his height.

I had to, given I was organizing his wedding.

And yes, that’s the only reason I made it a point to find out.

Liam lifts his hand and lets Tiny sniff his palm. Tiny bares his teeth.

My heart somersaults into my throat. "Oh, no." I take a step forward, when Tiny rolls out his tongue and licks Liam’s palm.

"Tiny, stop that." Dorian grabs Tiny’s collar and slips on the leash.

Not that it deters the Great Dane from wagging his tail so hard his entire body vibrates, and god help the person who stands behind him.

That’ll bruise. He pants and butts Liam’s thigh again.

Liam doesn’t stumble, which is impressive given Tiny’s size.

Liam chuckles then rubs the dog’s neck. He scratches Tiny behind his ear, and the dog arches his neck in ecstasy.

"Tiny." Dorian yanks at the dog who has obviously decided he’s not going anywhere. He barks, then brushes his head against my hip with so much force I stumble.

Liam catches me about my waist, and pinpricks of heat shudder out from his touch. Oh, no, no, no. Not falling for that again.

I pet Tiny. "Hey, Tiny. How’re you doing? You keeping everyone busy with your antics?"

Tiny barks, then moves to get closer to me. I brace myself for his weight, but Liam steps in front of me, and Tiny plows into him instead.

"Hey boy, want a treat?" He pulls a clear package from the inside of his jacket, then extracts a treat and holds it out, above Tiny’s head.

“Down, boy.” His voice crackles with authority. “Sit.”

Tiny blinks, then sits on his bottom, the best way to see the treat above him. His gaze shifts between Liam and the treat, his mouth hanging open.

“Good boy.” Liam tosses him the treat, and Tiny grabs it out of the air. As he crunches, he watches Liam with eager eyes.

“Lay down, Tiny,” Liam orders.

Tiny hesitates, his gaze held by Liam’s. Then, Liam crouches and holds the treat on the floor. Tiny follows him with his eyes, then with his head, and finally, with his body. Once he’s lying on the floor, Liam feeds him the treat.

By the time Liam is standing, Tiny has already polished off the treat, is back to sitting, and is looking for more.

Hmm, no way Tiny would stay sitting, unless he’s ordered to. Even then, it’s anybody’s guess what he’ll do, but... Apparently, Liam is alpha enough for Tiny to do so without being told by him.

Tiny whines. Liam chuckles, "Okay, that’s it for now, but you behave yourself, and you’ll get more before we leave."

At this point, Dorian tugs on his leash, and the dog allows my brother to lead him away and into the living room.

"Well look at that. You came prepared?" My mother looks at Liam with big heart eyes. Well, apparently I needn’t have worried about how she was going to receive the news. She seems to have fallen for him without finding out anything about him. Of course, the way he’s dressed in his tailor-made suit, clean-shaven jaw, and that dark hair which is so black, there’s almost a bluish cast to it.

Not to mention, those deep gray eyes which currently wear a slightly bemused expression.

I’d have fallen for him, too. If I didn’t know what an asshole he truly is.

But you wouldn’t know that, looking at how he smiles broadly at my mother.

He takes her hand in his and kisses her knuckles. "Enchanted to meet you, Nadine," he rumbles.

My mother blushes. Good god, her cheeks actually flush. "Oh, you are a sweetheart, aren’t you?" She tugs on his arm. "Come, meet the others."