Taken By The Arrogant Billionaire

He slowly disengaged her hand from his collar, before she choked him to death.

He could not even comprehend what she was saying. Who did she want dead?

“Take it easy” he said, holding her hand, and led her to the sofa. “Who are you talking about?”

“Jared’s secretary. She’s a bitch, and wants to take away my man. You must kill her”

“Calm down. It might not be what you think” Her expression turned unpleasant. She whipped out her phone, showing him the picture.

“What does this say?”

He stared at the picture, his brows furrowing.

“Nothing. There’s nothing wrong with it, Jane. You are just being paranoid”

They were neither holding hands, nor kissing.

“Are you doing it or not?”

Silence.

“Don’t tell me… you are thinking twice about this. Xavier, you have to kill her, only then can I be satisfied”

Xavier stared into her desperate eyes.

“Alright” she finally smiled.

************Nôvel(D)ra/ma.Org exclusive © material.

“We are leaving” he said as soon as he entered the suite. The bodyguard had informed him of what happened. Why didn’t he know that the mongrel was aboard?

“What about your meetings?”

“Forget about it. We are not staying”

“But boss-”

“No buts. And it’s Jared for you when we are not at work”

She blinked. Call him Jared? Could she even do that?

They disembarked from the ship and soon, they were on the flight back.

There was no one in their apartment when she returned, so she retired to her bedroom.

************

Jared entered his penthouse, the lights were on, and he knew exactly what that meant.

What was she doing here? Definitely, she didn’t know he was coming back today, so does that mean she sleeps here?”

“You are back?” She sounded surprised.

“What are you doing here?”

“Well, I missed you and since this house has the feel of you, I came to stay” Jared scoffed out loud. “I thought you were going to take me with you, why did you go alone?” She wouldn’t let him know that she knew he took his secretary along. He was going to get suspicious of her when he receives news of her death. Her expression was vicious, but she quickly hid it. She continued when he didn’t reply her.

“I was going to pick my clothes for our engagement, would you mind coming with me?”

Right. Their engagement. He already forgot about that, and he hated being reminded of it.

“No” he simply said, heading into his room. Jane gritted her teeth.

‘Just you wait, I’ll get rid of your little mistress soon’ she thought maliciously.

It was around 9pm when Layla and Sandy arrived. Valerie had woken up late and was making dinner when the doorbell rang. Layla had arrived first, then Sandy. Sandy didn’t wait anymore and took the bull by the horns. It was either now or never.

They all sat in the living room.

“I have something crucial to tell you, and I really appreciate it if you don’t freak out”

“Whoa! You look…. serious” Valerie said, shifting in her seat.

“Is it bad news?” Layla chipped in. Sandy licked her lips.

“Well, not really. You see… I…” She took in a deep breath.

“Is it that hard to say? Then let me help you out. Did you hit someone?”

“No”

“Then did you fall in love, and you are too embarrassed to tell us?”

“No”

Valerie’s lip thinned, thinking of another possibility. Her eyes suddenly became wide, like she just realized something. Sandy sat up straight, nervous that she would get it right.

“Did you… kill someone?”

“No!” Why would she even ask that?

“Then what the hell is it?” She threw her hands up.

“I am getting married” The room went deathly silent. Their expression at that moment would have been laughable if the situation hadn’t been so serious. Valerie brought out her hand to Sandy’s forehead, then hers.

“You don’t have a fever”

“Are you sure this isn’t pregnancy affecting you? You probably need a good rest” Layla advised.

“Nothing is wrong with me. I’m really getting married”

“How can you get married when you do not even have a boyfriend? Am I the only one who isn’t getting the hang of this?” She turned to Layla, who shook her head.

“Guys, it’s a long story”

“You mean you are really serious” Sandy nodded.

“So, who’s this guy? Do we know him?”

Sandy searched his picture on her phone and stretched it out to them. She wasn’t sure if they’ll be able to recognize him. She studied their expressions intently. Layla looked like she had seen a ghost.

“I think you gave us the wrong picture. This man is a famous politician” Valerie pointed out. Sandy nodded.

“Yes. It’s him”

“What!”

“What…. how did meet him?”

“When I went to visit mum and dad”

“Wait…is he the one who…..” She didn’t finish the sentence, but Sandy understood what she wanted to say.

“Yes. It was him”

“Holy crap. Did he propose to you?” She nodded. “And you accepted?” She answered in the affirmative.

“He is my boss’s brother. That will make you his sister-in-law. Woah! This is crazy. Does he know?”

“Yes”

“No!” Layla said abruptly. She had just recovered from the shock. Her friend was going to marry Dylan Smith. Impossible! “You can’t marry him”

“I understand your fears. I’m scared too, but I want to do this for my baby. I don’t want him born a bastard”

“Marrying someone like him comes with a lot of problems”

“I know, and I’m ready to take it on” Layla shook her head stubbornly.

“Are you sure about this” Asked Valerie.

“I’m sure” Sandy replied with a sigh.

“If that is what you want, I support you”

“You can’t. You just can’t” It brought their attention back to Layla. She stood up and walked away, ignoring their voices, calling out to her.

She refused to come down for breakfast the next morning. Her door was locked.

“Layla, open this door. Aren’t you overreacting?” Valerie banged on the door, while Sandy watched, worry etched in every inch of her face.

“Come out now, or I’ll break it down” she almost scoffed at herself after the last statement. Her? Break the door down?

“Go away” she finally.

“Look, we can talk this out”

“I said leave” Valerie sucked in a deep breath angrily.

“What do we do?” Sandy asked.

Valerie shrugged indifferently.

“She wants us to leave, and that is precisely what we are going to do” Valerie said, walking away, dragging Sandy with her.

“But… But she hasn’t eaten anything”

“She’s an adult and can take absolute care of herself.

It continued till evening, but she finally came out in the end, ignoring the girls. She was about to return to her room, only to be halted by Valerie.

“Out of my way” she said coldly. At that moment, the look on her face felt awfully familiar, like she had seen someone with the exact look.

“Why are you getting mad for no reason? Can’t you just support her decision?” Her eyes narrowed. “Or is there something else to this? Something you are hiding, and don’t want us to know”

“Of course not!” Her response was a bit too loud.

“Then what is it?”

“I…I am just worried. The Smith family is a very formidable one, with lots of conspiracy and internal strife. Will you be able to handle it?” She directed the question to Sandy, feeling she was too innocent.

Sandy remained silent for a while. “Yes” she replied resolutely. Layla bit her lips.

“Okay then. I support you” she choked out.

Sandy breathed a sigh of relief, pulling her into a hug.

“Thank you” Layla forced a smile.

“So, when is the wedding?” Valerie asked.

“Next month. I don’t know the date yet”

“Let us know when it’s set, so we can pick your gowns together” Valerie replied, unaware of Layla who was gritting her teeth.