(2 Book Box Set) Loving The White Billionaire: 2 & 3 (8 page)

I
woke up in the middle of the night to the sound
of shrill ringing. At first I didn’t know what it was. That was until I ran
downy he stairs and answered the telephone. I could hear sobbing and frantic
voices on the other line, but I couldn’t understand who they were coming from.
Only two people had this number, and those two were Josie and my mother.

“Mom? Josie? Who is this?” I didn’t bother to look at the
caller I.D. What I did look at was the time.

“Baby! I need you to come back,” the voice was cut off by
muffled cries, “it’s your Dad!” my mom cried.

“Dad? What’s wrong with Daddy?” I asked.

My heart was in my throat, cutting off the circulation to my
head. I steadied myself against a chair as I began to sway. My mom hadn’t told
me anything about what happened to my dad, but I knew that it had to be serious
for her to call me screaming like she had.

“We’re at the hospital! Please come home,” she sobbed.

“Mom, I need you to calm down; tell me what happened!” I
shouted in frustration.

“It’s his heart! Just come here, I have to go! We’re at the
hospital you were born. I love you baby, bye,” and with that the conversation
was over.

I had never experienced my mom like this before. She was frantic
and absolutely out of it, which scared me even more. I slammed the phone back
down on the hook, and darted up the stairs, nearly tripping in my attempt to
get to Axel. His posture was erect when I finally reached him.

“What’s going on? It’s three in the morning! Are you okay?”
he asked reaching for me when I walked away.

“I need you to take me back to the states! My dad is in the
hospital, and from the way my mom was screaming, it’s bad!” 

“Alright, Jaida, calm down ok? We’ll be out of here by six
ok?”

I whirled around, stumbling at the speed. I glared at him
incredulous as he sat in confusing on the bed. My heart was pumping and I could
barely catch my breath.

“What do you mean in three hours? We need to leave now!”

“Listen to me Jaida! I know that you’re worried, but the
pilot doesn’t wake up until five. We are about an hour from the plane ok? We’re
going to have to wait. In the meantime, you can pack your bags and get
everything you need while I do the same,” Axel said calming me down.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath and tried to sensibly
deal with the situation. Axel was right; there was nothing that I could do at
the moment. I needed to calm down. Besides the fact that there was nothing that
I could do until six; I was naked.

“You go take a bath or something; I’ll pack our bags and get
the car ready. If we leave in under an hour thirty, we’ll make it there by five
instead,” Axel said softly while holding my shoulders.

“You’re right. It’s kind of chilly out there, and my
birthday suit is inappropriate.”

“Right,” he said with a chuckle, “Go on, I’ll handle
everything.”

“Thank you Axel.”

I walked away after fist giving Axel a squeeze and made my
way towards the bathroom door. I decided on a hot shower instead. I could soak
in it for a few minutes to get the tension out of my back. The water was the
perfect temperature; it caused the glass of the mirror and windows to fog. I
could’ve sworn it sizzled on my skin as soon as I stepped in.

One thing it did do was relax me. Of course not completely,
but it did help me take the edge off. As I lathered the bubbles up and down the
length of my arm, I found myself thinking about my dad. I especially thought
about the time that we spent in this very country.

I found my eyes stinging unshed tears. My dad was the reason
I never quit school, I needed him in my life. I felt so terrible about leaving
the states so unexpectedly; what if I were in Puerto Rico at the time? I’d skipped
town and hadn’t even turned on my phone. He would’ve been rotting in the
hospital, I wouldn’t have even known.

Shaking my head to try and get rid of the thought, I focused
on the good. I focused on how close we were and how I could talk to him about
anything. I thought about the time when I was a teen and I thought that I was
pregnant. I told him before I’d told my mom. As a matter of fact, I hadn’t told
my mom.

He didn’t make me feel like I was a tramp or that I was
stupid. He said that he understood, and that mistakes happened. He let me know
that he would still see me as his little girl no matter what the outcome.
Turned out that I wasn’t pregnant.

It was all cleared up in a matter of weeks, so there was
nothing to tell by that point. But my mom did feel upset, when later she found
out from Dad, that I hadn’t told her. But the thing was, it wasn’t about her.
It has always been about my dad and I.

“Hey, I shot a text to the pilot about thirty minutes ago,
and he’s awake. You almost done with that shower?”

“How long have I been in here?”

“About thirty minutes now.”

“Oh,” I must’ve been thinking really hard, “I’ll go get
dressed,” I said reaching out towards the shower nozzle.

“Ok.”

“Did you need to hop in?” I asked backing away from the
nozzle and hopping out.

“Here, I took this out of the dryer; I thought you might
appreciate it,” he said as I wrapped the warm towel around my cold body.

“It’s like heaven, thank you, Ax,” I said before kissing him
on the cheek.

“You’re welcome Jay.”

The towel felt like a hug around my body. Axel was a life
saver. I smiled before he kissed me on the cheek and hopped in the shower. I
knew that I would be crying by the end of the day, so I decided to keep a fresh
face, and just lathered a small amount of coconut oil on.

I pilled my curls on top of my head, got dressed, and headed
downstairs. I figured that I would tidy up the kitchen, making sure that there
wasn’t anything that could attract insects on the counters. My mind must’ve
been seriously flustered; I couldn’t even remember who cleaned the kitchen last
night.

The counters were spotless and the floor was mopped. There
was nothing in here for me to do. Maybe the living room needed something done
to it. I shook my head; there was nothing in here for me to do. I decided to
check the bathrooms, all three of them. I felt the tears building as I realized
that we had only used the one since we’d gotten here.

I knew what I was trying to do, and the fact that it wasn’t
working was getting to me. I started thinking about my dad, and how I’d left
him. I thought about all the calls I could’ve made to him in the past, and I
thought about how I might not make it to him in time. The thought broke the dam,
flooded my thoughts, and trickled down my face.

I perched myself on top of the counter, and tried to collect
myself. My hands were covering my face as I breathed into my palms. My body
convulsed with sobs that soaked my hands and drenched my face. I needed to stop,
but I couldn’t.

What if last month was the last time I got to see my dad? I
cursed myself for being so neglectful. Footsteps sounded, and then ended before
I felt arms around me. His chest supported my weight as I melted into him. I
took deep breaths, but each one broke off into a sob.

Though I cried, for maybe ten minutes now, Axel never once
told me to stop. He never once told me to get a grip on myself. He just held me
tight, and let me cry. He let me get out all that I needed to before I calmed
down. He held me against him like he could stand there forever.

“The car is started, our bags are packed; we’ll leave
whenever you’re ready, but no sooner,” he said softly against my curls.

“I’m ready; we need to get there as soon as possible,” I
said after clearing my throat.

“Okay honey, let’s go.”

Nodding my head in compliance, I was helped down from the
counter, and escorted towards the door. Axel stopped me before we reached the
car door. He turned me to face him before he planted a kiss on my forehead.

“Don’t let those thoughts flood your head. We’re going to
get you to your dad.”

“Okay,” I said softly.

“I’ll be next to you the whole time. Everything will be
okay.”

“Ok honey, let’s go,” I said nodding my head and showing him
that I was fine.

Once we were in the car, Axel pulled out nearly as fast as
he could, and shot off towards the airport where our flight awaited us. As we
drove, I found my mind trying to binge on the negative thoughts again, but I
quieted them with Axel’s reassuring words. I decided to close my eyes, and try
and get some sleep before we made it to the states.

T
he first thing I did was hug my mother. Her arms
were like a vise around me. My tears mimicked the Niagara Falls as they made
patterns down my cheeks. My brothers hugged me one by one before I finally made
it to my dad.

I began to sob as I reached my hand out to touch his face.
He wasn’t even awake. Poor thing must’ve been too exhausted from his heart. I
bent down to wipe the tears off his face before I kissed him. I rested my head
on his shoulder and I prayed, for the first time in a long time. I needed my
dad, I needed him to be ok, and I needed him in my life. Finally straightening
up, I turned to my mom.

“Tell me what happened?”

“He woke up coughing something terrible. I thought it was
just his cold messing up again, so I went to the cabinet to fetch him some
medicine,” she paused for a moment and tried to collect herself.

“It’s okay Momma,” Sammy comforted.

“He was gagging, and blue! And I knew then that this was not
just some cough.”

“What’s wrong with his heart?”

“Just heart failure. He’s eating too much fried foods, getting
old, and not exercising,” she stated with a defeated shrug.

“Well, what have you been feeding him? He only eats your
food!” I pointed out.

“Apparently, he’s been eating over at his sister’s house
because
I
have been cooking too clean for him! That’s what he decided to
tell me before he passed back out,” she said choking up towards the end.

“Oh Daddy! Why did you have to be so stubborn?”

“Can we address the elephant in the room?” Lucas asked
suddenly.

It just dawned on me that I had not come alone. This was the
moment that I’d feared. Damn! I should’ve had a better game plan than this. I
was so worried about my father that I completely forgot about the introduction.

“Family, this is Axel; he brought me here from Italy.”

“Italy?! What the hell were you doing in Italy?” Samuel
asked.

“With a man other than your fiancé!” Lucas added.

“Oh my God! The wedding was called off!” I argued.

“And for a reason none of us know!” Lucas snapped.

“And can I ask what this man means to you? He better be the
pilot!” Samuel added.

“Excuse me!” my voice echoed throughout the room.

“There’s no excuse for you!” Samuel interrupted.

“Stop yelling! Maybe you all have forgotten that your father
is in the hospital, but I have not! If you want to continue to yell, you can do
it elsewhere.”

“Ok fine, let’s use our
inside voices,”
Luke said
sarcastically.

“And you can start, Jaida, by telling us who this man is to
you.”

“My name is Axel, and I am Jaida’s boss,” he said speaking
for the first time. His voice caused the air in the room to stand still. It was
so deep and authoritative; it put my mind at ease.

“I thought your boss was female?” Mom pointed out.

“She was, until I started working for Axel.”

“And you met him on your honeymoon?” Samuel pointed out
judgmentally.

“On my
vacation
; Ethan and I broke up remember?” I
said.

“Still, I mean you break off your relationship, you leave to
Puerto Rico on a whim, and then you hook up with him?” Lucas said in all
seriousness. “Don’t think we don’t know what you meant by being my little
sister’s new boss, you nasty son of a-“

“You better stop that cussing! I don’t tolerate that!” My
mom said while she popped Samuel in the mouth like he was five.

“Momma!” Sammy complained.

“Don’t talk to him that way; he’s been very good to me since
Ethan,” I defended while walking over to stand next to him.

“He’s the rebound guy, he could be pimping you out on the
streets and you’d have googly eyes.”

“Samuel Jackson Peterson!” Mom chided.

“Yeah, calm down,” I spat.

“That’s enough out of all of you! We will talk about this
later, in the meantime, I would like for you
all
to get me something to
eat, and you
will
get along!”

Some task my mom set us all on. My brothers didn't start any
arguments, but they didn’t speak either. Every now and then, I would catch them
looking over at Axel, just for a moment before looking away. Axel on the other
hand was totally complacent.

He didn’t seem at all bothered by the immature behavior that
my brothers were exhibiting. He actually seemed quite amused. At certain
points, I could tell that he felt that it was actually sort of funny. In a way
it was; these men were in their thirties and were acting like they are in high
school.

“Are you hungry?”

“Yeah, Jaida, are you hungry?” Luke asked stepping closer in
a goofy sort of manner.

“Luke, don’t make me drop you in this food court,” I warned
with a pointed finger.

“Ooh, like I’m scared,” Luke said taking a step backward.

“So, Axel. What is your last name?” Samuel asked.

“Frost,” he answered politely.

“That sounds familiar. As a matter of fact…you look familiar
too,” Samuel said while rubbing his jaw.

“Oh snap, that’s the man that we were looking at in the
Forbes magazine!” Luke said in awe.

“Yes, that’s him. The creator of frost computers.”

“The billionaire!” Luke’s facade finally broke. The only
thing about Luke that bothered me was the fact that, only for moments he was
truly himself. The rest of the time, he followed Samuel. I knew that Luke was
upset about Ethan and I, but I knew that he wasn’t as upset as he let on.

“Billionaire or not, you’ll never be good enough for our
little sister.”

“That’s right,” Luke said remembering whose side he’d taken.

“Of course not. I fully understand,” Axel said towards Sam
who’d sucked his teeth.

“Sammy stop it!” I said.

“You just go ahead and take this back to Momma,” he said
handing me her plate of food before turning around, “I don’t feel that I’m
ready to accept this.”

Just following suit, Luke lost interest and walked away.
Rolling my eyes, I looked down at the container of salad for my mom. I was so
annoyed that I didn’t feel a sturdy hand on my shoulder. Turning around, I
looked up and into shimmering eyes.

“Don’t let it get to you. You saw how your brother Lucas
reacted to me. He doesn’t dislike me, but your brother Samuel does. Only
because I am the new guy who happens to be involved with his kid sister,” Axel
explained the situation.

“I know, but it’s annoying nonetheless.”

“I actually find it kind of amusing,” Axel said leaning his
shoulder against me playfully.

“Of course you do. What are you up to?” I asked measuring
his expression.

“Why do you ask sweetie?” His tone failed at innocence.

“Axel, please don’t get in their heads. I know my brothers
can be jerks but, I love them,” I said.

“I won’t do anything you’re not comfortable with. I’ll just
keep quiet.”

“Ugh! Axel, that’s not what I meant. I just don’t want you
to push them to much.”

“No, I understand; don’t worry,” he said with a wink.

Smiling as we walked back towards the hospital room, our
steps were in sync, and our hands were linked. I’d laughed about a hundred
times before we’d gotten back to the room. Axel made sure that even though this
was hard for me, he kept me smiling.

My mom’s eyes were scrutinizing as she looked down at our
hands as we entered the room. I felt uncomfortable. Sliding my hand out to
offer my mom food, I hoped that I didn’t offend Axel. I tried to make it seem
like I needed my hands. It was stupid, but I wanted to keep the peace. Taking a
seat next to my mom, I kept my eyes busy on everything else but Axel.

“Where are your brothers?” My mom asked just as I was about
to speak.

“Um, I don’t know; they left us in the cafeteria,” I
mentioned.

“Why? What did you say to them?” she asked me.

“Nothing!” I said in confusion.

“No; you’re brothers love you! They would have to have a
good reason to walk away from you.”

“I know they love me,” I said looking down at my hands.

“They are not too fond of me,” Axel answered as she directed
her sight towards him.

“Well, we were very fond of Ethan. It is shocking to see you
here in his place.”

“Yes ma’am that’s understandable.”

“And by that same token, I’d never heard of you until today,”
Mom said looking over at me.

“I knew this was going to happen,” I said.

“It possibly would’ve been better had you given us a heads
up.”

“I highly doubt that giving you a heads up would’ve been any
better.”

“Your brothers still don’t know why you two split in the
first place!” my mom argued.

“They don’t need to, remember? Besides, I don’t think that
would make the situation any better,” my arms crossed under my chest.

“You could’ve at least told us that he was white.”

“Mom!” I said incredulously.

“Your friend is part white so I understand the curiosity…”

“Mom, stop! That’s really offensive.”

“Don’t you mom stop me, he knows he’s white,” Mom said as
Axel nodded his head in agreement.

“Axel!”

“I am honey. I’ve come to terms with it,” Axel said causing
my mom to giggle.

“Geez Axel,” I said through one of my own.

“Thought I’d lighten the mood a bit,” Axel said genuinely.

“I understand more why she likes you. You are funny,” My mom
commented.

“Thank you.”

“When is he going to wake up? Is sleeping this long normal?”
I asked chaining the subject.

“The doctors just told me to let him rest,” she said
standing up to touch his face.

“How long has he been out?” Axel asked.

“Oh, about three hours now; not too long before you two
showed up.”

“And you said he passed out? Was it from exhaustion?” I
asked her.

“Partially, it wasn’t like he just went to sleep, he had a
few words before he went out,” Mom said with a chuckle.

“I bet he was blaming Sam and Luke huh?”

“You know it; they are always on his bad side.”

“Just like I’m always on yours.”

My mom gave me a look that told me she almost had no idea
what I was talking about. But then the look faded, and was replaced with guilt.
She didn’t say anything, only smiled and shook her head to keep the mood light.

Though that was short lived when my brothers came back. They
slid in the room without a glance or a look in Axel’s direction. Rolling my
eyes as I came to stand by my mom and dad, I watched my mother’s fingers as
they wrapped around my father’s. It was such a sweet embrace, yet so simple. I
smiled slightly when I thought about what that meant to them.

It was like every time their banded hands met, it was like re-sealing
their vows every time. I looked away from them before my eyes met with Axel’s.
He didn’t smile, but I could see the happiness in his eyes when he looked at
me.