The Billionaire's Mistress Complete Series: Alpha Billionaire Romance (17 page)

“
T
hat’s a lovely dress
.”

I got the impression that my mother had been standing in the doorway waiting for me to look up for several minutes. I smiled my thanks and went back to studying my dress. There were times in my life that I had friends I just didn’t deserve. This was one of those times.

The dress Mom had just complimented was actually an Armani. It was a couple of years out of fashion, but new off the rack, it still would have cost a couple of thousand. Thanks to Tao's friend, Tarja Caldwell, however, I paid barely a couple hundred. I didn't know what Tao had told her, but she'd sold the dress to me at cost. Now, because of her, my outfit looked like a one-of-a-kind designer piece straight off the runway.

The once-open back of it was now mesh and seeded with tiny little stones that caught the light. There were inserts along the skirt echoing the design. The bodice had the shimmery little stones as well. Pretty, elegant and sexy, with a vague hint of retro to it, the dress was feminine without being fussy. I was playing off the vintage tones by sweeping my hair up into a twist reminiscent of the fifties. I had a strand of pearls as well. The pearls were one the few rare gifts my father had given me that had nothing to do with money.

I thought I’d blend in rather well. At the very least, I wouldn’t look like some street urchin. Maybe I wouldn’t fit in, but I wouldn’t stand out, either. Then I reminded myself that I didn't actually want to fit in with those people.

Sometimes, I still had to tell myself that daily. I’d spent way too much of my younger life trying to fit, to shape myself into whatever mold I thought would please my father, make him love me. When I'd finally realized that wasn't going to happen, it made me go in the complete opposite direction and not want to be a part of his world at all.

And now I was stepping into it voluntarily.

Mom came up behind me and rested her hand on my shoulder.

Meeting her eyes in the mirror, I started to smile. But she asked quietly,
“Why are you so sad?”

“I’m not.”
I spoke the words, knowing she could read my lips via my reflection. She wouldn’t hear the tremor in my voice, but if I signed them, my hands might shake a little, and I didn’t want her to see anything I wasn’t ready to share with her.

But this was my mother. And mothers, damn them, they could always tell. She leaned forward and gave me a kiss on the cheek. Then, softly, she spoke and sighed,
“You let me know when you’re ready to talk. You know I’m always here for you.”

* * *

“
O
h
. My heart.” Tao clutched at his chest, pretending the organ in question pained him. “Baby, I can’t take it. You look too beautiful for the likes of me.”

I’d put a petticoat on under the skirt, and it swished around my legs as I walked. It made me feel insanely girly and sexy in an odd sort of way. As I came down the last few steps, I rolled my eyes at Tao's behavior.

“Are you going to fall to the floor? If you plan to do so, hurry up and get it over with. We’ll need to grab the lint roller because I haven’t swept in here.”

He looked affronted. “I give you a compliment, and you’re worried about lint? Allie, where’s your sense of romance?”

“It died a long time ago,” I said tartly. I came a little closer and watched as he adjusted the cufflinks on his rented tux.

When he caught sight of me watching him, he grinned at me and shot me a lascivious wink and did a little spin. “Do I look good or what?”

“Not to add to your overblown ego, but yes. You look fantastic.” I leaned in and kissed his cheek before settling back down in front of him. A quick glance assured me I hadn’t left any lipstick on him.

“What?” He reached up to brush his cheek. “Do I have anything on my face?”

Mom came up behind me, laughing. “
No. She’s checking to make sure she didn’t leave lipstick on your cheek. I guess she plans on doing a lot of kissing later tonight.”

Tao wagged his eyebrows at me.
“Excellent plan, Allie.”
He signed as he spoke so my mom could get it too.

My cheeks flushed, and I turned away without responding.

Not because I planned on kissing Tao.
That
wouldn’t make me blush. The things Tao and I had done together made the two of us insanely comfortable with each other. It was the thought of kisses and...
him
.

“Come on, Allie.” Some of the humor had faded from Tao’s voice, although when I looked at him, he was still smiling. His eyes had sobered, but he kept the mask up for my mom. Holding out a hand, he angled his head toward the door. “I begged and bribed a friend of mine, and we’ve got a nice ride for the night.”

When I met his gaze, I could tell he’d known exactly who I’d been thinking about. My mom, however, didn't know about any of that.

A few minutes later, we were heading down the stairs, my hand on Tao’s forearm. We’d been just about to leave when Mom abruptly insisted we wait while she rushed into her bedroom. I’d been convinced she was taking off to get a camera, or something and I’d almost pointed out that this wasn’t the prom, but she’d emerged almost immediately, carrying a fluffy bundle of soft lavender – not a camera.

“It’s too cold for you to be out there without a wrap,”
she’d signed as I unrolled the bundle. It was silk and something else – all of it woven together in layers that were soft and thick and warm as I threw it across my shoulders, drawing it around me. I’d smiled my thanks before we left and now, as a cold wind cut through the streets, I was even more grateful.

“So…what do you think of our ride?” Tao asked, leaning in and nuzzling my temple.

I came to a stop, looking for his car. Except all I saw was a sleek, sexy red Stingray.

My jaw dropped.

“That?”

He grinned.

“Who did you kill or what did you steal?” I demanded.

“Nothing. I just called in a favor.” He said it nonchalantly, but I knew Tao. The man was pleased with himself.
Beyond
pleased.

He opened the door for me, and I slid in. He helped me tuck the skirt in around me, giving my leg a little lingering caress. From anyone else, it would've been lecherous, but from him, it was comforting.

When he spoke, I knew why he was offering me comfort. “Just remember, Cinderella, no matter how charming the prince is, your kingdom isn’t ever going to fit with his.”

* * *

“
H
ow is Malla doing
?”

Smiling at Charles Bailey, I signed, “
Mom's doing fine.”

“And your brother?”
He paused, frowning. “
How old is he now?”
He tapped his temple.
“The old head isn’t what it used to be.”

I laughed. “
I think you just have too many schemes going on up there, Mr. Bailey.”

He grinned.

I launched into a story about what was going on with TJ at school, moving into some of the issues that my brother was facing with the bullies. Charles Bailey was one of the driving forces behind some of the programs we now had for the deaf community in our neighborhood. Even now that he'd stepped back and retired from almost everything, he was still a key figure. He'd also been friends with Tyson and my mom for years. It was nice to see a few friendly faces.

By the time I finished, Charles was shaking his head.

“I wish you folks lived closer to me and Maureen. TJ would get along great with my youngest son. Amar hears, but with all of the rest of us not being hearing, he understands our culture as much as you do.”

“Maybe we should just set up some time for them to get together,”
I suggested, signing.

“That’s not a bad idea.”
Charles nodded, his lips pursed. A moment later, he reached into his pocket and withdrew a card. He also took out a pen and wrote something down. “
My private email,”
he said after he gave me the card. “G
et in touch, Allie. We’ll set something up. Maybe TJ can come to one of the ballgames with us.”

He hugged me, and I nodded at him before we both moved in separate directions. I saw another familiar face, and she smiled, waved at me, but before we reached each other, somebody cut her off.

“Who is
that
?” Tao asked, sipping from the mug of craft beer somebody had given him earlier.

“Liz Carter. She runs a sign language class through the library system. It’s the one I help out with when I’m not being worked into the ground,” I added dryly. I studied the crowd around her. “We’ll catch up with her later.”

As we moved off into the crowd, Tao shot me a look, clearly amused. “Look at you. All hobnobbing with the rich and…” He frowned. “You know, the rich and elite just doesn’t sound quite as good as the rich and famous, does it?”

I rolled my eyes at him.

“How many other mega impressive personages do you know?” he asked.

“Does your big ego count?”

“We can count my ego if we can also count my…” He wagged his eyebrows at me.

“Would you
hush
?” Laughing, I leaned and pressed a quick kiss to his mouth. “You are incorrigible, I swear!”

As I hooked my arm through his, some of the tension in my body fell away. Everything was going fine. Nothing to be nervous about, nothing to worry about, right?

But when I began to scan the crowd again, everything changed.

I looked right past her at first, but her eyes brought me back. She was staring dead at me like she could just will me off the face of the planet. I stumbled a little, thrown off track. No, that was a lie. It felt like the entire
world
had been thrown off track, not just me.

“Allie?” No humor existed in Tao’s voice now. He knew me so well. He steadied me, his hand immediately moving to my waist.

Tearing my eyes away from the woman across the room, I swallowed and made myself look at Tao.

“Are you okay?” He touched my cheek. “You look like you’ve been stabbed with a hot poker or something.”

“Worse,” I said wanly. Needing a few moments of privacy, I tugged him off to the side, hoping the crowd – or the floor – would swallow us up. Why was
she
here?

“What’s wrong? You see
him
? If you did…well, honey, you should have expected–”

“It’s not him.” Well, not just him. Because I had seen Jal too. Standing next to
her
.

He’d seen me too.

Both
of them had.

Jal’s light blue eyes had lit up.

The woman with him had looked like…I didn’t even know how to describe the look on her face, but it didn’t fall anywhere near the realm of pleasant. She’d recovered quickly though.

No surprise, really. After all, Diamond Hedges knew how to hide what she was feeling.

She wouldn’t
dare
to be caught off stride, not by something insignificant as seeing her husband’s bastard at a gala with her friends.

I swallowed the panicked laugh bubbling in my throat as Tao stroked a hand up my arm. “Tell me what’s wrong, honey.”

From the corner of my eye, I saw her moving off into the crowd, away from me.

“Kendrick Hedges,” I managed stiffly.

Tao jerked as if I’d stabbed him. “What? He’s here? Your dad?”

I didn’t point out that he wasn’t really my father. Not in any way that truly mattered. Even the time he'd spent with me as a child, any money he'd sent, all of it came from curiosity and guilt. But it didn’t matter right now. Shaking my head, I glanced back toward the direction where I’d seen Diamond.

“No. Worse.” I cleared my throat and managed to speak with some strength. “It’s his wife – and she hates my guts.

S
he wasn’t here yet
.

A little voice in my head suggested that maybe she wasn't coming at all.

Like hell. She’d come.

She had to. I went to a lot of work to
get
her here.

Even as I thought it, I hated myself for it. How fucking arrogant was I?

As one of the guests – I think his name was George Spieth – stepped up and held out his hand, I shot another look at the door. For all I knew, she’d looked at the invitation and tore it into confetti. Or she might have already come and gone, slipped in while I was making the rounds and left just as quickly. I couldn’t exactly watch the door nonstop when I was hosting this gala.

Maybe I should've thought this out a little more.

“Your fiancée shared with me the happy news–”

I jerked my head around and stared at George. Shit. “She did?”

“About the engagement.” He clapped me on the shoulder. “She’s a lovely one, that Paisley. Hope to hear news about the wedding soon.”

I gave him a strained smile. Paisley had been showing her damn ring off all night. It seemed that my request for time and space had fallen on deaf ears. She was cooing about wedding plans and a honeymoon cruise that would take us halfway around the damn world.

At the moment, she was standing across the room with her mother. They glanced my way, and I had no doubt what the subject of the discussion was or perhaps I should say
who
.

Of course, the look on Diamond’s face was pure ice.

When George caught sight of her moving our way, he chuckled. “It’s the mother-in-law...I’ll be upfront, son. I don’t pity you on
that
front.” He clapped me once more on the shoulder and passed me a card. “Let me know what your people think of that proposal.”

Proposal –
I didn’t even remember him talking about one, but I was sure he must have. I gave a vague answer. “Just get the information to my team.”

As he moved off, Diamond took his place.

I pushed the card into my pocket and gave another casual look around the ballroom. No such–

Son of a bitch. She was here.

I let my gaze devour her while Diamond started to talk.

“Hello, Jal.” The cool tone barely made an impact as I took in the lush curves of Allie's body, the pearls around her neck…the
guy standing with her
?

Son of a
bitch
! She’d brought a date? I ground my teeth.

“What in the
world
?” Diamond said in a low voice. I hardly noticed. No doubt she was pissed off at me for not paying attention to her.

A date.

Why in the hell had she brought a date? Her gaze flicked my way in just that moment, although she didn’t seem to look straight at me. Her eyes widened, her lips parted. Before I could do anything, her date put his hand on her arm, the gesture clearly protective. And she didn't shake off his touch.

Oh,
hell
, no.

“The
nerve
of that–”

“Yes,” I said to Diamond, not really understanding a word coming out of her mouth. “Absolutely. We’ll talk later, of course.”

I moved, straight toward Allie – and her
date
.

If Diamond bitched, I’d just tell her I had to greet people. And I did. The one person I wanted to talk to was over there, and I had to talk to her. Courtesy dictated I say something to the asshole with her, so I’d say hi, then fantasize about ripping his balls off. After, of course, I made sure he understood that Allie was off limits.

As I crossed the floor, I nodded and waved and greeted the people who stood like tuxedoed and formally-gowned obstacles, but I wasn’t exactly greeting them. I had no desire to talk to anybody, save for Allie. She was the only one I saw now.

I sure as hell wasn't going to let her know that though.

I nodded at a few people standing between me and Allie as I strode straight to her. I tried not to stare too intently, but it was hard. She looked beautiful. Elegant and refined, her dress looked like it'd been made for her, and the strand of pearls around her neck completed the look.

Her eyes came to mine, and a smile that was both reluctant and pleased curled her lips. “Hello, Jal.”

I hoped nothing more than friendship showed when I returned her smile. “Allie. How are you? Enjoying yourself?”

“Well…yes. I suppose.” She laughed and the sound was…strained. The life I had come to associate with…well, everything about her seemed dampened.

I glanced over at the man standing with her, unable to do a very good job at hiding my curiosity. Curiosity – the word seemed so mild for what I was feeling. It really didn’t touch on this overwhelming urge I had to shove him aside and take over the space he had at her side.

His lips twitched, like he knew exactly what I was thinking. A moment later, he leaned over and murmured something in her ear, his lips brushing against her skin. Another rip of envy tore through me and again, his lips twitched like he was following my line of thought.

Asshole, I decided. He was an arrogant asshole.

Whatever he said had her cheeks flushing a pale shade of pink, and she averted her gaze for a moment, shaking her head. Then she looked over at me and nodded. “Jal, this is my date for the evening, Tao. Tao, this is Jal.”

“For the evening,” I echoed. There was no denying the edge in my voice. It was too pointed and obvious. I held out a hand, and he cocked an eyebrow before slowly accepting it. It was a total dick move, but I didn’t care. I squeezed his hand as I stared into his eyes.

Except he didn’t look impressed or intimidated. He just squeezed right back, and the look in his eyes was as clear as day.

He was laughing at me.

Son of a bitch.

Tugging my hand free, I looked back at Allie. “Would your…
date
mind if we had a dance?”

“I doubt he would.” She slanted a look over at him.

Tao leaned in and kissed her cheek, murmured something else that made her blush, and she shook her head at him.

I held out a hand, and she accepted. Her gaze slid past me, lingering for a few seconds. It was long enough to tempt me to look back and see what it was she was looking at. Was it whoever had her less…
her
today?

Whoever it was, I wanted to make them go away. They could disappear from the face of the planet for all I cared. First, though, I needed to know who it was.

But before I could look, her gaze came back to mine, and I was more interested in her than anything else. Leading her out onto the dance floor, I guided her hand to my shoulder and folded the other in mine.

I was about to mention something about the waltz and how she could just follow me when she started to move.

“You never cease to amaze me,” I said.

“Why?” She smiled up at me. It was still strained, but she wasn't pulling away from me, so I counted it as a win. “Because I can waltz?”

“Where did you learn?”

Canting her head to the side, she replied, “Where did you?”

“Point taken.”

I had one hand on her waist, and I wanted to tug her closer. Wanted to pull her up against me and move until our hearts beat together. But I stayed...platonic and guided her to the music. As I swept her around on a turn, she smiled, and some of the shadows fell from her eyes.

“You look beautiful tonight. I’m glad you came.”

“Why did you invite me?” She held my gaze.

“You left.” My body heated at the memory of what had preceded her leaving. Then the negative emotion followed. While the word
pissed
wasn’t exactly the right word, I was…irritated. “You just left. I wanted to talk to you.”

“Why?” She turned her head, staring out over the dance floor, although I doubted she saw anything. “What was there to talk about really? We didn’t have anything left to say. We’d agreed it was a mistake. We’d agreed we shouldn’t have done it. What was there to talk about?”

“When did we agree on any of that?” I had my hand resting on the small of her back, and I was holding her closer than I should. I heard her words, but all I could think was how
wrong
her words sounded, and how
right
she felt in my arms. How easily we moved together, like we were made for each other.

“Before we even got started, we agreed it was a mistake,” Allie said, smiling at me, but it wasn't a nice smile. She gave a slow shake of her head.

“I don’t regret it.” I never should have said those words, never should have given her that truth. And I knew it. But it was another thing I didn’t regret. She deserved to know.

Her pale, soft gaze slid away. Whatever – no,
whoever
– it was that had her so upset caught her attention again. I knew it because her spine stiffened. Immediately, she forced herself to relax, but the tension that filled her sweet body was undeniable.

“What is it?” I asked, leaning down and murmuring the question next to her ear.
Tell me and I’ll fix it.

“Nothing.” She gave me a tight smile.

“You’re not acting like yourself.”

“I’m fine, Jal.”

“No, you’re not.”

But that shuttered look in her eyes made it clear that she wasn’t going to share anything with me. It pissed me off. My gaze landed on the man standing on the edge of the dance floor. Tao. The date she’d brought with her. There was a closeness between them. A connection I couldn’t overlook. Jealousy bubbled inside me, and I nodded toward him.

“What’s the matter, did you and your boyfriend have a fight?”

“My boyfriend.” The words were cool, almost remote, reminding me how much of a hypocrite I was.

Somewhere over in the grand ballroom, Paisley was showing off the damn rock I bought her. I’d told her I needed time, but I hadn’t technically ended it, had I?

And I was angry because she’d come with a guy.

“My boyfriend.” She repeated the words again as she tipped her head back, staring up at the ceiling overhead. It exposed the delicate arch of her neck, the pearls against her warm, dusky skin.

Damn. I wanted to see her naked, wearing nothing but those pearls.

“No, Tao and I didn’t have a fight. We
never
fight, Jal. We might disagree on a few things – whether or not we’re getting popcorn or nachos at a movie or whether we’ll see some drippy drama – Tao loves them – or an action flick – my preference. But we don’t fight.”

“How long have you two been together?” I couldn’t resist the challenge in my voice.

“Tao? Oh, man…let me think.” Her forehead furrowed for a moment. “We’ve known each other almost our entire lives.”

The music came to an end, and she stepped away.

“Wait,” I said, reaching out a hand.

“You’ve got to go mingle.” She glanced back over her shoulder for Tao, then smiled at me. “It was…nice seeing you, Jal. But you’ve got your thing to do. I’m just here to eat, drink and dance. You go do your thing.”

“We haven’t talked.”

“We’ve talked as much as we need to.” She inclined her head. “You’re engaged. Your world…it isn’t mine. We already established this. There's no need to go over it again.”

As she turned away, I bit back a couple of ugly words – okay, a couple dozen. I didn’t want to go do my thing. I wanted to follow Allie, find some place private to talk to her. I wanted to make her understand that the only world I cared about was one with her in it.

But I couldn't shirk my responsibilities, either. And Paisley had a very big responsibility growing inside her right now.