Boxed Set: Dominated by a Billionaire - Part 10-12: Irresistible Billionaire (15 page)

My knees give and I collapse on the floor as my first sob rings out. Followed by thousands of others…

***

I thought my first love would last forever.

Now, I hate him as much as I love him.

Everyone deserted the Vaux-le-Vicomte chateau that night. I insisted – amidst my sobbing and hysterical screaming – that no one spend the night there. It would have hurt too much. What was the use of still believing? Why rub salt in the already-gaping wound? Daphné – a fake smile of compassion on her lips – immediately took charge of canceling the following day’s ceremonies and reception. My wedding fell into oblivion, taking my heart with it. As for Vadim, he vanished into the night.

It could be the title of a bad detective story.

But it’s my life.

Put on parade, analyzed and ridiculed in all the celebrity magazines: “Vadim King said no!”

"Alma, what are you going to do?" asks Clémentine, lying on my childhood bed.

Oh, right, I forgot: at age 31, I’ve moved back home to my mother’s.

"I don’t know," I sigh, looking at my manicured nails.

Another leftover of my shattered dream…

Nail remover. Fast!

"Eat something, you can’t keep on with this hunger strike!" she says, holding out a plate of raw vegetables my mother has made for me.

"It's not a strike. I just have no appetite. I feel sick."

"Are you going back to King Prod?" my best friend tentatively asks.

"I don’t know…"

"Are you going to get a new apartment?"

"I don’t know…"

"Are you–"

"Clem! I DON’T KNOW!" I shout, suddenly losing it. "I don’t have any answers! My life was all sorted. Now I don’t know anymore. I haven’t even had three days to get myself together, since the asshole abandoned me… 62 hours ago," I say after doing a quick count.

"I don’t understand what got into him," she sighs sadly. "He’s crazy about you. And he seemed so happy during the rehearsal…"

"Whatever. What’s done is done. It’s over. For good."

So why do I keep hoping?

Waiting for him in spite of everything, checking my phone day and night, imagining he’s about to show up any second?

"You were supposed to marry him yesterday, Alma. Don’t try to make me believe you’ve already turned the page…"

"Survival instinct, self-protection, or something like that," I mumble, biting into a raw carrot stick half-heartedly.

Cold, hard, bland: like him.

Yeah, sure…

"The infernal trio is going to be here soon – are you ready?" my redhead says, making a face, her mouth full of cucumber.

"What? I told you I wanted to hibernate!"

I wanted to set my foot down, make myself heard, but my voice lacks strength and conviction. It’s incredibly feeble, as if my body were lacking fuel to function correctly.

"No such luck, it’s summertime. And I couldn’t do anything about Basile, Niels and Lily. But I kept Pippa away! Not bad, huh?"

"Yeah… Where are we going?" I sniff, putting on my lace-up sandals.

"Not very far, just a few miles out of Paris, but bring your swimsuit!"

My rooftop terrace has a swimming pool, too…

Except that it is no longer “my” anything anymore.

"Don’t cry, sweetie," Clem whispers, taking me in her arms.

"Sometimes I forget, and when I remember… it’s as if my insides were being ripped out." I sob, leaning on her shoulder. "I don’t know how to live without him anymore."

Five minutes later, the trio parades noisily into my room, then quickly lowers the volume seeing what shape I’m in. I get a hug from everyone and Vadim catches hell. Basile has no shortage of adjectives concerning the man who practically abandoned me at the altar. He stood me up. Left me standing on the razor’s edge. A sharp, cutting rusty razor’s edge.

That’s been slashing through my heart, for almost three days…

Vadim… How could he have done that to me?

He might say that I did the same thing to him twelve years earlier.

I was a kid. I was helpless. That’s not the same at all.

Unless he had been trying to get revenge all along?

…

"Yoohoo, anyone home?" Lily shakes me. "You can’t stay like this, Alma. You’ll see, our little outing is going to do you a world of good!"

"I wanted to take you to the shooting range, to practice firing a machine gun, but they insisted on booking a spa," my brother complains. "I almost want him to show up just so I can skin the asshole alive…"

"Calm down, Brutus… You don’t know his reasons," Lily says.

"Are you defending him or am I dreaming? He has just humiliated our sister, practically live on camera!"

"More to the point, he has just broken her heart into a thousand pieces," Clémentine says.

"Traumatized her for life," Niels adds.

"OK, that’ll do it, I think!" I exclaim. "If you were counting on making me feel better, you botched the job!"

"From now on, not another word about it!" Lily decides. "We’re off, let’s go take a dip!"

With the luck I’ve been having lately, maybe I'll sink straight to the bottom…

That idea doesn’t bother me all that much.

Too far, Alma. Way too far.

Friggin King. This is all your fault…

The day crawls by. Despite the pained smiles of some, and the comforting words of others, I can’t get Vadim out of my mind.

At least I don't have to fake it with the four clowns who dragged me here, I don't have to put on any forced smiles to spare them or get away from their pity. Lily and Clémentine are spread out like starfish on their lounge chairs. Niels and Basile start a wrestling match in the huge lagoon-shaped pool. I watch them distractedly behind my extra-large sunglasses – practical for hiding my swollen eyes.

A gift from Vadim… Ironic, isn’t it?

How could my life have changed so fast?

I had everything. Now I have nothing.

Damn, I miss him…

Sobs, again.

In the late afternoon, Niels sticks an ultra-alcoholic cocktail in my hand and threatens me with retaliations if I refuse to drink it in one gulp. Clémentine screams that it’s a crime, since I haven’t eaten a thing in two days, then changes her mind when I pull off my glasses.

"Well, OK, a few sips then," she says suddenly, staring at my bloodshot eyes. "To give you courage…"

"What for?" I whisper, my voice shaky.

"To put up a fight. Either to get him back, or forget about him. You’re going to have to make a decision, Alma. It’s still too soon, I get that. You’re going to need time, but you have to fight. Otherwise you’re going to get depressed and I'm not having any of that."

Clem has had her share of unhappiness lately. She knows what she’s talking about…

But she has the twins, Clovis and Clarence, now. She’ll never be alone again…

I take tiny sips of the drink, feeling the rum warm my throat. Feels good. This time, I take a bigger sip. I cough slightly, but I don’t lose sight of my goal. Within minutes, the tall glass is empty. Only the little multicolor parasol has survived my thirst and my need to escape from here, faraway, far from him, from everything.

"Alma, he’s coming," my sister announces shyly as she comes back – supposedly – from the restrooms.

"What? Who are you talking about?" Basile asks before I can, slamming his glass down on our big table.

"Vadim," she fesses up, almost sulkily. "I told him where we were. He's just a few miles away."

"Have you totally lost it, Lily?!" my brother yells, getting angry. "What do you want – for him to do more damage? For him to go at her even harder?"

"Baz, calm down," Niels interrupts. "Alma’s the one who has to decide if she wants to see him or not."

All eyes – some furious, others amazed – focus on me. In a fraction of a second, I’m on my feet, ready to run out. I don’t know what’s happening inside me, but my heart is pounding at a thousand miles an hour and I’m close to fainting. An anxiety attack looms over me…

"I can’t…" I whisper, feeling dizzy.

"See?!" Basile yells at Lily.

He puts an arm around my waist and leads me toward the exit. I should feel ridiculous, in my black bikini and practically see-through wrap, but my brain seems to be on automatic pilot. “Don’t feel anything. Just get out of here. And fight the sick feeling.”

Too late. Vadim is getting out of his SUV right when we reach my brother’s car. I explode in tears at the sight of my ex-fiancé, while Basile hurriedly opens the car door to let me get in. I have trouble breathing. I’d like to be stronger, more dignified, but I can’t do it. Vadim broke that in me.

"Beat it, King, or I swear you’ll regret ever being born!" my brother blurts out, seeing him come closer.

"Let me talk to her," Vadim says, not the least bit intimidated. "Alma, I can explain everything!"

I remain speechless, lying down, on the backseat of the car that reeks of vanilla. The smell makes me sick to my stomach, and what’s happening outside only makes it worse.

"Don’t hassle her," Clémentine says, standing in my Russian’s way.

"Let me by or I’m going to go crazy!" he says, glaring at all of them – everyone, except me. "Alma, please, just listen to me…"

"Get in!" Basile shouts to the others. "The faster we get out of here, the better she’ll be."

"I did it to save her life!" Vadim yells, in a heartbreaking voice.

He rushes up to my window and leans in, ignoring the arms that try to intercept him along the way. His gray eyes plunge into mine and my tears flow even more. Inside, the pain spreads. It seeps in everywhere and throbs in each of my veins.

"Alma," he whispers, on the verge of tears. "Alma, believe me…"

My brother can’t stand it any longer. He rams into Vadim, pushes him and forces him away from the car. The two men are face to face now, and I watch the prelude to a fight that could turn out to be bloody. Basile throws a first punch, avoided just in time by his opponent, then the blows rain down amidst the onlookers’ screams. Niels, Lily and Clémentine attempt to separate the two Alpha males, but nothing works.

"Stop!" I roar, dragging myself out of the car.

All eyes are on me. The boxing match finally stops. A few yards away, Vadim watches me, a glow of hope in his gaze. I struggle to hold back my tears and motion to him to follow me.

"You can go home," I say to my group of friends.

I don’t want them to witness the show…

I want to settle my differences. Alone.

"No, we’re waiting for you!" they all say at once.

"No, this time I'm saying what's happening!" I say, raising my voice. "Thanks for being here for me, but your rescue mission is over now."

Basile frowns, then gets in behind the wheel, mumbling something. Lily gives me a little wave. Clem mimes a phone on her ear. Niels blows me a kiss. Then the little gang hits the road. I turn around, Vadim hasn’t budged an inch and stares at me with disconcerting intensity. His skin is dark, his eyes shiny, his hair disheveled, his muscular arms tense, a vein stands out on his neck: he is virility personified. Looks to die for.

"I had no choice…" he whispers, avoiding my eyes. "It was either that or…"

He can’t finish his sentence. He slowly sighs, running his hand through his mane.

"Or what? Or you kept your promises? Or you committed to loving me your whole life?" I say bitterly. "You chose your freedom, Vadim, that’s what everyone thinks. Including all those trashy magazines, that are getting their kicks humiliating me."

"That was the goal," he says, staring at me again. "It had to be made public, for everyone to find out…"

"What do you want from me, Vadim?" I moan, feeling my tears flow. "You just admitted that the whole thing was premeditated. Why are you here? To gloat one last time?"

"If you knew how much I love you, Alma!" he blurts out, heading straight at me.

I feel his hands on my face and I push them away with all my strength, rushing at him to hit him. The pain that was eating away at my insides has been replaced by anger. It is deadly. An animal-like voice surges from the depths of my being and lashes out at him.

"Don’t touch me! You will never touch me ever again, Vadim! You wanted your revenge, you got it! Now, let me croak in my own little corner!"

"I did it to save your life!" he says, trying to control my arms that are waving around in the air. "Stop, Alma. STOP!"

His skillful, powerful hands finally manage to stop my attempts at uppercuts and we face each other, our faces practically touching, our eyes defiant, both gasping for breath. I have no other choice but to listen to him…

"Dimitri Monkov has been blackmailing me for weeks," he says, sighing. "He’s trying to make me pay for his future conviction; he wants to make me suffer at any cost. But going after me would be too obvious. That madman has decided to make you his target. He’s put a contract out on you. His threats were clear: by making you Mrs. King, I was signing your death sentence…"

"Do you think it’s… serious?" I say, having a hard time swallowing.

"Monkov is a murderer, you know that. And he has nothing left to lose. Any one of his henchmen, any of his thugs would kill for him. So yes, I took his threats seriously."

I'm speechless.

"Alma, doing what I did to you, canceling our wedding – that was the hardest thing I’ve ever done," he mumbles. "And reliving it again and again, seeing the headlines in all those trashy magazines… But it was absolutely necessary. The news had to appear, so that Dimitri had the proof that you hadn’t become Mrs. King."

"And I never will be…" I say sadly, stifling a sob.

"That’s where you are wrong," my lover whispers, pulling me into his arms. "In less than twenty-four hours, you’ll be mine…"

"How?"

Beware…

"It's a secret…" he whispers proudly, breaking into his wonderful grin.

His soft, full lips come close to mine…