Tom Billionaire Ch. 05

Kaitlyn frowned, looking sympathetic. But she nodded and dropped her middle finger. "That only leaves one person left."

_Taylor_.

"I'm not ready," I repeated. "I don't know what to say to her when I see her."

"Tell her you love her and want her to come home," Jeff said with a shrug.

"It's not that simple."

"Of course it is," he replied sagely.

"No, it's *not*," I barked. "You don't get it."

Jeff exhaled. "And you're making this more complicated than it needs to be."

"What's different? Huh? I've always loved her, and she was home before. She *still* ended up going cokehead with the snowbunnies and ended up in rehab. Nothing's changed."

"You don't know that," Kaitlyn murmured. "A lot of time has passed. _Promises_ is more than a glorified hotel; they're really trying to help her. She won't be the same person she was four months ago. She'll be better. That's WHY she went to rehab, to become better for you. And maybe by now, she's ready for you to come get her."

I sighed and looked at the bottom of my glass again. "I'm not ready to go to her yet. Maybe *I'm* not done with MY rehab."

"This isn't rehab," Kaitlyn stated firmly. "This is you running away from your life. Physically, you're not in Europe anymore, or even... what... New Orleans? But so far, you're in the same vacation from reality you've been living for the past three, four months."

"What are you saying?"

"I know what you're thinking, _John_," Kaitlyn said a little more forcefully, emphasizing my real name. "I was thinking almost the same thing little more than an hour ago."

"What?"

Kaitlyn looked over at her boyfriend, squeezing his leg firmly. She looked at him apologetically, and said, "Before dinner, I was wondering what life would have been like if I'd really gotten pregnant with John's baby five years ago. You remember the story, babe?"

Jeff looked at his girlfriend, not yet sure what to think. But he nodded, "Yes."

"I wondered what it might be like to live that other life. Not that this one is bad, mind you," Kaitlyn said directly to Jeff. "But it would have been different. Maybe... just maybe... I'd be the one married to John by now. Maybe I'd have an adorable 4-year-old running around, one that looked a little like Joey. Just... maybe..."

Jeff pinched his lips, holding onto Kaitlyn's hand atop his knee.

"But it was nothing more than idle fantasy. I love you, babe. I love this life I have with you, okay?"

Jeff swallowed thickly, then nodded.

Kaitlyn turned to me. "No matter the fantasy, this reality is what I truly have. All the 'maybes' in the world don't matter. I didn't get pregnant. You ended up with Taylor. And I found my 'One'. I'm happier for it. I'm sorry, John, but even if I *could* change my life into that of my fantasy, I wouldn't. I'm right where I belong."

"What are you trying to say?" I asked, the answer already in my head.

"You CAN change your life into your fantasy, right here, right now. You've got the money, the connections, and the means to pull it off. There's nothing really stopping you from permanently settling into this corner apartment and starting your life over from scratch with these two beautiful women by your side." Kaitlyn gestured behind me, and I turned to see that Vivienne and Evania were both standing at the doorway to the kitchen. They'd clearly rejoined us at some point, hanging back and listening.

"But is that what you really want?" Kaitlyn continued. "To be Tom Eriksen forever?"

_Yes,_ I thought immediately. No more paparazzi. No more financial headaches. No more thinking about all the tragedy that had already come to my family. Kaitlyn was right: I had the means to start over again. And as I looked over at Vivienne, seeing that expression of adoration on her face, I smiled.

"Don't take the easy way out, John," Kaitlyn said softly from my right. "Think of what you'd be leaving behind. I'm sorry, but I owe it to Taylor to make you see reason. Your real name is Jonathan Kwong. You are married. You have a daughter who still depends on you. When you first came here, you told me you'd come home to get your family back. Don't give up on that."

My heart thudded in my chest. I wasn't consciously aware of my expression changing. But as I watched Vivienne watching me, I watched *her* expression changing in reaction to mine.

"Your wife went through hell for you, _John_," Kaitlyn stated. "*You* owe it to her not to give up."

_She's right,_ my conscience told me. I'd told myself once before that it wouldn't be fair to the people who loved me to just grab a Grecian beach house, make a home with Vivienne and Evania, and then spend my money on pleasurable things until I died from sexual overload. This apartment wasn't a Grecian beach house, but I'd started to do just that.

Plus, Taylor wasn't the only one waiting for me. Somewhere, probably at the mansion at Montauk, Cassandra was still wondering how I was getting along without her. Just like I believed with every fiber of my being that she would wait for me forever, I knew that *she* believed I would one day come home and be hers again. How could I start my life over, and not have her in it?

And even if Ashlyn and I never figured out how to recreate our magic, Joey would forever be my daughter. I'd lost JJ, but I still had one child left. Becoming Tom Eriksen would mean leaving her behind, but didn't I owe it to Joey to ensure she had a father growing up?

Even if I had the financial means to start over as Tom Eriksen, I would never be able to leave behind those things that were a part of Jonathan Kwong. And if I could never truly let go of Jonathan Kwong, then *being* Tom Eriksen was impossible.

I sighed and looked back at Kaitlyn. I paused for a moment to collect myself, and then nodding, I said, "You're right."

She just nodded along with me.

I took one more look at Vivienne, letting myself fantasize for just one more moment what we might have been in another life. With a strained face, I then pulled myself away. I set my wine glass down and stood up, already fishing into my pocket for my cell phone. And I stood up, excusing myself to make a call.

In the privacy of my bedroom, where just an hour ago Kaitlyn and I had both briefly fantasized about what life might have been like if we'd had a baby together, I called the one person in the world I needed the most.

She picked up on the first ring. "Jonathan?" Cassandra answered breathlessly, eager excitement in her voice.

"Hi. I need you to help me get to Malibu."

****

Vivienne accepted that I needed to go to Malibu and visit Taylor. I'd warned her from the beginning that I was returning to America to get my wife back. And she'd accepted the possibility that my wife would return into my life.

But she didn't accept my decision to leave her in New York.

"Tohm, NO!" she protested with a look of abject misery on her face, once she realized I was dead serious. Less than a month ago, I'd seen the same expression on her face, at the Athens airport when I'd told her I would be sending her home to France. Back then, I'd steeled my resolve and left, focusing on the goal of getting my family back.

But then Vivienne had raced back to the yacht, refusing to leave me. And eventually she talked me into bringing her along to America.

But not this time. I steeled my resolve once again, focusing on what I needed to do to get Taylor to come home. And to do that, I *couldn't* have Vivienne with me.

"Why not?" she complained. "You said you would not have to hide me?"

"And I'm not hiding you. I'm going to tell Taylor point blank that you're my girlfriend."

"But how can you leave me behind? Don't you care about me?" she whined, tears trickling down her cheeks.

I sighed, willing her to understand. Reaching my arms out, I pulled her to my chest, hugging her tightly. And fighting back tears of my own, I replied, "Of course I care about you. Vous êtes mon cheri."

"Then _why_?"

"It's _because_ I care about you too much, Vivienne." I released her and took a full step back. "You make me happy, *too* happy. You distract me from the bad things in my life. But for this, I need to be able to focus. I can't be distracted."

"I won't distract you."

I just gave her a look.

"Well..." she started again. "I won't be in the way!"

"Of course you won't. But just being near me is more than I'll be able to handle right then. I'm not leaving you behind because I don't care about you. I'm leaving you behind because... well..." My voice trailed off as my tongue got thick around the L-word. I'd said it to her once already, the night before that last day in Athens. But then I'd immediately taken it back the following morning. I cared about her, truly I did. In fact, I really believed deep down that Tom Eriksen DID indeed love Vivienne, and had for some time.

But for this, I couldn't be Tom Eriksen anymore. And if I took Vivienne with me, a part of me still would be her "Tohm" at a time when I really needed to be Taylor's "Johnny".

Vivienne had gone quiet, hanging on my last sentence, praying to hear the L-word pass my lips.

But I couldn't. "Please understand: You do *this* to me." I gestured back and forth between us. "I'm sorry."

****

*-- LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA --*

"Do you think she's okay?"

Evania looked at her watch, checking the time. Our flight had been delayed getting us to LAX, and by the time we got back to our hotel room after eating dinner in the lobby restaurant, it was already after 11pm in New York. Vivienne would likely be holed up in the apartment, watching a movie and feeling lonely.

"I'm sure she is fine," Evania said reassuringly as we set down our bags. Lodging for the night was an inconspicuous room at the airport Marriott, nothing flashy, although we were at least on the concierge level. She turned and sat down on the edge of the bed, giving the mattress a few test bounces. And then she looked up at me. "Vivienne is a big girl who can take care of herself, even in a strange city. And Kaitlyn promised she would check in on her."

I looked a little skeptical at that. After Kaitlyn had rather forcefully insisted that I stop pretending to be Tom Eriksen and go get my wife, things had been a little frosty between her and Vivienne. My girlfriend didn't take it personally, but she couldn't help but feel that Kaitlyn's views were working against her not-so-secret desire for me to permanently become Tom Eriksen and live the rest of my life with her.

"I should call her."

"You DID call her, when we landed," Evania reminded me. "Vivienne is my friend, but you asked me to help you stay focused, sir."

"I'm trying," I said, trying to bring up Taylor's face in my mind. The image I recalled was the way she looked at me on our wedding day, three years ago. But every time I did, another image threatened to invade. It was the way Taylor looked when I found her that last time, at Giorgio's, coked out of her mind, with bloodshot eyes, and... and... her face...

Evania was suddenly in front of me, holding my head in her hands, a concerned look in her dark eyes. I looked up at her, grimacing. And I closed my eyes again while telling her, "I can't. If I think about Taylor right now, it just hurts too much. But if I think about Vivienne, all I can think is how she must feel so abandoned and-"

"Think of me," Evania stated evenly, staring at me with laser intensity. "Focus on me."

I opened my eyes and looked at her, taking in her smoldering face. I turned to look down for a moment, but Evania jerked my gaze back to her eyes. She held the sides of my head firmly, keeping me locked in on her. And then tilting my head to the side, she moved herself in and gently pressed her mouth to my own.

I closed my eyes again and lost myself to the little electrical sparks dancing across my lips. I kissed her back a little harder, a moan sounding in my throat as she slid her hands around the back of my head. My own hands reached up to stroke her spine before the left hand settled on her shoulder and the right drifted down over her ass.

We kissed for what felt like an hour. Twice, I felt like breaking away. Twice, Evania pulled me back to her, increasing her pressure and kissing me like she never wanted to let me go. Every time my mind would start to wander, she changed what she was doing with her lips and her tongue so that my attention was brought right back to the way she was kissing me. And after a while, she was the only one in the world I could think about.

Only then did Evania pull away. She panted heavily, catching her breath. But at the same time, she traced her fingertips along my forehead and down my cheek. At 5'7", she could let her head fall back and still look up at me. And with a dreamy smile, she cupped the side of my face and murmured, "Take me..."

"How do you want it?" I asked, my hand on her ass rubbing more firmly.

"Take all of me..." Evania husked right back. And then she let her arms fall off me, spreading them to the sides in a clear gesture of surrender. She saw me smile, and she smiled in return. So when I stooped to wrap my arms around her waist and lift her up, she just giggled and held onto my shoulders, letting me carry her back to the bed.

My body landed atop hers a split-second after her back hit the mattress. Instantly, her arms were around my neck and her leg hooked around mine as our tongues did battle inside her mouth. My valet had changed into a dress for dinner, and my left hand was able to slide underneath the hem, dragging it higher while I caressed her thigh. She mewled into my mouth when I cupped her ass again, my fingertips darting into her buttcrack, held back by the strap of her thong though nothing but bare skin was beneath my palm. And her hands went from rubbing my back to urgently tugging at my shirt.

Our clothes were a forgotten memory within two minutes. Once we were both naked, I gathered Evania's wrists in my hands and planted them against the mattress above her head. I pushed at them firmly, indicating that I did not want her to move them. And then I reached down again, this time to grab her ankles.

The fetching brunette did not resist as I pushed her legs back until her knees were pressed against her own chest. I rolled her body up like an armadillo, raising her hips into the air and fully exposing her vulnerable nether holes to me. She kept her hands on the mattress behind her obediently, and looked up at me with a mixture of lust and respectful loyalty. So when I raised her feet over my shoulders, she simply crossed her feet behind my head and eagerly cooed as I sank my dick into her wet snatch. "Mmmm..."

"Ahhhh..." I sighed contentedly. As always, she was warm, tight, and welcoming.

Evania's dark irises flashed with an inner flame as she smiled, happier that she was pleasing me than anything else. And then her smile turned into a grimace of pleasure as I pulled my hips back and started to pump in and out of her.

"Take me, sir..." she moaned. I saw her arms twitch, clearly desiring to reach up to me, before she remembered to keep her hands back.

I gave her the reminder anyways, reaching up with my right hand to pin her wrists down, while I kept my left hand on her hip to guide my thrusts. In this position, with her body curled up to meet me, I was getting incredible depth. My cock plunged into the farthest recesses of her pussy with each stroke. And I was hammering her hard enough to knock the wind out of her with every single thrust.

Of course, my weight pinning her own knees against her chest probably had something to do with it as well. Evania wasn't getting much air as I continued to pound her, not letting up with the pressure. And the lack of oxygen, though a little dangerous, was also heightening the pleasure sparking through her nervous system as I rapidly pistoned my cock in and out.

"Take... me..." she croaked with what little air she had. Her eyes were getting moist as she fought for breath. "Take me... sir..." she gasped.

I kept fucking her hard. Evania's eyes were wobbly, but this close to orgasm her body was automatically thrusting back at me, her hips leaping off the mattress to meet me with every thrust. I groaned, feeling her tight pussy clamping down around me. And then I decided to finish us both off.

I leaned forward a bit more, putting additional weight on her legs, which in turn compressed her lungs. Her mouth gaped open, neither sound nor air coming out anymore. And just when her eyes were about to roll up in her head, I pushed her legs apart, sending her into the splits while letting my full weight drop down on my cock in her cunt with a single, mighty thrust.

"Un-guh..." Evania croaked weakly, her jaw dropping to gape her mouth open wide. No further sounds came out, but there was no doubting the way the rest of her body seized up. She gave a single violent jerk, went still for a half a second, and then her chest started vibrating up and down as if she were in the middle of a grand mal epileptic fit.

Her chest wasn't the only thing seizing. All four of her limbs were twitching erratically. And more importantly for me, so were her pussy muscles. I held my weight above her, not wanting to crush her chest any further as her body desperately sucked in oxygen while she continued to spasm in an orgasm to end all orgasms. But my hips were still stirring in a counterclockwise motion, my dick carving out the walls of her clenching cunt. And within a few seconds, I came to a dead stop and let the head of my cock blow apart deep inside her.

"Un-GAAAAAHHHH!" I gasped, far louder than Evania's croak had been. I had the benefit of full oxygen behind my exclamation, but my orgasm was no less powerful. And I blasted wave after wave of frothy, thick spunk into Evania's still-twitching body.

"Gahhhh..." I grunted, my hips retracting and then firing again as I slammed forward a couple of inches.

"Nn-guuuhhh..." I gasped a final time, my arms now giving out as I collapsed on top of Evania's trembling body, pillowing my cheek against her big tits as the final squirts of cum leaked out of me.

The room went silent. Evania was panting loudly, still trying to catch her breath. But she wrapped her arms around my now-sweaty back, humming happily and holding me against her chest despite her need to get more oxygen.

"Thank you," I said sincerely. "I'm sorry, Evania, but I don't tell you that nearly enough. Thank you."

She panted for a few more seconds, catching her breath before replying. "No apology... is necessary... sir... Thank *you*... That was amazing."

I chuckled. "Yeah, it was." It had been a truly mind-blowing orgasm, and for a while at least, my mind was not plagued by the complications of my life around me.

"But we are not done yet," Evania chuckled, stroking my spine.

"We're not?"

She shook her head. "This is the first time in a *long* time I have had you all to myself. Perhaps I will not get this chance again for another long time. I told you I want you to take *all* of me, and I meant it. So there are two more holes to go."

I smiled, chuckling happily. And then lifting my head, I first pecked at one of my valet's swollen nipples and then moved higher to kiss her lips. "Evania, *thank you*."

****

*-- MALIBU, CALIFORNIA --*

I awoke in the morning feeling refreshed and rejuvenated. It didn't hurt that I had a beautiful, naked young woman in bed beside me. And I rolled Evania over for a quick encore before we got up to get dressed for the day.

The entire trip had been pretty low-key, from flying commercial to staying at the airport Marriott. And we stuck with this approach by renting a non-descript Ford to get us out to Malibu.

_Promises_ was world-renowned for its discretion, with security keeping paparazzi at bay. There were still a few photogs camping out at the main gate, waiting for a glimpse of some celebrity going in or out. But nobody noticed the beige Ford or its unfamiliar occupants as we went through.