Free Very Bad Billionaires by Alyse Zaftig, Meg Watson, Marie Carnay, Alyssa Alpha, Cassandra Dee, Layla Wilcox, Morgan Black, Molly Molloy, Holly Stone, Misha Carver Page B

intentionally hurt you. I love you too much for that.”
    Alston smiled and wrapped his hands around her waist. “Oh, Bryce. Thank God I didn’t lose you.”
    He nuzzled her neck and she let out a small laugh. “I’m sorry about your car. And the mirror. Oooh.” She winced. “And the diamond. I was kinda mad.”
    Alston laughed and shook his head. “I don’t care. I’d get rid of all this if it meant keeping you.”
    “Don’t do that! I love it here. And you know one place I especially love?”
    “Mmm. Where’s that?”
    “Your bed. How about we make up for lost time? There’s something I’ve been dying to do.”
    Alston scooped her up like she weighed nothing at all, carrying her out of the living room and down the hall. “I’d be honored.”
    * * * * *
    Slipping into his bedroom, Alston toed the door shut behind him. He carried Bryce over to the bed, laid her down and smiled. He’d cycled through more real emotions in the past three days than he had in the prior three years.
    And to think, it all changed with a last minute invitation to drinks. If he hadn’t succumbed to a moment of weakness, he’d never be standing there, staring down at his future as she sprawled out on his bed.
    “Thank you for coming back with me. I won’t ever be able to apologize enough.”
    “You might change your mind when you read the papers tomorrow.”
    “I told you, I don’t care what the papers say. Let them gossip about us. Let the tabloids tell the whole world that I’ve taken advantage of you and that we’re wrong for each other. I don’t care about any of it anymore.”
    “You should. It will ruin your company.”
    “So what? I spent too many years of my life creating this perfect veneer, only living in a few twisted moments now and then. And look what it got me.”
    “Billions of dollars?”
    Alston snorted. “An empty house, a shallow life, and a woman I didn’t even know until she was almost gone.”
    He stepped up to the bed and Bryce rose up onto her knees to greet him. Running his hand through her chestnut hair, he pushed back the strands to stare into her eyes. He’d been apologizing for hours, but there was one more he needed to get out. One he’d held back for eight long years.
    “Bryce. I’ve never said this, but I should have. I’m sorry my employee took your mother’s life.”
    “Alston, you don’t—”
    “No, let me finish. It should never have happened. He should have known what to do. Not made such a mistake. I’ll never forgive myself for that.”
    Bryce leaned back and looked up at him. “It’s not your fault, Alston. I don’t blame you for what happened. If the bank hadn’t been robbed, my mother would have deposited her paycheck and come home. Your employee was trying to protect everyone, not hurt my mother.”
    Alston shook his head. “I’m still responsible.”
    “How do you think Mr. Williams feels?”
    “The security guard? I’m sure he felt terrible.”
    “Shooting a bystander because he panicked and accidentally pulled the trigger made him feel more than terrible. I know—I tracked him down a few years ago, right after I’d turned eighteen.”
    Alston stepped back. “You did?”
    “Mmm-hmm. I wanted to meet him. To tell him I didn’t blame him. He’s a sweet man, Alston. Has a wife and grandchildren. He’ll never get over what happened. But we spoke and I gave him some closure.”
    Alston ran his thumb over Bryce’s cheek. “You’re remarkable, you know.”
    Bryce shrugged and ran her hands up his chest. “Thanks. But if you’re done apologizing, there’s so many other things I could think of doing.”
    With a smile, Alston leaned over, pushing her back onto the bed as he climbed on top. He straddled her body, trapping her between his arms and beneath his weight. Sliding one hand up her side, he slipped it under her shirt and raked his fingers over her bra. She arched her back and he smiled. So beautiful .
    The kiss started slow, his lips grazing