Page 4 of Unstoppable Billionaire (The Hardcore Novels: Special Editions #2)

TD continues as he walks backwards to the elevator.

"You gave us a night we will never forget.

Fucking Fantasies fulfilled! Since you were officially my date, I've come bearing gifts.

I've left them downstairs at the office, but just wanted to tell you in person.

I owe you. Big time. You are awesome! If I can ever do anything for you, just let me know. "

"That wasn't necessary. You told me I could leave, but I chose to stay. I did it because I wanted to. Tell everyone I said thank you for their kindness."

He looks at Aurei again. "You also have an honorary membership and are welcome anytime. No appointment necessary."

He steps out of sight into the elevator, then sticks his head out.

"One last thing, what you said last night about whores?

I appreciate that. I don't tell people this, but I'm a bastard child.

I don't know who my father is because my mother was a prostitute back then trying to survive.

And for the record, I was only asking you how you charge for your services because I'm throwing a bachelor party for a buddy of mine.

" He disappears as the doors close. "Thank you again. "

When I turn around, the Thunderous Bastard Son of Thor hands me my phone. "What the fuck did the little shit-ass want?"

"He came to apologize. We're cool."

He nods at the elevator. "We're not, though."

I slip my hand in his and cinch our fingers. "Come on. I'm starving! How long does it take to cook a ham and cheese omelet?"

* * *

Aurei

* * *

I have all the ingredients lined up on the counter in the kitchen. Taking a bowl out of the cabinet, I hand it to Siri along with a whisk and instruct her, "Crack six eggs, add a little milk, and whisk."

She stares at it for just a second, then does as instructed.

As I slice the ham, I glance at her to determine how much of a novice she really is.

She's pretty green. She cracks the eggs gently, having to hit the side of the bowl multiple times, then doesn't tip the bowl when she begins to whip the eggs.

She was truthful about that little fact, and inside I smile.

If she's that open and honest about the little things, maybe she'll be that way on everything,

After chopping up a few cherry tomatoes and some green onions into small pieces, I add olive oil and butter to a frying pan.

Wait for the butter to melt, then take the egg batter from her.

She stands next to me, watching as I pour a little into the pan, add the ingredients, and top it with cheese. "Simple."

She smiles up at me, "It smells delicious!" Then she moves behind me to wrap her arms around me. "You know, we need to talk. I want to face our secrets upfront. Boldly. I don't want any devils showing up unexpectedly and coming between us."

I ignore her, stirring the eggs. There is no way I'm sharing my secrets yet.

I'm not ready, and she sure as hell isn't. She has to love me unconditionally first. Right now, we're in the honeymoon stage where infatuation prevails.

We have to move to the love-is-blind phase before I begin to let her in on the depth of who I am.

I scoop part of the omelet onto a plate and hand it to her. "Eat."

"OK, but I want you to hear my secrets from me." She sits on the same stool that she sat on when she tortured me with the cookies, and the memory of how sexily the minx consumes food sends me around the counter to sit next to her.

She talks, "I know a little about you from your Facebook page as we eat. You don't give any info up, but I take it from the posts you're tagged in you're an instructor pilot?"

I nod. "Was. I've resigned, remember?"

She smiles and nods as she chews. "Wow! This is good!"

I smirk, "I'm going to fatten you up."

"Oh, hell no! We're going to burn these calories!"

I lean over for a smack, and she puckers up. When she's finished eating, she says, "You know; your face had the look of thunder on it when you charged out in the hall."

I grin at her choice of words. She's very descriptive in a mythological way, and it's accurate. "I felt like thunder. I wanted to rip that fucking son of a bitch to shreds."

She looks down at her empty plate and sighs. "That's what concerns me. Will you want to rip everyone to shreds? If I tell you all the details of what I do, will you be able to handle it?"

She looks up at me with such sincerity and doubt. I stop eating to reassure her. "There's a difference between a professionally controlled environment, Siri, and bastards outside in the real world. I can distinguish between the two."

"I hope so because my professionally controlled environment can get pretty down and dirty."

"I understand that. I'm cool with it. It's lust. I don't mind."

Her eyes narrow. "You don't mind men lusting after me?"

"I don't mind watching you dance, knowing you are turning on every man in the house and knowing they are lusting. Sitting next to them and having them slapping me on the back about it? That is something entirely different. That? I do mind."

She stares into my eyes, reading me, and I sense the depth of her understanding primal human nature. That's what makes her so compelling. "I hope you can handle my secrets, Aurei."

"I will, Wild Thang. There's a big difference now too." I close in for another peck. "We are committed. Forevermore."

The look in her eyes shifts from doubting me to hope, and instead of just pecking her puckered mouth. I give her a soft kiss.

When I pull away, she shakes her head. "You are different from other men."

"Affirmative. I am." I state, determined that she understands that I get her and I'm good with who she is and what she does.

Otherwise, she won't let herself fall hard for me, and when shit hits the fan…

. "Humans lust for beautiful things. They look; they lust. I understand what you do is exotically charged entertainment. "

Bullseye!

She stares at me, dumbfounded. "I don't know what to say to that. It's… dead on."

Excellent! I smile and pick up my fork again, then scoop up a mouthful of omelet, letting her digest my acceptance.

"So you saw me dance last November?" She asks, curious now.

"Yes, the weekend before Thanksgiving." I nod, then smirk as I look away with a dreamy expression, remembering how fucking hot she was and how I felt. "When you bounced out from behind the curtain, I almost fell out of my chair." It sounds like I'm exaggerating, but it is 100 percent true.

She pushes me playfully, making me laugh and own it.

"I'm serious. When you danced. Fuck! It was all over for me."

She laughs, happy with my confession, and continues questioning me. "How many times have you seen me perform?"

"Twenty-three," I smirk.

Her eyes widen. "Twenty-three? That's … specific."

"Yep." I chuckle. "Twenty-three torturous times. I'm a specific kinda guy."

She shakes her head, comprehending the information, then calculating it. "November to February. That's every weekend." She looks at me, shocked. "You flew to Vegas every weekend to see me dance? That's…."

"Hardcore?" I finish the sentence for her.

"That's who I am." I reach for her hand, and she gives it to me.

I stroke hers with my thumb as I think about telling her the truth without telling her the truth.

To say I love you this early only trivializes the meaning.

She needs time. I have a big head start.

My gut tightens with the significance of the moment. "I fell for you."

She gives me that same sincere expression of hope, and the tightness moves to my heart. I take a deep breath, then wink to break the seriousness, stand, and take our plates to the sink to wash.

"The first time, you were working over a birthday boy tied to a chair on stage.

Damn. Those gold chains swaying when you bounced down the runway were hypnotic, but nothing compared to when you started spinning, and they started unwinding…

." I finish the dishes, turn the water off, and turn around to look at her.

She's coming around the counter, smiling, so I grab a hand towel to dry my hands and lean against the sink.

"I couldn't get you out of my mind. That damn song and the vision of you giving him one helluva lap dance kept playing over and over on a loop.

" I shake my head, "You are so fucking contagious. "

She stops in front of me and grins. "I hate I didn't spot you in the crowd. I would have flirted with you and teased you terribly." She reaches for the hand towel, but I wrap my arms around her, then toss it on the counter.

"Good thing you didn't 'cause I was having a hard enough time fighting off the urge to drag you off the stage by your hair. If our eyes would have locked …" I lean down and kiss her hair. "Death."

She laughs out loud.

"Someone would have died. After that, I sat where no one was blocking my view or patting me on the back and far enough away not to be too tempted by you.

I knew one fuckup, and I would be banned from the club.

And THAT, Wild Thang, would have been torture worse than death.

" I push her away, "Let me finish getting ready. We need to get going."

She follows me into the bedroom and asks, "Did you catch a Surreal performance?"

"I saw J-Lo dancing in the crowd on New Year's Eve," I say as I put my arms in the shirt sleeves and pull it over my head, then down my body.

"Did you? Are you sure?"

I sit on the bed and pull on a pair of socks. "If that was Surreal, she is wicked good."

She laughs, "Duh! Of course, she is wicked good."

"Is she a friend of yours? Surreal, not J-Lo. Duh, again."

She laughs, "Not duh. We are all friends."

"That's dope."

"Yeah. We're all in business together."

"That's cool as fuck!" I smirk as I pull on my boots.

"Why didn't you stay to see if the performance was Surreal or J-Lo?"

"I wasn't interested. I was stalking the club looking for Seary."

She tilts her head. "Well, the reason you couldn't find me is …." She pauses and waits until I'm looking her in the eye. "I'm Surreal."

I sit up, stunned. "No … shit?"

"No shit!" She giggles.

I shake my head, "Wait a minute. Her hair is black."

"Hair paint."

"Well, I'll be damned!" I stare at her, then reach for her hand.

She slips hers in, and I draw her between my legs, then down on top of me as I lay on the bed.

She lays her head on my chest, and I cradle her, thinking.

That's why she has a security detail, why she doesn't do VIP rooms anymore, why she was so expensive to book, and why it took so long for a date. She works all the damn time.

I squeeze her ass. "So… you're not just a headliner? You're a major league star."

"High-value entertainer is the correct term, but yeah, I'm sort of a celebrity."

"You're isolated, aren't you?"

"Yes, it's not bad. It's not the life of a showgirl, for sure, but it's a pretty normal life for a Vegas celebrity. Honestly, I love my life. I have a tight group of friends that are more like family, and that's all anyone needs."

"Hmm." I rub her back as wave after wave of emotions course through me with the realization that Siri is perfect for me. More perfect than I could have dreamed of and more than I deserve. I cannot lose her. I can't!