Page 106 of The Billionaire's Demand

‘My job is demanding.’ That wasn’t strictly true, though. It didn’t have to be. Raul micromanaged out of habit but, for the most part, his team of executives was more than capable of running things with significantly less involvement from Raul. ‘It’s hard for me to let go,’ he explained after a beat. ‘I am, I suppose, what you might call a control freak.’

‘I’m shocked to hear that,’ she said deadpan, and he laughed.

‘I probably make my executives’ lives hell,’ he muttered. ‘But it’s something about having known that poverty, having been given the gift of a second chance from Maria and Pedro... I can’t squander it.’

‘So you’re afraid that if you take your foot off the accelerator you might lose everything?’

‘I’m not afraid of that,’ he said thoughtfully. ‘And I don’t need anywhere near what I have. The money is beside the point. I’m not really that motivated by wealth. Once you can afford to have a roof over your head and three square meals a day, the rest is cream.’

‘So what are you motivated by, then?’

‘I like to win,’ he said simply. ‘Succeeding in business is a good metric of victory, don’t you think?’

Her smile was enigmatic, as though she were thinking things she wouldn’t say. ‘I suppose so.’

But that bothered him and he couldn’t understand why. ‘You don’t agree?’

‘Success in life is better.’

‘How do you measure success in life?’

Libby hesitated, looking self-conscious.

‘You can say it,’ he murmured, wondering why he was so desperate to hear whatever confession she’d been about to offer.

‘I gave this a lot of thought, growing up.’ She cleared her throat, then paused as the waitress returned with another course, setting the plates onto the table before disappearing. Libby’s eyes fell to the food, but she looked distracted. ‘I never wanted much. Just something different to my own experience of home life. For me—’ she lifted her gaze then, piercing Raul with the intensity and purity in her eyes ‘—it was simple. I just wanted a family.’ Her voice hitched as she spoke and something rolled uncomfortably in his gut. ‘My biggest aspiration was being in a happy marriage, with an army of kids,’ she added, a tight smile doing nothing to take away from the sting of her words.

Because how could Raul fail to hear the accusation in them, even when Libby had said and done nothing to make him feel that way? Their marriage, by its very nature, was a death knell to the hopes and dreams she’d clung to since childhood. They would have just one child, not an army. Raul could barely comprehend becoming a father at all—the idea of parenting more than one child was anathema to him. As for their marriage, while they’d agreed it would be based on respect and a level of friendship, it was never going to be the rosy, heart-warming vision Libby craved.

‘Sometimes life doesn’t work out how you plan it,’ he said gruffly. ‘But that doesn’t mean it cannot still be a good life.’

‘I know,’ she answered without missing a beat, expelling a quick sigh and fidgeting her fingers. ‘It’s okay. I always thought I would find someone who was like my other half. My soulmate. That I’d fall crazy, head over heels in love and live happily ever after,’ she added on a small laugh. ‘But that’s a fairy tale. A silly, juvenile dream.’ She rubbed her hand over her stomach. ‘I love our baby, Raul. That’s enough for me.’

He hoped with all his heart she was being honest, because it was the best he could offer.

Libby stared at the ceiling, ignoring the pang in the centre of her chest.

It wasn’t how she’d imagined spending her wedding night. Not that she’d spent much time imagining anything, but deep down, if she were honest, she’d hoped for more than this. She’d hoped against hope for love, real love, and no matter what she said to Raul, she’d never be able to ignore the emptiness inside her chest.

But she had to.

She had to learn.

Libby knew that Raul was right: life didn’t always work out how you wanted. In fact, in Libby’s experience, most of the time it didn’t. Being happy was a question of choice, and she’d always chosen happiness. She’d found pleasure in the small things in her life—the golden splash of sunshine against a newly painted fence, the smell of spring in the air and freshly cut grass, the feeling of wet sand underfoot—the things that were hers to marvel at and appreciate without anyone having the power to remove those small delights.

And she knew that the key to her future happiness relied on her ability to keep doing exactly that. To focus on the relief of being liberated from financial stress, the pleasure of growing life inside her belly, of knowing that while Raul might not love her, at least he loved their baby enough to want to be in their life. He would be a great father to their child, and for that she knew she had to be grateful. It had to be enough.

A week after their wedding Raul read his assistant’s email for the tenth time, a strange presentiment in his gut.

Will Mrs Ortega be joining you?

Such a simple, and normal, request. After all, Justine would naturally presume that, in the first flush of newlywed bliss, the couple wouldn’t want to be separated. Raul hadn’t explained to anyone except his lawyers the real reason for their marriage. It was no one’s business.

But what could he say in response?

Just a flat-out no? It wasn’t Raul’s practice to explain himself to anyone, so why start now?

However, given the necessity of a trip to Rome, the thought of leaving Libby at home made him feel like a bastard. He grimaced ruefully. It wasn’t about explaining himself to Justine, it was the thought of telling Libby that he was going to Europe and not bringing her. He’d wanted her to feel that this marriage was her chance to grow wings, hadn’t he?

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