The Billionaire's Prescription: BWWM Interracial Billionaire Romance, page 7
He shrugged. “I’ll get another, no big deal. I’m more worried about your hand. You need it in order to do your ER duties, right?”
She started to answer him when Lily screamed, with obvious difficulty, “What the fuck are you talking about? That bitch breaks my nose and all you can talk about is her hand and your shirt?”
“What did you call me?” Naomi moved towards Lily, but Chris placed a restraining hand on her shoulder. She tried to shrug it off but his grip only tightened, keeping her in place.
Staci stepped in between them. “Doctor Gatewood, you should go to the ER and seek immediate treatment for your nose. For the sake of what’s left of your career, I wouldn’t advise you to bring up either Doctor Redford’s or Mr. Bohain’s names when you’re asked about what happened.”
“What do you mean, ‘what’s left of my career’?” Lily’s hands dropped down to her sides, exposing the bloody mess on her face.
“I mean that there will be severe consequences from this reckless behavior of yours. You might be able to mitigate this if you give Doctor Redford and Mr. Bohain a sincere, meaningful apology right now.”
“No way in hell. Naomi, I know you whored yourself out for that money and I’ll make sure everyone else in this hospital knows it too.”
Naomi lunged towards Lily again, but Staci hustled her out of the room before Naomi could reach her. Though her hand still ached from the first punch, she dearly wished she could have blackened one of Lily’s eyes for calling her a whore.
“Who was that nut?” Chris asked. “Obviously a dear friend of yours.”
From his teasing tone, Naomi knew he was trying to alleviate her anger. However, frustration still burned through her. “She’s a doctor with the research center and has had it in for me ever since we came back from the conference in Durham.”
She looked at Chris. “Was she telling the truth about the money? Did the donation come from you personally and not BGC or its foundation?”
He nodded. “The BGC foundation is mired in bureaucracy and there’s a lot of red tape involved before funds are distributed. Your ER would have gotten the money eventually, but I didn’t want to wait that long to bring you back into my life.”
So in a way, Lily was right, a small voice nagged from the back of Naomi’s mind. But Chris seemed to sense what she was thinking because he stepped forward and wrapped his hands around her waist.
“I didn’t give that money only because I wanted to see you again. You’re not a woman who can be bought or bribed, I realize that. When I heard the passion and urgency in your speech in Durham, I knew I wanted to give. Not only because it was a worthwhile cause, but because it clearly meant so much to you. By that point, I could tell anything that important to you would also be important to me.”
He stroked a lock of her hair and smiled. “I think I’ve been in love with you from the start, Naomi. A ten million dollar donation is a small price to pay for a worthy cause if it gives me a shot at your heart as well.”
Naomi lifted the fingers of her still aching hand to brush his cheek, compelled with need to touch him. “I love you, Chris. You’ve had my heart since that first night in Durham too. I’ve wanted to tell you that for some time but I’ve been hurt in the past and didn’t want to risk opening myself up to get hurt again. But I love you so much, I’m willing to take that risk. I want you to know how completely and totally I love you.”
“I’ll never hurt you, Naomi, I promise.” He lowered his mouth to Naomi’s lips and they kissed. A now familiar wave of desire swept over her as she wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders.
Naomi and Chris both seemed to remember at the same time they were still in the hospital. They broke apart, both breathing heavily but not yet in the full throes of passion. Once that occurred, nothing would have been able to stop them from acting on their impulses, regardless of whether they were in a hospital examining room or on a church altar.
“Let’s get out of here,” he said in a low sexy voice. “I can think of better uses for any pent-up anger you still might harbor for that head case doctor colleague of yours.”
“Be careful what you ask for because Lily made me really, really mad.”
“Have you yet dished out anything I can’t handle?”
Naomi smiled, loving the way desire flared up in his eyes as she did. “What’s that saying about there being a first time for everything?”
“Go get your things so we can hurry up and get back to your place,” he growled. “I can’t wait to show you there’s no ‘firsts’ when it comes to something like this.”
“We’ll see,” she said as a shiver of anticipation ran through her. She couldn’t wait until they got back to her apartment and spent the rest of the day making love and putting the events of this afternoon behind them. And from Chris’ burning looks and the telling bulge in his pants, Naomi knew Lily’s insults and accusations would soon be nothing but a faint memory.
Chapter Seven
I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride.
The words from earlier that afternoon echoed through Naomi’s thoughts as if on a pre-recorded loop. It still hadn’t quite sunk in that she was Mrs. Matthew Christopher Bohain, Junior. Maybe it never would. She imagined she could ninety years old, sitting hand in hand with Chris at a rest home, and continue to wonder in amazement, This man is really my husband now.
However, the twenty carat, princess cut diamond ring on the third finger of her left hand provided her visual proof that yes, she and Chris were husband and wife. With only their families and a small group of friends in attendance, she and Chris had gotten married in a private ceremony on his parents’ estate in Greenwich, Connecticut.
At first, Naomi had balked at the location. She didn’t want to impose on his parents, especially since Chris brought up the idea just after they’d finished the dinner where Naomi met them for the first time. “How are you going to introduce me to your parents and then ask them less than an hour later if we can get married at their house?”
“Like this.” Chris waited until his parents entered the study where they would have after-dinner drinks and said, “Hey, Naomi and I want to get married at the Greenwich house. Preferably somewhere near the water and away from the stink of the horse stables. That okay with the two of you?”
While Naomi wanted to melt into the floor from embarrassment, neither one of his parents seemed fazed by the question. In fact, Chris’ mother rushed over to Naomi and gave her a warm hug. “This is wonderful! Greenwich is perfect for a wedding. I hope you’ll allow me to make a suggestion or two. Cohan’s Flowers on Arch Street does lovely work with arrangements. I know he’d do a fantastic job for your wedding, as would Sonja Hewitt’s catering service . . .”
Most brides-to-be might have resented the intrusion of their future mother-in-law into the details of their wedding planning. However, Naomi welcomed Elizabeth’s advice, even to the point of letting her take over planning the ceremony in its entirety. She’d never been one of those women who’d grown up fantasizing about what kind of dress and wedding she’d have. All she wanted to do was marry Chris with the minimum amount of fuss possible. Elizabeth’s taking control allowed Naomi to do just that.
Not having to focus on wedding details allowed Naomi to concentrate on wrapping things up at Philadelphia County Memorial. Lily had followed through on her threat and spread nasty rumors throughout the hospital about how Naomi slept with Chris to secure the ten million dollar donation for the ER. But the revenge came back to bite her in the ass when Lily eventually got fired from the research center for insubordination. However, the rumors took its toll on Naomi’s career, especially once word spread that she and Chris were indeed a couple.
Even though Staci, the head of the ER, and a few PCM board members assured Naomi they gave absolutely no credence to Lily’s accusations, Naomi knew her relationship with Chris would affect how they viewed her work. She realized any future promotions she might receive might be viewed with cynicism by some, thinking she’d gotten it not on merit but because of Chris’ power and wealth. And more than one PCM senior executive had hinted they expected Naomi’s connections to Chris and BGC to result in even more and larger donations to the hospital. That’s when she knew her position at PCM was no longer tenable.
When she’d learned of the open teaching position at Manhattan General Hospital, Naomi applied for it, seeing it as a way to continue with the career she loved while being closer to Chris. The night she learned she’d been hired as an adjunct professor in emergency services at MGH was the same night Chris had presented her with the gorgeous ring and asked her to marry him.
“You have to say yes,” he’d said. “You’ve kept me dangling long enough.”
“Yeah, you’ve been waiting an eternity in the three whole months since we first met. Someone should award you a Nobel prize for being so patient.”
But all the sarcasm drained out of her once he slid the ring on her finger, which fit perfectly. She hugged him tightly, pressing her body against his. “I love you! I can’t wait until we’re married and I’m officially your wife.”
Chris returned her embrace, rubbing his hands up and down her back. “Maybe now you’ll stop taking the birth control pills so we can get started on making a little MC Hammer?”
“I’ll stop taking the birth control pills so we can get started on making a baby with a sensible name.”
With that conversation having taken place not more than three weeks ago, Naomi couldn’t help but reflect how quickly time had flown by. Now she and Chris were married ─ she loved saying it, if only to herself, married ─ and on their honeymoon. His parents had lent them their ocean front beach house in the Bahamas and she stood on its veranda, watching the waves roll in and out as the sun set. She couldn’t think of a more perfect spot to spend her first night as a married woman.
Naomi sensed Chris’ nearness even before she heard his footsteps or felt his arms wrap around her waist. She smiled as he kissed the back of her neck and said, “You look so gorgeous standing here. I can’t believe I’m married to such a beautiful and intelligent woman.”
“Funny, I was just thinking I can’t believe I’m married to such a smart, sexy guy.” She lifted her arm behind her so she could tangle her fingers in his hair. “Maybe we’re supposed to be together, you think?”
“I don’t think, I know.” He turned her around so they were eye to eye. “I love you, Naomi. This is just the first of what I hope are many, many nights of our life together as husband and wife.”
His fingers caressed her stomach as he added, “And hopefully not before too long, that life will include a bunch of children. You think those birth control pills are out of your system yet? It would be awesome if I knocked you up before we got back to New York.”
“That’s probably not going to happen. The pills themselves are already out of my system but it might take another three months before I start ovulating again.”
Chris made a mock pout. “Shoot, I was aiming for a honeymoon baby.”
“There’s nothing stopping us from trying for one anyway. Didn’t you once say you never met a challenge you couldn’t lick?”
“Yup.” His lips curved into a wicked smile. “So what do you say, Mrs. Bohain? Should we go inside and start trying to conceive little MC Hammer or MC Hammerina?”
Naomi allowed him to take her hand and pull her inside the spacious beach house, but she said, “You’re really going to have to let that go. Hammer, Hammerina, Hammerette . . . none of it is going to be part of the baby naming vocabulary. But I tell you what, when we get back home, we can get a dog and you can call him MC Hammer all you want.”
He lifted her hand and kissed her palm. “Okay, okay, I give in. As long as the baby is a combination of the two of us, he or she will be winner, even without the awesome name MC Hammer.”
Anticipation and desire swept over Naomi as they entered the bedroom. But in addition to the usual stirrings she experienced right before she and Chris made love, hope and optimism swelled within her. Officially united with the man she loved and preparing to conceive his child, Naomi knew life couldn’t get more perfect than what she was experiencing at this moment.
THE END
OTHER WORKS BY IMANI KING
The Alpha Billionaire’s Obsession (Part One)
The Alpha Billionaire’s Game (Part Two)
The Billionaire : MINE (Part 1)
Secret Billionaire’s Vacation
Excerpt from THE BILLIONAIRE : MINE (Part 1)
Jayne stood outside her building, waiting for the car to come get her. The job her agent had offered her the night before wasn’t the role of Ariel, but that wasn’t strange. What was unusual was the offer she had been given.
It was just a simple something for one night, just a gig, where she would accompany the client to a dinner at an arts gala. “You’re gonna want to take this,” her agent said, “because the guest list is incredible. All people you want to meet.” Besides, the pay was great, and she was assured the dinner was all that was required. It would also cover her rent for the month, so finally Jayne reluctantly agreed. Even if she did get the Ariel gig, or maybe especially, times would be tough for the next few months. Great acting jobs often didn’t pay. What Carson Weeks had said was true, that artists supported the arts more than anyone else, in a sense. But nothing to be done about that aside from do the occasional weirdo gig. In any case, she was told to dress formally, be ready by six, and she would be home by eleven or midnight.
Her dress was simple taffeta, black, with one large strategically placed hip ruffle over a short skirt. Catching her reflection in a store window, she hoped she looked nice enough. Ella had done her makeup, giving her a nice mauve lip and lots of mascara. She also lent her a beaded purse she had picked up one afternoon from Soho – with butterflies in its mosaic pattern. Pretty. Her eyes drifted up. Whoever hired me for this better not try anything, she thought, looking at the sheer panel that covered the top of her chest, revealing a hint of cleavage. I am an actress, not an escort.
Just then a car pulled up: a black Bentley limousine, with its unmistakable grill and smooth lines. The driver jumped out. What, is this for me?
“Hello Jayne,” he said in a distinctly British accent. “Lovely to see you. My name’s Wilbur – I’m Mr. Weeks’ driver.”
Mr. Weeks!? Carson Weeks, the billionaire from the auditions? He’s my date!?
“Thank you Wilbur,” she managed. He swiftly opened the door for her, taking her hand to help her into the vehicle. The interior was luxury defined, smooth leather, soft lighting, gentle music. A softly lit bar.
“Hello, Jayne,” said the voice from the night before. She slowly turned her head to see him again. He looked even more gorgeous and sleek close up than he did crossing the street in NYC. Young, tall, dark and handsome, and in a tuxedo. Wow.
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Author Bio
Imani King is a small town girl with a big imagination. She nurtures a passion for yoga and can often be found in the studio when she's not writing.
In her fantasies, she and her billionaire Mr. Right travel the world, exploring different cultures and each other! These daydreams are the inspiration for her sizzling stories, so what are you waiting for? Give one of them a try and let her know what you think.
Imani loves hearing from readers! You can reach her on Facebook or by emailing her at authorimaniking@gmail.com
Imani King, The Billionaire's Prescription: BWWM Interracial Billionaire Romance
