Tom Billionaire Ch. 01

Cecile kissed me and then said she was wrong about me; I was a good man, and I was proving it by not leading Vivienne on, by sending her home with her friends. She pulled my hand down to her ass and whispered about how she would never forget last night. And then she kissed me again.

And Aveline tried to swallow my tongue with her kiss. She grinned and promised she would take care of Vivienne. After all, they had been best friends since they were young, and she was happy not to be losing her. And then the busty redhead went over to hold her best friend as I tried to say goodbye to the gorgeous dirty-blonde.

"Please don't leave me," Vivienne whimpered pitifully. "Don't you care about me?"

"It is because I care about you that I'm doing this. You belong with your friends. You have a life waiting back home for you."

"I don't want that life! I want a life with you!"

I sighed, thinking of all the problems waiting for me back home. "You don't. You really don't. I have a lot of demons I have been running from. But meeting you has shown me that I can't ignore them any more. I thank you for that."

"But I love you!" Vivienne's voice cracked as she pleaded with me one last time.

I shook my head, and felt the wall close completely around my heart. And in a stern voice, I stated, "I don't love you."

The quiver started with her lower lip, and then expanded across her face and body until her knees buckled. Vivienne would have fallen flat on her ass if Aveline hadn't been holding her. And still threatening to collapse, with fresh tears in her eyes, the beautiful girl wailed, "I passed your test! You CAN'T send me away now!"

I sighed. "It wasn't a test, Vivienne. I was just trying to remind you of who we really are to each other. I'm just a rich man running away from his life. You're just a girl on holiday. We could never be anything more than that."

Vivienne's face turned from sorrowful pleading to rage in an instant. And suddenly breaking free of Aveline, she actually took a threatening step forward and screamed right in my face. "What happened to you? What happened to your wife? What happened to your _life_? Why are you so fucked up you cannot let yourself *feel* anymore?" And she continued to rant at me in French, jabbering so fast that I'm not even sure her _friends_ could understand her.

I didn't have an immediate answer. Splaying my hands out to the sides helplessly, I simply said, "I'm sorry." And then I backed into the Mercedes, closing the door behind me.

Evania signaled the other car to leave, and then with an apologetic face for the girls, she hopped into seat next to me and closed the door. Still holding onto Vivienne, Aveline held up her free hand to wave goodbye. Lucette and Cecile waved as well. But Vivienne just glared at me as the SUV pulled away from the curb.

It was sad. But I had to get on with my life.

****

Evania had perceptively noticed that I was talking about going home to America when arguing with Vivienne in the SUV. But my valet was still in shock when I told her what I wanted to cancel the lease on the boat and terminate the crew to head back home immediately. However, she handled things remarkably well given the abruptness of my decision. And we spent the 45-minute drive back to Piraeus working out the details.

"The boat crew will be fine. A week's pay in severance is perfectly normal. But are you sure you want to give the Althea and Nika *three*-months salary in severance? You don't have to, and we haven't even been in service for three months total," Evania questioned.

"Three months. I can afford it. Besides, we had an open-ended contract, and this notice is so sudden, it'll give them time to find other jobs. They're not part of the standard boat crew, so they not guaranteed employment on the next charter."

"This is because you slept with them, isn't it?" Evania raised an eyebrow knowingly.

I shrugged.

Evania chuckled. "Althea and Nika will be disappointed. They were looking forward to the next week to relax with you."

I sighed. "They're sweet girls. They'll be fine."

"But I won't be, Mr. Eriksen," Evania said softly, her eyes downcast.

I exhaled slowly. As much as I knew I had to head back home, leaving my Greek crew in Greece, I pained me to think of being parted from Evania. My valet had been provided by a top European Agency when I'd first arrived just a few short months ago. I hadn't necessarily been looking for a sexual partner. All I really wanted at the time was a local "travel agent" of sorts to help me get from Point A to Point B to Point C as I traipsed all over Europe for the first couple of weeks. Neither of us had known when we met that we would *click* so well. Evania said she'd never slept with a client before, but as it turned out, we fell into bed together before the end of the week. Maybe it was because we were in Rome at the time.

Since then, our relationship had evolved by leaps and bounds. She reminded me in many ways of my previous assistant, and yet was completely different. She filled a great void inside me, and I was loathe to be parted from her. Indeed, facing the thought of losing Evania hurt more than the thought of losing Vivienne.

So I made my decision right then and there. "Come with me."

Evania blinked and her eyes went wide. "Sir?"

I stopped to think about it. I cared about both Evania and Vivienne. But while Vivienne had momentarily become a sort of replacement for my wife, Evania always had a more functional role. And I still needed that. I needed her not only to tie up my affairs here in Greece, but I would need her help in getting me back to America. And even though she did not know America like a native, once I WAS back home, I would still need someone by my side.

I didn't love Evania. What we shared together was far more "employer-employee" than romantic. It was even a little bit "Master-sub". In any case, my feelings for her did not conflict with the love I felt for my wife in the way Vivienne might. And when I thought of myself returning home to pick up the pieces of my old life, I instinctively knew my gorgeous Greek valet would fit right in.

Besides, I was heading back to America. Of all the people who might be waiting for me there, I didn't know who would still be on my side. And if I was going to do this, it would be really nice to know I had *someone* who had my back.

"I'm serious. Come with me," I repeated and then exhaled slowly. And looking at Evania with soft eyes, I added, "I need you."

Her eyes sharpened and she sat up straight in her seat. She nodded firmly and said, "And I will be there for you."

A wave of tension rolled off my shoulders. There was still a lot there, but a good chunk of the tension was gone. And I sighed in obvious relief. Reaching over, I put my hands to the sides of Evania's head and tilted her toward me. And then I kissed her forehead thankfully.

"I am here for you, _sir_," Evania stated plainly.

The way she emphasized "sir" stirred another memory in my head, and there was a sudden pressure against my brain. I remembered another loose end: someone else *very* special to me, who wasn't my wife. And exhaling, I turned to look out the window.

****

The boat crew were quite surprised, but handled the situation gracefully. They were used to being chartered for a week or a month at the longest, and they'd already been hired for almost three months. They'd all made a good bit of money, and the week's severance pay would give them plenty of cushion before finding their next charter. After all, this was the high season.

Althea and Nika were a little more in shock. Although they were staff, not guests, they'd still enjoyed being a part of my little cruise around the Mediterranean. And from the way both girls kissed me before disembarking, they'd also enjoyed our occasional intimate interludes. Nika was visibly disappointed we didn't have time for one more romp, actually. Althea was more pragmatic, eager to return home after not seeing her parents and siblings for some time. And both were absolutely overjoyed by the three-month severances.

I was still on the boat, finishing off the last bit of paperwork while Evania put Althea and Nika into a cab to head to the airport, when a sudden shout grabbed my attention.

*"TOHM!!!"*

My eyes flew wide open and I turned to look at the pier in shock. Sure enough, running up the gangplank, was Vivienne.

I'd underestimated how much she loved me.

I dropped the clipboard to the deck and opened my arms just in time to catch the 5'9" dirty-blonde babe as she launched herself into the air, actually wrapping her legs around my waist as I staggered and worked valiantly not to fall. And I was still trying to regain my balance when she turned her head and started raining kisses on my face, frantically trying to get to my lips and hitting absolutely everything _else_ along the way.

At last, I let my hands loose. Feeling herself falling, Vivienne instinctively dropped her feet down to the deck. And as I defensively held her at arm's length away, taking in her messy hair and wild-eyed look, I sputtered, "Vivienne?"

"I missed my flight!"

"I see that," I sighed. "We'll get you another one."

"I don't *want* another one. I want to stay here with you!"

I frowned and shook my head, suddenly feeling every bit of my age as I stared disapprovingly at the 9 years younger girl. My valet was just coming up the gangplank, shock in her eyes as well as she realized who was holding onto me. And sternly, I ordered, "Evania, book Vivienne on the next connecting flights to Dijon."

"Tohm!" Vivienne gasped desperately. And then in a mournful, quiet voice she whimpered, "Mon amour..."

"I'm not your love. You're not my wife. And you're not my girlfriend," I stated harshly. And then I sighed, the word "girlfriend" now making me thinking OF my ex-girlfriend, the mother of my daughter, who'd also left me.

"You cannot abandon me, Tohm," Vivienne pleaded, tears forming in her eyes again. "Please! Let me come with you!"

I shook my head. "This is not going to be what you think it is. There are things I need to do in America. I'm not planning a holiday anymore. We wouldn't be sightseeing or shopping or spending all day naked in bed. It wouldn't be the lifestyle you're thinking of."

Vivienne shook her head. "I don't care. I don't need shopping or sightseeing. I need you. I need to be WITH you!"

"I can't be with you right now," I said through clenched teeth. "I'm not... right... emotionally. I'm no good to anyone."

"I can fix you!"

"Fix me?" I arched an eyebrow. I shook my head and sighed. "The only one who can fix me is *me*."

"But I can help you!"

"How?"

"Just let me be here for you. Let me stay with you. I can comfort you. I will listen to you. You say you have problems in your past. Well I am NOT a part of your past. Does it not make sense to have someone with you who is not from your past? Someone who is not a part of the problem?"

I arched my eyebrow. It was a surprisingly philosophical argument from someone I initially viewed as only a tender young plaything. "I'm bringing Evania with me," I stated flatly.

Vivienne darted her eyes over to my valet, a bright flash in her eyes as she abruptly looked at the Greek girl as competition. But just as suddenly, she darted her eyes back to me and stated emphatically, "Evania is your support. She will always serve you. But I _love_ you."

I sighed and looked rather pityingly at the desperate girl still clinging onto me. What I had done was cold and cruel. I had let this young, innocent girl fall in love with me, and for a time, I'd even led her to believe that I loved her too. Maybe I even had, for a little while. But because of the way I'd felt about her... maybe still _could_ feel about her... I had to leave her behind.

"Vivienne," I began wearily. "I'm going home because I need to get my wife back. I love _her_."

Vivienne's soft brown eyes tightened. She bit her lip and looked ready to burst into tears. But just as her mouth opened so she could wail out some response, a new voice called out.

"Jonathan, you were a lot harder to find than I thought."

My head jerked around at the sound of my real name. I turned my head and looked over to see a statuesque blonde, her sharp business suit and heels looking out of place on the deck of this yacht. And her silvery blue eyes bore straight at me as a self-satisfied smirk spread across her red lips.

I sighed, wondering how she'd found me. But I nodded and greeted, "Hi, Cassandra."