Blank: Alpha Billionaire Romance Read Online Free Page B

to pace across my office. I had the speakerphone on for this exact reason. I’d always had a bit of nervous energy, even as a kid. It’d driven my parents crazy. They’d always been giving me extra things to do. Fencing lessons. Horseback riding. Track. Lacrosse. You name it, I played it.
    I ran my hand through my hair and made a mental note to have my assistant set up an appointment with my barber. The last article I’d given an interview to had described me as ‘casually rakish.’ I wasn’t sure if that was even a real thing, but the reporter had seemed a bit overly interested in the fact that I didn’t have some boardroom-chic style. I didn’t usually care what anyone else thought, but I knew there were those who had a problem with me having so much responsibility at only twenty-five.
    “You still there?”
    I jerked my head back toward the phone. I’d almost forgotten I was on a call. “Yeah, I’m still here.”
    I ran my hand over my face and caught a glimpse of myself in my window. Dark hair, light eyes. I was built like my father, tall and athletic, but I looked more like my mother’s side of the family.
    “Does she want more money?” I asked. “I’m assuming you didn’t offer her the max I was willing to give.”
    The chuckle that came was a familiar sound, but not one I was entirely fond of. I didn’t tend to find the same things funny that he did.
    “Hell, no. You should know me better than that. I tried to give her a hundred grand, but she handed it right back to me.”
    “Dammit!” I crossed back to my desk and plopped down in the chair.
    “You didn’t really think she was going to go away that quietly, did you?” he asked. “I mean, we both knew it was a long-shot. If she tries to push this...”
    “She could make my life very uncomfortable,” I finished the thought. “What was I thinking, getting involved with her?”
    “Well, she’s not bad to look at.”
    I glared at the phone. “She also didn’t present herself as ‘hi, my name’s Samantha and I’m a psycho.’”
    “Wouldn’t life be easier if all of our ex’s did that?”
    “You’re not kidding,” I muttered.
    I supposed I’d been fortunate that, out of the women I’d dated over the years, only one had ended up being a stalker.
    “Does she want more?” I asked. “Or do you think she’s going to force me to get a restraining order? I really don’t want to have to go that route.”
    “I know you don’t,” he said sympathetically. “But I think it might be your best bet.”
    I sighed. I really hadn’t wanted to get the cops involved. They tended to ask a lot of questions, and my personal life wasn’t something I liked people poking around in.
    “Will you be able to go down to the station today to fill out the paperwork?” he asked.
    I pulled up my calendar on my laptop and took a look at what I had scheduled. “I can stop by at lunch. Will you take care of making sure Samantha knows to stay away?”
    “I will,” he said. “I had some business earlier this morning, but I’m in a holding pattern right now.”
    “All right. Thanks for trying.” I barely heard his greeting as I ended the call. I was starting to get a headache, which wasn’t entirely unusual for me when Samantha was involved.
    I sighed and glanced at the clock. It was almost noon and I didn’t have anything scheduled until one. If I went now, I could be back with take-out and still have enough time to eat it. I ran my hand through my hair. I hoped the restraining order would be the end of things. I was ready for all of the craziness to be over. I just wanted to get back to my normal life.

Chapter 5
    Preslee
    I startled at a knock on the door. I was still on-edge from my earlier encounter, and I knew it couldn’t be a nurse since they never bothered to knock.
    “Pres?”
    I heard a raspy female voice before a girl around my age poked her head around the door. Short black hair streaked with purple highlights framed a delicate face