Page 116 of Billionaire Romance

“What’s wrong?” he asks, reaching up to smooth that crease with a thumb.

I press my lips together for a moment, unsure how to explain. “I’m just…” I glance from the bracelet to him and back. “I hope you won’t start to think I’m using you the way your exes did, Ankor. First you pay for my rooms at the resort, now all this…” I gesture vaguely at the town around us.

“Sinclair.” He wraps his hands around my shoulders and holds me in place. Bends until his forehead touches mine, and we’re gazing into one another’s eyes. “I wouldn’t be doing this if I thought you were anything like my exes. I know you don’t care about how much money I have. But I want to treat you well. I want to treat you the way you deserve. Because trust me, you deserve everything in the world I can give you and then some.”

I smile, feeling my worries smooth away. “Okay. I just wanted to make sure.”

“Don’t be silly.” He tips my chin back again and kisses the corner of my lips. Then my jawline. Then down to the soft spot below my ear, that always makes me shiver. “You are worth so much more to me than any amount of money,” he whispers, breath hot against my skin, and my heart does a flip in my chest.

“So are you,” I murmur, and his arms tighten around me, tugging me toward where we parked the car. I have a feeling we’re going to be a little bit late to the party…

* * *

We stay at the party late. It turns into a kind of luau, complete with a whole pig roasting in a pit dug into the sand. Shockingly, we eventually get hungry enough to eat again, and the food is as amazing as it was in the restaurant. We make a few new friends, and although some people seem to do double-takes when they see us, for the most part, everyone seems cool. Nobody asks too many questions.

And I make sure to call Ankor Ankor as often and as loudly as possible, hoping that will help.

We wind up lying on the sand near the bonfire toward the end of the night, leaning against one another, beers in hand. It feels good to do this. To be out in public, acting like a normal couple. Jessica and Enrique sit near us, swapping stories about what it’s like to own a restaurant on this island, and the kinds of people they meet. Enrique starts to tell us a story about some celebrities acting wild, but then he seems to catch himself and stops. Jessica elbows him and finishes the story for him.

By the end, all of us are in stitches laughing. We toast our beers and drink to the enduring power of fame and celebrity to make people lose their damn minds. Secretly, though, if you ask me, I think people are always a bit nuts. Fame and celebrity just make them confident enough to let their crazy hang out all over the place.

I’m glad Ankor isn’t like that. I never knew him when he was acting famous, obviously, but I can’t imagine him being mean to restaurant owners or wait staff just because he could. He’s always so polite and thoughtful and considerate. It makes me like him even more. Makes me want to give him a real chance, no matter how risky it might be.

By the end of the party, someone blasts loud music, and Enrique pulls Jessica up to dance. “Come on,” they shout after us. “You can’t just sit there lazing around.”

With a loud sigh, Ankor turns to me and hops to his feet, grinning. “I suppose they’re right. May I have this dance?”

“What are you, some formal knight?” I ask, laughing, the beer warming the blood in my veins.

He bows, making me laugh even louder. “My lady,” he says, before he offers his hand. I take it and let him pull me to my feet, then straight into his arms.

It’s a slow song, pulsing and melodic. I wrap my arms around his shoulders and lean my head against his chest, swaying with the beat. Our feet shuffle in the sand. I let my eyes drift shut, happy. I can hear his heartbeat against my ear, feel his warm, strong arms wrapped around me, and the real world feels so far away. All my fears, my nightmares, my past… It’s too far away to catch me now.

I can relax. I can let go. For once in my life, I’m finally free.

I tighten my grip on Ankor and thank every star glittering in the huge sky above that we found each other. Or that he found me, rather. Since I’d never have pursued a guy like him. I grin against his chest and he holds me closer, and for that moment, it’s just the two of us in the world who matter.

We make it back to the hotel late, although with a few drinks still fizzing in our veins, neither of us are able to sleep. We wind up staying awake even later, especially after Ankor suggests a hot shower, which he uses as excuse to get me all hot and bothered yet again…

I wake up in his room, cradled in his arms, my phone nearly dead on the nightstand next to us. It’s blinking, and I realize that’s what woke me. Ankor has blackout curtains, but the light from my phone is a little too blinding in the morning-after light.

With a groan, I disentangle myself from Ankor’s arms and scoot over to snatch up my phone. I turn on the screen, squint blearily at the photo there…

And gasp. Loud enough to wake Ankor with a start.

“What is it?” he asks, crawling across the bed to where I’m frozen in horror, staring at my cell.

I don’t know what to say, so I just turn the phone around to show him, instead. It’s a message from my cousin, Katrina. Just a single attachment, a photo, and a quick note beneath. IS THIS YOU??

The photo is a screenshot of the Daily Gossip’s front page, dated today—a few hours ahead of our time zone here, since that paper’s based out of London.

MIA Billionaire Playboy Marco Helmtree Spotted on Vacation in Maui with His New Fling. Beneath the headline is a photo from last night. It’s blurry, lit only by the bonfire. But unfortunately our faces are all too clear. Me wrapped in Ankor’s arms, swaying to music, both of us smiling as we dance.

My stomach churns. I think I’m going to be sick.

“Fuck.” He swears, under his breath at first, and then louder. “Fuck. Who took this?”

I shake my head. There was at least a couple dozen people at the party. “It could have been anyone.”

“We should talk to Enrique and Jessica. If it was one of their friends, maybe they know…”

“Does it matter?” I interrupt, unable to restrain myself. My voice rises higher, to a fever-pitch. “It’s too late now. Finding someone to blame won’t take the picture off the internet. Everyone knows now, everyone’s seen…” I trail off, too horrified to even finish the sentence.

“Sinclair.” He finally looks at me, for the first time since I handed him the phone and tore our world apart. I think it’s the first time he’s noticed the level of panic in my eyes, really noticed it. He was too wrapped up in his own concern to notice until just now. But now that he sees it, he reaches for me, and takes both of my hands in his, squeezing my hands tightly. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

I take a deep breath. I’d hoped this moment would never come. Or that if it did, at least it would be my choice. Not forced upon me by a situation like this. But it’s too late now. That newspaper is well-read; that photo will have made it into inboxes all around the world.

And into one inbox in particular.

I force myself to meet Ankor’s gaze, as steadily as I can. “My life is in danger. And so is yours.”

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