The Billionaire & I

20.

Barely twenty four hours later, the next day, the next catastrophe occurred. Rather than hilarious or dubious, it was the most melodramatic.

"Where are we going?" I asked William just as the elevator opened. He pressed the button for the lobby once we were in, then finally looked at me.

"To see all the Illston tech shop outlets in the city."

"I thought you were joking about that."

"I wasn't."

I looked away and stared at our reflections slightly visible through the elevator doors. After much turning and mental churning more than half the night, I begrudgingly admitted; yesterday afternoon, William got to me.

I remembered how close he'd come, the feel of his hands, the look in his eyes and it all still affected me. Which was ridiculous considering there was no love lost between us. None at all. But I was able to pacify myself. It was just the effects of remnants of a chemistry that was once there and I was that affected simply because it happened unexpectedly. If another situation like that ever happened again, handling it wouldn't be a problem. At all.

Still in the course of the night, my mind almost dug up another hole wondering why he, all of a sudden, decided to toy with me that way. But I realized it was simple. There was nothing to it. William Illston was simply a mean man. That was all.

"Sit with me at the back." William's words stopped me from opening the passenger seat door.

"Why?" I queried.

"So I can throw you across the seats and have my way with you," he rolled his eyes but his words already painted a vivid mental image which I quickly shook out of my head. Get a grip.

"Just get in and don't worry, it's not like you are that appealing." He shrugged non committedly, wearing a lazy grin.

"Oh yeah and that's why you were all over me yesterday afternoon." I said in a sing song voice on my way past him, to get to the other side of the car. He held my arm, stopping me then leaned in till he was mere inches away.

"Careful there Ophelia, you don't want to get burned." He grinned widely then his gaze suddenly went soft. "You are making it very, very hard for me and I think I'm going to land in so much trouble because of you." He whispered before relinquishing his hold on me.

I was dumbfounded.

What just happened?

Making it hard for him? Land him in trouble? At this rate, he was going to land me in trouble.

The car ride was silent till I broke the stifling silence with the first thought that popped into my head.

"Do bodyguards follow you daily?"

He glanced at me then nodded.

"I don't see them," my gaze went around the interior of the car then behind.

"Jay is one," he said and I glanced at Jay who was solely focused on his driving. I never would have guessed he was also a bodyguard. "The other two only come in when there's an important event. I believe an entourage makes me noticable."

"Do you enjoy being semi famous?" I asked then laughed before he could respond, "of course you do, it is after all, all you ever wanted."

"I just wanted to make good software and hardware."

"And you have, haven't you?" I retorted but he didn't reply and the silence enveloped us again. My phone dinged and I opened my messages app.

From: Joanne Dupree
Yo! We miss you big time! When are we seeing??