The Billionaire's Bitch

Forty-Six

I realized after a split second that I was sitting up in bed, gasping and choking on my own air.

There I was, alone in my new room in the penthouse, safe and sound.

Then the door burst open and I screamed again as Adrian and Mike both burst through the door together, as if fighting to get ahead first.

I clutched the sheets to my chest even though I was wearing PJs. I found myself feeling vulnerable sitting in bed with two full grown men looming over me in the dark.

"Eve, are you alright?" This was Adrian, coming closer to my bed.

Mike had his gun out and he flicked on the lamp by the door to perform a quick sweep of the room.

I blinked in the new light as Adrian sat beside me on the edge of the bed.

"Eve? You okay?" He cupped my cheek, surprising me still further. "What's wrong?" He studied my eyes closely as he held my face carefully in his big hand. "Did you have a nightmare?"

I blinked up at him. He was shirtless, I only just realized as his man cleavage swam into view.

I managed to jerk a nod as I glanced across the room to where Mike was sweeping through the room with his 9mm out. He looked so professional, even in his gray UCLA T-shirt and blue plaid pajama pants.

"S-sorry to cause a big fuss for nothin'." I mumbled, sitting back from my boss's touch when Mike returned to the room to stare at us.

"It was just..." I trailed off as I looked back into Adrian's patient blue eyes. "A bad dream." I concluded softly.

Mike sighed. "Well, if there's nothing else, I'm just gonna go back to bed now." He said wryly, and neither of us tried to stop him when he left the room.

Adrian and I were left sitting there alone in my bed, staring at each other in silence.

"I'm sorry." Adrian said at last with a sigh.

I frowned at him in confusion. He so rarely apologized, and in this case, I could think of nothing he had done wrong. He had cupped my face, been gentle and tried to comfort me, but he had also given me my space.

"This job is clearly taking its toll on you. By the way you were screaming, it sounded like you were being murdered."

I gulped, grimacing at my dry throat. I scooted back so that I had my back to the cushioned headboard of the bed, then reached for my glass of water that was there on my nightstand. I drank thirstily then looked back to Adrian, ready to speak now.

"You still ready to pay me $50 million dollars to quit?" I asked him, and I was teasing, but I still saw the shadow that crossed his face. Maybe now he was afraid that I actually would take his offer.

He was a gentleman, and I knew he would uphold his deal.

"I believe it was only a million." He said softly. "Are you reconsidering my offer then?"

I couldn't hold back my impish smile any longer, though. "No, Adrian. Are you kidding me? I love my job, and I'm making more money now than I could've ever dreamed of. I don't want to be bought off.

"I'm sorry I woke you guys." I added, nibbling on the side of my thumbnail in a nervous bad habit I thought I'd kicked a long time ago.

Adrian's sharp blue eyes tracked the movement and I made myself stop.

"Glad to hear it." He said, relaxing back into the untouchable, unshakable fortress he had erected around himself.

He studied me for a moment longer before he rose. "And you didn't wake us. We were already up, having a nightcap and discussing some business matters."

I openly rolled my eyes at his fancy terminology for "boy talk". The ever so important and time honored consortium of menfolk.

Between the two of them, they had enough testosterone to start a semi-truck.

"Try to get some sleep." My boss told me. "I'll see you in the morning, Eve."

I dropped my gaze, trying not to feel what I was feeling. Which was sad, down, and dejected, there was no way around it.

As Adrian scanned me one last time, he saw that something was wrong. "What is it, Eve?"

What Mike had said kept ringing through me.

About how Adrian didn't really care about me.

"Adrian..." I said slowly. "Are we-are we friends?"

###

I regretted asking as soon as the question left my mouth.

Adrian lifted both his eyebrows and surprised me by coming to sit back down on the edge of my bed again. He even took my hand and held it in a comforting fashion.

"Of course we are, Eve. That is...if you want to be my friend." There was a look in his eyes then that was unmistakable and incredibly, insanely, dangerously endearing.

He looked nervous.

"Yes!" I blushed at my own eagerness and his face relaxed into an indulgent smile.

"Yeah, I mean, totally...I'd like it, if we were friends. Too many people think men and women can't be friends."

"True indeed." He cocked his head, then brushed the backs of his fingers against my cheek. "I'd like that, too, angel. If we were friends."

This made me frown. "Then don't call me pet names. It's not appropriate as my boss or my platonic friend."

He chuckled. "Fair enough. So what shall we do to commemorate this newly instated friendship of ours, huh?"

"I don't know. But you'll think of something."

This earned another chuckle from him, but he stood up to leave once more. "Sleep well, Eve." He told me, and then he was gone.

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Thanks for reading!

Do YOU think men and women can be friends? :)

HRH