Addicted (A Billionaire Romance Novel) (3 page)

“All you’ll do is run the register when it’s busy. And when you’re slow, you stock the coolers, wipe down the counters and maybe run a broom across the floor,” Caroline told me.
 

“That’s it?” I asked, figuring there was more to it than that.
 

“That’s all,” she said, hopeful that I’d come work for her.
 

I took a few days to think it over. Working at a gas station didn’t sound that appealing, but if it meant getting on with my recovery, then I was game. During my time in rehab, I often wondered what my life would’ve been like had I not met Rob or gotten pregnant with Alex. I had hoped to graduate from the Art program and teach young students how to draw realistically when it came to
shading and shadows; those types of things. My life would’ve turned out much differently, I’m certain of that.
 

About a month before I was released from rehab, my counselor spoke with my sister several times and found a sponsor that I could talk to once I got out. She also arranged NA meetings for me, or narcotics anonymous meetings, but I didn’t want to go to those. I hated the group programs inside the rehab, there was no way I was going to them voluntarily once I was outside the center. I was happy with my new sponsor, Ryan, and the help and support of my family. Things were finally looking up for me, and I was glad to be starting a new life.
 

My first few days of work on the new job sucked, but I stuck it out. There were definitely days where I came home and wanted to crawl
under the covers to never be seen again. Customers grew impatient with me as I learned how to run the gas pump machine and the register; it was quite nerve-racking. By the end of the week, though, I was becoming familiar and comfortable with all the various machines and had them down in no time.
 

I was proud of myself. For the first time in a long time, I could say that I was finally standing on my own two feet again. While I was lonely in the evenings after coming home from a hard day of work, I didn’t know if I was quite ready to date again. I hadn’t dated since Rob. When he left me, I swore off men. Alex was my little guy and we had lots of fun dates together. He was all this woman needed; but now, I wasn’t so sure of myself anymore. I wanted someone to come home to but wasn’t ready to commit to a relationship just yet.
 

I’d thought about getting a puppy, but then you have to potty train it and pick up dog poop. That didn’t sound appealing to me, so I thought about getting a ferret but they stink. My sister suggested that I find a hobby, but I was still struggling with ordinary day to day living. I wasn’t ready for a hobby; I had no desire to join any groups or be around a lot of people. Working with all the customers at Fast Fuel sometimes gave me anxiety, but I kept it to myself. Eventually, I found comfort in painting my nails. It came by accident, actually. Who does their nails for fun? Actually, lots of women do. I found cool stamp kits that make designs and when I got paid, I’d find myself in the cosmetic aisle, buying more colors than I knew existed. Painting my nails and changing the designs on them gave me something to do with my time, and it didn’t involve being around others. It was perfect.
 

Chapter Two
 

While Audrey was busy sustaining her own life, Chad often thought about her. There was something about her; something artistic, dark and alluring. Though they’d only casually dated, the memories they’d created together never ceased to escape him. He often found himself comparing other women to her, but none of them ever caught his attention as Audrey had. When she started dating Rob, he was a bit envious that they’d become an exclusive couple instead of them. With his cocky, promiscuous demeanor, he would never commit himself to one relationship, which left him feeling as though he’d let the good one get away. That good one was Audrey.
 

Chad would often frequent the library where she worked, pretending to do research which gave him an excuse to be there. Sure, there were plenty
of college girls who wanted to date him—and they did—but they all lacked one thing: personality. Not Audrey, she had an outstanding disposition, but his pride and ego wouldn’t allow him to have an exclusive relationship with her. His friends expected him to be single and free and, like a dummy, that’s exactly what he did. It would have been completely out of his character to chase a girl down.
 

He never understood why he stopped seeing her in the halls or in the college library until he overheard a few of her friends talking in one of the college’s cafés. A small group of her friends were having lunch, discussing whether Audrey was coming back or not. The conversation definitely piqued his interest. He eavesdropped on their discussion while he pretended to read a book as he ate his lunch. By the end of that meal, he
learned that she was pregnant and was probably not coming back.
 

Over the years, he went on with his college education and had discreet relationships here and there; mostly one-night stands or casual dating partners. With a nearly 4.0 GPA, he graduated at the top of his class, majoring in computer sciences. His success and talent paid off when he built a technology company from the ground up and began selling his software to Fortune 500 companies. To say it made him a small fortune would be inaccurate. He became a billionaire!
 

Focusing solely on his business paid off financially, but he still felt a void. He often found himself daydreaming of his dates with Audrey and wished he could go back in time to change things. Maybe if he hadn’t been so reluctant for them to become an item, things might have turned out
differently for him. Some days, he was unable to think of anything else as his chest became heavy and he lost the ability to concentrate. After several years, he decided to try to locate her, just to see if her and her old boyfriend, Rob Lawrence, were still together and what her life was like now. He was amazed when he saw a newspaper article online that featured her name and the mention of a fatal automobile accident though it had no mention of Rob; but it did mention the name, Alex.
 

Suddenly, he felt dizzy and his stomach began to churn. His eyes darted back to the title of the headline as he found himself unable to click the link. Tightening in his chest took over and his breaths became labored; he closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath to prevent himself from hyperventilating. Slowly, he opened his eyes and willed himself to click on the link. As he scanned the article, he noted that Alex was Audrey’s son
and continued reading on as he learned more details about the accident. His heart broke when he saw that Alex was her son. When he’d first read the search engine result and saw her name with Alex’s name, he assumed that Alex was the other driver. He wished he’d been correct once he read the entire news article.
 

A sudden urgency overwhelmed him and he realized that he needed to reach out to her even though it had been over a year since the accident. His gut told him that she needed him, though he couldn’t explain why. Continuing to search for her online, he was unable to locate any information about her; not even a social media account. The search engine had indexed several social media pages, but every time he clicked on one, a message appeared saying the page was no longer available. As a last resort, he thought of searching for her son’s obituary. Still at work, he got up from
his desk and closed his office blinds to prevent anyone from seeing in. He didn’t know how he’d react once he found it—if he found it—but he didn’t want to put himself on display. Returning to his desk, he reluctantly sat down in front of his computer. With his shoulders slumped forward and head bowed, he slowly typed in ‘Alex Morris Obituary’ and hit the enter key. Clasping his hands together while the search engine returned his results, he scanned the hallway to make sure no one was coming.
 

His stomach began to churn as his heartbeat pounded. Is it right, he thought, to search for a dead child to find his mother? Bile began to sour in his mouth as his limbs became shaky. The search brought back a hit and he clicked the link to the online obituary. It saddened him to see it. The first thing that caught his eye was the picture at the top of the obituary that featured Alex and
Audrey together. She was holding him in her arms as he blew bubbles from, presumably, their front porch; she still looked the same. Her medium chestnut brown hair flowed gently over her shoulders and she hadn’t gained a pound since college. She was still petite at 5’4” and roughly 130 pounds. He noted that the picture must’ve been from the previous fall as they were both wearing blue jeans and she had on a sweatshirt; Alex sported a hoodie with a car on the front. The two of them looked adorable.
 

Reading the obituary sent chills down his spine as goose pimples broke out all over his body and he felt cold. His chest ached for Audrey and her loss. He could feel a lump forming in his throat as his chest continued to tighten. Trying to regain his composure, he left his office and headed to the men’s room. He needed to splash cool water on his face against his gummy eyelids. On his trip down
the hall, everything seemed to move in slow motion. He avoided eye contact as he felt the need to be alone. The last thing he wanted was for someone to strike up a conversation with him after learning about what happened to Audrey and her son.
 

Splashing cool water on his face and getting a drink from the water fountain seemed to help him, but he knew his work wasn’t finished. The online obituary would be staring him in the face when he sat back down in front of his desk, and he knew he still had to find Audrey. He’d already read the obituary, but it had no mention of where they lived or what school the boy went to; however, it did list his relatives. Hesitant to return to his desk, he took the long way back to his private office. He needed time to think, organize his thoughts and sort out his feelings. Distancing himself for a
moment seemed to help, but he couldn’t dismiss the feeling of sadness that remained.
 

Sitting back down at his desk, he stared at the obituary and the picture at the top of it. Ignoring everything around him, he pushed his shoulders back and took a few deep breaths before he began searching for Audrey’s relatives. Leaning in towards his computer, he banished any negative thoughts for the time being and focused on finding an address or phone number; anything that would lead him to her. With his jaw set, he pushed up his sleeves and began punching names into the search engine, hopeful he’d find a hit.
 

From their brief dating period in college, he knew that she had a couple of sisters, and the obituary mentioned them as well. Figuring that it’d be better to reach out to one of them rather than the parents, he searched for them. First he
tried searching for Theresa but didn’t find much so he turned his attention to Caroline. He flopped back in his executive office chair when he saw that Caroline had a social media page, and it was entirely public. Her profile picture consisted of a photo displaying her daughter and Alex playing in her driveway. His mouth went dry as it fell open and he began pouring over her post history.
 

A brief knock interrupted his train of thought as he heard his secretary speaking to him.
 

“Mr. Wetzel, Pragomatics called a few moments ago. They’re complaining that their systems are down and they’re unable to conduct business. Would you like the usual team to handle it or should I escalate it right away?”
 

Unable to articulate any words, he nodded.
 

“So I should escalate it right away?” she asked again.
 

“Yes, please. And Tina, could you close the door behind you?”
 

Tina smiled as she made her way out of the room, closing the door behind her. She could tell that something seemed to be troubling her boss, but she knew better than to ask. He was too discreet and professional. Mr. Wetzel wasn’t the type to offer personal information about himself.
 

He quietly exhaled once the door was shut. His shaky hands grabbed at the mouse, scrolling as he continued to read Caroline’s profile page. Within a few agonizing moments, he found what he was looking for. She’d made a post just a few weeks ago that she’d given her sister a job at Fast Fuel, a local gas station. Ironically, it wasn’t all that far
from his office. His lips pressed together in a slight grimace as he considered driving there to meet her. For a moment, he thought about sending Caroline a private message. His hand reached for the mouse and began to click on the send message button, but he pulled his hand back and stopped himself. As he continued debating whether or not sending a message was an excellent idea, his hand made several attempts to click that button. Unsure of what to do, he brought his hand up to his forehead and began massaging his temples. A headache was beginning to form as he went through a wide array of emotions. Weighing the pros and cons, he ultimately decided not to message her as he played the
what if
questions in his mind.
 

Needing to get out of there, he called it a day and left early. He told Tina to take a message if anyone called for him as he headed to the elevator.
On his way down to the lobby, he decided he could use a stiff drink to mull things over. He needed to think about what he should do as he was unable to think of anything other than talking to Audrey. He hailed a cab in the busy downtown Kansas City area and asked the cab driver to take him to McFadden’s Sports Bar. Weaving in and out of traffic, he stared straight ahead with a glazed look in his eyes as he tried to clear his mind.