To Love And Hold A Ruthless Billionaire

My head was pounding. No, scratch that. Pounding was what I’d call the migraine I got after a meeting with the company’s board of directors, pushing back as they shot down all of my ideas. That would usually wear off once I popped an advil. This was a million times worse. I couldn’t even open my eyes yet the sensation of sunlight in the room stung. Maybe I left the blinds open last night. I reached out a hand to pull back whatever I was wrapped in so I could close them but then the cool breeze hit my skin making me instantly open my eyes. I flinched against the bright light but looked down, confirming what I had suspected. For some reason, I had slept naked. My head throbbed as I tried to remember how that happened. Last night was my friend Lola’s wedding and after it, the couple insisted on having a rager for the after party. It was almost funny watching people considered the elite of the elite lose themselves in drinking and gambling, knowing they had more than enough money to expend. Or at least it would’ve been if I didn’t know what they were really like. I had kept to the side of the bar making sure to only drink water and leave early because my flight was supposed to be early this morning. “s**t!” I groaned, realizing I had most likely already missed my flight. Worse, that was where my memory of the night ended. One minute, I was sitting at a table in the far end of the room and the next … blank. Just a hazy memory of laughter and … Elvis? “God!” I groaned again, burying my head in my hands. Pulling on the blanket, I began to wrap it around me so I could find my clothes and run to the airport but then the sound of footsteps instantly made me freeze. I watched half in horror as a man steps into the room, his silhouette daunting in the distance, but as I force myself to blink and look at him better in the light, my heart freezes. The man whose face I’d recognize even thought I’d never met him before - the tousled blonde hair, piercing emerald gaze and chiseled features had been the star of my nightmares for the past months. Nightmares that would end in retribution for what he’d done to my family. He moved with the ease of someone who was used to the world revolving around him. Like the devil he was. I looked down and a fierce blush spread to life when I realized he was shirtless, his rippled and toned muscles flexed as he took a seat on the chair facing me. I gasped, looking down at my own nakedness again. “No. No.” I whispered the words, disbelief gripping me. There was no way that I had … No. “Good morning, Miss Mathews.” He reached on the counter and grabbed a bottle of water which tossed in my direction along with a container of advil. “Or should I say good morning, wife?” “What?! Is this some sort of joke?” “I’m not a person that makes … jokes,” He said the word with as much enthusiasm as roadkill. “Look at your hand and see for yourself.” Anxiety gripped me even harder as I pulled up my left hand and found a ring. Not just any ring but a gorgeous Tiffany wedding band. What the hell?! “What’s this doing on my finger?” He wordlessly lifted his own hand to show me a matching ring on his finger. “I would like to ask you the same thing.” The more time that passed, the crazier things seemed to be getting. Was this a nightmare? It had to be right? There was no way, no way on earth that I would marry … Donovan. No f*****g way. “Did you slip this on my finger?” “Yes, I suppose that is what happens at wedding ceremonies.” The calm timbre of his voice was starting to grate my nerves. How was he saying all this so calmly? “Please stop saying that. The world would end before I married you. A ring is not enough proof to make me believe that somehow I did.” “That’s what I thought as well. So, imagine my surprise when I found a marriage certificate. Then again, it’s Vegas. I guess that’s commonplace.” He passed it over for me to see and sure enough, it was a marriage certificate dated today with my signature staring back at me. If I wasn’t already sitting, I’d have needed to sit down. “How’d you get in my room?” I said, pushing back a loose strand of hair, my headache starting to pound even harder. “Look around. Are you sure this is your room?” I glanced around in horror and realized that he was right. I’d thought it was the same perfunctory room that I’d been staying in but this was much bigger. Lola had all of the guests staying in suites at the Hansel Hotel, the best in Las Vegas but this was clearly no suite. That explained the startling light that had woken me up. This was the penthouse. “I don’t understand.” I whispered, beyond the point of confusion. What happened last night? The more I thought, the more things just kept getting foggy. I’d been resolute to leave the party early so how did I end up with Donovan? How did I get married to him? He ran a hand through his hair and gave me a grim look, features hardening. “Quite frankly, I don’t understand either. How did you manage to do all this?” “Excuse me?” Red hot rage flowed through my veins by the minute the more time I spent in his company. I stood quickly, feeling even more ridiculous in the sheets wrapped around me. “Where are my clothes?” “How did you pull it off?” He asked, ignoring my question. All the traces of calmness he had earlier were gone and now his green gaze held only the promise of danger as he got up and stalked his way towards me. “I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I replied breathlessly, trying to take a step back. “Please stay away from me.” He ignored me again, stopping only when he was right in front of me. This close, he towered over me easily, radiating heat. Another blush came over me as I looked at his chest and saw the trail of scratches and marks. s**t?! Did I do that? A strong hand came to rest below my chin, angling my face upwards, forcing me to look up at him. “I’m done playing nice, Emma,” The sheer disgust in his voice as he spat my name made a shudder run through me. His eyes darkened slightly as he continued, “I made sure not to take anything alcoholic last night, yet somehow the last thing I can remember is meeting you and then that’s it. A fog until this morning when I woke up married to you. So, I’ll ask this one more time,” His other hand gripped my arm, not tight enough to hurt but enough to show that he was in control here. The thought alone made me squirm slightly. Fear engulfed me, my already racing heart now thundering as the realization hit that this man was incredibly dangerous. “What did you do to me?” Maybe it was the heedy rush of adrenaline in my system. Maybe it was the fear. Or maybe it was just something about the way he was looking at me. About the way his eyes were skimming my face that triggered it. All at once, the memories came rushing through my head.....