The Cowboy Who Strolled Into Town (22 page)

The Billionaire’s Baby

(BWWM BBW BILLIONAIRE MENAGE)

By Riley Moreno

Roberta walked past the perfectly manicured flowerbeds, up the cobbled steps to the solid mahogany side door. She caught a brief glimpse of her face in the leaded glass pane. Her soft cocoa skin looked fresh and flawless. Roberta smiled at her reflection. "Skinny women have to worry about wrinkles," she thought to herself. "But a little extra flesh will keep you looking young" Roberta was proud of her curves.

She looked up at the security camera and smiled at the gate attendant who had admitted her into the grounds of the estate. He had been good at his job and thoroughly checked all of Roberta's credentials before opening the gate, allowing her to cruise past up the long and winding drive that was paved in cobblestone and flanked by Royal Palm Trees.

"Use the service entrance" had been the guard's only request. "I will buzz you in this time. Henderson will give you your own pass code to use from now on." Roberta had nodded. She wasn't an amateur. She was a professional. It's not as if this was the first time she had gained access to a vast country estate, and it most certainly wouldn't be the last.

Roberta was brought out of her reverie by a light buzzing noise and a serious-looking man in his early fifties who was dressed in a three-piece suit accessorized by a red and blue striped silk cravat, opened the door. 

"Mr. Leon?" Roberta asked extending him her perfectly manicured, red-polished hand and flashing him her pearly white, perfectly straight, movie starlet smile.

"Henderson" was all the man said in reply and Roberta giggled nervously when she realized her mistake.

"Follow me" he commanded. He had one of those British accents that Americans envied.  He sounded so distinguished. Roberta decided that she liked him immediately. His curt manner was endearing.

He turned purposefully and walked elegantly down the hall. Roberta looked down at the perfectly polished wooden floors, drawn to the rich inlayed pattern of dark and light wood. The floor reminded her of one that you would see in a fancy European hotel and so she looked closer, hoping to determine if it had been recently installed, or just meticulously maintained.  She decided that they were antique, but thoroughly polished and preserved.

Henderson had not said anything else but continued to down the hall, past about a half dozen closed door. In-between the doors were photographs of easily recognizable faces; celebrities, politicians, and models. All smiling and all accompanied by the same man. Roberta looked closer to a photograph of a skinny yet busty woman in a white bikini with her arm around the man. Roberta drew in her breath, she looked into his eyes. They were large and light brown. Roberta felt pierced by those eyes and her heart flutter a little. Her eyes wandered over his tanned skin and finally set on his medium-length, hair. It was a beautiful brown color and so thick. She found herself involuntarily raising her hand, she wanted to feel the hair and see if it felt as soft as it looked in the photograph.

"Miss" Roberta suspended her fingers mid-air and smiled her million-dollar grin at Henderson. His lips remained as flat and straight as an iron rod. Roberta would have her work cut out for her trying to win the Butler over. That was her secret; get the man that the boss cannot live without on your side and you will be golden.

"So sorry Henderson"

"Let's continue then" He abruptly turned and continued down the corridor. He reached a solid door that was closed like all the others, but for some reason Roberta felt drawn to it. Remembering her previous folly, she kept her hands firmly clasped at her side. She would show Henderson that she was quick to learn and would not make the same mistake twice.

"Wait here" he commanded, then knocked three times and stepped back.

"Enter" a throaty and commanding voice said. Henderson opened the door.

"Sir, Miss Roberta has arrived."

"Show her around Henderson, I simply cannot be interrupted at this time"

"Of course" Henderson shut silently shut the door, not wanting to further disturb his employer and looked at Roberta, for the first time directly into her eyes. If Roberta did not know better, she thought that she saw a trace of apology in his gaze.

Easy as pie. Roberta had always had this effect on people. She could get anybody that she wanted on her side. She was always popular in school and was never without a boyfriend throughout her teenage years. Other friends complained that men were jerks and always let them down. Men did not let Roberta down. She simple became bored with them. Bored that they were so pliable and easily gave in to her every request. Sometimes she thought that if she could ever find a man with a backbone unwilling to bend to her charms, she would be his for eternity.

Henderson led her back down the hall to his own small but quaint office. It was adjacent to the kitchen, so that he could keep an eye on the kitchen staff as well as answer the service door when it chimed. He sat down at his desk and gestured toward the red leather nail-head chair on the opposite side. Roberta sat.

"Roberta. You come highly recommended."

She smiled.

"I suppose it is no secret that Mr. Leon refuses to work with anybody but the best."

"I also have high standards" Roberta replied.

"Well let me outline your duties since my, I mean our, employer is otherwise occupied."

Henderson went on to explain what Roberta already knew. Mr. Leon hired her to orchestrate an elaborate and private wedding ceremony. Roberta assumed Mr. Leon would be marrying the blonde in the white bikini from the photograph. She listened patiently. She did not want to offend Henderson and could tell that he was thoroughly enjoying laying out the details of Roberta's job to her. She sensed that he might not have much to do. The house was grand and employed dozens of staff to keep it running smoothly. Henderson had probably selected and trained each and every one. Paying them so generously, that they would never be tempted to leave. She knew that she had been offered three times her normal rate to plan the party and although she was asked at the last minute and had to shuffle around some prior commitments, she could not refuse because she felt so highly valued. She even had to put a few A-listers on the back burner; it wasn't just about the money. Roberta was intrigued to find out what kind of man would pay such a high price to ensure that his wedding was both elegant and secret.

"When do I get to meet the future Mrs. Leon?" she asked.

"You don't" Henderson answered, not quite looking her in the eye.

"It's imperative that I meet face to face with my client. I have to be able to see their expressions." She said. It's funny how much people Roberta could learn by gauging their reactions. Words tell one story but facial expressions always tell another.

"Mr. Leon is your client." Henderson answered gruffly.

"But the bride-"

"The wedding is to be a surprise."

"A surprise?" Roberta had planned weddings for movie stars, politicians, business moguls, and even royalty, but none of those weddings had been a surprise. "So the bride doesn't want to know the date of her own wedding?"

"The bride" Henderson said in a monotone voice. "is not even aware yet that she is getting married.  It is to be a surprise in every sense."

Roberta was stunned, and for the first time in her life, speechless. She blinked three times and took a deep breath to pull herself together. Henderson looked at her straight in the eyes now, as if he was daring her to ask another question.

"Fine" she said, not willing to let the surprise get the better of her." I assume that there is a list of instructions that you are going to give me." Henderson stood up, unlocked a cabinet, reached in, and removed a leather binder, which he handed to Roberta.

"Mr. Leon has specified every detail."

"I will begin as soon as I return to my office."

"I am afraid that I cannot let you return to your office." Henderson said "It is expected that every detail is perfect, but what is most important, is that the wedding remains secret."

"Meaning?"

"We have prepared a room for you here. You will of course have access to a laptop, high speed internet, and a business credit card with no limit."

"But I have to stay here until the wedding is over?" Roberta guessed.

"Precisely"

"It's not a problem" Roberta maintained a professional exterior. "Of course I will need to call my assistant. Mariana will need to cancel my other engagements and run to my apartment to gather my things. I also need to call my boyfriend and let him know that I will be MIA for a few weeks."

"You have ten minutes.  Let Mariana know that I will dispatch our chauffeur to pick up your belongings. Of course she will be generously compensated for the extra time of cancelling your appointments and the hassle of packing your things." Henderson said "I will leave you to make your calls in privacy, then show you to your room."

"Do whatever you gotta do baby" Her boyfriend Tore said when she told him the news. Roberta knew that he would not dare be confrontational. He never was, but a little part of her was disappointed that he did not protest. Wouldn't he miss her for two weeks? Wasn't he worried about her sudden departure and mysterious excuse? She had been growing more frustrated with Tore's easy-going manner for a few months now, but had been too busy to do anything about it. This last condensation to her will was the straw that broke the camel's back. She was going to have to end things with Tore. He needed to be with somebody that would appreciate his willing-to-please attitude. She needed to be with somebody that would fight back. She decided that she would end it once this whole mysterious secret wedding business was over. She hung up and then dialed Mariana

"I thought that you would be back by now Roberta, you have clients waiting" Mariana was not as pliable as Tore had been. That is why Roberta had hired her, and why she had grown more dependent on her over the years. Mariana had gone from irreplaceable assistant to irreplaceable best friend. Roberta explained the situation to Mariana.

"I don't think it's a good idea Bertie." Mariana said, "it's not like you need the money, you have a six month long waiting list."

"Mariana, it's not about the money, I don't really know why I need to see this job through, but I feel an irresistible pull to this place" An Irresistible pull to that man she had seen in the photograph. That soft hair that she had wanted so badly to stroke. Those beautiful brown eyes.  They were beautiful, but unfriendly, and they enchanted her. Roberta shook her head. Those thoughts were unprofessional. He was engaged, and rich, and so head over the hills in love with that skinny white woman that he would throw her a lavish surprise wedding.

"I'll pack your things, and cancel your appointments," Mariana conceded.

"Then go on a nice vacation darling". Roberta was feeling generous, but she also had an inexplicable desire for Mariana to be far away. Mariana was the only one who would ever be able to talk Roberta out of going through with this crazy scheme. Roberta did not want to risk being talked out of it.

"...I do have some frequent flier miles that are serious in danger of expiring. The beach, a tropical drink and gorgeous tan bodies might just be what I need." Mariana was convinced. "Good" Roberta thought. "That girl deserves a vacation.

Henderson had shown Roberta to her room.

"I think that you will find everything you need Miss."

"Call me Roberta honey; I'm not your teacher. Although I could probably teach you a thing or two" she said and then winked saucily at the stiff formal man. Henderson blushed, then turned and left. He had given Roberta a security badge and pass code, as well as her own key to the room. She took the key out and fit it into the lock, then pushed the door open.

Her room was gorgeous, gorgeous. Roberta hired a designer to decorate her apartment. The designer had done a good enough job. The apartment was sophisticated. It was everything that she had asked for, yet she had been a little disappointed. She had expected the designer to deliver something beyond her expectations, something that really wowed, but it had just been fine. Beautiful, but fine. Expensive, but fine.  Her apartment looked like it belonged in a high-end home decor magazine, but it feel like home.

But this room left Roberta breathless. The luxurious pink Turkish carpet was intricately patterned with intertwining roses and felt like velvet beneath her feet. The gilded wallpaper shimmered in the light. The canopied bed was covered in a pale pink duvet and aqua dupioni silk pillows. On the wall was a gilded mirror that looked as if it had hung in the Palace of Versailles. Roberta walked over to it and peered into it, half expecting to see Marie Antoinette looking back at her instead of her own beautiful brown face. She took a closer look at herself and ran a finger across her cheekbones. Her nighttime regimen of applying moisturizer had not let her down. Her face was as smooth as silk. Roberta would always be grateful to her mother for insisting that she take special care of her skin. Her mother had also encouraged Roberta to love her body.

"Your curves and hills will encourage men to want to explore every inch of you Roberta." she had said. "Only boring men like the skinny twigs, but a real man will appreciate your soft roundness. A real man will want to put his hands all over you and discover what makes you purr." Roberta had had plenty of lovers, but so far, no man had ever made her purr. She was beginning to think purring had been a slight exaggeration. She certainly felt good in the arms of other men. She had felt her body responding as they stroked her smooth brown-sugar skin, but a purring sound had never come out of her mouth.